Final Day

 8.59am- I'm pretty certain I could tinker with my film for another month and still find small imperfections or develop new ideas, indeed if I can think of a way to improve the thing as a whole I might well still upload a further version at some point in the future regardless of it's worth to my degree.

That being said there comes a time where you simply have to stop work and down tools. After a brief editing session in the first half hour of the morning (realised that for the mirror scene I should really reverse the picture, so it wasn't time wasted) I'm ready to export. Given that the film is in SD I'm exporting to that standard, HD wouldn't do it any favours.

I did attempt some messing with my own scenes to darken them but I couldn't find a tone I was truly happy with, so I thought it was best all around to just leave it rather than embark on a process that might take up a couple of hours. I'll finish this blog once it's fully converted.

11.01am- After issues with exporting into SD (undesired letterbox format) I've uploaded two versions, one to Vimeo in the SD format and one in HD to Youtube. Issues with the poor quality of the static on Vimeo led to me deciding to put up the Youtube version for final marking. Links to both follow. I've also put up a rough copy of my original 5 minute version for comparison.

https://vimeo.com/33658783 SD version

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UW8LCgXIN_w HD widescreen Final Submission

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vHaHqzL_mo&feature=youtu.be trial edit (unfinished) (5 minutes)

Post-final playing with footage.

After completing editing I thought I'd play with reintroducing some footage with varying ideas in play. Playing the initial screenwatching aspect and reversing it might go a long way to guiding viewers in the right direction with the themes I'm looking at. I also felt that the 5 minute running time, whilst efficient, might be short given our guidelines of 8 minutes. Working on the BBC/UWE fusion project as an unmarked extra should have granted some extra leeway when it comes to deadlines this term but unfortunately the projects have to be ready in time for the show. As a result of attempting to do both and the shorter deadline for the fusion lab this video project was put on the backburner for a while and probably suffered.

The extra footage I'm blending should increase the running time without feeling extraneous, especially if I can blend the audio to fit the themes and try and match up some camera angles. It could add a minute or so. I plan to upload both versions to Vimeo, but mark whichever I prefer as the one I'm submitting. I still have an entire day tomorrow to play with this.

The final list of films and TV shows that I've taken video and audio from include-

500 Days of Summer (2009)

BASEketball (1998)
Being John Malkovich (1999)
Cable Guy (1996)
Day After Tomorrow (2004)
Groundhog Day (1993)
Interview With A Vampire (1994)
Shawshank Redemption (1994)
Scream (1996)
Scream 2 (1997)
Inglourious Basterds (2009)
Boogie Nights (1997)
High Fidelity (2000)
Network (1976)
Truman Show (1998)
One Hour Photo (2002)
Manhatten (1979)
1984 (1984)
True Romance (1993)
Friends (1994-2004)
Death to Smoochy (2002)
JFK (1991)
THX 1138 (1971)
ECW One Night Stand (2005)
V for Vendetta (2005)

This list is 25 films distilled from more than 120 explored for footage. That's around 4 decades of film explored, where the genres and attributes of media are self-consuming, they exist by referencing convention within media. THX turns religion into a TV show. One Hour Photo is about capturing something that isn't really there through media. Scream and Scream 2 take post-modern commentary on filmic genres to new heights. Truman show examines the entire world through the lens of voyeurism ask how much of our reality is constructed through what we experience in TV. 1984 uses film to dominate it's beaten-down population, Death to Smoochy uses it to entertain and uplift the kids in spite of the world and everything else. They're all films about the nature of media and it's construction around one thing- Watching.

Final alterations

Final alterations- Trawled through THX1138, Death to Smoochy, Thank you for Smoking, WWE's One Night Stand, 24 Hour Party People and a Cock and Bull Story last night to fulfill crowd noise requirements and additional footage. Originally I was going to use 4th-wall breaking segments from several of those films to intermingle with my final section but whilst doing so I came across an image of the eye of Jesus from THX 1138

This brought me back to what the scene was supposed to be about, reversing the audience relationship. In light of that I'm bringing footage of spectators into the scene instead in quick montage segments. The crowd noise is now almost entirely sourced, all I may require is one more audience and my edit will be finished.

I've also removed the green audience labels in light of a discussion with Cluna. It's better to blur that line with images than words.

I sourced the crowd noise from Friends (since studio laughter is a highly recognisable thing), wrestling shows, JFK and Scream just to round out a variety of ideas. Most of them are just crowd noise but the JFK reference is a nice easter-egg for those who know the film, since "back and to the left" are words spoken by Costner repeatedly as a strip of film repeats.

This montage idea of media references and the joy of recognition is really what this whole project is about. In Montage Sam Rohide talks about using the 24 frames a second to "create the illusion of movement and conformity". I could have played with time but the consistent pace aids in the feeling of lost control.

The editing process

This process has been fairly cutthroat, in spite of the amount of footage I located it's still hard to find stuff that's truly suitable for what I have in mind. It's also tough to try and get the point of what I'm doing across, hence creating corner titles for the channel changes. It makes the channel surfing feel like more of a comprehendable  process and when the character gets sucked in engages him as a piece of media in himself.

These titles identify the channel, audience, audio and other aspects that change due to the control of the remote.

Channels- Blue. Format- 01
01- Being John Malkovich- Introduction to the 7 1/2th floor
02- BASEketball
03- Being John Malkovich- John Malkovich documentary
04- Garden State- Ice skating crocodile
09- The Cable Guy- Ren & Stimpy

22- Groundhog Day

35- Interview with a Vampire- Sunrise

44- Network

68- 1984

Now Network forms the next quarter of the film, the portion where we introduce the changing audience. Peter Finch's speech on air in the film itself is inter-cut with different people watching from various locations. I'm switching it up so that these other people represent different available audiences, sprinkled with other audiences taken from other films. The audience shifts are as noted-

Audience- Green. Format- Audience 1

Audience 1- TBD

Audience 2- Network- William Holden

Audience 3- One Hour Photo- Robin Williams in own home

Audience 4- Manhatten- Woody Allen & Mariel Hemingway 

Audience 5- Network- Faye Dunaway 

Audience 6- 500 Days of Summer- Joseph Gordon-Levitt & Zooey Deschanel
Audience 7- One Hour Photo- Robin Williams in others home

The Mirror acts as the first time we see the character directly reflected and placed within the media he's watching. It only serves as a single title because it's uniquely his own, but his reflection often takes place within the media so it's title is depicted as diagetic, as is the image. The 1984 reflection is depicted as a film reel, native to it's environment.

Mirror- White, Format- Mirror


A short shift between sad and happy music changes the audience reaction

Audio- Yellow, Format Music-Happy/Sad

The final part is reality shifting, the remote changing the clothes of our character and his environment.




Reality- Red, Format Option 1

The current edit is clocking in at around 5 and a half minutes, which is about as long as this can be without outstaying it's welcome. I've already been pretty brutal with some of the early stuff, cutting down around 30 seconds of footage just this morning. I don't think that this project would be served by being any longer as it stands.

To get list- One more watching clip. 10 segments of audience noise for the final sequence.

This post is unfinished, the remainder of the specifics of this process will be confirmed tomorrow.

Finished the final night of filming

I've finished the final night of filming with a fresh batch of takes for the entire film. From the footage on Friday and Saturday I managed to ascertain weaknesses in the framing of certain shots and better plot out the structure of the scenes in my mind. There was also a glare issue reflecting off the upper DVD cases that has been corrected. The integrating process began yesterday with the first two minutes of the film already restructured to accommodate new footage. Technical issues still abound, I am unable to view paused footage making the insertion of special effect to replace screens a continuing issue, I'm hoping to resolve this with Cluna tomorrow. I dropped on a firewire capable 500gb hard drive in hopes of solving that issue but whilst the project does play smoother the main problem still remains. Perhaps there's a FAQ on the issue online.

Issues with the SD card architecture also appear to have been solved, on Saturday I removed the footage via a USB link by inserting the card into my Camera and removing the entire private folder to maintain the integrity of the footage. This technique allows Log and Transfer of the footage into the project. However the exact same method failed on Sunday, all the files were present and intact but repeated error messages about there being no detectable correct files prevented their transfer. All the files appeared again this morning so I have that footage safe and soundly imported now, which I'm sure is due to the extra footage from last night restoring some anomaly in the file structure. Some errors apparently fix themselves.

With shooting done the final editing process can begin, hopefully I can get a rough 8 minute edit together and ascertain where my found footage is weak. I've already assembled another 20 or so films with the themes and scenes that could aid my project, and will run through and rip those this week during editing.

Baudrillard's Hyperreality is the heart of my project. A reality created from media itself. My character is subsumed into the media he believes he controls.

(From Denzin's Cinematic Society)

 I've started final shooting on my film after a week of postponments due to flat inspections and a nasty cold that wouldn't have looked good on film on my part.

This is the basic background as lit during the day. The space within frame will be from one edge of the DVD cases to the other, giving the illusion of a systematic repeating background without end. The chromatic organisation of the display should help with this, giving the impression of something that is primarily visually organised. Only the upper part of the chair is visible and in order to make it less of a visual intrusion I've covered it in a black throw rug. I'll be wearing a black t-shirt and black and dark green check pajamas in the majority of the film, so the colour will come from the media, both in display and in the edited-in shots.

The other end of my room. Currently a bit of a mess due to the need to de-clutter half the flat for the film. In attempting to light the space I encountered two problems last time, firstly changing daylight. The sun progresses from the kitchen side (near right in this photo) and sets on the other side, so there's a lot of direct light coming in through the two windows. Even in the cloud-heavy conditions I shot in last time this resulted in a lot of changeable light. As a result I've decided to shoot only when dark out, which not only allows me to control the light but also increases the sense that the environment I'm in is enclosed. I've used the the Lowell lighting kit and my own microphone stand holds the camera's boom mic, mostly to pick up ambient sound and the odd word form me (my role is largely unscripted).

 In attempting to light the space I encountered a couple of issues. Firstly I didn't want to create any direct shadows or give the indication that there was a single direct light source. I'm working to overpower the lights in the communal space outside so it needs to be flooded with light, but primarily soft and unfocused light.

Initially I set up the lights on either side, hoping to counter the shadows that each set in place but that looked wrong in initial takes, the shadows still favoured one side over the other. In the end I decided to bounce the main light off the ceiling and use the reflected light lower down and slightly to the side. This eliminates harsh shadows and also creates the impression that if there is any one light source in the room, it's directly ahead of me ie where the TV is. Later on I'll be using the TV to light the space with static which will look very different, but having the light emanating from a similar side of the space, from the 4th wall as it were, give you an idea of what this characters world is illuminated by.

 This is the shot from behind the camera. The sides of the frame line up directly with the sides of the DVD cases. Despite all the clutter my flat generally accumulates this specific section of wall is clean and easy to use as a background.






The only other shot I'm using in this space is the 4 remote controllers against the square brown carpet, which was already shown in a previous blog. A new version will be used just to match the new lighting and to match the wardrobe I'm wearing (switched out black fleece for black shirt to make me a little less amorphous).

I've got until monday to finish out these shots, I've done first versions of all the shots up to the costume change and also a long uninterrupted shot of the space just so I can possibly include a fast forward gimmick. That last part probably won't make it into the final film but it is a test just to check changing light conditions without my lighting. I'll probably do a fast forward section for 5 minutes or so and condense it down, imitating it being uncontrollable speed.

I still need to source a lot of audience noise for the final part of the film.

Evaluation of prototype parts No. 1- The Space

The following is an evaluation of the strengths and weaknesses of my tests/preshoots so far, with particular focus on the footage I'm shooting myself. This is all aimed at creating a better final product during my intensive shooting and editing process next week. I'm hiring equipment out for a ten day stretch where I'll be able to do several further tests and shoots, attempting to improve the lighting and set, whilst at the same time using the editing suite to put the whole thing together.

Comments from Rod made me reconsider my choice of background.

 For the tests my background was deliberately quite cluttered, the intention was that as time-shifts occured elements in the background might change, the shelves could be emptied or fresh writing could appear on the white board. The problem was that glare on the board prevents the audience seeing it properly, and the disorganisation in the frame didn't actually produces anything attractive to look at or give the impression of control to start with.

This side on shot of the same space was originally intended to establish the space. On reflection the DVD display behind me is much preferable as a background, both due to the regular structure of the background and the regular colours. The DVD display is chromatically organized so it's primarily visually attractive. As the film progresses the disorganisation will be greater and greater. I'm going to have to strike a balance between a tight close frame that ends at either side of those displays without showing anything beyond, and a display that places my face directly in the centre of the frame.

 

This shows the structure I'm trying to demonstrate in the frame that I'm now planning to replicate from the start. It's also an illustration of the unpredictable light in the space. I'll need to shoot the sections quickly in order to ensure the changing light only works as a part of the time-transitions and not as a marker of how long it take.

 This shot again illustrated the actual space. I'm not using this anymore, since the simple reverse shot can create the illusion of space better, and positions the audiences both as protagonist and screen.

 This was the initial reverse shot. Strong light in one corner of the frame overpowers the image, and there's also an issue with the focus that needs to be remedied.

 This was me within frame. I'm happy with the way the various cuts work and evaluating my performance and how it cuts with the rest of my material has allowed me to change my script and hit the beats I really needed to. Again, on of the struggles is setting up the frame so my face is central to start and immobile throughout shooting. The chair position and camera position was marked by tape at the time, I'll replicate that or leave the camera in place over the shoot in order to be able to shoot over several days.

Plan of action

1. Formalize script- I need to ensure that the character moments I'm using are present in the next shoot in concert with my own. I need to plan out and make lists of the various costumes, the order in which they're shown and the various

2. Source crowd noise or other traditional audio like generic soundtrack noise to fully transition my character into a media object during the final section.

The 4 parts so far

Ok, so I've created versions of three of the four sections to test how effective they can be.

The first section is a quick single minute of me flicking through spaces, a shortened version of what I was working on in the edit. Conversations with Rod helped me sharpen what I needed form this, it'd devolved into an exercise in utilizing all the footage I'd found and inserting myself rather than creating the narrative momentum I was after.

The tricky section is the shift to where the audience becomes a part of it all. Ideally I'd like to actively depict the in screen audience watching the clip itself, and then the second remote signals a shift so they're watching him. I want that shift to be explicit, not implied. This is perhaps a potential use of some of the excess shots of screens, to shift it so that I'm the media in the context of the audience's space. That shift so I'm a smaller part also breaks up the monotony a little. My main issue there is sound, I don't want my section to shift to something with a lot of sound, but the diagetic noise from the screen I'm replacing will be an issue if I want to retain the audiences own noise as a part of the piece. The Truman show is invaluable in this area, producing diverse generic audiances, although to fit the theme that I still have control of which audience is there I need to diversify my found footage.

I'm actually reverting back to my work in the first year with the final sections, jump cuts indicating transition and a performance with significant nods towards silent film. This is the point where absurdity and humiliation become a somewhat threatening situation, as the control of the main character is turned on himself. The obvious solution would be to simply leave the frame but for a number of reasons this is not considered by the protagonist.
-Media objects are always trapped in screens for one, regardless of their own actions, it's their purpose.
-The protagonist is trapped within their own relationship with the media. Breaking that is difficult.
-They are attempting to exert control within that space through the usual means.

Of course it also comments on how confusing and diverse that means of control is, but that's more of a surface interpretation.

The final section is also without a visible audience observing me. I plan to insert differing generic audience audio with each cut to continue the prior theme.

The most useful part of this is being able to pace out the beats within my own performance, as well as address concerns about shifts in lighting quality or set backgrounds. The four minutes or so I have is really helping me shore up my weaknesses within this project and create a detailed annotated script for the shoot proper.

Four part sequence

The current structure of my piece is focussing on four separate approaches. Each approach is signified by a switch to and use of a different remote.

Part 1
The protagonist (me) watching TV within TV. User/screen reversal shots with the screen showing clips form films of TV shows within the film. The point is to illustrate the replication of media within media.

Part 2
The second remote inserts a progressive insertion of the audience in the film, so I'm watching them react to their show.

Part 3
The third remote shifts the film audience to a position in opposition to me, reacting to and interacting with me.

Part 4
The fourth remote signifies a complete reversal of situation, my remote now controls my reality. Sitcom canned laugher illustrates my complete shift to being a media object, and use of the remote now only changes my situation, each button press initiates a jump signified by shifts in clothing or time of day.

Current target- to produce 4x 30 second to 1 minute sequences illustrating the ideas I'm proposing.

Elaboration

My previous post was somewhat short, so after some work cutting down and reassembling clips I want to use I've realised that despite my own film collection totalling some 420 DVD's I don't have the footage I'd need to create this piece without some significant shooting of my own. As a result I plan to use myself and my living room as an environment through which I and therefore the audience can experience my aims. I plan to create a relationship where I have the illusion of control but what actually comes up is a reflection. I use various remote controls to achieve various results, switching between film and TV audiences who are watching me back, reflecting my own habits. They'll react to me in different ways, inverting the traditional voyeurism of the TV. The remote will also instead of reflecting my own control over what I watch have an effect on me, ie I press chapter skip and I change clothes and the light indicating the time of day has changed. I'll become the unwilling subject of the people I'm watching. This was inspired by actually collecting together each type of clip I was preparing, separating out the audiences from what they were watching. Initially I was going to juxtapose them with footage from other films, and still plan to in short sequences, but the complete separation creates the illusion that they are concentrating their attention on you the viewer.

I've already prepared a shotlist and draft script, I plan to shoot the whole thing this weekend. Further details to come.

Project reevaluation summary

I'll make a subsequent post to explain this shift but I wanted to post a short summary of my current project idea whilst it was fresh-

The project is now composed of clips from films that evaluate the screen/viewer relationship. Using elements such as camera position in a cinema creative an artificial panning motions and montaging together screens to create a counterpoint relationship, creating the theme of lots of viewers watching lots of screens and reacting, none of which relate to the original material they were watching. Towards the end of the film we start to merge screen and viewer, using clips of people looking in mirrors. In the end we have characters monologuing directly to camera, the two aspects have become one.