Hannah's Silver Arts Award: November 2015

To make the activity successful, I first had to make sure that it would be enjoyable. I had to discover what people already knew, as it would be boring if they knew what I was teaching them. I also had to make it interactive, so that they did not just sit there while I lectured at them. I did this by getting them to guess what the shots would be used for, and by getting them to recreate the shots themselves. I also had to make sure that the presentation made sense. I did this by getting my parents to read it over first, to check that it all made sense. I also decided to do the presentation on something simple, as the people I was presenting to were younger than me and knew less about film than I did. These things helped my presentation be interesting, understandable, accessible, and a success overall.

LEADERSHIP: My Evaluation

Overall, I think the session went well. My session was interesting and enjoyable, and the people really liked getting to take their own pictures. I think it was good overall, however there were a few awkward pauses when people weren't giving their ideas, plus at times I felt as if I was just relying on them to give answers. To improve this, I think I should have just talked when explaining the camera shots instead of letting them guess before I told them. I think the taking pictures part was the most successful, as they all enjoyed it and it gave them the opportunity to try the shots out themselves. I could have improved as well by knowing what I was going to say before I said it, as me not knowing led to several pauses. I also wish I had gotten someone to click the slides onward, as it would have freed me up and meant that I wouldn't have to turn around and interrupt the flow of the session. Despite these things, however, i think the session was a success, and I am very pleased with how it went.

LEADERSHIP: Feedback

Below are some pictures of some feedback forms and a handout I collected after the session.

LEADERSHIP: The Session

Here is a video of the session I ran for the leadership section of the award:

Here are the pictures that one of the groups took during the session:

Extreme Long Shot

Long Shot

Midshot

Extreme Close-up

Close-up

LEADERSHIP: Practical Issues

I have decided to do my session on shot types and camera angles at my church's youth group. I have decided to start by going over camera shots and angles, and what they mean. I will then give them toys to use as models, and have them take photos in groups replicating the shots/angles. When they're finished, I will collect feedback from them in the form of a questionnaire, and will look at them to find how I can improve for any future sessions I do. The session will be filmed by the leader of the group. Below is my plan and risk assessment.

LEADERSHIP: What I Will Do

For my arts leadership task, I think I will do a session on camera shots and angles. This is because it is an area I feel confident and know about. I am hoping to do my leadership task at the youth club in my local church, as it is a group of people similar to my age that I know and feel comfortable with. I spoke to the people there, and found that most of them know very little about film, with one exception. I therefore think that doing my task on something basic but interesting will be the best plan, and I hope to maybe spark some interest or inspiration to look more into film-making. My plan right now is to teach them the shot types/angles, and then get them to re-create the shots and angles themselves.

D. My Career Path

Here is a video of my presentation about my future career path in the film industry. I thought about everything that I had learnt about over the course, as well as what I would find most enjoyable and workable.

Above is my initial plan. It is very messy and convoluted, with arrows and ideas all over the place. For my presentation, I focused only on the film/TV side of things, as that is the path I am most likely to take.

The first thing on my plan is finish sixth form. Depending on what I enjoy the most, and what I get the best grades in, I will either go into acting or film production. In terms of film-making, I am still not sure what area, although I am thinking about going into production design or directing, as these are two areas that I enjoy a lot. There is an arrow between acting and directing because I may switch between the two areas, or jump from one to the other. In terms of how I will get there, I am still unsure which path is right for me. University/college would be a good bridge between school and the real world, and it would give me a chance to further my skills and meet new people. However, it is very expensive, and I am not sure that it is actually worth it, as skill is more important than degrees in the industry. Going straight into the industry would mean that I would be gaining invaluable experience and meeting new people, but it may be difficult to jump straight from school into the real world. I am also thinking about apprenticeships, or a similar program that would allow me to learn new skills whilst earning money. However, these are rare, and incredibly competitive, so I wonder whether it would actually be feasible. At the same time, I may decide that film/TV simply isn't for me, and that I would be better off doing something else, like psychology or teaching. Basically, I don't really know what I am going to do, and I am unsure what the right path and job is for me.

My Presentation:

C. Review of The World's End

Here is a link to my review of The World's End, which we went to watch on day 3.

Review

B. Feedback and Review

Here is the feedback on our film from some of the people in the other groups doing the BFI Film Academy:

I agree with this feedback. In response to this feedback, me and my group changed our film. We edited in Paul's feet walking between Rich talking on the phone, to make it clearer that Paul attacked Rich. If I was to film it again, however, I would film a shot of Paul waiting for Rich by the alleyway, and another shot of Paul's abandoned clothes. I would also show the phone dropping onto the ground, to make it clear that the phone was dropped when he was attacked. We also had to cut a sequence of our film because the continuity was off, so if I was to make it again, I would make sure the continuity was good.

However, I think that despite the small confusing section, our film was quite successful. There were some very artistic and beautiful shots, and the contrast between Rich and Paul in terms of the coffee cups and newspapers was really successful. The music also really helped create atmosphere and tell the story. I think the costumes were also very successful, and showed the lifestyle of the two characters brilliantly. All in all, I think that it was quite good, and reasonably successful.

B. The Final Day - Day 10

15th November

We started the last day by editing our films in response to our feedback. To make it more clearer that Rich got attacked, we intercut Paul's feet walking with Rich talking on the phone. This made it more clear that he got attacked. We also removed some of the walking, which sped up the film and removed a continuity issue with Rich's bag.

We then presented our personal career paths to the rest of the group. It was interesting seeing everyone's different aims and ideas about what to do next. I am still quite unsure, so presented my different options, but ended with a massive question mark. It was interesting hearing the leader's career paths for the next few years as well, and realising that even older people are still not certain with where they are going, or what they are going to do in their future.

Video Of My Career Path Presentation

At around 3, our friends and family arrived for a screening of our 'Shoot Out' films, and our main videos. It was a lovely feeling being able to see our work and ideas transferred into an actual film. I was very pleased with how our film turned out, and it was very interesting seeing others' reactions. The one thing I was slightly unhappy with was the fact that my credits had been changed to a different font, but apart from that I was very happy with how it was.

Our Final Film

B. Editing and DSLR Workshop - Day 9

14th November

We started the day by finishing the editing for our films. As a group, we identified the weakest areas in our film, and changed or removed these. We worked through our film until we had a version that we were mostly happy with.

After lunch, we had a session on DSLR from Richard Wakefield, where we learnt about DSLR camera's and how to get the best footage out of them. I found his story really interesting, and was amazed by the huge range of amazing things that he had filmed. I also found it incredible how he was so resourceful, using one piece of equipment for many different tasks. It was also really cool how he only had the most basic equipment, and didn't feel the need to buy the super expensive equipment.

We then had a quick viewing of all the different films. We sat down to watch what we had made during the week, and to see what the others had been doing. We then gave feedback on the other films, and collected some about ours.

I agree with the feedback, as I think that our film was quite vague and confusing. Our group decided to work on our film in the morning of day 10, and try to make it more understandable.

Monday 9 November 2015

B. Post-production - Day 8

8th November

Today was our first day of editing. Since we had filmed on two different cameras, we decided that half of the group should edit and sort through one camera's footage, and the other half sort through the other camera's footage. I helped by identifying which take corresponded to which shot, and writing down any extra shots we had. We then chose the best takes from each shot and cut them into the correct order.

After a quick lunch-break, we joined the footage together. Nick and Tascha edited together, with some help from Kiira. Kiira also helped Reuel and Anton with developing the soundtrack for our film. I was in charge of designing the credits. I chose two shots to play for the titles/credits, both of which showed objects, but no people. They were also both nicely shot, with an empty side that words could be put over. I chose the same font for titles and credits. It was without serifs, and quite square and smart. They had different colours, however, as I needed them to stand out against the background, and they would not have done that with the same colours.

The Rough Cut