Reflective Journal

21/09/15

For our first project, we have been asked to produce a 30 second narrative. We will be doing in depth planning, including script writing, health and safety factors, & creating storyboards. We will then shoot our videos, we are allowed to use animation, drawings, just audio, or just visuals. We will edit our narratives on final cut pro.

We were explained the brief in class, but we also followed a similar scheme in my level 2 media course last year.

Last week I had problems with lateness and staying focused in class, to improve I’m going to:

- Sleep more

- Stay focused in class

- Turn my phone off in lesson time

- Eat breakfast

28/09/15

This week I started producing visuals for my storyboard, and started finding audio for my 30-second narrative. I learnt how to scan things onto the computer, then edit them on Photoshop. I also learnt how to produce an animatic so I can have a basic grasp on whether my narrative will work. I’m planning to produce a more detailed version using my phones’ camera so I can make that an animatic, giving me a good visual plan for when I shoot my narrative.

I’ve been struggling to concentrate in lesson recently; I think this is due to not eating enough and being stressed out about work etc. To improve I need to remember to eat and try and organise myself more efficiently.

5/10/15

This week I took some pictures with a friend to get an initial idea of what my finished narrative will look like. I’m going to produce a final animatic from these photos, and seek out any issues with my narrative. Last week I struggled with getting the work done, and couldn’t concentrate. I think when this happens I need to take a small break or go for a walk to refocus my mind. Today I started designing the layout of my blog, I’m happy with how it currently looks.

9/10/15

 This week I found some audio for my narrative, as I had made an audio research

Document, which I had forgotten about. So I’ve started creating the audio I will use. I also decided I’m. Going to add an extra scene in the narrative to help people understand the scenario more.

20/10/15

Last week I designed the logo for my production company.  Although I am not amazing at Photoshop I am happy with the outcome of my logo. It changed from my initial idea, but I prefer the polished look of my current logo.  I also finalised my animatic and sketchbook storyboard. This week I need to finish my proposal, pitch and any production paperwork.

1/11/15

This week I’ve started to design a business card for my company ‘Dark Peach Productions’ I want to keep the design minimal but I also want it to represent my creativity.  I have also started researching for budget costs, and filling them out on an excel form. I am going to organise all my paperwork together this week so that I’ll be prepared to film for next week.  To do this I need to be more proactive when it comes to coursework and remember to keep a checklist with me. I want to start writing in my reflective journal more so I can look back on issues that I've faced and fix them with ease. I feel that I am slowly beginning to improve more in terms of being productive and organised but I still have a long way to go. 

I started working on my audio research with Nick. I'm going to split my research into power-points and word documents. I'm currently researching indoor acoustics and how aspects such as studio walls are so vital for clear sound. In Gary's class we are writing a thorough report on two films of our choice, we watched a film called 'Run Lola Run' that goes against a 'classic' narrative and explores things such as fate, time, and  determination versus fatality. I've began to write up a rough draft for this essay, and have been using websites such as IMDB to gather perceptions on the film, so that I have a finished piece that explores many pathways of the film. Personally I really enjoyed the film and the general aesthetics it incorporates, the soundtrack is very electronic and suits the action in the film well. I've always been strong with my writing so I enjoy the written based side of this course more than anything else. I feel my biggest weakness lies within my planning and editing skills. I am taking extra care to plan my narrative carefully, using my sketchbook as a way to go more in depth about the context of my idea. 

2/11/15

Today I started learning how to use garage band and produce a soundtrack from it. I started off by making a random track, combining many different sounds to produce an experimental piece. I then used the new found knowledge i had gained to start mixing the soundtrack for my 30 second narrative. I am combing several news reports from youtube to create a distorted, creepy track. I still have many new skills to learn on garage band.

3/11/15

I started designing a business card for my media company 'Dark Peach Productions' I am happy with the design so far, I wanted my card to look simple yet fun, so I used a funky psychedelic font to write my details,  but I used a dark grey colour as i wanted to give a feel of professionalism. I need to make a higher quality version of my logo, as it looks quite grainy at the moment. I am planning to do a spread in my sketchbook about charities that support people from different ethnic backgrounds that are experiencing mental health issues. This ties into my narrative theme 'stereotypes in suicide' as i think to broaden my idea I need to research into statistics on suicide for different ethnicities. I am also going to write about a charity called 'Calm'. They help men facing mental health problems, and they are trying to break down the stigma of being a 'real man'. I think this is amazing, as although charities such as Samaritans help everyone regardless of gender, ethnicity or age, I feel like there needs to be more charities focused on helping people from different cultural backgrounds, as they may have very different circumstances or issues when compared to a different cultural group. So it might be helpful for them to have a specialist charity to go to. Childline and Calm are good examples as they are both specialised charities, meaning they can narrow down key problems these groups face and find ways to combat them more efficiently, putting the support they need in place. Although this topic is so complex that I won't be able to cover all areas of it, and although I am using as many statistics and research to back my idea up, I know it won't be a politically correct idea. Regardless the main purpose of my idea is to help widen peoples thoughts when it comes to suicide, and to help them see how widespread this problem is, as well as helping them realise it isn't just young, predominately white, females committing suicide. And this is where the whole idea of stereotypes comes in.

 8/9/15

This week is going to be very busy for me, as I have to get all my Pre-Production work done, and then find a set date to film. Which is difficult as I work, and i need to make sure my actors are free too. Today I want to work on any foley coursework, and also work on my narrative pitch. If i can get these done I reckon I won't be as stressed. My current strengths definitely reside with any sketchbook work or essay based work. My weaknesses are mainly my organising skills, and punctuality to lessons. I missed a opportunity to get some extra work done last night after I had finished work, but I was so tired I just went to bed. My targets for this week are mainly to catch up as much as I can on the pre production work, and to find a set filming date.

11/11/15

Today I worked on my audio, I learnt how to add reverberation to my audio. It has definitely helped add the effect I wanted to use for my narrative. It gave the audio a darker atmosphere, and portrays the gritty theme I am going for. This week I have started listing what I need to finish in my notepad, and started working on doing one thing on the list each day, so when the deadline arrives I should have all my work ready to be handed in. I had a problem with filming this week, as the actors that I am had issues with the filming dates, so I have pushed the date back for this coming monday from 2pm-4pm. This was something that stressed me out as I was panicking about balancing all the coursework out, but I feel once I get the filming done I will feel much more grounded and have a clearer head about where to go next

12/11/15

The last few days have been quite unproductive for me, there was a teachers strike, and although i did come in, it was very difficult to focus on my coursework, so I ended up leaving. I have also been continuously late to college, this is a reoccurring problem for me as I'm really struggling with sleep and waking up on time. Balancing work and college is becoming tougher as the deadline is fast approaching. I get stressed out quite easily, but to help combat this I've been sticking to my list, and trying to do small things for myself that cheer me up.

13/11/15

Today we had a trip to see 'Amy' in Covent Garden. I was so excited to see this, as I was a big fan of Amy Whinehouse, and the film had brilliant reviews. I was not disappointed at all, The way the film was put together with old home videos, interviews, and her music were seamless. I loved watching her grow up, and although the ending was very sad, I feel like it was a beautiful, and accurate portrayal of her life. It makes you feel angry that the media contributed to pushing her off the edge, it gives you insight in to how the media is such a powerful tool, when used in the right way it can be wonderful and educational, but when it's used for slander, gossip, and trash - talking, it can be severely damaging to the individual involved, and the people that are reading it too. I had to leave before the talk as I had work, but i will get the notes on the talk from a classmate.

14/11/15

I had a day off work today so I used this time to refocus myself, and also work on the more creative side of this project, my sketchbook. I did a few pages on mental health in men and ethnicities, I mainly used a few images to convey the message as I have written a more extensive version of it already on this blog. I also listed charities that help different ethnicities in North London. I was surprised to see that there are a large handful of them. I was happy about this, yet I still think they need more awareness. I was happy with how the pages came out, they are quite simple, and I don't feel like they are the best pages in my sketchbook, I think they help tie my project together. I am also doing more preparation for my filming on Monday, mainly involving speaking to the actors, finalising times, and making sure they know the directions to get to the location.

16/11/15

 Today I filmed my 30 second narrative. I met both actors at 3:30 in Friern Barnet and from there we took the planned filming route to get to the main location (the station). I shot everything twice in a slightly different angle so that I have more choice when I start to edit. The shoot was very organised, and I got all the shots I wanted. The main problems I faced was we were quite short on time, as the sun was setting at 5 that day, so I wanted to be finished by 4:30. I had problems with carrying the equipment, although my actors did help me. Luckily there were not as many pedestrians as I feared there would be at the train station, so I got clean shots of my actors. I feel like I paid more attention to detail this time around, which i was pleased with as it means I am developing my personal tastes. I would like to improve on my time management next time I shoot so it is less stressful for me and the actors.


19/11/15

Today I came into college to upload my narrative onto final cut pro and view it all. I am happy with the majority of my shots, although some of them are not as controlled as i would like them to be. I'm planning to edit everything together and be finished by next Tuesday, as it is my longest day in college, giving me more time to focus on detail and spot any mistakes. I feel like i may change the narrative around, as I got some shots that aren't included in my storyboard and i think they would be a nice edition. I may also change the order of my shots around, as some may look better if they were altered. Today my main focus is getting some of my written coursework out the way, so I can dedicate next week to my narrative, evaluation and any extra sketchbook work. The main areas I want to catch up on are audio, and my pitch. I am planning to do some of this over the weekend as well, so by Monday there will be less things to catch up on which should help with my stress.


22/11/15

Today i used my time to do some written coursework, mainly my audio work. I am researching different types of microphone and I think the research will prove valuable when I start producing audio for my future productions. I am going to work on my comparative essay for Run Lola Run tomorrow, and carry on editing my narrative. My strengths this week have been keeping up with my work by getting atleast one piece of work done a day. My weaknesses have been staying focused on my work, and also my college attendance hasn't been up to scratch so my goal for the week ahead is to be on time every day. I missed an opportunity to get more work done today as I woke up later than I planned, meaning I had less time. My main targets for the week ahead are to be on time for college everyday, to get the majority of my written coursework done, and to have a near finished edit of my narrative.

25/11/1

Today I am working on my audio for my narrative. I have taken some of the textures out of my audio. I have also started to write a legal and ethical report. I am not feeling so great today but I would like to try and get at least one thing done from my checklist so that the work doesn't pile up. I feel unable to focus but my targets for today are based around audio work, and my English work too.


26/11/15

Today I came into college to carry on with my Run Lola Run essay. I only have a few more topics to cover and I will be ready to hand it in soon. I am finding it tricky to complete this essay as it's alot more complicated than I thought it was. I have had a wobbly week, but I am going to get back on track this weekend course-work wise. I've nearly finished my pre production so I'm going in the right direction.



1/12/15

Today I worked on my edit for my 30 second narrative. I have fitted jump-cuts into appropriate areas to try and build suspense. I've also started to experiment with colour to see what effect I can get from using different colour balances. My targets for this week are to work on my audio for my edit, and to also experiment with different colours and editing skills with my edit. This is so I can see what emotions I can trigger within an audience using colour and sound.




7/12/15

Today I have been updating my blog with any paperwork I may have missed out. I have uploaded my animatic on to my blog now, and although it is quite hard to see, you can understand what is happening. I went to see Black Mass yesterday, I really enjoyed it. It was refreshing to see a film in the cinema that actually served a purpose. The cinematography of Boston was beautiful, and Johnny Depp played a convincing villain king pin. I want to start going to the cinema more often, as I think it could help build my perspective on film, and broaden my ideas. I am working on my edit and essay today. I am planning to have both of these finished by tomorrow.