Individual Project - Coming up with the Idea

For our individual projects we were assigned to shoot and edit a short film of our choice, being no shorter than 3 minutes and no longer than 8. I instantly decided I wanted to do a narrative drama type film as opposed to a documentary as I feel that I've rarely had the chance to create a film like this. This was perhaps a little bit of a brash decision as soon as I started thinking about it; I found it very difficult coming up with a story idea.

Coming Up With a Film Idea Proved Rather Tricky

This continued for a long while and I seemed to have some sort of creative block, that wouldn't allow me to think up any decent idea's that seemed original or simple enough to actually do. I managed to come up with a bunch of ideas that would have been perfect had I had a massive budget, large crew and actors. However this of course was not possible and the 'Die Hard' and 'Indiana Jones' type films I had in my head would just have to wait for when I do have a producer's budget. This became infuriating and I carried on picking my brains until a few days before our proposal deadline, where I eventually sat myself down and started to brainstorm some ideas.

Since my McClane and Indy Blockbuster would not be Feasible, I had to do some Brainstorming

The only half-decent idea I could think of was a short 'trailer' like TV film that if was shown in the real world, would have been developed for the Saturday night, teatime slot on terrestrial TV. I was thinking of something along the lines of 'Doctor Who', 'Robin Hood' or 'Primeval', all being family friendly dramas which if filmed by a student could be forgivable since they do have a certain 'cheese-factor' to them anyway. I rather reluctantly went with this idea for a while and even decided on a young 'James Bond' like character and plot, even though it has been done many times before (Stormbreaker, Spy Kids etc.) and lacked originality. However when it came to proposing this to other people in my class, even I doubted myself and within no time at all I ditched the idea and went back to square one.

Not Even Bond Himself would have Stood for a 'Cheese Factor' Saturday Slot!!

On the day of the proposal deadline I sat and heavily thought about what I could do and when it came to it, only two ideas were coming to mind. The first was a spoof of the film 'The Great Escape', having watched it recently with my Dad and honestly finding it rather dull. I felt it could be handled rather well as a spoof since it featured a lot of decent scenarios that could easily be changed to be comedic (it was at this point that I also decided to ignore that it had been done in the film 'Chicken Run' already). The second of my ideas came from my friend Dean who whilst talking about what i could do for my project, joked that he would find a film on egg's rather interesting. At first I laughed at his idea and found that my other idea could just turn as dull as the original film, but after a lot of thinking (and a much appreciated conversation with my Dad) I came to the conclusion that I could just connect the two and use both ideas.

And so 'The Great Egg Escape' was born...

Group Project - Evaluation

As the project comes to a close, I look back at what we have accomplished and feel I have come away learning quite a bit about certain aspects of media as well as certain personal characteristics and traits.

When we assigned roles at the beginning of the project I was chosen as director, however as I have mentioned in earlier blogs I do not feel this was as authoritative as I'd originally hoped. Due to various issues within the project and other members of the group being quite accountable, I slowly felt my position of director being forgotten. Monish from the beginning had a very clear vision of how he wanted the final film to look and was always very opinionated when it came to deciding various elements of the film. Dean was also very motivated throughout filming and showed this through his high organisation skills and forward thinking. Whilst Dean was definitely suited in his role as Producer, I feel maybe me and Monish should have swapped our roles earlier on in the process (although seemingly did without actually telling each other).

I don't feel I was a lazy team member but do feel I could have been a lot more focused on the project instead of on other things like my individual project. As I spent so much time on the BC1005 Individual module I perhaps neglected the group project a little bit and therefore allowed my directorial position to be occupied by the other guys. This was not their fault at all as I should have been more organised and on top of things but instead got too distracted by other work and personal issues.

I think we worked well as a team - Although I was probably more like that little one at the back!!

When it came to filming and editing I feel I helped out a decent amount although as director should have been a lot more involved. I do believe I contributed in group discussions, keeping things together and fair at certain points and don't believe my position in the group was of concern. All the same I feel my name does deserve to be on the end credits as I have been quite reliable and have participated in all areas of the project (with the exception of Good Friday's filming day). That said, whilst I have been part of this group and did work to my best ability, I feel I could have been more than just the reliable third person. For that reason I believe Monish deserved the directorial position a lot more than I did.

I feel I contributed towards Filming and Editing, Although Monish Shared more input then Both Me and Dean

As a group I feel we learnt a few things that we will have to bare in mind for future productions. For instance making sure to be prepared and ready when doing a pitch instead of having computer troubles and also having back up equipment if the one you're using proves faulty. One thing I feel we definitely need to work on is our communication skills as this proved quite difficult at times. When phoning or texting I seemed to be constantly stuck in the middle with both Monish and Dean passing messages through me instead of just getting in contact with each other. This would lead to confusion and complexity when discussing on filming dates or other times to meet up. One of the biggest problems involving this was when Dean and Monish text me to go filming a couple of hours before they were meant to, not realising I was at work despite me having told them a week before.

We would need to work on our Communication Skills as well as Being Prepared (above) for all aspects of Group and Individual work (Scouts Honour)

I do feel we worked well as a team and as always we get along very well. Being such a small class means we all share responsibilities when it comes to working on a group project and I really appreciate that although do feel it would be great and more challenging to work as part of a bigger team. That said, it was rather challenging trying to film some parts of the film with only three group members and could cause a few problems (especially when one of us couldn't turn up).

Despite Working well as a Small Team, I Would Love the Oppurtunity to work within a Bigger Group!!

I'm pleased that we managed to complete the film and also keep it rather close to the original brief. It looks good, flows rather well and it all seems quite tidy and well constructed. The only issue we really had was with sound and the quiet voices being picked up by the boom mic, this wasn't too much of a problem and was nothing we couldn't sort out in editing. The main thing that constrained us when making this film was the lack of equipment we had and of course the small number of students we had to when filming. If we had a few more people to assist us, maybe an extra camera or two and some decent lighting equipment I believe we could have made our film look a lot more professional.

If we'd had a Larger Group, Some More Cameras and Some Decent Lighting Equipment - I feel we could have Made this Documentary Look Professional!!

From the day we decided on the idea of a 'World War 2 - Memories' documentary, people seemed quite supportive of the idea and a lot becoming instantly interested. From our teacher seeming increasingly eager to see the finished film to our relatives showing a lot more interest then they normally would, it seemed we had come up with what could be a great end product. I hope that this is still recognised as we submit the film as I feel the anticipation and attention it had been getting really spurred us on to do our best and make a decent documentary.

Group Project - Editing the Documentary/ Interviews

Editing for our group project was going to be very important when keeping in touch with its serious mood and tone. The editing process had to be handled carefully since we couldn't effect its emotional quality, same as with many other parts of our project. We had to make sure we edited it so to respect the people we filmed and work the interviews well enough so it looked professional. Because of this we've deliberated with each other about how to edit various sections and how to structure the whole thing.

Thank Goodness we didn't have to edit like this....

When editing some of the interviews we noticed how we'd need to revise the sound for some of the interviewees. A few of the veterans we talked to spoke very quietly and proved tricky to be picked up by the boom mic. When interviewing them we noticed this and had asked for a couple of them to possibly speak louder although understandably this was a little tricky for them in their old age. One prime example of this came from a man we interviewed at the RAF house who had a little trouble speaking and slurred his words. At the time of filming we couldn't quite understand what he was saying, however when we watched it back during the editing process we realised his answers were actually really good. Whereas a few of us debated whether or not to include him, Dean quite rightly pointed out that if his answers are good we should use him and perhaps work a way around it by including subtitles for him.

An Example of Subtitles!

Cutaway shots were particularly useful during the editing as quite a few of the veterans answers were interesting but rather long and drawn out. Cutaways would allow us to break away from these longer answers and stop our audience from getting bored or losing interest. As interesting as the answers might have been, audiences would find it tedious watching a continuous shot of someone talking to camera and we needed to make sure they had something to look at to keep them hooked whilst they listened.

This was also an incentive whilst filming the veterans, to take different kinds of shot when they were answering our questions. With each interviewee we filmed basic long shots of them sat answering questions but also changed to mid shots and close ups so it didn't remain to motionless. The close ups were particularly effective when it came to some of the more emotional answers and would also give us separate cutaways to use during the edit. However since we only had the one camera to film with, the cameramen had to try and anticipate when to zoom and change shots. This wasn't too much trouble but did cause a few camera hiccups which we would need to edit around in Final Cut.

Whoever was on Camera would have to have a Steady Hand and have Quick Reflexes

Finally to give the film a bit more structure, we needed to add a voice over that could also be used for various cue's within the edit. The group decided that I would do the voice over since we couldn't hire a professional and apparently I have a rather well spoken voice when I try. This wasn't too complicated to do as we kept it rather short, with Dean having written a script and structure for the show already. Because of this it was rather simple to record into Soundtrack Pro and even simpler to place within the edit on Final Cut.

We would Record Audio into Soundtrack Pro and then Transfer it into Final Cut with our edit!!

With all of this done, we'd finally be ready to finish our documentary and have it submitted. Hooray!!

Group Project - Filming at Flower Down House and North Somerset Museum

Whilst I had missed out on a few days, I did manage to make it to the other two filming days where we filmed cutaways and went to the RAF holiday home at Flower Down house. When we went to film the cutaways at Grove Park, it had been the first time in a while where we'd all used a camera. Because of this I felt that the time we got to film the cutaways really jogged our memories and got us back into the filming spirit. We each had a turn at filming, although I feel that my time was very limited due to the numerous shots Monish and Dean had planned. This was fine though as a lot of their ideas were great and showed me they obviously had a great vision to what the final film should look like. This firmly established Monish's role as Cinematographer, although did make me feel a little unbefitting as the Director; the supposed Visionary of a film.

A Handheld Viewing of Grove Park, Showing the Memorial we filmed for cutaways

After filming in Grove park we went on to the North Somerset Museum where we greeted by the manager and asked whether we could film their World War 2 exhibition. Since coming to the museum was a rather 'on the cusp' idea we assumed that she would decline, however she seemed pretty interested in the film and (after we paid at a special discounted price) she let us in with our filming equipment. From here we managed to film a lot of pictures and old war documents which we were sure would make great cutaway shots. I did get a go with the camera in here, although this was a rather tedious process of slow pans and simply pressing record for some pictures. I had a good amount of time filming within the museum although obviously didn't get much chance to experiment with different shots. We were very appreciative of the access the Museum had given us and were very pleased with the shots we achieved.

North Somerset Museum, W-S-M

The second day I joined them was when filming the veterans at Flower Down House, and was another day of group progression. We managed to get a good few interviews from the people there, and all went rather smoothly and without any hassle. There seemed to be no problems with the equipment and from what the guys told me the day went a lot smoother then when they filmed across the road in the Somerset Legion house - we were even treated to tea and cake! The people there were exceptionally nice and had no problems answering our questions which were great and very helpful. During our time there Monish asked the questions, whilst Dean filmed and I was in charge of sound. I had no problem doing this although admittedly my arms did start to ache after some of the veterans longer answers. The only issue I had on the day was the lack of input I really had within the session of filming, which was understandable since I'd missed filming at the Legion house previously although likewise feel my position as director had further been discarded.

Our Interviews may have not been as professional as this, But we were certainately happy with what we got!!

All in all, after seeing the footage I was genuinely quite happy with what we'd achieved. Of course everything had to be edited still, but from the footage we'd got it made me quite intrigued and really interested in getting the film done.

I was most happy with what we'd filmed!!

Group Project - Missed Filming Dates

Filming has been an unstable process for me in the last few months, whilst filming both my individual and helping out with the group work. Whilst it certainly was a lengthily chore during my individual project, I probably had it a little easy when it came to the group work. This was primarily because I'd only managed to make it to two days worth of filming, and within this blog I will show what the guys had achieved and why I had missed these dates.

Whilst Filming Probably wasn't this unstable for me... it Still Proved difficult!

Unfortunately for the group work I was only available for two of the filming days, as my job at WHSmith's required me to work some extra hours. The first of these days was Good Friday and I'd had it booked for a long time before we decided on filming dates. For this day Dean and Monish went to film at the Somerset Legion House, and from what they explained to me they managed to film a good few interviews (and some bad ones) although did come across some technical hitches along the way.

Unfortunately I was busy working during one of our filming days...

It was a shame I'd missed this as I would have liked to of helped out especially considering I'd been along with Monish the week before to talk to the manager of the Legion house. I feel because of this it would have looked a lot better had I turned up a week later, unfortunately the dates of filming were organised without my knowing and when Dean and Monish called me on the day, I was already at work. I feel this lapse of communication may have effected my position in the group as Director considering I wasn't available to make our first proper day of filming and the other guys had to call the shots without me. Whilst the other guys couldn't have helped it and it was in no way their fault, I did feel disappointed that my role as director had become a little bit 'touch and go' and I felt instead to be playing more of a 'best boy' part.

It seemed that my role as Director had been forgotten and i was now more of a best boy, mainly holding the boom mic!!

The second of these days was when Dean went to film his Nan who we'd decided to include as an additional contributor. I was also unavailable for this day too, however Dean had made arrangements to go up on his own anyway and had his parents to help out with the filming. This was a good choice by him as the footage of his nan's interview is really good and would work well in our film.

Group Project - Legion House Visit

In realisation that we would need contributors for our documentary and should give them some time to decide, the group figured it was time to get in contact with the the British Legion to ask whether we could film there. After Monish had phoned them and discussed our plans to film, we eventually decided to visit them and pursue it even further.

Since we needed permission to film rather imminently, Me and Monish met in town to go to the Legion house in which Monish had told me was situated on Orchard street. I found this a little odd as I assumed we had been talking about the big building situated on Weston Sea Front which I pass regularly on the way to college. Monish knew of this building but explained to me that the one I was thinking of was just a Summer house and not the actual Legion building and so we set off in search of the place.

Permission was vital for our film, If we couldn't get it we would have been slightly stuck

Now the lesson here is to not always trust Google Maps as they might not be as up to date as you'd hope....






So after a fair few strolls up and down Orchard Street, a baffled Monish and I were rather confused as to where this building actually was. It was then that we decided to follow up Orchard St. by house number and realised our problem. The Legion house was no longer located on the street!! It had in fact been restored as a rock bar named 'Rock Gardens' and a Adult Strip Bar named 'Vamps' which was certainly not the place we were after. After having a giggle and realising this we eventually relocated to the Sea front Legion House that we knew was still there. To this day we still find it rather confusing that the old one was missing because weirdly enough we'd phoned in preparation and someone had answered claiming that it was the Legion House.

Rock Gardens and Vamps.... Not what we were expecting!!

When we got to the real legion house we met with the manager and explained who we were. We let her know our intentions and asked whether it would be possible to film there. They were very helpful and even looked through the reservations to see whether there was any World War 2 veterans staying there over the coming weeks. She found a selection of people for us and said that she would ask whether they would be up for doing it and if so they would happily allow us to film there. She then recommended that we should try the RAF House as a lot more WW2 veterans come there, and rather conveniently it was only next door. After making our way over there however we found that the manager was not available although we did manage to get a phone number which we called later that week.

Somerset Legion House (left) and RAF Flowerdown House (right)

Over the following week we got responses from both the Legion house and RAF house and both said that they had people who would we could interview. This was great news and gave us a huge confidence boost in the way of getting our documentary done. Just goes to show that good things come to those who ask.... once they get there.

A Huge Confidence Boost... Just What we Needed!!

Group Project - The Pitch

It was time to present our pitch to the 'Dragons Den' again, which for our group was definitely quite a daunting experience. The last group project pitch we had done together was certainly an experience we'd much rather forget and is obviously something we wanted to improve upon this time round. However, since we had done this before and knew what not to do, this time we made sure to be much more prepared and had a good knowledge of what the panel would want to see from us. That said, considering two thirds of the panel were the same people who'd seen us the time before it didn't stop us being nervous and although prepared, it gave us a lot more reason to try and impress.

Our Pitch was presented just like that of Dragons Den

As prepared as we were however, we did have a slight technical glitch with my laptop when trying to connect to the whiteboard to project our PowerPoint presentation. Unfortunately this proved problematic and we instead had to show our accompanying presentation on a smaller Apple Mac screen instead (and may have neglected to use later on in the pitch), which in my case was a little embarrassing. Nevertheless, you can't always rely on technology and it was up to us to present our pitch as good as possible regardless of any beginning problems.

Our Powerpoint was Improvised Onto a Mac after a Last Minute Technical Hiccup

Within our pitch we explained to the panel our intentions for our World War 2 Documentary, starting by explaining what it was about. Having come up with the name 'Wartime Memories' we explained how our film would be made up mainly of interviews, with overlaying pictures and clips playing throughout. When asked where we would get these pictures and clips from we explained how we planned to go out and film a variety of establishing shots around Weston including the war memorial in Grove Park. However when describing how we were going to 'borrow' our pictures from 'Google', we were rightly called upon as there would be a degree of clearance needed for this. Instead we came to the conclusion (with a little assistance from the panel) that we would collect any pictures we could from our contributors.

The War Memorial at Grove Park

On the subject of contributors we explained who we were going to use and how we were going to find them. For this, we planned to go to the Somerset Legion house and we also had various back up plans in case we didn't have enough contributors, in the form of Dean's relatives and a few neighbours.

We also presented an idea for our films planned structure, which would consist of the following:-
- A significant theme for the documentary
- A montage including various cutaways and pictures that would establish the mood for the audience
- The inclusion of a narrator to open and close the film, as well as introducing each interviewee
- A decent amount of contributors to be filmed, with a final 3-5 ending up in our final cut
- To have it edited to follow the questions rather than each interview, to avoid continuous shots of each interviewee
- To incorporate cutaways over each interview so it doesn't become to tedious
- A possible ending that would feature the War Memorial cross-fading into a poppy field and then fading black, with the song 'We'll meet again' by 'Vera Lynn' playing over the top. We feel this would be quite sentimental and show remembrance to those who died in the war.



To accompany our presentation we also included handouts for our panel that featured our structure, role allocation, production schedule, contact and equipment lists, as well as our budget.


Whereas there may have been a few flaws and technical difficulties, the panel did agree that we had done a lot better than our previous try and seemed suitably impressed with our idea. They gave us the 'Thumbs up' and after a sigh of relief, me and the guys were allowed to begin filming our project.