Final Reflection of this Project

 This project has by far been the longest and most tedious project I've ever done, there were days where I was just thinking about how I'd rather swap classes than do an 8-week project, but by the end of the 8 weeks I honestly enjoyed myself a bit, I was able to record something entirely my own with my boys, and we had a ton of fun recording it and adding some little inside jokes in the film opening. 

I was inspired by some of my favorite crime/mafioso movies and did research on the openers and the credit sequence. The research step of the whole project had to be the most important part of it. These blogs I've created throughout these 8 weeks show the research I've done on everything. I created draft scripts, shot lists and timelines. They all contributed to my final result which I am proud of and helped make the process easier to keep track of. 

The Monsters We Become

INT. HOUSE – NIGHT

A quiet street. One house lit.

INT. BASEMENT STAIRWELL – NIGHT

Muted voices below. The NARRATOR descends the stairs.

BASEMENT – NIGHT

A group of MEN in dark suits stand and sit in silence.

Smoke lingers.

NARRATOR (V.O.)

Everyone here had a role.

The narrator scans the room.

ON LOUIS 

Restless. Leaning against the wall.

NARRATOR (V.O.)

That’s Louis. He never handled pressure well.

EXT. ALLEY – NIGHT (FLASHBACK)

Louis stands by a dumpster, breathing fast.

He looks around. Nervous.

He throws a body bag into the dumpster.

INT. BASEMENT – NIGHT

Louis steadies himself.

CAMERA ON SECOND MAN 

Seated. Papers on the table.

NARRATOR (V.O.)

Some people keep their hands clean.

Money moves quicker.

CAMERA ON OLDER MAN 

Still. Watching everyone.

NARRATOR (V.O.)

Others don’t need to say anything at all.

The older man meets the narrator’s eyes.

CAMERA BACK TO NARRATOR

NARRATOR (V.O.)

I grew up thinking this was normal.

That this was family.

WIDE SHOT – BASEMENT

The men talk quietly.

NARRATOR (V.O.)

Turns out, not everyone does.

FADE OUT.

My original Script

Of course, with every task comes its problems and I think my biggest change was my script and my new film script. My original script was too hard for me to achieve since I needed a lot of actors which would have complicated a lot of things, I would have needed to make a script where voiceover is majority which I didn't like too much, and I would've had to set up a date for all these actors to come to my home and record. I changed my script to only have 3 actors instead of 5+ which made the whole process a lot less stressful. I also made my new script dialogue focused which felt better for the film opener I was trying to achieve. 

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I had minor setbacks during my filming progress, I had to delete some footage since I added too much footage that went over the time limit by 20 seconds, and my teacher helped me decide what to delete. I also had problems recording certain scenes where everything needed to be perfect like for example the scene where I walk towards the garage. I played as the main character whereas my friends played 2 side characters one a supplier and one a cousin of the main character. 

Overall, I really like how everything turned out and how I improved as a producer, editor, and actor in a film opening! This project will allow me to have less problems with similar projects like these in the future since I've already been through the whole process in a very efficient way. Even though I hated this portfolio at the beginning, by the end I enjoyed it and realized how important this was to improve my skills and really learn something valuable. 

CCR production ideas

 In my previous posts I've already discussed what plans I was doing for my CCRS. At this part of the project Ive already started working on my first CCR, and I have decided to present it in a SNL type scene. It will be the host asking the director of the movie the first 2 CCR questions assigned to me. This approach allows me to have good content and creative/engaging video premise. 

For the first part of my CCRs, I want to clearly explain the ideas of my project and how the film was created. Because of this, The talk show format allows me to explain it in good detail and be entertaining. I also plan on adding editing techniques like citations to sources that helped me and displaying the questions on the screen to let the CCR to be more immersive. 

Another element I want to add is quick clips of my filming and BTS footage, adding these moments helps me break down the talking and show the audience a better understanding of what Im talking about. It also helps the video be more engaging and dynamic rather than just a talking head the whole time. 

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Regarding my second video I have already finished the scripts with the Q&A thing with my friends as both will be playing fans asking questions to the director of the movie kind of like my first video but instead of a talk show host it will be fans at a panel or a Q&A. 

I'm not gonna add any cutaway things in this video since it will seem unnatural because I will just be answering the fans questions. This also works out for me since the questions 3 and 4 are more personal questions that should be asked by the director and doesn't need sources for the most part. 

Next week I will be in the process of recording all this so I can't wait to finally finish this long project and be free for the rest of the year. (for the most part) 

CCR #4

 I already explained what I was doing for my Second CCR video, it being a Q&A segment with the director of the movie, both CCR questions 3 and 4 will be linked together within the same video spreading them out between 2 actors my friend Tomas and Oscar. They also filmed the film opener with me!

I finished my thought process for both CCRS so heres the last question!

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How did you integrate technology- software, hardware, and online - in this project?

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The question is about all the types of production equipment that went into making this film. I'll talk about the different things I used like phone cameras, background noise suppression, tripods, and iMovie. I will also be discussing on the platforms I used like Canvas, blogger, and iMovie. With all this Im ready to show y'all my script.

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Heres a link to my script: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1hAqSTLw1hBRfG_RotTjcPmDx480BzvJRrGXFkKOur-w/edit?usp=share_link

CCR #3 Research

 As I finish the last CCR video I want to make my next one similar to the first, I want to make it kind of like a continuation to the Interview idea but make it slightly different, I want to make it a kind of Q&A thing where 2 fans come up and ask the director of the movie (me) the CCR Questions 3 and 4.

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CCR question 3:

How did your production skills develop throughout this project?

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My goal is to develop an engaging Q&A environment where fans come and ask the director questions about the movie that was produced. Instead of a traditional interview, The format will look more like a fan event or a panel where people who are fans of the movie or who are interested can ask the director directly. By including elements like audience response, maybe nervous stutters, subtle background noises, and quiet talking, I can make the scene look like a realistic Q&A type interview for my CCR Video 2.

I plan to film this segment next week after I edit and record the first CCR video so that the people helping me can have some time to open up their plans to contribute and make the scene less amateur than me being the director and the audience in different costumes.

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Link to my CCR Question 3# script: https://docs.google.com/document/d/15wkdVE5dM1CEu_fXyOyGBSUU7nDsYsUxQ85VKQF7F3c/edit?usp=share_link

CCR #2 research

 Over the weekend I have officially finished my film opening in its entirety, it took a long time but I'm very glad I was able to finish it because the film was giving me a bit of stress, but I feel a weight off my shoulder now that I'm done! Now its time to turn the center to the CCR's and I will be merging both question 1 and 2 into a single video.

Question 2:

How does your product engage with audiences and how would it be distributed as a real media text?

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In my last post I mentioned how I was going to make a SNL type CCR video where the director of the film (me) will enter and talk to the show host. The host will ask me the CCR questions, and I will answer them accordingly, to bring more attention to the film I also want to add clips from the opening according to the conversation topic. With both questions I'm guessing it will be about 2 minutes per question.

I will start filming these CCRs by the end of the week and edit it by the weekend.

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My script:

Script - Google Docs

CCR Question 1 Research!

 Now that my film opening is about done, it's time to start entering the next phase of this Portfolio Project, The CCR or Creative Critical Reflections. This consists of 2 videos which will both contain 2 questions and 2 answers for each question. The first and second questions will be on the first video and the third and fourth will be on the second video. For the first video I want to do a podcast where the host will invite the director of the film to ask questions which will be the CCR questions. I want to give great content as well as not being boring as hell. 

The first question is:

How does your product use of challenge conventions and how does it represent social groups or issues?

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I want it to feel almost like SNL where the host brings out the star guest and does fun little activities or asks questions to him. I will be having one of my friends be the host of the show and I will be the director of the film. I will also have to do some prior research about the question before I start making the CCR, by looking up genre conventions and social groups, and looking back to my previous blogs for good answers. 

I really want to have fun with the CCRs in a way that is representative of the work I've put into this project , and I want to present it in a way I like so no talking heads! So I am determined to make a great script and record an amazing CCR with amusing characteristics and good context.