Creative Critical Reflection

This will be the last blog post that I will post to my blog. This journey has been filled with many bumps in the road, and learning experiences, but I don't think I would want it any other way. After looking back on all my different posts Ive realized just how much I have learned about media and never realized what an impact this has on a persons everyday life. I definitely have. new found appreciation for film directors, writers, editors, etc, because this project was definitely not easy. Creating a film is so much more than just taking a few videos and sticking them together, there is a lot of thought and hardworking that goes into making these incredible productions we watch every day. 

Here are my four different CCR responses: 

CCR #1: 

CCR #2:

CCR #3:

CCR #4: 

Finished Brief

 Finished Brief: 

Here is my completed brief. The name of the film opening is "The Fortress I Call Myself." Since I worked alone on this project the only member is myself, Jacquie Biello.  I have attached it below. 

I hope you enjoyed watching my completed film opening/brief. 

Adding Music

 Music: 

One of the last things I did was add some music to certain clips. This was mainly in the beginning and end of the film opening with the exception of a small clip towards the middle. I decided to go on YouTube and find downloadable music that creators wanted to be used for things like this. It was fairly easy to find a song that I liked that also was a good fit for the opening because it didn't draw too much attention from the film itself as well as followed most music conventions for a coming-of-age drama. Something else I added was some simple fade in/out transitions to the audio to make it sound smoother with the film. 

Here is a photo of me adding the audio to the first clip.

Reflection: 

In previous blog posts I talked about using a voice-over but after messing with it for a while I decided to not use a voice over because I was having problems with background noise and overall quality of the audio itself. While a voice over would have made the film opening even better, I think I can go without using one, plus I don't want to negatively impact the rest of the film opening. Moving forwards from here, I will be posting my completed film opening/brief in my next blog post, and start working on my CCR's. 

Creditors Block

 The Creditors Block:

Next, I'm going to start working on the "creditors block." This is the writing at the bottom of the screen at the beginning of a film that tells the audience who directed the film, lead actors, audio, etc. I did this by adding a text box and sizing it down to fit at the bottom of the screen. I am using white text because it will catch the audience's attention because of how bright it looks against the darker background. I was having some problem with the text because it kept cutting of halfway through the sentence. It didn't take me long to figure out what the problem was though. I just had to make a bigger text box so it could fit all the text since it wouldn't stack. Besides that, one small issue, adding the creditors block was rather easy and only took me about half an hour. 

Adding the Creditors Block

Reflection:

Now that the creditors block is added I will start working on adding music to a few of the clips. Like I said in the previous paragraph, there weren't many issues besides fixing the spacing for the text so there really isn't much to reflect on. I can't wait to see what the finished product looks like. 

Adding Transitions

 Transitions:

Today I decide to work on adding transitions to my film opening. This will allow the clips to flow better make the film opening much smoother. Adding transitions is pretty easy, and it only took me about an hour to get the ones I wanted in. To do this I went to the Effects tool bar and clicked on video transitions. The majority of them are different kinds of fades because I didn't want too much attention to be drawn to them rather than the video itself. I did have some trouble adjusting the transitions and making them last longer. This took me a few minutes to figure out, but once I got it, it was smooth sailing from there. 

Adding the Transitions: 

Reflection: 

The next step for me in the production process will be to start adding the Credit Blocks at the beginning of the film opening. This will include the director, audio, lead, and editing software. I will use more transitions to make them look better and flow better with the rest of the film opening. 

Unlinking Audio from Video

Unlinking from Audio

After adding all my clips and editing the unwanted parts out, the next step was to unlink audios from videos. While there are some clips I want to use the natural audio, there are also a few I wanted to add music or a voiceover too. To do this I have to right click the video file I'm trying to unlink than look for the unlink option. Once I click the unlink button, the video will separate from the audio and make it so you can delete one without the other. Now I am able to add other audios over the clip without having to deal with the original audio. 

Unlinking a Video from its Audio

Reflection: 

Moving on from here I will start putting transitions between the clips to make them flow smoother. I will also start working on adding music to the parts I need and adding audio transitions as well. So far, I haven't run into any problems when it comes to editing and everything has been going very smooth. One thing I also need to do is add the credits block. 

Starting Production

Starting the Process: 

Now that I have done all the research needed on coming of age drams, I can now begin the filming/editing process. Once I finished filming all the scenes I needed, I moved them into Adobe Premier Pro so I can begin the editing process. before I could move the clips over, I needed to transfer them from my iPhone to my computer. Adobe Premier Pro can only be run from certain devices because of the amount of hardware it requires. Luckily for me I have an older computer that can run the software in addition to my smaller laptop I use for school. Getting the software onto my computer was definitely a frustrating process. Due to the size of it, there were a lot of setting I needed to change on my computer to allow it to install. It took be about a good 45 minutes to get it to install plus another 20 minutes for it to finish installing. Once I had the software installed, I could safely move the files form my iPhone to my computer using a lightning cable to sync the two devices. 

Moving the files into Adobe Premier Pro

Moving the Files:

Once I had all the files saved onto my computer using my lightning cable, I was bale to easily transfer them into my new project in Adobe Premier Pro. After transferring the files to the project, I dragged all the clips into the timeline so I can put them in the correct order. This step definitely took me the longest because of the number of clips, and making sure I had the right ones in the right spot. Once I finished moving the clips around, I then had to shorten all of them and only take the parts that I needed. For this project we are allowed 2 minutes of film since it's only the film opening. This step was very difficult for me because I really liked all the clips I had and wanted to make sure that whatever I removed would not affect how the film flowed. Once I narrowed it down to about two minutes, I ran through all the clips again to make sure I liked what I was working with so I can begin the editing process. 

Adjusting the clips 

Reflection: 

Moving on from here I will begin the editing process. In the next few blog posts I will take you through the easy stuff and the stuff that made me struggle a bit. I will also be working on my title screen and making sure the opening itself is visually appealing to the audience. I will be adjusting the appearance of the clips, as well as experimenting with different features provided by Adobe Premier Pro that I have never used before. While I am fairly familiar with adobe premier, there are a few features I have never used before. 

Beginning the Editing Process

 Refreshing my Memory:

Before I could begin editing my project I decided it would be a good idea to go back to one of the older assignments we did earlier in the year and review the videos on working with Adobe Premier Pro. While yes I am very familiar with the software already, it doesn't hurt giving my brain a quick refresher when it comes to the basic features provided by Adobe Premier Pro. After reviewing the videos below I felt comfortable to start editing my project. This video is something I feel that I will be referencing back to a few times throughout this process. After watching a few videos, I decided to open a different project and add a few random clips into it so I can make I can effectively use transitions and adjust both visual and audio settings. Once I felt comfortable adjusting and editing the clips I moved back to my film opening project and decided to start editing my clips.

Adobe Premier Pro Tutorial Clips:

Stacking Clips: 

The first thing I decided to work on was stacking a few different clips. In one of the opening scenes, I want to show the protagonist getting ready for school. Since this requires multiple steps, I decided to try and combine this into one scene by stacking all the clips, making them smaller, and fitting them together. This will allow the audience to see the protagonist's morning routine and give them an idea of what's going through the protagonists mind every morning. This is something I had done a few times before in previous years but was not too familiar with. I began by unlinking all the clips form their audio so I can delete the audios but keep the clips. Once I did that, I sized all the clips down and put them on top of each other. Since I have limited vertical space on my timeline, I decided to stack the clips together. This allows me to have multiple different clips on the screen at once, but they only take up one spot on the timeline rather than eight.

Stacking Clips 

Reflection: 

Figuring out how to stack the clips took me a very long time, but once I figured it out I was able to move with ease. Moving on from here I will start working on my title screen which included the name of the film, my name, and the other elements needed. I am very exited to start editing my film and seeing it all come together to create something fun and engaging. 

Production Tools

 iPhone vs. Camera

One of the most important parts of creating a film opening is your camera equipment. While there are many different devices to choose from, I decided to go with my iPhone. I do have access to a digital camera but I am not very comfortable using it and don't hav much experience when it comes to that kind of technology. Throughout middle school I took film class where we didn't have access to actual high power cameras so I am very familiar with using an iPhone to film. I have found that it is much easier to use as it is much smaller and more portable. You are Abe to get a variety of different angles and shots without having to worry about your work space because of the size of the device. Cameras on the other hand tend to be a bit more on the bulky side and a little harder to maneuver if you are not experienced with the device. For this reason, I chose to use my iPhone to film my clips because of my experience, and the accessibility of using an iPhone rather than a bulky camera. 

Tools:

Since I am working by myself, getting different angles is going to be very difficult. For this reason I decided to run to target and get a $25 tripod. This tool will allow me to film a variety of different angles and shots. Its adjustable settings also make it very maneuverable and easy to use. Since the height can be adjusted separately for each of the three tripod legs, the tool can be put into tight corners and spots to get the different angles I require. While I dint need to spend extra money on this, I found that buying a tripod form target would make my life easier and help make the filming process much easier. 

Here is the top piece of the Tripod where my iPhone will be attached. 

Here is the entire tripod where you can see the adjustable tripod legs. 

Reflection: 

Moving on from here I will now be able to start the editing/filming process. With the help of my iPhone and tripod I can begin filming all the shots I will need to start my film opening. Once I acquire all the shots I need, I will be moving them into Adobe Premiere Pro to Strat combining them together and editing to make them into the actual opening. I plan on following the conventions of a coming of age drama film, and adjusting the lighting, audio, and overall visual appearance of the majority of my clips. There will also be a voice over throughout the majority of the opening to highlight the protagonists internal thoughts. 

Location

Looking at locations:

In a previous blog post I briefly discussed the location, but it was focused more on the "setting" of the opening rather than the actual location I will be using. When it came to picking a location for my film opening there were a lot of different variables I had to take into consideration. Some of these variables include accessibility, lighting, background noise, and other people. I decide to go back through some older blog posts where I did research on some already published coming of age films. The film I chose to look at first was "Mean Girls." This film has a variety of different locations including a house, school, courtyard, street, neighborhood, etc. Taking all the variables into consideration, I decided it would be best to film in a location where I can control all the variables, so I won't have to worry about other people, or accessibility to a location.  

This is an example from the opening scene for Mean Girls

This is another clip from "Mean girls" featuring the protagonist "Cady" in her bedroom. 

Picking a location:

After much thought I decided that my house would be a good location for me to use. This will allow me to have full control of lighting, sound, and don't need to stress about people in the background. Since I'm doing this project by myself, using my house as the location is relatively simple and makes it much easier for me to move around and get different angles/shots without stress. Most coming of age films start off with the protagonist's home, so this worked out in my favor. For example, in "Mean Girls" the film starts at Cady's house and from there moves to a different location or in this case the school. In addition, using my house as the location will also give me access to props like notebook, my computer, food, etc. this elements will help support the story of a tired high school student. 

Reflection: 

Moving forward from here I will Strat work on production. Now that I have researched all the key elements for a coming of age film  I feel that I am ready to start filming and get started on my film opening. The last thing I plan on doing before I begin filming is buying a few things to help make the  filming process a little smoother. My last blog post about planning will go into detail about what I am buying and how it will benefit my film opening. 

Creating a Title

Conceptualizing the Title: 

The title of a film is the first thing the audience sees when trying to figure out what to watch so it has to be something that catches their attention and relates to the film itself. I was think about what emotions and meaning the film opening itself will portray to try and find something that combines it all . To start my research I looked for words that related to sadness, social issues, high school, and putting mental walls up.  There were a few things that caught my attention like the words fortress which can be like the fortress the protagonist builds around her emotions, storm- like the storm going on in her brain, and avoidance like how the character avoids everyone because of the rumors that were spread. These words all relate to the general idea of the film and help the audience paint picture of what is going through the protagonists mind and the internal struggles she is facing. It also allows the audience to question what were the rumors, what is happening in her mind, and why she built a fortress. This really helps build the theme and engage the audience. 

Picking A Name:

After some thought, I have decided to go with the title "The Fortress I Call Myself." I chose this because I felt that it represented the challenges the protagonist is going through and how she builds a "fortress" around her emotions to hide her true feelings. It took me a while to figure out what I wanted to title my film opening, but after a few challenges I think I came up with a good one. One challenge I had was trying to find something unique that follows the theme of the opening. While they're are plenty of words that could be used to describe anxiety, social anxiety, etc, its finding words that you can combine to convey meaning that's difficult. Once I had a list of words that I felt could be used like "Fortress", "Storm", and "Avoidance", I was able to mix and match and came up with "The Fortress I Call Myself." 

Reflection: 

This blog post definitely took me the longest out of all the ones I have written. Creating the title for my film opening took a lot of thought and was something that challenged me. It was very important that I created a good title because the title is the first thing the audience sees. It needs to catch the audiences attention, and make them want to see what happens next. The only real challenge I had was trying to combine meaningful words to form the title. I found it relatively easy to find words that portrayed the theme of the film opening and looking for words with alternate meaning. Overall this blog post was definitely one that took me a little longer than most, but I think the outcome was pretty good and that I was able to create a title that conveys both the theme of the film opening, but also helps engage the audience and catch their attention.