Chiaroscuro lighting (low-key lighting) emphasises both shadow and lighting in order to create depth.
A key light is often the strongest and most important light. It is traditionally the main source of lighting.
A fill light is often placed opposite the key light to fill in the shadows created by the key light. The use of the fill light decides upon both the mood and style of the shot.
Background light separates the subject from the background, giving it a more three dimensional look. Background light also lights up the background of the shot.
2)Examples of Pictures we'd taken with Natural Light and with a Key Light Source:
I was asked to look at pictures I had taken or take pictures that represented pictures taken with natural lighting and those taken with a key light source.
Example of Natural Light:
Example of a Key Light Source:
'This Is Not A Love Letter' Short Film:
("This Is Not A Love Letter", 2020)
'This Is Not A Love Letter' is a short-film directed by Ariel Zucker and encompasses the reactions of a woman's friends as she shares with them the story of her experience of having an abortion for the first time. The short-film is part of a spoken word series by CNT Productions and is focused upon a poem that the lead actor wrote when reflecting upon her experience of having an abortion and as a woman in society.
In 'This Is Not A Love Letter', I believe that the director alongside the director of photography chose to use soft lighting in order to enhance the emotional connection with the audience. The DoP appears to have mostly used natural lighting at the very beginning of the film, changing as soon as the dialogue begins. The colour and lighting are warmer once the dialogue begins to possibly mirror the fact that the lead isn't alone in her experiences and that she appears to be accepted and empathy is shared by the other people she tells.
The colour palette used primarily contains reds, yellows, blues and greens. The warmth of the yellows and reds could be representative of the emotional connection and passion between the experience of the lead and the other women. The blues and greens could be symbolic of the shock and numbness that the lead was feeling at the time surrounding her abortion. In addition to this, they could also represent the sadness she was feeling due to the event that had occurred and the pressure often placed on women by society with regards to deciding what they should do with their bodies.
The camera is handheld throughout the film, creating a sense of intimacy as you are experiencing and incredibly personal moment alongside each character as the lead recounts her first abortion.
Bibliography:
"This Is Not A Love Letter" (2020) [Online Video] At: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEWZyo-h99k&ab_channel=CNTProductions (Accessed 27/01/2021)
In this workshop, I learnt how to use Premier Pro to edit a video alongside sound. Prior to this workshop, I had limited knowledge of Premier Pro.
We were given video clips and audio clips to create a story by putting them all together. I learnt how to use the basics such as, the mark in and mark out tools. Through asking questions, I discovered that what we were editing was called a 'rough cut'. We were also taught the importance of making the video flow, making sure the cuts didn't appear to jump too much and looking carefully at the angles of the shots.
Ferg placed emphasis on thinking about marking the videos in and out and putting them together based on the tempo of the music and the audio (around four frames per second). We were made to also think about the reasoning behind putting our video clips in the order that we did. For example, I put the video of the train arriving at the beginning and the train leaving at the end as they mirrored each other and resembled the main character's thoughts entering and leaving, taking him into a world of his own. I also tried to match the video clip to the story that was being told by the main character. For example, when he talked about thinking alone and getting lost in his own thoughts, I used a video clip of him sat by himself clearly lost in his own thoughts. I didn't use all of the clips that were given as there was rather a lot of camera shake on some of them and the story being delivered still made sense without these clips.
This was my first attempt at editing a short film on Premier Pro. If I remade the rough cut/edit of this video, I would change the ending of the video. Prior to the subway leaving at the end, I would add or extend a clip of the main character so that the video makes more sense and it doesn't just suddenly transition from the main character to the subway leaving.
Through this Premier Pro workshop with Ferg, I was able to build up confidence in myself as an editor and realise that the initial editing process (rough cuts/the first edit) is less complicated than I initially thought it to be.
Camera Workshop (The Chair) 06/11/2020
For the camera workshop, conducted by Sam Creamer, we had to work in a group to create coverage with the brief being a chair. My peers and I created a storyline based on a woman in a doctor's waiting room, nervously waiting to find out the results of a pregnancy test. We collaboratively thought about the different shots we could create.
Sam used the example of a six second clip from the film Taken 3, to show us that it isn't always best to have lots of cuts/cuttings on things however, it can work sometimes.
We were made to think about the intention behind each shot and the intention behind what we're doing. Thinking about the intention behind each shot/our coverage then enables us to effectively tell our story. Also thinking about the scene without the camera there/blocking the action out and running through the performance without the camera meant that we knew our intentions behind each shot and how we wanted to display this to the audience. An example of a shot we got that held meaning behind it was a shot of the main character's feet moving, which showed that she was nervous.
Due to the obstacle shooting during the corona virus pandemic, I learnt that using wide shots can help overcome this obstacle. It allows the actors to utilise the space and enables more coverage to be taken. Having more coverage means that the director and editors have more freedom to create their desired product. It was also emphasised to us to think about the 180 degree rule (an invisible axis connecting subjects) and incorporate this into our work.
We looked at a video showing Alfred Hitchcock's explanation of the Kuleshov effect. I learnt that the Kuleshov effect is a psychological phenomenon where the viewers obtain a greater meaning from 'the interaction of two sequential shots than from one shot in isolation'. I found the Kuleshov rather interesting as you can change the way the audience feels about a character/something based on the interaction of/meaning behind these two shots. The Kuleshov effect can enhance a shot and successfully relay the storyline to the audience without the use of words.
Premier Pro Workshop: Zero to Hero (11/11/2020)
This was our second Premier Pro workshop with Ferg. This workshop was focused on learning how to edit on the timeline.
I learnt how to move clips around on the timeline without overwriting another clip, how to extract a clip (pressing the x key and then pressing the apostrophe key), how to swap a clip's place on the timeline (command+alt), and how to delete a clip (pressing the delete key or semi colon).
I was shown how to change the sound channel in order to have the best and clearest audio for that clip. In addition to this, Ferg established the importance of keeping the audio all on A1 and putting the B-Roll (actuality) onto V2. Having all of the audio on A1 means that the sound can be mixed, controlled and modified easily by both yourself and others as it is easier to find than having to go through multiple lines of audio on the timeline to find the correct audio. Putting the B-Roll onto V2 (the second video line) means that you can change the feel of something without changing/losing the story.
When adding the background music, I was curious as to how to go about changing the volume. I asked Ferg and he showed me that I can either do it through the mixer or I can make the sections of the timeline bigger so that I could drag down the volume of the music on the timeline itself.
For this edit, I started out by marking each interview's in and out points and then placing them onto the timeline. Once I had arranged the clips on the timeline in the way that I wanted them, I then took a look at the B-Roll clips. I selected some that I thought went with the audio from the interviews and marked them in and out. Next, I matched them with the story on the timeline. Once I had done that, I chose an audio clip (music) from the B-Roll and marked it in and out, putting it on the timeline afterwards. In order for the story/interviews to be heard, I brought down the volume of the music. For the final part, I added the graphics in and put a black screen at the end to signify the start and end of the short-film.
I really enjoyed this workshop and getting to know the software better. Through these workshops, I am reflecting upon my previous work and using these reflections to improve upon each edit.
Premier Pro Workshop: Fairly Legal (18/11/2020)
This was our third Premier Pro workshop with Ferg. This workshop was primarily focused on learning the slip, ripple and roll tools in Premier Pro.
Through this workshop, I learnt that the slip tool changes what you see on the video and adds to the clip but doesn't make the timeline any long. The roll tool allows you to roll the action a little closer to where you want it and the ripple tool allows you to sync two clips together.
This edit wasn't as smooth (in terms of transitions between clips) as I would've liked it to be, but it was okay for a first attempt. I was able to learn what the three tools did and how apply them to the footage.
The Bar Shoot: Rebecca Script (25/11/2020)
We were given the choice of two scripts and around two hours to shoot and edit. We went with the "Rebecca" script as we felt that we could do more with it and were already coming up with ideas for what we could do. We altered the script slightly to ensure that the actors felt more comfortable in their roles. As a group, we were permitted to shoot in the bar set at Maidstone TV Studios.
We each agreed upon and allocated our roles. I put myself forward as director in order to try the role out. We decided to put a comedic spin on the originally emotional seeming script. As a group, we discussed how we could go about shooting this. We drew upon the POV shots often used in the TV show Peep Show and wanted to incorporate them into our work.
As director, I helped guide the actors on their performances by giving them feedback and putting forward suggestions. I also worked alongside the director of photography (Heather) to ensure that we successfully got enough coverage, the camera was in the correct position for the shot we wanted, and everything looked okay.
I found that directing was a fun, but stressful experience. It was rather tiresome constantly trying to maintain everyone's focus, ensuring that we completed the task. I ensured that we got enough coverage in order to be able to edit the footage together. Throughout the whole shoot and the editing process, we tried to keep in mind the 180 degree rule. If we had more time, we would've played around more with the positioning of the camera.
Whilst editing, I found myself getting frustrated with the jumpiness of the video. In order to deal with this, Ferg helped me use the roll tool to allow for them to run more smoothly, matching similar actions in each clip together. Aspects of the video are still a bit jumpy, but I decided to keep them like this as it added to the comedic effect that we were trying to portray. It is also representative of the kind of style of editing used in Peep Show.
I enjoyed learning more about Premier Pro and trying out the directing role. It was great to collaborate with others and achieve a mostly successful outcome.
The Grave Visit Test (02/12/2020)
We were tasked with filming two pages of our group's chosen screenplay (Derrin's Screenplay) within the baseroom at the Studios. We set ourselves up in the corner of the baseroom and moved furniture around to get a set that somewhat resembled a living room.
It was hard to maintain continuity due to the fact that it was shot in the afternoon and the sun was setting whilst we were completing the task. We attempted to try and fix this by adding in some artificial lighting, but were still unable to maintain continuity with regards to light as we didn't have time to reshoot everything. For future purposes, we shall ensure, to our best ability, that we have the same lighting set up throughout.
Our main goal for this shoot was to gain coverage and test out different ways in which we could shoot the screenplay. We tried to gather footage from a variety of angles.
With regards to the editing, the clips sort of flowed, although I would've liked the transitions to have appeared a bit smoother. I also added in royalty free audio that I had found online. I would like to understand how to edit the video so that the lighting matches throughout. To combat this, I will research how to do this through researching and watching things like tutorials.
Overall, the video tells part of a story, which is in some ways is a success.
Our final project for the Script to Screen unit is titled the Interview. Initially, we had planned to adapt and shoot Derrin Elliott's screenplay for the final project. However, due to a national lockdown, as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, we were unable to go ahead with our plans. We had to collaboratively come up with creative alternatives. It was decided that in order to make this work, we were going to have to adapt Derrin's idea and write two completely new pages of script. As a team, we virtually met and tried to figure out some creative solutions to our obstacle. We drew upon things that we had watched. For example, we looked at the show Staged and the film Cyberbully as well as video platforms like Youtube. As we had to shoot remotely due to the lockdown and us all being in different locations, the solution we decided upon was to create something similar to a video diary. We adapted Derrin's initial screenplay about a father having a conversation with his deceased daughter to being about a brother who had lost his sister and was trying to get his life back on track. Heather wrote the new screenplay and conferred with us as a group, making changes along the way to ensure that it sounded realistic and could be shot. Despite the challenge of Covid-19, we were able to work collaboratively to come up with a solution and product.
As the Producer, I was tasked with completing risk assessments, location scouting, and ensuring that everyone was getting on with their roles. As a result of Derrin's screenplay being partially set in a cemetery, I got in contact with Kent Film Office to try and obtain a cemetery as our location. Due to Covid-19, we had to ensure that we had back-up locations in case we weren't allowed to shoot in a cemetery. When tier four and lockdown were announced, it was decided that we would shoot in our student accommodation (one of our backups). Whilst writing the first risk assessment, I struggled to know what to write and how much detail to go into. Once I had completed it, gotten feedback on it and had it signed off, I became more confident with writing a risk assessment. In addition to being producer, I was also the Covid-19 Supervisor, meaning that I had to ensure precautions were taken surrounding filming and the pandemic. I used the risk assessment to highlight the Covid-19 precautions our group were to take and the possible impacts it could have if Covid-19 precautions weren't taken.
To begin with, we had allocated Harry as editor. With the change in circumstances, we collectively decided that we would each make our own edits of the footage. This not only enabled us to see how we interpreted the footage and story, it allowed us to practice using Premier Pro and become more confident with it. Through the editing workshops with Ferg and looking up tutorials on Youtube, I was able to feel a bit more confident with using Premier Pro halfway through editing the final project. I learnt how to add video transitions (e.g. cross dissolve) between two clips to make them appear smoother and allow for the video to flow in a better way. I learnt how to rotate a video from portrait to landscape. In addition to this, I gained an understanding of how to adjust the volume of the audio clips. When editing, I had to keep reminding myself that you do not have to religiously match up each clip to each action/scene. Instead, it's about telling the story and making it come to life visually, ensuring that it makes sense along the way.
In order to develop further, I would like to develop my camera skills surrounding the industry standard cameras and understand more about them. Furthermore, as I continue to edit more videos, I would like to ensure that jump cuts are more smoothly hidden so that aspects of the footage appears as though it was filmed as one. By continuing to use Premier Pro, I will hopefully gain more knowledge and skill as well as become more confident in using the software.
Script to Screen: Screenwriter Research - John Logan
Fig.1 Portrait of John Logan
John Logan is an Irish-American screenwriter and producer probably most well-known for writing Penny Dreadful, Sweeney Todd, Skyfall and Gladiator, as well as many more.
After reading the Penny Dreadful TV Pilot screenplay, I wanted to read more of John Logan's screenplays and explore his work further. Therefore, I decided to conduct my screenwriter research on him.
John Logan often researches and draws upon history, as well as his personal experiences when writing. For Penny Dreadful: City of Angels, he drew upon the history of "his city", Los Angeles, and the large Hispanic population that the city holds, 48.6% as of 2020 (United States Census Bureau, 2020). His interest with regards to the history of Los Angeles allowed him to reflect upon current issues for example, the treatment towards those of a different ethnicity. To avoid political incorrectness, Logan gathered insight through those belonging to the Latino community by surrounding himself with as much Hispanic talent as he could (Logan, 2020). Logan's use of history and his own experience when writing is admirable. It allows for content to become more relatable to the audience, often resulting in greater engagement.
Fig.2 Penny Dreadful: City of Angels (2020)
There seems to be a common theme with regards to the genres of Logan's screenplays. Logan appears to primarily write screenplays that come under the genres of drama and/or action. This could be to do with his interest in ghosts and the supernatural that he has held since he was a young child. Macbeth and Hamlet played a particularly crucial role in Logan's love for storytelling. The action and drama that they hold is what primarily drew Logan towards writing and storytelling from a young age.
Logan grew up on Poetry as a result of his Irish parents, and uses both poetry and books to influence his writing. Reading is an incredibly beneficial resource when it comes to writing as it allows for the writer to draw upon their imagination and strike inspiration for their work. Due to his love of Shakespeare, Logan also holds interest in theatre and musical theatre. He has written things such as Moulin Rouge! The Musical, The Last Ship Musical, Red and many more. Logan famously wrote the screenplay for Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, which grossed $153,383,627 worldwide (Box Office Mojo IMDB Pro, 2008). The film focused on a 'demon barber', Benjamin Barker, who kills his customers and turns their remains into meat pies, with the help of his tenant, Mrs Lovett. Logan's screenplay for Sweeney Todd is rather gruesome and invokes a sense of curiosity amongst the reader/viewer, gaining their engagement.
Fig. 3 Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007)
Whilst reading a selection of Logan's screenplays from over the years, I felt as though his writing has become clearer and more concise, whilst managing to maintain a significant amount of detail and still allowing the reader/viewer to clearly visualise the content. I have found that the format of his more recent screenplays are easier to read than those from earlier on in his career. For example, Logan's screenplay for Skyfall is put in a simpler format and is more concise than his screenplay for Star Trek: Nemesis. Logan's development shows that the more you persist with writing, the more refined your work can become. Reading Logan's work helped me to understand how to format my screenplay in a way that was easily understandable. I also had a better understanding of how to convey emotion through speech, description, and stage directions, which I used when writing my screenplay.
Bibliography:
Ayuso, R. (2020) John Logan: "Writers need to dream and write all kinds of voices" At: https://www.goldenglobes.com/articles/john-logan-writers-need-dream-and-write-all-kinds-voices (Accessed 04/01/2021)
Bafta (2011) Screenwriters' Lecture: John Logan [London: BFI Southbank 20/09/2011]
Box Office Mojo IMDB Pro (2008) Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street Worldwide Earnings At: https://www.boxofficemojo.com/releasegroup/gr2966049285/ (Accessed 15/01/2021)
Cerasaro, P. (2011) 'InDepth Interview: John Logan Talks SWEENEY TODD, CORIOLANUS, LINCOLN &More' In: Broadway World 15/12/2011. At: https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/InDepth-InterView-John-Logan-Talks-SWEENEY-TODD-CORIOLANUS-LINCOLN-More-20111215 (Accessed 14/01/2021)
Fig.1 Bronwen Sharp Portrait of John Logan. [Photograph] At: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0517589/mediaviewer/rm3004173568/ (Accessed 15/01/2021)
Fig.2 Showtime Penny Dreadful: City of Angels. [Photograph] At: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10361016/mediaviewer/rm3570383873/ (Accessed: 15/01/2021)
Fig.3 Warner Brothers Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. [Photograph] At: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0408236/mediaviewer/rm3100085504/ (Accessed: 15/01/2021)
Haun, H. (2010) 'STAGE TO SCREENS: "Sweeney Todd" Screenwriter John Logan Paints Broadway Red' In: Playbill 27/03/2010. At: https://www.playbill.com/article/stage-to-screens-sweeney-todd-screenwriter-john-logan-paints-broadway-red-com-167119 (Accessed 15/01/2021)
IMDB John Logan At: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0517589/?ref_=nmbio_bio_nm#writer (Accessed 15/01/2021)
IMDB John Logan Filmography At: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0517589/?ref_=nmbio_bio_nm#writer (Accessed 15/01/2021)
Logan, J. (2002) Star Trek: Nemesis At: https://www.scriptslug.com/assets/uploads/scripts/star-trek-nemesis-2002.pdf (Accessed 15/01/2021)
Logan, J. (2004) The Aviator At: https://www.scriptslug.com/assets/uploads/scripts/the-aviator-2004.pdf (Accessed 15/01/2021)
Logan, J. (2007) Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street At: https://www.scriptslug.com/assets/uploads/scripts/sweeney-todd-the-demon-barber-of-fleet-street-2007.pdf (Accessed 15/01/2021)
Logan, J. (2012) Skyfall At: https://www.scriptslug.com/assets/uploads/scripts/skyfall-2012.pdf (Accessed 15/01/2021)
Logan, J. (2012) Penny Dreadful Pilot Script At: https://ucreative-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mrymer_ucreative_ac_uk/_layouts/15/onedrive.aspx?FolderCTID=0x012000A98322C95427654FA7209A4F8222728E&id=%2Fpersonal%2Fmrymer%5Fucreative%5Fac%5Fuk%2FDocuments%2FScript%20to%20Screen%2FTV%20Pilots%2FPenny%5FDreadful%5F1x01%5F%2D%5FPilot%2Epdf&parent=%2Fpersonal%2Fmrymer%5Fucreative%5Fac%5Fuk%2FDocuments%2FScript%20to%20Screen%2FTV%20Pilots (Accessed 13/01/2021)
Thomas, J. (2014) 'The Thing That Made Me Monstrous to Some People Is Also the Thing That Empowered Me' In: Slate 09/2014 At: https://slate.com/human-interest/2014/05/penny-dreadfuls-john-logan-why-a-gay-writer-feels-a-kinship-with-frankensteins-creature.html Accessed (13/01/2021)
United States Census Bureau. (2020) U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Los Angeles County, California At: https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/losangelescountycalifornia/RHI725219 (Accessed 10/01/2021)
As the producer and Covid-19 supervisor for our project, I was tasked with completing the risk assessment, finding the location, and ensuring that Covid-19 safety measures were put in place.
We decided on filming in St Margaret's Cemetery, Rochester and had an interior location (Derrin, the director's house) as a backup just in case we were unable to film in our preferred exterior location. In order to gain our location, it meant communicating with Kent Film Office. As a result of a national lockdown due to Covid-19, we were unable to shoot in either location. This meant that we had to think on our feet about where and what we could shoot. The location that we decided upon, as a result of this, was our student accommodation. We decided that as everyone was in different locations we would shoot our project remotely. As a result of this, I had to complete a new risk assessment based upon the changes that we had decided.
Mind Map of Ideas for the Second Draft of the Screenplay
In order to further develop my screenplay for the second draft, I created a mind map. As a result of Jane Marlow's feedback, I thought about the different ways in which I could make Dorothy more interesting and not necessarily your stereotypical elderly lady. I also thought more about her background as an ex police officer and how I could further play this into the story. I wrote all of my thoughts down onto a piece of paper and then formulated them into a mind map. Through doing this, I was able to select the thoughts/ideas that I thought I could work and inputted them into the screenplay.
