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In my video project group I was given the roles of Location Manger and Actor for the film 'Good Mourning Sunshine'. Below is a log book I kept over the course of the project, documenting what I did for each role.

Blue = Location Manager

Purple = Actor

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When approaching the script I first looked at what locations would be needed and we discussed as a crew the vision for our location and set.

Our main locations are: bedroom, living room, kitchen, park, TV set and hospital room.

Alana offered her house as the location for our bedroom, living room and kitchen scenes. I looked at the floor plan in accordance with the scenes as some of them required a character to walk from the living room to the kitchen for example so I needed to make sure this would be possible or at least that we would be able to create the illusion of this. Alana’s house was a perfect fit for this. The only parts of the house that did not work with the script was when the police see Margot in her living room from the front door as her front door is not based near the living room and when Margot walks out of her bedroom and goes downstairs as Alana’s bedroom is up two flights of stairs. However these issues could be easily worked around by, a small change to the script to make it her back door, and simply cutting the camera and changing the angle when Margot reaches a certain point in the stairway.

As Alana’s house was also close by, we would be able to store some equipment there, and had parking space available for equipment transport we all agreed that this would be the best location for Margot’s house scenes.

I then looked into where we could record the park and hospital scenes. My immediate thought was to use Peel Park and The Podiatry Clinic. The reason for this was they are both on campus making it easier for equipment transport but also getting filming permissions. The Podiatry Clinic also has a lot of cold colours that would suit our director, Sophie’s, mood board. A backup option could be the University Health Centre but I think it is unlikely as it is usually in operation during the work week and therefore would not be able to accommodate us.

The scene in Peel Park would involve Margot and Tracy talking about Becky. I wanted there to be cold colours to match Sophie’s mood board but also to visually push Margot’s depression and as it will be colder by the time we start filming the grass will hopefully be frosty and provide that cool tone. Additionally, Sophie wanted there to be colour in the scenes with the sitcom characters so I was thinking that if we use a part of the park where there are still leaves on the trees the orange and greens could provide that.

I got in touch with the Podiatry Clinic and received a quick response confirming that we could view and use the Podiatry Clinic.

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Today I viewed the Podiatry Clinic with our Production Co-ordinator, Lily. Paul Grimshaw met us at reception and showed us three individual rooms that we could use. I made note of where the plug sockets where located in the rooms for equipment and how the space would work in terms of the set decoration and scene movements with the actors.

Myself and Lily preferred the 2nd and 3rd room over the first. I liked the 2nd room as it looked like an A&E room. I discussed previously with our writer, director, costume and set teams, about whether Margot is supposed to be in a hospital room or A&E, as these may look different. Typically in A&E if you have just been admitted you do not get a private room but are just separated by a curtain which this room had. I know this from previous experience and from research I did on what happens when you are admitted to the hospital through A&E, Gloucestershire hospital states that you will be put in a bed in a ward (National Health Service, 2024). However, in some hospitals depending on circumstances you may have an individual room so I also kept that in mind. We both liked the third room because it was more spacious for crew and equipment.

I sent set photos through to our crew. Our director, Sophie, and director of cinematography, Ben, preferred the 1st room stylistically. I therefore followed up with Paul and asked if we would have free reign over what room we use. He confirmed that there wouldn't be any students, patients or staff using any of the rooms shown so we could come and go as we pleased. With this in mind, I booked out room 1, knowing we could use the third room if needed instead on the day as it was a similar style but bigger.

Paul also let us know that we could borrow a hospital bed from the learning centre and take down and put up posters as needed. I passed this information onto our props and set department.

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Today I looked into getting permissions to film at Peel Park and thought about where we might film our TV show scene. The TV studio seemed like the best option. It could be seen as quite 2D in terms of character, it doesn't provide much in terms of representing our characters, but I think this bodes well as we almost don't want the living room that Tracy and Alex are in to look too realistic. Having the location look slightly set-like and stereotypical to a sitcom propels the idea that the characters aren't real and just apart of this fictional TV show. Like, for example, in 'Forgetting Sarah Marshall' (Stoller, 2008) where the character of Sarah is in a crime TV show that only exists in their universe and the scene and set is laid out to look like a very stereotypical crime scene with the characters' wearing similar clothes that don't particular show any of their personality other than the fact that they're detectives based on stereotypical crime dramas.

I contacted Ryan about available dates for the TV studio and requested an availability form from our producer so I could get all locations booked on days where the cast and crew needed are free.

In terms of Peel Park, I filled in a location release form and am just waiting on our risk assessment to be signed off in order to send it off.

Although we already had confirmed permission to use the Podiatry Clinic I still also filled in the university's location release form in order to film there, just so that I have official permission and all of my bases are covered legally and ethically.

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During our session today I confirmed with both the TV studio and the Podiatry Clinic our dates for filming in accordance with the crew and cast needed at each location. I also requested a copy of the TV studio risk assessment for safety. I sent through to our producer local transport services (e.g. bus, train) and nearby parking for each location.

At lunch I went to Peel Park to take pictures of where we might film. I purposely chose pathways that were not the central pathway so we would not block members of the public and that were away from the water for the safety of the equipment. Additionally, I went to pathways that had a decent section of them that were straight and avoided stoney paths for ease with the dolly track.

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In this pre-production session I sent off our filming permission request to Salford Council after receiving our risk assessment back. This gave 6 working days, including that day, for it to be approved which was one more than the minimum days required. However, an issue arose when I received an email saying that we had not attached a signed risk assessment. Knowing I had, I responded with a copy of the risk assessment to confirm it was the document attached to the form. In the meantime I attempted to contact our group supervisor and module leader about the situation. After this was unsuccessful I attempted to resubmit the form, however the form would not let me and said there was an error. I tried to submit it on another laptop and it still did not work which lead me to call the number on the council's film request webpage. I explained the issue but they were unable to help and having still not received a response from my reply to the original email there was not much more I could do with it now being the end of the work day.

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This was our first day on location at Alana's house for filming. The locations being used today were the living room and kitchen.

I received an email response from our supervisor, Georgiana, about the rejection potentially being due to the fact she did not provide a written signature on the risk assessment, so she sent us a copy with the written signature and I was thankfully able to resubmit the form on this attempt.

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I knew coming into the audition that I most wanted the role of Margot, our main character, but was also happy to play the role of Becky.

With this in mind, I chose to audition as Margot, using an emotional extract from the script as I know from prior experience and feedback that I play emotional moments well. I looked at the scene and highlighted words that trigger my character to react and respond the way she does which has helped me connect with scenes in the past and did this time as well.

Prior to the audition I also read through the whole script to get a sense of the character and researched auditioning advice. Patrick Tucker says 'Directors love giving direction, love being needed, love having their skills used. Why not flatter the director by involving her in the audition?' (2014, p.126). Considering this, I made sure to ask questions prior to performing my extract about how ill Margot is at this point, to get an idea of her energy level, and what techniques they wanted me to use in order to differentiate her from the sitcom characters. I was told by our director that at this point in the script Margot has recently had fresh air so she isn't at her most ill yet and that Margot will be a lot less energetic than the others. I took this on board when performing and tried to channel my sadness and anger from a place of exhaustion.

I feel happy with how the audition went.

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Today I began research on the effects of Carbon Monoxide poisoning. This is obviously a large motivation for my character's behaviour and shows progression throughout the storyline so it is important to me to get it right. The NHS listed some of the physical symptoms as:

dizziness

headaches

feeling sick or being sick

feeling weak

confusion

chest and muscle pain

shortness of breath

(National Health Service, 2022)

I spoke to our director, Sophie, asking how long Margot has been poisoned for. Sophie suggested that it may have been a couple of weeks but with minimal exposure making the effects gradual, and being the reason why Margot feels better after she's been outside.

I decided to focus on the symptoms of a headache, feeling weak, and confusion as this fits in with the actions already written for me in the script (e.g. sleeping a lot, seeing things, etc.). David Mamet says to not 'invent' anything when playing a character so by looking at symptoms that align with the script I am not inventing anything new or denying what already exists (1997). I also decided that using breathlessness could be a good way to show Margot getting progressively more ill, by making my line delivery and general breathing more heavy, but letting it be easier when she is/has just been outside.

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During this rehearsal I tried to think clearly about how I use the camera with my movements. For example, we rehearsed the scene where Liv (Tracy) and I walk alongside each other using the dolly tracks. This was difficult as we had to put our feet either side of the track and pause walking in order to catch our reactions on camera. We had to do all of this whilst still trying to make our walking and pausing look natural so we had to 'cheat' it a bit by ensuring that we both stepped on the same foot first so that we didn't knock into each other and rehearsing multiple times to get the pause timed right and the steps to look normal on camera.

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Rehearsing our hospital scene made me think more about Margot's backstory. Practitioner, Stanislavsky encourages actors to create a world beyond the stage (or in this case screen) (1936). Margot has been alone in her apartment for weeks after losing her job, but why? I thought about what her job may have been, she may have worked in a higher up position in an office role, but been let go because of budget cuts. Why is this so devastating? Maybe it was her dream job that she spent her whole life working towards, shutting out personal relationships with friends and family to achieve it. Given that she clearly has a creative mind based on her brain's hallucinations, perhaps she was in a creative job such as marketing or design. And why even when she winds up in hospital does nobody come to visit her? My answer for this is that her parents have both passed away, her mother when she was younger, leaving her to the stern upbringing of her dad who taught her to not talk about her feelings or ask for help, but he is also the reason she is so ambitious, she wants to make him proud. He has passed away within the past year, making the loss of her job all the more devastating and providing a reason why she imagines having a lost relative and why no one visits her in the hospital.

Creating this background for Margot really helped me dive into the character, her intentions and motivations behind all that she does. Yes, it is just something I have created based on my interpretation of the script and the character but it is my interpretation that has landed me the role in the first place.

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I was casted in the role of Margot and today we began the day with a group table read. I feel this was a good way to bring us all together at the start of the day and remind ourselves of the script. I enjoyed seeing how my fellow actors decided to play characters and certain lines. For example, seeing how Kyle played Alex as a bit short tempered helped me to better define what my reactions and feelings in those moments might be.

Afterwards, we began rehearsals so that we knew our movements and shots in accordance with where the camera and crew will be. This will hopefully make the process more smooth when we are filming as we will already know where to stand and our movements, and have already received some feedback from our director.

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Today we filmed at the park location and I made sure to keep an eye on the weather on the days leading up to this. Luckily there was no rain but cold conditions so I reminded the crew beforehand to wrap up and be aware of potential ice patches.

Our director, Sophie, chose the first path as our filming location, which I preferred also for it’s straightness and because it was slightly further away from the main path and therefore quieter. We purposely picked a spot that was not under the trees for continuity, in case a leaf falls in one shot and not in another.

I arranged to meet the crew at an identifiable spot of benches nearby and when they arrived I asked our PA and continuity member to stand at either ends of the path to let pedestrians know that we were filming so that they would not walk into shot.

Overall, we managed to get the scene shot relatively quickly and there was no issues.

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Today we filmed the scene in Alana's kitchen that would require Kyle to make a mess on the floor so I ensured we had cleaning supplies ready to clean up afterwards so that the location could be left how we found it, but also for continuity and to avoid a slip hazard.

I received an email response from the council saying that the delay had been because of staff illness and as we had submitted in time the request to film was being approved which means we will be able to film there when planned.

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Today we were filming in the Podiatry Clinic. I let everyone know in advance that they should not bring any food or drinks other than water onto set. Although we should be finished with filming before lunch, I also let them know they can eat in any space outside of the set. Our producer also added this to our call sheet. This was one of the few things required of us from the Podiatry Clinic as it is still a medical unit.

I made sure to show up early as I was the face the staff had met. Upon arrival myself and other crew members decided room 3 would be better practically with the number of crew and equipment so, with confirmation from our AD, Ellie, we used that one. I made sure to ask everyone to keep their bags and coats out of the way of the corridor outside as to not inconvenience the staff or cause a tip hazard.

I did have to remind people a few times to keep their voices down when we weren't filming as there were still people working in the nearby rooms, to keep bags away from medical trolleys and not to eat or drink juice but other than that the day ran relatively smoothly. I used my original photo as a reference when tidying to make sure everything was put back the way it was found. Before leaving, I made sure to thank the staff for letting us use the space.

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On this day we filmed in the TV studio so I came in to make sure everything ran smoothly. I ran through the rules with everyone such as only drinking water and not leaning on the walls as they would fall. I then sat in the gallery and helped our director, cinematographer and lighting decide on how they wanted the lights to look, although this was difficult because our producer was not yet there with the camera so we couldn't see how the colours would look on our particular camera, but it did help us get to know where in the studio the lights were located and decide where we wanted it to look like the light was coming from. I had an appointment I had to leave for but I checked in after to make sure the space was left tidied and as we found it.

Overall, I had an enjoyable time location managing and collaborating with other departments, especially set, on bringing our collective vision to life.

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When shooting the scene of Margot coming down the stairs after looking for her necklace, I pointed out that the shot of me going down the stairs may not look continuous as I was going down the second flight of stairs but went up the first flight and we were trying to allude to their only being one set of stairs. The crew assured me that you couldn't tell and so we filmed it as we had been.

As this was our last day in Alana's house I made sure before leaving that everything was tidied and moved back in place so that the location was left the way we found it.

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Today we rehearsed the scene with Becky (Anna) and Margot reuniting.

This was a little tricky for our camera men as they had to follow me on the dolly track and keep it steady. I had to focus on not tripping on the track whilst running, without looking down at it, but as I have now used it before it was a bit easier to practice. We also had to rehearse how Becky would 'push' me out of the door without actually touching me as she is a part of my imagination. This required myself and Anna to be choreographed on how to move around the set to lead to her edging me toward the door and ultimately throwing myself out.

Margot looks into a mirror in this scene. In regards to acting with a mirror on camera, Tucker says 'the job is to make it look real, to provide a motivation so that it appears that it is the character, your character, who wants to hold the mirror that way and allow the camera to see your face in the reflection'. (2014, p.48). In order to do this I knew I would have to 'cheat' the shot by actually looking at the camera lens in the mirror rather than myself but still reacting as if I am seeing myself. It was challenging but fun to perform, acting whilst moving and still being aware of the camera, our reactions, and our pacing.

Finally, we also rehearsed how I would enter the house looking for Becky and created fake walls with chairs to represent different rooms as I ran around which was difficult to imagine but I knew it would be beneficial when filming to know where exactly to go.

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Today was our first day filming on set and in preparation I added more details and techniques to my script. I thought about my reactions and underlined lines that I might physically react to rather than verbally. I then added the technique of actioning by adding verbs onto my lines which motivates and explains why I am saying my line.

We had to do multiple takes of my kitchen scene with Anna, so to keep the energy up we bounced the lines off of each other in more jokey ways and played with the script in between takes.

Overall, I really enjoyed my first day on set.

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We shot our first scene in the bedroom today, when Liv's character (Tracy) wakes me up. I had to be careful to sit up in a similar position from lying down in all of our different shots for continuity and so that the lighting would hit my face correctly. At first this felt difficult but after a couple of shots it became quite natural and I didn't really have to think about it, giving me the ability to think more about my reactions instead.

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In the morning we filmed our scene where Margot realises that she has been hallucinating characters from a TV show. When filming this, Sophie suggested I act more shocked than my initial take and requested I look into the camera and break the fourth wall. This was challenging as I was aware of the camera being on my face for purely my reactions for a large portion of the scene which added pressure to perform well. Instead, I tried to focus more on having a train of thoughts happening in my head as Margot, so that the reactions were more natural and the viewer could see the thoughts and realisation gradually appear in my eyes.

For the park scene, the most challenging part was making sure Liv and I walked either side of the track without bumping into each other whilst wearing big coats. Luckily, our practices in rehearsal meant we could get the hang of it relatively quickly. Being able to see a take of the shot also really helped in knowing our framing and how much space we had to move within the frame.

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On this day we mostly shot scenes in the living room and kitchen involving myself and Kyle (Alex). I had to be careful when ending the scene where I'm looking for him that I ended in the exact same spot and position that I started in in our previously filmed scene where I talk to Becky, for continuity. I did this by referring back to our producer who had the previous footage to look back at.

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Today we shot in the Podiatry Clinic and when acting I tried to keep in mind some of the character traits I have deduced about Margot based on the script and allowed this to lead the way that I responded to Hollie (doctor). For example, the fact she can be quite stubborn and cold may mean she gets frustrated when the doctor tries to tell her she doesn't have a sister.

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Today was my final day of shooting. Whilst shooting the remaining scenes in the bedroom, I pointed out the fact that Margot had been wearing slippers in later scenes so we added a shot of me putting them on as I leave.

Whilst we filmed the scene of Margot having a nightmare I felt awkward as I had my eyes closed and was making strange noises in a room of people. Sophie prompted me to commit to it more and go above with it so I did and whilst it was uncomfortable, letting go of my own ego and self-consciousnesses was a valuable lesson in what it takes to commit to a character and do a scene justice.

As a whole, I really enjoyed my time on set and feel I have learnt a lot, especially about an actors responsibility with continuity and working as a collaborative with my cast mates and crew.

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Mamet, D. (1997). True And False: heresy and common sense for the actor. Faber & Faber Ltd.

National Health Service. (2022, July 1). Carbon monoxide poisoning. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/carbon-monoxide-poisoning/

National Health Service. (2024). What happens when I arrive at the Emergency Department? Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. https://www.gloshospitals.nhs.uk/our-services/services-we-offer/emergency-medicine/what-happens-when-i-arrive-at-the-emergency-department/

Stanislavski, K. (1936). An actor prepares. Read Books Ltd.

Stoller, N. (Director). (2008). Forgetting Sarah Marshall [Film]. Universal Pictures., & Apatow Productions.

Tucker, P. (2014). Secrets of Screen Acting (3rd ed.). Taylor & Francis Group.