Summary Post

Welcome to my G321 Foundation  Portfolio Blog.

Here is a post to highlight the key areas of my blog.

My finished construction of my Thriller Film Opening Sequence can be found here on YouTube or here on my blog. All other posts labelled "construction" can be found here.

Here are the links to each of my evaluation questions: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7

All posts labelled "planning" can be found here.

All posts labelled "research" can be found here. "Audience Research" posts can be found here.

All other posts will have a corresponding label on the right hand side of my blog for easy navigation.

I hope you enjoy looking through my blog.

Joe Weston.

Film in the Digital Age - Questions and Extra Notes

1) What is the advantage of using moving image story boards? 
Moving Image Story Boards were first pioneered in 1992 by Francis Ford Coppolla during the production of Bram Stoker's Dracula, and involve the directors and cinematographers utilising an 'electronic stimulation' of the story or scene that is to be created on a certain day, instead of using hand drawn, inanimate storyboards to 'pitch' a film or organise the crew. This creates many advantages - firstly, time is saved as less time will be spent constructing detailed sketches and drawings to detail the scene, and the moving image story boards provide a more accurate visualisation of what is to be shot so the crew can more easily replicate the storyboard.

2) What is the advantage of using DV Video Cameras?
The use of Digital Video (DV) Cameras to film documentaries and full length films is increasing, due to the many advantages this new technology has over celluloid film. Firstly, DV Cameras are more mobile, are lighter and much more practical and easy to use overall. The cost of shooting scenes and editing is also reduced as they do not need the expensive film stock, nor does their video require processing in the same manner. Complex scenes can be organised more easily also, as complicated lighting systems that are needed when shooting on celluloid are not needed.

3) What are the two types of CGI? What are the advantages and disadvantages of CGI?
CGI, or Computer Generated Imagery, is also seeing increased use in the film making processes. There are two types of CGI; Invisible Special Effects, which according to Buckland (1999) contributes to up to 90% of all of the work of the special effects industry, are not meant to be noticed, hence the name, by film spectators, and then Visible Special Effects, which produces "out-of-this-world" images to captivate audiences in a way that would not be possible otherwise. The advantages of CGI is that more elaborate and complex creations can be made that are both aesthetic and life like with the development of technology - however, CGI has also become more widely available to the public, with digital effect software reaching domestic audiences, and is sold by electrical retailers to enhance home videos and GCSE / A Level Productions.

Different Lighting Techniques

In this extract, different lighting techniques are used to make certain aspects more apparent to the audience.
At around 0:20, hard lighting is used during the conversation between the men. This hard lighting allows for the viewer to clearly see the definition in his face and the details of his scars quite clearly, and allows for the other men's facial expressions to be clearly identified. The key light is placed on the corresponding side of the man's face, which subsequently casts a shadow onto the van, which aids adding detail to the injuries the man has suffered.

Natural lighting is used to create a dull and gloomy atmosphere for this scene to perhaps reflect the mood at 0:25, when the character is viewed from a different perspective, and less detail is given to the scars on the left side of his face, which is partly obscured. The fill light is placed to the back right of the man, as there are little shadows cast here yet we can see the detail in the man's hair. By contrast, the details of his face are not in full light and not as prominent, showing the character as more "normal".

Lighting is also used effectively at the end of the extract where the man is in the Army office. Hard lighting is used to give detail to specific parts of his face through the blinds, creating a clear shadowing effect on his face, connoting various things to the audience such as a split personality, and threat and fear. If soft lighting were used instead here, the room would be more brightly lit and would come across as less sinister. The desk lamp acts as a fill light, and the light at the back of the room acts as a backlight, creating various shadows across the room, shown in the still. This is used to distinguish the man is the main character in the scene and by distorting the view of the character through the blinds and creating shadows, representations can be created and portrayed.