Portfolio Project: Mom's first cold read (video)

This is a video of my mom doing a cold read for the first time the day after I finished writing the script she's going to be reading from. She was so excited because her dream was always to be a news broadcaster and work with journalism because has her degree in communications so this is definitely her forte. I told her that the audio has to at the maximum, 2 minutes and 10 seconds because I can't go over that because her voiceover is the narration of the entire film opening.

This was an impromptu cold read and I wasn't planning on recording it and doing a blog about a cold read at all, but here we are. All I did was hand her my computer with the rough draft of my script on it and she was so enthusiastic about it she goes "can I do a could read?" and I agreed because why not! I grabbed my phone and recorded this take. I'm going to have to record more takes because this was the first one and because the tone in which she's giving the report is not the right one I'm envisioning for the voiceover. The way she read it was very upbeat and energetic but that's because that's how her personality is so she's used to speaking that way and because I gave her no direction at all, it didn't sound the way I'd like it to. I'm going to work with her on it more so that she knows what I'm going for and we can do this together!

I asked for her opinion on somethings like if I should film her giving the report and have her news broadcast playing on the Tv screen to portray a real news report but she said she liked my second option. My second option was to have her news report audio playing as a voiceover only and use this as the narration of all the shots that are occurring during certain parts of the opening. I'm not sure if I phrased that correctly but it makes sense to me and it will make more sense once I draw the storyboard.

This is only the first take of the voiceover and I have to actually direct her and let her know how I want her news broadcast to sound. We're going to meet and spend a lot more time figuring out her tonality, inflections, etc. so that the overall tone of the voiceover and the visuals don't clash together. I'll keep you updated on how this process goes! See you in the next blog!

Portfolio Project: News broadcasting script

NEWS BROADCASTING SCRIPT (outline)

Good morning this is Ava Dior from the WFX news station in Miami here to give you an update on the vigilante group referred to by many as the Daughters of vengeance. These anonymous heroes have been able to save lives and keep the streets of South Florida safe while somehow managing to keep their identities a secret. They live in plain sight and are said to live normal lives during the day, but at night, they become fierce justice seekers. Even though the identities of this crime-fighting group are unknown, it is believed that there are 4 of them and they are all female. When law enforcement was first made aware of the group's existence they believed that the group was an extreme feminist group with malicious intentions but they soon realized that that was not the case. They seem to be targeting those that have broken the law or hurt innocent people. They've taken the law into their own hands but the local police department assures the citizens of South Florida that this group is non-threatening to the innocent but not so forgiving of criminals. There was a similar group like this in the late 70s and early 80s so some speculate that this group is a new generation of a feminist vigilante group continuing that legacy. Law enforcement has confirmed that they are working on discovering the identities of the group members so if you have any information on this group and who they are please contact the local police department at 754- (audio cuts off)

Portfolio Project: And the academy award goes to....

Give my mom an Oscar Award! 

My mom volunteered to be an actress in my opening which at first I was apprehensive about but the more I thought about what I could have her do in the opening it actually was a good idea. I want to have her act as a news broadcaster that is reporting on the vigilante's defeat of another bad guy. My mom has tons of experience being in front of the camera, being an emcee, and working in a plethora of productions like this so I think this will be a really good touch to add! I'm going to write her script and film her doing the report as if she was an actual news reporter then I'll add in all of the effects to make it looks like a real news broadcasting. After coming up with this idea I realized that it would probably be cool if the film opening opens up with my mom's new broadcast and then have Zora make her entrance. I'm going to do a whole blog on this soon because I have a lot of ideas that I'm so happy about because I was having a creative mental block for a while hence my mini-breakdown video posted two days ago...

Anyway, this is blog posting is going to be me writing the outline of my mom's script that she's going to be reading for the news broadcasting clip. For a moment I was thinking about just having my mom's news report substitute Zora's narration, and I'm not entirely hating the idea. Having the news report play in the background of the film opening is actually a cool concept. Instead of having Zora explain their story, I'm going to let my mom, the news broadcaster do it. The visuals would all match up to what my mom would be saying on the TV and the way it looks and sounds in my head is really good so I'm hoping I'm able to get it right.

Since the script is acting as the narration in this opening, I have to write the script so that I know what kinds of shots I need to film. In the next blog, I'm going to be writing out the rough draft of the new report script! See you in the next blog!

Portfolio Project: I think I've figured it out! (sort of)

I think I've decided on how I'm going to film the majority of my film opening. Eureka! I still haven't figured every single detail out yet but I think I want the characters and the overall plot to be introduced through a gradual pan and then incorporate shots that give the viewer hints about the character's lifestyle, their individual personality traits and what life is like as a vigilante group.

I know that the sudden coronavirus outbreak and us being quarantined made my film opening progress turn completely in the opposite direction but after thinking about it and trying to overcome this hurdle, I think I have come up with a solution. I wanted to figure out a way to maneuver around not having my 4 main characters in my project anymore while still incorporating them in my opening if that makes sense. At first, I was thinking of just having Zora mention each of them briefly in the narration (yes I'm still planning on having a narration, I made up my mind finally) but then it hit me, I can introduce them in a different way while still revealing them.

We've already established that I want to film part of the opening with a pan of Zora's living space but I wanted to still have the other 3 characters involved in it somehow. The whole purpose of the pan is to give the audience an inside look into the life of the characters so I'm going to use this pan to my advantage. Since I can't physically film with 3 of my actresses I can use the pan to infer the existence of them. Zora is the leader of the group and they're all sisters so they'd all be living in the same house. The focus is on Zora mainly but this pan is going to be the tool I use to bridge the gap.

My idea for using the pan to introduce the other 3 sisters is by having the pan show pictures on the wall of all 4 of the girls as young children. I'm friends with all of the actresses so I have plenty of photos of them from their early childhood years that I plan on using. While the camera is panning around the girl's home there will be shots implemented that are meant to let the viewer know more about their lives while still keeping the other girls a mystery in a sense. One idea I had to give a hint about their living situation is having a shot of their bathroom and all 4 of their toothbrushes so that the audience gets an idea of what each girl is like.

Here are just some of the pictures in my camera roll of my gorgeous actresses! :

Bria (Caroline)

Valencia (Keira)

Luana (Claudia)

Zora (Aneesa) 

This blog really assured me that I've got this and I'm going to do just fine in this project! I have the pieces I just need to put them together to complete the puzzle and that's what I plan to do. I'm going to get started on all of this ASAP so I'll keep you guys updated, see you in the next blog!

Portfolio Project: Project update (video)

Hello again! This video is me having a very tiny mental breakdown in my bedroom while trying to figure out what I specifically want my final product to look like. I promise there are no tears or anything like that, I'm just explaining what my thoughts are on my current dilemma. I take this project so personally because this will be a creation of mine that I'm sharing with others. I know it's for a grade but this is something that I want to genuinely be proud of. I don't want to just pull something randomly from thin air and hope it gives me a passing grade, I want to do my best and surpass my own expectations. When things like this don't turn out the way I intend them to, I get frustrated and become unmotivated but I'm trying my best not to let that happen. I'm going to remain as positive as I can and film the coolest film opening I can!

So without further ado, here's my mini-mental breakdown video, enjoy ;)

Portfolio Project: I have no idea what's happening right now

Mid-project crisis.

Trying to figure out how I'm going to shoot this is honestly so hard for me because it could be so simple but I'm over complicating it. I tend to overthink so in my head bigger is better and in terms of this project that translates to "the more complex it is, the technique and visuals, the better". I struggle with the "less is more" concept so trying to brainstorm a new storyboard for the opening is frustrating me.

I have no idea what I want the concept to be or if I even want my sister, who's playing Zora, in it. I'd love to have her in it but right now I don't know how I'm going to make having Zora in the opening fit cohesively with the rest of the opening. I don't know if I'd have her revealed in the beginning or towards the end of the opening, I don't know how much or what she's specifically going to say in the narration or if there's even going to be a narration. A lot of stuff is up in the air right now and this part of the process is the worst because everything functions in sequential order so without having the key element that determines literally every decision you make regarding your production (the concept/ main purpose/ intended message), you really don't have anywhere to go. And this is where I am right now. I don't have that much time left to still be in the brainstorming stage so I'm hoping writing all of my thought out in this blog will help me think of a solution to my mid-project crisis!

When we had a conference meeting with Mrs. Stoklosa she was saying that our openings did not have to have actors and there doesn't even have to be people in it. There are so many unique ways to film an opening but I just have to get creative and think until I have some sort of epiphany. I researched a few examples of film openings that I liked and most of them didn't incorporate people in them but I still don't know how I'm going to introduce Zora, her sisters, and the fact that they're a group of vigilantes. I like the film opening concept where the camera is just panning around the living space of the character. The film example from Back to the Future was so cool and I learned a lot about the character without physically seeing them or being introduced to them through a narration. A pan is a very simple camera movement but with editing techniques and engaging shots, I think I would be able to execute this concept well.

I'm planning on drawing a storyboard and having somewhat of an idea about what I'm going to film soon. I was hoping that I'd be filming and editing by now but that's unfortunately not the case so I have to come up with something good and fast. I really think I can do something cool with the panning idea but I still don't know if I'd include a narration or not. Hopefully, I'll figure that out soon but like always, I'll keep you guys updated! See you in the next blog!

Portfolio Project: film opening examples: Honorable mentions!

HONORABLE MENTIONS!

These two film openings are not necessarily exactly what I'm looking for in terms of my production but I really liked the editing techniques used in them and the transitions used in them, especially the transitions in Shaun of the dead.

Shaun of the dead (2004)

Shaun of the dead

Short Circuit (1986)

Short Circuit

Source:

“Shaun of the Dead.” YouTube, YouTube, 2009, www.youtube.com/.

“Short Circuit.” YouTube, YouTube, 2011, www.youtube.com/.

Portfolio Project: film opening examples PART 2

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (2011)

This film opening was very interesting to watch, to say the least. Even though there wasn't a character introduced, based on the title you can put together that the black ink and all of the unique ways it was displayed in the scene have some correlation to the character since she is referred to as "the girl with the dragon tattoo". The alternative rock music also contributed to the tone of the opening because it was fast-paced and when paired with the fast-paced editing, it did a great job insinuating what the tone of the rest of the film will be. It was abstract but the use of sound, the dark lighting and the quick shots with the black ink really helped give off an edgy vibe.

Seven (1995)

This film opening is so. creepy. but that is exactly what the tone that needed to be conveyed. The director wanted their audience to feel on edge, terrified and creeped out which they executed beautifully in my opinion because they definitely evoked all of these emotions out of me personally. It's like a psychological thriller and I love how it feels like they're messing with your mind a little bit with the eery music and the off-putting images flashed quickly. The specific font that was used, the editing, specificity of shots, it all worked cohesively to create this feeling like you're watching a real-life nightmare.

The types of shots that were used in this opening were great and I liked how they were edited to give off the intended scary vibe. 

Most of the openings I researched that had what I wanted visually didn't have a voiceover which is fine because writing the script is not going to be a challenge, it's compiling the shots together to match the voiceover. I think I picked some good openings to research because they're drastically different in style/ tone and have unique elements in them that I want to incorporate into my production. I'm going to continue to look for other film openings that are similar to the concept that I have for my film opening so that I can get even more inspiration. I'll keep you updated, see you in the next blog!

Source:

Morrill, Jenny, et al. “50 Brilliant Movie Opening Credits Sequences.” Den of Geek, 27 June 2014, www.denofgeek.com/movies/50-brilliant-movie-opening-credits-sequences/.

Portfolio Project: Film opening example PART 1

It's research time! 

I'm going to be looking into a few different film openings that incorporate the types of shots and camera movements that I want to incorporate in mine. First I have to actually find films that have shots that I want to use so the first thing I did was did a Google search! First I searched "styles of film openings" and I found an article that gave some examples of the different types of film openings that are common but I didn't find any examples that were relevant to my research. Then I found another article that gave around 80 movie suggestions and analyzed the styles of those openings. I was hopeful at first because there was a section that focused on film openings that had voiceovers but unfortunately, none of them were filmed in the way that I want to film my opening so I had to refine my search.

I decided to search for movie openings with montages and I came across an article that actually had examples of what I was talking about! I was starting to think that I would never find a film opening example that was filmed the way I was envisioning but I was proven wrong. Even though I'm not filming a montage I thought I would just see if I could find anything useful in the articles that came up and I did so here are a few examples of film openings that resemble the direction I want my film opening to go in!

Back to the future (1985)

This movie is a classic and is clearly not a part of the crime/ thriller genre but the opening sequence is almost exactly how I want my opening to look visually. I like how there's a slow pan that gives you little subtle hints about who the character is and what they are like. For example:

At the beginning of the opening, the pan shows an abnormal amount of clocks in the possession of this character so it is safe to assume that clocks or time will be a prevalent element of either this character's life or the world.

 The slow pan also reveals that this space that the character inhabits is messy so this could be a key component to the characteristics of the character.

The coffee maker is left on which lets the viewer know that this person is carefree or absent-minded.

And the camera comes across a news article that hints at something that is probably important to the plot or the conflict. The reason I picked this film opening as an example is that the audience is given so much information about the character without the character even being introduced. The shots envoke curiosity in the viewer and that is exactly what I want the shots in my opening to do.

There was no voiceover in this opening but visually, this is what I am going for.

Source:

Morrill, Jenny, et al. “50 Brilliant Movie Opening Credits Sequences.” Den of Geek, 27 June 2014, www.denofgeek.com/movies/50-brilliant-movie-opening-credits-sequences/.

Portfolio Project: Shot ideas for "new" film opening

"Just shoot your shot" easier said than done.

I'm figuring out the direction of my film project since this whole coronavirus thing has taken over so in this blog I'm just going to outline some ideas I have for shots in the opening. I'm down to just one actress which is my sister and this has forced me to change the visual aspect of my opening but that is okay! I like a challenge... sometimes.

I like how some film openings in the thriller or crime genre solely focus on the movement of the character and how the shots are meant to give some insight into who the character is and what they are like. I think I'm going to do some more research on films in these genres that have openings similar to the one I'm trying to create just for some inspiration. I really want the shots to be intriguing so I'm planning on incorporating transitions that I think are cool. I'm going to make the shots complex since the narration is just going to be Zora introducing herself as the leader of the group of vigilantes.

Some examples of shots that I would include in the opening:

• Zora's board in her lair full of documents about cases, criminals, and details about missions
• Zora working in her lair (on her computer hacking)
• Jump cuts of her working on compiling data for their next mission 

This is the very basic idea of what the film opening's shots will include but I will create a storyboard that puts these ideas in sequential order and the specific focal points I want to capitalize on visually so that the viewer is interested in the characters and what the rest of the film would potentially have in store. 

I'm going to have to look back on the blog where I gave an in-depth description of each character because that will help me narrow down the types of shots I'm going to incorporate in the opening. I'm going to upload a blog dedicated to the storyboard and the shots soon once I figure out what I want exactly. As always, I will keep you all updated, see you in the next blog!  

Portfolio Project: Corona outbreak update

This pandemic has been anything but epic

It's been a while but as you probably know, a lot is happening in our world right now. People are scared and no one really knows what to do because of this pandemic. We're all quarantined and advised to practice social distancing which I don't have a problem with but it's still a scary situation.

These last couple of days have been the most confusing and stressful in regards to just life in general. The coronavirus pandemic has literally put everything on pause, school, entertainment, travel, etc. and it's created a lot of what-ifs and unanswered questions. This also includes my portfolio project. A lot of us didn't know what to do because we had actors, storyboards, scripts, plots, etc. and we were confused about where to go from here because we're self quarantined right now.  This outbreak has been chaotic but I'm going to try my best to not let it have that much of a negative impact on my project.

Yesterday we had a conference with Mrs. Stoklosa and she offered tips and some ideas for us on how to overcome the obstacles we're facing with filming and the direction of our projects. We were all unsure of what we were supposed to do about our projects because a lot of us had components of our project that were required in order for us to be able to complete our projects successfully. But because of the quarantine situation, we wouldn't be able to achieve some of these things. This meeting definitely helped me calm down and made the idea of having to face these obstacles head-on and find a solution a lot less terrifying. This situation will force me to change some elements about my project so let's figure this whole thing out!

I originally had 4 characters: Zora, Bria, Luana, and Valencia but because our parents won't let us leave our houses because of the quarantine, I, unfortunately, can't film with the cast that I intended to film with ☹️☹️☹️. This is so sad because I was so excited to film with my friends and enjoy the process but because of unforeseen circumstances I've decided to keep only one character from the original cast, Zora because I can easily film with the actress playing her, my sister Aneesa.

^ My awesome little sister ^

Filming with my sister will not be hard at all because even though we are quarantined and stuck in my house together, I can film in my house and she was originally the main character of my opening anyway so this isn't going to be that big of a change. I'm just going from 4 actresses to 1. woo hoo.

I know in the script I had Zora narrating the introduction to each of the characters but since I don't have a cast of 4 anymore, this is going to change a little. She's still going to narrate the film opening, give background information on herself and talk about her sisters briefly but she just won't go into great detail on each sister. The whole introduction is going to be about her and telling the audience about her back story, where she comes from, how she became a vigilante, and other things like that. Since Zora is the leader of the group it makes sense to have her narrate her own introduction in the opening. I actually like the idea of having the focus on only one character and having a simple narration with complex shots. This will make it slightly easier on me editing-wise and I like how it will be simple but still visually engaging.

In regards to the storyboard, I'm going to have to go a different direction with the shots and go back to the drawing board and create a storyboard that focuses on Zora. I am going to have to completely adapt my concept and make it so that the whole scene is focusing solely on Zora as the leader. The style of shots that I will get will be drastically different than the ones I planned on getting but that's okay. I just have to figure out what these shots are going to be and what the effect I want to give off visually is. That's probably going to be a whole other blog posting.

None of this was planned so I'm honestly just going with the flow and winging it. I am so upset that my original film opening concept is going to have to change but like they say, the show must go on. I'm going to try my best to update you guys frequently and find a way to produce an equally amazing film opening like my original concept. I'll see you in the next blog, stay safe ❤!

Portfolio Project: Zora’s Lair bulletin board example

Here is a preview of the type of things that will be on Zora’s board in her lair. I want everything to look like an authentic detective’s office would in real life.

This is actually a picture of my sister when she was about 6 years old and was a gymnast. For the missing date I used her actual birthdate and for the date of birth I used my birthdate and for both dates I just changed the year.

That’s all I wanted to share in this blog, just to give a sneak peek of what will be on Zora’s bulletin board. I’ll see you in the next blog!

Portfolio Project: Bria's new stroyboard

As you know I'm changing the visual concept of my film opening so this means that I have to change the shots that I intended to film for each character. This isn't a bad thing because it's going to make it easier for me so let's rewrite Bria's storyboard!

Originally, Bria was going to go to follow the bad guy to the gym while Luana popped his car tires in the parking lot. Then the scene would end with Bria walking out of the gym seeing him frustrated at his car and she would offer to help repair his tires. But since I'm not going that route anymore, I am going to rewrite her storyboard.

All of the locations that I finalized are going to remain the same, nothing is going to change location wise. The only thing changing is the actions taking place in the individual scenes.

Since Bria is an edgy teen, I want to get shots of her skateboarding, doing mechanical work on a car and hitting a punching bag at the gym.

If you remember from the first storyboard, the film opening started with Bria riding her skateboard while listening to music. I want to keep this as the initial shot because I love the technique portrayed in the scene, the diegetic to non-diegetic sound, the camera movements (pans and tilts) and the combination of shots.

The transition is going to reveal her walking to the gym and then it will cut to her running on a treadmill and punching a punching bag. There will be a pan to the left that will transition from the gym to her working on a car. Transitions in my opening are going to be used to show a smooth location change. I love transitions and when they're done correctly, they can be amazing!

Since I’m not the best drawer I thought it would be better to just type what the rest of Bria’s scene will look like! I will go more into detail on the script but this is the basic outline of her storyboard. Thank you for checking in and I’ll see you in the next blog!

Portfolio Project: What's the name of my opening?

This is probably what is taking me the longest in terms of the actual film opening project, figuring out what to name it! I'm trying to come up with a cool, simplistic title but I haven't been able to decide yet. Here are some ideas for titles that I've come up with so far:

• Messengers of Karma
• Karma's messengers
• The Vigilantes
• Daughters of vigilance
• The Quad

These are a few of the titles that I've come up with that I actually like. They're symbolic and reference an element of my film opening. There are four characters, their vigilantes that fight crime and are the epitome of karma. I had a few other ideas but I didn't think they fit the theme of the opening well.

I asked my friend Caroline, that's playing Bria, what she thinks about the options and she preferred Karma's messengers and I agreed. I still want to brainstorm and come up with some other names to chose from but as of now 'Karma's messengers' seems to have the popular vote.

I like this title so for now, this is the name of my film opening! If I come up with a better name I will change it but I'm happy with what I have so far. Like always, I will keep you all updated on my progress and if I make any changes. I'll see you in the next blog!

Portfolio Project: My target audience!

The target audience of my film is both females and males in the age range of 15-35. Because the actions and topics mentioned in crime thriller productions, the audience has to be mature enough to handle the content withing the production. The Mature Audience TV rating recommends that the viewer be 17 years of age or older because subjects in the film may be unsuitable for younger audience members. I chose to lower the age of my target audience because even though the crime/ thriller genre is known for possessing intense content, my film will not have a lot of gore or contain anything explicit. The rating of my film would most likely be PG-13.

I believe that my production will attract female viewers because the characters all possess relatable traits. Having an all-female crime-fighting group portrayed as normal women just trying to survive in a male-dominated world while juggling their personal lives at the same time will help women relate to my production even more. Bria is a rebellious and edgy teenager, Valencia comes from an affluent family but was disowned by them, Luana wears her heart on her sleeve and Zora's the mastermind behind all of it that's just trying to do her best to keep everything running efficiently. The reason behind this is to have the audience identify a part of themselves with the characters whether through fashion, personality traits, experiences, personal background, etc. I wanted a diverse range of characters and a lot of representation of groups ethnically, socioeconomically, and behaviorally so that both the male and female demographic can feel a connection to at least one character. 

It is common for the characters in films to be what draws the attention of the audience. Since my film is primarily female, theoretically, my audience would most likely be male. But some may be wondering:

Guys can't watch this, it's a girls movie, right?

Wrong! I know that my film opening's theme is female empowerment and this may be misleading for the male audience because when they hear a movie is centered around women and empowerment they associate it with being a girl's movie. That's like saying since Black Panther was an all-black production only black people can watch it, which makes absolutely no sense. Anyone that wants to watch my production can no matter their race or gender identity. The goal of my film is to celebrate women and their amazing qualities, not exclude men and this is the issue that comes up a lot in films that are labeled as "chick flicks", men feel like they can't watch them, I don't know maybe it has something to do with their egos and masculinity.

Of course, I found this picture on Pinterest which accurately sums up everything I said in that last paragraph. Again my opening is about empowerment not putting one group down to uplift another, that's hypocritical.

Women are most likely to watch thrillers because they like the mysterious element and they enjoy piecing the puzzle together. Men enjoy watching thrillers because of the action and adrenaline rush they get from intense action scenes. This is why both genders can enjoy my film because I would incorporate all of these elements in the full version of my film.

That's it for this blog, I'll see you in the next one!

Sources:

“TV and Movie Ratings with Descriptions.” Spectrum.net, 2020, www.spectrum.net/support/tv/tv-and-movie-ratings-descriptions/.

Silbermann, Ben. “Pinterest.” Pinterest, 2010, www.pinterest.com/.

Google Images, Google, images.google.com/.

https://www.slideshare.net/DanaSummerfield/target-audience-for-a-crime-thriller

Portfolio Project: Change is good... right?

(Mini personal update woohoo! I know I'm just now posting in the middle of the week and I usually don't wait like this to post but my wisdom tooth is coming in and it is excruciatingly painful. I'm sorry about the delay but I went to an oral surgeon and we're going to get it all figured out so I'll be better soon! This has definitely slammed on the brakes for me in the production world but the show must go on! I have to get caught up with everything so let's get into the blog!)

Surprise! I'm changing my film opening! Okay, I'm not changing the WHOLE thing but I'm just going to make it simpler for myself. I realized that I was way over my head so I'm not going to overcomplicate things and I'm going to KISS my project. KISS means "keep it simple sweetie" and that's what I plan on doing with my project. The shots are going to be a lot simpler since I'm not trying to fit 2 different concepts into one opening. I am so bummed that I can't incorporate both of my ideas but I'm sure I'll be able to do it so another time! I'm glad I've reached this conclusion now before I spent time drawing the rest of the storyboards! I posted Bria's storyboard but we're going to discard that and revisit the drawing board and start over... yay.

The shots are going to be showing the girls in their everyday lives while the narration introduces them. It will make it easy to follow compared to it looking busy and congested visually. I still think my opening will still be great I just have to really make it visually appealing since the music and the narration will be playing in the background.

All of the locations I finalized in one of the previous blogs are still locations that I plan on filming at.

Of course, I'm going to editing the rough draft of the script but the narration part of the script won't change that much since that's what's the action in the scenes are centered arounC. What's going to change is the actions and the shots I had incorporated into the script. I've got this and I'm going to fix it!

I am so happy that I've finally been able to figure out which direction I'm going in regarding my film opening. I feel like I can finally breathe! I'm actually happy with my decision to change the visual direction of my film opening because I can still make it look good and be able to convey my message clearly. I had to be realistic with myself and have a "come to Jesus meeting" and I have clarity now! I'll keep you guys updated, see you in the next blog!

Portfolio Project: Zora's lair

Zora's lair

Zora is the narrator of my film opening and she's the last one to introduce herself. I want her introduction to take place in her lair where she does the majority of her crime-fighting work. There will be a board of past cases and criminals that they've taken down on her wall and a desk with laptops and technical equipment. I really want the fact that she is a computer genius to be made clear to the audience and that means that I will have to make props. In this blog I will be showing you some ideas and inspirations that I got from, you guessed it, Pinterest! 

My sister, Aneesa is playing Zora just in case you forgot!

Ideas for the board on her wall with past cases & criminals:

  

Key components of the board are pictures and documents with the classic red string connecting them on the wall. Sticky notes will be on her wall and it will have names and different information listed on them. The goal is to make it look like an overwhelming collage of bad guys and their personal information.

The technical gear in her lair:

Lighting

This is exactly why I love going on Pinterest to receive inspiration because I didn't even consider a lighting scheme for her lair but now that I'm looking at rooms with this computer set up, I like the concept of there being like a purple or pink light in her introduction. Pink is a feminine color and since this film opening is about female empowerment, that would be expected but maybe blue. When we studied colors and their meaning in mise-en-scene we learned that the color blue is associated with dominance, intelligence, and business. That color would work because Zora is dominant- the leader of the group, intelligent- computer hacking genius, and business- works with clients directly and handles all of the paperwork before working on cases. The color blue is also commonly associated with masculinity so it would be ironic for her room to be blue and the whole concept of the film opening is female empowerment. Speaking of, happy International Women's Day!!!

The computers won't be hard to find because I will be using my computer, my sister's computer and my mom's work computer as props. I don't have a computer chair but that's not the focus of the scene so I'm not too worried about the chair we use not being a wheely computer chair. I have a purple plug in light that I could use if I can't figure out how to change the color to blue. 

Purple still would work because it's not pink and is still affiliated with femininity but not as much as pink so If I can't figure out how to change it blue, I'll keep it purple. I'll post a blog with details on lighting later on.

In the last blog, I posted on finalized filming locations I decided that Zora's introduction will be filmed in a garage and I still think that is the right choice production-wise. I have to have space to film all of the shots and for the props to fit in the room and actually be seen in the opening that's why I chose to film in a garage.

This blog was for me to share my ideas with you guys on Zora's lair and some inspirations I have for props and the lighting. The props will probably be the hardest part of creating Zora's lair and figuring out how to change my light from purple to blue. Like always, I will keep you all up to date on my progress and inform you of any changes that I make. I'll see you in the next blog!

Source:

Silbermann, Ben. “Pinterest.” Pinterest, 2010, www.pinterest.com/.

Portfolio Project: small update

Quick update: I was competing in a pageant all day today so this blog won’t be that informative but I did want to let you know that I will be submitting extra blogs this week! It’s been a long day and my eyes are crossing typing this so I’m going to go to bed and post all of the posts that I need to in order to update you guys on how everything’s going. But right now all I can think about it sleep so I’m going to see you guys in tomorrow’s blog! Goodnight! (Side note: I won people’s choice so that was cool)

Portfolio Project: Finalized Film locations

I've narrowed down the locations of my film opening! I had some trouble figuring out where I wanted each scene to take place because the locations have to be able to accurately portray the vibe of my film opening. Fortunately, I figured it out and I believe that these locations I picked out are perfect!

The beginning of Bria's introduction will be filmed at:

Pembroke Village in Hollywood

The Weston YMCA Family Center

Luana's introduction will be filmed at the Northwest Regional Library

Valencia's introduction is going to be filmed at 

The Shops at Pembroke Gardens

And the last portion of Valencia's introduction will be filmed at the actress's (Keira's) house in her bedroom. It will be easier to film here and she'll most likely be more comfortable acting in her bedroom instead of mine.

Zora's reveal will be filmed in either a garage or in the actress's bedroom. We live together because we are sisters so it will be easier to film her part and do as many takes necessary to get it right. Her scene will most likely be the most detail-oriented scene to film and edit. I am planning on making a lot of props and set design specifically for Zora's scene but I will not be revealing any of those plans in this blog! 

The final scene where the bad guy, Victor, is captured will be filmed in Caroline's basement. Her basement has more open space than mine and her parents are willing to let us shoot there so that works perfectly! This scene won't take long to film but editing it to get it the way I want it to look will probably be the hardest part because it's the last scene so it has to be right.

These are all of the filming locations that I've decided will work for my film opening, I may decide to switch film locations but as of now, I feel pretty confident in the locations that I've chosen. These can always change during the planning process but hopefully, everything goes smoothly and no major changes will have to be made regarding the film locations. I'll keep you updated, see you in the next blog!

Source:

Google Images, Google, images.google.com/.