✄彡Documentary Production (iv)

04

Post-Production

    Editing the documentary was not very difficult (lie, it was a bit tricky considering how I had to consider the timing of the B-roll footage with the audio) at first until I realized when I played back what I edited, there was a major lack of B-roll footage. When I first reviewed the footage, I originally thought it was just enough, but 'just enough' is not enough. 

    

    There should always be extra footage that can be used. I had to restructure some of the audio and B-roll, but it still had almost too much space between the B-roll and interview footage. This is especially evident in Sarah's portion of the documentary.

    The red box in this image represents the B-roll footage as the one under is interview footage. By the 5-minute mark, Sarah's portion starts. Compared to Mia's portion, it severely lacked footage, even though Mia's portion was already lacking quite a bit.

    Another issue was during rendering, the all footage would randomly have the exposure set too high. This is as follows:

Footage during editing preview

Footage during rendering and export

    I never figured out how to fix this, but in the final version, Mia (group member) lowered the exposure-- perhaps a bit too much. It ended up being a bit inconsistent with some other footage that was added. I should have used Adobe After Effects instead of Adobe Premiere if I knew this technical issue would arise... Especially since I know my way through After Effects more than Premiere Pro, which I have not used since grade 8.

☾彡 Documentary Production (iii)

03

Production

    My role during the production of the documentary was not prominent for sure, as I took on the role of the editor. I did briefly ask my teammates to let me know if they needed me to help them film, but they seemed as if they had a plan for the filming themselves, so I pried no further (it was the very end of class after we finished planning, anyway). 

    Much of my time during production was really just watching a bit more documentaries and reviewing the basics of the editing program, Adobe Premiere Pro, that I chose. I still wonder why I chose this over my usual editor of Adobe After Effects. Perhaps I just wanted to revisit the program after I ditched it for After Effects a few years ago when I was just learning Premiere Pro in my 7th-grade film class.

    After Effects seems to have been a better choice but I went with Premiere Pro anyway. For the sake of good old times, maybe?

     I also did review some of the footage. The original three subjects turned to only two subjects due to the lack of usable content of the third subject, though.

☼彡 Documentary Research, Planning (ii)

02

Research

    The research that I did for this project focused on the editing of the film since it was my role as the editor to understand the conventions of what we are working with (documentary). Since two of the major components are the interview(s) and the B-roll footage, I wanted to find at least two references for these particular components. 

    

    After watching a few documentaries on YouTube, I chose two documentaries that I thought could work the best as references for this particular project, considering the tone we have for our project. I considered tone, especially for the interview reference, but for the B-roll, I chose the one that I found compiled the most interesting B-roll while not being too over the top or flashy.

 

    "John Butler" is the first documentary I referenced as I mainly studied this for its structure of the interview shots and audio. I noticed that there are quite a few pauses in and between the questions, giving the audience a bit of time to both process the information given and observe the surroundings of the subject. I particularly like the tone that was presented by this documentary.

    The second documentary is "He Spent 40 Years Alone in the Woods, and Now Scientists Love Him". I used this documentary as a reference to how I would structure the B-roll footage since I really liked how the B-roll footage was ordered.

Planning

    I think that planning our time for this project was quite tricky. With both of my two other group members having little time to record, the time to gather the footage was a bit constrained. Especially as one of the group members is one of the subjects of the documentary, being a student with a part-time job. It's almost a bit funny to me since the entire idea of the documentary is centered around full-time students with part-time jobs who do not have flexible schedules to do anything aside from work and be at school. 

    

    Even in this case, it seemed to be difficult to find the time to film her day, especially with the constraints of her job. Nevertheless, our planning sheet still included shots we wanted to shoot, much of which I don't think we can incorporate, like the tracking shots. Maybe we can film the shots at home (getting ready) can be filmed by another person so at least we can put in some other shots so it's more dynamic.

    I think the structure we planned is not too bad, I am just unsure whether or not we can carry out what we have planned.

    We also have three subjects planned as of now: Mia, Sarah, and Evan (or his cousin?).

    

♬彡 Documentary Research (i)

01

Research (i)

    Recently, I was assigned to create a short documentary to learn its conventions and process. The very first step to this project was research, of course. What kind of new material or project would I start without any research? It started off in-class as a few documentary viewings, the most prominent ones being American Promise and Exit Through the Gift Shop. 

    The viewing for American Promise allowed me to pay closer attention to the structure of documentaries, especially because of the length of the film. The way that the B-roll footage and interviews were incorporated, how the timeline was set up over some time, and the transition and usage between the types of interviews to create a smooth documentary to accommodate for the lengthiness of the film. I enjoyed that even with only two main subjects, it still drew the audience in with the kind of information that was presented and how it was presented. The inclusion of organic scenes following the subjects following their everyday routine allows them to feel familiar with the audience.

    There was a certain style of editing that Exit Through the Gift Shop was able to execute that I liked. Perhaps it was just that it was stylized to pair with the punky music to match the theme of street art. The difference in editing and filming styles also flowed extremely well with the changes in the main subject. You can so clearly see the style shift mid-way through.

    Viewing Op-Docs was an assignment given after the viewing of those documentaries that we watched as a class. I chose "Now I'm in the Kitchen" and "Backflip" to view. 

    "Now I'm in the Kitchen" was about the narrator reminiscing about spending time with her mother; her memories, and her regrets. She reflects on what it means to be independent as her mother once mentioned as she makes a dish that her mother made when she still lived with her. I really resonate with the artsy, creative visuals and the very 'interesting' audio that was paired with it. Those two elements really drew me in as the narrator's voice-over was soft and alluring in a way that let me watch the entire video. 

    "Backflip" was about a man who attempted a backflip unsuccessfully, so he proceeded to make a digitalized version of himself to learn to backflip instead. I think that the concept and strange visuals of the digitalization process were really what drew me in for this Op-Doc. I liked that above all other elements of the documentary. But the structure and the provided information were crucial as well, of course.

    Overall, I want to say that I understand the flow and structure of the information that is given out to the audience some more. I think I want to be able to understand and focus on more and other conventions of documentaries, such as where incidental music would change to ensure the tone flows with the story.

★彡 Initiating my return to blogging

It's been a while, no?

Well, whether you like it or not, I am back. Yet again will I post about my silly projects, and whether you will or will not enjoy your journey watching my journey, I will persevere through anguish and pain to keep you entertained.

Forth shall we commence!

CCR

CCR (1) :https://drive.google.com/file/d/1xBDqOor0ByHTHuFPJ6l--3zjMR3NQgts/view?usp=sharing

CCR (2): https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Siz85TIh4CoyEtNPoFyDfdJEW3i7GBGH/view?usp=sharing

Film Opening

 Finally, after many weeks of working:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_tkFaycIJv8Q1jnf8B4NI65XnsSjcdw4/view?usp=sharing

Portfolio Project: Film Opening Task WEEK 8 [POST 2/2]

 WEEK 8 

[POST 2/2]

CCR

It's time to create the CCR-- with two media, four questions will be answered: about representation and convention, production improvement, audience engagement, and production resources.

The first will be a podcast with some music in the background: On The Rocks from the YouTube Audio Library 

The second will be a video...

Portfolio Project: Film Opening Task WEEK 8 [POST 1/2]

WEEK 8 

[POST 1/2]

More Exporting Technical Issues

Yet again I encounter another technical issue with After Effects:

Thanks to the exporting my computer has crashed-- twice-- with this screen. The project was saved before exporting, so at least I still have my progress. My patience is running a little thin with the lag and the amount of time that is needed to complete any editing as it continues to buffer after every click. But the film opening is done... the only issue is the exporting. Well, I may have to change or remove some effects...

Film Opening Group Discussions [2]

We met for group meetings today—again. I found it quite enjoyable watching everyone’s progress on their projects no matter which point of the project they are at. 

One person had a bit of trouble with the editing process. I happily offered help to them as the program he had questions about was Adobe Premiere Pro, which I did have previous experience using. Some of it was basic concepts, but he caught on quick. I also introduced him to tutorials on YouTube and even on Adobe itself. I hope the best for his editing!

One other group member-- who I remembered to be pretty much finished with their project-- had really nice lighting in their project. They did explain that they rented out a professional camera for this project. I was very impressed, to say the least. I believe their decision to rent out a professional camera was not only valid despite this being just a school project, but how professional the results came out for them.

After we briefly reviewed everyone's projects, we all discussed the CCR portion of the project and watched many CCRs of previous years. I found many great references that I could use in my project as well...

Portfolio Project: Film Opening Task WEEK 7 [POST 3/3]

WEEK 7 

[POST 3/3]

Technical Issue #1: SOLVED!

The issue where I could not properly export my files has been resolved! It was my export settings that were the issue. During the render queue in After Effects, I simply had to change the settings under "Lossless" in Output Module:

I formatted this as QuickTime since I did not have the option to export as H.264(MP4).

Under Format Options, I changed "Animation" to "Apple ProRes 422 HQ".

This took a while to figure out since rather than searching up this issue (my Google Chrome is extremely slow) I just played around with the settings a bit. So here is a portion of the opening: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Hx1IVIzhHO77wgmcDNUMjdJr5AVjtNCI/view?usp=sharing

Sketch Progress

I have sketched some more scenes as well:

> Toya on a chair

> Hand for string

> Park

> Alyx

> Blink

I did start the line art for some of these and it is definitely taking longer than expected. Even as a digital artist, I do not typically include linework for my pieces and skip straight to coloring and then rendering as drawing lines is not my forte... Sketchy lines are one thing but keeping everything neat is a bit difficult. 

My process for drawing these shots consists of sketch > line arts (plural, since I must draw it multiple times for the movement effect-- I'm not sure what it is called but it will be clear once I finish)  > filling in the character > clean up > Chromatic Abberation

Portfolio Project: Film Opening Task WEEK 7 [POST 2/3]

WEEK 7 

[POST 2/3]

Background Images

Earlier today, I walked with my younger sister to take some pictures at the library park nearby for reference pictures and backgrounds. Here are some, excluding a couple and some more with my sister in it-- she wasn't comfortable showing her face but I did include one reference image without her face in it.

Portfolio Project: Film Opening Task WEEK 7 [POST 1/3]

 WEEK 7 

[POST 1/3]

A New Week

I did not mention this in my previous post (dated 18 March), but it was my brother's 9th birthday on that day. Because of that, my mother decided to take us out for a few days after the 18th, venturing around central Florida. Thanks to this, I have not been able to make any particular progress on the project. During the trip, however, I was constantly thinking of the project. With so much time on my hands, I was able to make a mental map of it, using the timing for the introduction as a reference. I realized I am most likely very much under time. Nearly 30 seconds, actually...

I thought of adding some stray shots around the park and bedroom scenes to introduce its settings. For "cinematic" purposes as well. I'm not sure if that could even fill up the amount of time is empty...

I also compiled some After Effects tutorials! For wiggles, shakes, and puppet movement (for easier animation). 

Portfolio Project: Film Opening Task WEEK 6 [POST 3/3]

 WEEK 6 

[POST 3/3]

More Updates...

So far, even working a couple hours a day grants me very little progress. I wonder if I am too concerned with the minor details? I started off the animation with an introduction to the myth a few days ago, but even a few hours a day only took me to the third shot. I suppose this shot would be the end of the introduction, so I can start working on the park scene. I am leaving the bedroom scene for last since I have to refilm (not really, it's really just taking pictures-- but I have to rearrange the mise-en-scene).

I also found copyright-free music that could potentially be used as the soundtrack of the introduction: https://youtu.be/2V_tUQ8t39U

I chose an instrumental of a traditional Chinese instrument, the Guqing, to fit in with the ancient Chinese-themed introduction.

Portfolio Project: Film Opening Task WEEK 6 [POST 2/3]

 WEEK 6 

[POST 2/3]

A Minor Update...

Currently, my process of how I work is just drawing one shot and editing it, drawing the next shot, adding transition, and so on. I prefer this process instead of drawing everything and putting all of it together since I do not plan very precisely. With timing in mind, I have to see which shots I need to add onto, and as I edit as I draw, I can make improvises without having to redraw anything if it does not make sense.

I am only using a drawing program and Adobe After Effects, so literally hand animating it is quite difficult especially since I am using the "draw a single shot and edit it before drawing the next shot and editing that" method. This is also a very very slow process since the computer I am using for this project is quite slow-- even pulling up Google Chrome takes 15 minutes and a few force quits and reopens.

After Effects is quite slow as well... I suppose all it is is a game of patience and consistency.

Portfolio Project: Film Opening Task WEEK 6 [POST 1/3]

WEEK 6 

[POST 1/3]

Setup and Progress

I finally started the drawing process of the opening. I'm starting with the hardest portion of the opening: the myth introduction. There is a lot more camera movement in this portion of the opening and as I have never animated this way, I felt this was the best to start with.

My setup consisted of my desktop computer and my drawing monitor. I split screens on my desktop for the references and the storyboard while my drawing monitor was my drawing program. I believed this was the best setup I could do as of now, with the references and my own storyboard. 

The reference used in this image is the video I have mentioned before as one of my references for the animation style: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFOeQuShLME&ab_channel=GenshinImpact

I also had to compose a background to use for this cutscene since I planned that the characters would be plainly colored white so the background needed to have color to make the characters stand out (and the string).

Like the previous setup, I had references on one screen, and my drawing program on the other.

Since the myth is Chinese and the characters are already represented with Chinese cultural clothing (I used references from animated Chinese series like 墨香铜臭 for a simplified version of the clothing), I decided to proceed to draw the background based on China for consistency.

I chose this mountainous image for depth.

After finishing the drawings, I went ahead and edited them. It's a trial for now and I had some issues exporting the file so I may need to redo the animation. I learned how to input the camera movement through a few tutorials on YouTube so now, at least I am able to do this camera movement more easily. this version also lacks the red string.

 

Portfolio Project: Film Opening Task WEEK 5 [POST 3/3]

Audio

While observing past portfolios, I rediscovered the YouTube Audio Library which I realized I could probably use for the film opening. It included copyright-free music and sound effects. After a bit of listening, however, I realized the audio library for music was likely, not much use to me since it lacked the feeling I aimed for. Especially since this was romance/fantasy genre, I wanted something that sounded delicate.

I remembered that I used to listen to music box collections to do work a few years ago, and I realized there may be copyright-free music box audio that I could use.

Ultimately, I did find very fitting audio: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxPrWhirvf4&ab_channel=DarGolan 

I also realized that I could probably use some background rain as diegetic sound to layer in with the non-diegetic music in the beginning shots when it started raining some nights ago. I got up from my desk to my window and started recording with my phone. It's about a minute long.

As for the dialogue, there will be none until the title appears, which is when the two main characters meet. Instead of literally having audio for the verbal conversation, it'll just be subtitled. I will briefly voiceover for the myth introduction.

Portfolio Project: Film Opening Task WEEK 5 [POST 2/3]

WEEK 5 

[POST 2/3]

Concept Arts

I was digitally sketching out my idea of drawing in a simpler style but I quickly realized it would simply look better in my normal style. Though it may have a bit more lines and rely more on anatomy-- which I am not too familiar with-- I believe it is more visually appealing. Here, are some examples:

The bottom shows the original idea, but the top is what I plan to do now. It's a very rough idea and not as clean as I would want it in the final product, but it'll look something like this.

I did not include much of a pose or expression but I can already tell it will look stiff... especially since I am not used to such a simple style. It is also faster to draw my normal style, so I will stick to this new idea.

Here is an example of what Alyx will look like in this style as well.

I believe this aspect of the project is crucial as it entirely changes the visuals and perhaps even the tone and feel of the opening for the audience. Facial expressions are easier to portray in my normal style than the simplified as well, which will also end up affecting the portrayal of the characters.

Portfolio Project: Film Opening Task WEEK 5 [POST 1/3]

 WEEK 5 

[POST 1/3]

Character Designs, Visualized

For Toya, the constant presence of his headphones (his headphone-wearing) represents his issue of avoiding social interactions-- probably due to trauma. Similarly, for Alyx, the ribbons represent an issue they have as well--their genderfluidity. 

Short hair like theirs is often associated with boys and the ribbon hair accessories are usually associated with girls. I think two ribbons may be too many ribbons though, I may just convert it back to one.

Even if the project only resides in the opening, I feel details of their own issues are important to convey to the characters themselves... to build character. At first glance, Toya's slightly sharper eyes and headphones would make him look introverted, closed-off, or intimidating, even, which is exactly how I want to portray him. Alyx is rounder and so "cuter" and the short hair and gender-neutral costume would let the audience question their possible gender... Many people will simply be confused about their gender, which is what I am aiming for because nobody really knows Alyx's gender, not even themself.

Notes:

Their sizes are not to scale or reference, both are around the same height. The art style is likely to be simplified more during the animation process.

Portfolio Project: Film Opening Task WEEK 4 [POST 3/3]

WEEK 4

[POST 3/3]

Artstyle

I have a couple ideas for the art style. Obviously, with the time crunch and my minimal experience, I must resort to a simpler style. My first idea is what I intended to go with: simple line art and very minimal shading. Most of this will just be solid colors.

My other idea follows a far simpler art style compared to my initial idea. It is inspired by the following video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F64yFFnZfkI 

This animation demonstrates the lack of color in the character. I believe that using a style like this with a red string could place emphasis and focus on the red string since the characters lack color. To make up for the lack of color, I would have to be very focused and detailed on the facial expressions, posture, movement, and shape of the character to portray their personalities. This example also uses images from the real world while editing the image with animation to imitate the movement of a handheld camera. This is what I had planned to do-- use images from real life and draw/animate over them. I believe this is quite a useful reference for my project.

I also like the touch of chromatic aberration to the lines to make them pop more, to make it look a little more interesting. I want to include this aspect as well as it strikes me as interesting, which I believe the audience will too. Though too much of it might be overwhelming so I may just only apply the chromatic aberration for movement.

Character Design

There are two main characters in the film. The first character will be the main protagonist, who will be in majority of the opening, as they are the focus. The other character is introduced later on, in the second half of the opening. I changed the main character to Toya-- initially was supposed to be Alyx-- but I realized that Toya reaching out to Alyx would be breaking his comfort zone of keeping to himself.

The main protagonist is named Toya.

This character is a very closed-off and introverted person but is not the type to be particularly shy. Toya mostly just prefers to mind his own business and dislikes meddling with other people's business. He constantly wears noise-canceling headphones to avoid unnecessary conversations with people. He's a very direct person. Toya relies on thinking logically over feelings. If I were to use a shape to describe him, it would be a pentagon. Sharp.

The second protagonist is named Alyx.

Alyx is what I would like to consider a shy extrovert, one who enjoys the presence of people but cannot express himself well with unfamiliar people. Alyx dislikes avoiding conversation but it does make them quite nervous... and they have never been able to handle the anxious feeling. Of course, as Toya's polar opposite, Alyx will be portrayed to prioritize feelings over logic. This will most likely not be included in the opening, but Alyx carries around what I would like to call an "emotional support" plushie, about the size of my hand-- so quite small. Alyx would be considered a semi-circle. Soft, but just enough...

Additionally, I want to consider Alyx as genderfluid. Not only do I want to include representation for this project, but I want to just demonstrate a constant struggle for self-identity among some teenagers. I honestly believe this trait is quite underrepresented in current media, as the majority of the LGBTQ+ representation is just being attracted to the same gender or being transgender (which are already quite underrepresented, especially in Western media), but not much has been shown for the people who struggle with a particular self-identity. I have not yet decided how I would portray this aspect of them, but there may be an additional scene near the end of the opening to represent it.

I shall post my designs next post. Until then...

Portfolio Project: Film Opening Task WEEK 4 [POST 2/3]

WEEK 4 

[POST 2/3]

Revised Storyboard

STORYBOARD PDF

I did this digitally so it is in a pdf rather than inserted pictures.

I basically just added what I had mentioned last post-- an extra scene with fewer people.  It starts with the main character, asleep, and the audience will see that the character has been researching the red string of fate. I may change it to the main character would be asleep on the desk at the computer for a smoother transition between the settings (room and then classroom).

I still want to keep the park scene for now.

'Till we meet again.

Portfolio Project: Film Opening Task WEEK 4 [POST 1/3]

WEEK 4 

[POST 1/3]

Encountering Some Issues...

After making my storyboard I realized some issues I will encounter. The main issue is the lack of actors I have for my film opening. I need people in the background and a few main actors. People who I don't actually have. Of course, I can use myself as one of the actors but I definitely need more. I can't just film random people for it is not only immoral but illegal... My friends and family are mostly unavailable during the weeks of my filming so they cannot be included.

I did not have many options after that. I could either:

Animate the entire opening

Redo my storyboard so that I only need to film one character (me)

I thought for a while and decided to merge the two. I would minimize the number of shots with other characters while animating a majority of it. With shots of the real world's setting, but the character(s) could be animated. I want to have the freedom to draw and create my own costumes rather than being limited to what I have or what I have access to.

The storyboard will change quite a bit and being able to animate, I can lengthen the beginning to ensure that it meets the expectation of about 2 minutes of visuals. By doing this, I just solved a majority of my issues (timing, actors, and costume). I will work on my new storyboard. Until then, goodbye.

Film Opening Group Discussions [1]

For today, I was put into a group with a few other people to discuss and receive feedback on our progress. For our group, there was an issue on timing, visual representation, and filming issues. From our discussions, I was reminded to not incorporate too many ideas into the film opening to prevent it from becoming a short film instead. There should be just enough information for context and foreshadowing to an extent. It is fine not to incorporate every little detail from the original plot and much of it may end up irrelevant.

To visually present something I cannot physically obtain or is just inconvenient to film, coming up with alternatives is crucial. For my project specifically, the red string would be difficult to film so I decided to portray it by animating it. It not only gives it the visual representation of the thread but would also fit nicely into the fantasy genre. Someone in my group needed to present heroin-- since their film revolves around the effects of drug usage-- and since the drug itself is not obtainable, he said he would use an alternative: a fake needle, basically. I found this idea to be appropriate since he did not just discard the idea when he acknowledged that the real prop was not obtainable.

Timing is quite important in this project as there is a time expectation. And due to this, it may not include too much content. As I have not started the storyboard as of now, I have not yet encountered the issue. However one of my groupmates did. She wanted to incorporate a lot of plot-relevant content but it caused her the worry and issue of exceeding the time limit. She was planning on the opening of a film about a new artist that creates replicas of another artist's artwork. She wanted to portray in the opening the route of the original artist's life because of their own obsession with their own art which led to death, but also the obsessive nature of the new artist. We offered the advice to shorten the new artist's time to focus on the old artist's route. Since the question she is trying to raise for the audience is "Will this new artist follow the same path as the original artist?", I thought it was probably best if she gave more context to the old artist. This way, there will be a clearer focus, and the opening to fit in the time frame.

Filming itself is one of the main issues I will be encountering. As I am working alone, I must invite two other people to help-- either both as actors or one to film and the other to act. However, my issue is that I am very intricate in my camera shots and their movement of it-- so much so that people typically are not able to comprehend my particular directions. Because of this, I may need to be the one handling the camera-- but I also do not have two people to help. I only have my sister to help as all of my friends are studying and working on their own work. I was suggested to just use the same actor in different clothes and use shots to not show the face of the second character. I decided to go along with this idea until I find someone to act.

Overall, I believe this discussion helped and will help me as I continue to develop my film opening it reminded me to acknowledge other possible issues I may have, and having these people discuss this is useful as solutions are much easily solved with more minds.

My group!

Portfolio Project: Film Opening Task WEEK 3 [POST 4/4]

WEEK 3 

[POST 4/4]

Fonts

I recently came across some fonts that I am considering using for my film opening. I didn't want the font to be too plain or too overwhelming but detailed enough to acknowledge as a pleasant font to see on the screen while also applying to the film's genre or the name. 

The font Astigma caught my eye first. No matter how much this appeals to me, however, it seems to be too detailed to be on screen.

With this thought in mind, I was then considering a more simple font as many movies use a more simple font on screen-- likely to just briefly allow the audience to acknowledge the title without taking too much attention away from the film itself. Additionally, this font doesn't seem to match the genre of fantasy or romance very much, but I kept it in my options because I personally like it.

Though, I still wanted my font to reflect the film's tone or at least the context or title. Letters with loose strokes, perhaps.

I found Regista while thinking of this, but still, it looks a bit too detailed. It's quite round and loose, something that seems like it could fit the romance genre. 

I thought parts of the strokes were too thick, so I scavenged for other fonts. I came across Callient which also was quite round and string-like, but it may be a bit too thin.

I want to choose between one of these three as I believe they reflect the title and context of the film-- or something similar to these at least. I will use these to reference my final font. 

I might end up choosing something simpler and easier on the eye, but I would prefer something like the last two at least

Website used for font-finding: https://www.dafont.com/

Portfolio Project: Film Opening Task WEEK 3 [POST 3/4]

WEEK 3 

[POST 3/4]

Scheduling

This is the schedule I have made for my filming, editing, drawing, etc.

This month is the month of SATs, so I must dedicate some extra time to SAT prep. For the most part, I will be working daily for up to one or two hours. It's a bit harder to plan past next week since I am not too sure if my family has anything planned-- but my progress and pace should not be changed much as I plan to do some work every day, which includes jotting down any stray ideas for editing, filming, animating, etc. I want to work as consistently as possible to prevent procrastination. 

During the next week, I will try to finalize my plans to prevent too many re-shootings and changes. I will still be open to new ideas, but I must not add in last-minute plans, otherwise, the project will seem inconsistent. I will be looking for any holes in my plans as well and fill in those holes to ensure a complete project. I'm not too sure about my blogging schedule though. It'll probably be posted every other day, but sometimes it may be back-to-back if I make any significant changes.

Portfolio Project: Film Opening Task WEEK 3 [POST 2/4]

 WEEK 3 

[POST 2/4]

Introduction Storyboard

This is the storyboard for my animation introduction. Similar to the example I showed a few blogs ago, it will start with a fade-in with scratchy and sketchy artwork. 

When I first started this storyboard, I did not know what exactly to depict: an example, or the original folklore?

I thought describing the story would not be very relevant as there aren't many parallels between this original story and my story. So instead, I decided to just how

A visual introduction of the original folklore's characters-- Yue Lao, a boy, and a girl. I will show those characters in that order, zooming in or out and left or right to show them. The transition between the boy and girl will follow the red string to the girl. The boy and girl will then be shown arguing and apart to show that even their troubles will not tear the string.

The script for the introduction will likely be something like this (It will have pauses before and between each line as the visuals will be the focus of the introduction:

According to an ancient Chinese myth, everyone is connected to their fated partner with no more than a simple red thread. And this string may tangle and stretch, but it may never break.

The example of animation, if needed for reference:

Portfolio Project: Film Opening Task WEEK 3 [POST 1/4]

WEEK 3 

[POST 1/4]

Storyboard

These papers are roughly my storyboard for the opening. After the introduction of the myth, it will transition to the rest of the film's opening.

The opening's setting is at the (library) park near my house for the convenience of transportation. Since I just needed somewhere with people-- but not too many-- I believed that the park will be a fitting place for the filming. I may not have guaranteed transportation to anywhere farther, anyway.

It would start with a short collection of shots around the park, with the red strings visible in the background. This will be where the credits will appear. The audience will then be brought to the main character, who is contemplating on a bench. The main character will frustratingly look around-- this is where the eye-line matches/shots will occur.

The main character will slump into a "head in hands" position on the bench. This is where the second character will enter.

This second character's face will not be fully shown or shown at all as by this point, the focus is on the main character and not yet the second character. The main character does not notice that this stranger has a broken string until a bit later. The main character will then chase after the second character to the entrance of the park as the second character is leaving. As the main character is chasing the second character, the title will show.

This is roughly how I want the opening to go. I am not too sure how long this would take up in the film, so I will likely add a few shots after the title screen of the characters' interaction to meet the time expectation.

Portfolio Project: Film Opening Task WEEK 2 [POST 4/4]

WEEK 2

[Post 4/4]

More Opening Planning: Editing and Technology

It occurred to me as I was first writing my draft of my concept and idea that I needed an efficient way to present the introduction of the myth. I thought of just doing an animation to quickly introduce the concept, but I knew I lacked animation skills. Despite having a plentiful amount of time, I knew I likely would not have been able to complete a full-fledged animation for the introduction, even if it was to be only around 20 seconds. After contemplating a bit, I realized that there was an animation style that did not require every frame to be hand-drawn, but parts of the character to be drawn and edited on an editing software, which seems to me like it would take a bit less time than a completely hand-drawn animation. 

The animation is part of a video game's (Genshin Impact) character teaser. The animation I mentioned starts at the timestamp 0:20 to 0:50.

I have prior experience with drawing digitally and using the editing program Adobe After Effects so I believe this would be a more suitable option for me as I neither have a program for animation nor animation experience.

This introduction is likely to include a voiceover for context; I will most likely just use my own voice for this.

For the overall filming, I will just be using my phone camera and a tripod. I will also edit in After Effects since it is the program I am most comfortable using-- for efficiency, so I do not have to learn a new program,

Portfolio Project: Film Opening Task WEEK 2 [Post 3/4]

WEEK 2

[Post 3/4]

Character Design Process

The characters play the biggest role in how and where the plot will lead, just as proper representation will play a massive role in upholding my target audience's attention. Not many media in the industry execute proper representation of what they promise. Representation depicted in characters must be relevant and not spontaneous in relation to the plot.

My rough plot (and overall idea) for the film:

I also added to my plot since the last blog post-- I decided it would be a sort of tragic romance. The concept of star-crossed lovers (lovers who are unable to be together for a reason) has been a point of interest for me since I watched the animated movie Your Name (2016).

I believe incorporating this sort of idea in a story based on a romantic myth works well together. Romantic stories with somber endings are more interesting this way to me, like Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Though this might not affect the opening too much, I still wanted to develop this kind of plot detail to keep myself interested to keep me motivated.

Enough about the plot-- I wanted to create characters for this that were opposites of each other. Though they may not have much in common, their inability to love based on their distinct traumas and (mental) illnesses would be the only similarity they share. Both unknowingly stray away from their fated love-- one missing a string as the other's string is broken. I believe that opposites are complementary. One side could fill in the missing features of the other and vice versa. Based on these beliefs, I want to create two characters with opposing color palettes (e.g. white/red, black/green).

For now, I am unsure of my actors for this project, so the most I can plan for now is color and shape.

For my main character, I want to incorporate the white/red palette-- representing a more open personality-- and the other character a black/green palette-- representing a more closed and straightforward personality. These colors may be changed later on depending on the people that will act, but it would still be opposing colors based on the color wheel.

Portfolio Project: Film Opening Task WEEK 2 [Post 2/4]

WEEK 2

[Post 2/4]

World-Building

For the film opening to be planned and executed with no issues regarding the world of the concept, the world-building step is crucial. After all, world-building affects the visuals and the plot itself. This is applied mostly to fantasy genres or any other genres that are composed of any characteristics that may be anything from our real world (like adding superpowers). Franchises like Marvel or Despicable Me have aspects that do not exist in the real world, like superpowers and yellow, despicable little beings that crave evil-- in which they must develop the rules of those worlds, being mostly of our current world with an addition of their own rules and such to accommodate to their new concept to their world. Since my concept is based on a myth, it requires some world-building.

Mostly, it is completely based on our real world-- besides the red strings. Red strings will be only visible to the main character, attached to each person's pinky finger. As the myth goes, the one on the other end of the thread will be their fated person.

However, my main character will not have a string.

Plot, Opening's Rough Planning

The film will open with a quick introduction to the red thread of fate-- just the concept and the few rules. I believe this is important since the myth is not popular in the Western Hemisphere-- or just out of China or East Asia. An introduction will familiarize the concept of the audience-- that I will be targeting a general audience of young adults.

It will then transition to the narrative world...

The main issue for my main character (MC) is that they do not have a string. They will be the sole anomaly... to their knowledge at least. The setting would be modern--and the opening would be somewhere with people, but not too many; perhaps around 10 people. Enough people to showcase the strings but not too many people so it is not overwhelming. 

The MC would be on a bench looking around the people as they then lay back in frustration and confusion over their missing string, seeing others' strings. They would then encounter someone suddenly without a string... The MC does not realize until a few seconds later-- a brain lag, basically-- and tries to run after this person but they are already gone. When they meet again, MC tries to figure out why and how they do not have a string. They are not very cooperative, unfortunately. MC realizes that they do not get along at all. They're essentially opposites, but there is only one thing they share. Which will be--?

Well, before I discuss their similarity, I want to explore why the MC can see the strings. I also believe its details may not impact the opening much although the general idea does. I want to incorporate some trauma and mental illness into the character as the cause. Something recent, maybe. I would like to discuss the rest of the character backstories in a separate blog dedicated to character details-- which, spoiler, will be my next post.

References

Kassé, S. (2022, June 8). Worldbuilding in a novel: A guide to creating a believable world. Self Publishing School. Retrieved February 16, 2023, from https://self-publishingschool.com/worldbuilding