CCR Update: Done with script

 CCR script is finally doneee!

In class today I had time to work on my CCR script. The previous class Mrs. Stoklosa gave a presentation on how the CCR should be planned and filmed. We were provided with examples of high scoring CCRs, which helped me visualize how I was going to do it better. As I mentioned yesterday, I plan on doing a sit-down while including photos, videos, and other ways to include my information and research.

I had to continue working on the CCR at home because I wanted to make sure it was detailed enough and… wow it took a while but I think it turned out really well! Also, filming is tomorrow! As I was writing it I would constantly be practicing reading it out loud so I feel more prepared for it. I found pictures and videos to add onto it when I start editing as well.

Script

Aside from the CCR, in class Nati and I also added the credits onto our film opening and the title! Below is a video we took of Nati's computer with the credits. We did switch the font because we felt that the previous one did not fit the vibe we were going for. The new one is more bold and clear, while not taking away from what’s going on, on screen.

Credits

Title

Editing Updates & CCR Schedule

 Welcome back to my blog! This week will be very busy and honestly, stressful.

Nati and I have finished editing for the third portion of our filming, so now we have some finishing details, adding the credits, and the CCR left. For the third portion editing, we finished off with a few things. For instance, in the scene in which Claire’s parents are fighting we added a filter over it for the clip to appear more dull. Additionally, on the scene in which Claire enters her friend's car, we decided on keeping the clip using the song played through the car, rather than editing it in, for a more natural effect. A scene we were not able to film due to scheduling was one in which Claire looks back as she walks out the door to her house and sees her parents lying down on the couch. Claire’s parents are played by Nati’s parents, who had a different schedule from when we filmed the third portion.

Next up is the CCR! In order to not run into any timing issues, I created a schedule for this week to help me stay on track with it. Since the questions have already been answered in my previous blog posts, I am not worried about that and I already have an idea of how I am going to write the responses out. I am not the type of person to be able to present my information clearly to a camera or people on my own, so I will be creating a script. I plan on including pictures or videos throughout my CCR but also include myself speaking at times.

My schedule

• Thursday and Friday: Answer the four questions, create a script

• Saturday: Film

• Sunday (and Monday if needed): Edit

Next blog we will have already added the credits and our title to the film opening, and continued planning our own CCRs. Stay tuned to see the updates!

Editing: Part Three

 Today we completed most of the editing for the third portion!

Nati and I began with how we did with the previous two parts, which was by cropping the shots in the beginning or ends. Like the others, the shots were already on DaVinci, since we put them in once we finished filming. 

We choose a royalty free rock song for the scene where Claire gets in the car with her friend. The song is called Power Grab by Sven Karlsson (linked below). For the scene in which Claire is in her room, we choose the song Power of Balance (instrumental Version) by Dissidence. In the car, the song is very loud and gets slightly lower as the car speeds away at the end. In Claire’s room, the song gets quieter as she walks away from her room, and completely turns off once she’s outside her house.

The only things we have left to decide are whether or not the music in the car should be edited over the original sound, or keep the original sound in which we played the music while filming. Next week will be finishing this part’s editing, and finishing details while also completing the CCR.

Link to the songs:

​​https://www.epidemicsound.com/music/genres/hard-rock/ 

Editing: Part Two

 Second part of editing is done!

This is when Claire was a few years older than the beginning scene. Claire is in a state of sadness, and expresses this through music. As mentioned in a previous blog post, Nati and I applied for a SESAC license for Sam Smith’s song, Stay With Me, but did not receive a response. As a backup, we decided to go for sad royalty free songs on websites. After looking through multiple songs, we found one we thought fit our scene best. It is Ballero by Ardie Son. 

The editing for this part of the film opening went well, as our clips were shot accordingly with no issues. The clips were also placed into DaVinci Resolve once they were filmed, so we just had to crop some of the beginning or ending parts of the clips, or cut entire clips out. There were also times in which we would have filmed the same clip twice but with a minor difference to see which looked best. For example, when Claire looked up how old she had to be to leave her home and had an album of sad music open, we did not know whether to include her grades or not. After editing, we decided to not keep the grades in because it would be too much on the computer. 

Overall, all editing is going really well! I’m excited to start editing the final part and see how everything looks put together.

Editing: Part One

 This week we began with editing!

Starting off this week’s first blog post is the editing for our subject Claire, when she was younger. The clips were put into DaVinci Resolve when they were first shot, about a month ago. Nati and I decided to start editing once all filming was completed, which is why we are starting to edit this week. 

The filming for youngest Claire was short and very simple making the editing simple as well. There was no music to add. The only major sound element we needed to keep in mind and figure out was the sound of Claire’s parents fighting. That sound is muffled when she closes the door to her room. For this, we decided to look up royalty free sounds of parents arguing. To create an accurate sound perspective, we faded the sound while editing making it sound muffled once Claire enters her room and shuts the door.

Aside from sound, the rest of the editing for this part was pretty straight forward. Making sure all the clips flowed well together, cropping out unwanted parts, etc. Next blog post will be after the editing for the second part, Claire being slightly older, is completed. After that we start editing the final part, Claire as her oldest self. Both the remaining parts to edit include music, which will be explained later. Stay tuned!

DaVinci Resolve

Transition To Editing

 Soon we will start the editing process for our film opening!

For editing, we will use DaVinci Resolve. Nati had already downloaded it on her computer when we started filming, and has added all the clips to it as well. For editing we are planning on meeting up or facetiming so we can properly discuss any ideas and both give our inputs. Below is our schedule for the remaining two weeks!

Week 7: Editing and CCR

Blog One- update on first filming portion editing

Blog Two- update on second filming portion editing

Blog Three- update on third filming portion editing

Week 8: Editing and CCR

Blog One- finish third filming portion editing and begin CCR

Blog Two- add credits to scenes (along with transitions) and continue CCR

Blog Three- finish any last details and finish CCR

The first week will solely be editing most of our film opening. This will consist of transitions, sounds, and putting all the clips together properly. The second week will focus on credits, like putting them in necessary areas/times and the font. We will also see if there are any final details to fix or add. Aside from editing, we will begin and finish the CCR by the end of the week. 

Come back next week to see our progress!

Sound: Music

 Today we narrowed down our song choices!

    After doing some research, Nati and I found that in order to obtain permission to use certain songs, we could contact music rights organizations rather than the artists themselves. SESAC is a music rights organization that can provide sync licenses for many popular songs. Along with this, we found a website where you type the artist or song name and it tells you if SESAC owns licenses for specific songs.

    First we are looking for a song for when the subject is slightly older, and is sad. Though there weren’t many options, Nati and I found Sam Smith, a well known artist that has many sad songs, on the list of the website. Smith’s song, Stay With Me was on it. This will be our main option, but due to SESAC being a popular organization, we may not hear back from them with enough time.

    As a backup, Nati and I found a website with multiple different sad/piano songs that are royalty free. We will use these if we do not hear back from SESAC or if the license costs a lot of money.

Article Link: 

https://copyrightalliance.org/faqs/how-to-get-permission-to-use-a-song/ 

SESAC Link:

https://www.sesac.com/repertory/search 

Sad Music Link:

https://www.fesliyanstudios.com/royalty-free-music/downloads-c/sad-music/1

    For the second song, we are looking for a rock song to fit the oldest subject’s vibe. During this time the subject has turned her sadness into anger, and is in a rebellious stage in her life. Listening to heavy metal rock will go along with how she feels perfectly. For this, I found a website that provides a long list of royalty free songs under the genre of rock.

Heavy Rock Music Link:

https://www.serpentsoundstudios.com/royalty-free-music/metal-rock 

Group Discussions

 Welcome back to my blog!

Today my media class was divided into groups of about 6 people to talk about all our projects. Together we would help everyone with any issues they were having with their projects. For instance, a common issue was music/sound. After a person explained the plot of their film opening, they would tell the group what they needed help or advice on. Everyone came up with really good solutions and alternatives for each other and it was interesting hearing everyone’s different story lines!

I told my group my plot and I got good feedback about it. Since I am not having many problems on anything, I told them about the fonts and music, asking for opinions. They told me that I should pick my top 3 copyright songs and email each owner of the songs. That way if one doesn’t allow me to use the song, I have backup options. For fonts they agreed the fonts Nati and I chose would work well with the film opening.

When we come back from break we are doing group discussions again but with different people. I’m excited to hear from a new group and their projects, along with receiving advice from different perspectives.

Filming Plans

 Oldest subject prop, costume, background design

    The subject herself changes in personality, from being sad to turning that sadness into anger. Viewers will note this by the changes in room and costume design, and the music playing in the background. In the previous scene when Claire was slightly younger, she was playing sad music, resembling how she felt. Present time Claire is listening to heavy metal music which Nati and I will be choosing another day.

    Along with this, Claire will be wearing all black. Claire’s room will also have little to no decor. The decor though, will all be black. For instance, her bed area will have dark colored sheets and pillows. Her walls will have much less decor, as well as her desk area. A consistent piece of decor throughout the entirety of the opening will be the calendar. Now, Claire will be 18 and as mentioned in the previous scene when she was younger, 18 is the age a person can legally leave their home in Florida. Not only will the decor and costume be darker, but the lighting in these shots will be too. Since Claire is in the darkest stage out of the different ages and scenes, we are ensuring the background and Claire herself match that.

    The importance of this scene is seen because it now allows the opening to flow into the ending, Claire leaving her home and causing trouble. This is also a factor of why Claire does not have much up in her room; she is leaving. 

Costume (Idea/Vibe)

Sound research & Filming reflection

Sound research

My film opening will use a few different types of sounds. Focusing on music and the second part of filming, Nati and I found an article which gives us a list of the saddest songs that came out in 2018. This scene specifically takes place in 2018. Claire was very sad during this time, and we had planned to put music in the background that resembles how she feels. The following are our top 10 most sad songs out of the 50 provided in the article.

1. “Sober” by Demi Lovato

2. “Moon River” by Frank Ocean

3. “Can’t We Pretend” by Sorcha Richerdson

4. “Growing Pains” by Alessia Cara

5. “Head Above Water” by Avril Lavigne

6. “Lie To Me” by 5 Seconds of Summer

7. “Ashes” by Celine Dion

8. “Bitter” by Chappell Roan

9. “Self-Destructive Mind” by Ninet

10. “The Broken-Hearts Club” by Gnash

Over the next few days, we will decide on at least 3 songs to choose from. Then, find the perfect song to put in the background of the scene. 

Link to article:

https://www.popsugar.com/entertainment/Sad-Songs-2018-44684533 

Filming Reflection

Filming went well, as we finished the filming for the older subject. 

The only thing we are not sure on yet is what we will show on the computer. We filmed a shot with the google search of how old someone needs to be to leave their house and a tab of her grades. The other shot is of just the google search. When editing we will decide which looks best. Now what is left to film is the scenes for the oldest subject. See you in the next blog post for lighting, prop, and costume planning, and a shot list for the oldest subject!

Fonts: Title and Credits

 Welcome back to my blog! This week I am starting off with fonts for the title and credits.

After researching different fonts and viewing film openings for films within our genre, I found lots of ideas. As for the title, the font will be much larger, in all caps and spaced out. For instance, in the film Bridget Jones’s Diary is one of the few that I saw online that I really liked how it was. (Photo of the title is below). Nati and I will choose more specifically which font we will use at a later time, but for now we have an idea for how it would be shown.

    As for the credits, Nati and I will choose a font that gives off a more personal appeal to viewers. Instead of using a normal or serious font, we decided on a font that fits that level of personalness we are looking for. It is going to be similar to the font Caveat (which is this one). It all depends on what fonts we have available when editing, but the style will be the same. This font will be for the names of people/companies, while the title for each person/company will be different. The font for the titles will be like the more serious fonts. 

Placement for the credits will be around the bottom left of the screen, fading in and out. This is to keep the focus of viewers on what is happening in the film opening, since it is extremely important to the story. 

Bridget Jones’s Diary (opening scene)

Link to articles:

https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/50-brilliant-movie-opening-credits-sequences/

https://creativemarket.com/blog/movie-fonts

Filming Plans Part 2

 Today, Nati and I planned out the filming for tomorrow

The filming will be for the slightly older subject. During this time, her parents continue to argue, which affects her mentally. Claire is very sad and still has anxiety. In order to match her dark personality, her room changed, being darker now and having less decor. The bed will not have the colorful sheets or pillows anymore, instead they will be black with dark colored throw pillows/blankets. The dolls and toys will no longer be shown in her room either.

Claire’s desk and the area around it will hold much significance now. On the desk she will have her computer opened up. There will either be her grades and a google search of when people are legally able to move out of their home, or just the google search. This depends on whichever looks best on camera, which we will determine when filming. Above the desk is the calendar which is used as the transition between each age of Claire. A person can legally leave their home at the age of 18, which will help clarify why Claire circles her 18th birthday when we record the older part.

As for lighting, it will be darker to match the dark vibe of the room and her personality. While filming, we can adjust the lighting with the camera. If it is needed, we can edit it darker or brighter for whichever clips afterwards. Editing will start soon, though we have not set a specific date.

That’s all for this week! Tune in next week for more updates!

Voice-Over Narrations

Today was another research day, as I researched voice-over narrations. 

I was reading through some articles about successful tragedy drama films or shows, and other subgenres of drama, and found voice-over narrations to be extremely helpful. These narratives allow a story’s development to be made clear, going over past events. They also tend to create a sense of structure, making the story flow better. In my case, viewers will gain a better understanding of the subject Claire’s childhood and why she gets to how she is currently.

In the show Euphoria, Rue, one of the main characters, frequently uses voice-over narrations. Throughout the entirety of the show, Rue narrates the story by providing viewers with the character's backstories. Fans of Euphoria talk about how they enjoy knowing more information about the characters. In my film opening, I would like to do the same.

Though Nati and I have not created a script for the narration yet, we have discussed what we think we should include. For instance, the voice-over is going to be told by Claire, and only during the showing of her younger self. Background noise, like her parents arguing, will still be present. Claire will mention how she used to think the world wasn't dark, and how she still had hope for her parents to be better. After this, there would be a pause in the narration while the clip of her younger self plays of her shutting the door, muffling her parents' argument. After the pause, she will continue narrating until the transition to her slightly older self. 

I will discuss with Nati when we should create the detailed script, but for now, that is all! See you in the next post!

Links to articles:

- http://www.tasteofcinema.com/2015/25-great-movies-with-the-most-effective-uses-of-voice-over-narration/ 

- https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/8-powerfully-effective-voice-overs-in-modern-movies/ 

- https://dmtalkies.com/rue-zendaya-of-euphoria-the-unreliable-narrator-2019/#:~:text=Is%20it%20any%20surprise%20then,expose%20complicated%20histories%20to%20us.