https://padlet.com/KayleeLambert4466/aicemediablog en-us 2022-08-23 15:00:35 UTC 2024-03-30 02:42:48 UTC hello@padlet.com KayleeLambert4466 https://padlet.com/KayleeLambert4466/aicemediablog/wish/2268934033  

This is the first film we have created for AICE Media studies. I worked with Brielle, Mya, Adriana, Natalia, and Maria. The film is focused on a bully who is having family issues and a victim who tries to help her. My role was the camera man. The director and I did a a lot of collaborating.  
   The production of this film was rocky; however, we managed to produce a final piece. There are many improvements we could have made such as que commands, using different locations, camera movement, and especially sound.  The major element we need to work on is sound. You can not hear some scenes which takes away some of the plot. Another element is the camera work especially in the scene where the victim was eavesdropping on the bully's conversation with her mother. There was a lot of swishing movement there which was distracting. Additionally, in the last scene, the victim's face was not shown and I feel if it were it would have added to the production.


]]> 2022-08-23 15:41:47 UTC https://padlet.com/KayleeLambert4466/aicemediablog/wish/2268934033 KayleeLambert4466 https://padlet.com/KayleeLambert4466/aicemediablog/wish/2310706194 https://youtu.be/wXZQrobDTNw In this assignment, the task was to rewrite and improve the script of another groups film while having to incorporate 10 different shots and camera movements. The original plot of the story was about a kid who is getting bullied and tried to get the bully suspended because he is bullying multiple kids. Our plot was basically the same as the other groups except we added in a few minor changes. For example, in our short film, the victim becomes friends with two people and one of the friends suggests the victim should simply fight back. This concept was not present in the original film. We also added more POV shots from the point of views of the bully and victim.

    The shot movements we incorporated into this film are an establishing shot, close up, high angle shot, long shot, low angle shot, a pan left, three shot, a tilt up, track out, and a two shot. Additionally, for our original film, my role was the cinematographer. In this film I was an actress. Being a cinematographer for our first film was not too difficult being that I did not know a lot of the information I know now. I feel that if I had known more back then my experience would have been different. Moreover, being an actress for this film was fun and allowed us as "actresses" to be creative. I was not used to being recorded and having to act "normal" that was odd to me. 

    In this film I believe our shot list and movements were well thought out. For example, when we had the POV shot from the bully's perspective and the close up of the victims face. The close up really shows the fear in her face and allows the audience to feel that fear and disbelief. However, sound was still an issue in some of the scenes as it was in the last film, but it was not nearly as incomprehensible. One of the things we could have worked on was showing the faces of the characters who needed to be shown. I feel the angles could have been better. Like when the three of them were sitting at the table, the focus was primarily on the water bottle in the middle of the table. It needed to be on the characters with the main dialogue. In the end, the shot movements that really worked were the POV shots, pan left, and all tracking movements.
    ]]> 2022-09-23 15:37:00 UTC https://padlet.com/KayleeLambert4466/aicemediablog/wish/2310706194 KayleeLambert4466 https://padlet.com/KayleeLambert4466/aicemediablog/wish/2366910676      The genres that were covered during class were romance, horror, drama, biopics, thriller, B movies, animation, musicals, indie (independent film), superhero, comedy, sports, family, film noir, mystery, historical, western, war, adventure, sci-fi, crime, fantasy, documentary, and Shakespeare. For each of these genres we watched three video clips from different time periods that highlighted the genre. We also broke down and studied the conventions, codes, and audience expectations for each of these genres. Additionally, some of the clips that were shown were hybrids. A hybrid is a mix of two or more genres represented in a film. For instance, comedy-horror and historical-war.
        Furthermore, the hybrid-genre of the first two films our group created are young adult-drama because both of the films had a similar outline. We conformed to the conventions of this genre because we used a setting familiar to teens/young adults, teenage characters, cell phones/videos/backpacks (iconography), everyday life setting, and a "problem-solution" format.  The codes we used were high-key(happy)/low-key(sad) lighting, POV shots to enhance sympathy/feeling, an establishing shot in the beginning, as well as a lot of tracking from actress to actress. Some of the audience expectations of young adult-drama that we included were sympathy when the bully was shown to be having a rough time at home. A sense of connection/relatable concepts because bullying, especially today, is a common thing. Some of the codes, conventions, and expectations we broke were that young adult is typically based on YA literature which this was not. There also were not any special transitions which are usually included in dramas to create a more dramatic affect.
      My personal favorite genre is drama because it is usually relatable. A potential story line for this genre: A young boy just moved away from his hometown after his mom passed. Ever since her passing, he has not been able to live the happy joyful life he once remembered. He is not sure how much longer he can take the pain when suddenly he meets a boy who brings back his spark. As for codes, conventions and expectations within this potential film and genre I would like to explore soliloquy. This would be a strong add in because it would let the audience know the thoughts and struggles of the character and how they truly feel. Also spin around shots are something I would like to include because I  have never attempted one before and it would add a nice effect to the film. I also want to work with lighting more like using lowkey lighting to portray the tone of the film. 

]]> 2022-11-02 15:40:30 UTC https://padlet.com/KayleeLambert4466/aicemediablog/wish/2366910676 KayleeLambert4466 https://padlet.com/KayleeLambert4466/aicemediablog/wish/2434862970  In November and December of 2022, I have learned about editing, sound, and screenwriting/screenplay format. We studied film editing concepts and made documents that featured more than 20 editing techniques. I watched "A Cutting Edge", a documentary on film editing as well as a video focused on the usage of color. We studied the basics of sound and watched a documentary on cinema sound called "Making Waves". Additionally, we read the screen play of "The Incredibles" as a class. This lead to us learning how to format screenplays using special software. We then were assigned to write a two minute horror film opening about someone having a nightmare as the basis of our midterm film project.

Furthermore, the requirements for the midterm film project are that it has to be one to two minutes long, a horror or horror hybrid, an opening to a film rather than it having an end, and minimal dialogue being that it mostly consists of music and sound effects/ambiance. More requirements are that there can not be wall-to-wall music, no long takes, it has to start in black with a company indent/logo and title, credits (optional), a minimum of 3 crosscuts between the actor and the nightmare, edited/shot/uploaded by the student, and an accompanying blog post. The film must also include one close up, one dutch angle, one high or low angle, one low key light set up or one silhouette.  As well as one pan or tilt or track/push or spinaround, one zoom or dolly zoom, one subliminal cut or multitake or smash cut, one match cut, one  J cut or L cut, one use of slow or fast motion, one intentional use of color for story/emotion; one instance of intentional use of costume/hair/makeup; one instance of visual complexity in setting choice (color, texture, depth, lines, shapes, etc.); three sound effects; one piece of incidental music or one sound motif repeated three times.  Extra credit to include: quick cuts; montage; wide establishing shot; split screen; POV shot; reflection shot; intentional break of the fourth wall; intentional break of the rule of thirds; rack focus or pull focus shot; intentional use of handheld camera work; use of color filters to create a dream like quality; fisheye lens or fisheye effect, and a company logo with high quality graphic. 

Moreover, some ways I adhered to the codes of the horror genre are by using dutch angles to create an unsettling feeling, hard lighting for intensity, using silence to create suspense, jump cuts, and lowkey lighting. Some conventions  I adhered to was the use of children/teenagers, the victim tripping over a branch/shoe while running, a quiet area, and no one being around to see what happened to the victim. Audience expectations I included were the victim being a teenager which makes the audience have a different type of sympathy. Another expectation would be seeing a crime/kidnapping and a sense of uneasiness. However, some codes and conventions I broke are that my film takes place in a mostly sunny environment which creates a happier mood. The audience would usually expect a dark and gloomy area. I also filmed in a family friendly neighborhood which is odd because the audience would expect a abandoned road or forest for a film with this plot. An audience expectation I broke was that the kidnapper was also a teenager. Additionally, an idea I represented in my film is how girls/women are constantly having to be cautious and aware of their surroundings no matter the place. Unfortunately, in todays society, its not super uncommon for a women to be taken advantage of or kidnaped/threatened. It happens at any place and any time. 

Some successful aspects in my piece were the acting and the match cut at the end when the kidnapper was hitting the victim with a racquet. I was worried it was not gonna match because of the way I filmed it but it turned out to be exceptional. On the contrary, some less successful moments/weaknesses was the editing. This was my first time editing so it took a second to get used to. I wish the editing in the film had turned out a little smoother. For the background music I used YouTube and for editing I used CapCut. CapCut is an easy editing software and learning how to navigate it was not difficult at all.  

]]> 2023-01-05 16:29:54 UTC https://padlet.com/KayleeLambert4466/aicemediablog/wish/2434862970 KayleeLambert4466 https://padlet.com/KayleeLambert4466/aicemediablog/wish/2470838846 In the first two minutes of the film "All the Bright Places" the opening scene is a tracking of a young man taking an evening jog when suddenly he spots a girl at the edge of a bridge. In efforts to prevent the situation he engages in conversation with her. The genre of this film is drama- romance and the target audience is young adults/teenagers. This is a Netflix Original Film, so the logo appears before the opening scene. During the first two minutes there are not any opening credits just music. The first shot is a close up on his feet while jogging, then it goes to an over the shoulder shot from behind, and a close up onto his face. While tracking the camera tilts up his body while he is running until he comes to a stop (when he saw the girl). Then a wide shot of the girl and her surroundings followed by a medium of her, then a wide shot again of the bridge; medium on the boy; two shot and tilt on the both of them. Moreover, the sound during the opening two minutes begins with, surprisingly, uplifting music. Then when the boy takes his headphones of its silence followed by dialogue. After the two minutes I felt like I needed to know more, how he was going to try and prevent her jumping, if she was going to jump, what their conversation consisted of, etc. The length of the shots were not long but also were not short. Every shot let the viewer analyze what was happening. The first two minutes adhered to conventions by including a social issue and two teenagers. It also had dark lighting. It broke conventions in a way because it started of strong and did not ease into anything. It represented mental health issues and how people truly struggle with them and often do not know how to cope so it overwhelms them. Furthermore, it was most likely distributed on Netflix because Netflix is a platform that a lot of young adults and adults watch. Unfortunately, various groups of people can relate to a topic like this.]]> 2023-02-06 22:11:34 UTC https://padlet.com/KayleeLambert4466/aicemediablog/wish/2470838846 KayleeLambert4466 https://padlet.com/KayleeLambert4466/aicemediablog/wish/2483757742 As the cinematographer, I have conferred with the director as well as my other group members for input on the shooting process. Since the script for our film does not have much dialogue (about two lines), we will not be using any special sound equipment. The only sound will most likely be ambient sounds.  For lighting, a lot of the lighting will be lowkey being that a couple scenes take place outside and it will be dark out. The other scenes however will be located inside Target which is very bright. The beginning scenes will be inside Target/Starbucks. They begin by sitting on a bench which will be a medium/two shot; they walk in the isle which be a tracking shot; they share a coffee at the coffee shot which will be a medium or possibly wide; wide shot on the women they see in the store; close up on the phone that appears to get a text message from the women the two girls see; medium shot; woman walks to other woman camera tracks her; spin around shot of the two woman hugging; camera goes back to the alone woman; over the shoulder shot; close up on alone women's face. Additionally, this is not an official shot list and some aspects will most likely change while filming being that new ideas will be presented.]]> 2023-02-15 16:42:27 UTC https://padlet.com/KayleeLambert4466/aicemediablog/wish/2483757742 KayleeLambert4466 https://padlet.com/KayleeLambert4466/aicemediablog/wish/2508803121 If I were to independently distribute my film I would want it to be streamed on a streaming service. I would contact the aggregator BITMAX because of their payment plan. The streaming service I would go for would be HBO Max because the content on there is similar to our film meaning that genre's audience is on HBO Max which would generate viewers for our film. The title of our film is "Step On Me" which I think goes well with our film because the plot involves a girl "betraying" or leading on her friend and one of the songs used in our film opening is "Step On Me" by The Cardigans. I also believe this  title fits the genre because it reciprocates that romance-drama that we are going for. Additionally, a tag line I would create for our movie poster would be "Everything was a lie". It leaves suspense and a dramatic effect on the poster without spilling anything. The target audience for this genre would generally be young adults, 13-25 years in age most likely female could be male as well, in college or high school, going through relationship issues, part of the LGBTQ+ community or an ally, into romance  books, etc. If they are into romance novels they would shop at bookstores which means we could advertise in book stores to attract those viewers. Maybe they would go to coffee shops to read in which case it would be smart to advertise at a local coffee shop. Since this is a young audience they most likely have social media so we could make a page on Instagram or TikTok that people could follow and have the ability to stay up to date with our film and its trailers/teasers and release. We could also make posters to hang in schools or go to the school film club to spread information about our film to their peers who may find it interesting. Young adults/teens shop in stores like Hollister, Pacsun, H&M, and American Eagle where we could advertise. Another store could be Claire's, the jewelry store, where we could cross promote. We could make our own merchandise like broken heart necklaces and advertise our film on them to make our film known. These are all things that I could do to self distribute. To engage my target audience I could cross promote with a coffee shop, Starbucks, and make our own specialty drink relating to the show. It would be the drinks the characters got in our film. Then announce that the first 100 people to repost themselves watching our film and leave a review get out two free drinks. Moreover, looking at CLIO Key Art awards, some inspiration I saw was turning well known places/spots into the theme or our, or the, film. This would be extremely effective however I feel a different approach for our genre. For the posters I saw a lot of bright, eye catching colors that I feel we need to use in order to differentiate our poster from others. I believe an audience can deduce a films storyline from their posters which is why the art needs to be a good representation of the film. A lot of drama-romance movies have couples kissing on the front or sunsets in the background. They also have soft comforting colors like light blues, yellows, oranges, pink, white, and beige. For our poster it would include soft pinks and blues to attract that female audience, the main (girl) character in the center to display her importance, cursive to exemplify emotion, most likely a white background, and pick or red to represent passion or love. For marketing, a lot of romance-drama films draw attention to themselves through fashion or jewelry to target a more feminine audience. This is something we could build off of.]]> 2023-03-08 15:40:22 UTC https://padlet.com/KayleeLambert4466/aicemediablog/wish/2508803121 KayleeLambert4466 https://padlet.com/KayleeLambert4466/aicemediablog/wish/2530574004 During the production of the film, as a cinematographer, I learned how important camera work is and how it truly illustrates the plot. One extreme close up/close up can emphasize how intimate or intense the scene is. I did not realize how much effort and time goes into each individual scene and angle and every color that appears within the shot matters. There were some obstacles we had to overcome during the process, for example, one of our scenes that was originally supposed to be in the film was completely changed so the way we filmed was completely changed. The director and I had to come up with creative ways to shoot the scene. Additionally, our rough cut was not too bad, it was just very jump-like and we had film that was not needed. We do not have much dialogue in our film so sound was not an issue in our rough cut. Our final cut was smooth, but some feedback we had was that it was a little too quick or quick paced, so we may add a slow-mo or some double takes.]]> 2023-03-24 15:12:00 UTC https://padlet.com/KayleeLambert4466/aicemediablog/wish/2530574004 KayleeLambert4466 https://padlet.com/KayleeLambert4466/aicemediablog/wish/2545501494 https://youtu.be/MVwrBvgtr4Y

]]> 2023-04-05 22:37:53 UTC https://padlet.com/KayleeLambert4466/aicemediablog/wish/2545501494 KayleeLambert4466 https://padlet.com/KayleeLambert4466/aicemediablog/wish/2545501989 https://youtu.be/6jLp-j0T_cM]]> 2023-04-05 22:38:53 UTC https://padlet.com/KayleeLambert4466/aicemediablog/wish/2545501989