#25 Analysis of Pitch

I feel that the pitch was very helpful to me in many ways. Originally I planned to film my film in the dark, which can be seen from my story board, however the dangers that came with this, and the problems caused by how to light the scenes, and not make it look unnatural proved complicated. This led me to change my idea and film the film in the daytime.

Another comment was made about my decision to use 'amateur footage' similar to that seen in the Blair Witch Project. The comment was that I should use various shots to help tell the story, such as low angle shots, tilt shots, rather than amateur footage. Switching between amateur footage and standard shots could make my film look disjointed, which is something I want to avoid.

I also received a comment about my films lack of dialogue in the sample scene, and that at times my story is not entirely clear, or follows properly. I am now going to work hard on correcting the lack of dialogue and continuity of the story line to ensure my film is successful.

#24 Pitch Presentation

We were given the task of presenting our film ideas to the class in order to obtain feedback and advice. Presenting my idea allowed my audience to picture the full story and from this be able to give constructive feedback that will help me to acheieve better. From my audience I learned that my idea for my film is good but needs some development and change to the ideas. I will now work hard to take on board the comments that can be seen being made in the video below. I also plan to create a detailed post on the feedback I received.

#23 Planning for Pitch Presentation

I am planning to create a Pitch presentation, to pitch to my media class to gain additional feedback on my idea. My pitch presentation will consist of my treatment, my storyboard and my sample scene which can be seen in the post below.

I will first read out my treatment to give the overall idea, introduce the actors/actress and the plot. Discuss where I will be shooting and what equipment I will be using. I will then show my 10 shot storyboard that I created and talk my audience through it, explaining what is happening in the photo and any other information that is to be included. I will then play the sample scene and take questions and comments from my audience at the end to help me improve my idea. I feel this will help me a lot as if my idea is not strong I have time to improve it.

#22 The Red Cloak - Sample Scene

I have now created a sample scene for my film, The Red Cloak starring Alex Barnes and Chloe Van Sanden. This is the sample scene I have created as a preview, which will allow me to determine any flaws to the film. I can also present this during my pitch presentation along with my Treatment and Storyboard. This sample scene will also help me to understand if I have the correct equipment and that the setting is correct. It would also allow me to obtain feedback from others, which will help me to improve my ideas as some mistakes and errors may not be clear to me, but very clear to the audience. I found creating a sample scene before the whole film to benefit me.

UPDATE: This sample scene also helped me as I have now changed my actress' to Michelle Stanton and Charlotte Bird, as I feel they are more suited for the role.

Sample Scene:

The Red Cloak (Sample Scene) from George Piggott on Vimeo.

#21 Editing Sample Scene Evidence

I edited my footage from my sample scene using a program called Final Cut Express, it allowed me to edit the footage by cutting bits out, placing different clips together, and also adding music along with other tools. I asked a friend to take a photo of me editing my sample scene using this programme. I found this programme to be tricky to use at first, but once you pick the techniques up it is very easy to use. Now that I have improved my skills, editing my full film should be easy. Below is the picture of me editing my sample scene.

#20 Photos on Shoot

This is a photo taken of me on the photoshoot, this photoshoot is in the place that I would like the film to be filmed. I had previously done a photoshoot with my other actress, so I knew what not to do this time.

WWW (What Went Well) - I had knowledge of what not to do, last time I took photos in the dark and when put through the computer they were unable to be seen.

EBI (Even Better If) - I had taken more different unique photographs.

#19 Sample Scene Shoot Arranging

Now that I was ready to shoot my sample scene, I had to arrange with my actress what time to meet. The quickest and easiest way to do this was through texts, I sent a text to each of my actress, and I have shown the text I sent and the reply I received back below. The text messages were sent from my Blackberry.


Text One: Sent to Michelle Stanton.

Text Two: Sent to Charlotte Bird.

#18 Script

The pre-photoshoot planning helped me understand exactly what props, costumes, setting and equipment was needed, but it was very important that the actress' knew what they were needed to say and do, in order to make the scene run smoothly, and not look unrealistic. I wrote a script for my film, which I handed out to my actress a few days prior to shooting for them to learn. I don't intend to follow the script to strictly as I want my film to seem like it is a home video following the two girls, and this effect will not happen if the film looks heavily scripted. I found that writing a script helped me to picture my ideas. Below is the script I created.

The Red Cloak Script

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#17 Ten Shot Storyboard

I have created a ten shot storyboard for my film using still photos that I have taken. This allowed me to test the shots that I plan to use and also get a feel for the overall story as the photos of setting and characters help to create a clearer picture, which I felt helped me alot. I created this storyboard digitally as it would be easier to present along with my treatment to get feedback. I used power point to create the storyboard, and the power point can be seen below.

UPDATE: I have since changed actors from the girl used in the ten shot storyboard as I felt that the casting was effecting the film.

10 Shot Story Board

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#16 Photos from the Photoshoot

I feel that my photoshoot went very well, I took several photos which I will plan to use for my poster. I used a Panasonic HD Camera, which does both pictures and videos. Below are some of the photos that I managed to take on my photoshoot. I am very pleased with my images.

#15 Pre Photo-shoot Planning

To avoid my photo-shoot being a complete disaster, it was important for me to conduct some pre-photoshoot planning. This would include planning what props/costumes/settings and equipment I need to use to shoot my film, and for my photoshoot.

I am using three main props, a knife, a red cloak, and a red book. The red cloak I purchased from a supermarket, during Halloween. I will use a real knife, from a kitchen, as the scene involving the knife is set in a kitchen so this will add to the overall feel of my film. I will also use a red book, which is intended to be the 'Red Riding Hood' story book. Below are some images taken from Google, to demonstrate what my props will look like.

Cloak:

Kitchen Knife:

Red Book:

For costumes my actress' will wear normal casual clothes, as they are representing average teenage girls in the story. One actress' will wear the red cloak during half of the film, after the cloak has been found in the woods.

For setting I am going to use a large woodland area near one of my actress' house in Orpington, Kent. The woodland area is large so there will be plenty of different areas to film in, and there would be relatively few people that would be passing by whilst filming is happening. I will also use my actress' house to film the 'at home' scenes for my film. Below is a photo of a woodland area similar to the one that I will be using.

Woodland Area:

For equipment I am using a Panasonic HD Video Camera which I have been loaned from my school Media Department, I am also using a tripod, to allow my camerawork to be as steady as possible. I am only using these two pieces of equipment as I would like my film to look very natural.

Creating this plan of what to use before my shoot has helped me a lot as I now know exactly what needs to be done on the shoot.