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A fully filmed scene (2-3 mins) that will effectively showcase my visual style and my ability to direct actors. Emphasis is on the performance of the actors.

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The idea I have for this filmed scene is for it to be set in a casino over a game of blackjack. My idea for the plot revolves around a man trying to find out the location of a missing girl. The only way he can find out is by beating this other man in a game of blackjack. I thought of trying to envisage the style and tone of something more hard-edged to create suspense throughout the entire scene.

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I drew initial inspiration from James Bond movies, aiming to infuse that genre with my preferred film tone.

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Examples of the style of tone I will try to recreate

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Examples of the style of tone I will try to recreate

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I chose to use my own student house to do this filmed scene because all the actors and crew I will have access to live in the same house. Therefore, this reduces expenses like travel costs. In addition, it also relieves the stress of having to scout for other locations and the necessary documentation that comes with it. The only hardship will be moving equipment to and from the location. Thankfully, other people in my house are doing their filming around similar dates so we can all help each other bring the equipment. Overall, this location is the least stressful and most kind on my budget.

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I thought of using a black backdrop behind a green gambling table to create the impression of a blackjack scene. This is because the black backdrop blocks out the surrounding room and gives the impression of being in a bigger space. Furthermore, it adds to that hard edged style I'm trying to work for by making it appear like some shadowy location. Also, the black backdrop is accessible through the equipment store, once more saving cost.

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This is a picture showing what I had in mind for both tone and use of green poker table and black backdrop.

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In order to understand how I was going to prepare for the production process I wanted to write a script. That way I then know what props I'd need, how the space could be utilised, breaking the script down into sperate shots, sketching out these shots in a storyboard and understanding how much I'd need to spend.

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This is part of my shot list. What I did was go through my script and see where, as an audience, I would want the camera to be whilst following the story. For example, how a certain shot would help evoke a certain emotion in a certain scene. In the script, where moments of suspense are needed to be created I may use Dutch tilts or close ups.

Review: This was very useful in production because it allowed me to set up the camera far quicker, saving time on set.

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To help me visualise the shots I was creating, I, at the same time, drew pictures to go along with it. I then compiled these pictures into a storyboard.

Review: This was beneficial during production because it informed the crew how I'm willing to frame a shot as well as what is happening during the shot. To show something visually is sometimes better than trying to explain using words, which ended up being the case for me.

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For each shot, I created a unique floorplan to go with it. I created a floorplan for the two locations I was using as well: The corridor and my bedroom. This will hopefully help us understand how each space will be used.

Review: This helped members of the crew understand where lighting needed to be positioned. It also helped remind me where I needed to set the camera up for a certain shot if the storyboard wasn't helping me.

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Once I knew the props required for the set decorations, I began looking on amazon for the cheapest versions. I also looked at the equipment needed, even though I have access to it for free through the university. I included any other elements as to where there were costs within the production.

Review: Some of the items like the black shirt and the pack of cards were already owned by cast and crew, which helped save cost by sharing.

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I wanted to prepare one of my actors to get used to the kind of villainous role they were going to play in my scene. To prepare him I gave him a villain's monologue from 'The Spy Who Loved Me', the James Bond film. I didn't end up keeping this line in the filmed scene because there wasn't much playability with it, in terms of having different shots and also a lack of interest to some of the lines. Therefore, I changed it later to include a scene that matched the script better. This was his first attempt at the lines.

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This is his last attempt at the lines. Before this take, I let him do the lines in a comedic way, to help him relax into the lines more. Therefore, when having another attempt at the lines he showcased far more confidence in comparison to his first take. I will use the technique during our first table read to see if the actors will bring this onto the day of filming.

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I created a shooting schedule, even though I'll be filming on the same day. This will help the actors to know when they are coming on for what shot.

Review: Whichever actor wasn't in frame for a particular shot they helped out with the crew and because they had a copy of this schedule, when a shot was called out they already had a description of what it was they needed to do. This sped the production process up massively.

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I created a risk assessment, which helps bring to light any potential risks that may occur whilst on set. This will help make both the crew and the actors aware of the risks and also how to reduce them as well.

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Having a table read really helped relax the actors for the lines they'd have in the filmed scene. It gave me time to help develop their characters to try and enhance them to the best that they could achieve. As they got better it made them further understand the objectives of their characters, helping divert their energy and evoke emotions.

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Due to the help of the pre-production documents and all the work done with the actors before hand, the production was largely a success. The only main reoccurring issue was the problem with external traffic noise. With the road being quite busy at this house, this became an unavoidable annoyance. One shot had seven takes before we could get through with minimal traffic. With this knowledge, next time I may look for other locations. Despite the usefulness of living at the same location as we were filming, it sadly does have its negatives.

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Whilst editing some of the shots that I created, either didn't have the desired effect, or didn't seem necessary when put together. Therefore, I took some of the shots out, whilst still maintaining the overall story, creating a far cleaner story to follow. Overall, the shots came out looking good. The black backdrop was good because removing black colours from shots, really enhanced that feeling of being in a bigger room. It also created a harder edged lighting across one side of the face of the actors, bringing out the best of the lighting in the room. The mise-en-scene of the props helped really create the sense of setting as well of being some illegal gambling location. I tried to embed some music within the scene. This meant I could emphasise emotions, such as eeriness, furthering the tension in the scene. My directions to some of the acting could have been better in some instances where certain lines fall flat and lose some of its energy. This is probably a problem because we filmed shots out of sequence to the point it perhaps confused the actors as to what point they were at. All in all, I'd say I was happy with the final render, ticking the boxes of being a 3-5 minute scene, that evokes a certain style and tone and where the actors, for the most part, are able to portray a certain character.