Director's Commentary

Director's commentary was the first CCR I wanted to tackle since it's the easiest...or so I thought. Before even starting the commentary, I had to get the absolute final edit that I was going to submit for my project. Since I was still at around 2:15, I was trying to cut off AT LEAST 5 seconds. It was a struggle. I go to 2:12 before just sitting and looking at the project file and pretty much giving up. At this point, I was just cutting up frames and it was pointless. This is when I checked in with peers and see how they were doing. This is when I found out 2:15 was acceptable...

Minutes. Hours. Days. The amount of time I've spent trying to cut it down to 2:05. And I could've stayed at 2:15 this whole time. I was relieved and fuming at the same time.

Oh well, luckily I made another version that was perfectly 2:15 that I could use, just had to fix up the credits a bit. 

So now I could finally do the Director's Commentary. So I had to figure out how to screen record on my computer and have audio at the same time. After figuring out how to record my screen to point out certain things in the opening, I decided I would just have to record on my phone and sync up the audio later. 

So I did my first take and it was pretty poop. I kept stuttering and messing up and it was longer than 5 minutes which is not ideal since the max for the entire thing is 10 minutes. So I did another take. This one was a bit better but I knew I could do better. When I recorded my 3rd attempt, it was perfect. The time was good, and my cadence was perfect. Everything about it was beautiful. I looked back at the screen recording and it had been recording the wrong tab the entire time. 

If the 4th attempt didn't work out, I would just use the 2nd. Luckily the 4th was good, not as good a #3 (rip) but it would work. 

This project file is starting to fill up with a bunch of sequences... Next up on my list...the interview. I lowkey only have one day to do it, but it should go well...hopefully. Wish me luck. This is the home stretch. 

CCR...

Unfortunately, my CCR has been neglected and become an afterthought thanks to STN. It's also my fault too, but let's just blame it on STN for now. Since I had to film and am still finishing up editing right now, the CCR has been something I've put on the sidelines, but I have to knock it out eventually. 

The other day in class, our teacher taught us what a CCR was. With a CCR or Creative Critical Reflection, we have to answer 4 big questions reflecting on all the choices, progress, and troubles we faced while making our opening. We have to use at least two creative media products to respond to the 4 questions, so I'll just do 2 and 2. The first 2 big questions, asking about genre conventions/representation and audience/distribution, and the other 2 smaller questions, asking about the development of skills and integration of technology. I'm thinking of doing an interview for the big questions and a director's commentary for the ladder. 

First Question

To approach this question about genre conventions and representation, I would have to research the genre conventions of a thriller, but thankfully I did a lot of the heavy lifting in my first few blogs about the opening. In my response to the first part, I'll explain what the thriller genre is and what it sets out to do, "elicit strong emotions, mostly dealing with generating suspense and anxiety" as explained by StudioBinder. I'll then go into the conventions and how I follow or break them. Story Grid explains how some conventional themes include murder, crime, robbery, all things in my opening. Other conventions include cinematography (tight and closeup shots), lighting, time crunch, MacGuffins, Red Herrings, and types of characters (serial killers, police, criminals, etc.). I will explain these and explain how I follow some and avoid others and why. 

Next would be representation. For this, I can just look back at my character development blog since there I talk about how my character represents different ideas or social groups.

Second Question

The second question asks about the target audience and distribution. For my audience, it is the same as the thriller and drama audience, so I'll explain that. I'll then move on to how I target that audience (characters and the dialogue).

In terms of distribution, my options are pretty much theater, streaming or online websites like YouTube. I would have to stay realistic with my decisions and explain how that distribution method relates to my audience.

Third Question

This one focuses on how my skills developed throughout the process of making the opening. I'll talk about how I'm experienced, but nothing as big as this. I'll then move on to how pre-production, production, and post-production all took a part in developing different skills throughout. Can end with how the overall project helped me get a grasp on how to work out a big production.

Fourth Question 

Since this question asks how I integrate technologies, I can talk about Blogger, Premiere, After Effects, Sony camera, dolly, lights, all that. Explain how each contributed to the project and any advantages or disadvantages that came with each and so on.

Ending

Should end with a reflection overall. What I learned, what I could do differently, and how could I improve for next time. 

Here is my link to the script. It's pretty rough, but it will help me stay on track and not ramble on and keep my ideas and topics concise and to the point. Will get to recording these as soon as possible and finally finishing up this project!

Edit Hell

I have the basic line edit done and it's looking pretty good. I just have to add sound effects and music. And also the news segment at the end. I ended up recording yesterday along with the opening wide shot and both went well. But now I am just struggling to cut it down on time. I sort of knew this would happen, I was just hoping that it wouldn't. I am about 30 seconds over the 2-minute mark, and that's with some revisions already. I'm not exactly sure what to do at this point. Right now, I made a "director's cut" with the full dialogue and everything included, and I'll make a revised version where I cut as much as I can. I'm going to have to start cutting into dialogue and see what is unnecessary and can be removed. Hopefully, it comes out alright.

BREAKING NEWS

As I'm making the revised version, it just feels like the pacing gets thrown off by the cutting of dialogue but I think this also may have to do with the fact that I already had a vision so it feels a little empty without it. For a first-time viewer, it may not seem bad at all. At least that is my hope. I'm at around 2:15.

But right now, I'm going to just try and finish everything else, and then continue trying to cut up what I can. So this means putting the news on the TV and making the breaking news graphic. Putting videos on the TV was surprisingly easy. Since I use Adobe Premiere to edit, I just had to select the corner pinch effect and adjust the corners to fit the screen. On the right is a screenshot showing the effect. I think it turned out pretty good. I think I still may play around with it, dimming the screen a bit, making it more realistic in the scene, etc. 

The hard part about this was masking Malcolm as he was crossing the screen. Since I overlayed the video over the TV and the original clip, it would come out on top of Malcolm. So I had to manually rotoscope Malcolm's body and reveal the TV behind his body. It was a hassle. It didn't come out perfectly, or else I would've been sitting there for at least an hour just trying to perfect it, but since it isn't the main focus of the shot and it moves pretty quick anyway, it works out. 

The next big step was the breaking news graphic. For this, I went on YouTube and searched up a tutorial for a breaking news graphic for After Effects. I just followed this and it went easily. I'm already slightly familiar with After Effects so it wasn't too bad. For this clip, I just put it right before the news anchor section I recorded and put that on the TV as well, making it seem like it was interrupting a broadcast. 

SOUND

Next step, sound. Sound effects, music, all that good stuff. I first tried to find music that fit because that was pretty important to me. Throughout this whole process, I tried to decide if I should make the music myself since that gives me more control of the mood, beats, etc. But I lowkey don't have the slightest clue on how to make a suspenseful piece of music or any music in general, so I kinda gave up on that early on. 

I didn't touch it again till now, so I decided to try and find something on sound websites, like slipstream, artlist.io, etc. Only issue with these is that they require a subscription, and I kinda wanted to avoid that. Plus, a lot of them felt too dramatic, grand, or just didn't fit the mood. There were only like one or two out of the dozens I looked at that I really liked, but I didn't want to commit to anything since I was scared I could find something better for free. So I turned to YouTube to see what I could find. 

YouTube is usually hit or miss, and mainly miss when it comes to music. Most copyright-free tracks sound like they belong in a Home Depot ad, but on the rare occasion that you find something, it may just work out. And for me, it did. The suspenseful tracks on YouTube aren't that bad, they get the job done and are a solid background. I found one that wasn't loud or extravagant but it worked. With the help of some risers here and there, it should be fine. 

So the next step was sound effects. I got them from a few different places. YouTube isn't that bad for a lot of things, sometimes it can sound like it was recorded on a microwave, but other times it works just fine. Just depends on what you're looking for. I also used tune tank, free sound, etc. Really anywhere that was free and sounded good. 

My timeline ended up looking like this for audio, so I'll take that as a win. 

I'm pretty much done at this point, just doing some minor revisions and trying to cut down as many more seconds as I can. Wish me luck. Once I'm done here, I will tackle my CCR.

THATS A WRAP

Filming went PRETTY smoothy. Thank GOD. No equipment issues, actors showed up on time, and props came in. All good. The only dilemma I had was deciding where to film since my time restriction prohibited me from filming in my intended location, but I think it worked out pretty well. 

By the way, my final actors ended up being my friends Andrew and Bryan.

Bryan (Sam)

Andrew (Malcolm)

After deciding where we would film and figuring out the composition of the shot (honestly the majority of the time), the close-up shots for the dialogue of each character went by pretty fast. We were able to complete all lines within an hour. It slowed down a bit when I moved on to the remaining shots, but that, again, was just figuring out the composition I wanted.

My house is all bland beige walls, mostly empty, which makes it kinda ugly to film in, at least in my opinion. So me, Bryan, and Andrew figured that using my door leading to the patio would look nice for one shot, and we had to move some furniture around to make the counter shot of the other robber look visually interesting and add some depth rather than just have him against a solid color wall. I think this ended up looking pretty decent for the most part. 

The shots in question :)

The background ended up looking HELLA green for Andrew, so I had to set up similar lighting for Bryan's shot, or else it may look weird or out of place. Luckily I had a handheld RBG light PLUS the huge key light I was using. I used that to create a green accent on Bryan's left side and I think it worked out pretty well. 

Some photos of the shoot ^^

As you can see, it was a pretty small crew handing all the equipment, just me and the actors swapping depending on the shot. I also guess now would be a good time to explain the equipment and where I achieved all of these valuables. So I borrowed it from my friend, companion, classmate, Armesto, but technically he got it from BECON. BECON (Broward Education Communications Network) is a media production resource for students in our school district. From BECON, Armesto got an RGB COB Light, Softbox, RGB Cam Light, 2 light stands, omnidirectional mount for light, headphones, Sennheiser boom mic, XLR cable, XLR adapter, boom pole, slider, Sony A7III, 28-70mm zoom lens, F1.8 50mm lens, ND filter. All this good stuff was SUPER nice to have. 

In terms of props, the phone came in time and worked pretty well. Setting up that shot was HELL, but hopefully, it works out. I got fancy with it and used a dolly so hopefully that looks pretty nice. The clothes for Sam changed up a bit, mostly because I didn't have a red jacket for Bryan. I had one that was a small bright vibrant red cotton jacket which doesn't fit what I had in mind. The jacket is my fault, I should've gotten it before, but it's fine, the black jacket and beanie Bryan wore worked out. For the low shot looking up at Sam and Malcolm, I decided to not have the hand since it may have looked weird/out of place/forced or all the above. So that also means, I won't need blood. 

Oh, I also made a poster just...because. 

Thought it came out pretty good. Not really a poster since it's landscape, but it's just for me anyway.

The title of this blog is a bit of a lie. I still need to film the news segment and the lady walking into the home. I have to film these in the next two days since I return my equipment on Wednesday, 3/27. But during that time, I'll get ahead on editing and all that good stuff. I plan to be pretty much-done editing by Wednesday/Thursday. This means I need to lock in and do my CCRs by this weekend. I'll talk more about that in the future. Now, I film my final two shots and edit!

It is so over (hopefully not)

Alright, quick little post here. I underestimated the power of spring break. Severely. All my intended actors (by all I mean my two) are gone for spring break. So, I needed to find new people. Which is fine, I already had a few friends in mind in case of something like this. BUT, spring break truly has a grip on every high schooler I know. My backups, if not already gone, were going to be gone on the date I wanted to film. So...yeah. I needed to come up with something. Fast. 

Damn spring break.

One of the backups was open to filming, the only complication was the time. The only time he could was Sunday, 3/24 but I was intending to film Tuesday 3/26. I didn't really have much of a choice so I decided to go ahead with it. But this kinda screwed up some of my plans. I didn't have all my props and would have to settle on a location really soon. Luckily, I had all my equipment today, THANK YOU ARMESTO. If I hadn't, I really don't know what I would've done. 

I was planning on recording in my brother's home, but what I may end up doing is recording the exterior of that and then filming in my own house, since filming inside his with such short notice may not be possible. The missing prop is the home phone, and I just hope it comes in time. It is set to arrive tomorrow, but hopefully, that doesn't mean at like 9pm. 

I just pray that tomorrow can still go smoothly despite the sudden schedule change. Will keep you posted.

SHOTS SHOTS SHOTS

Ok, I need a shot list to make sure I'm organized during my shoot and I don't forget anything. Recently, my brother gave me a creative workbook that contains pages for brainstorming, storyboarding, and SHOTLISTS. Thank you, Derek. So I will be using that to make my shot list. I'll pretty much just follow my script and write down each cut or line of dialogue I need to ensure that nothing is forgotten, and no stone is left unturned. I DO NOT want to shoot the whole thing and forget one little thing. I would DIE inside. 

The shot list in the workbook isn't very detailed, but it's enough for me to work with. I put what kind of shot each one would be (close-up, wide, medium, etc.) and the description of each. I'll use both the storyboard for the type of shot and the script for the descriptions to help me fill it out. 

As I filled it out, I went chronologically and that made it pretty easy as I just looked at both the script and the storyboard and copied stuff down. When actually filming, I probably shouldn't go completely chronologically, since some shots should be filmed at once even though they happen at different times, like both phone scenes. The composition should be identical for the two, so I'll just film those right after the other. Below is the shot list

Hopefully, this makes recording a much easier and smoother process.

FONTS

Coming off the posts about credits, I want to lead right into fonts. I wanted to do it in one post,  but STN got me pretty behind with my posts so I had to divide it up into 2.

To do my research I used a Canva article explaining font psychology. It explains how fonts have the power to control how your product is received by audiences. The right font can make you look professional and trusted or whimsical and inviting. Choosing the wrong font can also completely mess up the tone of your piece. So using something like Comic Sans wouldn't really work for my piece.

Some of the main fonts are Serif, Sans Serif, and Script.

I can pretty much immediately take out Script since I just don't think it fits the vibe of my opening. I would want a more aggressive font as the title will lead into the intense opening. So my ideal font would be Serif.

Serif fonts establish formality and authority. Serif is also a classic font, typically used in books, magazines, and newspapers since it is easier to read. They also send a clear message and can make an impact and demonstrate power. The Canva article uses this Guardian ad on the right as an example of Serif font being used authoritatively, establishing that they have a clear message.

For my purposes, I want big bold characters, almost screaming in the viewer's face, but still using basic fonts and staying away from anything extravagant. Since I have access to Adobe fonts, I began looking for what was available on there. 

 

On Adobe fonts, there are a few tags, including calligraphic, geometric, funky, futuristic, and inline. 

I stuck with geometric, and almost immediately found my match. 

NOKA.

(this isn't the noka font btw, just the closest I can get on here)

It's sharp, loud, and aggressive, while still being simple and easy to read. It is almost exactly what I was looking for. For the title itself, I will probably have a bold version of the font while using the basic or light version of the font for the other credits. Next up, shot list, music, and FILMING.

CREDITS

To research credits, I decided to look at other films in the genre. So I turned to a handful to see the similarities and differences and choose what I think will be best for mine. 

First, I looked at Uncut Gems. When they get to the credits, they have one name appear at a time on a lower third, alternating between the left and right third. It alternates between the left and right sides of the screen. The first couple of names were the actors, in order of importance. After the actors, things like casting, score, costume designer, editor, producers, etc. So for me, I would have the actors first, then have that followed by cinematographer, editor, producer, director, etc. I would have the text in the lower third, likely 2 at the same time since I do not have much time to work with. I'm thinking of keeping the credits to only the very first shot of the wide of the house and also sneaking the title near the end of that shot, but it just depends on how long the shot is and how much time the credits will take. 

The credits for Uncut Gems are shown in this video above

Moving on to my other big inspiration, Good Time does something pretty similar. About 16 minutes in, the credits begin playing, also only showing one name at a time, starting with the top-billed actors and then moving on to production (editing, producers, directors, writers, etc.). However, for Good Time, the white credits appeared in the middle of the screen instead of the lower third. 

In terms of the title, I was thinking of just having it play over footage of the opening, during the wide of the house, but when looking into the Killing Of A Sacred Deer, the title card for the film is over a black background. This made me consider going this route for the title, but I think my opening is a bit too dense for it to be in the middle, so I was thinking if I go this route, I would just have it at the very beginning. 

Above is the opening scene of Killing of a Sacred Deer

For my personal opening, I think I will use the lower thirds from Uncut Gems since I think that looks a bit cleaner and will allow me to put multiple credits if necessary if I end up being short on time. However, I would like to avoid doing this since having one name at a time is typically a convention of the genre. Having the title at the very beginning on a black background may create some intrigue, especially with the help of sound. Putting a riser on the black background with the title, and abruptly cutting to the wide shot could be very effective in terms of creating some suspense and curiosity over what is about to happen. Next on my list is font research for these credits and making a shot list. 

STUFF

Alright, so I need STUFF for my opening. This includes the phone, the gun, maybe some blood, and possibly the clothes. I'm unsure about those last two because for the blood, the only thing I'll show of the woman would be a hand, or her in the body bag, so blood isn't entirely necessary since I'm not showing the wound or anything. BUT, the blood would make it clear that she died. For the clothes, I may have something sufficient already so I may not have to go out and buy anything. If I don't, then my actors might since the costume design isn't anything extravagant. Worst case, I can order it online or go...anywhere.

For the phone though, I will need to buy that sometime soon. I liked the idea of a rotary phone, but thinking about it, it may seem out of place since I have set the film opening in the present time through the dialogue and the costumes. So then I began thinking about modern home phones and liked that. I wanted it to be red, not only to stand out but to indicate a looming danger. 

It would end up looking something like this. 

For blood, I did some research. Looking up “how to make realistic-looking blood” may have put me on a watchlist, but it’ll be worth it. When looking at the results, one recipe seemed to be pretty consistent among a bunch of websites. 1 cup of corn syrup, 2 tablespoons of chocolate syrup, and red food coloring. This seemed pretty easily achievable, all I really have to buy would be red food coloring, so sounds good to me.

Now, the gun. So turns out, I don’t need to buy or research anything for this. Cause I already have a fake gun. To be honest, I have no idea why or when I got it, but I’ve had it for a long time. And it works perfectly for this. It’s a realistic-looking pistol that is the exact fit for my opening since I already had it in mind when coming up with my idea.

This is pretty much all the mise-en-scene elements I need to worry about as they are the big ones. My next goals are making a shot list and doing some font and credit research.

 

One step back, two steps foward

There is something I haven't mentioned that is really going to screw up my plans. That is STN, standing for Student Television Network. Pretty much, its just this big tv competition where high schools nationwide compete in Long Beach, California. And I'm going. The trip lasts for almost a week, from 3/13 to 3/18. So this kinda messes with my schedule and when I wanted to start filming and wrapping up preproduction. I would begin to film by this week or start the next, but thanks to STN, I kind of can't. 

So, I have come up with a plan to do as much as I can to help myself out in the long run since I'm at a dead end right now. For the following week that I am gone I'm going to do:

- a shot list

- figure out where to film

- research how to create and purchase mise-en-scene elements (the blood, the phone, etc.)

This is all still pre-production stuff that I want to be done with by middle of next week. But to help myself out more in the edit I am going to get started on:

- font and credit research

- finding my music and sound effects

- making the news graphic

This is just the goal, I may not get to all of these things, but if I do have the time to, it would be great help so I am not just stagnant since I can't film. 

Rewrite Time

My script...isn't amazing. In terms of dialogue and whatnot, it could be a lot better. So, I'm going to fix that up a bit and refine it. Also since I have my title, I can officially name it. 

My first step was reducing down dialogue. Getting some feedback from some of my friends and teacher, I realized that some of the things they are saying are too wordy and can be cut down quite a bit. Sometimes it would just be because real people would not usually say certain things but sometimes it just wouldn't fit the characters themselves either. Some of the changes would be as small as changing this:

To this:

This not only helped me make the dialogue seem a bit more realistic and believable but also cut down on how long the opening will be, which I'm a little scared that might be a problem. 

I also changed the body dropping on the remote and turning the TV on. Looking at it now...it is pretty dumb. Instead, I just have the TV on in the background for the entire thing, and as they are leaving, a breaking news interruption about them will catch Malcolm and Sam's attention. This feels more realistic and a lot less cartoony. But now I have to decide what to do with the TV. I would need something playing beforehand so I can show that it's an interruption, even if it's only a second long. This also allows me to have some sort of sound in the background of the scene coming from the TV, letting me play around more with the soundscape. BUT, now I need to make a graphic for the breaking news interruption that would play as Malcolm and Sam carry the body before noticing the interruption is about them. 

Something like this would work well. So I have to find time to do that. Anyway, here is my revised script, with title, character names, and all! 

The Title

So I’ve been writing my script, doing my storyboard, developing my characters…but now I need to actually make a title. It’s something I’ve been dreading for a bit now. I typically dislike picking a title for some of my works since I usually really want to make it a good and solid title that fits the piece. Which is not really easy for me.

When doing some research, I found that titles can focus on three basic elements. These included the story idea, the character, or the theme. These aren't things that are set in stone, but I think it will provide me with some guidance. I wouldn't really want to focus on characters since I just don't think it will convey what I want it to. I'm more inclined to look at titles with the story idea or overall theme. 

So my first thought was connecting it to the robbery or stealing and all that. So I was thinking maybe “Breaking and Entering” but I thought it felt a bit corny and just didn't really fit. So I shifted my gears to the theme. Since it will be a stressful piece, I began thinking about what may convey this. I looked up synonyms for "stress" and "misfortune". But I couldn't really find much I actually enjoyed. 

Coincidentally, my media teacher had called me up to check on my progress and I asked her about any ideas for a title. She suggested something like "Bungle", meaning clumsy and incompetent, which I like as it describes the characters and how they get into this mess. Another suggestion she gave was just naming it "Malcolm and Sam" since the opening focuses on the two. But again, I don't really like the "name" title. I liked how Bungle sounded, so I put it in the thesaurus and began looking around. I found Mangled, to have the same definition as Bungled, and I liked it as well. 

And then there were two. So now it's between Bungled and Mangled. And since mangled also means to injure severely and mutilate, I think I'm settling on Bungled. I like it. Even though it sounds a little silly, I think it fits with the sillier aspects of the opening, like their ridiculous suggestions of what to do with the body. So now, my opening is called BUNGLED.

Drawing Time

I think storyboarding is probably one of my favorite parts of pre-production. As much as I love coming up with an idea and really developing it, I love drawing it out even more. It helps visualize my ideas and shots which is helpful because I think I am a pretty visual learner.

Typically when I make a storyboard it is the first time I am writing out my ideas and the rough dialogue if there is any. However, in this case, it is a lot easier since I already have my first draft of the script. 

 

...Nevermind. Drawing this...is not easy. I didn't really process that the storyboard and the type of shots and order of them would be like...really important. And I'm a little stumped. After the first shot inside with the tight close-up of Malcolm, I'm not too sure what to do next. I guess I should show the body but I never really want to show too much of it because I think with my limitations, I can't really make a body look good dead. I kinda want to show Sam as well, having a more angry and concerned face than the shock on Malcom's. I think that may work. This is kind of a editing Mateo problem so I'll leave that for him to decide. I just have to ensure I get the shots I need to have the ability to do that later. 

 As I continued, it started getting a lot easier since it mainly consisted of only close-ups, so the shots weren't changing THAT much, it's more the composition and the emotions of the actors ramping up that will be changing throughout the scene. 

The rest of the storyboard went pretty smoothly. As I thought, having a rough draft of the script written out helped quite a bit. The scene pretty much consisted of all close-ups and tight close-ups with the exceptions of the long shots including the body, the phone ringing, and Malcolm and Sam carrying the body. This is pretty intentional as the close shots will intensify the drama and emotion in the scene. Below are pictures of my storyboard.

My next goals are to finally decide on the title for the movie so I can stop calling it untitled robbery and finalize my script. 

Character Development

 After the first draft of my screenplay, I realized I needed more consistent and well-developed characters. A little backwards...but it'll work out in the end. I began doing my research with StudioBinder again, as they have an article about character development. Here they explain how there are two main character types, dynamic and static characters. Dynamic characters change and have an arc throughout while static characters stay the same throughout. 

In regards to the robbers, I want them both to be amateurs and they shouldn't really know what they are doing. They should both be butting heads the whole time, so their personalities should be opposites. I want robber #1 to be more scared and anxious about the whole situation, while robber #2 will be more stubborn and rebellious, borderline dangerous. Robber #2 almost reminds me of Jon Ham's character in Baby Driver, but inexperienced. 

For robber #2, he should be a static character as he is blind in his greed and stupidity. Regardless of the consequences, he will return for one more job. In this sense, he would be similar to a character in the game Red Dead Redemption 2. In RDR2, the character of Dutch Van Der Linde is the leader of a cowboy outlaw gang that is constantly trying to go back for their last big heist. In the game, Dutch slowly begins going to more and more extreme measures for his goal which only damages the group. His greed, paranoia, and leadership are what lead to his downfall in the end, which is something that I would like to integrate into my own characters. An article by Screen Rant outlines this transformation and the foreshadowing and events leading up to it. I likely wouldn't touch this too much in my 2 minutes, but keeping this in mind will help me write my characters better and have their goals in mind. Dutch is pictured below.

Sakellariou, Alexandra. “Who Was Dutch van Der Linde before Red Dead Redemption 2?” ScreenRant, 18 Sept. 2020, screenrant.com/rdr2-dutch-van-der-linde-red-dead-redemption/.

Robber #1 would be similar in this sense, but instead of staying static throughout, he would have doubts and guilts, but ultimately still make the wrong choice for, in his head, the right reasons. 

And that leads me to their goals. What do these guys want? Why do they do what they do? Robber #1 should definitely be doing it for "good reasons". I say that in quotes because although they may be positive for him, there may be other, better ways to go around it. His character would be somewhat similar to that of Robert Pattison in Good Time, trying hard to help out his brother in really poor and wrong ways. I want robber #1 to be a lot more relatable as he would be the main character we would follow to the end. 

Scott, A. O. “Review: A ‘good Time,’ If in Name Only.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 10 Aug. 2017, www.nytimes.com/2017/08/10/movies/good-time-review-robert-pattinson.html.

Although we are also following robber #2, he would be more of an antagonist or conflict starter, looking out mainly for himself above all else. When researching, I found some information about kleptomania, which is the impulse or irresistible urge to steal things. When I looked into it some more, the Mayo Clinic explained that stealing could cause dopamine, which releases pleasure in the individual and makes them want to seek it again and again, which leads to addiction. Then I started thinking about how I could integrate this into robber #2 having him as a kleptomaniac and addict. He gets pleasure from stealing, which is a big part of his character.

Both my characters would be of lower class as they feel a need to rob homes for cash. In terms of attire and clothes, they should wear brandless, simple, and worn-looking clothes. A simple hoodie, sweatpants, and maybe oversized clothing indicate that it's a hand-me-down. 

Aliexpress, www.aliexpress.us/item/1005003951204364.html?src=google&aff_fcid=097e51c97f4b48469dcd4038ba7592a7-1709093006548-02004-UneMJZVf&aff_fsk=UneMJZVf&aff_platform=aaf&sk=UneMJZVf&aff_trace_key=097e51c97f4b48469dcd4038ba7592a7-1709093006548-02004-UneMJZVf&terminal_id=7664fdf52c1f4089822ab772119cabb3&afSmartRedirect=y&gatewayAdapt=glo2usa. Accessed 27 Feb. 2024.

Something like this is what they would be wearing. Very bland, boring, cheap clothes. At least for robber #1. For robber #2, he would fit the same aesthetic but, I like the idea of him wearing red since he's dangerous and rebellious. Wearing red during a robbery is also stupid as it makes you easily identifiable and stand out, which fits with what I'm trying to make of robber #2.

Finally, their names. In my script, I just chose random names to have them there, but now I think I want to officially decide. From looking at some of my peer's work and the group meeting I had, I saw that some are researching names and their meanings to choose one that fits their characters. I liked this idea and decided that maybe I should try and do that as well. To start, I just searched "names that mean chaos or blind" for robber #2 as he is blind in his ignorance which leads him to make rash decisions. I went down a crazy Wikipedia rabbit hole and eventually ended up finding Samael, literally meaning "Blind God". I thought this was pretty fitting so I looked into it more and found out Samael is traditionally the king of all demons and the angel of death....so...I think it'll work out. Instead of Samael though, I'll just go for the more common Sam. For robber #1, I was trying to search for names meaning unlucky or misfortune, as he will just get put through bad situation after bad situation, but didn't really find anything I liked or it just wasn't English.  One I found was Mallory, meaning unfortunate. But instead, I think I'm just going for Malcolm as it is a similar male name for Mallory.

I think for my purposes, this is all I really need for my characters. It's good to have an idea of what they will become and how they will transform throughout the film to try to capture that in my 2 minutes. So now, I think I will begin working on my storyboard.

Group Meeting

So today in class, we all got in small groups of about 5-6 people and began discussing our projects and ideas and asking for help for any trouble we ran into. Listening to other people's openings and thought processes was interesting to compare to my own as I can see some of the similarities and differences that we all have. I just think that's pretty cool.

Sharanya Rao  Content Marketing Strategist at Talent500. Innately curious about things in general. A strategic planner who loves to make lives easier. An optimist holding on dearly to a glass half-full.        , et al. “Top Group Discussion Tips for Interview Success.” The Talent500 Blog, 24 Sept. 2023, talent500.co/blog/top-group-discussion-tips-for-interview-success/.

This is pretty much what it looked like...just a lot less professional...and a lot more disorganized.

Anyway, everyone really enjoyed my idea which made me SUUUPER happy. I was afraid they wouldn't like it or think it was too ambitious but they all seemed to be really into it which made me pretty content. But they did bring up some things that got me thinking about different choices. 

They liked the first shot with the long shot of the house and then contrasting that with the quick and fast pace that it takes on inside the home. But a classmate brought up a good point, should I do quick cuts or a long shot with whip pans whenever a character is speaking. It's something I had thought about but sort of put aside. I think the long shot would add a sense of underlying dread, as it may feel like the moment is going on forever, and with the whip pans, they could add some extra movement and make the viewer feel some extra...I don't even know how to explain it. Like an extra "AHHH". Maybe like an additional energy and make the action feel more exciting. HOWEVER, straight cutting gives me a lot more control over the edit later on and lets me play around with the pacing a bit more. If I limit myself to only doing whip pans when I film, I'm going to prohibit myself A LOT later on when I begin editing and then find out I didn't like how the conversation flowed. With just having straight takes of the characters arguing, one or two shots for each one, I can make their audio overlap, control the speed it's going, and all that good stuff. I think (if I have the time and still like the idea) I may do both just to have the whip pans there in case I may want to use that, but I think I'll stick with quick cutting.

Another point brought up that I didn't really think of was the body. How are they going to carry the body? I just kinda assumed I would have them carry the real body, but that sounds like...not a great idea, especially since they have to drop her. So they just said I should put her in a trash bag made to look like a body. It would make sense in the context since the robbers wouldn't want anyone outside to see them carrying a dead body, and it makes it a lot easier on my actors too, since they don't have to carry an actual body. But now I just have to add the body bag to my list of mise-en-scene elements I have to create. 

Another solid point brought up was the competence of the robbers. I explained how they were pretty amateur and didn't fully know what they were doing, one bringing a gun without the other knowing, brainstorming stupid ideas to hide the body, etc. A classmate asked whether the characters were going to be stupid and more comedic or have them be dumb and more serious. Not sure if that fully makes sense, so I'll elaborate. If the characters were stupid and had no clue as to how to do robberies and deal with a body, I could definitely lead towards a more comedic route. However, if they are more just dumb and ignorant with a more serious tone, then it would just be them stressing out about this new situation they are unfamiliar with. If had more time with it, or maybe just another scene, I feel like I could go into the comedic direction, but since I'm limited to 2 minutes, I really want to focus on my goal of stressing out the viewer, so I will be sticking with my more serious tone. But it was definitely interesting food for thought. There are a couple of different approaches that can be taken with the same plot. 

When I explained the back-and-forth arguing and how my main dilemma is really just being worried about the dialogue coming off weird, unnatural, or forced, they suggested having my actors adlib and improv their arguments. This was an idea that I reallllly liked, as it would make the dialogue a lot more realistic and could end up with some really good moments. The main thing here is just that I need two actors who can really play off each other and work well together (I have something in mind I will talk about later). I would have to make sure the actors hit certain beats to move the story along and try not to get them too off-track, but I think it would be a solid idea that I definitely want to try out. 

The group session was pretty useful overall, I got some useful tips and approval for some of my ideas and was able to help out my other classmates which was cool too. 

Writing Time

Going in to write my script I am a little nervous. It means that I am finally putting my idea to paper (not really in this case since I'm writing it online, but you get the idea) and it just makes everything feel super real. But, I feel pretty prepared for it thanks to the research I did in StudioBinder in my last post. This time,  I'm still using StudioBinder since they have their own screenplay software that formats it and helps you out if you've never done it before, which is the case for me. 

This is a screenshot is the software in question. The highlighted icons at the top are different aspects of a screenplay such as sluglines, characters, parentheticals, dialogue, etc. This helps me write my script in the correct and proper format. 

My first obstacle was figuring out what the owner would look like. It may seem like a minor detail, but overall I think it's pretty important. The robbers are breaking and entering these homes so they can pawn them off later. They are looking for quick money. So their targets should be of upper middle class as they will have more valuables in their home. So the owner should be relatively wealthy and well-off. So I settled that the owner should be a female woman dressed in yoga attire. as it is typically a hobby of the upper-middle class and wealthy. 

Another thing I had to do was keep my goal of causing anxiety in mind. To accomplish this I have the robbers argue about what they are going to do about the body. While they argue, I am going to have them cut each other off and talk over one another to create a tense atmosphere. I integrate this into my script by having some of their sentences end abru-. I also included a phone ringing multiple times throughout. It would act as an intensifier for the tension and lead to even more anxiety and also transition the conversation into different topics. 

Writing my script didn't end up being too bad, especially since I already had an outline and a format for a script ready. All I needed to do was fill in the gaps in the dialogue. Here is a pdf of the first draft. Next, I will shortly figure out the character's designs and then begin storyboarding. 

Script Research

I have no idea how to write a script. I've seen some, but I don't have the slightest clue on how to format it or even begin. So I turned to the best resource for video makers I know. StudioBinder. Here they have a whole blog going over what exactly a script is and breaking down the different aspects of it.

Above is a breakdown of what a script typically looks like, including all the different elements and having a short explanation for each, which is super helpful for me. 

The first step was sluglines. This establishes the when and where the action is taking place. For my own script, I would open outside, or EXT., with a wide shot of the house that the robbers are...robbing. It would cut to the inside of the home, or INT., after the robbers shoot the owner of the home and we would stay there for the remainder of the opening. 

The next step would be the action lines. The studio binder blog explains that they should "always be written in the present tense and as visually descriptive as possible". The action lines include everything you will see and hear other than the dialogue. For me, it would consist of the owner coming home and the actions of the robbers inside the home. This would include them pacing around, their location in the home, etc. 

Dialogue is the next big step. Since it's so important to my piece, I want to hone in on this and make it as good as possible. Dialogue is pretty straightforward, just letting the characters speak for themselves based on the situation and what feels natural for the goal of progressing the scene. Different characters speaking is made clear through character cues, which is their name before dialogue. These cues may contain extensions that describe how the audio is heard by the audience, including CONT'D, V.O, O.S, INTO DEVICES, and PRE LAP. I would mainly be using O.S. or off-screen at the beginning of my opening when I have a wide shot of the home and the dialogue of the robbers is heard. 

Another important part of the characters and their delivery is parentheticals. It informs the actor of the delivery of their line and how they should be acting. It not only has to be external emotion but can also be more internal conflict. This could be important when directing my actors on how they should be acting and behaving. Some parentheticals include AS LOUD AS POSSIBLE, PAINFULLY, WHISPERING, ETC.

One can also include types of transitions and shots in the script. Studio Binder explains that this is more the case when the writer is the director or editor, which in this case, I am. Shots can include angles and movements and transitions can include smash cuts, dissolves, match cuts, etc. However, I think I may stay away from this since I can talk about it more in-depth in the storyboard that I will be making next week. 

Overall, researching and looking into the StudioBinder overview of how to write a script really helped me learn all of the little details. StudioBinder even has its own script/screenplay format that I can use to help me out when writing my own script, which is what I'm going to do and cover in my next blog. 

Story Outline

As soon as I decided that I wanted to capture the feeling that the Safdies and other stress-inducing thrillers create, I had an idea in my head. I want it to focus on a small cast, only two main characters. I knew I wanted a crazy situation that would cause anxiousness, so I began centering on a robbery since it seemed most reasonable compared to something like First Man. At first, I wanted to do a bank robbery gone wrong, but it would have been too ambitious and a bit too similar to Good Time for my liking. So I began thinking about a home robbery since it would be a lot more practical and doable for me in terms of location scouting. I thought the idea of a person coming home in the middle of their home being robbed was interesting and could accomplish what I'm going for. 

So now that I'm thinking of a home robbery. It's not exactly hard to find the location since it's a...house...which are everywhere.  I want it to focus on the two male robbers inside the home and they need to be freaking out. Condensing my characters down to two reduces a lot of issues with scheduling and people not being available. Anyway, so how do have them freak out? The owner should come home and walk in on the robbers in the middle of it. My first instinct now is to have the robbers kill the owner and get rid of the body while squabbling and bickering the whole time. But when considering I only have two minutes, I think I should cut out them getting rid of the body and just have them freaking out over killing someone. However, I do think a good ending would be to have the criminals watch the news channel talking about themselves, leading into the "rest of the film". I am just not too sure how to get there.

A dilemma with this would be how are their photos on the news if they are CURRENTLY robbing the place. Them on the news would imply that it already happened. I could get past this by having the criminals go on a robbing spree, so the photos are from a previous crime. To turn the TV on, I might have them carry out the body and then accidentally drop it on the remote controller, directing their attention to the news broadcast about themselves. To get the photos themselves, I would have to schedule a small photoshoot with my actors in different clothes. Below is a picture pretty much showing what I am going for. For something like this, I may need another actor as a anchor for the news station, or at the very least someone doing VO. 

 

Billingsley, Jacob. “Anchor, Doppelgänger’s Mugshot Appear on Screen - at the Same Time.” NewscastStudio, 10 Feb. 2016, www.newscaststudio.com/2016/02/10/anchor-doppelgangers-mugshot-appear-on-screen-at-the-same-time/.

Going in this direction means that the big chunk of the two minutes will just be dialogue and the characters arguing, and I'm afraid that it may get old quick. I would have to write the characters in a way that is engaging and try to avoid repeating information and keep the conversation flowing naturally. It should begin with robber #1 being flabbergasted that robber #2 had a gun this whole time, as their intention in these home robberies was to just get in and out without any interference. They can fight about this for a while before discussing and arguing over what they should do with the body. They can discuss leaving the body, burying it, putting it in a freezer, dressing it up as a homeless man and leaving it on the sidewalk, etc. They eventually settle on dropping it in the ocean. I think this can fill up the time I need with dialogue effectively. After deciding what to do with the body, they should pick it up and start moving it before they drop it on accident, falling on the TV remote, shifting their attention to the news report about them. The news would show blurry ring doorbell footage of the two breaking into another house, conveying that these two are on a home-robbing spree. Something like the footage below would be what I'm going for.

H, Bill. “Blurry Images of Moving Objects in Lower Light Conditions.” Ring Community, 4 Jan. 2020, community.ring.com/t/blurry-images-of-moving-objects-in-lower-light-conditions/2693.

This would be the rough outline of the story, so my next goal would be to write out my script for the opening. 

My Future

To keep myself organized throughout the process, I'm going to create my own timeline for the next few weeks outlining what I want to hit.

Week 2: Picking a genre, looking at different film openings in that genre, and setting up a calendar to keep myself organized.

Week 3: By next week I want to really work on an outline and then flesh it out in my script. Then I would work on developing my characters.

Week 4: After making my script, I want to make a storyboard and shot list while also figuring out where I want to or where I can film it. 

Week 5: I would need to develop the mise-en-scene elements I may need by now. I also want to start filming as soon as I'm done with pre-production. 

Week 6: I want to wrap up filming if I'm not done yet. After finishing filming, I want to start editing right away. For editing, I need to find sounds and music. I also have to start working on CCR questions.

Week 7: I want to finish up editing and researching any editing techniques I may need. Will need to figure out the title and work out how I am going to integrate credits. Also should continue working and researching information on CCR.

Week 8: Continue researching info on CCR questions and begin working on two CCR approaches.

Week 9: Create a final reflection of the overall project and post my final product and my CCR.

Inspiration...Inspiration...Inspiration...

Heading in the direction of a drama/thriller, I want to look more in-depth into the openings for Uncut Gems, Good Time, and First Man. 

Uncut Gems. Directed by Benny and Josh Safdie. In the first few minutes, the Safdies open on a mine in Ethiopia. The tone of the entire film is set up in this moment, with chaos erupting as a drone shot reveals the mine inside of a crater. The sounds of men screaming and shouting, paired with alarms blaring and a low droning, constant synth create an anxiety-evoking feeling in the viewer. This feeling is further emphasized when the smooth drone shot cuts to handheld close-ups. Using the techniques of sound and shots, I can create the tension and anxiousness that I want the viewer to feel. 

Good Time. Also directed by the Safdies. This opening is a bit calmer and more controlled, which is very intentional. The film opens with two characters talking, the therapist and Nick. The first few minutes feature purely tight closeups of Nick and the therapist as they are speaking producing an underlying tension, but it is overall a normal and calm scene. However, as soon as Connie, the main character, enters, the room erupts and they all begin shouting and cursing at each other, establishing that the character of Connie is the catalyst for the conflict. The Safdies develop the chaos mainly through overlapping dialogue. The prior scenes that feature only the two characters having a calm conversation in a quiet room help to juxtapose the rapid change to a loud and uncontrolled environment Connie creates when he comes in. I should definitely use and focus on a combination of tight close-ups and overlapping sounds and dialogue in my own opening to create that tense atmosphere I'm going for. Check out the scene below:

First Man. Directed by Damien Chazelle. The opening follows an astronaut as he goes up into space and barely makes it back. It's nerve-racking and stressful, exactly what I want to convey. It uses a super shakey camera since the spaceship itself is shaking like crazy in the scene, which immediately puts you in a concerned and worrying mindset. The lighting is dark to obscure details. There are a bunch of inserts and point-of-view shots that portray the claustrophobic nature of the shuttle. And again, the sound is a big part of the anxiety that you get from this. It's loud and unnerving. I could definitely use certain aspects of First Man, I think the lighting could be an interesting thing I could play around with. I probably would want to stay away from point-of-view shots since I don't really like how they turn out, most of the time it's just cheesy. Below is the opening:

All of these films make the audience feel stress, anxiety, and concern mainly through SOUND. Sound is about to become a big part of my opening whether I like it or not. The best way I can do this is by overlapping conversations like in Good Time, especially if I focus on characters more since a situation like First Man, with the loud sound effects of a space shuttle, wouldn't really be possible. I can also take some inspiration from Uncut Gems and have a droning and constant sound effect in the background, like a synth. Another tool I could use would be juxtaposing and contrasting calmer scenes with really harsh and abrupt sequences. Good Time does this when Connie enters the room and First Man also achieves this when the astronaut leaves the atmosphere, bringing a sense of serenity, acting as the eye of the storm. I can have an event break into all hell when a trigger sets it off. My next step would be to set up a timeline of what I should do to keep myself organized. 

Baby Steps

Making the first big choice in my film opening: the genre. So much to do, so much to choose from. My gut instinct is to go with a suspenseful drama thriller, with aspects inspired by the Safdies, creating a stressful and engaging piece. But this scares me quite a bit because I am unsure if I could pull it off effectively. The Safdies, in Uncut Gems and Good Time, provoke pure anxiety and stress on the viewer, through their choice of closeup shots, sound design, and arguably most importantly, their plots.

An example of a close-up shot in Good Time

This would mean I need a script with a pretty compelling story. Both of these films have a rather slow opening that ramps up to the big plot points later on, but if I were to approach this genre, I would probably have to start my opening right in the middle of the mess or climax to evoke that same feeling that I get when watching these films. 

Another genre I have in mind is a more psychological thriller, with odd and abnormal sequences, something kind of like I'm Thinking of Ending Things or Killing of a Sacred Deer. In these films, a strange and ominous atmosphere is built up through the shots, dialogue, and editing. Editing is a big one. If done correctly, making the editing purposefully off-putting and conventionally incorrect can evoke an unnerving feeling in the viewer, which is exactly what you want to do in this genre. Below is an example of a scene from I'm Thinking of Ending Things doing just this.

Performances also become pretty important though, as they are what drive the awkward or odd feeling through their dialogue and acting, so I would probably need decent actors for this.

The idea of comedy has also crossed my mind, but I'm a little hesitant. Comedies are NOT easy. At all. It's pretty hard to have a joke land and make people laugh and I personally just don't think I'm a good enough writer to really go through with something like that. I definitely plan to implement elements of comedy in my opening, regardless of the genre. I think it adds a lot of character to a film, an example being Edgar Wright having a very distinct style in his films, including Hot Fuzz, Shaun of the Dead, and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. Wright uses fast-paced editing (quick cuts, match cuts, creative transitions) to create visual comedy. My use of this would be dialed back, but I think it could add a lot to my opening. Below is a compilation exemplifying all of Wright's techniques which I would have in mind if I go for comedy.

   

Overall, I think I may end up going for a thriller akin to Good Time or Uncut Gems. It is probably the genre that interests me the most at this current time and I think with sufficient planning, I may be able to pull it off. My next step would be to research film openings in the genre and look more into the techniques that are used and how I can utilize them myself.