FINAL POST - Film Opener Brief

 S.C.R.I.P.T.E.D. Opening

    Here it is: my final product.

POST-CREATION - Final Notes

 My Final Words

    I just want to thank all you readers who have stuck with me in my journey so far. It is finally time to make the big reveal! While this film opening might not be getting an Oscar nomination anytime soon, I am still really proud of how much I have learned and grown in this process. I hope you all are, too. This was a great experience and I hope to take these skills further as I go on in life. 

    You all read as I carefully constructed Emma's story and the world of this dystopian thriller. I want to note that I did make a few last minute changes that I thought would look better before exporting the final project. However, My biggest hope is that you enjoy this film opening just as much as I do. This is the moment you have been waiting for. 

    My next blog post will be my last one and it will include my film opening for "S.C.R.I.P.T.E.D." Once again, Thank you all so, so, so much for sticking with me and for the last time:

    Farewell!

EDITING - Additional Audios

 Adding Some Audio

    In my last blog post, I added the podcast (the Daily Script) to my film opening. To wrap up the creation of my project, I will be adding. the rest of the audio for this opening. I cannot wait to see how the final product looks!

Soundtrack

*PIC*

    For the soundtrack, I included the song "Internet Girl" by KATSEYE during the montage. I thought this would be a good idea since the montage was meant to highlight her identity as an influencer. I couldn't access this using Spotify, so I took a screen recording instead. Then I extracted the audio and deleted the actual recording to obtain this audio.

Sound Effects

*PIC*

    I used an Adobe-derived sound effect for the sound of the alarm. However, all other sound effects were either diegetic noise or separately pre-recorded by me. I recorded these sounds on my phone's recording app, saved the audios to my files, and then imported them into the project. This did not cause me much trouble.

Reflection

    Even though it was a bit of a hassle to produce many of the sounds in the opening, I think that I did a pretty good job with the resources I had available to me. However, I came into a lot of issues with aligning my audios with my script. I did end up altering the order of the some of the script. I believe this is for the best as it still flows smoothly without any awkward overlap of noise. In my next blog post, I will simply be giving my final thoughts on my project since I have now finished.

    Until then, farewell!

EDITING - Podcast

Adding the Podcast

    In my last blog post, I added the opening credits. Today, in this blog post, I will be adding the podcast to my film opening. The podcast is a major part of the second scene, so I will take extra care as I incorporate it into my film opener today.

Podcast

    Since I have already produced and edited the podcast episode itself, the only thing for me to really do is add it into the film opening. I did this by using the audio files feature to import the media. However, what I like about this clip is that I was able to cut a few seconds off the podcast. This was necessary because there is a point where the podcast fades out to highlight the voice-over.

    During this step I also had to align the voice-over properly so that it started where it was meant to. This took me quite some time because I had an idea for the timing of the voice-over to start the beat after the podcast's sound faded. I thought of this when I initially recorded my voice-over and incorporated it. My biggest challenge was aligning the two audios in just the right way, but all it took was some patience and eventually I got it.

Reflection

    Even though I had a few minor setbacks, the editing process for today went very smoothly. I think this entire process of learning to create a major film project requires a lot of patience and adaptability. I truly believe I have grown in those areas a lot more, especially because I tend to struggle with both of those qualities. In my next blog post, I will be adding the final audios to my film opening and end my work on this project.

    Until then, farewell!

EDITING - Title and Credits

Adding Opening Credits

    In my last blog post, I finished editing my raw footage to make up the base of my film opening. In this blog post I will be adding the opening credits to my film opening.

Title

    For the title, I wanted to stick to the conventions of a dystopian thriller by using harsher, darker colors for my title. Since I know red is generally considered a harsh color, as it often symbolizes intensity, passion, or aggression, I decided to try a shade of red. I ended up using the custom color feature to create a darker shade of red for the title. I also used the font style "STENCIL STD" for the title because it looked similar to the font of a "TOP SECRET" stamp to me. I thought this would relate to the plot, so I decided to use it. I considered using a dark tan background for the title to make it seem like the text was on a file and I ultimately decided to do so.

Credits

    For the credits, I used the font "Times New Roman." I did this because this font is common in formal or official papers. I hoped to give the impression that the cast members were written inside the file and that S.C.R.I.P.T.E.D. was the file name in a way. For this same reason, I made sure the credits were in white text to really give off the formal paper feel I was going for while also being visible.

Reflection

    I believe my choices exuded the sense of uniformity, fear, and mystery I hoped it would. These choices were made with a deeper meaning in mind, however. I hoped to hint at the constant government surveillance, presence, and oppression with the opening titles. I think the case-file feel to my credits allows the audience to understand the gravity of the conditions within the digesis slightly more. In my next blog post, I will add the podcast to my film opening.

    Until then, farewell!

EDITING - Scene 2

 Setting the 2nd Scene Straight

    In my last blog post, I edited the shots for the part of the second scene where Emma makes her bed. In this blog post, I will be incorporating the rest of the shots and editing to finish the visual portion of the film.

Process

    Once again, I used a process similar to the one I used to edit scene one. I began by importing the necessary media and ordering the clips in the way I envisioned. For scene two, I did not alter the run time of any of my shots much. This is because I was aiming to have scene two have a slightly longer duration of about one minute and 25 seconds. This way my film opening has a total runtime about 2 minutes.

Challenges

    The challenge I faced was what to do with the S.C.R.I.P.T.E.D. Act notification. Because I couldn't get any shots of it that would actually flow with the rest of the opening, I decided to see if I could overlap it with the text later on by making it more opaque. Luckily, I was able to make the image more opaque; however, I may still remove it all together later on.

Reflection

    Despite my challenges and uncertainty throughout this step, I was still able to finish what is basically the visual portion of my film opening. I am so excited to be done with this step. I am only a few steps away from completing my film opening completely! In my next post I will be adding the title and credits to my film opening.

    Until then, farewell!

Editing - Bed-Making Cuts

Folding Faster for Film

    In my last blog post, I finished editing the film for scene one. In this blog post, I will be shortening the section of scene two where Emma is making her bed. The current raw footage is a little over 3 minutes long and I need to shorten it to just under a minute.

Process

    To do this, I used the same process as when I was creating my montage where I imported my media into Premiere Pro, used the Split and Delete functions, ordered the shots, and placed transitions. The main difference in my process was that I used much longer clips than I did when I was creating the montage sequence. I also used fade-ins and -outs to provide a slower, softer transition between shots. This helped me maintain proper pacing and make this part seem more continuous.

Reflection

    While I did not face any challenges during this step of editing, I believe I was still able to grow in my experience and ability with Premiere Pro. I think that my choices with how I edited this scene were effective in presenting what I wanted to convey to the audience. I think that this part's calmness matches with the Daily Script Podcast's extremely well. This part of the opening is really meant to serve more as background visuals for the podcast; therefore, it should serve its purpose well. In my next blog post, I will finish editing all the film for my opening.

    Until then, farewell!

EDITING - Scene 1

 Fixing Up the 1st Scene

    In my last blog post, I finished the montage within this scene. In this blog post, I will be adding the rest of my shots and making sure the first scene runs the way I want it to. This should be relatively easy to do as the main thing I will have to focus on is adjusting the transitions.

Process

    To set up all the filmed parts of scene one, I first imported all the media that I had not already added for this scene into Adobe Premiere Pro. Then, I made sure the order of the shots was correct. My next step was to see how long the first scene was and alter the run times of different shots accordingly. My aim for this scene was for it to be 30 - 40 seconds long. Finally, I chose how I wanted to transition between each shot.

Challenges

    In my first shot, I accidentally slowed down during the pan towards the end and the clip was 15 seconds long. I used the Playback Speed feature in Premiere Pro to make this clip shorter. 

    Additionally, I had trouble getting the timing and look of the transition I wanted between the hallway scene and the start of the montage. I wanted to have the hallway scene to fade to black and then cut to the montage about 1-2 seconds after. As I looked around in Premiere Pro, I found out that I could add blanks. I did this and I was able to get the exact transition I wanted.

Reflection

    While I did have a few struggles while editing the first scene, I think editing for this scene went pretty smoothly. I learned a lot about how to transition between scenes and how to use resources within the software for pacing. In my next blog post, I will be abridging the sequence where I make my bed.

    Until then, farewell!

EDITING - Montage Cuts

 Making the Montage

    In my last blog post, I finalized the the production phase of my project. In this I will begin the editing stage by cutting the clips that will be in the montage in scene one. I will do this within Adobe Premiere Pro. Then, I will put in the clips in my preferred order to create my montage.

Cutting the Clips

    I cut the clips in the Premiere Pro using the Split and Delete functions. This allowed me to make the clips I wanted separate fro each other and to delete the clips I did not need. I did not struggle with this much but it took me a long time because I had to very precise with where I split and what I deleted to make sure I did not accidentally remove an important shot.

Ordering the Clips

    To order the clips, I just took the clip I wanted to move and inserted it I wanted it to be. This took me some time because I kept changing my mind about the order of certain clips. Eventually, I was able to finalize the order of the clips. I wanted to transition between the clips using sudden jump cuts and tried to accommodate for this.

Reflection

    Making the montage was a pretty smooth process. I did this specifically to lighten the mood of my film opening a bit and to captivate the audience's attention by incorporating something they would not expect. It creates a more calming sense within the opening rather than one of suspense. In my next blog post I will be adding the rest of the clips I took to finish the first scene.

    Until then, farewell!

PRODUCTION - Voice-Over

Voice-Over

    In my last blog post, I finished the filming portion of the production stage. I am a little disappointed because I won't be able to add my third scene to the opening, but in this post, I will be recording Emma's voice-over part of the script.

Recording

    For the voice-over, I had to try to make my voice sound both informative and slightly grim. I struggled with this and didn't project my voice very well. I had to do several retakes until I got an audio clip I was okay with. I used my phone's recording app to record as practice and to see how I wanted the voice-over to sound. I used this app for my podcast and pre-recorded clips, as well. I used Adobe Premiere Pro to record my voice-over.

Reflection

    I'm finally done with production and can move into editing! This means I'm one step closer to my final product. I cannot wait to see how it turns out! I learned a lot not only about filming and recording procedures during this stage, but also the planning, patience, and adaptability needed during the production process. I feel as though I have grown in those aspects significantly in the short span of time I spent producing. In my next blog post, I will begin the final phase of my project: editing.

    Until then, farewell!

PRODUCTION - Film Day 6; Scene 2

 Scene 2 (Kitchen & Halls)

    In my last blog post, I started filming for scene two. In this blog post, I will finish filming for scene two. I will be filming in both my hallway and my kitchen to complete filming for the scene.

Clip 1

    In this clip, I simply walked out of my room. I propped my phone on the same thing as the last hallway scene and adjusted the location so that it looked straight at my bedroom door. This was the easiest clip for me to film.

Clip 2

    This clip was the hardest to film to me because when I came down the steps I looked really awkward and I had to keep re-shooting until it looked decent enough. This was not easy because I had to keep back running up the stairs and walking down the best I could. This made me a little tired by the time I got to the final shot for this clip.

Clip 3

    This clip was not too hard to film other than the fact that I was tired from shooting the previous clip. This made me slouch during the first few clips; so, I did have to re-shoot this clip a few times. However, I think it was worth it as I like the final clip I got a lot.

Clip 4

    This clip was really difficult to get because I was meant to record my phone lighting up with the notification, but I wasn't able to borrow my parents' phones at the time so instead I took screen recordings and screen shots and plan how I could use them in my film opening. However, I may just cut that part of the script if need be.

Reflection

    It is so exciting to finally be done shooting for my film opening! I learned so much about the challenges of filming, especially of doing it alone and using a smart phone as opposed to a digital camera. For example, the orientation and placement of the camera are crucial when filming. 

    While I struggled with this, I was able to overcome for the most part by finding and positioning objects from my environment to film myself. However, this is also the very reason I was unable to film a specific clip for this scene. In my next blog post, I will be finalizing the production phase by recording the voice-overs that come up in scene two.

    Until then, farewell!

PRODUCTION - Film Day 5; Scene 2

Scene 2 (Bedroom)

    In my last blog post, I finished filming for my first scene. In this blog post I will begin filming for the second scene of my film opening in my bedroom once more.

Clip 1

    In this clip, I filmed myself coming back into my room. I wasn't able to get my Echo Dot to say it's lines off command, so I pre-recorded those and I will add them in the editing phase.

    This clip has the second half of Emma's speaking lines. I once again tried to reflect her annoyance at the S.C.R.I.P.T.E.D. Act, and then her attempt at calming herself, the best I could. I took a few shots until I thought I got a good one. 

Clip 2

    In this clip, Emma made her bed and put on the Instax camera. I filmed a continuous shot that lasted 3 minutes. I am to cut this raw footage to form an abridged clip of Emma making her bed. I filmed this footage three times until I got one that I felt comfortable with.

Reflection

    During this filming day, I felt more awkward while I was acting and I struggled to overcome this. However, I tried my best and hope that I will be able to edit anything that looks too awkward. This part is a majority of the second scene, and ironically, the film serves more as background visuals. The most important part of this scene will be the audio: the podcast and voice-over. In my next blog post, I will finish the filming part of production.

    Until then, farewell!

PRODUCTION - Film Day 4; Scene 1

Scene 1 (Bathroom)

    In my last blog post, I filmed in my hallway, For this blog post, I will be filming the getting ready montage in my bathroom. I want this montage to show Emma's privilege, beauty-sense, and hint more at her popular influencer identity.

Montage

    To film the montage I just filmed a continuous clip of myself brushing my teeth and washing my face with my phone propped up towards my mirror so it showed my reflection instead of me. I will be cutting this raw footage into small clips that I will edit to slightly resemble morning montages from 2000s coming-of-age movies.

    I also took a still of my bathroom door to include in this that I will add the sound of shower water to show when she gets into the shower. 

    When filming, I tried to act establish Emma's identity as a popular influencer a little more. I wanted to show her meticulousness in crafting her look. I hoped this would begin to give her a unique characterization while also making her relatable to my target audience and people around her age.

Reflection

    I chose to add this montage to go against the dystopian convention of consistent suspense building. I did this because Emma has an objectively good life. I wanted show her privilege by highlighting how at ease she is because of her good situation. This way, it will be a more dramatic contrast when the suspense does begin to build and it will make the story feel more prevalent to the audience. In my next blog post, I will begin filming the second scene of my film opener.

    Until then, farewell!

PRODUCTION - Film Day 3; Scene 1

Scene 1 (Hallway)

    In my last blog post, I filmed all the clips of the first scene that take place in my bedroom. In this blog post I will be filming in the next location: the hallway. There is only one clip that I have to take in this location for the first scene. 

Clip 1

    While filming this clip, I struggled to find a place to prop my phone up, much less in a way that would get the exact angling I envisioned for this part. I managed to find a location for my phone that was not too far off from my what I envisioned. However, I did still have to compromise on that look I was going for.

    For this clip I just needed to walk to the bathroom door, so it didn't take long to film. I think this is a funny piece of information: it took me half and hour to find a place for my phone just to spend only five minutes filming.

Reflection

    Now that I have filmed this part, all I have to do is film the getting ready montage in my bathroom. This is really exciting to me because I'm almost half way done with my film opening. In my next blog post, I will be filming the getting ready montage.

    Until then, farewell!

PRODUCTION - Film Day 2; Scene 1

 Scene 1 (Bedroom)

    In my last blog post, I took the establishing shot of my house for the first part of my film opening. In this blog post, I will be continuing the production of my film opening. I will be filming the part of the first scene where Emma is waking up.

Clip 1

    For this clip, I decided to do a pull out from my room's window into a pan around my room. This allowed me to show how she is a bit. I decided to make the room a little messy for this scene. That was honestly the hardest part of this scene, because I like having my room tidier than it was. However, I wanted to do that to symbolize the chaos that is about to ensue in her life. 

Clip 2

    For the second clip, I had her fall asleep with one stuffed animal and her bible to imply that she fell asleep reading it. I tried to show her reluctance to wake up as best as possible. In this clip, she gets up and leaves the bed. I am using my phone to film so I just used my phone case and angled the camera to make it seem like Emma was actually using a phone.

Clip 3

    For the final clip, I just showed her turning off the alarm and exiting her room. This clip has some of her only lines in this entire opening. I tried to portray her annoyance in how I presented my lines while also keeping the element of tiredness. I am not a superb actor, so I cannot truly judge how I did with that.

Reflection

    While I was actually supposed to wake up at 5:00 to make the scene accurate, I slept past my alarm; so, that did not end up being the case. However, I was able to edit the clips to make the environment look darker and more similar to how it is at 5:30. 

    I also forgot to film sideways for my first 2 clips, so I had to change the frame to a 5:4 to make sure everything necessary was in frame while preventing the clip from looking more like a TikTok video. I will be using this framing for the rest of my clips for consistency reasons. In my next blog post, I will simply be filming the hallway portion of the first scene.

    Until then, farewell!

PRODUCTION - Film Day 1; Scene 1

Scene 1 (House)

    Now that I have researched and planned my film opening, it is officially time to begin the production stage! In this blog post, I will be covering the first day of filming I did. On this day I took a still of my house and I filmed the bedroom part of this scene.

    For the still of the house, I actually took the picture at night because I was in Port Charlotte the whole day visiting family. I was meant to do this and film the bedroom scenes of the first scene, but I only got to take a picture of my house. I actually had my dad do this because my phone was dead and I am below average height. I instructed him on the height and angle to hold his for the photograph and asked him to send it to me via the iMessage app.

Reflection   

    Taking this picture was incredibly easy. This picture will act as an establishing shot and allow the audiences to understand the setting of my film opening. Now that I have the photograph of my house the next step is to film the clips in the first scene that take place in my bedroom.

    Until then, farewell!

PLANNING - Character Costumes

Organizing the Outfits

    In this blog post, I will be deciding on the clothes that Emma will be wearing throughout the scenes. The outfits a character wears throughout a film tend to be very symbolic and insightful to both the plot of the story and the character's personality, beliefs, and relationships.

Scene 1

    In the first scene, Emma is just waking up and getting ready for her day. Because of this, she will be wearing pajamas in the first scene. At first I wasn't sure which pajama set to choose.

    I thought the plaid pajamas were a conventional pajama type that would look nice. To me, having these pajamas would just make it seem more like Emma just woke up because how common this type of pajama is.

    On the other hand, Emma is known for being into fashion and her popularity on social media. This is why I thought this blue set would match her vibe. I felt that it radiates a cute, elegant, and relaxed vibe all at once, which matched the way she is viewed within the digesis.

    Finally, I considered the "JOYFUL" pajama set. I thought these bright colors would be cute and give her a touch of whimsy. I also believed that the "JOYFUL" on the shirt could be interpreted in a "praise the Lord" sense and hint at her Christianity.

    Eventually, I chose the plaid pajamas because they matched the elegance and comfort of the blue set while also being a standard pajama type. I believe that Emma's Christianity will be hinted at enough through the set design.

Scene 2

    In the second (and possibly third) scene, Emma is finished getting ready and is dressed in the clothes that she will be going on her bike ride in. Due to this, I wanted her outfit to be comfortable, but I also wanted it to have some commentary on her personality through her fashion sense.

    I was supposed to go with the first outfit because it was not only comfortable, but also fashionably bold.  I did this to hint at her future defiance of the S.C.R.I.P.T. in the movie. I also did this to show her individuality. The colors were meant to clash a little with those of my Instax camera to portray her as a "cool girl with flair/ whimsy."

    I chose the second outfit because I liked the earthy tones and it was comfortable. It is a unique outfit choice, which I intentionally did to hint at her boldness and defiance later on. It has softer tones than the first outfit and matches with my Instax a little better as well. This portrays her whimsy a little more than her cool-girl attitude but I imagine her as more the "whimsical after you get to know her" type.

Reflection

    Now that I have chosen Emma's outfits, I have a great idea how she will look during filming, and I think this will help me with my filming and acting. This will help me portray her more accurately in my film opening. Her outfits may also allow her character to resonate with audiences around her age group and part of her generation. In my next blog post, I will be starting the production phase of this project.

    Until then, farewell!