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.