Editing

And so it begins!  

All the footage is uploaded and it is now timing to begin the editing process. It is going to be a long process, but one which I'm sure I will enjoy.  

As well the footage being imported into Final Cut Express, my titles have also been uploaded into the program.  I have begun putting the shots into order, adding transitions and making sure all my shots are of the quality I want them.  


I'm really happy with what I have achieved so far, especially after I had to re-shoot the entire thing!

Hallelujah!

I re-filmed at the weekend, which went really well, and then today I came in to upload my footage - and it actually worked!  All the shots were filmed, so I was very pleased.  I also discovered the wonders of a tripod (it has two extensions! I never knew that...), so that was also very pleasing.  I think filming was a big success, due to the fact that Jess was very relaxed and not at all nervous, and that the lighting was more effective - I didn't have to use as much artificial light.  

Happy happy happy!

More Titles and Filming Update

I'm making even more progress on my titles, which is great.  I've got the basics of them all nailed, it's now just a matter of finishing off the final details.

There's not a lot more I am planning to do with these titles, as I am trying to stick to the convention of a horror films by keeping it fairly plain and simple (like the titles for 'Frozen' and 'Scream').

*Filming Update*

My good friend Jess has agreed to be my actress tomorrow, as Holly is unavailable.  There is one problem, however - she doesn't have blonde hair.  Her hair is light brown, so it's not that dark, but I would have preferred someone with blonde hair.  Apart from that, I think it should be a good day.  I have longer to film tomorrow as well, so if I'm not happy with something, I have the rest of the day to shoot it again.  

Updated Animatic

Below is my updated animatic, with the most of the improvements I was advised to make:




Things I have changed from my original animatic are;

• added more shots, therefore making my opening sequence closer to the specified 2 minutes
• the music used in the beginning of the opening sequence is now an actual song, the permission to use in the final edit I am still waiting for
• making it clear that 'Lola' is listening to a song on her iPod, as is shown through the shots of her turning it off

By making these changes, I feel that my animatic has improved.  When it comes to doing the re-shoot at the weekend,  will definitely make sure that I take these changes into account. 

Speaking of re-shoots, I'm actually rather looking forward to doing mine...

Advancement in Titles

I have made a couple of advancements and alterations in terms of my titles.  I have decided to put all titles on a black background, making them look more professional.  I have also started to make the titles for the names of my actors/actresses. 

I have been playing around with the font size of these titles, as I am not 100% sure which size works best.  The larger font size looks the best from my point of view, but then again I don't know if it looks too big...

Although I am unsure on the final positioning of the these titles (below), I am 

really liking the idea of having them on alternate sides.  I think this makes them look slightly different, however I know from my research into the opening sequences of horror films, it is more of a convention for the titles to be in the centre of the screen.

I Want To Cry

"There's nothing we can do" - James Howell, 2010


The worst sentence I have heard in the entire week.  The IT guys ran a scan on the card, but there is no way of getting the footage.  Re-shoot here I come!


Holly is going to check if she is free on Sunday, so I will aim to film then.  If not, then I really don't know what to do...

Titles

Below are photos from the first phase of my title making. 

Light Feather Films:

For this title I wanted quite a delicate looking font to match the delicateness of a feather, and I think the font I have chosen does that well.  I still need to film a feather falling, but this is not needed urgently.  I have a number of ways that I can film the feather, so I'm not too worried about that.  I think after I have added the feather, and changed the font a little bit more, it will be completed.

Storm Font Pictures:

This title I am a little unsure about, as the font in quite plain compared to the other titles.  However, I do not want this font to look overly 'flashy' and complicated- sometimes less is more.  For this title I will also need a picture of some sort of storm or bad weather, but the photo needs to be of high quality and professional looking, so I may get a friend who has a better camera than I do to take the photo.  

Chat Noir Studios:

I wanted quite a retro looking font for this title, and I think the one I chose works well.  It's fairly easy to read, and it's rather different from my other fonts.  I haven't quite worked out how I am going to get a cat walking across the bottom of the screen yet, but I have a number of possibilities when it comes to that.  I could either get my black cat to walk across a background, and then layer the font on top, or I could somehow create a cartoon cat (not really sure how I could do that?).  

So far, so good.  I'm really getting the hang of LiveType and I think my final products will look both professional and effective. 

Name Change

After some helpful and constructive comments,  I have come to the conclusion that the name of my film needs to change.  The name 'What's the Time Mr Wolf?' is just not effective enough for a horror film, so I have come up with a few alternatives:

• Times Up
• Tick Tock
• Late Night
• Long Time Coming

I'm not really certain on any of these ideas, so I am going to send out a questionnaire to find out what my target audience prefer.  After I have completed the questionnaire, I will blog about the results, and (hopefully) have a new name for my film.

And just a quick note about the uploading situation; 

It looks like it's going to be a re-shoot.  I'm actually not that concerned about this, as I think it will give me a chance to film with 'fresh eyes' and make a better job of it.  

Production Companies

I have three production company names that I am going to use in my opening sequence.  These are: Light Feather Films, Storm Front Pictures and Chat Noir Studios.  My idea for Light Feather Films was to have a floating feather against a black background, with the font in white to match the feather. 
I haven't really got an idea for what I could do for Storm Front Pictures, but whilst doing a bit of googling, I came across this image, which I really liked the look of.

I think it could work well as an image for a production company, as it's quite dramatic.
For the production company Chat Noir Studios I was thinking of having a black cartoon cat walking across the bottom of the screen, as chat noir is french for black cat. 

When it comes to actually making the titles, these ideas may change depending on whether it is actually possible to make them look effective and professional.

Uploading Fail

So I tried to upload my footage onto iMovie on Tuesday, but every way I tried wouldn't work.  I tried changing computers, cameras and cards.  Nothing seemed to work!  The IT technician is going to have a look at the card, but if he can't to anything for me it's going to be a complete re-shoot.  Great.