Portfolio Project: My CCR!!

Hello everyone! Long time no see! For some reason this took forever to upload but regardless, we made it! Here is my Creative Critical Reflection for my film opening Karma's Messengers! I hope you enjoy!

Click here to watch my CCR!

Portfolio Project: My Film Opening!

The Final Product

The time has arrived! I can not believe that we are here right now! We've reached the end of this journey and now you're going to be able to see the result of everything that I've done and worked so hard for! I gave this project my all and I hope that you like it as much as I do, anyway here is my film opening Karma's Messengers! Enjoy :)

Click here to watch my film opening: 
Karma's Messengers

Portfolio Project: Project Reflection!

I'm not crying, you are! 

I can not believe that we are at the end of this process! We've finally made it to the finish line! It has been a crazy journey but it was honestly worth it. I am so glad that I am able to look back on this experience and be genuinely proud of how far I've come because it was not easy getting here.

I was so hopeful and determined in the beginning, oh how naive I was (just kidding!). I knew that I wanted my film opening to be in the crime genre but I was still trying to solidify my concept so I started researching. Researching other films and taking note of how they were filmed really did help me when it came to coming up with my film opening concept. I struggled with this a lot at first because I'd have so many ideas that were so left field and I tried to make them work but sometimes simplicity is key. I wanted to overcomplicate things and cram as much content into my opening but as time went on I quickly realized that this is not the best way to go.

I remember being stuck on what concept to choose. I remember not knowing what my film opening was even going to be about. I didn't know how my schedule would align with the actresses that I selected. I didn't know if we'd be able to film or if what I filmed would come out well or not. I didn't know if I'd have to change my entire film opening concept once the virus hit. Once I knew I wasn't going to change my concept, I had no idea how I was going to film it because we were quarantined. I wasn't sure of A LOT of things but I knew that it would all figure itself out in time.

At first, I was so upset about being quarantined because of the coronavirus and not being able to film my opening the way I originally wanted to. I hated the fact that I would have to film an opening that looked completely different from what I wanted and had in mind. I knew I couldn't continue throwing a temper tantrum so I calmed down and started working. During this process, I felt panicked because I felt like time was against me and stress and anxiety were becoming more prevalent. I was scared and unsure of what to do next but I just knew I think of something fast or it would become too late.

There were plenty of moments where I doubted myself and my abilities. I questioned myself, my creative process and my talent. I had absolutely no idea what I was doing or if everything I had done up to the final product was even going to be worth it. I put so much effort into my blog postings because I enjoyed blogging and I thought I was decent at it.

I was so motivated to finish it that I completely missed the purpose of this project which was to have fun! This project wasn't about coming up with the most brilliant idea, filming a professional film opening with state of the art equipment, and getting an A. This project was about finding your passion and letting that be your main motivator. It was about letting your creativity drive you to create something original and authentic. I worked myself so hard by staying up late trying to figure out my next move when I should have been enjoying the process. I had to trust the process and once I did that, my project started to flow better and the pieces were finally starting to fit. Like they say, it's about the journey, not the destination and that's what I had lost sight of while in production.

There were so many obstacles faced that seemed to come one after another but every time I thought I hit a dead end, I'd find a way out. The determination and perseverance that I had to get this project done is something that I haven't witnessed in myself in a while. I had to have a couple of "come to Jesus meetings" but they were all worth it because I was put at ease and reassured that everything I did and all of my efforts would pay off. I'm not 100% certain if my film project is going to be good in the eyes of those critiquing it. I did my best, gave it everything I had and now all I can do is hope that my production is perceived well. I'm proud of what I've done either way.

It's bittersweet for me to say my final goodbyes to this project because I have put so much time, energy and effort into it! I will truly never forget this process and all of the valuable lessons I've been taught during it. I've learned so much about myself, my talent and my ability to handle and cope with stressful situations. I have left this experience a stronger person and I am proud beyond words. I have a new respect for myself as not only a creator but as a human being as well. I am so thankful that I've gone through this process and have matured as a result of it. This isn't the last so, I'll see you in the next blog!

Portfolio Project: So how is this all going to end?

Originally when I was still trying to figure out the direction of my opening and I still had my mom narrating I was going to have the shot be of Zora on the phone with the rest of the girls and she'd say "Hey, have you guys seen the news on tv today? Yeah, they're calling us the Daughters of vengeance now. I know right, I hate it." This line was supposed to be a revelation to the audience that she is apart of the vigilante group that the entire opening was talking about. But since I decided to not use my mom's narration and go in a different direction, that ending wouldn't work with the new opening concept. This means that the ending is going to have to change too.

I still wanted the ending of the film opening to have that shock factor so that the audience feels compelled to watch the rest of my hypothetical movie. The opening is going to end with a shot of a bad guy tied up in a dark room and Zora approaches him. The final comment in the entire opening is “hello sister”. The goal is to leave the audience gobsmacked and wanting to learn more about this alleged brother and his role in the group's life. I’m going to be playing the criminal so I’m going to have to make myself look like a man... fun!

I know adding this is to the end is very last minute but better late than never! I’m going to blog about the process of turning me into a man so I’m excited about that! See you in the next blog!

Portfolio Project: It's the final countdown!

It's getting down to the wire!

I've been working on my CCR answers and it's going great! I'm actually able to relax a lot more because we were given an extension on the due date which I am so grateful for because if not I'm going to be 100% honesty with you, I would've thrown my CCR together last minute just to get it done. This also gives me time to actually breathe and focus on finishing the opening. This may sound crazy but I'm actually excited about completing the CCR because I can have fun by being myself and telling you what my personal experiences were during this entire process!

I started writing my answers two days ago and then I came back to it today and continued to answer the rest of the questions. The one question that I'm putting off is the second one that asks about how your project appeals to your target audience and how you'd market your production. The question isn't a hard question it's just that I'm going to have to think about my answer and find a way to effectively communicate my thoughts. I guess I'm just having trouble articulating my answer but I'll figure it out.

I'm not going to post what my answers are because it's a surprise, you're gonna have to watch my CCR. The script is coming along great because I have my answers and all I'm doing is adding in some notes for me to include certain images and adding commentary. I'm doing this to make my CCR interesting and engaging. I know I wouldn't want to watch a 10-minute video of someone just answering questions while a slideshow of images accompany it. I like to spice things up and make enjoyable for me to edit and for you to watch.

I'm going to continue finishing my CCR answers and the script for it. I'm so excited to see how this comes out and have fun editing the footage together! It's about the journey, not the destination! See you in the next blog!

Portfolio Project: Editing!!

Now it's time for the fun part! I already started editing all of the footage together and really wrapping it all up! I found this awesome video editing app called Videoleap and I loved all the features in it and how easy it was to use.

The only con about Videoleap is that it wouldn't let me add the preexisting voice-over recording from the audio file Keira sent me to the video so I had to use iMovie to edit the voice over in but that wasn't a big issue. I'm used to having to use different editing apps to edit a video to get it the way I want it since some apps have features that others don't.

I found the perfect song that I had been looking for but it was too fast and high pitched. I'm not sure if I'm allowed to use foul language in blogs so I'm just going to say that it had to sound kick butt. So I slowed the tempo down and pitched her voice down to give off a more grungy, rock star vibe instead of the high pitched energetic vibe.

This is what editing my film project looked like in the beginning stages. As you can see all that I had at that point was the first opening credit introducing the production company. I was trying to find which font I liked best and I ended up picking this font because it looks likes a superhero font, I don't know if that makes sense but it looks like a font you'd see in the Marvel universe. The font name is Orbitron, come on that totally sounds like something out of Marvel or DC Comics.

I had so much playing with different filters and editing the tone, saturation, and opacity of the coloring. Lighting was a very important aspect of the opening because different moods needed to be conveyed at certain parts and the lighting had to be edited just right so that the right mood was felt by the viewer. For example, in the very beginning, the coloring of the shot of Zora's mother walking is completely different compared to the rest of the film because the time period of that shot is the 80's. Editing the lighting in the opening shot was a lot more complicated because I had to make it look like it was filmed in the '80s but I think it looks pretty believable. The lighting plays a key roll in assisting the narration to tell the story.

      

The first picture is what my point of view was while I was editing. I zoomed in so that everything wasn't so congested while I was editing. I don't like things being so close together and overlapping because I get confused and I loath confusion. The second picture you see is an overall view of what my entire film project looked like in the editing app. Every edit, filter, text, shot, etc. and that's not even including the voice over.

If you notice in the second picture the credit is in black and the shadowing behind it is a bubble gum pink. To get that shadowy effect I had to edit the text of each individual credit so that effect remained the same throughout the opening.

 I think the credits look so cool and figuring out the placement of credits was strategic and all based on what was happening in the shot and who/ what was being credited. For example, when the credit "Song title: Because I am a girl" in the opening the song says "because I am a girl". Those are little details that I pay attention to because it could really enhance the experience the viewer has watching your production.

 

I wanted to show you a little bit of what the editing process looks like for me and how it's going so far! When I first started the editing process I'd ask my sister if it looked okay and if there was anything that looked wrong, if I should change/ add anything, basically just asking for constant reassurance because I really want this to look the best it can. I saw a post somewhere that said that when an artist is editing or reviewing their work, they tend to over-analyze and criticize their work because they've looked at it so many times that their eye is trained to see flaws. When it comes to creating things like this, I'm my biggest critic. I'm not saying that I don't like my opening it's just that I've re-watched it a million times and I can't really tell if it's good or if I'm just being biased because it's my project. When someone else watches your production for the first time they're seeing it with a fresh perspective so that's why I was asking for her input. She said it looked good so hopefully she's right. See you in the next blog!

Portfolio Project: The riveting filming process

Are we still rolling?

I'd say I had a love-hate relationship with this filming process. Since we're quarantined I had to get very creative with coming up with new shots for the opening and it wasn't easy at all. There were so many moments where I said to myself "I have no idea how I'm going to film this". I was lucky enough to have friends that were willing to send me videos of them doing things that I asked of them and I'm so grateful because I couldn't have captured the desired essence of this film opening without their help. In the beginning stages of production, I had absolutely no intention of including myself in the shots at all but life has a funny sense of humor so here we are! Unforeseen circumstances, gotta love em.

Filming with my sister was fun but also a pain because it felt like I was pulling teeth just to get her to film with me since we're quarantined, her sleep schedule is out of wack and she has online classes that she complains about all the time. Since I didn't feel like begging her to film with me, I just took over at some points and shot scenes by myself. Everyone thinks we're twins for some reason so I figured why not since I could pass as her and her face wasn't revealed so the viewer probably couldn't even tell the difference. Being both the director and an actress in your own film can be stressful and overwhelming but somehow it managed to work itself out. I've learned a lot about my abilities and how I'm able to handle stress and pressure. I'm honestly proud of what I've accomplished so far!

Since I already had the shots my friends sent me days before filming the rest of the opening, I guess you could say I had a head start on the filming process. It wasn't the ideal situation for filming but I had to work with what I had so I figured it out. There were definitely days where I had no idea what I was doing or how I was going to pull this off but after I took that break and I eased my way back into the swing of things, I got my creative rhythm back. Being forced to think outside of the box and do things that are out of my comfort zone (like acting/ being onscreen even though you couldn't see my face) helped me realize that I'm able to overcome any obstacle because where there's a will, there's a way!

None of this was planned. I didn't think I'd have to change the entire visual concept of my film opening, ask friends to send me videos of themselves, shoot with only one actress who was my sister and feature in my own film but that is exactly what happened. Life is unpredictable and we never know what to expect but one thing I took away from all of this was that you have to be ready and willing to keep going and persevere no matter what. I didn't get through this filming process alone and even though it was rough for me and I had a creative mental block for a while, I got through it with my friends and loved one's encouragement and support. I love creating and this entire process was a roller coaster but it's finally coming together! See you in the next blog!