Film opening

 I cannot express enough how relieved we are that this journey has finally come to an end. We struggled and worked but we also learned and had fun with the journey of making this project. Without any more introduction: BORDERLINE

CLICK HERE For The FIlm Opening

My Creative Critical Reflection

 CLICK HERE - To view the Creative Critical Reflection

Reflection

This was a very long and frustrating project nonetheless. Not because of the difficulty of it, but because of all of the elements and things we had to do in order to complete it. But surprisingly it was also a time of learning and gaining new knowledge as we had to learn to do stuff me and my partner Matias have never done before. 

We started the project with high hopes of learning and being able to develop our "media creation experience." Obviously, we started with the planning process. We brainstormed possible genres and ideas when we finally got to one that interested us both: the indecision in high school. Both of us were very familiar with this topic as we had seen it with close friends and sometimes even ourselves. After that, it was pretty much research. We spent the first week and a half researching the genre, what possible things we could use, where we could film, etc.

Planning and research became a huge part of the project and it took us longer than expected. We also had to make scripts, location searches, and storyboards. The next step was to start actually filming. At the beginning of the process, we contacted one of my friends who previously agreed to play the part of the main character. However, this came to be our first drawback on the project. We were supposed to start filming around week 4, but those plans changed. Our actor was not able to attend this shooting day. Therefore Matias and I decided to use this  "off" week to refine our planning. We revisited the storyboard and script, organized the set (my room), and we did all of this to make sure that once we could actually film, it would be an easy process. Due to conflicts in our schedules, we could only film on weekends, so we used the weekdays to prepare these things. Once week 5 arrived when we agreed to film, our actor yet again said he could not make it. At this point, we became frustrated and decided to completely take him out of the process. From there it was just me and Matias.

On week 5 we each had to take on the characters that we were not supposed in the first place. On the first day of filming, we assumed this decrease in "staff" would not affect us... but we were wrong. The first day we filmed scene one which was mostly one character, therefore while Matias was acting, I could easily film. But, day two of filming came and we realized a big problem. We did our storyboards and scripts based on the fact that there would be three people available (two actors, and a cameraman). Now that one of those people was out of the picture we had to basically quickly redo our previous planning and remake it to accommodate our current necessities. So, on day two instead of filming scene two, we filmed scene three which included fewer shots of the two characters together, therefore, making it easier to film. 

Another problem came when our schedule became tighter. In the beginning, we thought we would start filming in week 4 and assured ourselves that we would be done filming by week 6 at least. So, I had already agreed with spring break plans with my parents and would not be available for that weekend. Thus, we had to rush the filming to a weekday, but luckily that same Friday we did not have school and I convinced my parents to move the trip from Saturday to Sunday. This would give us two days in which we had to finish or shooting. 

As mentioned before we planned to use a cameraman who would handhold the camera. After we changed that we had to change most of our planning. Firstly, we had to change the scene itself. We were planning on doing a walking two-shot, but without a third person that was going to be hard. We moved our location and had to buy a tripod. And, since we changed how the scene was going to develop we also had to change the script.  Those two days Friday and Saturday (which were the only two days we had to finish filming) we basically had to race the sun. We had to be able to get everything done before it was too late. 

On spring break we agreed to work on the project. I would edit while Matias would do additional sounds. But, we committed the mistake we told ourselves we would not do: we took things too easy on spring break. We had the whole actually started working on Saturday, but the good thing is we still had a whole week to be able to finish editing and do our CCRs.

We are both currently working on our CCRs and finishing up editing. There were definitely some drawbacks, things we did not expect, and things we could have done better. But as I said at the beginning, this project allowed us to learn new things and learn from mistakes.

Additional/Foley Sounds

 During the process of editing in a previous project, we had an issue with wind and audio. So, we decided to use this previous experience to fix that. We knew that in scene 1 and 3 there was not going to be many audio problems are they are filmed indoor. However, scene 2 was going to be the one that will give us problems, but there were two ways we tried to fix that.

The first thing we thought about before starting filming was to record with an extra phone our audio up-close. As our characters are teenagers, they can get away with using headphones and airpods. Therefore, we would both use headphones connected to an extra phone that is recording just audio. One of the issues we had with this though was that when both characters were speaking, the headphones will pick up the audio of just one person. And since we just had one extra phone, we just tried to place the phone in a midpoint area, that would listen t both of us. 

In case the headphones technique would not work as much, we fixed sounds on the post production process. We used foley or additional dialogue. So, certain sounds we recorded separately such as traffic, nature, or certain dialogue parts. These would help us avoid extra sounds we did not want in such as wind, loud cars and honks, or at one point people speaking in the background.  Moreover, for the scenes we had to use the original audio, we would use apps such as Audacity to remove static audio, or lower the volume of certain loud scenes. Overall, I think it was really good the fact that we were able to look back and see into previous project mistakes and try to fix them on this one.

Editing

 Editing has been a smooth process, as we have been editing since after we did the first shooting. But there is still a lot to be done. After shooting the first day, we decided it would be a good idea to edit what we already got. And it was good in fact, as we were able to see what worked and what did not. Or maybe some stuff that we had to fix. Overall, that first edit week was pretty successful.

After the second and third days of shooting, we would not be able to meet up again due to spring break. So, that was our last chance to fix everything we had to. The editing would be done over this week (spring break) which would allow us to take it slow, smooth, and concise with things by doing it over a long period of time, but remaining constant.

At the beginning, we both wanted to edit. The problem was that since I have a school computer in order to have Adobe premiere Pro, me and my partner could not use the "share project" ability of Premier. And we found out really quick that it was not really practical ot be emailing the Adobe project back and forth. I would email what I got done, then it will take time for him to email it back, sometimes the file would get corrupted for some reason, or if I changed it after sending my part, he would receive an outdated version of the project. Conclusion: it was a mess. So, what we did was decided on a single person to keep the project on their computer, which was me. What we would do, is that sometimes we would make a call and I would share my screen with him, so that we both input on the project. We made it work.

Shooting Day 2 and 3

As spring break approaches, this was the last day we could film so we had to stay focused and get done what we needed. By this point we scheduled to film scene 3 on Saturday and scene 2 on Sunday. Again, as spring break was approaching, we both had different schedules, therefore we had to get everything done in these two days so that we could use the rest of spring break to finish up editing.

On Saturday we needed to film scene 2. We already had things that we previously filmed on the first day to get ahead. So, this day was not much of a hard day. And the scene was inside the house so we did not have any other variables that could affect the filming. So we just followed the storyboard and got done the whole scene. 

Sunday was more of a difficult day. On this day we had to film Scene 2, which was outside, and it required us both to talk. Like any other day we got to my house to firstly plan out the scene and make sure the location was available. After that we went to the location. One of the first things we noticed that was a little annoying: the Florida heat. For some reason that day was just way hotter than the entire week. But this was not a big thing that actually affected the project whatsoever.

Now, one of the big issues that actually changed our plans was the change in casting. Since me and my partner were not able to have a third person, then we had to rely much more in tripods for scenes where we both appeared in. And, it is also the fact that none of us actually like acting or are even good at it. So it was very time consuming all the bloopers, laughter, and mistakes that would randomly occur as we have no experience in acting. So at that time after having so many do-overs and bloopers we were racing the sun... and our battery. Since it was getting late, the sun was going down, and since we were outside, the natural lightning of the sun was a big part. And to make things worse, as we were not planning on taking that long, the phone we were using as a camera was running out of battery, and even forgot about bringing a charger. At the end, we rushed the filming, no time for mistakes and thankfully got everything done at a miraculous 5% battery.

Casting Issues

 So far our most major issue was the unavailability of one of our actors. Initially I talked with one of my friends (that has appeared previous projects I have done) if he wanted to be on this project, which he said yes. The problem came the week that we actually had to start filming where he said he was not going to be available. This happened even though we had several schedules showing what days we would film and what and how much we would film each day, even trying to adjust to his schedule, but he just could not make it. 

Because of this, we decided to replace him as the main character, so he would move on to be the secondary character while my partner would be the main character. This way, the weekend he was unavailable, I could be able to film the scenes that only required the main character (my partner) so that we would leave the scenes of the two of them for the weekend he was available. 

However, the next week came and he still put up many. At this point, me and my partner were tired of all these excuses, after even trying to change our entire filming schedule just to match his. So after this we just entirely replaced him. I had to take on the role of the secondary character.

This not only previously affected these schedules, but it also greatly affected our planning too. We did such planning, like the storyboard, while thinking of having three people: two actors, and a cameraman. Initially, I was going to be the cameraman. However, since both me and my partner were forced to act, we had to change up our plans and figure out a way to have both of us while still filming. 

Our solutions so far have been to film normally like I wanted to with the scenes were its just one character. But, for the scenes that require us both to be on the shot, we had to invest on a tripod. Even though, this entirely changed our planning, I believe that we can be able to overcome this and still produce a good outcome.

Editing Process

 As I have mentioned in previous blogs, we filmed every weekend and edited on the weekday. This gave us plenty of time to be able to edit and see if a certain shot does not work so that we could fix it on the next shooting. This process has made our editing process much smoother and easier.

We both have had experience editing, therefore we decided we will continuously export our progress back and forth between each other to see how each one of us is doing on our parts. Of course, here comes in certain creative adaptations where one would like a scene while the other one does not. Here, we try to look for the reason why the scene should be added or deleted. But, thankfully, most of the time we are in agreement on the creative thinking and the way we like the opening to turn out.

We are almost done with the  process. Right now we are missing (hopefully) one final shooting this weekend. From there, we will have all the material necessary to utilize spring break to get into the more detailed process such as more editing, sound mixing, and the CCRs.

We have worked on other projects in the past, but this one is by far the most organized one. We both know this is a big deal, therefore we are treating it as such. On the past we may have had to rush our editing because we procrastinated on the post production. However, for this project we wanted to reflect on the past and learn that everything requires its time, and most importantly, DO NOT leave stuff for last minute.

First Day of Shooting

 Today, we started the process of actually shooting our Portfolio Project. We are planning on continuing filming this next week. But I believe that if we stay on track just like we did today, we will not as many days as we thought.

As it was the first day, there had to be more planning than shooting. Firstly, we rearranged the set. We  already knew what we wanted for Peter's room, but today we actually had to physically rearrange it. These changes were previously mentioned on of my blogposts, but it was not very hard to do this. In fact, we were able to do this very quickly in less than 20 minutes. Moreover, after shooting we went back to the location we are thinking on filming scene 2 into make sure it is still usable. 

The shooting itself was also rather easy part. We thought that we would need many days to complete this, but we were able to stay on track and shoot this scene in one day. We did not rush to get this done, in fact, we reshot the scenes many many times and shot several variations of the shot so that we would have a lot of footage. Having so much footage of the same scene can be benefitable on the editing part, as we have many shots available if we see anything we do not like on a single one. 

Another benefit we currently have is that we started early and will probably be able to finish early too. What I mean is that, hopefully, we can be able to finish the project by week 6. This leaves us a lot of time to edit. The benefit of this is that since we start to edit on that same week, we can be able to meet again to reshoot something if we see we are missing something or if we can improve a certain thing. And, finishing this early can also allow us to have a lot of time to do our CCR.

Overall, it was a very great start. I have worked with my partner before, but because of quarantine we had never being able to physically work together. But, we both knew we need to get this done, so instead of playing around, we were able to be very productive. 

Set Designing

     Even though we are not using a set design it is still important watch out for those things that we show on the camera. We have two different sets, the first one is for scenes 1 and 3 which is my room in my house. The second one will be for scene 2 and is a part of my neighborhood near the street. 

Rearranging my room was a very easy thing we could easily do, so we had to do it right. Our main character is a student who, essentially, does not know what to do with his life. Therefore, he has no hobbies, interests, or any idea of his path. This had to be reflected in his room as it would have to be very plain. We need to take things off my room that show some kind of interests, such as my guitar, keyboard, or certain posters that did not reinforce our characters personality. 

There is also specific things we want our character's room to have. One of those things are post it notes that showed his "checklist." These will show messages such as "homework due" or "test on this date." These mainly support the fact that Peter is a guy who does not like to do his assignments, therefore, he needs a physical representation of them so that he would actually start them. Moreover, these post it notes are going to be used in an specific show that goes through these to show his "stress" of having to finish many assignments.

For set 2 we do not have to do much rearranging. What we had to do was location scouting. In this location Peter and Michael would walk and talk while taking out Peter's dog. And, these place is supposed to be within walking distance of both of their houses. So, for this set we needed a narrow path, street, or sidewalk near a neighborhood. Houses had to be able to be seen on the shot to show that they both live nearby. And, there had to be some sort of connecting pathway so that while a character stays in front of the camera, the other one can walk out of the shot. We did find a place like this within my neighborhood San Messina.

Shooting Schedule

 This week is an important one in the progress of our Portfolio Project. It is very important since we will start filming what is going to be the final result of our media project. One of the big things that I want to do before starting this process is organization. This post will serve as a schedule not only to showcase our progress but also to keep us in check about what we are supposed to do every week.

Week 5

This is going to be the first week we will start shooting, therefore, I will also post a blog about how it went. We are going to film on the weekends due to conflicts with the actor's, my partner's, and my schedule. We will start Saturday, this day will be utilized mainly for planning. We are going to arrange the set the way we want it, are going to make sure all the props are good, are going to make sure our locations are still available and will set up the costume. All of this effort will be made so that on Sunday once our actor comes, we get right into filming part of scene one. The idea is to take time planning so that the actual shooting will be a smooth and easy process. 

Week 6

As previously mentioned, we will only film on weekends, therefore, the weekdays are going to be utilized for more planning, sound elements, and start editing. This way, if we edit every single week, we won't cramp up all the editing until the last minute and will be much easier. On this week, we will film Scene 2 on a Friday, this is because we do not have a school that day, and we have conflicts of schedule due to Spring Break plans. So, we will not be able to film on the weekend either.

Week 7

Since we skipped a weekend without filming and is still Spring Break, we are going to use Friday to film as well. Friday and Saturday will be used to filming the last scene. This schedule varies a lot, we know that somedays we will film more or some days we will film less. That is why we have Sunday to catch up on anything we need, or we will use it to reshoot if we see that there is something we can improve.

Week 8

Since we already started editing since Week 5, we will have the majority done by this point. That way we can totally focus on the CCRs that are such an important part of the project since we reflect on what we created and what we accomplished.

Sound

     For the project, we wanted to incorporate several things we have learned and experienced through this Media Studies class and its projects. We have gone through several projects already, one of them being entirely focused on sound. Therefore, we really wanted to emphasize on the audio, making sure that it was good.

    Again, we are doing this out of past mistakes and errors we have committed on other projects. One of the main things we will incorporate will be an additional dialogue system. In previous projects, there were times where our characters were outside and the microphone would not fully catch on what the person is saying due to distance or other variables such as wind. 

    Therefore, we decided we wanted to incorporate an additional dialogue system that will allow us to have the option to replace the original video audio. To do this we will have our characters wear their headphones (like teenagers normally would on a daily) and have them record the scene with the phones. By the microphones in their headphones being closer to them will minimize the risk of dialogue being lost due to some variables.

    Another factor we would like to incorporate is foley sounds. However, we do not know where to incorporate it yet, what we do know is that if we need it, we will do it using foley, because it is a fun process. 

    For now, we have a basic sound list for our scenes:

Scene 1:

- During the entire title sequence the voice of the teacher giving the presentation will be on.

- However, some sounds will be over the teacher's voice such as the flicking of the pencil, the ticking of the leg, or the mouse clicking.

- As the first sequence finalizes and the camera focuses less on the presentation/computer screen, the teacher's voice will be slowly faded until she announces the presentation is over.

- To add realism there will be secondary sounds such as the characters' chair squeaking, or a degree of muffle to the teacher's voice.

Scene 2

- The main dialogue will be recorded with the main camera and the additional recording phones on the character's headphones. 

- Background sounds such as cars or the highway will not be suppressed to add realism.

- A vibrating sound for the phone will have to be manually added.

Scene 3

- There is going to be the sound of the call as Peter's dad talks to him.

- Again, minimal sounds like the phone vibration, the mouse clicking, or the doorbell will have to be manually added.

- For the final dialogue scene the additional dialogue system will not be utilized since the characters are going to be indoors.

Stay updated with my blog! If we do decide to use foley I will make sure to document the process.

Borderline Screenplay

    As we have already created our first plan, which is the storyboard, we can be able to create a script. This will make it easier to follow along as we shoot and edit the scenes. Making the script takes us one step closer to the actual filming process, which I have no doubt will be fun to do with my teammate and castmember. 

    Hereunder, the script:

1. INT. PETER’S ROOM - DAY

PETER is sitting in his room listening to a college night meeting where a teacher talks about the high school senior's future.

Peter is seen anxious for the meeting to end so that he could do something else like playing games.

Once the meeting ends he regrets having that underachiever attitude.

2. EXT. STREET - DAY

Peter is walking his dog while he walks alongside MICHAEL as they talk.

PETER

Yeah it was kinda annoying

MICHAEL

I mean, you were the one that joined it

They do those college meetings every couple of months

But this was the first one you ever joined?

PETER

Well... yeah.

(chuckles)

Are we even supposed to know what we wanna study in college though?

Peter turns to Michael

PETER

Do they really expect us to?

MICHAEL

I guess, but it does not really matter, I do know what I wanna study.

And... I know how I'm gonna do it.

Michael looks at Peter with a happy face

PETER

No way!

Michael nods

PETER

You got accepted?

MICHAEL

Full ride

PETER

Dang bro! That's amazing, I knew that track thing was gonna pay off man.

I am so happy for you!

MICHAEL

You are next!

PETER

Hahaha, I really don't know about that

MICHAEL

Again? Are you kidding me?

I already told you: YOU are going to college, YOU are going to get accepted, YOU can do it

But you gotta make an actual effort though, do not prove your parents right.

Peter's phone vibrates, when he checks it, it is PETER'S DAD

PETER

Huh, talking about my old man

Peter answers the phone

PETER'S DAD

Where are you?

PETER

Taking Mya for a walk

PETER'S DAD

Well, stop wandering around and get home, I received another message from Ms. Miller saying...

Peter takes the phone off his ear and mutes it

PETER

Gotta go, let's go Mya

MICHAEL

See ya then

3. INT. PETER’S HOUSE - DAY

Peter puts the phone back in his ear and his dad is still talking about Ms. Miller's message

He walks through the house back to his room still listening to his dad

PETER'S DAD

I've told you a million times, don't leave stuff for the last minute because then this happens.

I already went through school, why do I have to keep getting messages from teachers.

This is supposed to be your responsibility, not mine.

He looks at his agenda and reminders of the schoolwork he has to do

PETER'S DAD

Get working

PETER

Uhuh, sure, on it.

As Peter hangs up the phone he connects to an online game

The doorbell rings

Peter opens the door and Michael is still outside

MICHAEL

(chuckles sarcastically)

Literally, just hung up the phone and you are already connected on the game?

PETER

Bro, don't judge I am really stressed right now.

Not really feeling like doing any work

MICHAEL

What about what we were JUST talking about?

PETER

What about it?

MICHAEL

The part where you have no idea what to do in college.

But more emphasis on the part where I bet you feel guilty for not knowing what to do.

PETER

Yeah but there is nothing I can do about it, other than dealing with it

MICHAEL

(sarcastically)

Umm, yeah there is

Have you thought about maybe looking for that one thing that fills you?

PETER

But...

MICHAEL

But that is why I am here for

Consider me your helper on this journey for inner understanding

Michael and Peter smile at each other

It is worth mentioning that any previous planning (storyboard, script) are subject to change in case we find we can do something better or if we encounter minor details that can be improved. 

Borderline Storyboard

Story Board

    There were several changes from the last layout of our project. Due to location availability and pandemic, we had to change the first scene setting. From a teacher giving a conference to several students, we have changed it to an actual situation where a teacher will give a Teams Meeting online.

    As a result of this, we had to change the storyline of scene 2 and some of scene 3.

- As the teacher gives the online presentation peter can be seen not paying attention and anxious for the meeting to finish.

- However, once it is over, he is seen regretful of this attitude he has of wanting to play videogames instead of paying attention to something as important as the college meeting.

- Again, due to location conflicts we had to change scene 2.

- The characters now meet up while they walk their dogs instead of while they come home from school.

- Even though the setting changed, the same script will be kept of them talking about Michaels college acceptance and Peter's lack of hope of getting into college.

- Their conversation is disrupted by Peter's dad who calls him to tell him to stop wandering around as he as to do school things. 

- Peter goes home and hangs up the phone.

- Not wanting to do these school things, he starts playing games.

- Michael comes back to tell him that even though his dad is rough on him, he should actually listen and do his work,

- Mike tells him he will be there to help Peter find out what his path onlife is going to be, and to help him correct his past bad steps on this journey.

Project Schedule

 As we move on in this big and important project we have to make sure that we are consistently on pace. That is the reason why a schedule is such an important thing. It will reflect the work done in the past weeks and the work to be done to stay on track. But, it is important to notice that this will only serve as a basic guide, due to the fact that we all know things do not always go as planned. And, those moments of improvisation getting out of the schedule, plan, or comfort zone can sometimes result in great results.

Weeks 1 to 3

The past weeks have been used mainly to research and plan the upcoming steps. It is always important to layout a basic plan of what you want to do so that it becomes easier to execute such a plan. As of right now, we have researched our genre, about opening scene patterns, we have created our main storyline and our main characters.

Week 4

We will utilize next week to really start creating the physical plans of our project. Storyboards, scripts, shot lists, sound lists are among those plans. And, having these fundaments will allow us to start looking into shooting locations, details in sets, details in accessories, and prop creation.  

Week 5 to 6

Week 4 and 5 are some of the most crucial moments. As we start to really get into the project and start shooting, we might notice some plans are missing elements, or maybe a shooting location is not available, that is the thing, you never know. So, after laying out the plans in Week 4, Week 5 will be the first week where we start shooting and developing what will be our final project. It is worth mentioning that due to schedule conflicts we will all be able to film only on weekends. Therefore, these shootings have to be focused and productive. On the weekday we will also use it to work on editing and further planning for the next shooting. As the time comes, new schedules might also be posted in order to showcase the points to address, or scenes to film at each meeting to increase productivity.

Week 7

This week, we will focus on key details such as wrapping up editing, foley sound recording or even reshooting if necessary to increase the quality of the project. 

Week 8

Hopefully, in the final week, we will already have everything set to go. This way we can both focus on bettering our blogs and reflecting on our own project.

Class Meeting Feedback

 Today, we had a class meeting that allowed a small group shares their ideas and progress for their portfolio project. We all talked critiques and gave feedback on each other's projects. I found this activity very helpful, not only was I able to get feedback from another perspective in my own project, but I was also able to help others that needed some advice.

One of the best feedbacks I received was "show, not tell." My classmates really emphasized this phrase and elaborated it in many ways. At first my basic idea relied too much in dialogue, mainly relying in dialogue as a type of narration of the story is not the best idea if you want to do a drama. Showing what those characters want to do and achieve instead of telling the audience, can make it easier to convey certain emotions to the audience. 

That phrase not only was a correction, it was also a suggestion. One of my friends suggested to make sure to have everything right on a scene. For example, make sure everything in my characters room matched with his personality. Moreover, mentioned that it would be good for my idea to add some symbolism, for example, using accessories that symbolize the way he wants to achieve a certain thing. This was a quick and awesome reminder that as directors of our own movie, everything is a prop, from costume to accessories everything needs a reason to be there, a meaning, or a symbolism.

After this awesome input, one of the things that really stuck with me was to relax on the project. They mentioned that I was rushing on the entire process developing this project. This group exercise allowed me to compare my progress to the progress of my class mates. With this I noticed that while I was already starting to storyboard, they were making sure their research was good enough so that they can be able to replicate their wanted genre. I am going to keep up the same pace, but whenever I need to, I am going to slow down to make sure that everything is good enough to keep going. After all, this project should be fun to make with your teammate while utilizing the elements learned in class, there is no need to rush it and be stressed about it.

Portfolio Project Outline

 We are now a step closer to starting on the final process of actually shooting the film opening. Now that we have the main idea of the opening scene clear enough we will need to create other types of outlines. We will need to create storyboards, scripts, shot lists, and even sound lists. Mainly, we want to start off by setting up Peter's character of a guy who gets sad for seeing other people achieve something or get into college, but he does not strive to achieve something too. We wanted to set up his character of underachiever, while also setting up the amazing relationship of help and friendship him and Michael have. For now, here is the outline that is subject to change.

Scene 1

- Students are in a college nigh, a teacher is presenting

- Main character on a meeting shown desperate to get out

- As presenter keeps talking, the character is impatient

- Several shots reflect his state of mood

- The title sequence will be added in between shots

Scene 2

- The presentation ends

- Both of the characters are walking together as they talk

- Mike tells Peter that he got a full track scholarship

- They keep talking until they get to Mike's house

Scene 3

- The scene transitions into Peter walking in melancholy through his house

- He sits down on his computer "going back into the loop" by playing video games

- Before he can start, he receives a call from Mike who tells him that he will not leave him alon during this stressing time of getting into college.

Portfolio Project: Characters

The film centers around our main character (Peter), with his best friend (Mike). For the characters, we decided that we wanted to create very simplistic people that could be able to relate back to our target audience. As we have our basic idea for the movie, we have centered the characters around it:

Peter Moore: 

(17 years old, high school senior)

He is our main character. His high school years were filled with friends, fun, and the constant homework. But, he always had average grades, average classes, and average homework. This resulted on him having good grades, but not really standing out from other class mates. 

Like any other high school, Santa Fe High School provides college guidance throughout the four high school years. As an underachiever, he never really bothered to look for any kind of guidance. So, when there is a mandatory college night for all seniors, his doubts and regrets start: "I should have done this earlier" "Where do I start?" and most importantly "What do I even want to do?."  

Michael Pike:

(17 years old, high school senior)

He has been Peter's friend since freshmen year. He had a similar high school experience, fun, friends, homework. However, in difference from Peter, Michael has done track and field ever since 8th grade. Still being an underachiever and not that smart, but he really worked hard for his times. While in some occasions Peter and his friends were playing online, he was out in the track practicing. This work that he put in really showed, because by the end of his Junior year he ran a competition and because of his great times, he got a full scholarship offer at the University of Houston. Even though he still needs to keep working to maintain or better his grades and marks, in his mind, he is already set.

As a good friend, he saw the mental "breakdown" Peter was going through, so through his "wide experience"(or so he says) of college advice and finding your vocation, he decides to help him.

Film Opening Idea

 As a result of research and brainstorming, we have decided we wanted to create a film opening from a story that we see around us. As juniors and seniors in high school, we are expected to know what we want to do in college or what our preferences are. But, the truth is that most of us really have no idea. People close to me are very close to graduating and do not have a plan on what they would like to do. No idea of college, no idea of hobbies, no idea of passion, no idea on what path to follow.

We took this feeling of not knowing where you stand in the world, and we will try to convey it through our opening. Even though it might seem like a complex theme, I believe it can really make most teenagers feel identified with this topic. Our main genre will be drama as it can be used best to showcase our character's obstacles in life and how he manages them. Drama showcases problems any human can have, hence many high school students can feel identified with this issue as they too might be encountering this: not knowing your role in society or your path in life.

We are still in the process of developing a storyboard and main opening, but we have a basic concept:

The whole plot of the movie will be centered around the main character who is an average, teenage, high school senior. Like any other, our character's high school life was filled with homework, friends, and videogames, but he never really took time to think about his future. After school college seminars and seeing his friends taking important decisions, he notices he has no idea of the decisions he is gonna take or how to even start. As his senior year comes to an end he seeks for help from a friend who will try to do his best to help him out on figuring out his likes. They go on a path of trying things he has never don before to see what he would like. 

Ultimately, he loses hope because due to external reasons his friend is not there anymore to support him anymore. He sets himself on the path his friend believed was the best for him. He gets accepted into college and there are big celebrations from part of his family due to his high school accomplishments and for getting into college. But on the inside "he knows, that he doesn't know." Doubts overflow, is this what I want to do? Are my average accomplishments worth this? Is this the path I want to follow? Maybe I have not gotten to find my passion? What have I done?

Drama Film Techniques Analysis

    As mentioned in previous posts, dramas are a genre that rely on the creation of strong and emotional characters throughout the movie. Due to the true aspects in a dramatic movie, the character development has to stay consistent and realistic, in order to showcase the real human struggles the character might encounter.

Production Techniques

As the characters are the main thing that drive the plot forward they have to be excellently conveyed to the audience in order to build up the characteristic emotional connection of dramas. Therefore, actors become a big part in the buildup of the genre. On dramatic roles they get to stretch into a role that other genres would not allow them to. As this genre relies on subtle movements and words, actors really have to work their way into getting into a character. They have to study the way their character would think, their ambition, and what drives them forward. But not only must they study the inside of the character, they also have to convey it to the audience, so they also act out their mannerisms, accent, body language, and vocal dynamics, This, is the reason why Oscar winning actors normally achieve these awards when playing a dramatic movie. As they truly immerse themselves into a character, they are able to exhibit their acting skills.

A drama film is structured very specifically to keep the audience's attention and to make them emotionally attached to the actions of the characters. A drama film is essentially a drama film because of the way it makes the audience relate and sympathize with the characters. Movies that reflect this are such as Citizen Kane(1941). The cast is filled with theatrically trained actors, this really gets conveyed in the move. As theatric actors, they are really able to convey emotions and feelings in a variety of ways. All this to create a relationship between the audience and the main character,  Charles Foster Kane. Indirectly, through its process of interviews, the audience is able to connect with Kane, his friends are excellently able to layout an image of who he was and what he went through, hence the audience gets to relate to Kane.

Recent Drama Films:

Just Mercy (2019)

The Irishman (2019)

Sound of Metal (2019)

Little Women (2019)

Ford v Ferrari (2019)

Drama Research

Drama is a genre where its stories mostly reflect on real-life scenarios or extreme situations where the characters are mainly emotionally-driven to accomplish something. These characters are very important in a drama movie as their emotions, challenges, and accomplishments are what drive the plot forward. In the genre, this character typically has a lot at stake through his journey and while facing down the conflict, although this conflict tends to be mostly internal.

Again, one of the most important aspects of this genre is the character. This is the person the audience is going to see evolve and arc throughout the entirety of the movie. Essentially a dramatic movie showcases the main characters in their best moments as well as their worst moments. They are shown in their daily basic lives as they deal with things they did not expect. These obstacles are the ones that forge their personality and as a result, create those character arcs that are very important in dramas.

This is one of the elements that sets drama apart from other genres: the challenges. While genres such as action, sci-fi, or comedy characters resort to physical feats, dramas are the opposite. They rely on words and subtle actions more than they rely on physical acts. These movies are mostly the way different people deal in their own way, with the world and the problems they encounter. 

Drama is a very flexible and expandable genre. This is because the obstacles that the characters face are very basic, drama conflicts can come from any problem any human can have, hence characters In a drama film can become so likable: because we all face the same problems. Drama does not need a specific setting, it does not rely on mystery, it only needs this strong character to have a feeling or goal driving them forward to break and confront their problem. 

The versatility of the genre its what makes it perfect to be mixed with other genres. The cross-genre with dramas is able to create a piece that while integrating another genre, can be able to evoke emotions in the audience as the character they fell in love with evolves and deals with the problems that make them feel identified. With its ordinary yet complex conflicts drama is simply able to keep audiences entertained.

Introduction Portfolio Project

Today we start on a new, more challenging project than we ever have done before. Most of the following posts are going to be dedicated to that project and mainly my journey. The journey which starts with my questions: what should I do? how should I do it?  where should I start? With the questions will eventually come problems and maybe drawbacks as well as answers and results. The posts will mainly serve as the diary of my journey through this important project. Diary, in which I will be able to explain my process of try answering these questions and the many more to come. 

May the journey begin.

Music Marketing Post #2

    Our Music Marketing Campaign was a great experience as we had to research about a certain genre we did not know much about. We all got placed out of our comfort zone by getting the genre of heavy rock metal. None of us had experience with the genre or were even interested. However, the project served as a good challenge since we had to research, brainstorm, and market our very own band. It also served as a good lesson, teaching us the importance of stepping out of your comfort zone every once in a while to learn new things, just like we did with heavy rock metal.

    As we began the project we all realized it was definitely going to be a challenge to know where to start as none of us knew about the heavy metal world. So we brainstormed multiple times about the different bands and recording studios that could be the “best” inside the genre. From there we all worked on the case studies that reflected our research and all the brainstorming we have done.

    After researching and having introduced ourselves to the heavy metal genre and its world we decided to look for inspiration from other heavy metal artists’ music videos. We tried to catch on patterns that make a heavy metal music video a proclaimed heavy metal music video. When all of us were able to recognize these patterns we started a storyboard. The storyboard served as a vision basis that was later expanded before recording and during the recording. One inconvenient was that since some of our group members had COVID restrictions, we could not meet up to shoot. So, we decided to go for a music video with a storyline. Even though it was not our first option, the music video worked out as instead of focusing on the band members, it focused on the meaningful lyrics the song had, and how do the lyrics reflect on the band.

    Finally, having done all of our research, marketing, and the music video, we also had to work on how to present all of our work. We concluded that the best thing to do was doing a presentation that went straight to the point stating how we managed our marketing on different platforms, the reason why we did the marketing the way we did, and showing the music video for our new band, Gidimake.

    Again, this project helped me understand the importance of doing projects about things that you do not know much about, for the purpose of being exposed to other genres, editing styles, or even music. This made me expose myself to other styles of filming I did not know about, but now that I know them I can be able to take that experience into the Cambridge portfolio project if required. 

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Heavy Rock Metal - Marketing Campaign

Creating A Heavy Metal Marketing Campaign

    As my group members and I started to discuss the brand of our new band, we firstly wanted to make sure that we knew the essentials of the genre. From there we researched other bands in the genre in order to know what we were up against. From legendary bands like Guns N' Roses and Slipknot, we were able to get inspiration and get an understanding f what heavy rock metal really is.

Brainstorming

    When we started discussing, we firstly decided we wanted to touch bases on the "brand" of our band. We started asking ourselves questions such as, what is the background? name? how does the band present itself, and mainly, how do we reach out to fans? From these questions, we went into more and more detail about the band and helped us brainstorm ideas about the project.

    Our new band's name would become "Gidimake" from the random yet clever suggestion of combining all of our names. From there, we tried to make sure we understood the challenges and opportunities an upcoming heavy metal artist can face in our modern society. Therefore, decided that our low-budget band was going to be based on online concerts and using music platforms such as Spotify to broadcast our heavy music.

    As a low-budget new band, we decided that our marketing was going to be made through the use of social media and our own website. Apps such as Instagram or Facebook could be a great place to start since people with the alternate taste of heavy metal could find us and possibly get hooked to this new band. From our social media, we would mainly promote our music, and our website, where they could be able to find information about the online concerts and our background so that our audience can know who we are.

Challenge

    The only challenge we encountered was being able to find relevant information on the way the genre is marketed or distributed. As the genre of heavy metal can just appeal to certain audiences, the majority of others will not reflect on this genre and its ways of marketing. It was hard to find a study that goes in-depth about heavy metal and its process. But, we were able to find a certain group of people that bth loved the genre and wanted to share to the world who they promote and cleverly distribute their product to their limited followers.

Future

    In our next steps, Gidimake has to start moving into new platforms such as Youtube. From there, the band can be able to film and present their music videos for our songs, so that our audience can see a different side of us. However, on the music videos, we wanted to keep those patterns and essentials that make heavy metal videos what they are. We still need to discuss various aspects from the music video but with inspiration from, famous metal bands such as Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, and Aerosmith, a storyboard is in the works.