Saturday, June 1, 2019

Development in Editing Technology

"The very earliest filmmakers were afraid to edit film shots together because they assumed that splicing together different shots of different things from different positions would simply confuse audiences." [1] As the technology progressed, editing became more common and film makers wanted to be able to cut together different shots, simply by taking the film reel and cutting up each shot and splicing them back together in order to make a continuous piece of cinema. [2] Antoine Lumière was an artist who became a photographer and his son would experiment with it. He discovered that if you put lots of pictures side by side at a fast pace it would then appear to have moving objects similar to a zoetrope. This fits perfectly with the continuity of editing and how things are in oder and replicate real life. However, a film can't be days long which is why jump cuts take place in doer to skip time that the audience doesn't need to see. 
George Melies had a similar idea but rather than to skip jump cuts he wanted his theatre performances to appear as though they include magic. What he would do is that he would cut out the footage that would include where things would need to be taken out. For example how he edited using cuts for someone to be holding a treble clef then the he would throw it up into the air, the next shot, the clef would on the wall behind them but what the audience wouldn't see is that the background would change from one where the wall would have the clef painted on and the other one would [3]. He would include an orchestra to play against his work as the videos would have no sound. 
[4] The Soviet Montage was an invention so that a wide range of footage would be able to fit into a narrative, more commonly shown with music, but at the same time; have the ability to show lots of shots that an audience might want to see. These are commonly found with music videos or used to skip time but rather than a jump cut it would show the process of how something is made or to get a character ready for an event. Examples of this would be Rocky, most tutorials that would also include sped up footage and videos without a pronounced narrative. 
Film makers then started to wonder about the position of the camera and how that could effect the audience. Using multiple cameras, [5] D. W Griffith would use this technique to adapt on continuity. For example one camera would be positioned outside of a room, someone would start to open the door and the next shot would be on the other side of the door as it continues to open but now of course the scene is set inside the room and the audience is not confused as to how they got there. Rather than the camera staying in one place, just like it did for George Melies films, they would feature different shots to manipulate the audience and to give them a better understanding of the surroundings. This would also use on-location filming rather than just filming on a 2d set/theatre. These shots range from close up to establishing shots and these are used to allow the audience to get a better look at somethings. A close up on a persons face would be used to show their emotions and an establishing shot would be used, for example, at the start of a scene to show the audience where they are. Even more so outside so that they can see the background and setting of the foreseeable scene. 
Much later until about the 1960's is when film makers would get a little bit bored of the formula of making a film. They wanted to break the rules and ventured into doing things like seeing the camera on reflective surfaces, or a hair on the lens, or the sound quality to be bad. However this would all be done on purpose. Films such as Heat by Paul Morriesy and Andy Warhol would fit easily into this category. 
From then on editing technology changed from film to digital and software would be used to edit videos rather than cutting film in the right place to add a cut to the finished product. This is when you could do more with multiple cameras and their footage in order to create music videos and more recently promotional videos i.e. commercials or adverts for the TV. I personally use Apple's software to edit footage which is Final Cut Pro X. Other brands such as Adobe would use software called Premier Pro. Granting endless possibilities for film making. 



Bibliography


  1. https://prezi.com/oz0xeipwl9hu/development-and-techniques-of-film-and-video-editing/
  2. http://www.history.com/news/the-lumiere-brothers-pioneers-of-cinema
  3. https://youtu.be/Paneo9Urjc4
  4. https://youtu.be/JYedfenQ_Mw
  5. https://archive.org/search.php?query=%28%28subject%3A%22Griffith%2C%20D.%20W.%22%20OR%20subject%3A%22Griffith%2C%20D.%20W%2E%22%20OR%20subject%3A%22Griffith%2C%20D%2E%20W%2E%22%20OR%20subject%3A%22D.%20W.%20Griffith%22%20OR%20subject%3A%22D.%20W%2E%20Griffith%22%20OR%20subject%3A%22D%2E%20W%2E%20Griffith%22%20OR%20subject%3A%22Griffith%2C%20D.%22%20OR%20subject%3A%22D.%20Griffith%22%20OR%20creator%3A%22D.%20W.%20Griffith%22%20OR%20creator%3A%22D.%20W%2E%20Griffith%22%20OR%20creator%3A%22D%2E%20W%2E%20Griffith%22%20OR%20creator%3A%22D%2E%20W.%20Griffith%22%20OR%20creator%3A%22Griffith%2C%20D.%20W.%22%20OR%20creator%3A%22Griffith%2C%20D.%20W%2E%22%20OR%20creator%3A%22Griffith%2C%20D%2E%20W%2E%22%20OR%20creator%3A%22Griffith%2C%20D%2E%20W.%22%20OR%20creator%3A%22D.%20Griffith%22%20OR%20creator%3A%22Griffith%2C%20D.%22%20OR%20title%3A%22D.%20W.%20Griffith%22%20OR%20title%3A%22D.%20W%2E%20Griffith%22%20OR%20title%3A%22D%2E%20W%2E%20Griffith%22%20OR%20title%3A%22D.%20Griffith%22%20OR%20description%3A%22D.%20W.%20Griffith%22%20OR%20description%3A%22D.%20W%2E%20Griffith%22%20OR%20description%3A%22D%2E%20W%2E%20Griffith%22%20OR%20description%3A%22Griffith%2C%20D.%20W.%22%20OR%20description%3A%22Griffith%2C%20D.%20W%2E%22%20OR%20description%3A%22D.%20Griffith%22%20OR%20description%3A%22Griffith%2C%20D.%22%29%20OR%20%28%221875-1948%22%20AND%20Griffith%29%29%20AND%20%28-mediatype:software%29 

Evaluation of Editing

This year I was first introduced to the world of editing and in my spare time I would watch a lot of videos. While watching, I found myself wondering "how long does it take edit a video"? As well as deciding what shots and what I would include out of the whole batch of footage, and how it will be edited.
At the start of the year we were asked to compile a series of shots to show to our moderators that we knew what all of these shots looked like, and how to capture them. In this case is was focussed on ISO, Aperture and F-stops on a camera; combined with different degrees of zoom and motions such as tilt or pan. All of these videos were around 5-10 seconds long and they were not edited (they were left as a raw file/video). These videos were posted to my Youtube channel (unlisted/private) therefore, the only way to view them are via a link which can be found through this blog. None of these particularly stand out and were just completed to document the knowledge of different types of shots and raw usage of a camera. However, I do appreciate how useful this exercise was, as having a basic knowledge can be very beneficial when explaining how the different components work.


To help us get into the swing of things, we teamed up with other members of the class in either pairs or threes and with a small idea of what the teachers wanted us to complete we put together short piece of film in a day. With a plan we would then film and edit and post for us to review and compare the class's work the next day. I found these practical as it fits with how some projects happen i.e. a quick idea and then it gets completed in a small space of time. As well as combining teamwork it promotes our skills with completing tasks in a shorter space of time. I specifically liked the 'cut on the beat or action' task as this was to use a song and create a video as the title of the exercise describes. It was fun, the only thing that came with a small bit of difficulty was that it took all day to complete. I feel as though that the only problem with editing is that it takes more time than you want and even though it can be fun sometimes, when it comes to sitting down to edit, it can be difficult to know where to start.  FYI, all my editing was completed using Final Cut Pro X - the Apple software on my MacBook Pro.

The next section of work that we were given was our Contextual Studies unit. Focussing on the new wave of cinema we had to choose and research one. I chose the American new wave. But first we teamed up into groups to make one of our own to give us knowledge and a first hand experience of what makes a film 'new wave'. When I came to edit the footage I felt that I would've been too boring for a viewer to leave all the long cuts in so I sped them up. It doesn't look particularly glamorous but I liked it that way as the camera was meant to reflect the actor and it was to be filmed as a Point Of View (POV) shot throughout to give the impression of a vlog. However in order to break the rules of cinema to make it have new wave connotations I made sure to include the remarks of "let's go and make this new wave film". Things that I like also were how the video shows the actor/cameraman changes the F-stops while filming to correct the lighting. In the video the audience also sees the camera multiple times. One camera was used and the sound was recorded through the camera itself. I chose to edit it into a montage like sequence as it allows it to be similar to a music video where these rules don't really apply which also makes it easier to be identified as a new wave film. This was possible by adding non-diegetic sound and muting the raw audio instead to a gentle beat that fits well with the informal nature of the day that was filmed. I am pleased with hoe the video came out and its a strong basis for what a new wave film can be. However, there is little narrative, drama and effort that went into the finished product. If I was to do this again I would plan to include more of a storyline, the video would be longer because of that and include scenes that would grab the audiences attention; rather than this video which is just a relaxing day of going to town with friends to film a new wave piece. For what it is, I enjoyed being a part of it and editing it. My peers were also pleased with the result.
For the rest of the unit we were asked to look at our chosen new wave and research three films how it conveys the the type of cinema it is and analyse certain scenes within each film to demonstrate how it fits in the new wave genre.

During the Music Video unit, I was pleased with my results as I had two videos to edit. The first idea was to have one shot for the whole video while a fan of the bands song that I used would wear earphones and sing along to it as actions took place in the background but with limited time and lack of communication with my peers it didn't go the way I wanted and rather than focussing on something I really enjoyed working to be even better I chose to do my second idea which just ended up being a montage of my friends with captions of what they're saying while a song was playing. Both were ok and even though I enjoyed editing them, overall they're both ok, not great and I wish I focussed on one and produced a better. the reason for the way I shot the first video (one shot) like that was because I've never seen a music video like that where the band isn't present, a fan of the song is the only thing that's the focus point of the whole thing. As this was just an idea plan the extras in the background were not in place and it was just an experiment in order for me to see how it would look. If I could I would go bak and pursue this again to create a better piece using this idea. In terms of editing, there was one or two shots that I didn't use and few takes I wasn't happy with and shot again while shooting. The use of slow-motion works well as I wanted it to fit the timing of the song and I didn't have enough footage of the next shot to time up with the lip-syncing. I worked this out by slowing down the shots in the right places to seem effective and not as noticeable so that the lip-syncing lined up with the song for the next shot. This took a lot of trial and error to see if it would fit but in the end I made it work and was very pleased with the result. The other video was easy as it was just random clips I would like in the video and it was a simple case of adding text as subtitles throughout. No particular issues with it. Fun to record but overall an okay job as a video.

Editing the Promotional video was interesting as it had to be what the client wanted it to look like, rather than just my own judgement. All I had to do was make sure there was enough footage to display for each section in terms of the process of producing a product. In theory, it's lots of montage clips for each section but set to a narrative of the order of the product stages. Once I had finished and showed it to my client they were very please apart from a couple of shots. These were changed, which I was more than happy to do so as it's part of doing what the client has asked for and I agreed with them. Therefore, they were very pleased with the outcome. The reason for some of the shot choices, The title card shots of each section in particular was taken from news segments of how they'd have transitional shots normally while the journalist was recording a voiceover. This was an option too. It was discussed and my client believed that if I thought it would look good then I should do it. My client wrote the script for what they wanted to be said and I didn't record it so that when I edit I can add the shots to the voiceover so that to footage sits well with relevant shots. However, when I tried to add them to the video I realised that I'd need more to be spoken but as my voice actor was unavailable I just ended up using the script as text on screen instead. I informed this to my client and they were fine with this choice.

Evaluation of Practical Skills

In terms of planning, I feel that I could've done a lot better as I more or less completed the work as and when I thought of it. Specifically, I thought a lot of my ideas on the spot and when it came to sitting down to plan my work for the coming weeks I struggled. Therefore, I lack a fairly prominent section of most of my units of work due to the lack of forward thinking. The planning that I was able to document seems minimal and I am not very impressed. What I am pleased with is that I was still able to make something on the days of filming and even though it may not be 100% accurate to what the criteria is but feel that as I was still able to complete work in a timely manor and still get a respectable grade for my efforts that I believe it's just about enough.
For most of the year, not a lot of planning was needed. For instance: 'Four Hour Challenge'. These exercises were on the spot thinking and with just a small idea each group was able to produce a piece of work that was appropriate to the topic. But the practical skills that I got for this was to work in a group and to come up with ideas and to be able to execute them effectively in a shot space of time and to still be able to produce a working piece of film.

Moving on the Contextual Studies Unit. Researching American New Wave, I had completed similar tasks in the past but in theory, I had to research films and the genre of the new wave in America and what establishes it as that genre. I chose to do a visual presentation that was recorded to be marked. I prefer talking about my thoughts rather than writing them down and if asked the right questions I'm able to answer and have enough time to think and speak my answer with enough evidence to support my case. I thought the practical skills leant from this were to speak in front of a group of people for around half an hour. Speaking in front of a group and to have the confidence is something I really appreciate, even more so when you have an active audience.

The practical skills that I picked up during the work on the film studies unit was communication with teachers and peers. This is something I still struggle with but I know now how I should go about things. Normally if things aren't going my way I'd bury my head in the sand in hopes that it'll be ok and of course it's not. I need to improve on how I should properly communicate withe people so that they can help me stay on top of work and to complete work to the best of my ability. This risks my grade for the end of the unit and is something I need to learn more on so that I don't fall behind. I know this due to the fact that I didn't do as well as I hoped on this unit and I knew that as my planning wasn't thorough and my research wasn't as sound as it could be. And the lesson of being able to utilise my time. The music video unit is a similar story but not as much, as I was able to stay on top of work but I didn't communicate as much as I could have so that my teachers can help push me in the right direction with the support I would've had if I just spoke to them about my ideas so that I had one piece of work that was really good rather than two pieces that were ok.

I leant a lot from the promotional video unit as it required me to work with other people outside of the college and to work to a professional standard that they'd expect as my clients are a professional company. I was happy with the level of communication I had between me and my client and how I was able to manage time effectively in order to stay on top of work throughout. I think I have leant my mistakes from past units and when it really matters, I've been able to apply those skills I've picked up and applied them to this unit which as given me a good piece of work that they're happy with.

Wednesday, May 22, 2019

Contingency Plan

There may only be a few things that could go wrong while completing this project. Any potential things that may go wrong are listed below with a solution. 'Solution' will be shown as '-' (hyphen or dash).


  • Schedules make it difficult to meet up with the client - Myself and the client will make sure to leave room so that we can commence our meetings. It fits my clients schedule by meeting on a quiet afternoon. 
  • The shots I get don't fit well - I will overshoot so I have enough footage to choose from, so far I have around an hours worth of footage which I need to condense into 5 minutes.
  • The music chosen is not royalty free - Choose one that is and credit the artist accordingly, perhaps in the description of the youtube video.
  • The ides of an interview section to use as a voice over - If not a person that is shown on screen to use for the voiceover then I will arrange for an actor to record their voice which I can add in post - If this doesn't work then I will have the script as text on screen for the audience to read.
  • Contact with the client - I will send reminders/follow up with them if they do not reply as I will need information them. I understand that they are busy with their normal day job but I will make sure to keep up to date with them and move other things around to fit them in order to complete this work in a reasonably time period. 

Tuesday, May 21, 2019

Group Release Form


Promotional Analysis Video 3



Something more professional and contemporary, this older advert is something that has laid the foundation for what adverts and commercials are today. I can't help feel a little bit awkward as todays standards are so much better but I think it's good to have a comparison from what adverts used to be, compared to what they are now. As the product(s) I am looking at with my client is more geared towards professional and practical looking styles I feel that fits fits with what I'd want to use as inspiration for my own promotional video.
As it has a short narrative of a son trying to impress his father with a car, I don't want to use this for my own piece as myself and my client have discussed what we'd like to involve. A narrative is not what I was looking for; however, the first shot is a low angle on a track going left to right as people walk towards the camera. The setting is in an office establishment, most likely in the lobby and near the front door. The diegetic sound of heels clicking as a woman is walking is heard. Then the music comes through as soft chimes with a style that is time appropriate. In this case, the advertisement was made in 2007. The music swells at 0:11 as the father walks out of the building and is stopped by the cars presence. Looking in awe and a shot reverse shot of the editing, he gets in and lets his son drive while the father sits in the back. I like why they did this as it is mostly so that the camera won't be too in the way and they can show it off more by having shots in the front, accompanied by the son and shots in the back where the father is sitting. This is so that the audience can see the whole of the car. A series of these are played mixed in with the surroundings of the city. Perhaps this is to tell the audience that it's good for even busy life and is very comfortable inside with the main arm rest in the middle in the back of the car.
There are sound effects that are triggered by certain movements when they get in the car too. Like when there is the close up on the handle of the door as he open the car and when the son pushes the button to switch on the engine. They also include smooth transitional cuts, rather than hard cuts. It fits well as the tempo is slower than adverts today but it seems odd to include this shot because what I am personally used to see on TV, the tempo of the adverts today are much quicker.
At 0:36 a woman is shown looking at the car. This could be a subtle hint that women like it too and will like you for having this car. With slow-motion added to this section you are able to look at the car for longer as well as the woman as many would find her attractive and this allows the audience to be able to view it for more time.
With external shots of the car the camera is positioned so that the viewer is able to see it at all angles, including the roof with a birds eye view shot. With the only line in the advert "Son, what are we going to change next"? This implies that the work is never done and there will always be improvements. This fits well with the tagline "It represents your philosophy of life". Indicating that there is always more things to do.

Promotional Analysis Video 2



I thought a short TV Ad would fit nicely as they have less time to promote their product. I was impressed how they managed to fit in a short narrative while showing off their product. It reminded me of 5 Gum as it had a similar "What it feels like to chew 5 Gum" montage of random amazing quick shots that seems to be happening inside Tylers head. I know this as it there are two dolly zooms. One on Tyler and the other on his friend as Tyler is looking at him, falling into the imagery that is shown. Almost as though he blacks out and sees this as he eats the food.
First shot is normally an establishing shot to set the scene and so the audience knows where the characters are. They're at a 7 Eleven but in this case the shot is a canted angle of the sign above the building which fills the screen. So the audience still knows where they are but I found it slightly odd for it to be so close rather than a wide angle. In this case, it's a tight shot and is accompanied by a door bell sound as though someone has just walked through the door.
The second shot is the friend walking over to Tyler with a static camera, Tyler is positioned to the right of frame and out of focus so we can clearly see the friend fill the rest of the screen on the left. This is similar to an over-the-shoulder shot when two people are having a conversation.
As Tyler takes a bite, time slows down and a mintage of the experience that he's having is played. The non-diegetic music is violent and trashy which fits well with the high speed editing that is chosen for this. Some shots are timed well to either an action happen or the shot is cut on the beat of the song. However, there are slow-motion shots too as it has key words to describe the taste of the product. In this case these are: "Cruncheesy, Meltmazing, Loaded With Awesome".
It then cuts back to Tyler taking a breath but this time an owl is perched on his shoulder. His friend reacts to this then the both scream in tuen with one another. This is edited in a way with a back and forth motion so they're positioned on their own almost as POV (Point Of View) shots as the camera is placed where they would be and what they're looking at. It then cuts to the product on it's own with a red background in a studio to get a nice set up and a voiceover exclaiming where you can purchase them. With the hashtag #DORITOSLOADED it also displays a copyright tagline. Finishing on a neon 7 Eleven sign as this is where you can buy thm.
It Nisan effective, comical advertisement which makes me want to try them and as I know where to buy them it's much easier for the audience to go out to buy them. Short but affective.

Monday, May 20, 2019

Promotional Analysis Video 1



As Apple is one of the most profitable organisations I thought to look at one of their adverts to see how much they rely on them to promote their products. The first shot is compared of white text "Meet" with a beautiful background of flowing colour; this contrast nicely and makes everything on screen stand out. This shot is very quick but what I did notice is that the next shot is hung on slightly longer but only long enough so that the audience can read it. The colours switch so that the background is now white and the colour is on the text. It reads "iPhone X". A name that will catch any viewers attention and is something very prominent to remember as it sticks out with the background. This transitions into the next shot by "iPhone" sliding into the X and the X zooming forward into the 'camera'. And with the same flowing pink, blue and yellow (these colours are the same throughout the video) those colours transfer onto the iPhone from the text. I found this very smooth. I feel like there is no camera and this advert, apart from the actors later on, I get the impression that it is all CGI. However, the camera zooms out and the iPhone rotates itself to the left and up to show the side of it. Exposing the volume buttons.
The next few shots are angles of the phone to show how it looks. This is edited very quickly. At 0:06 seamlessly a hand comes from below to show off the swipe up technique on how to open the phone as it then goes onto how you unlock it with your face rather than a passcode or thumbprint. The only vocals come from the song. Which is Best Friend - Hafsah Shaheed (I found this out by looking through the comments on this video but couldn't find it when I searched for it on Youtube and Spotify) as they explain about Animoji with the face tracking feature. They include very nice effects such as 0:08 when saying it has durable glass an actor bumps into the camera which shakes the screen. Which, in turn, gives a ripple effect to the following text on screen. A series of colours are used for the text but it continues with the white background. At 0:19 something which they didn't have to include is different fonts for the word 'face'. I feel like this makes a big difference and creates another layer so that it doesn't get boring for the viewer as they have to read it. It fits really well with the tone and playfulness of the video too.
It follows up with a great build to announce the launch of Face ID with enough space and beats of the song and with the snare hits in the song and the editing slows down then builds up. It then Hangs on the wording "Face ID" to give it time for it to be noticed to the viewer.
As a viewer I was very impressed of how effective this advert was but at the same time it was done very simply and how basis it is. It shows off the new features in a fun way but is able to be professional as well. just like at 0:48 "Portrait Lighting"; it has the appropriate style for that section. The white font is given a 3D effect to show up well with the white background by giving it a shadow. It then goes into showing the audience the different types of Portrait Lighting with relevant sound effects as a swiping motion is being used.
Finally at 0:55 an augmented reality dinosaur is shown as though someone is filming it from real life. A couple of subtle choices have been made too. For instance, The blurred background to help the audience focus on the screen and the person holding the phone is slightly shaking. Maybe to show that they're scared. Personally I don't like this and would rather this been smooth and still rather than shaky but I suppose they tried this and didn't like how it was as its not very realistic to have someone out-stretched arm completely still.
The rest of the video is a similar fashion of simple one or two words to read on screen as it switches from a white background and coloured text to the other way around and shots of the iPhone as the vocals from the song play until it closes at a respectable place. Finishing on the Apple logo.

Equipment List

I had a small list of items that I used for my equipment. These were:


  • My iPhone 7 Plus
  • DJI Osmo Mobile 2
  • Canon 650D (standard lens ((18-55mm))
While editing I used:

  • Final Cut Pro X on my MacBook Pro

Sunday, May 19, 2019

Promotional Video, Evaluation and Feedback From the Client



Feedback from the Client (Damien Jones - ACE Ceilings Ltd.) received via email.

Hi Max

Firstly many thanks for the email and link to the promo video that you have produced.

I have attached the Group Release formed signed by all involved.

I would like to take this opportunity to offer feedback on the lead up and including the production of the video.

Firstly I am very impressed on how you took the initiative and time to understand what we do and why we do it at ACE, and it has to be said due to the reactive nature of our business and my busy schedule you did a good job in managing the time line and flow of information to get this over the line.

You soon understood that we were looking for  something that showed people what we actually did and quickly put ideas together to get that message across, however I did feel that you could have got carried away when you suggested an interview style voice over.

Once we have the approval meeting the small changes we requested made the video into something that we will definitely use, practically when potential clients don’t understand our processes.

Good luck with your course.

Regards

Damian 


Evaluation:

I decided to incorporate my Shotlist post into this evaluation rather than have them as separate posts but rather than full sentences I will aim for a more - bullet point and give detail - approach. 
Below are my listed shots for most of my final promotional video. This will be noted by either this line or something similar: "After the next few shots". These phrases will stand alone and be made obvious to the reader. 

Note: There is no diegetic sound - the only sound is the song I chose for this video, this plays throughout.

The first shot is:
  • Opening of logo 
  • 4 seconds long 
  • No camera angle or movement - Other than my own shot that I got when filming in the facility, they are static camera shots of images or 
  • The only sound is non-diegetic
What I chose to do for this video is to have a structured nature to it. Not necessarily a narrative but something so that when I am editing I have sections to ut the footage down so then it won't appear as a montage. It also makes it easier for an audience to follow and able to cut between certain time-codes if they need to look back at a certain step they may need to shed more light on. 

The second shot is: Step 1. In this, the purpose of this shot is to show off the first section when it comes to a new project that they need to build for a customer. This begins with CGI Models so that ACE know what the product is going to look like and so that they know what shapes need cutting, folding, welding etc. 

The next few shots basically show off the idea with different panning and tilting motions around the object. These shots were recorded on an employees computer and sent over to me so that I can help show the audience to understand how the stages works. Its a relatively short process as long as the customer has some idea in what they'd like to be done but at the same time, plenty of ideas and standard imagery is thrown around to interest the customer. Yet at the same time, ACE are wanting to create unique styles for each project. 
For Step 2 I wanted a more exciting shot so I chose an extra piece of footage from the welding stage but you will see that that with the 'Step' shots I wanted to use segmented style shots. These shots can be found at 0:33, 1:17, 1:43, 2:20, 2:58 and 3:32. I took inspiration from live news segments, where normally a voiceover is used. This is what I wanted to achieve but instead I chose to just have text due to the availability of my voice actor. We did record the majority of the text shown in the video but when i came to finally editing the video, I wanted to add more and it didn't fit to have both text and a voiceover. So to avoid this, I just went with the text option and my client agrees that it suits this way more when they first saw the video. 
The text itself is just in a bold font in full capital letters. There is no particular reason why I chose this but I just wanted to make it obvious to the audience. I stuck with white as the colour of the text too and even though at some points you can't see all of the word due to the background, I tried it with black and grey to see how it looked. It looked better with white. In terms of timing, I just made sure I could read it all and look at the images on screen after, for some, it may require them to watch the video a couple of times to get the full affect but when I presented it to the client and the Analytics Manager they agreed that they could read it so the timing was good and not too rushed. 
Another thing which some people may miss is the logo in the top left hand corner. I changed it so it is slightly see through but still prominent so you can still see it. As a watermark, it reminds the viewer who they are watching but doesn't get in the way and may even be a subconscious message to the audience what their name is, it makes it easier to remember the name.
In Step 2 and onwards until the final section of the video it shows a series of shots that were all handheld but with some of it shot on my iPhone 7 Plus with a phone gimbal (DJI Osmo Mobile 2) and other shots were filmed on my Canon 650D with standard lens. The Osmo allowed me to get smoother shots and a cinematic feel. I was also able to give nice effects when speeding up time and slowing it down. These can be found at 2:04 and 2:20.
Overall for each section I was able to edit the appropriate footage to that while text was shown to explain how that section worked. This is what myself and my client agreed on before production.
For the last section, which shows off finished products in use or at locations, I was only able to acquire images. I imagined first that I wanted this part to look similar to how IKEA show off their products in show rooms but unfortunately, this was not the case as they don't have them. Therefore, the only way I could get these shots was to travel around the country in order to get the shot myself. My client told me that it's not a big issue and he was happy for me to not go to this length. Also because I am not currently driving, I would have to go by public transport. All in all, it was too much effort for just a small part of the video and my client urged me to just stick with the images.
Looking back on the final video I would changed how the last section of images is shown. It make it a little more synced I should've edited it so that the cuts of each image happen on the beat of the song and I could've cut some of the footage out so that the jerkiness of some of the shot appear more smooth as I did not use my Osmo for the whole of the video.
Closing off on the same image as the beginning, The company logo and with website and tagline is a reminder of the. name of the business, what they do and where you can contact them I feel is a great and simple way for the customer to be reminded of who they just saw in action and hopefully gives them enough enthusiasm to contact them in order to produce another piece of work for the company.
I was informed that it will be posted on their LinkedIn account and potentially on their website. As you can see above from the feedback of the client, they were very pleased with the result. 




Monday, May 13, 2019

Timetable

I met up with my Client on three occasions. The first two were to get the footage and any relevant shots and info I needed and to discuss ideas and things that my client and myself wanted to include. These meetings took place on 19th March and 10th April. Our Final Meeting is on 16th May, when the video will be finished so that my client can view it to give feedback and if there are any changes to be made then i'll have enough time before the hand-in date which is 22nd May. On this date, the other things that need completing are signatures for the release form and feedback.


Max Everett HNC Timetable 
Promotional Video

Check after every write post that you have included bibliography – Each task should be completed by the end of that day, if not, then it will be specified within the box e.g. “Make a start/begin – Finish”
Completed tasks will be shown with a line through 

1st April
Meet with client (Damien Jones – Ace Ceilings to arrange ideas and information needed to make a start with footage and story board shots. 
4th April
Make a start on the story board (layout found on Moodle) – note down ideas and aspects I wish to include within my piece. May start editing to crop down on usable footage, edit if need be with individual clips. – Changed my mind. I’m going to do a shot list instead.
8th April 
Voiceover/Script ideas – layout of how it would fit with the mood and editing style – Finish Recce (ask about what else needs adding on Friday 12th)  
12 th April

Section in red will be completed at final meeting on 16th May
Finish Risk Assessment (NEED TO GO BACK TO) – Look at consent forms, ideas to make that easier (put up signs to say “if you’re beyond this point, you give consent to be in the video) - Research music to use for video (light-hearted and copyright free) – FINAL DECSION IS TO POST ONE PAGE WITH ALL SIGNATURES THAT MAY BE REQUIRED TO GIVE CONSENT OF INVOLVEMENT INCLUDING BACKGROUND ACTIVITY

     EASTER

4th May
Voiceover recording – this will be explained in evaluation or another post that discusses overall planning – most overall planning will most likely be mentioned in Evaluation 


New format – on-going tasks until date that it should be completed:

·      Risk assessment - finished by 20thMay
·      Equipment list - finished by 20thMay
·      Promotional video analysis x3 - finished by 21st May 
·      Storyboard/shotlist - finished by 22ndMay morning 
·      Client communication (screenshoot emails and texts) - finished by 21thMay
·      Legal forms – waiting on Client but should be finished by 21thMay – 22nd  morning latest, will run up on it on the 20thand 21stas reminders so that if I don’t receive it I have done my best as the form was left with the client at their request – all I need is a picture as proof
·      EDL (Edit Decision List)/Evalution – this may be part of my Evaluation as to why I edited the final video in a certain way - finished by 22thMay (morning)

REMEMBER TO POST THIS PAGE AS PROOF AS A TIMETABLE 





Friday, April 12, 2019

Promo Vid Questions:

Video Production Questionnaire
Confused about where to start with your video?
We understand that video production is hugely variable and as such can be a confusing arena to venture into for the first time. Also what may suit one business may not suit another and as such an off the shelf solution may conflict with your ideas. We have designed this pre-production guidance questionnaire to:
                         Help you to understand your own proposal in more depth.
                         Help us understand your proposal in more depth, so as to give you a more           accurate quotation & proposal.
                         Help you to gain better understanding of the video production process.
                         To help us give you exactly what you want from your video project.
                         Ultimately help save you time & money trying to piece together your video ideas.

Please allow up to 15 minutes to complete our pre-production guidance questionnaire. On completion we will be in touch to give you a quotation & proposal.

SECTION ONE: CONTACT DETAILS

Name - Damien Jones

Job Title - CEO and Managing Director of Ace Ceilings Ltd. 

Email - djones@ace-ceilings.co.uk

Contact Number - +447969990050

Company Name (if applicable)

 Ace Ceilings Ltd

Website - http://www.ace-ceilings.co.uk


SECTION TWO: PROJECT BUDGET

As each video is tailored to your unique needs, we ask for you to provide a price range so we can ascertain the services your budget will cover (such as venues, crew members, voiceovers, specialist equipment etc.)

What budget do you have in mind for your video?

This project I aim to not spend any money on it as it will not require any special effects more than I have available to me via my editing software - Final Cut Pro. 

SECTION THREE: PURPOSE & AUDIENCE

This section lists all the possible uses & audiences for your video. What is the ultimate goal for the video? (highlighted in bold text are the ones I feel this applies most to)

What is the purpose of the video?
·      Promotional Video
·      Direct Sales – General Public
·      Direct Sales – Specialist/B2B
·      Training Video
·      Conference Video - Maybe.
·      Internal Comms
·      Live Event
·      New Product/Technology
·      Endorsement/Testimonial Video
·      Other

Who is the audience for this video?
·      General Public
·      Business Professionals
·      Customers/Consumers
·      Demographic targeting (e.g. 18-24 year olds, women)
·      Internal Use Only/Employees
·      Other

What are the key objectives of your video?

  - This has been answered in my other blog post "Questions To Establish The Main Objectives" 

SECTION FOUR: VIDEO DURATION

Video length can vary hugely from a short online promotional video to longer, more in depth training videos. The general rule is the shorter amount of time someone has interacted with your business the shorter and sweeter the video should be. - The text in bold is the time I feel is most appropriate. 

Duration of the video
·      30 seconds to 1 minute
·      1 minute to 2 minutes
·      3 minutes to 4 minutes
·      up to 5 minutes
·      over 5 minutes
·      Other

SECTION FIVE: DEADLINE

I plan to have this all finished by the 20th May 2019. 



              

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