Now that the Major Project is completed and the film has been finalised, I can reflect on my role and input into the project and the final outcomes. In particular I will be focussing on my roles as the Producer, Writer and Production Manager, the successes and challenges I faced and how I overcame them.
What was successful?
I think on the whole there were many more successes than problems, starting with the writing. The script writing was a long process which began with the concept. Josh took the concept and wrote a temporary structure of events for the first draft of the script. We then worked through the characterisation and story structure together, culminating 11 drafts in total. Although, there were several times where we felt like we had writers block, I think that with Simon's support during tutorials which helped us to troubleshoot any problems, we were able to finalise a script that is comedic, lighthearted and punchy with a real twist at the end.
Casting was an important part of my role as the Producer. I think that this was very successful, as we had lots of interest in the roles which enabled me to shortlist them down to 6 people, all of which had lots of potential. The audition process was also very successful and highlighted the right choice for the casting, which we wouldn't have had without this process. Overall, I am very pleased with our final cast choices and think that they really help to invest the audience in the story and give it believability.
Admin was a huge part of my role as Producer. It was essential to have all of the documentation completed to a good standard to enable filming to go ahead. Prior to filming, I made a list of all of the documentation that would be needed prior to and for the shoot days. I then updated these accordingly as we got closer to filming.
On the shoot days, my main responsibilities included the schedule. Due to bad weather, I had to think on my feet and update the schedule on the shoot days to ensure that we had time to cover everything. I was very conscious of time and prompted the Director when we were running over during a scene to keep the schedule in order. I am also pleased with my managerial and leadership skills during the shoot days, and ensured that all of the contributors knew what they should be doing at all times.
What could be improved?
There weren't many things that didn't work as such, but instead there were several challenges and room for improvement.
During the shoot days, I was very conscious of the schedule and overrunning. We only had 3 shoot days in total and I think realistically, 1 more day would've been beneficial to ensure that we had as much coverage as possible. During the edit of Scene 5 where they take their masks off, we were unable to cut this shot down because of a lack of coverage, which would have been simple to film.
Another aspect during the shoot days was some inconsistency in the lighting. During Scene 7 which was filmed across 2 different shoot days, the lighting is noticeably different. As the Producer, I should have checked that they matched as it made it difficult to match them in the edit. However, with some adjustments in the edit and the colour grading, this was massively improved.
Working as a team
I think that the experience working with Josh and Ellen as part of a team to create our film 'Bobbie & Clive' was very positive. All of us were passionate about our individual roles and we all wanted the film to be a success and be our most confident piece of work on the course thus far.
I worked more closely with Josh who was the Director, as it was his concept and vision, but it was my job to enable production. He is very certain in all of his decisions, which is a positive thing but I found it very difficult at times to communicate some of my creative ideas to him as often he didn't want to take on my ideas. As the production went on and we established the final script I found that he came round to being more accepting and willing to take on other ideas which showed improvement in our level of team work. Working with Ellen as the DoP was also very positive. I found it very easy to communicate with her. She was enthusiastic about her camera work and lighting, which gave me confidence as she was very professional on the shoot days.
Generally, the experience working with this team was successful and I feel I learnt a lot from both of them.
To conclude this unit, I am very pleased with the final outcomes, the film in particular. Although, it has been a lengthy process, I am proud with what we managed to achieve in just a few months as a team and individually. I am glad that I chose to take on the roles I did, particularly Producer as I wanted to challenge myself and have input into every aspect of making the final film.
Wednesday, 9 May 2018
MAJOR PROJECT: Group Edit Viewing & Final Cut
Yesterday, we had the group edit viewing with the rest of the year group. This was an opportunity to show all of the films to our peers before they were finalised to get some constructive feedback. This was an important process because it was a way of seeing the reception the films got and would highlight any major problems that needed to be solved before handing in. Initially, I was quite nervous about this process as I think it is nerve racking enough showing a finished piece of work on the big screen, let alone an unfinished piece. However, our film was in its very final stages, with just some minor colour grading left to complete, so I was feeling fairly confident about the viewing. Watching everyone else's films was really enjoyable and I think that the range of work across the group was really diverse and interesting. As usual, everyone in the group was very positive about everyone else's work which takes the pressure off and made the screening an enjoyable experience. It was interesting to watch ours on the big screen as we have been editing together largely using the TV in the production room. I think that the film played well and the sound was perfect, which I was really pleased about. The music levels were also high enough but not overbearing which is good. The only thing that really stood out was the colour grade which looked different on the projector than it had on a smaller screen. Otherwise the feedback from Simon and the group was positive which is really reassuring.
Since the viewing, we went back and looked at the film again on the TV and on the laptop and noticed a few imbalances in the colour grade. It was the most noticeable during Scenes 7-9 in the main office with Craig. However, this has since been resolved and the final cut has been completed. Although, there were several challenges throughout this project (which we knew there would be), I am confident that we overcame them and collectively wrote, produced, shot and edited a film that we can all be very proud of as our final project for University. Although working as a team can have its challenges, I think that individually we all were keen to undertake our roles and we worked very well together to create 'Bobbie & Clive'.
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| Bobbie & Clive |
Saturday, 5 May 2018
MAJOR PROJECT: Editing Process/Development
The editing process for me hasn't been very hands on or technical, I have been there to oversee the edit, offering my creative ideas and feedback and assisting the Editor, Sound Designer and Colourist in any way that I can. During the editing sessions, which we have been either doing in the production room using the TV or in lecture room 2 with the projector. Having the edit up on another screen for the other members of the team to see has been useful so that Josh can show me what he's been working on. He started by putting the rough cut together by syncing all of the sound and putting together a rough picture edit. This gave us a starting point to work from as a group rather than trying to work on it from scratch. Josh is very organised with his editing so I felt confident that he didn't need my assistance during this process. As a team we generally agreed on the best takes to use and the cutting of the scenes, which translated well from Josh' shot-list onto screen, making it very enjoyable seeing his vision come to life.
During an edit viewings with Simon, he watched the rough cut and offered some suggestions for improvement. These included potentially undertaking a re-shoot for Scene 10 as the shot we had used was very dark. However, we found an alternative shot for this scene which worked much better. Other feedback included making some of the movements tighter, such as putting the masks on and taking them off. Unfortunately Josh was unable to cut one of these movements down due to a lack of coverage for that scene. Josh tried to troubleshoot this by speeding up the shot but that was too noticeable.
Once we were happy with the picture edit, it was over to Ellen to incorporate her sound design and colour grade. She showed me her sound log which included several sound effects, all of which I thought were suitable to use. Regarding temp music, we decided to all go away and find some tracks for the underscore. After another viewing with Simon, his feedback included incorporating more music in the film, as it would be fitting. This is something that I had pushed for initially but Josh was happy without it. After we went away and found some suitable tracks that were subtle and added to certain scenes, Josh and Ellen were keen to incorporate these into the edit.
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| The Edit |
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| Colour Grading |
Ellen had chosen to go for a natural to cool toned colour grade for the film, picking out the colour blue in particular. I am very happy with the colour grade choice and think that it gives the film the cinematic look that I had envisioned.
On the whole, I am very pleased with how the editing process went. Although, my input was only creative and not technical, I feel like my ideas were considered throughout this process and I am very pleased with the outcome.
MAJOR PROJECT: 'Bobbie & Clive' Behind the Scenes
To give you a idea of what it was like behind the scenes of our production entitled 'Bobbie & Clive', I have attached several photos across all 3 shoot days. We had Isaac Carter as our Set Photographer which meant that we didn't need to rely on crew members taking photos which took the weight off us all massively. Throughout the shoot days everyone else had other jobs to focus on, therefore I am very pleased that we had Isaac to focus on capturing the shoot days for us. I think that the level of team work across all of the shoot days was very professional and improved as the shoot progressed and everyone felt more confident in their roles. I think that the level of communication, both with myself and all of the contributors and individually was really efficient and successful. From these photos, we will be selecting 2 behind the scenes for the hand in.
Production/ShootDay 1:
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| Clapper Board |
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| Canon 7D |
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| Ellen as Cinematographer |
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| Monitor |
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| Scene 6 |
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| Crew & Cast |
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| Boxes of Apples |
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| Scene 7 |
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Scene 7
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| Josh as Sound/Boom Operator |
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| Cast & Crew |
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| The Team |
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| Scene 5 |
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| Exterior Scenes |
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| Crew |
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| Sophie & Nik |
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| Craig & George |
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| Rotolight |
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| Set up for Scene 12 |
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| Scenes 8/9 |
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| Jack operating Sound |
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| Crew |
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| White balancing |
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| Clapperboard |
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| Cast & Crew |
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| Sophie & Nik |
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| Craig |
Monday, 30 April 2018
MAJOR PROJECT: Composer's Credit Track
I have been working with the Composer who has written and produced the credit track for the film. After sending him the rough cut, I sent him the exact timings for prominent parts of the track. Although it will be the credit track primarily, we wanted it to start during Scene 12 when Frank and the balaclava man are caught in the warehouse stealing the apples. The composer asked me for specific details regarding the style, tempo and intensity of the music we wanted. I said that the first reveal where the warehouse door is lifted up should start with some subtle drumming which should build up to the reveal of Frank in the warehouse. However, the final track shouldn't kick in until the credits actually start. I also sent the composer a few extracts of the instrumental sounds we had in mind and the temporary track which was quite similar to what we had in mind. The track that I have uploaded below is the second version of the track. The only tweak he made, was some added bass towards the end of the track. I was very impressed with the track that he's written, which he said he'd really enjoyed working on. I think that it is similar to the temp track but has it's own unique signature which is perfect for the comedic tone of the film. I also think that the timings are all in the right place for the reveals in the ending which is just what we were looking for.
Overall, I am very pleased that I pushed to have a composer to write the credit track for us. Josh and Ellen were very apprehensive as they didn't want to put any more money into the budget and felt like the temporary track was suitable enough. However, upon hearing the track that the composer made, Josh agreed that it gave the end of the film and the credit sequence a lift and was the perfect fit. I'm so glad that it paid off and that this is something that I pursued to have in the film.
Saturday, 28 April 2018
MAJOR PROJECT: Film Poster: Development/Final Design
As part of the submission, we are required to create a poster for the film which will need to be printed out. As a group we decided that we would base the poster off of the Quentin Tarantino ones that I had researched for the branding and title card. Our title card is very simple but bold, using the 3 primary colours - red, blue and yellow. We decided to use this colour palette as it is very fitting for the film and is reminiscent of both the graphics in the original Bonnie & Clyde film and Tarantino's films. The posters created for Tarantino's film have a particular design which is overly simplified and just uses simple shapes and outlines to highlight the imagery in them. The text is always bold and striking, contrasting with a bright coloured background. I previously analysed the poster shown below for one of his most successful and well known films - Kill Bill, which we took inspiration from for our poster design.Before we shot the film, collectively we designed a mock up design using imagery from Atomic Blonde as Bobbie and Vince Vaughn as Clive, just to stand in as the characters in the time being. This mock up poster was used when it came to creating the real one as we used the same layout of imagery and text. We experimented with different posterising effects on Photoshop, as we wanted the imagery itself to look quite simple and not very detailed like in some of Tarantino's posters where they just use outlines and a two toned effect.
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| Poster - Version 1 |
Here is the first version of the poster. The 3 colours are evident with the yellow and blue for the font and a bold red background. We have added the bleeds of blue round the edges also like in the title card. As a temporary slogan for the film, Josh came up with and added the text 'They're middle aged, They're married, They need cash'. I suggested that we should change this to 'They need money' to continue the alliteration which we played around with before the final slogan. The image itself is very simple and doesn't tell the audience too much.
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| Version 1 - Landscape |
Here we experimented with the poster as landscape as opposed to portrait to see which looked best. However, I think for a film poster, it looked better as portrait which we will have for the final version. In terms of improvements, I voiced to Josh that I felt like the posterised effect was too extreme and the lack of detail took away from the design and from the expressions on their faces. He agreed and we continued to look for alternatives.
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| Poster - Final Version |
Sunday, 22 April 2018
MAJOR PROJECT: Review of Budget & Paying Expenses
Now that the film is in its final editing process, and all expenses have been paid for, I wanted to do a review of the final budget. Initially, we wanted to try and keep the budget very low of around £500-600, this was the first figure that we came up with. After the casting process had been finalised, we chose the talent over the expense and chose to cast 3 actors that were not local and would be expensive to cover for travel. We knew that the budget would need to be increased, and accepted this as part of the process.
Paying Expenses
In terms of travel expenses, we covered these from the rehearsal until the shoot dates. I worked out an average mileage of 25p per mile and checked that this was ok for the actors. Once the shoot days were finalised, I worked out the total mileage for each actor and asked the crew members to send me their travel receipts or mileage so I could work out their expenses. The travel expenses were our biggest expense at £347 for all cast and crew members.
Food
As well as travel expenses, we covered food from the audition day onwards also. This included a buffet for the auditions, lunch on rehearsal day and meals across the shoot days. As Producer, I went out to source all of the food. I made sure that I bought all of the value items to save money, whilst ensuring that I was purchasing enough to keep all of the cast and crew happy and contented on the shoot days. I wanted there to be options at both lunchtime and dinner time as I was catering for a large group and I didn't want there to not be enough of what people liked. For the second shoot day, we ordered pizza for the group. In hindsight, this was a drain on the budget at £40 but it was very popular with the cast and crew. I totalled all of the food expenses up at £170 which was the second biggest expenditure.
Hotel
I had advertised optional accommodation for the cast members during the casting process. As Sophie was travelling over 80 miles to get to the location, I booked her a hotel over the first weekend of filming which was a 2 day shoot. I shopped around for some quotes before booking the Mercure in Maidstone, as Sophie had a membership there. The cost of this expense was £125.
Props/Set Dressing and Costumes
The props and costumes weren't a huge expense as I was able to source a lot of them from home or purchase them at affordable prices. The only costume item, I needed to purchase was the pair of white trainers for Clive which I got from Pound land for £9. The biggest prop expenditure was the apples, of which I sourced almost 150 of for the shoot. The overall expenditure for props/set dressing and costumes was £95.
Composer
The last expenditure was the composer for the credits track. He was really keen to contribute to the project and was happy to work for an agreed £50 as he wanted to gain some more contacts and build his portfolio. We were very lucky to find someone who was very interested in the project and willing to work to a student budget.
Overall, I am pleased with my management of the budget and although the travel expenses in particular were rather expensive, I think that the decision to have the right cast was absolutely worth the extra expense. The other expenses were as expected and fairly minimal which helped to keep the budget down. As the Producer, it was mr job to organise all of the receipts which I kept together in a folder along with any cash for the budget. The receipts were very useful for keeping track of how much we were spending and for totalling up at the end. The final budget outcome was £787 which I think was a suitable figure, and not much over our ideal budget.
Paying Expenses
In terms of travel expenses, we covered these from the rehearsal until the shoot dates. I worked out an average mileage of 25p per mile and checked that this was ok for the actors. Once the shoot days were finalised, I worked out the total mileage for each actor and asked the crew members to send me their travel receipts or mileage so I could work out their expenses. The travel expenses were our biggest expense at £347 for all cast and crew members.
Food
As well as travel expenses, we covered food from the audition day onwards also. This included a buffet for the auditions, lunch on rehearsal day and meals across the shoot days. As Producer, I went out to source all of the food. I made sure that I bought all of the value items to save money, whilst ensuring that I was purchasing enough to keep all of the cast and crew happy and contented on the shoot days. I wanted there to be options at both lunchtime and dinner time as I was catering for a large group and I didn't want there to not be enough of what people liked. For the second shoot day, we ordered pizza for the group. In hindsight, this was a drain on the budget at £40 but it was very popular with the cast and crew. I totalled all of the food expenses up at £170 which was the second biggest expenditure.
Hotel
I had advertised optional accommodation for the cast members during the casting process. As Sophie was travelling over 80 miles to get to the location, I booked her a hotel over the first weekend of filming which was a 2 day shoot. I shopped around for some quotes before booking the Mercure in Maidstone, as Sophie had a membership there. The cost of this expense was £125.
Props/Set Dressing and Costumes
The props and costumes weren't a huge expense as I was able to source a lot of them from home or purchase them at affordable prices. The only costume item, I needed to purchase was the pair of white trainers for Clive which I got from Pound land for £9. The biggest prop expenditure was the apples, of which I sourced almost 150 of for the shoot. The overall expenditure for props/set dressing and costumes was £95.
Composer
The last expenditure was the composer for the credits track. He was really keen to contribute to the project and was happy to work for an agreed £50 as he wanted to gain some more contacts and build his portfolio. We were very lucky to find someone who was very interested in the project and willing to work to a student budget.
Overall, I am pleased with my management of the budget and although the travel expenses in particular were rather expensive, I think that the decision to have the right cast was absolutely worth the extra expense. The other expenses were as expected and fairly minimal which helped to keep the budget down. As the Producer, it was mr job to organise all of the receipts which I kept together in a folder along with any cash for the budget. The receipts were very useful for keeping track of how much we were spending and for totalling up at the end. The final budget outcome was £787 which I think was a suitable figure, and not much over our ideal budget.
Tuesday, 17 April 2018
MAJOR PROJECT: Research: Post-Production for a Producer
I am aware that as the Producer on this project, my role becomes much less active during the post production stage with regards to the edit. I have done some research regarding this area as I was unsure of what my biggest responsibilities would be and I wanted to be as active as I could.
I found out via Creative Skillset and Prospects.ac.uk that the Producer's main role during this stage is to oversee the production and is largely involved in the creative decision making process. To ensure that I was doing this, I was in the production rooms with Josh and Ellen at all times and was active with my feedback and suggestions for improvement. Although, I wasn't doing a technical role and actually pressing the buttons during the edit, I have been voicing my opinions throughout the edit process so far and offering my assistance if they had any issues with the edit.
Directly after filming however, I focussed largely on ensuring that all of the cast and contributors had their expenses paid for and enjoyed the process filming. I have since also sent the cast some of the behind the scenes photos and given them some updates on the edit. However, I have asked them to refrain posting any of the photos during Scene 12 on social media as we want the ending to be kept secret until we post the film ourselves.
So that I have a more active role and can focus on another task during the post production stage, I have taken in upon myself to advertise for a composer to create the credits track for the film. This is something that we discussed much earlier on in the project but never decided on. Josh said he's happy for me to pursue this and advertise for the role but to be careful regarding the budget as none of us have worked with a composer during our time on the course and are unsure of how much this will be. I am hoping that this will be a creative step I can pursue, as I think a unique credit track that is written for the film specially will be very beneficial to the production value.
I found out via Creative Skillset and Prospects.ac.uk that the Producer's main role during this stage is to oversee the production and is largely involved in the creative decision making process. To ensure that I was doing this, I was in the production rooms with Josh and Ellen at all times and was active with my feedback and suggestions for improvement. Although, I wasn't doing a technical role and actually pressing the buttons during the edit, I have been voicing my opinions throughout the edit process so far and offering my assistance if they had any issues with the edit.
Directly after filming however, I focussed largely on ensuring that all of the cast and contributors had their expenses paid for and enjoyed the process filming. I have since also sent the cast some of the behind the scenes photos and given them some updates on the edit. However, I have asked them to refrain posting any of the photos during Scene 12 on social media as we want the ending to be kept secret until we post the film ourselves.
So that I have a more active role and can focus on another task during the post production stage, I have taken in upon myself to advertise for a composer to create the credits track for the film. This is something that we discussed much earlier on in the project but never decided on. Josh said he's happy for me to pursue this and advertise for the role but to be careful regarding the budget as none of us have worked with a composer during our time on the course and are unsure of how much this will be. I am hoping that this will be a creative step I can pursue, as I think a unique credit track that is written for the film specially will be very beneficial to the production value.
Wednesday, 28 March 2018
MAJOR PROJECT: Shoot Days: Catering
As a Production Manager on a small, independent project, it was my job to ensure that all of the crew and cast members were well catered for. The shoot days were 12 hours in duration for the crew members, which meant that at least 2 meals were required to ensure that everyone's basic needs were met. Before choosing what the meal options would be I emailed every cast and crew member to find out everyone's dietary requirements and check for allergies for health and safety. To keep track of what I wanted to buy for the shoot, I made a shopping list so I could assess whether there was a good a variety of options and to give me a list to tick off when I would purchase everything the day before. To keep costs down, we decided that 2 out of 3 evening meals would be prepared by me prior to the shoot days and one evening, we would order pizza which was a much more expensive option.
For lunchtimes, I decided to get sandwich ingredients with plenty of choice and a wide selection of snacks and drinks so that there was plenty of choice. For evening meal times, we went for pasta dishes and chicken fajitas, with several side options of salad and coleslaw etc.
We were very fortunate to have a working kitchen at the location with access to boiling water, a fridge and a microwave. It was also fully kitted out with crockery and cutlery which meant that I didn't need to supply this myself. Once I got to the location I unloaded all of the food straight away so that everything was refrigerated and kept in order. I organised most of the food but had some production assistants to help out during the evening which made the meal times very easy going and ensured that we didn't overrun the schedule.
Generally, the food and catering was all successful and well organised. It was one of the biggest expenditures from the budget but, we were all happy to spend a little more and make sure that all of our cast and crew felt happy and well catered for throughout the shooting period.
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| Food Plan |
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| Food Plan |
For lunchtimes, I decided to get sandwich ingredients with plenty of choice and a wide selection of snacks and drinks so that there was plenty of choice. For evening meal times, we went for pasta dishes and chicken fajitas, with several side options of salad and coleslaw etc.
We were very fortunate to have a working kitchen at the location with access to boiling water, a fridge and a microwave. It was also fully kitted out with crockery and cutlery which meant that I didn't need to supply this myself. Once I got to the location I unloaded all of the food straight away so that everything was refrigerated and kept in order. I organised most of the food but had some production assistants to help out during the evening which made the meal times very easy going and ensured that we didn't overrun the schedule.
Generally, the food and catering was all successful and well organised. It was one of the biggest expenditures from the budget but, we were all happy to spend a little more and make sure that all of our cast and crew felt happy and well catered for throughout the shooting period.
Tuesday, 27 March 2018
MAJOR PROJECT: Makeup Design
During the pre-production stage, we had discussed the makeup that would be required for the film. The cast is very limited with 3 cast members only, 2 of whom are men. As we would like the film to have a natural aesthetic to it, we decided that the 2 male cast members would only need some powder to eliminate any shine on their faces, and would not require any further makeup.
For Sophie, who is the only female cast member, I discussed her makeup requirements with her during the rehearsal. The character of Bobbie should have light, natural, subtle makeup that doesn't stand out too much on camera. During the rehearsal Sophie told me that she is more than confident applying her own every day makeup, and we discussed what would be most suitable and easy to replicate throughout the 3 shoots days. We decided that Sophie would do her own makeup which would include some subtle blusher on the cheeks and a thin, natural line of eyeliner and mascara on the eyes. Sophie has quite prominent features, therefore I felt that a subtle and natural makeup design would be most suitable. I also felt that as the other 2 cast members were having no makeup at all, it would be complimentary to the aesthetics of the the film that Sophie's makeup would be understated.
In the behind the scenes image shown here of Sophie, you can see that her skin looks incredibly natural with some rosy-pink blusher, and natural eyes and brows. She also opted for a soft pink lipstick that highlighted her features in a soft and subtle way. Below is a behind the scenes image of Nik being mic'd by Josh, his only makeup design was the matte powder which was applied before shooting each new scene.
To ensure that the cast looked shine-free, I purchased an inexpensive matte look powder. I decided to go for a loose powder as opposed to a pressed powder, as I knew that a pressed powder can sometimes apply unevenly and give a heavier appearance. Whereas, I wanted the powder itself to look near enough invisible and just serve the purpose of keeping any shine away. I also purchased some makeup sponges and labelled them with each cast member's name so that I wasn't mixing them up and using the same sponge on more than one person. I also kept them separate in their own plastic bags for hygiene reasons.
Overall, I was very pleased with the makeup design across the shoot days and think that it was well controlled. On the shoot days I sat with Sophie in the board room and went through her makeup collection that I had asked her to bring with her just in case anything needed tweaking. However, I was happy with the consistency of her makeup throughout the 3 days, and ensured that it was touched up throughout the day. I had the job of applying the powder to each of the cast members as I felt confident in this department and knew the look that I wanted to achieve. I also wanted to ensure that the use of the labelled sponges was controlled.
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| Sophie |
In the behind the scenes image shown here of Sophie, you can see that her skin looks incredibly natural with some rosy-pink blusher, and natural eyes and brows. She also opted for a soft pink lipstick that highlighted her features in a soft and subtle way. Below is a behind the scenes image of Nik being mic'd by Josh, his only makeup design was the matte powder which was applied before shooting each new scene.
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| Nik |
To ensure that the cast looked shine-free, I purchased an inexpensive matte look powder. I decided to go for a loose powder as opposed to a pressed powder, as I knew that a pressed powder can sometimes apply unevenly and give a heavier appearance. Whereas, I wanted the powder itself to look near enough invisible and just serve the purpose of keeping any shine away. I also purchased some makeup sponges and labelled them with each cast member's name so that I wasn't mixing them up and using the same sponge on more than one person. I also kept them separate in their own plastic bags for hygiene reasons.
Overall, I was very pleased with the makeup design across the shoot days and think that it was well controlled. On the shoot days I sat with Sophie in the board room and went through her makeup collection that I had asked her to bring with her just in case anything needed tweaking. However, I was happy with the consistency of her makeup throughout the 3 days, and ensured that it was touched up throughout the day. I had the job of applying the powder to each of the cast members as I felt confident in this department and knew the look that I wanted to achieve. I also wanted to ensure that the use of the labelled sponges was controlled.
MAJOR PROJECT: Production/Shoot Day 3
On Sunday we had our third and final day of production for the film. As the first 2 shoot days went relatively well despite some weather issues, I felt confident going into the last day knowing what to expect. I also felt like the team seemed to have bonded over the first weekend and so I felt at ease going into the final day knowing that everyone would already know each other and be comfortable with their roles.
Like the first weekend, the first job I did was to stock the kitchen/fridge with all of the food and organise it all in its place so that the space would be kept in order. Again, we had the morning scheduled for the set dressing therefore all of the crew were in to assist with this. Everything in the office had to be put up again including the posters (all in the same places for continuity), as well as the black card on the windows and all of the cardboard boxes which needed to be placed in the same place.
Craig and Nik had an earlier call time than Sophie of 1:30pm. This was decided so that we could film the office scenes with Nik and Craig first and Sophie would join later at 4.00pm. I felt that the set up process with the equipment was much more efficient than on the previous weekend, as the crew knew the space and knew where the lighting was going. I think that this scene was a good scene to start with also as it was very energetic and comedic, which lifted the morale and team spirit. For these scenes, Gavin was the Soun
d/Boom Operator as Jack couldn't be there during the morning. However, he felt more than comfortable with the role after I briefed him and captured some really good, clear sound which matched the sound we already had.
After the office scenes with Sophie, we had dinner which I allowed an hour and a half for to ensure that it would be pitch black outside for the exterior scenes. From 7pm onwards we had to film scenes 12, 3, 4, 10, 1 and pick ups for scene 2. We had a lot scheduled in a short space of time because of the weather issues the previous weekend. However, most of the scenes were only a couple of shots long which meant that we were able to shoot them in good timing. I made sure I was strict with the time allowed for each scene as I didn't want to overrun as several of the actors and crew members had a long drive home.
The final scene with Craig was the most time consuming as we needed to capture the apples falling from the box. Although, the reset for this shot was lengthy, we had 2 cameras filming at the same time which meant that we were getting double coverage for each shot. We wrapped the shoot just after 10pm and to schedule which I was pleased about. Again, all
of the crew members stayed for the clear up which meant that we were able to de-rig and take the set dressing down within an hour or so.
Overall, I was very pleased with how the final shoot day went, and although we had a lot to fit in to the schedule, I ensured that I was strict with the time management to be able to stick to the schedule. In terms of my role as the Producer, I felt the most relaxed, as all of the contributors knew by this point what the job in hand was and didn't need so much leadership from me.
Like the first weekend, the first job I did was to stock the kitchen/fridge with all of the food and organise it all in its place so that the space would be kept in order. Again, we had the morning scheduled for the set dressing therefore all of the crew were in to assist with this. Everything in the office had to be put up again including the posters (all in the same places for continuity), as well as the black card on the windows and all of the cardboard boxes which needed to be placed in the same place.
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| Crew & Cast |
d/Boom Operator as Jack couldn't be there during the morning. However, he felt more than comfortable with the role after I briefed him and captured some really good, clear sound which matched the sound we already had.
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| Sophie (Scene 8) |
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| Craig and George (Scene 12) |
of the crew members stayed for the clear up which meant that we were able to de-rig and take the set dressing down within an hour or so.
Overall, I was very pleased with how the final shoot day went, and although we had a lot to fit in to the schedule, I ensured that I was strict with the time management to be able to stick to the schedule. In terms of my role as the Producer, I felt the most relaxed, as all of the contributors knew by this point what the job in hand was and didn't need so much leadership from me.
Monday, 26 March 2018
MAJOR PROJECT: Finding/Selecting Crew Members
During our first tutorial with Simon, he brought up the topic of crew members for the shoot days. These would be extra crew members and not include Josh, Ellen and I. On previous shoots in the first and second year, a team of 3 crew members has been enough to tackle any issues. However, as this is our third and final year, Simon stressed that we should be undertaking our primary roles only to ensure that these roles are carried out effectively. As a group we had already discussed the idea, and had decided that we felt confident in asking some of the second years, having worked with them during Studio Production. We decided as a group that an additional 3 crew members would be sufficient. The roles would
include a Sound/Boom Operator, Camera Assistant and Production Assistant. We would also need a Set Photographer - of which we found Ellen's brother, Isaac who was keen to help out on all 3 shoot days.
As the Producer, it was my job to find suitable crew members and provide them with all of the details for the shoot. I took into account who I had worked with during Studio Production and who was recommended to me from my other team members. I had spoken to Gavin in the second year who recommended Jack Whiteley (also second year) for Sound Operating. I had also worked with George Wing as a Camera Assistant so knew that he would feel comfortable undertaking this role. Troy Smith from the third year was keen to work as a Camera or Production Assistant, and I knew from previous experience working with him that he would be a good choice for either of these roles. Ellen told us that her brother was keen on photography and wanted to help out on the shoot, which was a great choice. All of the other crew members had their own jobs to think about, therefore it turned out to be very helpful to have someone on set whose job was to capture all of the action taking place. Below are some of Isaac's behind the scenes photos showing the crew members at work.
The final crew member selections were:
Sound/Boom Operators
-Jack Whiteley
-Gavin Roberts
-Josh Bayly
Camera Assistants
include a Sound/Boom Operator, Camera Assistant and Production Assistant. We would also need a Set Photographer - of which we found Ellen's brother, Isaac who was keen to help out on all 3 shoot days.
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| Gavin as Sound/Boom Operator |
The final crew member selections were:
Sound/Boom Operators
-Jack Whiteley
-Gavin Roberts
-Josh Bayly
Camera Assistants
-George Wing
-Troy Smith
Production Assistant/Set Photographer
-Isaac Carter
As all of the crew members are students themselves and have their own deadlines and commitments to work to, it worked out that not every crew member could work on every shoot day. Therefore, I worked out what days each person could do and found cover for the days that they couldn't do. This meant that on a few occasions, the crew were swapping roles. For example Jack couldn't work during the mornings, therefore I had Gavin and Josh cover him. To avoid confusion, I made sure that each crew member knew what was required beforehand and ensured that I talked about the individual roles during the briefing that I scheduled time for at the beginning of each shoot day. I made agreements with every crew member that all food and travel expenses would be covered for every shoot day, which everyone was happy with. Overall, I was very happy with my crew choices. Although, organising what hours each crew member could do was challenging and kept changing right up to the shoot days, I ensured that we always had at least 3 crew members at any time on the shoots which was really beneficial and kept everything in order and to schedule.
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| Crew |
Saturday, 24 March 2018
MAJOR PROJECT: Finding a Composer
I knew that once we had shot the film, my role as the Producer would be less hands on and would require me to work with Josh as the Editor and oversee the edit, working in a creative way only. Whereas, it is Josh that will be undertaking a more technical and hands on role at this stage. I decided to pitch the idea to Josh and Ellen regarding hiring a Composer to write the credit track. I felt that having a piece of music that was unique and created with the production in mind would really lift the film. We had already decided that there would be music at the end of the film for the big reveal that would lead into the credits, and so I felt it important that we had something that would fit the timings and mood of the film.
Initially, Josh and Ellen were unsure about the idea as we had already exceeded the budget for the shoot. However, they agreed to have an advert sent out with a guide price that we could negotiate. I began by posting a job on Mandy.com, which is where I sourced our actors from. On this website you can tailor it to the role you are looking for and I knew from previous experience that you could look for composers and music professionals. I put a detailed description including what the film was about and what we were looking for from the composer. I also included a guide pay for it with subject to negotiation as I wasn't sure what the candidates would be willing to work for and I knew that I had to keep the costs down at this stage if I could.
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| Advert for Composer |
After posting the advert, I waited for some emails regarding applicants and was pleasantly surprised to have received 15 applications for the role, most of which seemed promising with plenty of experience and interest in the film and role. I discussed these briefly with the group before emailing the one that I felt seemed the most interested in the film and also had his own website with some great work to listen to. Since then, I have sent him the rough cut with the timings for the credit track so he can begin working on it. In the meantime Josh found a temporary track which fits quite well with the timings and the mood that we want to convey. Therefore, I told the composer that this is close to what we have in mind, but with an original twist. In terms of pay, the composer said that he was happy to work for a small income to gain some contacts and do some more freelance work for his portfolio.
Wednesday, 21 March 2018
MAJOR PROJECT: Admin/Documentation Prior to Filming
One of my most important jobs as the Producer was to prepare and organise all of the documentation and admin prior to the shoot dates. I was in charge of communicating with all of the cast and crew members via email, informing them of any requirements or changes. Once we had out firm shoot dates after rescheduling, I was able to update and complete all of the documentation that would be required. It was essential that I complete all of the admin so that the shoot days could run smoothly and on time, and all of the contributors knew what was required of them.
Call Sheet/Schedule
The first document I will talk about was the call sheet/schedule as this was essential for filming. This was updated several times but below is the final call sheet that I used for the shoot days. I had to think carefully about the requirements of each scene and when best to schedule them. I was also aware of what days the cast and crew would be working with us so I could schedule the appropriate order to fit that. I followed an industry scale template which was very long and detailed, I decided to use this one as I wanted all of the information needed to be evident on the sheet. When it came to filming, we did change around some of the scenes to make up time but otherwise, the call sheet was very useful on the shoot days to ensure that we got all of the coverage we needed in good time.
Risk Assessment
The risk assessment form was a huge priority for me as it enabled us to shoot the film. Without a risk assessment form, the location and production would not be deemed safe for all contributors present and so would not have been allowed to go ahead. We must have the risk assessment form signed off by Simon who checks that all hazards have been accounted for and resolved or monitored, with this, Ellen and Josh would have been unable to book out equipment. The risk assessment form itself is something that I began writing for the test shoot days and updated regularly if I saw any other potential hazards at the location. Given the recent wintery weather, I made sure I highlighted this and the hazards associated on the form to ensure that this was taken into account. I printed out a copy of the signed risk assessment form and kept it in a folder with me at all times during the shoot so that I could access it if needed be.
Consent Form/Expenses
To ensure that we had a written agreement from all of our cast and crew members, I made a consent form. It was important to have this as it was proof of what we had agreed to and were expecting prior to filming. I had already agreed on travel and food expenses which would be covered, but established with all cast and crew members that there was no pay besides expenses. I wanted to ensure that this was made clear and that we had it in writing to avoid any problems further down the line. For Sophie, we also paid for her to stay at a hotel over the first 2 days as she was travelling 90 miles to the location and the shoot would be fishing late. I shopped around for some hotels and found the best quotes from Premiere Inn and Travelodge. However, Sophie soon after emailed me and said that she had a membership with Mercure, which meant that we could get a cheaper deal for her room.
Props/Costume List
I also made documents containing a list of all of the props and costume items that we needed for the shoot days. Although, I had these stored on my laptop already, I wanted to make a clear list for these items that I could access easily on the shoot days. I printed the lists off and checked off items before I left to ensure that we would have everything we needed.
On the whole, I was happy with the admin work I completed prior to the shoot and felt like I had everything I needed with me in a folder for the shoot days. This job was an incredibly important part of the production and allowed the film to go forward and be made. I made sure that all of the documents completed were of a high standard and thorough to ensure I wasn't missing any information out. Given, the reschedule, I had to alter nearly all of the documents to suit the new schedule. Although this was a lengthy process, I am pleased that everything was in order for the shoot and it all ran smoothly.
Call Sheet/Schedule
The first document I will talk about was the call sheet/schedule as this was essential for filming. This was updated several times but below is the final call sheet that I used for the shoot days. I had to think carefully about the requirements of each scene and when best to schedule them. I was also aware of what days the cast and crew would be working with us so I could schedule the appropriate order to fit that. I followed an industry scale template which was very long and detailed, I decided to use this one as I wanted all of the information needed to be evident on the sheet. When it came to filming, we did change around some of the scenes to make up time but otherwise, the call sheet was very useful on the shoot days to ensure that we got all of the coverage we needed in good time.
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| Call Sheet |
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| Call Sheet |
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| Call Sheet |
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| Call Sheet |
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| Call Sheet |
The risk assessment form was a huge priority for me as it enabled us to shoot the film. Without a risk assessment form, the location and production would not be deemed safe for all contributors present and so would not have been allowed to go ahead. We must have the risk assessment form signed off by Simon who checks that all hazards have been accounted for and resolved or monitored, with this, Ellen and Josh would have been unable to book out equipment. The risk assessment form itself is something that I began writing for the test shoot days and updated regularly if I saw any other potential hazards at the location. Given the recent wintery weather, I made sure I highlighted this and the hazards associated on the form to ensure that this was taken into account. I printed out a copy of the signed risk assessment form and kept it in a folder with me at all times during the shoot so that I could access it if needed be.
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| Risk Assessment |
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| Risk Assessment |
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| Risk Assessment |
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| Risk Assessment |
Consent Form/Expenses
To ensure that we had a written agreement from all of our cast and crew members, I made a consent form. It was important to have this as it was proof of what we had agreed to and were expecting prior to filming. I had already agreed on travel and food expenses which would be covered, but established with all cast and crew members that there was no pay besides expenses. I wanted to ensure that this was made clear and that we had it in writing to avoid any problems further down the line. For Sophie, we also paid for her to stay at a hotel over the first 2 days as she was travelling 90 miles to the location and the shoot would be fishing late. I shopped around for some hotels and found the best quotes from Premiere Inn and Travelodge. However, Sophie soon after emailed me and said that she had a membership with Mercure, which meant that we could get a cheaper deal for her room.
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| Consent Form |
I also made documents containing a list of all of the props and costume items that we needed for the shoot days. Although, I had these stored on my laptop already, I wanted to make a clear list for these items that I could access easily on the shoot days. I printed the lists off and checked off items before I left to ensure that we would have everything we needed.
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| Props/Costume List |
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| Props/Costume List |
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