Jamie Hunnisett - Preliminary Task

Peer Evaluation - Jamie Hunnisett
In our class we watched everyones videos and gathered valuable infomation and views from others who peer assesst our short film. They said the following:

-We tilted our establishing shot, which was good.
-The fading shots were good in the dark room.
-We could have included a sound track, and maybe used spound effects to add realism
-The story started off seriously, but ended up a bit like a Benny Hill sketch

What we would do differently:

We would focus more on the dialogue scene, and concetrate on soundtracks

Preliminary Evaluation from Jamie Hunnisett
During this project I have used a wide amount of filming equipment including video cameras, tripods and dollys. The modern technology we have available makes it easy to create a semi professional film in which we have learnt many camera techniques; also we have been able to experiment with camera angles and shots to create a gripping and interesting sequence.
During the project I realised just how dangerous working on a film can be, as we were taught the methods to make filming safer. This includes lighting, where huge burns could occur if no knowledge of how to use the lights is present. Another danger of using lights is a tripping hazard, as many cables have to be used to connect the lights with electricity. We learnt that warnings are vital for the safety of everyone involved, shouting ‘Lights on!’ and ‘Lights off’ whenever necessary reduces the chances of anybody wandering in front of a light source which is about to be turned on, and could lead to being blinded.
One thing we forgot to do a lot during filming was writing each shot number and take on a whiteboard and placing it in front of the camera before filming each shot. We were told to do this because when editing it can be hard to find the shots you want. We started out using this technique but as time was of the essence we began to forget. It was only later during editing in which we realised how important this was. So next time we will defiantly make sure we try and do that for every shot.
My roles in the production of our short film were spread across the whole process of production. During research I helped develop the ideas we had and make sure the idea would be possible to create. When we moved onto planning our short film I drew out the scenes on a storyboard with help from Chris, and then Dave annotated and described the events in the film. In production of the film I had the main acting role which personally I think was a mistake, and in the future I think we should find a drama student, although the acting wasn’t the main purpose of the film, it was to promote our skills in camera work and mise en scene, so I think we get away with it.
In our film we had to include three continuity strategies, for example match on action. To do a match on action the camera has to be setup specifically to make sure the movement from one room to another using two shots looks realistic. Obviously if a character is going through a door, the door has to be the same in both shots, so the camera is normally located in the next room looking at the same door. The reason for this again is realism, otherwise the experience the audience receives may not be believable which would ruin the build up of the film.
We used a program called iMovie which is for Macintosh computers to edit our film. I thought it was a relatively easy and beginner friendly way to edit the clip. It includes many tools in which help to enhance your film. A match on action sequence can only work if the shots our edited together correctly, the timing has to be perfect to make sure of a smooth scene. Continuity strategies would not work without a skilled editor in the production process of the film.
To conclude I think the preliminary task has helped me to understand the importance of camera techniques, mise en scene and continuity editing strategies to make a professional looking film clip. Our group shall take onboard what we have learnt and make sure we have practiced enough for our main piece. I think to improve our dialogue sequences need to be majorly improved, we stuck to the 180° rule but I think the way the scene was set out didn’t help to make a captivating viewing. Also of course the poor acting did not help, more expression would be needed in a thriller.
I now know what we need to produce a great main task, and look forward to including these new found skills in the final piece.