Shooting schedule

DAY 1 // FEB 05 // 9:00AM // TRAIN STATION
On this day, I will be filming everything at the train station. We will arrive there for 9AM, as to maximise our time to see the express trains (the ones that pass through the station without stopping at a great speed), and therefore get the shots that we wanted. It also means we have as much time as we can get to play around with the lighting and shadows, and we also have time to reshoot anything that doesn't go well. Also, filming the bulk of it on the first day will mean I can begin the editing process in the evening, and maximising the time I will have after I finish filming to edit everything properly.

DAY 2 // FEB 06 // 11:AM // INSIDE A HOUSE AND ON A ROAD
This day will be the day in which I film any short filler shots e.g. the kettle, the indicator and the driving shots. I am also planning on doing any Foley sound (if I discover I need any during filming), and simply re-recording ambient sounds and other sound effects. Starting early will again mean I have plenty of time to film everything in good daylight, and re-shoot things if necessary.

Both of these filming days have so far been fairly easy to organise - all I will have to do closer to the time is check the weather and make sure it's right for what I want to film, as I have already secured my actors and collected together my props and costume. Writing this schedule will prove very helpful as I will know what I need to film on what day, and what I need to do if things don't go as planned.

Storyboard

I only did a very rough storyboard planning out the general order and a few specific shots that I want to include. This is because I don't really find that I can map out the shots in enough detail when they are being drawn, as a new picture would be required for every single change in angle, no matter how slight. However, alongside the storyboard, I also wrote a shot list - I feel this will be very helpful as it won't be too much paper to take on set with me, and I can go into a lot more textual detail. I will still use my storyboard whilst filming as I think some shots are easier to visualise through drawing, but since I have a lot of cuts it wouldn't be time efficient to draw out all of them (especially the short, easy to describe ones), and it would be incredibly difficult to take them and use them on set.

Characters and Casting

NAME: Charlie Taylor

AGE: 36

PROFESSION: Financial adviser

LIKES: His dog, hiking, going out for meals

DISLIKES: Watching TV, his job

HISTORY: Parents got divorced when he was very young, and so he grew up with just his mum. After completing his A-Levels, he went to university to study finance. He has had a few long term girlfriends, but nothing too serious.

PERSONALITY TRAITS: Very quiet and reserved, likes to keep himself to himself

FRIENDSHIP GROUPS: Has a few close friends from college, but apart from them and his colleagues from work, he doesn't really see anyone else

THREE DESCRIBING WORDS: Quiet, conscientious, reserved

I decided to cast Andrew as my main character for a few reasons. Firstly, he is around the right age and so no makeup or drastic clothing changes would be needed to give the character the right feel. He's also comfortable on camera, and is good at keeping neutral facial expressions, and so it will probably be easy to get the emotion right in minimal takes. He is also available very often, and he lives near the locations that I want to use, and so it won't be difficult to arrange filming days and if anything needs redoing it won't be hard to organise that either. The costume that I want won't be difficult to organise, as they too need to be very plain. I am planning on getting him to wear plain dark trousers and a white shirt, and maybe a coat over the top - however, as long as it gives a smart-casual vibe it doesn't really matter too much. These too will hopefully help reflect the repetitiveness and boringness of the character's day to day life. They won't be difficult to get hold of as I'm sure he will have them in his wardrobe already, but if he doesn't it will be very easy to source any of these items from charity shops or borrowing them from someone etc.

Final Script Evaluation and Changes

After completing all my other tasks, such as casting and location research, I have found my final script to be pretty much completely spot on in terms of everything I am going to need to make it happen. Since a lot of my things are very generic and easy to obtain/visit, e.g. a road or a train station, there wasn't really anything that needed changing as there are so many different ways I can access these things. I also managed to secure a very good voice over artist to do my narration, and so I didn't have to change any of that either - I simply recorded myself saying the parts in the pace that I wanted, and then sent it to him along with the script.

I think I have definitely included enough detail in my script to make it very easy for myself whilst filming - I made sure to write in every time I wanted a change of setting, or a different angle, or a cut to happen. This will help me hugely on set - if I have a copy of the script with me, I can very easily check back over it if needed and know for sure what the original plan is in terms of angles etc. It will also make post a lot easier, as in editing I can use the cuts I have written into my script as a reference point, and so not only will I immediately know what order to put everything in, I will know how long roughly each shot should last, and where it should actually end. Also, once I create a shot list according to my storyboards and script, it hopefully won't take me long to get everything organised on the day, maximising my time for reshoots and camera positioning.

Casting

These are the people I am considering for my character. I chose them because they both fit the general criteria, and I feel they could easily match the mood and feeling of both the entire opening and the main character. They are also both relatively comfortable on camera, and whilst neither have any acting experience, they both seem very willing to learn.

Andrew

Jordan

I think, out of the two people I have been considering, Andrew would be more suitable for the role as he is closer to the age I was thinking. It wouldn't be too difficult to use makeup and clothing to make Jordan appear the right age, however this could be a problem if we had to film over two days. It would also use makeup skills that I don't have, so I'd have to find someone to do it for me for a low cost or free.

I didn't think it was very necessary to do an audition as such, as there isn't any dialogue, and if it goes as planned, there aren't any close ups or shots that require specific facial expressions. Since it is meant to reflect the boring and the ordinary, all they need to do is be able to keep a normal, relaxed expression throughout filming. However, I did run through the script with both of them just to check they were happy with everything, and they both seemed very happy to give it a shot if needed.

BFI Academy Day 2 - Production Design and Art Direction in Film

Today, we had our first masterclass with the BFI Academy. It was on production design and art direction in film, and we had a specialist speaker come in to tell us about what she does, what the role involves, and let us try out some stuff on our own.

A production designer is someone who plans, designs, and dresses the sets, who deals with both the background props and the action props (something an actor can use), and who decides on a lot of things, like the colours and the look of a room. To design a set effectively, a production designer should work to suit their actors - a location is almost as important as the character itself; it adds another dimension to them - so, creating a visual extension of the characters is incredibly important when designing a set.

Ken Adams is a very important figure in production design - he designed the set for Dr Strangelove (1964). This is said, by many famous film figures, to be the best set ever designed in film. Ken Adams has a particular talent for drawing, however, this isn't the most important thing when being a production designer - Stuart Craig is the designer for the Harry Potter set, and he had a whole team of people, all of whom had different skills.

In production design, there are quite a few roles.
First, you have the production designer - this person deals with the colour schemes, the props, the set itself, the set dressing, etc.
The supervising art director helps to employ the staff, they look after the budget, and they deal with the general finances.
The art director does the model making, the drawing, and the research into the location.
The standby art director is the person on the set, who looks after things when the filming is going on.

When designing a set, there are many stages.
1. Script analysis - this stage is when a feel for the text can be gained. A very general idea of how the set will look is created.
2. Research - after gaining an understanding of the script, research into colours, furniture, room shapes, props etc. is done.
3. Presenting - this research is then put together into one presentation - usually in the form of a moodboard or scrapbook.
4. Surveying and location - a location is found to create the set in, and a plan is made to see the available dimensions.
5. Design and drafting - an elevation sheet is created - this consists of a birds-eye-view drawing of the set, and the side elevations.
6. Model making - a small, model version of the set is created - in film, the scale is usually 1/4":1', and in the UK and on television, the scale is usually 1:50. Model making is a good way to know how to read the plan - it helps the director, the lighting crew and the cinematographer gain a better understanding of how to light the set, where the characters should be, and how it will look when it's built.
7. Construction - the model is then sent off to a company who build the set. Sets are usually built from 'flats' - these are just single pieces, which can be put together quickly, which is really useful in a location where you don't have much time.
8. Buying and set dressing - this is the stage in which the props and furniture are decided on and bought. Most, if not all props are hired from specialist places called 'prop houses' - there are many of these with a specific theme, such as A+M Hire Ltd., who hire out a lot of period furniture and props. There are also companies who you can hire plants from - greenskeepers are people who look after these on set.
9. Action props and graphics - action props are carefully considered by the director and the art department. You have to be very careful about what you include in terms of products in your props - a general rule in the film industry is that if there are 6 or more brands in shot at the same time, it's okay, but if there's less than that, it is considered product placement, and rights from the company have to be bought. Therefore, during this stage the art department have to be very careful about where they get their props from, and so they often just design their own.
10. Get-in - this is when the set is built in the studio. Final colours and placement of objects is decided - these can be used to make things stand out or blend in, and they can also be very important in revealing things about the characters.

After learning about all the different roles in the art department, and stages in set production, we were told to draw a birds-eye-view plan of the room we were in, to scale. We were given a tape measure, and some squared paper. Firstly, as shown in the picture, we drew a very rough version of the room. We then went round and measured all the walls, and wrote these measurements on the plan. Then, we simply had to draw it onto the squared paper - with the scale, 2 medium squares = 1m. This task was actually a lot harder than we thought it would be - there were a few walls we couldn't actually measure due to furniture being in the way, and so we had to calculate the lengths in a different way. There were also many windows, a lot of angled pieces surrounding them, and a curved wall. However, we did manage to create a fairly accurate to scale birds-eye-view plan of the room, and doing this helped us gain an insight of what designing an actual set would be like.

Final script

FADE IN:

BLACK SCREEN

NARRATOR
You turn left,

CUT TO:

INT. CAR – DAYTIME
Quick shot of the indicator – it gets flicked down.

CUT TO:

EXT. CAR – DAYTIME
The camera is looking at the windscreen from the outside; the character turns the wheel to the left. The ticking noise of the indicator can be heard (2 sets/4 clicks).

NARRATOR
Then right,

CUT TO:

INT. CAR – DAYTIME

Quick shot of the indicator – it gets flicked up.

CUT TO:

EXT. CAR – DAYTIME
The camera is looking at the windscreen from the outside; the character turns the wheel to the right. The ticking noise of the indicator can again be heard (2 sets, 4 clicks).

NARRATOR
And then left again.

CUT TO:

INT. CAR – DAYTIME
Quick shot of the indicator – it gets flicked down.

CUT TO:

EXT. CAR – DAYTIME
The camera is looking at the windscreen from the outside; the character turns the wheel to the left. The ticking noise of the indicator can be heard (3 sets/6 clicks).

NARRATOR
Coffee, after coffee, after coffee

CUT TO:

INT. KITCHEN – EARLY MORNING
Hip-hop montage style cuts showing close-ups of making coffee.

CUT TO:

INT. KITCHEN – EARLY MORNING
Over each word (next piece of narration) a different action is shown – pushing down the top of the coffee machine, pouring the coffee, empty cup being put on the table.

NARRATOR
Black [pause] no milk [pause] no sugar

CUT TO:

INT. CAR BOOT – DAYTIME
The camera is in the (shut) boot of the car, looking diagonal (mostly upward).

NARRATOR
Open,

CUT TO:

INT. CAR BOOT – DAYTIME

The boot opens and the character reaches inside and begins to pick up his coat and newspaper.

NARRATOR
Shut,

CUT TO:

INT. CAR BOOT – DAYTIME

The boot is open and looking out at the character, he shuts the boot, submerging the camera in darkness.

NARRATOR
Open.

CUT TO:

INT. CAR BOOT – DAYTIME

The boot opens and the character reaches inside and picks up his coat and newspaper – the shot is repeated from the first boot opening, but it carries on for the remainder of him picking up and holding the newspaper and the coat.

CUT TO:

EXT. OUTSIDE THE TRAIN STATION – DAYTIME

The character walks toward the entrance to the train station, and puts on his coat while doing so.

EXT. IN THE TRAIN STATION, ON A BENCH – DAYTIME

NARRATOR
And then, you wait.

CUT TO:

Shots of the character sitting on a bench, jump-cuts between him reading the newspaper, fiddling with it, and looking around the station.

NARRATOR
And that’s my life.

CUT TO:

Character notices a pair of shoes across the station; looks up, tilts head slightly.

CUT TO:

A pair of black shoes sit neatly on a bench over on the opposite platform.

CUT TO:

Character looks down at his own shoes, then back up again at the shoes on the platform.

CUT TO:

A shot of the shoes on the bench, this time from slightly further away. The character walks up to the shoes, and just before touching them, a train hurtles past. Once it has passed, we see the character has disappeared, and so have the shoes.

NARRATOR
They say, ‘you never really know someone until you’ve walked a mile in their shoes’.

CUT TO:

EXT. SHOT OF THE STAIRS LEADING OVER THE TRACKS – DAYTIME

 A tilting shot; the camera moves up as the character walks into shot, places the shoes down, and proceeds to walk up the stairs and towards the exit.

[PRODUCTION SEQUENCE AND CREDITS APPEAR]