Construction Post 3: Week 3 Production

Week 3 of production for us was our promo photo shoot, which we carried out in school with the set up seen below.

Throughout the week we had a tutorial and 4 sessions - one a practice and the other three were main ones. We had planned the poses and costumes we wanted in advance during the research and planning stage. We ended up with 5 different costumes and a range of poses from standing to sitting with various different lighting, showing off our artist's personality as well as conforming to R&B genre conventions with low-key, more moody lighting.

Below are some of the promo shots.

I was mainly responsible for taking the promo shots as well as directing Laith on the ones that Meera took. I also got to set up and adjust the lighting which was really fun because I hadn't done this before.

Me taking a photo

Me adjusting a light

The photo shoot went really well and I enjoyed the whole process. We got some really good photos, I think, that get across our artist's genre and personality and that will look really good on the website and digipak.

Construction Post 2: Week 2 Production

The second week of production was the main shoot for our group which consisted of filming the bulk of our video in the studio at school plus a one day location shoot.

At the end of the previous week we had ensured that we had a detailed schedule for this week, detailing who was going to be in the studio for each session and exactly what shots we would be filming. This was then checked against a list of all the shots we had said we wanted during research and planning to make sure that we had't missed anything out. In addition this made it easy for us to create a call sheet for each of our actors and keep on schedule.

Below is a copy of our group schedule:

Monday

Below is a copy of the detailed schedule for Monday's shoot in the studio:

As seen in the schedule we planned to spend the first period perfecting the 'standard' ipsync lighting which from our test shoot we had identified as being too 'flat' and boring. However, things didn't go to plan as we spent the morning trying to create the infinity curve so that the join between the floor and cyclorama couldn't be seen. We had done this during the prelim and really liked how it looked but unfortunately as our lighting was a lot more low-key, it was very obvious that paper had been placed over the join.

Monitor showing the attempted infinity curve

Attempt at creating the infinity curve

After trying both A4 and A3 paper to create the curve, we decided as a group that it just wasn't working and that we would scrap the idea.

By this point it was scheduled in for us to film the boys dancing but we decided to actually just have them rehearse with Meera, whilst Laith and I tightened the cyclorama to get as polished as look as possible. Although putting us a bit further behind schedule, it was actually really helpful having this rehearsal time as it let the guys get used to dancing in the studio with the lights and really perform. Getting back to what was planned, after school we did film the guys group dancing and it went a lot smoother than I originally thought it would and, as Laith was in the shots, Meera and I took turns dircting and filming from various different angles so that we would have plenty of choice when it came to the edit. 

Me filming the guys group dance

Tuesday

Below is a copy of our schedule for Tuesday

Tuesday was a very important day for us as it was one of the two longer days where we had till 8:30 in the evening, giving us plenty of time to try and catch up on the missed morning Monday. 

Set ups for Tuesday

We started the day filming the lipsyncs with the 'flicker' lghting as that needed all three of us - Laith performing, Meera filming and directing and myself using the reflector to get the lighting effect.

Filming the flicker shots

Once the standing light was in the right place, these shots were relatively easy to film and we managed a lot of good takes in that first session. 

Following the schedule, Meera and Laith then filmed some hand held lipsyncs whilst I was in lessons, before we all came back together with Adam, one of our extra actors, to do the shadow screen shots, an example of which can be seen below.

This was actually quite complicated to set up as the standing lights had to be in very specific places for the shadows to appear as the right size and colour, without creating an awkward line of light down the middle where the two met. I was actually acting in these shots as one of the shadows and I'm really pleased with how they came out. We got through a lot of takes, which we all looked through after and really liked, putting us back on schedule for this as we didn't need to use our back up session for this type of shot. In addition to this, we got really good audience feedback on this shot, with everyone saying that they thought it looked really cool and the concept of it worked very well.

We then revised the schedule to include more hand held lipsyncs and pushed back the talking at shots till after school as we believed that since we had lost time the day before it was important that we got a good range of lipsyncs done to a high standard as soon as possible. 

Me filming a hand held lipsync

It was actually good to do the hand held shots then as having all three of us there meant that Meera could cable bash whilst I filmed so that I didn't trip over anything.

After school we focused on getting the talking at shots done where Laith spoke at me, whilst I looked indifferent. We filmed from both sides so that we could edit it together in sequences where Laith changed side part way through lines to give a more discontinuous feel to the edit. This was inspired by the video for Skylar Grey's 'Back From the Dead'. A side by side of the shots can be seen below.

We actually finished these shots ahead of schedule and in order to try and catch up to where we should be, we ended up filming some more flicker lipsyncs in both LS and MS.

Wednesday

On Wednesday we were faced with another problem in that when we were setting up in the morning the camera wouldn't read the SD card and it turned out that one of the prongs in the camera was broken. Fortunately, our teachers did manage to find a repair shop which would have the camera ready by Thursday morning for us to use, but this did put us a day behind. 

We were given a replacement camera, the Canon Legria HFG30, which we use for location shoots, but for the studio the difference in camera quality to the Canon 5D MK 11, was huge and actually meant that our lighting looked completely different to before and how we wanted it to, and in the case of the backlit shots, just didn't work. 

Laith practising his dancing

Instead of carrying on filming on the HFG30 we decided to use the time rehearsing the dancing shots for all three of us. Although not what we had planned and we didn't get to film anything we could use on Wednesday, the rehearsal time was helpful as it meant we could get used to really selling the performance and making sure it looked authentic.

Thursday

The camera was fixed by Thursday morning so we could resume filming. We decided to continue with what was planned for Laith's dancing and just added in the optional sessions for me and Meera to film our dancing.

Despite the stress of being a day behind, we all just knuckled down and worked really hard to get back on schedule and keep each other motivated when everything started to get on top of us. 

Below are some examples of the dance shots we took.

After school we filmed more lipsyncs with the flicker lighting and some hand held, as well as the reverse talking at shots where I am pleading for forgiveness. Again this went better than I expected and we got through the shots quicker than we thought we would. We even managed to do the walking in shot for the first line where Laith starts out of focus. This was really fun to film because we were using a different lens with a very small depth of field, which allowed us to be a bit more creative and I think looks really good in the final edit.

shot at end of first line

Friday

Example page of my notes on rushes

By this point we were on our second or third session for each type of shot, with the exception of the dance shots with me and Laith which we got done fairly quickly. In the schedule there were several optional sessions blocked in for me and Meera where we sat down and looked through the rushes and made notes on anything that needed to be redone or didn't quite work.

In addition to this, as me and Meera had filmed all of our dancing with the blue lighting, we filmed us with the white backlit doing the choreography for the dance break so that we could make the edit choppier and switch between us and the guys.

Saturday

On Saturday we carried on re-filming anything that we didn't think we'd executed quite right earlier in the week, including Laith's solo dancing and lipsyncs.

As we didn't need to use the scheduled in time for the screen shadown shots, we took the time to take more hand held lipsync with tighter framer, for example more ECUs which can be seen below.

That afternoon was the last studio session and it consisted of us filming the remainder of the dance break and some small dance sections for throughout the rest of the video, for example the lean up in the first verse.

Sunday

The plan for Sunday was too film all of the narrative shots as we had already done the location lipsyncs the previous weekend. Below is a sample from our narrative shootboard. 

So that our extra actor, Adam, didn't have to wait around when he wasn't needed we decided to film everything with him first and then move on to the shots with me and Laith in the afternoon. These consisted of a series of shots in Meera's neighbour's house and the park which Meera and Laith took turns filming and directing. 

Example shot from Sunday

Whilst in the park Meera also took some promo shots for the website, examples of which can be seen below. 

For the afternoon we filmed the narrative shots of me and Laith against the wall first,before moving inside to film the sofa shots and argument sequence.

Argument and sofa shots from narrative

Overall, despite being a bit stressful with quite a few problems, our main shoot week was a lot of fun and in the end went alright, with the whole group being proud of our work. By the end of the week we had managed to completely catch up and get everything filmed that we needed and I was confident using both the sound and lighting desk as well as the 5D camera and monitor. I particularly enjoyed filming the hand held shots and using the reflector for the flicker lighting because I think those shots came out really well. On the whole we worked so well together as a group and think that if we keep that up we can create a music video, digipak and website that we can all be really proud of.

Construction Post 1: Week 1 Production

For the first week of production our group focused on the preparation and completion of our first location shoots. These shoots were at the weekend on the Saturday night and all day Sunday where we filmed lipsyncs, took promo shots and did a practice run of our narrative shots that we would fil again properly the following week.

Saturday

Below is an example page from the shootboard for our Saturday night shoot, where we needed to film lipsyncs in two different locations as well as a range of 'filler' shots, particularly for the introduction.

The first location we filmed at was the old fashioned lampost, where I was responsible for filming the shots. We had planned to do a range of hand held shots and shots using the tripod but after setting up, filming a CU take with the tripod and watching the playback, we decided to scrap that as it didn't come together how we wanted it to. After switching to just hand held we were all a lot happier with the shots and the movement showed off the location a lot better and allowed us to be more creative with our filming. Whilst filming this we took a lot of different takes to ensure that we had plenty of choice when it came to editing and so that we wouldn't have to scrap a shot due to light from passing cars casting weird shadows on Laith's face.

Lampost shot with tripod

Hand held lampost shot

The second location we filmed at was the road I live on where I was on camera again. All of the shots were hand held and included a lot of Laith walking, with me tracking and circling round. Although this location was quite hard to film in as there wasn't a lot of light and it was still quite busy with cars driving pass, we managed to get some shots with creative lighting, outlining Laith's head and casting interesting shadows on half of his face.

Sunday

Below is an example page from our shootboard for Sunday.

Wall lipsync shot

Sunday we filmed in and around Meera's house, shooting lipsyncs inside and out, taking promo shots and filming practice narrative shots. 

We started filming outside to make sure we had enough time to get all of our shots whilst it was still light out. As Laith was in every shot, Meera and I split the filming and directing, taking it in turns. It was very cold during this shoot and we worked so well together to keep each other motivated, particularly Laith who had the hardest job of giving a convincing performance. 

We also filmed some lipsyncs inside the house, in the loft and on the stairs. Again as Laith was in the shots, Meera and I took turns filming, with me filming the stair lipsync and Meera the shots in the loft.

Once we'd filmed all of this, a lot quicker than expected, we had actually got everything that we had planned on our shootboard done and so used the extra time to get ahead and practice some of the narrative shots for the following weekend. In addition to practice the exact framing for the living room shots and specific actions we wanted, we also scripted the argument scene so that Laith and I could learn our lines ready for the following shoot.

Argument script

On the whole, I think that our first location shoot went really well and a lot of the shots that we filmed, actually turned out to be some of my favourites from the whole shoot, location and studio. As a group we worked extremely well together over this weekend and if we can keep this up, I think that the main shoot next week will go just as well.

R+P Post 33: Reflections on my role and contribution during Research and Planning

Overall, I think that as a group we all worked very well together during the research and planning stage, each of us playing to our strengths. Below I have summarised my personal contribution.

Lyric Analysis

As Cry Me A River is one of my favourite songs, I found it easy to break down each lyric and pin-point what emotion worked best for it and how that would translate into our music video. This was useful when it came to filming the test shoot as it gave Laith emotions he could portray for each line and section of the song to get an authentic performance.

Below is a picture of me putting together the lyric analysis.

Timeline

As the timeline and storyboard were being done at roughly the same time, we split our group based on strengths as to who should do what, and I took lead on the timeline. To be as organised as possible and to ensure that everyone's ideas were incorporated, before creating the actual finished timeline, we sat down and decided as a group roughly what shots would be in each section. I then went away and pinned this down into each individual shot with the exact timings and lyrics to match. I also finalised how we were shortening the song as its original length is too long for this project.

Creating our timeline

Rehearsals

Alongside Meera, I helped choreograph the dancing in the video and teach it to the boys.

Filming and directing

As Laith is in nearly every shot, Meera and I took turns filming and directing his lip-sync and dance shots. During the test shoot, as I have quite a steady hand and really enjoy using the camera, I filmed the hand held shots of Laith's lip-sync as well as acting as performance director, helping Laith portray the emotions needed.

On camera, checking performance

Hand held shot

Performing in the video

Throughout the video I am in some dance shots, crossover narrative shots and conceptual shadow shots with Laith and our extra actor, Adam. Some of the shots with both me and Laith in were quite hard to shoot as Meera was having to do everything else by herself but as a group we managed to make it work, with Laith and I stepping out to help set up as much of the shot as we could beforehand. Also, Meera and I both dance with the same set up in the video and as we both come from dance backgrounds this role really suited us and we really enjoyed performing. 

Example performance shot

Editing the test footage

I actually really like editing and enjoyed editing our rough cut and picking out the good parts as well as what we need to improve on for the main shoot. Doing the rough cut helped us learn the best and quickest ways to edit a music video and was a huge learning curve.

Laith and I editing

R+P Post 32: Test shoot and rough edit

Above is the rough edit of our test shoot footage that was shot in the studio. This was a huge learning curve for us and highlighted, both, things that worked well and what we need to change for our main shoot in order to have a successful and professional video.


The main thing the test shoot helped with was pinning down exactly what we wanted for our lighting and making sure that it worked. On the whole we are happy with how our lighting came out and perfecting it for the test actually went a lot quicker than we had first thought.

I am particularly happy with the blue back-lit set up we have for the female dancers, which can be seen below, as it looked very effective during the edit and gave the vibe that we were after.

I also really liked the 'flicker' light that we used for some of the lip-sync as it gave a darker, mysterious feel that fits with the lyrics.

R+P Post 31: My call sheet

We created a call sheet for every day of our shoot to give to all members of the cast and crew do that everyone knew what time they needed to arrive by and when they would be needed on set.

Below is an example of one of our call sheets

The call sheet also includes health and safety information and the locations of each station, costume, make up etc, which are vital if the shoots are to run smoothly.

R+P Post 30: My shootboard

So that our shoot days run smoothly and we get all of the shots that we need, we created a detailed shootboard with drawings of each shot, a column specifiying their framing, any props we need, location and the time we will start filming.

Below are example pages from our Saturday location shoot

For all of our shootboard pages, on location and in the studio, we have grouped shots together logically by set up, location and cast required to ensure that we aren’t wasting time unnecessarily switching back and forth between lighting or having people there when we don’t need them.


We also have left a space next to the shot number to record how many takes we took of each shot and which one we think at the time is the best to use in the actually edit. This will help save time when editing and will make the process of choosing our shots easier.