Editing (Or not)

   Today we were supposed to edit, but unfortunately, there was a problem with the pinnacle application. Throughout the thirty or so computers, the application wasn't working. We had the footage ready and set on the SD-card but the images wouldn't play, nor would the application open. We were instructed to move the footage onto google drive or a flash drive. I wonder how this will set our schedule back. I would rather not miss a day to edit. For the most part, the edits we have to make are scripted in the storyboard. We maybe have to adjust somethings, but that is' to be expected. I already pointed out the issues we had but it doesn't hurt to reiterate. The fact that we took each scene in its own separate shot means we have to edit in a way that isn't choppy. I don't think it's going to be completely smooth, but as long as we can get from one frame to another with relative understanding, we'll be fine. I wouldn't have objected if we were given the opportunity to film again today. But alas we weren't even prepared for that option.
    Rather than editing, we had a little fun. We weren't completely slacking off, but we were talking up quite the storm. We discussed all the editing we wanted to do, and how the storyboard would translate into editing. We when over the best times we had to work outside of school and who'd be the one taking the charge. In reality, we'd all participate in the editing, but there is only one person suitable to be behind the computer. We all decided that Victoria would be the one to click and drag our decisions on the actual application. Her work with computers excellent. Every presentation I've ever seen from her is so professional, if I didn't know better I would assume an adult made it. She's also very creative and probably has experience working with software like a pinnacle.
     The fact that we cant edit today is bad, but I don't it's that bad. We had a chance to sit and talk. Talking allowed us to cement some ideas and map out a direction for our editing. It's good to have a plan before in my opinion. Sooner or later we would have to have talked it out. Planning now saves time in the sense that, the next opportunity we have to edit well be ready to jump straight into it. We have a general plan and that is honestly more than what I've seen from others. As a group, I'm sure we'll be able to pull through, despite the complications we've had.

Filming

    Today, we filmed, and it went fairly smoothly. It didn't go exactly as I had envisioned it but that's to be expected, seeing that one, I wasn't working by myself after all, and two, nothing ever goes exactly as planned. We were prepared and everything was in order as they should have been. The area we had picked out did have more groups that I thought but it didn't impede us from the film the scenes we needed. Speaking of, we successfully shot all the scenes we needed, the weather was clear and posed no threat to the equipment or the film. The only issue was that the day was a bit cloudy and the light was in a constant state of change due to the sun being covered and uncovered. We got around it but seeing that we haven't put the footage together yet, I'm unsure how it's going to come out. The finished product is kinda unpredictable right now. I hope that it'd turn out fine but I have a reasonable suspicion that we'll have more than one hiccup during the editing process. We might even have to reshoot.
     It's not like we didn't cover all bases, if just that, for our first time filming, we might have to pull a bit more weight stitching together our work. Since I was the cameraman, I took all the shots; minus three. Under the advisement of another group member, Emily, we decided to take all the shots separately and in threes. I wanted to do a full take and split it after, but I was overshadowed. Personally, I think taking three full takes would have been better but what's done is done. Since I did have a part in one scene I did temporalty relinquish my position behind the camera so I can't speak for every shot. For every other one though, I feel more could have been done. The pans in the storyboard, to me, didn't translate well with the constant stopping. With that, the relative positions of the subjects are going to be off. Since all shots we're taken separately, the subjects in each won't be in the exact place they were when taking shots that have angle changes or a change in apparel.
     Amongst this, we did have one technical issue. It wasn't really an issue, but it's worth mentioning; since it puts into context the time constraint we had. Following the procedures laid out to us beforehand, we got our equipment; this was before we started filming of course. We took, (if I'm not mistaken), a good thirty minutes to leave the room once we got our things. We had to switch out a camera due to its low battery life, but once we got that sorted, we were out. We finally get to the track field and I, since I was carrying the equipment, set up the tripod and prepared the camera. I did all this only to figure out that the piece needed to connect the camera to the tripod was missing. I had to run back to the room to get one, taking up a good ten minutes altogether. In an hour and thirty-minute class, taking out a wasted forty minutes, we only have forty minutes to film, seeing that we had to return within the last ten minutes of class. We got a lot done, but our time usage wasn't the best. This may seem hyper-critical, but its the truth.

Storyboarding

    Today we storyboarded. We talked about plans for the shoot and how we each envisioned the final product coming out. In our storyboard, we have multiple shots and angles. Starting with an establishing shot, we film the surrounding area to let the audience know that the scene is taking place on a track field. Next, with a constant two-shot, we have two subjects filmed at a cat's eye view, after a pan from the establishing shot. We then transition to a high angle shot above the subjects, circling them and transitioning to eye-level, having a voice-over set off the two racers. The two racers are disguised by their clothes, marked in the storyboard by a checkmark and an "x". This represents their readiness, and how before the coffee, one of the racers is tired. Before the racers set off, the camera pans towards the referee and the setoff ends. As the setoff ends the voice changes as if to get interrupted with an SFX sound of a record scratch. now encouraging the tired racer to part take in some Duckin' goods as the camera pans from the referee to a Dunkin' employee, furthering the implication of two different people speaking. We then have an extreme close up of the tired racer eating and drinking. After the eating, we see the character in, what was pajamas, now in proper racing clothes. The jump is followed by a second count down, with a tracking shot of the once tired racer beating the opponent. The camera then films the subject in a medium-long shot, followed by a close-up shot of the products used, and a voice-over advertising them.

                                                                   Storyboard PDF

(May need to be rotated to view properly)

Editing Lesson

    Today we learned how to edit. Oddly enough, despite it being "complicated" I found the process pretty straight forward. The program seems to work in a matter of parts like any other, which is nice. Like adobe, it has sections to what you're doing with sub-sections for finer detailing. I feel like the editing period will be fairly easy once I become acclimated to the in working of it, I don't think I'll be doing anything advanced but enough for our final products to run smoothly. I took my fair share of notes but it will really come down to how well I remember where everything I need is. Between my group members and myself, figuring out how to cut out an audio file to make a voice-over, shouldn't be a problem.
     Our instructor mainly went over the basics. She didn't go too in-depth, but enough to get the general idea of how to finish our assignment after filming day. We learned how to import and export and the general do's and don'ts of keeping an SD-card. Since this is a large class, I'd expect nothing less, seeing that our footage is the most important thing. With that, we learned how to operate the camera properly. I have a camera at home so it wasn't anything new to me, I like that we get a tripod though, stability is useful. Since I will be the one behind the camera, I paid extra attention during this part. The camera we're being given is a lot more technical than the one I have at home, it only needs one button to start, and all the adjustments are made on the touchscreen. Apart from that and check out procedures, there wasn't much to retain.
     In terms of the actual program, I learned a lot. When I used to look at editing formats for film, I could not, for the sake of my own life, tell what was going on. Now, I can look at the screen and know the difference between the Title layer, film layer, and the sound layer. Seeing that my group will be doing a voice-over, knowing that difference is defiantly helpful. I didn't know you could have sound without having the actual image for the sound, I assumed you'd have to film the sound within the takes and incorporate it into the final product somehow. I was fully prepared to just talk over the scene while we were filming. I guess they are always a better way.

Commercial Planning

    For our commercial, my group was thinking we'd do a scene where either where we based our commercial around runners or students. Whereas both ideas center around "students" because of our actors, the major difference comes into the area we film. We came up with two ideas, using either one as a back up in case the areas we cased ended up being booked. For the first idea, we thought we could film on the track, and have two subjects prepared to race. With one tired and the other fairly energized, the set up would be a third party offering coffee to the tired runner to finish the race to introduce the product, ending in the line "didn't you know, America runs on Dunkin'". For the second, in case the track was taken, we thought we could film around a sitting area not too far from the track-field, having the student sit and talk about how much they enjoy Dunkin' coffee and donuts.

    Location wise, lighting is without a doubt, not an issue, if weather were to be a problem, the backup idea would be implemented but due to them both being outside, if only lighting dialogue would change to fit the mood, and if anything like rain, nearby areas with overhangs to protect the equipment. Right now, the props and costumes for both ideas consist of sportswear (shorts and running shoes),  pajamas, a whistle, an apron for the third party person, an empty Dunkin' bag, Dunkin' cup, and hopefully an actual box of donuts. We'd, mainly be dressing up for the track idea rather than anything else, and the actual props apply for both ideas. Me personally, I won't be altering anything in terms of dress, I volunteered to be the cameraman. For the secondary idea, we decided subjects would wear.
    In all, the plan for filming day is first, go to the primary spot, the track-field, and set up. The subjects will be dressed beforehand and so forth in their established customs. If allowed with time, re-shoots will be done to get enough footage in case of damage, loss, or needed splicing. If not the field we'd walk over to the aforementioned sitting area, an outdoor scene with grassy ascents. After filming day and all shots and re-shoots have been taken, we'd move into editing where needed sound effects will be added. It's unclear to when we'd do this but for many Dunkin' commercials, a voice-over is implemented, we could both add it in editing and film it.

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Commercial Drafting

    Today my group and I discussed what we'd do for our commercial, and from the choices, we landed on Dunkin' Donuts (now just Dukin'). I personally wanted to make an ad about the school, since we'd be filming at school already. Finding a set and props would be a lot easier if we'd chosen that option, but I guess creativity is a big part of the assignment as well. With a Dunkin' commercial, I believe the only props we'd need are cups, and maybe one to a dozen donuts. While there is a possible cost, it isn't so high that it can't be met. Of course for the set, we'd have no choice but to pass the opportunity of shooting in the actual establishment, but that also isn't, much of a problem. For shooting, I'm thinking we could do a sit-down scene outside with multiple cups as a normal "in life" shot. I envision the commercial as being "no so scripted"; having a flowing conversation that draws adequate action to the product but doesn't detract from anything else.
    While researching, I found a few similarities in Dunkin' commercials. I found that from the year 2010 to now (2019) Dunkin has used a pretty one to one format with miner changes, just as any other good brand should. The trends within these commercials were: voice-overs, person and product together, and minimal scripted lines (apart from the voice-over). Camera angles varied but were kept to eye-line level and birds-eye view for the majority. Out of the ten or so commercial I've seen so far, low angles have only been used while taking shots of the product, mainly drinks. The camera in most scenes was also stationary. using pans and zooms to move "around" the set, if any movement at all was used.
     Another trend I noticed was that the commercial often displayed a specific demographic (or type) of people that would take part in consuming the product. With Dunkin' it wasn't just "people", but rather "Teacher", "Student", "Office Worker", "Mom", or anything along those lines. With each commercial, the "Dunkin' community" was fleshed out. With more than just donuts and coffee, Dunkin' has many patrons, and I believe they recognize this and attempt to represent it in their commercials. For example, with a bit of comedy. Dunkin' released a commercial with plane pilots, having their food blown away by the winds whilst in the air. Not only did they advise what they needed to and grabbed their intended audience, but they went a little further and showed that they realize that the people who consume donuts and coffee are more than just "tire" and "in need of energy".

Introductory

    Hello, my name is Jaheim and I am a student of Fort Lauderdale High School. I am currently in the eleventh grade, taking the AICE Media Studies course. So far, I thoroughly enjoy the course. The act of studying the films and shows we watch without thought everyday is quite enticing to me. In all honestly, I consume my fair share of media. My favorite genre, and the best in my option, is horror. I like the especially gory films, but I'll settle for just the broad feeling of suspense and uneasiness. My current favorite film to watch is The Human Centipede. I find it highly entertaining to watch it with friends; their reactions are always the best part.

    Moving on from my questionable tastes, I also enjoy art. Along with taking the AICE Media course, I also take art classes to better myself. I find the work calming at times, and it helps me to express myself. I like drawing "still life"s and replicas, my strongest of the two are my realistic drawings. I like drawing my friends and handing them my works as gifts to brighten their day. While I started my journey in copying, I would say making real-world "copies" took up more of my plate over time, and it made me a better artist. In terms of skill though, I haven't truly achieved anything. I lack in style and I haven't found myself within the art community.

    Speaking of, I haven't found myself at all. I am still an impressional child, lost in the "big bad" world. I like going through the motions, but I know that someday, somehow I won't be as stable as I want to be, and that kinda scares me. I honestly feel life that should be the set up to a horror film tiled Growing Up.Being a child one minute and a adult the next is the scariest thing in the world and I would pay to see that movie. I honestly don't know weather it would be good or not but, the concept alone is dreadful. If horror films are meant to insight fear in the audience, what would be better than making a film about something that everyone goes through. We may not all cripple at the thought of growing up, but it has to be something that we've all thought and worried about, and I wanna make a film about that. I want to give the world answers to questions that we've either all ignored until asked or asked, and asked with no answer.