Filming blog

     As of yet I have not started filming. I will complete my filming over Thanksgiving break. I would like to discuss on what I plan on doing. Even after I completed my storyboard I'm still not sure on what to do. I might want to go in a different direction entirely. So I think it best for me to do two different sets of filming. For each of these ideas I have song in mind. Also I may want to do a story board for the other idea I have. When I do my filming over break I will go out on two different days to complete both videos. Then once I'm in the editing process I can decide which direction I would like to go in.
     Since I already talked about the direction and story for my first idea I won't say much about it. This gives me some time to flesh out my second idea. For my first idea the filming is relatively in one location. For my second idea I will be going to many different locations. There is a reason for this. Its because I have a different approach for both of them. For my first idea I would be following a single actor around. They would also be followed around in one location. For my second idea I would be filming many different short clips. The short clips would go over the music video.
     With this approach to the filming it will take a little more time. However, it will calm down my indecisiveness. And who knows I may prefer the experience of filming one over the other. This would lead to me picking that one before filming the other. There is also another factor to think about. The second idea I may need to run around a little more. Although the fact that I'm filming short clips means something else. I probably won't need an actor as much. This takes a load off my shoulder. However I'm still not sure what direction I want to take.

Storyboard Blog

     Now that the planning is done we can move on to story boarding. While story boarding we get to illustrate the vision of what the music video will be. The story board is just an outline for the music video. This allows for flexibility when filming. For my music video what I envisioned was fairly simple. There would be an opening shot of railroad tracks. This would fade into the next shot of the actor leaning on a wall. The actor then turns his head toward the camera looking off behind it. The actor then begins to walk down the corridor he finds himself in. As he is walking the camera follows him. He then turns around a corner continuing to walk down the hall. The camera switches view and start to film him at his side.

     I will film more shots of him walking down corridors as the camera tracks him. Once I have filmed an adequate amount of footage on that I will transition to the end. The actor will find himself at an intersection. When he is there he turns his head in both directions looking down the various paths. The actor then sees doors leading to the exit. He dashes down the hall while reaching for the doors. When he reaches the door it turns out to be a wall. As the actor realizes this he turns around. He then faces the camera with a dissatisfied expression. The camera then begins to move away and fades to the shot of the train tracks and ends.

When drawing the storyboard there were some CLAMPS I tried illustrating. The costume I drew on the actor was jeans, a white shirt, and a button up shirt over that. The lighting won't really be my choice. This is because I will be filming in a complex with fluorescent lights. The only actor I drew was me, but my brother might also help me on the project. I didn't draw any make up because I won't be using any. I didn't draw any props, but I may be using guitars as props. The setting will probably be in a building with storage units. I have not decided all the camera angles, movements, and shots I will be using, but I know I will be using a tracking shot for most of the music video. I don't know what I will be doing during the editing process and what sounds I will add other than the music video.

Planning Blog

          With the conventions and early brainstorming blog done we can start planning the music video. There are many different things that need to be schedule and organized. This is needed for the filming to run smoothly. One thing that needs to be decided Is the location filming. At this stage nothing is concrete but I do have some ideas. In my head I imagine the location being somewhere indoors with a lot of corridors. There is also the health and safety factor which may raise an actual concern. I might want to do a shot of train tracks for the intro. The danger is self explanatory but there are ways to work around this. I will probably have someone work with me so we can move equipment quickly if need be or I can use decommissioned tracks.

     On the topic of props there isn't much to talk about. I don't imagine utilizing too many props. However, I think I may want to bring guitars to location. They will be used to make it look like we are playing with the music. Costume wise I picture a couple different things in my head. For the main actor I see him as wearing a shirt with a blazer, pants and dress shoes. I may even have another actor wearing a Halloween mask in the background. Most of these are costumes and props are just ideas for now. I may want to change or add new ones. Although this does give me a good illustration of how filming will be.

     For the schedule of filming the plan is still up in the air. I will want to collect my props over the weekend. This also includes me getting my costumes and seeing what works. With this done over the weekend I will finally make plans for filming and going to location. The filming will be done over Thanksgiving break. This gives me plenty of leeway and flexibility. Hopefully the filming will be completed in one day. This should be the case unless there are circumstances that restrict access to a location. So the plan is to go out with props, costumes, and equipment and head out to location. I will then film with me and my brothers as the actors.

Intro to new project

       With the filming and editing of the commercial complete, we now start a new project. However before we start talking about that it's best to review our previous project. For the filming of the commercial I was quite limited because the shooting was done on campus along with everything else that went wrong. Although now that the new project is off campus I have a lot more creative liberty. Also the process of transferring data was an unexpected hurdle, but now that I'm used to it it should go a lot more smoothly. Then when I finally came across to editing I was unfamiliar with the software. Although now that I have developed somewhat familiar it should allow me to edit much more fluidly.

      For the new project we are filming a music video. With this project I will be able to go through each of the processes more expertly. With the experience from the filming of the commercial I have more know how. I haven't completely decided what my song will be, but I have some ideas. My top three choices are  Creeps by Mini Mansions which is a well produced rock song. Candy says by The Velvet Underground which is a mellow rock song. And my third option is a little broad which is just choosing a song by The Strokes or Arctic Monkeys. I'm not really sure there are certain conventions of the genre, but I know there are usually instruments in the videos. Camera angles and shots I will be using are close ups, medium shots, and tracking shots. There won't be much sound beside the actual music, but I might use ambient and non-digetic sound. When filming I will try to make it so that I won't have to work to hard while editing.

1. Costumes for the music video will most likely be normal clothes. I might want to use button up shirts with blazers.

2. Lighting will probably be indoors and low. I might not be able to control this depending on location.

3. Angles I will be using are close ups and tracking shots. I will only use two actors for the music video.

4. Makeup is something I probably won't use. However, I might use it to make the actor look scuffed up.

5. Props I will be using would probably be musical instruments. This means I will have to take guitars to location.

6. Setting of the filming will probably be inside a building. The building will have lots of hallways and corridors. 

Final commercial blog

     Today we continued working on our commercials. Last class I didn't get a chance to get a computer. So today was my first day editing. Sadly however, it was a short day today. I only had a really brief time with the software. I still managed to get most of it together. The thing is though in it's current state the commercial isn't really coherent. When I get my hands on the software again I'll polish it up. The editing process was fairly fun. However I only just familiarized myself with it.
     I'm not too confident using the software yet. This will change as I use it more. For the due date my teachers pushed it back. This means I will get more time to work on it. For the commercial all I need to do is the voiceover. I should be able to do this in one class. Once I knock that out there won't be much else to do. Since my teachers extended the deadline I have more than enough time.
   I'm working alone so it's only me editing. This means I get full creative liberty. Next class I will get more in depth with the editing process. I will try to find ways to improve it. The editing software is pretty straight forward. I hope I will be able to do the voice overs in class. Without them the commercial won't make much sense. That finishes this blog thanks for reading.