Live Brief 2 - The Hook Man First Draft

After working on "The Babysitter" for sometime now, I was confident enough in the script to move on to the next short we will be working on. As "The babysitter" was the largest production, we worked on that one first, but chronologically it is last in the film, the first micro short is called "The Hook Man". I started and recently finished the first draft for "The Hook Man", which gives us our first introduction to our killer Jack. The story is about Jack and April who have driven up to a remote area to spend time together, like in many cliche horror films. April hears a sound from outside the car and sends Jack to check it out, after he leaves she listens in to Reggie Reynolds on the radio and then is attack by The Hook Man in the car and it's revealed to be Jack. Jack walks away and makes a phone call which links into "The Babysitter"

This first draft was very rough and was to introduce the characters and find a basic structure for the story. With setting up a lot of plot lines and characters in "The Babysitter" it was important not to contradict or mess up any of the timeline and keep things the same in tone. This story is much shorter than "The Babysitter" and has considerably less characters involved, so it's quite a short and tight script.

Characters:
April- Love Interest/ Victim
Jack - Killer
Reggie Reynolds- Tales from the Other Side Host

This is the audiences first introduction to Jack and the overall tone of the short, so It needed to set up both with enough interest to keep the audience wanting to watch. Who he is and what is motive is, is very unclear at this point and it creates quite a bit of intrigue which I'm hoping will pull in the audience. April is perhaps too cliched in her role and only serves as another victim to Jack, another risk he's taking throughout the story. Her role maybe needs more understanding developed and a little backstory to why she's her and what she's doing with Jack.

The producer and director have both had a read through of the draft and annotated changes and notes for the next draft. I have small changes to the dialogue to make and a few motivations for characters to incorporate to give a bit more believability to their actions.

Live Brief 2 - Visual Effects for Guerrilla Filmmakers Course (Week 1)

With being editor for Glenn's Maniaframe project, It's best I continue research into new editing styles and techniques, and keep my skills busy and ready for editing. Norwich University of the Arts is using a website called FutureLearn, to distribute and give a course online for free called, Visual Effects for Guerrilla Filmmakers. It's a four week course and is all online, it helps to introduce and develop new and effective editing techniques in the visual effects area.

Week one has just started on the 8 February and the final week will start 6 March. The first week has been very much an introduction to the course, the ideas, the software and whats to come. Early on it discusses the differences between visual effects and special effects, and how visual effects are more digital and something done in post-production, whereas special effects are your practical, on the day stunt styled effects. We were also introduced to a software called HitFilm, and it's a free special effects software like Adobe After Effects, but one that everyone can download and have access too. There is one tutorial this week using HitFilm that focuses on tracking. I've used tracking before in After Effects and used it recently in our Think advert but it was very amateur compared to this style. There was a video walk through on how to use tracking effectively in HitFilm and they even provided us with some high quality footage to use for tracking. It slowed it down and went through step by step and made it easy to understand. They also made it so you are able to transfer these skills into over software such as After Effects. It was quite fun and successful using this tracking tutorial, and gets you thinking about more than just the edit, and the preparation as an editor you need to do for filming, so everything is in place for the edit.

We were also introduced to a few independent guerrilla filmmakers, such as The Blaine Brothers and Haz. They discussed their work and passion for visual effects, and in some cases how important the tracking technique we just learned was during their films and careers. There are also little tests here and there to keep you on your toes, to see if you remember details from previous articles or videos. So far it's been quite a fun and educational learning experience. In week two there will be more to read and learn about, as well as the introduction to green screen tutorials in HitFilm, which will come in helpful because a few ideas Glenn has for his final piece, include green screen of some sorts.

Live Brief 2 - Location Scouting (The Babysitter)

Myself, Drew and John recently checked out a potential location for the short "The Babysitter", which was Drew's house. It's a very modern and spacious house, and could definitely pass off as the home for the borders in the short. I tagged along on the location recce so once I saw the area and layout of the house, it gave me a better understanding of where things are and will be and will help me write the script with a bit more detail, knowing where things will be, what certain tasks we can accomplish in the space etc.

The main room that is featured heavily is the living room, and is where Becca, the main character spends most her time, there is also the kitchen briefly and a children's bedroom which is shown at the end. There is also the potential to show just outside the front of the house for a shot, so we looked around to see if the house was suitable for all these different scenes and shots. The living room and kitchen are basically one large room, so we can either take control of that and embrace it in the short, and shoot it so it looks separate, there is also lots of space to move and dress it so it appears differently. John and Drew have already discussed easy changes and things to add which can make it appear more camera worthy and fit with the tone of the script. With the wide space it will also allow for different styles and types of shots that you wouldn't necessary be able to achieve in a smaller space.

The kitchens layout is very open and may cause a few issues, with the refrigerator door opening to a different side than we'd prefer for a certain short, but it's simple enough to work around. It's fair to say that the layout and space of the house is no bother and isn't causing issues that would prevent the shot from going smoothly. It is also easy to get access to with it been Drew's parents property, and not too big of a concern for moving or dressing the area for the shoot. All three of us recognised the potential for certain visions of shots and forms of storytelling, as well as realising how much space we'd have for people and equipment behind the camera. John's looked at a few houses for this location/set and seems to have settled on this one for the reasons discussed. Now after seeing the area I don't want it to reflect or affect my writing of the script too much, but enough for it to seem easier to read and easier for the director and cast to understand when and whereabouts in the house they are at particular scenes.

Live Brief 2 - Production Meeting 2 (Urban Legends)

Urban Legends Production Meeting 2

09/02/16

Meeting Start Time: 12:40pm

Attending:-

• John Hartill 
• Drew Brockbank
• Chloe Lowe
• Jacob Moorfoot
• Mikey Barker

Absent:- 

• Abby Colclough (ill) 

The production meeting started off by checking everything we were tasked to do last week. We went through last weeks minutes and ticked off what has and hasn't been done since the previous production meeting. John has begun collecting in the budget for the production and has managed to get half, and hoping to have the other half by the 12th February. Locations have been scouted and checked out for "The Babysitter" as well as actors for the shoot, and awaiting responses. The script has completed two drafts and is currently in it's third draft. Drew has started looking into licensing for a drone but hasn't got anything solid yet, and the equipment rehearsal went smooth giving camera, light and sound a chance to become familiar with the equipment. 

This weeks production meeting focused on the production of the script, which we are currently writing its third draft, after receiving notes and advice from the director and tutors. Chloe has started editing tests with footage captured from the equipment rehearsals and Drew has requested a secondary equipment rehearsal to take place before the shoot date. John's proposed sending out a casting call to fill the remaining roles and Jacobs going to do more sound tests. John has also looked into getting us access and folders on the VLE and EditShare. I am going to continue progress on "The Babysitter" script and hopefully have it completed for next meeting. 

Meeting End Time: 13:03pm

Live Brief 2 - The Babysitter Third Draft

After the second draft was completed, myself, Drew and John were comfortable with the changes and applied them to the third draft. The third draft was rewritten from all the notes given by Drew (Director) and John (Producer), it fixed certain aspects of the characters and tone to fit in overall with the story, it also mended little words here and there that didn't quite work or feel suitable in the sentence. I was also able to build the third draft around notes given by Di (Tutor) on the second draft. She was able to take a look and point out aspects that didn't work story wise, structure wise or suitable for the script writing format. The first issues she had with the script was the first page, and making it shorter, dialogue wise between the babysitter and the parents. She marked out words and sentences that didn't need to be there and it helped point out where cuts could be made to reduce time in the script.

She also pointed out certain words that didn't necessarily fulfill their purpose and get across exactly what has happening, such as changing 'Concerned' to 'Bemused' giving the character a more realistic reaction and telling the reader exactly how she's feeling. There was also changes to be made which were inconsistencies in the script, an example is at the beginning where the mother tells the babysitter to grab a snack, and later she claims there is nothing to eat. This can be easily fixed with changing a few words around, or having her grab something else like a drink. The biggest issue Di had with the script was the timeline, the timeline is very inconsistent and has not given enough time for certain acts to take part, so this is an issue to look over and mend for the next draft. This will be done by either making more time during the cuts and making it seem like more time has passed, or adjusting parts of the story to work within the timeline. There are certain plot points we want such as when the babysitter calls the restaurant, we don't want the parents there to answer, so enough time needs to have passed for them to have had a meal and left. I've also changed visual parts of the ending as Di thought the babysitter been killed would be too much, and that the children are the real victims, so we've worked round having the killer back in the house. A change Di suggested which we disagree with is removing Rebecca's name from the last interaction between her and the killer, she doesn't understand how the killer would know her name and that it feels out of place. We like the idea of having the killer say her name, so we're going to try and make it easier for the reader and audience to understand why he would know her name, and provide a logical reason why he would.

The third draft has been completed and these changes have all been applied to the current draft, and sent off the the director and producer.

Live Brief 2 - The Babysitter Second Draft

After writing and completing the first draft for "The Babysitter", I was able to have the director of the short films (Drew Brockbank) to take a look and get his opinion of the draft. This meant I was able to get notes from the directors point of view and make any changes that he feels necessary to the plot or dialogue etc. I made sure he had a printed copy for him to write and annotate his notes over the script, this helps me see which parts work and which don't, these were either certain parts that just didn't work, or changes he thought would benefit the script and the shooting of the production.

I wanted the director to be one of the first crew members and people to see it, so we can build on it and both see and understand the development throughout, giving us both a better understanding of characters and tone, for him when he's on set directing and me when I continue to write the next shorts. Along with changes and notes on the script, were also notes of what he liked and wanted to keep in the script, this is good to see as it reassures that you're working in the right direction and also it maybe something that can be used again throughout the scripts. One of Drew's first notes was for the first page and that the dialogue between the parents and Rebecca needs to be shorter. This would help keep it tighter and shorter for the final film, unnecessary rambling or dialogue can distract and bore audiences.

Drew also had an idea for a shot which would include seeing the number for the restaurant on the fridge door, this would help lose a few lines of dialogue and instead of telling the audience, we'd just be showing them. The biggest note that was given was to rewrite the character of Reggie Reynolds to not be a loud quick talking radio host, but to be more of a Twilight Zone/Tales of the Crypt type show, telling spooky stories of what is happening. At first I was very much skeptical of the change and wasn't sure about the fit, but the more I thought about it and once I started writing, I found a good rhythm and tone for the radio host to have, and added the element of having the stories rhyme, giving it more of a storytelling factor. Many of the little notes were just moving words around or switching them for something more suitable. After going over the first draft I was ready to make the changes from the notes and did as so. I quickly made the changes and tighten the script and making it shorter. After completing the second draft I will be able to show the producer and director the changes, and have them look over and suggest any changes and then we will be showing the tutors, for their opinion on the script and notes they have which we can make for the third draft. Hopefully the more notes we get, the more professional and more quality the final shooting script will be.

Live Brief 2 - The Babysitter First Draft

With all the crews and job roles sorted, I've been able to collaborate with John and and read through and understand his idea clearly, and the vision he has for these short films. There are four micro shorts and I've begun writing the first of those four already. This is the first short we will be filming but will appear last in the chronological order of the shorts, it's called "The Babysitter".

The Babysitter is the story of a young student who is babysitting two kids, while their parents are out for the night. The night starts of fine but suddenly takes a turn when she keeps getting harassed and tormented by a mysterious person who keeps ringing her and telling her to "Check on the Kids". It builds up tension and finally ends with her checking on the kids who had been killed earlier in the night. Using John's step outline from his pitch, I have started and completed the first draft for the script, and been able to get a basic structure and development set for the characters and plot points. With it been a short, things have to move a lot quicker but appear normal which is something you would be able to take a bit more time with in a feature, but it's a good challenge to try and include everything that is important and necessary within the shortest amount of words you can. It makes you more cautious with your choice and really think what needs to be in to tell the story.

The first draft is more lengthly than I'd like to final draft to be, and maybe has little sequences that play no part in the overall story which we can cut and save time in the second draft. Overall in the first draft there is seven characters with speaking roles both major and minor.

Characters:
Rebecca - The Babysitter
Mr & Mrs Borden - Parents of the children
Brandon - Rebecca's Boyfriend
Restaurant Worker - Answers phone at restaurant
Jack- Killer behind it all
Reggie Reynolds - Radio Talkshow Host

Rebecca is the main character for the purposes of this short and I wanted to give her a little depth and background so the audience have something to grasp on to and to maybe relate to, so they feel what she's going through. She has doses of likability but she's also an average young student and she's going to do things some people don't like. The second character I tried to pay most attention to was the radio host Reggie Reynolds. Reggie is going to appear a lot throughout the shorts and I wanted him to feel existing and original, and not young and brand new for this specific short, as he'll have development throughout the other shorts. I made him quicker witted and a fast talker, he's not an average radio host nor realistic in any sense. He has a very specific purpose and it's almost as if he's recalling a film when he talks about the murders. He adds a touch of humour and commentary to the story, almost as if he's clarifying that what you just saw was crazy and weird. The rest of the characters are rather secondary and although play a purpose, can do so without the depth and development of the characters we really care about.

After completing the first draft, I sent it and showed it to John to review and check for any mistakes or inconstancies, or even just changes he feels will fit better. John will then pass this on to Drew who will do the same and annotate notes on the script which I can mend for the second draft which I will begin on once I receive notes back.

Live Brief 2 - Production Meeting 1 (Urban Legends)

Urban Legends Production Meeting 1

02/02/16

Meeting Start Time: 12:01pm

Attending:-

• John Hartill 
• Abby Colclough 
• Drew Brockbank 
• Chloe Lowe
• Jacob Moorfoot 
• Mikey Barker 

For our first production meeting John addressed individually everyones roles and made sure everyone was comfortable and understood what was expected of them for the production. A proposed budget was discussed and then agreed upon by all crew members, the amount was £50 each and that I would contribute half of that at £25 as my role is smaller and I'm the only one working on a second crew. The total budget for the production sits at £275. John also proposed that the remaining budget left over at the end of production if was below £50, would all be donated towards the end of year show screening at VUE cinemas.

Then we went round the table with ideas and suggestions for the production and everyone mentioned which equipment they would find best using and could get the best results out of, this was mainly camera and sound equipment as well as stating which editing software Chloe would be using.
I was tasked with writing the first draft for 'The Babysitter' script and would work on that immediately so we could have the final draft to show to actors for auditions and so on. So the crew can become more familiar with the equipment they will be using, John has organised an equipment rehearsal on 8th February for all crew to participate in with the kit.

Meeting End Time: 12:38pm

Live Brief 2- Crew's and Productions

After all the pitches were presented, the best ones were narrowed down and five ideas were chosen for production. The green lighting of these five productions allowed us to begin organising crews and start pre-production. When figuring out roles on the crews and making sure everyone had an even or enough of a role to fit the modules requirements, I was given two roles on different crews.

The two productions I will be working on are:

Pinocchio:
Director - Glenn Wilkinson
Production Manager - Simon Douglas
Camera - Dan Whalen
Sound - Jamie Gibson
Editor - Mikey Barker
Lighting - Dan Whalen

Urban Legends:
Director - Drew Brockbank x4
Production Manager - John Hartill x4
Camera - Abby Colclough x4
Sound - Jacob Moorfoot x4
Editor - Chloe Lowe x4
Lighting - Abby Colclough x4
Scriptwriter - Mikey Barker x4

My role on Glenn's Experimental piece called Pinocchio (Working Title) is that of editor, and I will be working along side the crew, making sure any effects, practical or digital are organised probably and that they film and understand it correctly for the edit. I will also be editing the final cut of all the footage, adding effects and colour grading until the film resembles Glenn's vision. I will also be assisting on set as driver, runner and any additional roles that need filling for production.

My role on John's Urban Legends piece is scriptwriter, I will be developing on John's ideas for the films and script and adding and formatting them for first, second and final drafts up until they're perfect for production. There are four micro shorts, which will result in four final scripts and they're drafts along the way. Similar to Glenn's I will be on set, assisting as a driver, runner and taking on any roles that need filling to progress the production along.

The crews I am working on are very exciting and both present interesting and challenging ideas to put to film. I have worked with many of the members on both crews before and am comfortable collaborating with them and are looking forward to seeing what we accomplish.

The remaining crews and productions are:

Savannah Marshall - Boxer:
Director - Ryan Siggers
Production Manager - Michael Reynolds
Camera - Jamie Gibson
Sound - Michael Reynolds
Editor - Daniel Bolton
Lighting - Jamie Gibson

Dead Stoned:
Director - Steven Brown
Production Manager - Tori Aspey Kent
Camera - Ryan Siggers
Sound - Tori Aspey Kent
Editor - Jacob Moorfoot
Lighting - Ryan Siggers

Dungeons & Documentaries
Director - Nathan Cawley
Production Manager - Andrew McAnaney
Camera - Steven Brown
Sound - Andrew McAnaney
Editor - Daniel Bolton
Lighting - Steven Brown
Script Doctor - Michael Reynolds

Live Brief 2 - Presenting My Pitch

Today the class presented their separate pitches for the Live Brief module, this consisted of a developed idea for a short film, along with a suitable film festival and additional research or information that backs up why your idea should be in production. Each pitch ranged from between 10-30 minutes and gave everyone enough time to clearly present their idea and answer questions to help us understand the pitch. There were quite a few impressive pitches and ideas that seem suitable and possible for students to produce, and I thought during the pitches which role I would be able to fill for that specific crew and what I could bring to the various projects. If I'm not directing my own pitch or idea, my key roles to work on are scriptwriting and editing, so for any productions in need of writers or editors, I will be able to offer my help and join that crew.

My pitch today went better than my previous pitches have gone presentation wise, but the strength and depth of the story were underwhelming and not up to the standard of certain other pitches. I'm proud that I was able to retell my idea and parts of the script from memory and didn't need to use a slide to explain or write down tons and tons of writing which sums up the story. I feel people become more involved and invested in a story if they're been told about it passionately than reading it off the board. I know problems the tutors had with my idea were related to how underdeveloped the script and characters seem and I understand that as I wanted to rule out the first two acts to the story which would remove the development stage of both the story and its characters. It was more of an exciting, heavy dialogue scene with action but lacked depth and meaning. I've learnt new presentation and pitching skills from this experience and the preparation I did before it, I will be able to take and apply these skills to the next and any future pitches, but make sure the story they're backing up is solid and worth producing. After everyone pitched and had there say, the tutors discussed the best and most suitable ideas for the module and narrowed it down to five projects for the course to work on.

The five pitches that got chosen were Glenn's, Nathan's, Ryan's, John's and a fifth to be chosen soon.