Major Project TERM III - Final Artwork and reflections
Below you can view the final film on Vimeo, since YouTube destroyed the quality completely. The Vimeo compression is also not the best but it looks better than the YouTube one. Please have in mind that if the film have some weird discolorations or is pixelated it is because of the video compression, and not because of how film actually looks.
Underneath the link you can also read my reflections about this project.
It was a really risky project to do, since I am not an experienced editor, actor, or writer, and the time constraint also did not help. Nonetheless, I managed to finish this project on time and I am very proud of how it turned out. During the process of both shooting and editing I encounter many obstacles, like underlit shooting locations, or tracking problems, but I did not give up and quickly adapted to any situation. This type of creative problem solving gave me a whole new insight into why filmmaking is a team task not a project typically for one individual.
However, I did this film all by myself, ranging from coming up with an idea, to final touches in editing program. It was a lot of hard work, and it was definitely the most difficult project I ever undertook. While my previous two major projects I usually made in four to five days, two days shooting and three days editing, this time I spend over eleven days shooting and more than a two weeks editing. It is the most time I ever spend on a project, but I don't regret it.
While it was a very demanding and ambitious project, shooting only at night and learning many advanced editing techniques, I felt really fulfilled when I finished it. It has some rough edges in terms of timing, acting or storytelling, but what I was most focus on, cinematography and editing, turned out the way I wanted to. I am especially proud of the way shots where there is more than one character on the screen were edited. I spend the most time perfecting those shots and I think every one of them turned out great and seamless.
As for the things that did not the way I intended them to, the entire park sequence was probably the most demanding in terms of shooting. This scene was initially supposed to be shot in the park, but when I did my location scouting I found out that there was really not enough light. Then I quickly changed my mind and wanted to shoot on the skatepark which is right next to the park. I rewrote the script, which was another obstacle to overcome, and was ready to shoot there. However, on the day of the shoot it turned out that the lights on the skatepark were turned off at night.
This amount of difficulties made my go back to previous version of the script and I decided to shorten the initial scene and shoot it in the park. I still think that it is the least necessary scene in the film and I am not really proud of it. Nonetheless, I am proud that I shoot it instead of giving up and going home that night.
The more minor problem I also had is with the beginning of the chase in the shop. I misplaced the camera in the wide shots therefore there is a 180 degree rule broken between the last scene in the shop and the first scene of the fourth chapter.
As for the rest I think the most of the scenes turned out at least good. The major problem I encountered while shooting myself is that the most shots are very static therefore the might feel boring and uninteresting. This is why I decided on shooting a few POV shots and using Ken Burns effect on a few scenes. It gave more dynamic to the whole film, especially in the chase sequence.
Overall, I am really proud of what I accomplished throughout these last few weeks. I worked tirelessly on this film and I think it was absolutely worth the effort. I learned a lot not only about editing or shooting but also why it is important, especially in this kind of industry, to not do things alone. As Al Gore, said 'Faster alone, further together'.
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