Portfolio Posting Week 5 #2

 Our project is a drama, which means suspense and plot twists are the main source of entertainment. Our project could be considered PG-13, but the target audience is a little different. The content of our project resonates more with ages 16-24. A combination of teenagers and young adults. Both genders can enjoy this piece, but the demographic of viewers will likely be male dominant since our type of action is seen in movies with male dominant populations. Such as, "127 hours" and "Everest".

For the editing software we do not have many options. Adobe Premiere is too expensive, CapCut is only available on phones, and iMovie lacks features. At first I thought DaVinci was only available for free if we used it on the school computers, but it's available to download for free on any computer, so that will be our editing software of choice. There won't be any major editing techniques except the combination of video with our sound foley. This is because our project is based on realism, so our piece doesn't need any sort of CGI or special effects to be good. For the background music, I plan on going for a very dark feel. Something simple such as Hans Zimmer's "The Mole" from the Dunkirk soundtrack. Timestamp 2:30 is the exact vibe I want to go for, but getting copyright permission for Hans Zimmer must be very difficult since it involves film production companies and not record labels. 

Portfolio Posting Week 5 #1

For the title we have chosen the phrase "After Hours". It does not feel forced and it really fits the elements of our story. We plan on displaying our title at the end of the film. Our film opening will end with a sort of cliffhanger, so we want to be playing really suspense music at the end and combine it with the sudden appearance of the title. As of now we have a few options for the font of the title. These are my current favorite fonts that I think will fit the aesthetic best. Claudio's options might differ from mine.

Options #2 and #5 are my two favorites out of the 5. 

Due to scheduling issues, we were not able to shoot the project last weekend which put us a little behind, but this weekend we are shooting and hopefully we can film at least half of the project. We also lost one of our actors, which is an issue we will have to fix as soon as possible. Our videographer also has a very busy schedule which we have to work around. These sort of problems are typical and the best we can do is try our very best to work around them.

Portfolio Posting Week 4 #2

 For the sound we want to make sure it's a part that stands out. Claudio and I have been thinking of implementing some sound foley into the project. Parts like when we are riding our bikes and passing by the tree can be heighten with some sound foley. Adding in some sounds of the wind and making the bike sounds louder can improve the quality of our production by a lot. Rustling of tree leaves and some voice echoes will also fit our video. 

Also, we realized this week that costumes will have to be a thing. Since our story revolves around a camping trip, the clothing attire obviously needs to match that. Windbreakers, hiking boots, long socks, and large backpacks will all have to be used in order to make the atmosphere as realistic as possible. We don't want elements like the clothing to throw off the audience while viewing. At the end of the day, our project is non-fiction based so we will try to be as "natural" and simple as possible. 

Portfolio Posting Week 4 #1

 We are currently scouting for actors. We could easily choose one of our best friends but that would likely just not work because we would struggle taking ourselves seriously. Although, me and Claudio are thinking of Andres Montero, a friend of ours who's relatively serious when it comes down to it, so he's our best choice as of now. For the camera person, we are thinking of Vanessa Yanes since she's also enrolled in AICE Media Studies and is one of the school photographers, so cameras are definitely her thing. Claudio and I are thinking of being the other two actors but we are not 100% sure. IF we end up being, I would be Gio and he would be Felipe, since Claudio gives off a more charismatic and innocent vibe.

For camera equipment our best bet is an iPhone. Claudio volunteered to let us use his iPhone 13, which is both easy to use and has great camera quality especially for a phone. We can take advantage of the cinematic mode and make some amazing shots. We will also need a tripod to keep the camera stable, and a camera stabilizer would be nice but they're very expensive and we don't know anyone that owns one. Hopefully the iPhone's built-in stabilizing feature is enough. 

Portfolio Posting Week 3 #4

 
 This is the storyboard. Since the start of this project, I wanted to keep it simple for the most part and the storyboard can enforce that. The shots used are mostly long shots, medium shots, and close up shots. These are the most commonly used which will help maintain the simplicity of the story, You do not want to  get too carried away trying to make the story look super aesthetic and then have viewers feel overwhelmed. For example, when Craig splits up from Felipe and Gio, me and Claudio were deciding on what shot to use since it's a key moment in the story. Claudio first thought on doing a POV shot but I said to keep it as a long shot. We then both agreed on this. A POV could easily be messed up. 

Next weekend we start filming the project. We need to find actors, Claudio and I would love to both act but then there is nobody to film and having somebody that is not from the class doing the cinematography would likely pose an inconvenience. Nonetheless, I think it will be just fine. The technical planning will not be anything complex for this project since our idea does not require a whole lot of resources. As long as we get actors that are comfortable around us and that we can get on our schedule it'll all be okay. Excited for what's to come!!!

 

Portfolio Posting Week 3 #3

 Script

So this is now the final script. I promised to give deeper details so here it is. With the original idea, it felt a bit more like a trailer rather than a film opening. We then changed it so that we have a mini "cliffhanger" but it still preserves the essence of a film opening. The largest problem will definitely be the environmental factors but we can try our best to work around it. Each character has their own unique and important role in the story. 

Craig is the source of conflict that was only visible at the start. Felipe is the positive guy that tries his best to convince himself that Craig isn't a bad person. Then, Gio was the constant doubter and is Craig's #1 "enemy". These 3 roles will give suspense and purpose to the story. I hope that once we film the project, that the characters can capture this personality. I know that we aren't expected to be amazing actors, but I still want to do a pretty good job. 

Portfolio Posting Week 3 #2

 The shooting schedule will be during the weeks of 2/28-3/6 and 3/7-3/13. But, the shooting will likely be on the weekends since that's when the actors would be available. I want to try and go pretty early on in the day to make sure we have natural lighting. We have to do the shooting relatively fast each day so we can make the most out of the sunlight. But, in the darker (metaphorically) scenes we can take advantage of the darkness of the woods. To conclude, the schedule will likely be as follows:

• Saturday, March 5th from 1pm until 4pm
• Sunday, March 6th from 12pm until 3pm
• Saturday March 12th from 2pm until 5pm
• Sunday, March 13th from 2pm until 4pm

The goal with this schedule is to match the environmental aspects of the story. Earlier on in the story, the feel will be more light and innocent so the extra sunlight will reinforce this. So, later on in the story once it gets scarier, we can use the lack of sunlight. This is why the first week of filming is earlier on in the day and the second week is later on in the day.