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1.1 Describe areas for development in your current knowledge, understanding and skills

What is your current knowledge and understanding of film? (For example: watching film, reviewing, photography, making your own films, Youtube channel, film or media course, work experience)

Recorded the answers to all of these questions as a video with Ree.

Do you have specific areas of interest or skills in filmmaking? Include links to film work, photos, music etc.

What role(s) would you see yourself taking on your Academyy film? What do you hope to gain from the BFI Film Academy?

How would you like to improve your skills or knowledge of film? Give reasons. Do you have plans to further study and work in film?

1.2 Take a role in the production of a short film

What is your production role?

I am going to be a extra in the short film my group will shoot.

What planning will you do?

I will go over my lines and listen to feedback from everyone else to ensure that my performance is the upmost best. As well as this, I’ll help with planning and filming it all too.

What will you do in pre-production, production and post-production? What specific skills do you need?

In pre-production, I will help plan out all of the shots we will be doing as well as map out what I need to do as an extra in the film. With skills, I need a somewhat understanding of acting - for the film I will be portraying a demon in the end scene and so I need to work on coming across as ‘scary’ and sort of ‘demonic’. For post-production, I will be editing the film we shot which can range from cutting clips and rearranging to changing the colour grade of the clips to look better.

What equipment will you use?

As I only act in the last scene of the film, for the start I will be using the camera, boom mic and lighting.

What documents will you use and how?

I will be using the shot list by referring to what it says is involved in the scene and making sure I film exactly what is happening on the paper.

What other resources are needed to make a film?
Include any planning and pre-production work you have been involved with.

Storyboards, Shot Lists, Call Sheets

What other resources are needed in your film production? (For example locations, actors and anything else you will need)

Background actors, different locations, props?

1.3 Gain feedback on how you performed your role and share the feedback

Ask tutors and/or other Academy participants the questions below, you can write your answers, film them or record the audio

Can you tell me what I did well?

What were the challenges and how did I deal with them? How did I work within my team?

Do you have any advice or areas for my development?

1.4 Review own technical skills and use of equipment

What did you do in your role?
Do you agree with the feedback? Give reasons for your answers.

For my role, I wasn’t needed until the final scene so I made myself useful and began helping out with set design and also hair and makeup. I agree with my feedback that I could’ve done more with certain roles as when I finished doing something I stayed to the side before picking up another thing to do a little bit later.

How well do you think you carried out your role in production? What were your strengths and what were your challenges?

I think I carried out my role well, for my strengths I was good with setting up the scene and making it look authentic - some challenges I faced was that the space provided was very content and the background that wasn’t convincing would’ve been showing in shot. I overcame this challenge by helping others move around the furniture and covers to resemble an open meeting space.

In what ways did your technical filmmaking skills develop over the course of film production?

I learned how to operate a boom mic and take use of a professional film camera which I had no prior experience of using, I watched closely as some professionals came in and demonstrated how to do it.

How far has your knowledge and understanding of film production developed?

I think it has developed a lot and I can confidently work on certain technical roles on a film set and know exactly what to do.

Give examples (consider your knowledge of: technical equipment, on-set processes, production documents, post-production)

I know how to set up a boom mic and operate one, the correct technique to hold it and capture audio the best. This is the same with operating a professional industry camera and setting up lighting.

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Understand professional development opportunities within the film industry

2.1 Explain the working culture of the film industry

What is it like working in the film industry?
(Consider hours, travel, freelance, working on set and budget. What are the pressures? What are the positives and negatives?)

Working on the film industry is an amazing way to express yourself and get paid for it although it’s not an entirely stable job. Hours can be very limited or even too much to handle depending on the type of set you’re working with. For travelling, if you are filming in a set location you’ll need to make sure you have accessible transportation at all times because you need to actually get to the set - also being aware that you need to return back home at the end of the day. Some pressures in the industry can range from people relying on you to finish your job so they can begin theirs to smaller things like completing tasks to the best of your ability. While there are a few negatives (long hours, changeable pay, not as accessible in certain ways), there are a lot of positives as well! (the experience, meeting people, getting a paycheque etc).

What qualities do you need to work in the film industry? (E.g. Showing initiative, taking responsibility, good time management, knowing your specialism, having good communication skills)
Give reasons for your answers.

You should consider these qualities when working in the film industry: flexibility, availability, good attitude/behaviour, being reliable, good communications, extensive knowledge etc.

What have you learned about the working culture of the industry from masterclasses and working on your own film production?

I have learned a number of things which range from the work ethic to how focused you should be on the job. It’s important to constantly been on top of things and make sure you know exactly what you’re doing to get a great outcome.

2.2 Describe a range of key job roles and responsibilities in the film industry

Research 5 different roles in the production department and summarise them. Explain how the roles work together.

Director -

The director oversees everything that goes on during the set, if a smaller department makes a decision - they need to approve it through the director.

Producer -

The producer works closely with the director and works on sourcing key things like the script, hiring other roles, arranging finances etc.

Camera Operator -

The camera operator is one of the most important person/s on set as they actually record what the director wants. They work closely with the Camera Supervisors, Director, Producer and Director Of Photography.

Make-Up Artist -

The make-up artist works closely with the actors and costumer designer/set designers to perfect the make-up and make sure it blends in with the outfit/surroundings. The director would also weigh in on what they want the actors to look like.

Gaffer -

The gaffer is the person who oversees anything electrical while on a set and takes care of lighting etc. They work closely with the Director Of Photography to make sure everything looks good as well as the Camera Operator so they can see if the lighting looks okay.

2.3 Outline the potential progression routes into the film industry and wider sector

What have you learned about potential progression routes into film and connected creative industries? Research the following routes:

Apprenticeships
Apprenticeships are a great way to get hands-on experience in the industry while also getting some money to help towards your job path. Usually you can get an employer who (in this specific industry) will show you around set and let take notes as well as helping around with small jobs.

Entry-level jobs
Entry-level jobs are smaller jobs that also give you a direct way into the industry. Some good jobs can include: Writing Assistants, Lighting Consultant, Boom Operator etc. With these jobs, you can progress onto the main heads of department and work your way up through the hierarchy.

Studying at university
Studying at university is also a great option, you can gather more knowledge as well as more experience in a shared environment.

Online opportunities (e.g. entering competitions, sharing work, networking)

Online opportunities are more common and are very beneficial when it comes down to the film industry. Networking is key as you can meet so many people with so many skills which is what you would want if you were looking to create a production of your own. With competitions, professionals are viewing your work and picking out what you did best and worst plus you could potentially get a prize for it.

Film festivals
Film festivals is another great way to network within the industry but also it gives you access to watch films from people like you which could inspire you. You could even get in contact with them if you like their work and produce something together/have them on your team.

BFI Film Academy progression (residential courses, BAFTA mentoring and Future Skills)

Personal Progression Plan

What areas/ specialisms in creative media would you like to work in?

I would like to work/specialise in directing but also acting!

Would you like to further study film / creative media?

Yes, I’d love to study on further and extend my current knowledge to help me later on down my career path.

What courses interest you? Give reasons

Directing courses interest me because I think it’s remarkable how by working with other people on a project, you can bring words on a piece of paper to life and let people from all around the world enjoy it.

Which local media companies would you be interested in working with? Give reasons
'North East Screen' is a great company which helps people aspiring to be in the film industry, achieve just that. They can help with gathering a crew, advertising, funding, business support etc. I'd love to work with them because it's an amazing opportunity based where I live which is quite rare, the company helps those achieve something that they thought wasn't achievable and I admire that.

What are the options for making your own content
Posting short films to YouTube, TikTok maybe even Instagram. Same applies for web series, documentaries etc.

What would you make and how?
I would like to make mini web series' based on a horror aspect, I would do this by assembling a team of people I know are good with the equipment and easy to work with.

What are the options for funding and distribution? What networks will you join?
For funding, the whole team could help contribute as well as myself personally working and setting money aside - also contacting local companies asking for some of the money.

What do you hope to gain from these networks? Are there other opportunities you are interested in? What are your next steps?
I hope to gain a trust with these companies in hope that in the future I can work with them more frequently without feeling alienated. I would be interested in being an actor as well, being in front of the screen. My next steps from here are to reach and branch out to other companies and see if I can help out anywhere possible.

Learning from Masterclasses

(It’s worth briefing the industry speaker in terms of giving detail about their role and their personal progression.)

Industry Speaker:

John Noble

What is their job? What does it involve?

John’s job is production design/prop designing and so it’s his work to design sets, use different props to piece together a scene etc.

How did they start working in film/media?

John went to the university of Sunderland to study film and began doing work experiences on sets, his first major production he worked on was Batman Begins.

What have they done in their career?

He has gone on to work on various different show and movie sets in which he decorates the rooms provided and designs the actual props that will be used in it.

What have you learnt about working in film/media?

It’s a very observing industry, you need to stay very focused so you don’t miss anything but also be very mindful of the area around you - all the departments on a film set do different jobs and it’s important it flows so you can’t get in the way.

What opportunities for your own progression have you found out about?

None

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3.1 Be able to develop effective working relationships with film production team members

What are the different teams in your production?

Directors, set designers, makeup artists, sound team, lighting team.

How do they work together? For example, how did your team work together to prepare for the shoot? Also, during production and post-production?

We all worked together by pitching ideas as a team and adapting from one another’s until we all liked a precise idea. One team would pitch an idea and another would then evolve that by adding what they had thought and we’d all come to a mutual agreement.

Why is it important that production teams work well together?

It is important because if the teams don’t work together then it would create a bad environment that can be very messy and disrupted. It’s important all teams are working together to ensure everyone is on the same page and everything will go smoothly and quickly.

Give an example of when your production team/s worked well together.

While some of the teams were filming scenes outside, the remaining teams began setting up the indoor scene sets and designing it to look like how we had planned in pre production.

What can happen if there isn’t good teamwork?

Many people can get confused with what someone is trying to do as there’s no real teamwork going into it. All of the tasks would be performed slowly and it would be a waste of time.

Was there an example of when teamwork could have been better on your film production? How did this affect the production process?

While one of the teams were set designing, we hadn’t had any contact with the other and so we didn’t get any updates on the outside scenes due to the lack of communication.

3.2 Identify the qualities needed to work well with others

What are the most important qualities for working well as part of a film production team?

Exceptional communication skills, organised mindset, vast knowledge, patience

How did you show the following, give examples:

Good timekeeping
Being reliable
Sharing ideas

- I did a certain amount of hours on hair makeup then switched to set designing then again finally for film production, it was a constant rota.

- I helped look through the final scripts and documents for filming and while the others began planning with the cinematographer I organised all the documents and went over them with some other team members. I also helped with hair and makeup.

- I incorporated some of my thoughts into the main idea for the short film which is what everyone else did and in the end it came together all nicely.

Good communication

I helped other teams when needed and kept to time management to make sure we were all working well.

Safe working

I made sure to keep referring to the location recce and risk assessments to see any precautions that we may needed to of taken.

3.3 Describe how you worked with others collaboratively on your film production

How did you work with others in the crew?
Give an example of when you worked well with your team.

An example is when we were going over the documents on the filming morning to make sure everything is set and ready - we all went through everything completely and kept referring to our storyboards and notes and used those notes even when in hair and makeup to see what the vision looks like projected.

Were there any problems you needed to overcome? Give examples: How could you improve your ability to work with others?
A problem that occurred was that the communication was lacking between my group and we were not on the same page for a lot of pre-production. To overcome this issue, I sat down with my group and we created documents highlighting the different roles and who was going to be filling which - after we all agreed on these small details, we knew exactly what to do.

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Understand film industry working practices and legislation

Demonstrate good health and safety practice when working on film productions

Why is health and safety important when working on film productions? What are some of the key safety issues relating to film production?

Health & Safety is very important when working on film productions as it allows certain rules to be set in place to protect yourself and everyone else around you. Some of the key safety issues revolving around film production involve: dangerous sets/scenes, weather conditions possibly linking to illnesses etc.

How did you apply good health and safety practice when making your film? Include your risk assessment and explain why this is important.

When filming, I monitored the risk assessment and kept referring back to it when looking around the filming space. This is the risk assessment:

Explain why copyright is important in the film industry

What is Copyright?

Copyright is when you take another person’s ideas/work and use them or even try portray them as your own - if you do this it can results in fines and lawsuits from the owners.

Why does copyright law exist?

Copyright law exists to help prevent the theft of a person’s work and give them full credit for their creations. A lot of the time people make money off of their work and so without copyright laws anyone could take their work and claim money that isn’t rightfully theirs.

What kind of work is covered by copyright?
Movies, poetry, novels, shows, songs, computer software.

What might happen if you were to use copyrighted material in your film? How can you make sure not to infringe copyright law in your film?
If I were to use copyrighted material in my film, there is a possibility that I can't get any profit off of it, it could be removed for streaming, I could potentially get sued.

How has copyright law and other IP regulation affected your film production?
We couldn't use certain songs or online sound effects as well as branded props - this made it hard and very limited on what we could and couldn't include but we managed to make it work eventually.

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Be able to review film productions

Review and critique at least one short film production

Film Title, Director, Country, Year.

‘

Story outline (1 or 2 sentence summary)

What is the film about, is there a theme or message?

Describe the genre (if fiction film), or style (if documentary). How was sound used?

How were camera techniques used?

What was the editing style?

Describe the setting/ location/ mise-en-scene.

Who is the film aimed at?

How did the film make you feel? Did it work well?
Would you recommend it?

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‘Lights Out’ A short thrilling film by esteemed director David F. Sandberg.
The Swedish director produced the short in 2013 as part of the ‘Who’s there?’ film challenge - this film went on to win the award.

The plot consists of a woman seeing a strange figure in the dark, so she keeps the lights on; only when the figure turns the light off does the creepiness settle in. While there is no messages in this mini film, the theme messes with the idea of being scared in the dark which I believe works well with jumpscares Sandberg has combined. I believe the sound was extremely useful and important in this film as it elevated the jumpscare completely. There is no monologue in the film and the plot relied solely on what you could see and hear which was running footsteps and the light switching on/off - this creates an eerie atmosphere which is easily identified when watching the piece of media.

A lot of over the shoulder shots were used as well as a POV so the audience could feel like how the protagonist felt under the covers, scared with a fast heartbeat. The style relied on shot placement in a far view - this basically means you could see a lot in the shot which I think is clever. If there’s a lot to look at and focus on, your pent up anxiety will be scanning the film and seeing if you can see the figure chasing the woman. The setting is a very laid back home, the sets used are a single hallway and a bedroom which is suited up to look average.

The film made me feel anxious as I had expected sudden noises or the figure running towards the character visually but it wasn’t anything like that. The style the director used allowed the audience to relax which took them by surprise when the figure is revealed at the end, this elevation made the short film truly understand the horror aspect.

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After each session answer these questions and include any photos taken:

Date:

1. What did you do?
2. What have you learnt?
3. How have you worked with others?

4. What do you need to develop?

OR Write or film your SHOOT DIARY for your portfolios.

Please include production photos, any behind the scenes footage, scripts, storyboards and other key production documents and a link to the finished film.

What was your role in pre-production and what did you do?

During pre-production, I worked on shot lists and storyboarding which essentially I just worked with the director and his vision of how he wanted the scene to go - once I asked for his input, I asked in anyone wanted to add anything before I started drafting them up and later finishing them.

What was your role on the shoot?

On the shoot, I was the set designer.

Briefly explain what happened each day of shoot.
What equipment and skills did you need to apply to your role?

I set up the area we chose as a 'open meeting' type of area with two other people helping me, this included moving furniture/adding some in, adding posters, adding decoration and props - essentially setting the scene. I had done research on what these spaces looked like and that enabled me to do more with what I was given and elevate how the area looked, I think I did an okay job.

How well prepared do you feel we were for the shoot?

Explain. What changes had to be made and why?

I wasn't as well prepared as I had thought but I did manage to pull it off, at the start of the day we were missing 3 important documents that were vital for the camera operator and producer and so we had to quickly draft a make-shift one up. While it wasn't as good as the original, my group and I had practically memorised the old documents so we knew exactly how it went. This also links into a change that had to be made.

Did you have any feedback or advice from tutors / others on set? In what ways did you improve your own knowledge and skills?

I had been given feedback on helping others with their roles and I worked more on doing that/filling up vacant role spaces once I had completed mine and so on. Continuously moving onto the next to get things done.

Who did you work with on set? How do you feel you worked with others on set?

I worked with the Makeup Artist and others on their jobs - I feel like I worked well with everyone on set as we had the same interests and one key thing in common (getting the job done). Our ideas bounced of each other and it was easy to work with them.

What did you learn about how a film crew work together on a shoot?

I learned that while it can be stressful with time management, it's great that everyone works together! it's the support that you don't realise at first which makes the set complete.

Briefly explain how you followed good working practices for filmmaking? (Time management, health and safety, being reliable and coping with on set demands.)

While on set, I had a copy of the risk assessment and location recce so I could closely monitor health and safety risks which luckily didn't get violated. At the start of the film day I was running behind schedule as there was so much to do but once I got the hang of it I managed to easily get through jobs and help the others in my group. I believe I was reliable during the shoot as I was there to help whenever.

Overall – How do you feel the shoot went? What went well/ didn’t go well? What would you improve on?

Overall, I feel like the shoot went very well and while there is room to improve I now know how the experience is and I can be more better prepared next time. I could improve on my time management as well as listening to other's concerns while I'm wrapped up with filming. Something's didn't go as well as I had hope (the the costume for some of the extras, the weather) but we managed to improvise and turn it around which I find amazing.