Film Opening

Link to my Film Opening

Below is my film opening.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1E9OcLFYZpOWUBBFyD7MMtwxwIYNkfYMv/view?usp=sharing

Thank you so much for watching, reading, and sticking with me through this journey! I hope you enjoyed.

Creative Critical Reflection

Links to my CCR’s

Below is the video that answers questions #1 and #2.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1SwcXA84dJTce5tIJHbw44wJSdYaVqkBQ/view?usp=sharing

Below is the video that answers questions #3 and #4.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/14iVfS3_A01WHkiyUS8oJhN3J4OoQLvp2/view?usp=sharing

Thank you for watching and I hope you enjoyed!

Final Reflection

One Last Time

    This is officially one of my last few blog posts for the year! The eight weeks honestly flew by and I can't believe that this is it: my film opening is done, my creative critical reflections are fully edited, and I'm getting ready to say goodbye to this project once and for all.

     For this project, I worked by myself and though it was slightly challenging to do everything by myself and I definitely let myself procrastinate way too many times, I don’t think I would have preferred to work with a group for this project. I tend to work more efficiently and quickly by myself, even when I do procrastinate and after hearing everyone in the group meeting say they had troubles with scheduling, working in a group seemed much more challenging, even if it came with its benefits. Additionally, I made a lot of changes to my original plan and I feel like working in a group would’ve made making those changes harder. Everyone would’ve had to agree on the change, we’d have to make adjustments to the recommended change, and it would take up much more of our time than needed.

     The major change that I had to make was to my schedule. Originally, I was going to have that last week be my free week where I could fix and update anything that needed changes, however, due to my procrastination I spent that week actually finishing up my project, rather than fixing it. Another change I made to my project was my genre. My first plan was to do a thriller or romance, but after further consideration I decided to do a coming-of-age film. Mainly because it was honestly the one I was most familiar with, which is why it’s kind of weird that I didn’t think of it first. Nonetheless, that was another one of my major changes.

     This project taught me so much and I’m extremely grateful that I was given the chance to do it, even if I won’t be pursuing this type of career in the future. This class was also incredibly helpful, not just for this project, but for life. So I’m very glad that I was able to take it. 

CCR: Post-Production

My Last Time Editing

    This is officially my last post-production post for this project! I can't believe that I'm so close to being done with this project, after weeks of hard work and dedication I'm almost finished. Since I finished filming quite late yesterday, I decided to wait until today before I started editing. This helped me feel more refreshed and motivated when I began editing this afternoon.

    I started with my first creative critical reflection video and immediately realized that I had said like, uhm, and uh far too many times. Thus, the first thing I did was try to cut out most of the times where I said those words, so that my sentences would flow more smoothly and would be more coherent. This took longer than I expected because I had to make sure the video didn't randomly cut out or look weird after I took out the words. Thankfully I'm pretty certain that it looks and sounds normal now and I'm hoping to cover up any awkward pieces with images. That was really the only correction I had to make to that video, the rest of the editing would be adding in overlays and different images to keep the video entertaining for everyone watching.

    For me, its easier to be on camera alongside someone than it is to be on camera by myself. Therefore, I had to redo my second creative critical reflection, either because I wasn't projecting enough, I would forget my lines or I'd get too awkward. Because I was left with so many clips, I figured I'd just make do with what I had and use the different takes to replace bits and pieces that felt awkward with more confident takes. This is what took up most of my time while editing because by now, I had thankfully learned my lesson and stopped using as many likes, uhm, and uh's throughout my video. The image below shows a couple of the videos that I had gathered while filming.

    The last thing that was left to do was edit all the extra images and examples onto both of my creative critical reflection videos! Thankfully, this was rather easy to do since I already had most of my material at hand, due to my previous blog posts and CCR scripts. And to go into more detail, for the first video, I needed to add in sound effects that are often heard in talk shows, clapping and cheering; for the second video, I needed to add in the questions on the screen; and of course I still had to cite my resources on both of the videos. After doing that, I would officially be done with all three of my videos!

CCR: Production

Final Stretch

    After having finished my scripts for my creative critical reflection, I was able to start filming. Which is insane, considering that these will be the last two things I film and edit for this project. In any case, I wanted to film them in order, just because it'd be easier. Therefore, the first video I filmed was the Talk show that featured my mom, who's also in the film and is just pretending like she isn't.

    Originally, I was gonna film over the weekend or on Monday, but after some delays and problems, we had to push filming back. The biggest problem we encountered had to do with the set and timing. I wanted to film outside of our house so that we could film with a nicer background. The issue was that we procrastinated over the weekend and weren't able to film once it got dark. When we actually got the chance to film, we realized that neither of us knew our lines by heart and my mom doesn't speak the best English. Consequently, our first recording was very messy as my mom was trying to learn and correctly pronounce her lines and I was struggling to remember mine. Additionally, we realized we were way too far away from the phone, so the birds in the background ended up being louder than our voices.

    We decided to try again today, and it went much more smoothly. This time, we had mics, making our voices louder in the recording; we had most of our lines memorized, though, my mom was occasionally using my iPad to help her remember hers; and we started filming at the perfect time, so the lighting didn't change too much while we were recording.

    To film, we used a tripod to hold my phone up so that we were at level with the camera, we also used small microphones that perfectly captured our voices, we used my pool as the background, and had two chairs that we sat on throughout the interview. Overall, once we were actually able to film, it was quick and easy. Mostly because my mom is very charismatic and she is a journalist herself, which gives her experience talking in front of a camera and interviewing people.

    For my second CCR, I used my dad's studio as a background and used the same tripod from the first video to hold up my phone. Since I wasn't filming outside this time, I figured that it'd be fine to film without a mic, I'd just have to get my family to be quiet while I film. Up to this point, I had to rely on other people to help me film for this project; thus, finally not having to rely on anyone and just being able to sit down and record by myself was definitely nicer. 

CCR: Production Ideas

Production Ideas

    Now that I've answered the questions for my creative critical reflection, I can officially start the production process. Thankfully, I have already created the scripts for my two videos, but I figured I'd still talk about my thought process and brainstorming phase for my CCR's. 

    Originally, I had a couple ideas for my CCR. I was thinking that I could do a podcast, talk show, reality TV show, cooking interview, Q&A, or do something similar to the brand interviews. The two that I didn't think I could pull off were the podcast or the brand interview. I didn't have the right set up to do a podcast and I don't have enough time to pull off a full brand interview like hot ones or Vogue given that I only had about a week left to finish this project. Thus, I was left with a cooking interview, Q&A, a talk show, or a reality TV show.

    I really liked the idea of cooking/baking while answering questions, but I couldn't come up with a dish that would suit Emily that I could make at home, so that was off the list. And I thought the reality TV show would be fun to do, I was thinking of maybe pretending like the whole production process was the reality TV show and then I would be answering questions in a similar style to how the people in reality TV shows answer interview questions. Even so, they didn't stick totally stick with me meaning that I was left with two options.

    The ones I decided on where a talk show and a Q&A. The talk show would be between me and my mom and would include aspects and techniques often seen on talk shows: a conversational tone, the audience clapping, physical presence, and a host personally greeting their guest. While the Q&A would just be with me, and I'd have flashcards or the questions pop up on the screen so the audience and me to see. I'd make sure my shots are mostly in the rule of thirds, on screen graphics on the corner of the screen, and interesting transitions.

Karla with a K. (n.d.). podKast with a K [Audio podcast]. Spotify. https://open.spotify.com/show/4vef62tyFqu5hOUkTQfcdw

van Sambeck, B. (2022, November 2). Confessions, rants, and fake tears: The wildest, most iconic reality TV confessionals. USA Network. https://www.usanetwork.com/usa-insider/wildest-most-iconic-reality-tv-confessionals

Dove, L. L. (2015, May 11). How do talk shows work? HowStuffWorks. https://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/how-do-talk-shows-work.htm

CCR: Question #4

Question #4

    It's time to answer my final creative critical reflection question! I can't believe that I am so close to being done with this project after working on it for so long. My next blog posts will be about the production process for my creative critical reflection videos and then, that will be it!

QUESTION

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

ANSWER

    The technology that I used for The Dull Pencil was very basic and beginner level because I didn't have much technology at my disposal. Thus, this blog post will be much shorter than the rest since I don't have much to talk about. Unfortunately, unlike most film directors, I don't have a professional camera, a proper editing software, or good filming equipment.

    This means that I had to use my phone to film all the footage, instead of a proper camera and had to take any pictures, like little Emily's photograph, on my iPad. For the scenes where I was just filming by myself, I had to use a small tripod to hold my phone up properly, which ended up being pretty helpful. Moving to another part of my production, I was originally going to use Clipchamp to edit my film, but after the software crashed on my and forbid me from editing, I had to switch to a different app: iMovie. I've talked about this switch previously in my blogs and how it was frustrating to deal with. Nonetheless, I'm glad I was able to quickly adapt and move on so that I could finish my film.

    Furthermore, a website that’s I used all throughout the production process was Blogger. This app helped me document my process, gather all my thoughts, and save any information and research I had. Another app that came in handy was Pinterest, more specifically I used Pinterest when creating my character. The app helped me look into aesthetics and it allowed me to create a mood board which helped me better envision Emily. 

    My script for my creative critical reflection is linked here. Be aware that minor changes may be made during filming.

   

Apple Inc. (n.d.). iMovie support. Apple Support. https://support.apple.com/imovie

CCR: Question #3

Question #3

    Now that I've finished my first two blog posts about my creative critical reflection, where I answered question one and two, I can move onto the last two questions. Like I mentioned in a previous blog post, there will be two questions per video meaning that I'm almost ready to film my CCR.

QUESTION

    How did your production skills develop throughout this project?

ANSWER

    Going into this project I didn't have a lot of experience with filming, editing, or anything production related. The only reason I know anything about making a film is because of my family and school, but even then, my family doesn't do anything film-related, it's mainly just media. For instance, my mom knows some tricks about editing, my dad is in the music industry, and my sister has animated a few things for fun before. While in school, I learned all about different shots, filming techniques, and audio techniques.

    However, it was throughout the production process where I learned most of my production skills. Not only was I able to apply the skills I knew, but I was also able to learn new ones and the experience really allowed me to get to know more about what happens behind-the-scenes in movies. I figured out how to make props, set up the set, not procrastinate, and, most importantly, how to make it look like you're not shooting on different days. For example, due to scheduling problems, on my first day of filming I was only able to film the solo shots with young Emily and I had to wait for a different day to actually start filming with Emily's mom. But since those two scenes are taking place at the same time, I knew that I had to set a specific time to film so that the lighting wouldn't be too different.

    By the time I wrapped filming and I finished editing for The Dull Pencil, I knew much more about producing a film, even if I think I've only scratched the surface. I do believe I am much better at film making than I was at the start of this project and I could see myself doing another project or too, but unfortunately I don't see myself fully pursuing this career in the future.

    My script for my second creative critical reflection is linked here. Be aware that minor changes may be made during filming. 

Atlanta Institute of Music and Media. (2021, December 14). How can I start a music production company at home? https://aimm.edu/blog/start-music-production-company-at-home/

CCR: Question #2

Question #2

    As I mentioned last week, my blog posts for this week will all be about my creative critical reflection. My current plan for my CCR is to do two questions per video so this will likely be the second question in my first video, but I'll talk more about that in another blog post.

QUESTION

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

ANSWER

    My film engages with audiences through the use of similar experiences. In my movie, the Dull Pencil, I deal with and cover themes that a lot of teens, especially those in their Junior or Senior year, struggle with. As a matter of fact, the whole plot of the movie is about how Emily is being pressured by society to pick the right career. This is similar to what a lot of teens deal with on a day-to-day basis: being pressured to go to a good school, have the highest paying career, study hard, and still enjoy your teenage years as much as you can. 

    Furthermore, I tried to use props and settings that the audiences could see, understand, and relate to. For instance, in younger Emily's drawing, there's a sun in the corner; Emily's fridge is decorated with drawings she's made; and, later on in the movie, you can see Emily inside a classic high school. Additionally, in my film, I discuss the effects of peer pressure and school stress on your mental health, and how finding what you love can help you deal with those stresses. I chose to do all of this because, like I mentioned in a previous blog post, I want this to be a heartfelt and real story that teenagers can relate to and learn from. 

    My current plan for distributing my film is to post it on easily accessible sites such as YouTube, which it's already on and you can watch it for free with ads; Vimeo, a popular site that many new directors use; Miami's upcoming film festival; and other digital platforms that I may find. 

    My script for my creative critical reflection is linked here. Be aware that minor changes may be made during filming.

Wodecki, B. (2024, October 3). YouTube has new features to try: How to use them. CNET. https://www.cnet.com/tech/services-and-software/youtube-has-new-features-to-try-how-to-use-them/