Grace Bundy
Metamorphosis
Daily Log
16/4- Complete rationale and write down initial ideas by creating a mind map and mood board
20/4- complete 3 mind maps about our possible ideas that we could use to create the final video
23/4- complete a proposal and swot analysis on our 3 best ideas, to see the potential threats and opportunities that I have if I went with that idea
24/4- start on primary and secondary research by creating questionnaires and looking at different websites
27/4- analyse the primary research and present my idea to the class so I can get feedback on it to see how I can improve it
30/4- complete contextual and secondary research to gain knowledge on my project idea
1/5- finish secondary research and start on pre-production paperwork
4/5- finish pre-production paperwork by completing the storyboard and the speech. Start on the test shots for background and the typography.
8/5- Analyse the outcomes of the test shots so I can see what needs to be improved for the final video
9/5- Film at mote park to get the background shots for the final video
11/5- create a montage of the shots and see how I can improve
14/5- create a google form questionnaire to get feedback and review this
15/5- start editing the montage and using the different effects to see what looks good
18/5- start editing the typography using after effects
21/5- continue editing the typography on after effects
22/5- doing the final touches to the typography and improving it so that it is as good as we want it to be
25/5- improving the video and evaluating it, also getting peer critiques to see what other people thought
Mood Board
This is my mood board that I created which includes lots of different images that are all associated with Metamorphosis. I chose a huge range of images to help inspire for my own project. I liked the originality in these specific pieces of work and am able to use this to help create my final video. Metamorphosis to me gives me the idea of something changing and evolving which I want to be clearly shown in my video. The images involve creatures morphed together to make a complete object which I like the idea of and would consider using the concept in my own work. The idea of transformation from one thing into another also is very interesting to me and I like how you are able to change the way something looks and how over time how the objects have changed.
Rationale
When I finished school in 2017, I had no experience in media but I knew that I was interested in film and tv. I had an idea that I wanted to learn about different editing softwares and thought that this is what I would be best at and enjoy the most. I didn't have any experience in any of this and thought that by going to college I would gain the most amount of knowledge and skills on the subject.
In September I started to learn about the basics of media, learning about the basics of Premiere pro and setting up the different cameras and tripods. I hadn't really developed much skills but was getting a better understand of what the course is going to offer. I have since then learnt about the other Adobe softwares and have improved my skills on them hugely compared to the beginning. I have got a better understanding on the different tools on the software themselves. I am also more confident with setting up the tripods and the cameras because I have got more experience in doing it now then I did at the start of the year. I didn't have much awareness of the all the different areas of media that there are and since September I have learnt about some of these different aspects by completing the different units that there are.
In unit 1 we completed a mash-up video that consisted of collecting videos from other films and editing them together to make one final trailer. I had to complete research to get ideas of what I wanted to focus mine on but the main aim of the project was editing the clips together using Adobe Premiere pro. It was learning how to use the software and to learn the basic skills of what you can do. I really enjoyed this project as I liked the creativity involved. I liked learning about this software and thought that I learnt the basics very quickly. I knew before starting the course that I thought that I would enjoy this part the most and when I finished creating the final trailer I thought that it was quite successful. I was very interested in progressing my skills in this area and I knew that I would consider specialising this in the future.
We also was set the the task to replicate another video that had a least 10 different shots. The main focus of this was understanding and learning the different shots there are and being able to use the equipment to copy it. By doing this unit I gained experience in setting up and using the equipment which helped to gain my confidence in this area. I didn't have the same amount of passion towards this part of the unit but I then had to edit the clips together and to make it look like the original which I found the most interesting in this part of the project. I developed my knowledge of the different shots and angles that are used in filming which is a key aspect that I had to learn and to have experience in practising myself. I learnt a lot of new skills in this unit about filming from different angles and being able to edit.
In unit 2 we were set the task of creating a factual production which meant that we had to create a factual video about a subject that we were interested in. The main focus of this was the research involved and learning about primary and secondary research. We had to create questionnaires and gather information from websites to show our skills in doing research. This wasn't as interesting to me as the other units because I found it very time consuming and difficult to find relevant information. However, I do understand that it is a crucial part of the process and by completing this unit it has taught me how relevant it is to get research and then analyse it to help with your final product.I want to develop my research skills more by looking at more research techniques that are going to be most beneficial to me. I got feedback through out to improve my work which was beneficial to me as I was able to see how I should improve my work and to make sure that I have included relevant research.
Units 3 focus was on professional practice which is where we had to complete a number of tasks to help us for our future career and to identify the strengths and weaknesses of ourselves. We had to look into the different pathways that we could go down once we had finished the course so that we could have a better understanding of the paths that are open to us. This helped me so that I was able to have a better idea of what I want to do after college. I looked at different job possibilities that I would be interested in and was able to analyse the requirements of them. I then got in contact with a company and had an interview with them so that I could ask them some questions to see if they had any advice for me for the future. This helped me to know what other people had to do to get into the industry so that I was able to see what I could do. I completed a swot analysis on myself to see what I need to improve upon so that I can work on them and improve them. I also gave comments on other peoples work and received some myself and was able to reflect on that so that I could improve on my my own work. I enjoyed this unit as it gave me a clearer idea for the future and helped me to make sure that I become better in certain aspects of my work.
In unit 4 we had to create an advertisement for a bottle of wine, which included a poster and a short video. We had to complete this unit in teams which was the main focus of this topic. It was to see how well we can work in groups and are able to contribute your own ideas but also listen to others. I found this interesting to be able to do research into the history of adverts and I enjoyed being able to film our own advert. I enjoyed working as a team and I contributed lots to the group and came up with lots of ideas and throughout the process I made sure that we all knew what we had to do so that we could get the unit done effectively. I want to develop my skills further with this by having a better understanding of photoshop so that I was able to contribute more to the image aspect. We had to present our advert at the end which helped improve my communication skills as we had to talk about the process of creating our advert and explaining the planning we used in order to come up with our idea. I want to develop in the advertising area more because I think that it is very interesting and I would like to know more information. I will do this by doing more research into current and historical adverts.
In unit 5 the focus was on audio production. So we had to do research into Foley so that we understood where sound effects came from. We practiced using the Adobe Audition software which was enjoyable as I was able to do some basic edits of some of the sounds that I made. I would like to develop in this area more so that I have a better understanding of what I can do on the software as I struggled to work out how to use the software. I then had to create my own sound effects to go over a video, so I planned out all the different sounds that I wanted to create. I found this unit very interesting as I liked that the sounds that you add to a video changes the mood and genre and can give it a completely different effect to the audience. I developed my audio skills through out this unit and I explained the progress of this on my wix. I have gained some experience in this area of media as I have had practise using the software.
In unit 6 we had to create a visual narrative which meant that we had to choose a poem and then create a visual interpretation of it. In this unit we had to complete lots of planning to see what poem we wanted to create and then had to complete research, a proposal and pre-production paperwork to make sure that when we filmed we knew what we had to do so that it turns out as we wanted it to. My main interest in this unit was getting the different shots and editing them together and by putting an effect on them so that it looks better. I liked the creativity in this unit and thought that this was one of my strengths as I was able to decide on how I interpreted the poem myself.
In unit 7 we had to create an AR project which I didn't have much knowledge on at first. But I did research on it and create some of my own Blipps. I was able to get feedback on this so that I was able to see what I should do to improve it for my final AR project. I was able to show how my skills progressed by adding screen recordings and following tutorials. This is a skill that I have learnt since September as I had no previous knowledge in this area. I thought that my final AR was very successful and I enjoyed learning about this aspect of media. Even thought I enjoyed this project I don't think that I want to go down this career path for the future.
In my long term career I want to focus on video editing as I have found this the most interesting to learn about and what I have the most skills and knowledge on so far. In my final major project I want to make sure that I show my editing skills so I will make sure that the ideas I have will be based on the editing side of things. In order to become a video editor I need to make sure that I show the skills I have of using different software and to show that I understand the different aspects of it. Next year I want to continue to learn different areas of media to see if there are any other aspects that I really enjoy and could possible progress into a future career. I will also be looking at completing more work experience with companies that are creating some type of video like a promotional video, a documentary or a short film. By getting work experience it will help to progress my technical skills and will help me become more employable.
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Feedback analysis
I agree that I could have included images of films for inspirations and will add some images in to show this. I will also include more information about what I have improved upon in my rationale as this is important to include, I have already mentioned this but I will make sure I go into more detail.
Initial Ideas
I created a mind-map with all our ideas that we could base our project on. We came up with the different connotations of metamorphosis and wrote down the different aspects that we could focus on. I also wrote down how we could present our ideas which could be like typography, a short film, or a film poem without words. Writing down all the basic ideas helped us to know what we want to do for our own. From this mind map I then chose my top 3 ideas and then expanded on this by creating mind maps for these, focusing on target audience, research, and the basic idea of how I could present the idea.
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My 3 Ideas
My first idea is to do it on the growth and changes in people. It would be an inspirational video that would show how over time people change, we wouldn't focus on the physical change but more how internally how you would change. I think that this would be best to present this idea through a video with the style of spoken word and using typography to make it have a good effect. We would have basic shots in the backgrounds to relate to the audio to make it more interesting while the text is appearing on the screen which is going to be the main focus. I would use after effects to create the text and would edit the videos on premiere pro as I think that this is most appropriate.
My second idea idea would be to show the growth in plants using time-lapses and a montage to show the changes of the plant. I would have a factual speech over the top to make it more interesting. I would film a certain plant growing over a period of time and would include the day it is to show the progression. I would do lots of primary and secondary on the facts of plants and how long they normally take to grow.
My last idea is to create a short film about the physical changes in people, focusing on fitness and weight-loss. I would want the film to be insightful and motivational to people to be healthy and to exercise. I would show how over time your body will change and I will show the process of this happening. It could be a person being self conscious about the way they look and how the motivated themselves to become fitter. At the end there could be an audio which explains the moral of the story.
Feedback Analysis
From the feedback that I received it shows that my mind maps are very detailed and that I have included lots of information and analysed my ideas well. I will continue to do this with my planning and research to fulfil my potential
SWOT analysis
The growth and changes in people using the style of spoken word with visual narratives in the background
S- I have a lot of experience using premiere pro so I will use this to edit and have good understanding of the different shots of angles that I could include to make it more interesting.
W- I will have to write a speech on the changes in people which is my weakness within this idea, I also don't have as much experience using after effects than I do with premiere pro so I don't feel as confident meaning that I will have to practice beforehand
O- I will be able to show off the skills that I have to do with editing using after effects and premiere pro. I will be able to show off my camera skills by creating lots of shots with different angles and effects on them.
T- It will be very time consuming to create the typography and there is a lot of different aspects to it which could make it difficult to complete in time at a good standard.
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The growth in plants using a time-lapse and a montage to show the changes with a factual speech over the top
S- I am able to easily produce a time-lapse and will be able to easily edit it using premiere pro. It is also a clear connotation of the word metamorphosis and it will be obvious in the video.
W- Because it is a time-lapse it could be quite boring and won't be able to show the camera skills that I have. I also will only be using one software which means that I might not reach the potential that I have.
O- I will be able to show that I am able to do research effectively as I will need it for the factual speech. Because I have experience using premiere pro I will be able to show off the skills that I have whilst editing the video
T- Because it is such a basic idea it won't challenge me as much as I think that it is quite simple and might not be as professional as I want.
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A short film about the physical change in a person focusing on fitness and weight-loss
S- I can use lots of different angles and shots whilst filming to make it interesting. It is an interesting approach to the topic of metamorphosis but it could be motivational to people
W- It won't show the skills that I have in other areas of media as I will be using only premiere pro, and I don't think this could be a reflective on the work that I could produce as I will be spending a lot of time creating the script and completing pre production paperwork.
O- I will be able to show off my camera skills and I can apply the different rules to my own work. I can also focus on using music and sound in the background and could possibly create my own sounds to emphasise them in the piece.
T- A lot of the time is going to be on creating a script and the focus is going to be more on the acting rather than how I have edited it and I won't be able to use many effects and advanced editing as it is a story.
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Chosen Idea
After completing a swot analysis on my 3 ideas I decided that I am going to go with the idea of the growth and changes in people using typography with a visual narrative in the background. I think that I have a lot of experience using premiere pro so I will feel confident in using it for my video. I will be able to show the skills I have most with this idea rather than the others which seem quite restricting. I think that the style of spoken word is a good approach and could look very professional in the end. The other ideas I think I couldn't really reach my potential and it seemed quite restricting for me as I would only be focusing on one area rather than with this I am looking at lots of different aspects including different software, audio and camera skills. I think that the way I will present it is better than doing a time-lapse and a short film as I think it will be more interesting and challenging to me.
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Proposal
My project concept is on metamorphosis, and I have decided to focus mine on typography with a visual narrative in the background. The video will be on the growth and change within people, not physically but more emotionally and internally. The idea was influenced by the video 'why I hate school but love education' which is a video on youtube where they use spoken word. This is the Harvard reference for the video that we used:(Youtube. 2013. Why I Hate School but Love Education. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45p1FRXMof4. [Accessed 27 April 2018]). I am going to use this type of approach because I think that it is interesting and I found this video very impressive by the way that they edited it. However, I have developed this idea to make it more original by having background shots rather than having a plain background. I am also going to write my own speech rather than get one that is already created so that I can include the information that I want. This FMP works to my strengths as I am able to show my editing skills using premiere pro and after effects. I am also able to show my camera skills as I am going to be having different angles and shots. It opens up new creative possibilities as I am able to explore after effects in more detail so I can add lots of effects to the words. I will complete primary and secondary research to help with the project development. I will create questionnaires to see what people think of the idea and how I can improve it and I will look into metamorphosis and how people cope with change. I will use a camera and tripod to film to make it look professional. I will film at mote park as it has lots of interesting places to film. I won't need any other people to work on the project apart from my partner who I am creating it with. We are both going to conduct our own research, but we are going to film and create our video together. Along the way I will gather feedback to improve my work as I go so that I can fulfil my potential.
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Reflective Practice
This week my aims were to make a decision on what I should focus my video on to complete a proposal so that I could then start on the research. I was able to create a SWOT analysis on the top 3 ideas that I had. This went well as from this information I was able to make a decision knowing all the good and bad with the ideas. I struggled to analyse some of the ideas, which meant that it took quite a long time but it was still necessary and useful to me. Some of the ideas were influenced by previous videos that I have seen, like the time-lapse idea came from videos that I had watched on Youtube previously. I think that I managed my time quite well but I didn't realise that I was going to struggle with some parts so I should have allowed extra time for that to happen. I planned the week well and I found it useful using the daily log to see how I am progressing.
Feedback Analysis
From this feedback I am able to know that I have included lots of detail and that I should carry on with this level of work.
Primary research- Questionnaire
Primary Research
Primary Research Analysis
I created a questionnaire to see what other people thought of my idea and how I could improve on it. This is useful to me to know what other people think of the project concept, and the way I will present it. I will analyse all the results I get to see what I can take from this to help me improve my idea. From this questionnaire I can see what the audience prefers and can then include it or adapt my idea so that it is more interesting to the target audience.
Question 1: What do you know about metamorphosis?
From these results I can take that a lot people know about metamorphosis. 2 of the answers said that it is about the change from a caterpillar to a butterfly. This proves that because everyone knows something about metamorphosis then they will understand the video that I make.
Question 2: What kind of words do you associate metamorphosis with?
From the results that I gathered the results were all quite similar. Some of the words included, change, evolution, alterations and the process of change from a caterpillar to a butterfly. Because of this it proves that the idea that I have is a connotation of metamorphosis, as I am focusing my project on change.
Question 3: Do you think change has affected you throughout your life?
70% of people said that change has affected them at some point throughout their life and only 30% said that it hasn't. This means that our idea is going to interest a lot of people as they can relate it in some way. It proves that it is a good concept as many people are going to take something from the video which is going to inspire them in some way.
Question 4: Do you think typography is a good approach for the FMP?
50% of people said that they think that typography is a good approach for the FMP, 40% said maybe, and 10% said that it isn't. This means that the people that said maybe think that it depends on how it is presented and it depends on the other aspects that we have included. I will make sure that I focus on making it look very professional and interesting to make it as good as possible.
Question 5: Do you think changes in people is relevant to metamorphosis?
50% of people said that they think that the idea is relevant to metamorphosis, 40% said maybe, and 10% said that it doesn't. This means to me that the people that said maybe, think that it depends on how I present it and if I link it back to metamorphosis at some point to prove that it is relevant. Only 1 person thinks that it is not relevant at all which proves to me that I need to make sure that it is clear in the video that it is about change.
Question 6: Have you had any significant changes in your life? If so what?
I didn't get as many results for this then I did for the other questions proving that some people haven't had any significant experiences. However, from the results that I did get it shows that death is a difficult and significant change in someones life. Other results include changing schools and moving house are also answers that people thought that were major changes to them. From these results I am able to see that the video is going to interesting to people as they are going to be able to relate to it.
Question 7: How would you like this to be portrayed?
This question was quite difficult and it got a range of results. 2 people said that they didn't know how they wanted it to be portrayed. Other results included being portrayed in a serious and respectful way and that it should be shown through a short film or with an inspiring speech. From this range of results I can't come to any conclusions. I will make sure however that it is presented in a good way that is respectful to people.
Question 8: Would you be interested in watching a video about change and how people cope with it?
70% of people said that they would be interested in watching a video about change in people. No one said that they don't like the idea but 30% of people said maybe. This means that the people who said maybe think it depends how we present the idea which decides on if it is interesting or not. This has helped me as I can see that the majority of people think that it is interesting to focus the project on this subject.
Question 9: What do you think about the idea of a spoken word video?
70% of the responses said that it is a good idea to approach the video using spoken word, showing to us that we should go with this idea as the majority of them like it. 30% of the responses said that they don't like the idea but from this question I am able to see that this is a good idea to go with because of the amount of people who liked the idea.
Question 10: How would you improve this idea?
40% of the responses said that they wouldn't improve this idea and think that it is fine the way it is. Other responses included having other aspects to the video rather than just the spoken word, which is why we are going to have videos in the background so that it is more interesting. This is important to know how I can improve my work so that it turns out as good as possible.
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Feedback Analysis
I will go back to my analysis and make sure that I include the relevance of each question so that the research that I have is useful to my project. This comment was very useful so that I can improve my work to make sure that I state why what I am doing is useful to me and not irrelevant.
Contextual Research
Learn about film. 2014. Poem films and film poems. [ONLINE] Available at: http://learnaboutfilm.com/poem-films/. [Accessed 30 April 2018].
Using the website 'learn about films' I watched a typography video which I found very interesting and useful to me. The actual topic of the video is not relevant to metamorphosis but more of the technical side of it is. I have included 2 screenshots from the video which shows the basic concept of the video. It has the word in bold and an image in the background which relates to what the word is saying. This is the type of approach that I want to go down, but I will not have images relating to the word as I will have different videos instead. I will also have sentences on the screen rather than just have one word as our video is going to be more serious and I think that this will have a better effect than if we just have one word which could come across quite fast paced which is not what I want the video to be. This video is aimed at people who are interested in learning about typography and about different ways you can create a video. This is because it is an interesting way that they have created this video and is inspiring to people. They could have used After effects to create this video which is what I am going to be using as it is most appropriate to this style of work.
There are lots of other works that are similar to this approach like the lyrical kinetic typography video on the song Closer. Youtube. 2016. Closer- The chainsmokers | lyrical kinetic typography. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IExGNeETVB0. [Accessed 30 April 2018]. They are quite similar as they both include typography, meaning that they both probably used After effects or a software similar to this. They both have the lyrics/words being said as it appears on the screen. Even though the lyrical video has sentences on the screen rather just one word at a time, but it still does have a very similar concept. This is useful to me as I can see the different type of approaches that I can take and it depends on the mood that you want to create. This has influenced my own project as I am able to consider how I want to present the typography.
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I found this video on Youtube which influenced my idea on the technical side of things in the same first place. The video is called 'Why I hate School but Love Education'. Again the topic of the video was not relevant to metamorphosis but the way it is portrayed is. The video consists of the words being typed letter by letter rather than the words just appearing. There are some animations next to it to represent what is being said at that moment or the words will move around the screen. Having these different animations makes the video really interesting and makes me want to include some of these aspects in my own as I think that it makes it look very professional. I think that they used After Effects again because of the way that they have made the video. This is similar to the other videos that I have already spoken about as they are both include typography. (Youtube. 2013. Why I Hate School but Love Education. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45p1FRXMof4. [Accessed 27 April 2018]). This video is also useful to me as I am able to be influenced by the different animations that they created and I could use some of these ideas in my own work.
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Presentation Analysis
This is the other primary research that I conducted to see what people think of my idea and how they think it is going so are. I presented my work to the class and explained what I have done so far. I then got feedback from this to see what the good and bad parts of my project is and to see how I can improve. One of the results said that the idea is strong, and the weakness is that I need to make sure that I stick to the topic. They said that it has a clear relation to metamorphosis, and he liked the way that we are going to portray our idea as they think that it is smart. He also said that we should look into typography projects maybe on youtube so that we can get some inspiration. Other responses said that the idea is well though out, as well as informative and easy it to research and explain into. All the responses said that it has a clear relation to metamorphosis, and that they all liked the way that we are going to portray our ideas. Everyone also thinks that the planning is going well so far and that it is very detailed. This research has helped me a lot as I know that from this that I am doing lots of detailed work.
Feedback Analysis
From this feedback I am able to see that my research so far is going well as I have included a lot of detail and that it is easy to understand. I will carry on with this level of detail as it will be more beneficial to me when creating the actual video.
As part of my secondary research I thought that it would be beneficial to get the definition of metamorphosis. This was informative to me as it says that it is the "process of transformation" which in my case is the transformation within people. It also says "change of the form" "of a person" which is what I am focusing my project on. A synonym of metamorphosis is "change" which is a key word within my concept. This was useful to know as it has inspired me to focus on more how people change and the process in which people change. It has helped with the project development because I now know the clear plan in which I want my speech to be on so that it has a clear and obvious link to metamorphosis.
Secondary Research
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I watched a video on Youtube which is where an Extreme Entrepreneur & Inspirational Speaker talks about how to deal with change in life. This was informative to me as it helped to know what sort of things that I want to include in my own video. It was useful to me to watch this as it informed me a lot in the different ways you can deal with change. It has inspired me to include certain aspects in my own speech. He talks about change being inevitable whether you like it or not and that accepting that change is going to happen is a way of dealing with it. It has taught me a lot and I feel a lot more informed after watching this video. I feel more confident for when I create my video as I know what I could include in the speech.
Youtube. 2016. How to Deal With Change in Life. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CoxOb5ls-sY. [Accessed 30 April 2018].
Mind tools. 2018. Coping with Change. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/coping-with-change.htm. [Accessed 1 May 2018]. I looked at a website to see about how people cope with change, this is because it will help me to write out the speech. I read the article which includes different stages of reacting to change. I learnt about these stages and I will include these aspects into my speech. I learnt about the different types of changes which are "escape coping" and "control coping". This has helped with my project development as I am able to use the information that I have learnt and include it in the speech. I will include the different stages of change in the speech as I think it is important and relevant to what the project is.
Reflective Practice
This week my aims were to complete primary, secondary and contextual research for the topic we are focusing our project on. I wanted to see what people thought of the idea so I created a questionnaire and analysed the feedback which went well as I was able to see how to improve the idea which was very useful to me. I looked into existing videos that were similar to what I want to create to help influence me. I did secondary research focusing more on the content of the video rather than the visual concept which helped me become more knowledgable on the topic. Looking at lots of different videos has been very useful with the development of the idea. I have managed my time well as I completed all the research that I wanted to look at. I had some problems trying to find relevant information to help me, but I looked at different sources rather than just videos like websites as well as they were just as useful.
Shooting Script and Schedule
Pre production paperwork
Location Report
Risk Assessment
Budget
Using the list of prices I wrote down the amount that I would have to pay depending on how long I would need it, so I made a good estimate of how long I will need it for.
Mac computer with Adobe Suite- £525
Panasonic HMC41- £80
Zoom Audio Recorder- £20
Level 3 Year 1 Tripod- £15
Total- £640
I completed the pre-production paperwork that was relevant to my project. I completed a location report so that it was clear that I understood what I wanted to do and to acknowledge the different aspects like the lighting, and the different camera shots. I then completed a shooting script and schedule so that I knew the place and time for filming, and so that I knew what we were filming for in the video. I completed a budget form to see how much this would have to cost to produce. I had to complete a risk assessment so that I knew what the hazards were and how we could prevent them. There wasn't many hazards with what we are doing, which made our risk assessment quite short.I also had to get a personal release form for the person who's voice is going to be in the video. I made a storyboard so that when creating the video I will be more organised as I can follow the drawings and notes that I have made. I mainly focused on these aspects of the pre production paperwork whilst Alexis was focusing on creating the speech for the video, as we thought that she was most appropriate for this part.
Personal Release Form
Story Board
This is the storyboard and speech that we have created. We both participated in creating the storyboard, which shows what our video is going to roughly look like. We are going to have the different background shots with the writing appearing over the top which is clearly shown in our drawings. Alexis created a lot of the speech as this was her speciality. I helped to inspire her when she was struggling for ideas. I was able to input the research that I had gathered to help with different information to include.
Speech
Metamorphosis: the process of transformation and change – change: to become different – different: not the same as another. Are you happy or unhappy? Let’s modify that. It’s inevitable now. Accept it. I don’t like it; can I go back? Nothing is fair, nobody cares. Now I’m thinking of everything I can’t say, and everything that I have to keep in. Now it’s complicated, I don’t know what I’m doing. I thought I would be okay, but I didn’t realise how much time this would take to recover. I’m having trouble opening up. It was made to seem so simple, but my mind is a lot deeper than that. At first? Shock. Second? Anger. Third? Coming to terms. I have to accept it and move on. Accepting the change is a way of dealing with it. Different experiences in life affect you as a person. Death. Stress. Life. This isn’t always a bad thing. It’s about learning and growing. As a person, as a friend, as a partner. Refusing to accept the change in yourself, what would that do? Nothing good, a turn for the worst. What are you doing? Avoiding it? Find a way to cope. Embrace it head on. Mature and learn from change, and from mistakes. Grow. Are you struggling? There’s nothing wrong with finding help. Take opportunities as they come. Walk the road together. And what now? Realization that it was all for the better. Thinking now, you had no idea that you could be feeling so great, you had no idea that your life would present you with so much potential happiness just be taking something in its stride. I don’t quite understand metamorphosis, but there is something that I do understand, and so I’m going to call it change.
Test shots- Typography
I went onto After Effects to practice using the software so that I am ready for the final video. I wanted to see what different effects and fonts that I wanted to use. I also wanted to gain more experience and familiarise myself with it before I produced the video.
Feedback Analysis
From this feedback I need to make sure that I include lots of visuals by including images and videos so that it is more interesting as it is a creative course
Youtube. 2017. Kinetic Typography in After Effects - After Effects Tutorial - No Plugins. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kD73GVXwLXg. [Accessed 4 May 2018].
I used this video which is a tutorial on kinetic typography. I followed the tutorial and tried to recreate it with my own speech. I was playing around with the different settings to animate it in my own way. I made the words appear after one at a time, and made them move across the page as they were being said. I made a new layer which I called animation and made the parent of all the layers the "animation" so that this layer was in control of what I did. I set different key frames and in each one I changed the position. I played around with the different transformations to see what works and what doesn't. In the screenshot it shows how I have changed the position of the words. This video was very useful to me as I was able to have a better understanding on creating the typography effect and found it very useful as I have now got more experience and can create the effect quicker now that I have practiced. After completing these test shots and practising using the software, I now feel like I have enough experience to complete the entire speech.
Test Shots- Background
We went out and took some photos to help with the background shots that we are going to create. This is a mood board with some of the types of shots that we are going to use once we start the video. We are going to take videos of different landscapes and will use these test shots as a guide to see what type of clips we can create. We are going to film rather than include photos but we found this useful to see the different types of things we should be focusing on to make it look as interesting and professional as possible. We took pictures of the trees as far away shots. Close ups of the plants. Low angle shots to make the trees look bigger than they are. We also considered the natural lighting and used this to our advantage. When we are filming we will also include low and high rise shots, panoramic shots. All of this has been very useful as it has helped me to have a better understanding of the different background shots that we are going to want.
Montage test shots
We created a montage of some test shots that we created from when we went to Mote Park. I put the footage together to see what it is roughly going to look like, so that I could see what needed to be improved for our final video. These are the type of landscapes shots that we are going to use and we found this more useful then the storyboard that we drew. We are going to include panoramic shots and long shots as we think that this is most appropriate for landscapes. We thought that this was more effective because it gave an idea of what our video is going to look like, rather than having drawings which are not as useful to us as actual footage. From this and the feedback that I got I am able to see that we need to make sure that the filming is more professional by making the rotation smoother so that it looks more natural, and to make sure that the tripod is set up straight so that the footage doesn't come out slanted.
Montage Feedback (Primary Research)
Montage Research (Secondary Research)
I looked into different montages on Youtube to inspire me with my own ideas of how I can edit the clips and what transitions to use. I watched a smooth zoom transition video Youtube. 2016. Adobe Premiere Pro CC Smooth Zoom Blur Transition Effect Tutorial (how to 2017). [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=niMcUQ0Bkxg. [Accessed 15 May 2018]. I used this video to help learn more about the different transitions that I could use on the montage using Premiere Pro. I thought that this effect was very interesting and would work well in my video. I followed the tutorial and recreated the effect on some of the footage that I filmed to see how it would look. It was helpful to develop the montage approach because it helped make the montage look more professional and interesting to watch. However, it was very time consuming and I think I will need more practice using it before I use it in the final video.
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Typography Development
I started to create the typography effect whilst Alexis was focusing more on the montage. I started by opening after effects and adding the audio of the speech. I then was able to start adding the words over the top. I went along and added all the text to when she was saying the words. This was very time consuming to do as I had to make sure that the word appeared at exactly the same time as it was said. I did this for a section of the video and them got some feedback on what people thought. I asked them a few questions and here are wrote down some of the responses.
Feedback
Do you think that the words are synced up to the audio well?
- you can tell that you have spent a lot of time syncing the words up with the audio
-you have payed close detail to the audio, there are a few words that need adjusting slightly
- you have done a good job with syncing up the audio, they appear at the correct time which makes it look very professional
What do you think needs improving?
- I think that you need to add music to the background to make it more interesting
- I think that you need to change the font as it doesn't suit that video well s it seems too bold and in your face
- Maybe you could add some animations to some of the words to show off your skills more
What do you like about the video so far?
- I like that you have included different aspects to the video like the montage and the typography as it shows more variety of skills that you have
- I like that you have edited the montage video well so that it doesn't look as clumsy and shaky
- I like the concept that you are focusing on with the inspirational speech and the spoken word approach.
Do you think that it is showing off the skills that I have learnt?
-Yes, but I think by making some small improvements and adding a few things it will show the skills you have off more.
-Yes as you have included lots of different aspects in your video.
- Yes it shows a lot of your skills that you have learnt over the year
I made a google form to get feedback on what people thought of the montage test shots I wanted to find out what could be improved and what they like about the footage. This was very useful to me to get some feedback so that I can make sure that I the final video suits the audience preferences.
Do you think that including a similar montage will look good for the final video?
Only 1 person said that they thought that a montage wouldn't look good in the final video and they said that is because it doesn't look very professional. The other 6 people thought that it will look good. I will still take the feedback into consideration and make sure that I try and make the footage as professional as possible. I will do this by editing it so that the shots are smoother and that the filming is straight.
What could be improved?
The responses for this question we're all quite similar. A common answer was including more of a variety of shots, rather than just moving the camera from left to right. Other responses included making sure that the camera is straight and the movement is smoother, and slower so that you can see the landscapes clearer.
What do you like about these types of shots?
The results from this question included finding it calming to watch, suitable for a background shot, and because it is simple and basic it makes it good as a montage and the background of the videos. From this information I can tell that it is a good ideas to film these type of landscapes.
Do you think the shots are the right length in time?
2 people said that the shots are not the right length which means they thought they were too long or too short. I will take this into consideration and I will have more variety of shot lengths like shorter and longer ones. 5 people however thought that they were a good length, and that I should keep them the same length. I will still keep these comments into consideration and make sure that I have a variety of shot lengths.
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Feedback Analysis
I will make sure that I include the audiences advice rather than ignoring it. I will edit the montage so that the footage doesn't look as clumsy and if needed I will re-film.
Reflective Practice
The aims of today was to focus on creating the typography. I added the audio and then typed out the speech making sure that the words lines up with the audio. This went well and the words are lined up accurately but it was very time consuming.I have watched tutorials on Youtube to see how create different transitions on after effects, to make it more interesting. I used a tutorial which was teaching how to create kinetic typography, and have planned to use this in my own video. I knew that it was going to take quite a lot of time so I left this day to spend on this. I haven't learnt any new skills but instead use my past experience to create the video as quickly as possible. I need to make sure that the time periods that I set for each task is more reasonable as I was not able to complete the whole speech in one day and now need to spend more time on this. The FMP is allowing me to show the skills that I have using the different softwares including Premiere Pro and After Effects. I have taken all feedback into consideration and will re-edit the video if it doesn't meet with the audiences preferences.
Reflection on feedback
After getting this feedback, I then proceeded to complete the rest of the video, adding the text to right part of the speech and then added the montage over the top. I went back over it to make sure that it appeared at exactly the right time as the feedback said some needed adjusting slightly. I rearranged the text so that it was more visible and changed the font as from the feedback given it didn't suit the type of video well. Once I had completed this for the entire speech, I decided to add music in the background so that it made it more interesting. Some of the feedback that I got said that I should include music which I agree with so we decided to go with "Heize- Round And Round" as we thought that it was very suitable for this video. I then needed to animate some of the words as I thought that it needed improving. Once I had finished animating some of the words the video was complete.
Final Video
Peer Critique
Do you think that this is a good representation of metamorphosis?
-I believe you've expressed metamorphosis in an efficient, yet elegant manner, the way you display the coping of change is a good symbolic gesture that allows the viewer to connotate a feeling for themselves.
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-I think it is a very good example and representation. The establishing shots are done well. And typography is good.
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What do you like about the video?
-The typography. I really like this as it adds originality to the video.
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-I believe the typography along with the voice over and landscapes all added their own experience which allows the view to take out more than they'd expect
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What do you think could be improved?
-The filming, you could have made the shots less shaky and try and make the shots your own as they a somewhat basic shots. Ie, slow-motion or time lapses.
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-I believe you, could have displayed more shot types and more camera angles which would have allowed you to display more of your skills in film.
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Do you think that it shows the skills that we have?
-Yes. It shows your great ability to use adobe premiere and after effects. Also shows your ability to plan a project.
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-I think, from a narration standpoint it was very impressive and fluent which is why it does play to your advantage. I don't know for certain whether they're your displayed and outlined skills, but I can tell you're good at it
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Do you think that this was a good approach to the FMP? Why?
-Yes. You found a way to make the theme your own and you did very well to show this. Next time try and add more detail and expand on your idea more.
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-I think you've outlined the main subject which is metamorphosis and talked about different changes in people which is an interpretation of it. So yes, I believe it was a good approach.
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I got this feedback from 2 people that are the target audience for this project. From this feedback I can see what I could have done different to improve the final video. I have seen what the target audience liked and if they thought that overall it as a good approach to the FMP. I found the peer critiques very useful to me as I can see what other people thought of the final video, and I can take this feedback and apply it to future projects.
Self Evaluation
For this project I think that I have used a lot of planning as I thought that it was useful and necessary for me with the type of video that I was creating. I started of everyday by creating a daily log so that I could make sure that I got everything done by the deadline. I started off developing different ideas by creating mind maps and decided that the typography approach with a montage was the best approach as it would show off the skills that I have learnt and developed over time. I then started on getting research done so that I was more knowledgeable on the visual approach and the topic we were going to focus our video on which was how people cope with change. This research helped to create the speech as I looked at different websites to gain a better understanding on how you should cope with change in people. I also looked at different videos to get inspiration, comparing my video to the "learn about films" video they are similar because we have both got the audio and the typography on the screen. However, I included a montage in the background of mine where as he had different images that were related to the words on the screen. I wanted the montage to be of just landscapes and not related to the words as I wanted the focus to be on the words themselves and wanted to create a calming video and thought that this was the best approach. After completing the research I then completed the pre-production paperwork then started on creating the video. I wanted to get test shots and practice using the software beforehand so that I was more experienced. I got feedback from this so that I could improve and develop it, I continued to do this so that the final video was as good as possible making sure that I reflected on the feedback and took it on-board. The planning process was a good way for me to show the progression of the idea, and was very effective overall.
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I think that the final video was quite effective as I included everything that I wanted to. I have the typography over the top of the footage which included different transitions to make it more interesting. I also included a few effects on some of the words on After Effects as I thought that it would have a better effect. I thought that I would animate more words but after trying it out I didn't think that it looked very good. Even though the feedback said to do so I think that it was better without. Having the words expand I think worked well because it made it stand out more but I did this only to a few words.
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I think that we could have made the footage less shaky. We did try and edit it which made it look a lot better however if we had more time we would have re-filmed some of the shots. We could have been more adventurous with the type of shots like a time-lapse rather than just panoramas as this would have made it more visually pleasing. We could have done different types of angles and shots also to show off our camera skills more. From the peer critique they also thought that I could have been less shaky and that including different angles would have been a good idea.
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I have shown the skills that I have been using After Effects and being able to create and edit different text layers. I also shown the camera skills that I have and using Premiere pro to edit the footage which shows the editing skills that have. We wanted to make the most of the resources that we had which is why we chose this approach in the first place. In previous units we hadn't done this specific approach but had, had practice with both the softwares that we used. It was quite a new approach to embed different elements to the video which I thought was quite effective. The target audience was for people that are trying to cope with change and I think that this video fulfilled the target audiences needs as we have clearly focused on this. We wanted the video to inspire and to help people. Throughout the project we got feedback from the target audience which helped with the development as we wanted the video so satisfy these people mostly.
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We added background music to the final piece as we thought that it was suitable for the type of video we created. This wasn't our main focus as we wanted the feelings and emotions to be expressed through the speech. However, it was a nice touch to the overall piece. I used the feedback well throughout as I reflected on it continuously like the feedback said tat we should include audio to make it more interesting which I then did.
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The biggest achievement that I have accomplished is creating the typography for the speech in After Effects as it was very time consuming as I had to match each word to when it was being said. I think that I have also improved on this the most as I have gained more experience with the software so I feel like I have a better understanding and feel more comfortable using it.
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For the future projects I need to focus more on my camera skills by filming different shots and angles to show off more skills that I have. This was probably the weakest element and I will make sure that I focus more on this in the future.
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Overall, I think that this project has been very successful. I have acknowledged the strengths and weaknesses and reflected on the feedback that I have been given. It is an interesting approach to the topic metamorphosis but still shows a clear link to it.
