27 Nov 2009

Clare is now unable to make it, and Denise, who promised to make it, has been stopped by her parents. I have phoned about 7 different possible candidates, none of whom are that keen to come. Hence, we have decided to use my sister, who can be more reliable. She seems quite keen to try, so this should go well.

We're planning for our three-hour shoot. I'm a little worried about the party scene later, but that I'll deal with after we have edited the shoot.

17, 18 Nov 2009

This reflection will cover the pre-production of my Wang Kar Wai inspired film 'The Mirrors' up until 18 Nov 2009.

My script was written on a Saturday. I took the time out to watch 2046, which I found on youtube. I thought the film had a very interesting use of camera angles, as well as how the camera focused on close-ups, details, shadows, and background, allowing characters to drift in and out. Also, the story-arch was interesting, following an emotional journey of a character, rather than the classic three-act hollywood script.

The concept of love being a feeling that will never be fully realised was very striking in 2046, and I used it in my script, the Mirrors, where I followed a man and woman, both isolated from a crowded setting, meeting each other, but failing to connect. The image I found is in this blog, above. I was inspired by the reflection to set my script in a mirrored room.

My storyboarding occurred under slightly time-constrained test conditions, but I had in my mind the cinematographic techniques that struck me in 2046, which I applied to the storyboard. It ended up getting chosen, so I was tasked unexpectedly with being a director. I confess that I thought my script might fall under the 'unfilmable' category; but I wasn't spared.

We arranged to get filming by 17 November. Christopher was assigned cinematography, Justin sound and editing. Justin was cast as the male actor, but we had to find a female. For some reason, we decided that an oriental with no glasses would best fill the role. This was mostly Christopher's decision, but I confess I found it rather odd. But many girls were either busy or reluctant. In reality, I didn't follow Christopher's rather odd recommendation, and simply found anybody whom I felt was suitable. Eventually, Clare graciously agreed, so we're using her. Unfortunately, Justin had a funeral to attend, so we had to reschedule. I think the difficulty in casting and co-ordinating was overcome well.

We had to reschedule to next Thursday ultimately. However, in the meantime, on 18 Nov 2009, we recorded Justin's voice overs, which he did exceedingly well. I was afraid he would have difficulty, but he had a very naturally bored and slightly regretful sort of tone. I didn't direct him too much, but just let him do it naturally. At first, we tried the music room, but that wasn't sound proof. We went to the Rose Hall, but it had an echo. Ultimately, I decided with Justin that the echo was nice, since it sounded like it was in the head.

We have arranged to film on 25 Nov. I plan to do Clare's voice overs before hand. This should hopefully go smoothly, though Clare may have more difficulty than Justin. But that doesn't matter too much, we have time.

30 Oct 2009 - Reflection on different films

Killing Love:

The film had a good noir plot. The entagling love affairs make interesting storytelling. The acting is also, on the most part, superb. I enjoyed the use of black and white, and many of the camera angles were dramatic and well-done. I felt the timing of cuts was good, and that the ending, though a little disruptive, was well done.

I had a few problems. One, it was unclear who was who in the beginning. Cuts to the people's faces would have helped. Also, the music by Beethoven conjured up imagery of Napoleon that didn't fit with the film. Lastly, I felt that the ending was not as good, since Lucy is not a character we get to know at all, so the ending seems to be caused by a rather external interruption. Otherwise, it was good.

Descending Loyalty:

The music fit the mood, and the editing was good. Acting was, again, on the most part, superb. The plot line archs beautifully, and we feel the protagonist walking into a trap at the end. Lighting was good. Every camera angle was well-planned and well placed. The script was superb as well. Overall, I thought the main criticism could be that the femme fatale could have been better introduced. It seems as if she comes in from no-where.

Paranoia Hong Kong:

The good parts of the film: acting was superb. Camera angles were well-placed. The editing was precise: no shots felt too long or too short, the flow was excellent and established the connection betweeen the protagonist and the scene. The music was fitting. Scripting was simple, but effective. Nothing too fancy attempted, which was good.

However, there sometimes the music was too loud, and the scenes a bit dark. Also, the femme fatale is not really as cruel, since she is not that closely related to the protagonist. The fact that the femme fatale was the killer was also very obvious, since she is the only other character in the plot, and a surprise character would not have been introduced at the last minute. But from an editing and cinematographic point of view, it was a good accomplishment.

To love and to perish:

The film, I think, did include dramatic shots and lighting, and had a good actress for femme fatale. Unfortunately, the other acting wasn't as good, and the plot holes were rather obvious. More effort should have been placed in making more elements of the plot explicit rather than implicit. Also, more effort should have been placed on ensuring that the assassin was less comic. Editing I think was good though. Also, I think the whole script was written too fancily.

28 Oct 2009

Today was mostly my work, afterschool and lunchtime and the like, so I'll discuss what I accomplished and some difficulties.

Essentially, my accomplishments were almost entirely in the field of sound, lighting and touch-up on music. I decided, with feedback from Ms Wong, that she was right in saying the lighting was quite bad. Although some contrast was intended for effect, the difference between lighting in some shots was simply jolting. Therefore, I adjusted the sillehoutted shots by reducing contrast, and darkened the lighter shots, to try and produce more uniformity. The results were not perfect, and the shots are still slightly jarring, but not so much as before.

In terms of sound, I imported the sounds Jonathan Chan gave me. I also fixed each clip so that the sound level throughout the film was basically uniform. This was tedious, but not difficult.

I also added some music at the beginning for Lucas to try out.

27 Oct 2009

Today was the editing stage proper. I couldn't come for the Monday editing session, so I tried my best to contribute to the editing in whatever way I could. I basically acted as assistant editor, giving Lucas opinions and advice on certain shots. I commented on which shots to use. The film has mostly been cut together, and some work on lighting, contrast and other things has been accomplished. We have managed to cut together a coherent film, and have managed to get some ideas in terms of music.

There were several problems. As can be seen, the lighting is a huge problem: The light is too strong in some parts, and creates silhouettes. The sound is sometimes loud, sometimes soft. Also, there are some parts of the film that require complex putting together of sequences. However, editing is primarily Lucas' job, and I am merely aiding with touch-up later on.

Also, we captured some sounds today. We got a door slamming, which turned out to be quite useful. That went smoothly. However, our attempt to get water taps were fraught with difficulties, since exterior school noise was captured in the recording.