Screen Writing Drafts and Practice Works

First things first we have the finished script of Seven Sous Chefs.

 Secondly we have the first draft of three that became the one you can see above, however the the third and final draft was essentially a modified cut of the second.

Thirdly we have a selection of short drama given to us to interpret from an intial idea given to us by the teachers.

Single Camera Production Evaluation

1 Taking the script into production
Choosing our script was a great difficulty originally there were two that had the quality and the setting that would be applicable for production. We settled on Shauna's horror short "thanksgiving". I took it upon myself to edit the script so that we could film it on a micro budget. I also changed the setting of the film to England and removed the connotations of thanksgiving (including the title) because of our shooting location in Great Yarmoth. I also removed a pair of grandparents from the script as we agreed it would be hard to cast.

2 DSLR Filming
While shooting manually on a DSLR was not necessarily new to me there was still a learning curve to working with exposure. Whilst shooting my segment I had no initial problems with focus ( Later during re shoots problems occurred due to urgency). Exposure was my biggest trouble as during the early days of filming I didn't know how to get the best lighting out of my locations in the first few scenes in the dining room you can see this at it over exposed at it's worst. By the end of the shoot we were able to shoot well in low light.

3 Coverage
Essentially we had no trouble with coverage however. due to technical problems we required re shoots to correct problems like exposure, bad framing or sound. Our coverage generally revolved around multiple takes running through the lines we required over each shot. as well as this we opted to compose certain master shots for specific scenes. This coverage even though sometimes containing bad takes was vital in post.

4 Personal Sequence Management 
I was responsible for the first sequence of the film, This came as quite shock as I 'd never been tasked with leading before. Although the some of the quality of footage required re shoots organizing all the mise-en-scene was a huge success for a first day of filming. I got in and got a modest job done which I was able to rectify in post production. My re shoots were a mixed en devour, some of the footage need replacing while other shots could be polished. Other members of the team looked to me for advice and consultation on how to frame shots or take on extra direction and cinematography.

5 Finished Project

•  Mise-en-scene: I can't thank my team enough for being able to bring their clothes and props in for every day of filming. the requirement of the doll was essential for most of footage and there was never a day were we didn't have it at our disposal.
• Camera: While the rest of my team hadn't had experience in using it my camera still proved to be a useful tool.  Me and Ollie took the majority of the shooting and I assisted him where I could. We did have a couple of situations with bad exposure and grain however we were able to fix most of the problems in most. During the scene were Rachel and Max find the ouji board Ollie needed to resort to using a different camera, this generates bad look for that scene that feels out of place compares to the rest of the film.
• Editing: Editing went greatly, we were able to improve most of the footage taken, and manages to import clouds and mist to greatly improve our horror theme. Even if some of our takes were bad we were able to solve the problems a great example was to blow up a shot were one of the crew had held the corner of one of our lamps in shot. 
• Sound: The live sound in our short wasn't without fault however our music tracks to convey horror in my mind were a great success. However the audio quality of our dialog was sub standard, I can geuss that the fault of it goes to the use of my DLSR's on board microphone rather than one of the colleges new shotgun mics. 

6 Conclusion 

• Went well: All in all I think our production could have gone allot worse. we had no major continuity errors and all of the sound was legible. the music along with some of the pace successfully made an eerie feel. Pre and Post production went amazingly smoothly.
• Went not so well: Our sound quality in the short was atrocious, my directorial capacity was quite limited and I didn't make many good shots during filming, some of the lessons we were less organised than I would have liked.
• I've leant: Sound quality is key for a good short and its important to have plenty of experiance in the camera you are using.

Single Camera Production Pre-Production Paperwork

Here is my collection of pre-production paperwork for my single camera production unit.
First things first is the final copy of Shauna's script which I amended.

 The next thing we have is my first shot list. 

Next we have Ollie's, Lewis's and Shauna's shotlists.

Next we have the prop and costume list, as well as the risk assessment.

As well as the risk assessment here are my storyboards.

Production Diary, Minutes / Notes

Monday 27th January 2014
Today we decided upon which script we are going to pick, Shauna's short horror "Thanksgiving". We went over the script and read through it each taking a part. For next lesson I have been given a copy of the script to read over and correct. We will read over my adaptions and begin to work out who wants to take which sections of the shoot to plan.
Jonny

Tuesday 28th January 2014
Today we began completing the pre production paperwork. I read through the script once more before completing a detailed list of the Props, costumes and equipment that would be used in the short. Lewis completed the Risk Assessment paper work; Mikey created a Budget Sheet, while Johnny and Shauna read through the script discussing possible changes and shot lists. We were also given the sections of the script that we would be story boarding. The scene that we individually storyboard will be our responsibility to shoot. We have also decided to shoot at Shauna's house, so she has agreed to complete the Location recce/release forms in her own time.
Lacey

Wednesday 29th January 2014
Today I began creating the storyboards. I have at least 28 shots to storyboard spreading over 3 scenes. I have roughly finished half of the shot list. I hope to finish by tomorrow ready to shoot next week. We had some slight issues with locations but we were able to resolve them. I also began posting the Pre Production paper work onto my personal blog.
Ollie

30/01/2014 & 31/01/2014
We have decided to shoot at Ellie's house on Monday. We went to her house and completed both Location Recces and release forms. Today we also began looking at the talent release forms and completing the budget sheet. The prop/costume/equipment lists are all completed. My other team mates are completing their storyboards and refining certain aspects of the script that will allow us to shoot more efficiently and without any issues arising.

Me and Shauna went to Ellie's house to preform a recce, Her house is ideal for mise-en-scene but quite poorly lit which might reflect in the final quality of our film
Ollie

03/02/2014
Today we went to the shoot location (Ellie's house) and began shooting the first couple of scenes. Jonny was in the directors chair for the first few scenes and by the end of the day we were ready for Lewis to take charge of his scenes. We were on location for roughly 2 hours. The first couple of shots consisted of establishing shots of the house to the Father discovering and giving the doll to Rachel. We ended the day with the 3rd or 4th scene in which Rachel begins to notice how creepy the doll is. I feel as though for our first shoot, we were a little slow in shooting and setting up shots/equipment. I personally feel that we need to improve out time management and grind through scenes more efficiently
Ollie

04/02/2014
Today we began editing the first couple scenes that we shot yesterday. We began going through shot by shot deciding which would work best and entered them into Premiere Po CS6. We began arranging the clips and editing them around the dark horror theme. This included adding dark color effects to the shot. We want to try and create a slow short that shows subtle changes from the beginning. For example, we intend to edit the clips, with the shots slowly darkening to create a dreary,cold effect. We were unable to shoot today as Shauna was ill will be for the remainder of the week. Myself, Mikey, and Johnny are also attending a Media trip on Thursday and we return late Friday. Shooting is most likely going to take place next week, which is frustrating for all of us but unavoidable none the less. We have also discussed today shooting the basement scene at college. Its something that we have been talking about a lot recently as the room W12 has all black walls allowing us to create the dark scary atmosphere of a basement.

Ollie

05/02/2014
Today I took on the role of Editor and kept working on my pre-production paper work like getting my story boards in a better shape. We were unable to shoot again today because Shauna wasn't in again. I'm worried that the quality of direction and cinematography wasn't up to scratch with what I need to gain a distinction grade. We are aiming to film on Monday going back to Ellie's to get more footage, probably somebody else's as I took more than my fair share. I'm less than optimistic about how are filming might turn out but we just need to keep fighting. The rest of the team are working really hard although me and Mikey have had some tension. I think we are all beginning to get a little stressed. Also we choose a new title "Possesed".
Jonny

10/02/2014
Today we did our second round of shooting. It was much more productive and now I feel more confident about our shoot. Both me and Lewis led the way on each of our scenes.
Jonny

11/02/2014
Today we planned for our final day of shooting, we also began editing our footage from yesterday. I finished my scene early and handed the computer over to Lewis who began editing his scenes.
Jonny

25/02/2014
Today fresh faced from half term we got back to making our short. Today we got going with a bunch of scenes shot in the "basement" of the house. We are are planning on doing a final bunch of re shoots to finish production. This leaves me more optimistic than I have felt so far about this project.

03/03/2014
Today our teacher Sean wasn't in so I couldn't retrieve my camera from his office. Instead I got on with some Editing, I'm the only one in my group who has all my footage layed out on the time line and that disheartens me, I don't think I'll be able to crape merit in this project.

04/03/2014
Today we got on trying to shoot the last of Shaunas footage to complete our already late first round of shooting. 

10/03/2014
Today we began by going to Ellie's one final time for shooting, despite it initially coming across as a successful trip Ellie's footage was seriously underexposed.

11/03/2014
Today we attempted re shoots in w16

12/03/2014
Today we edited

13/03/2014
Not a lot was acomplished today we just continued editing our shorts and making our final credits.

14/03/2014
Today Me and Mikey finished editing possessed, hes attemped to clean the sound track through audacity. we installed the new titles as well as L fitting most of the soundtrack to make it feel less clunky.

Research Texts

Silent Witness - Season 9 - Choices

This two part episode takes place on an estate and combines a gang shooting with a dead junkie mystery.

It follows the three main pathologists  Nikki , Harry and Leo. Harry is investigating a shooting at the club owned by Ainsley Modest who lost his girlfriend ( Helen ) in a the fight. Nikki is investigating into the discovery of a mummified dead body filled up on heroin. Whilst Leo is suffering with the recent death of his estranged family.

In the opening scene Helen and Ainsley are driving down the road in a real big 4x4 she has a ring on her finger. Getting out of the car you see another 4x4 over the other side of the road it pulls around and the windows open to reveal a hand holding a sub-machine gun. It starts firing into the crowd you watch people drop as the nightclub owner looks around in the open completely lost.

The main characters involved in the scene where Ainsley, Helen, the Rastafarian and his Gangster buddies, Helen's friend.

The editing is indicative of single camera production.  During the shoot out scene at the beginning, it is very clear that they re-shot parts of it for theoretical flash backs that would have been to expensive for a multi camera set up. Instead they opted for integrating earlier shots of events with new footage like Ainsley firing back which is footage filmed separately to the car driving by.
The lighting in the junkies flashback has been designed in a way which casts a blue light over the side of her face this would be very difficult to maintain in a multicam shot.

Single Camera Production

Single Camera Production

Single camera production is the production of a film or media product with one camera.

Camera

Single camera productions generally use one camera.  However if the shot is full of heavy dialog or contains a stunt that for budget reasons can only be taken once,

 more than one camera can generally be put in operation.  Single camera productions are generally much easier to shoot as you are able to pack up the equipment set up a shoot much more easily than a multi-camera production.

This has serious advantages and disadvantages. Directors / Auteurs / D.O.P's often prefer the use of a single camera when film making. It gives then the opportunity direct and light the shot however they see fit.

All of the intensity in the overdose scene in Pulp Fiction is caused by the super intense close up in the camera framing.  This is the sort of thing you are only able to do in single camera productions as the other cameras would see the one doing the closeups.

Single camera productions are made by people filming repeated scenes over and over.  This can be more cost effective to shoot rather a multi-cam setup to shoot if you are on film stock. 

Lighting


Lighting in a single camera production is much easier to control than shooting on a multiple camera production where the lighting needs to be set for every camera on set to look ok.

On the left we have a single light camera set up utilizing a reflector. This is a simple technique which is generally used for shooting on location.

However for a more professional look is a three point camera set-up where you take a main light to fill out the majority of your subject, a second to fill in the opposite side of the object and a third to fill in the back of the object which fills in the back of item. The back light ( often referred to as the kick) as a professional touch that makes characters stand out and look really good.

Multi-Camera film making generally needs everything to be lit from above to avoid the shot being lit wrong on certain cameras.

Certain types of lighting are used to imply different moods for example in the film Blade Runner there is a strong emphasis of a neo-noir look that dominates the dirty sci fi aesthetic of the film is is used by low key lighting techniques. In the picture you can see here Sean Young's eyes are picked out by the use of a small kick light behind the camera, this is a reoccurring subtlety with this character as it establishes her hidden android nature. This is an example of high quality single camera lighting that is obviously motivated.

Sound

Sound coverage is very important for making a high quality media product. It is important to get sound right the first time in production as you can cut footage but sound works differently. Whether in a multi-cam or single cam set up its important to get the gear.


Types of Mic

Shotgun / Boom

Boom mics or shotgun mics are great partners with single camera production techniques. There are generally two ways they can be applied  Mounted on  top of an existing camera set-up to record sound and attached to a boom pole. Mounted is often used in lower budget productions and documentary's as it reduces the number of crew on set and the amount of luggage that needs to be carried this relies on the shotgun mics directional capability ( there is appropriately a 2 - 3 metre range where the directional quality in front of the mic will be good). The other option is using a boom pole to hold the camera over shot ( not undershot as it affects the bass) this often requires a specialized member of crew but is required in most professional productions. In single camera production it is really useful as you can get the mic really close to your subject. There is more skill in using a boom and having a designated recordist but at the same time there is more. Here is a typical mistake using a boom mic where its accidentally brought into shot.

Lapel

Lapel mics can be used in single camera productions to greater benefit in documentary and television production. They help as you don't need to rely on the often cumbersome boom mic set up. They are often also used in multi camera set-ups to reduce sound equipment visibility. The draw back is there is often a lot of interference with the wearers clothes and to buy a lapel mic that actually records at a worthy quality is very expensive.

Here you can see how a Lapel mic would be used in a single camera interview set up.

Editing

Editing or post-production is the most important point when constructing your film or TV show. This comes after conventional production has wrapped and can be a long and tedious process  ( hour long interviews can be cut down to 3 minute snips). Its organization is key
Single camera productions are generally very simple to edit, there are few takes per shot and due to budgets attempt to use as little takes as possible  Shot logs are often used to make sure all of the film you have shot is cataloged. Single camera productions are less interesting when it comes to live television, however as there is no alteration of shot without the audience becoming conscious of the camera moving.

Shooting logs however are different from logging, which is a form of log used in interviewing. When you log an interview it is somebody's job in short hand write down the entire conversation (like a a script), so that they can later tear through the log to find interesting points rather than tediously go through the whole interview.

Multi camera productions more film / memory is wasted in a multi camera set up as you always have all your cameras running which may mean a faster turnaround time for filming ( alternating cameras to cover mistakes). Live television, like Big Brother, is often shot on a multi cam set up this means that the production company can edit live on a machine called a vision mixer. Here you can see live edited footage that all took place at the same time.




Coverage

Coverage is a word for the amount of footage shot. Good coverage means there are many combinations for post. not getting enough can be detrimental to the shoot if there is nothing to swap it out with.  

How much coverage you get is generally budget dependent. But it is important to get as much coverage, with different angles and shots as possible to help the movie remain as visually interesting as possible. In single camera productions re shooting a scene multiple times is essential to make sure no errors slip through the post production net.

The master shot is a technique that covers all the action and characters in a scene. It is essential as it gives the editor a starting place to cut from.

Multi-camera productions are generally more difficult for obtaining coverage in terms of performance as it is more expensive to get takes wrong. In single camera productions there is much more room for error providing you can afford re-shoots.


Single camera genres and formats

Horror
You're Next
You're Next is a low budget horror film released initially in 2011.  However has only taken off in the last few months of 2013. It is a perfect example of a low budget horror film using the single camera format being a perfect way for a Director to become a name. On a production level a Director can use a single camera to really get into the face of their actors for showing fear. Single camera productions are often much cheaper than multicamera films this is a trope of the horror genre that the majority of its films are low budget.




Comedy
Dogma
Dogma is a brilliant religious comedy made by indie film-maker Kevin Smith. This film is a great low budget picture that uses single camera production to make the most of its low budget. Comedy doesn't often need complicated camera set ups.  As most of the appeal comes from the actors and their dialog, so single camera productions simplicity is often ideal.


Drama / Period
Frost / Nixon
Although this runs into the territory of period drama, and during the scenes in the interview house, where it is clear they set up a multi-camera system. Frost / Nixon is a fantastic example of a single camera production. This film is applicable to both Period and Drama genres as it follows a fairly accurate ( If slightly romanticized) version of what happened during the Nixon interviews. This could be applied to Drama as well as it is a retelling of a selection of memoirs among other things this still allows the Director to tell emotional scope despite basing the film on historical events.

As comedy there doesn't need to be much complexity of cameras as drama and period are often relying on performance and story rather than spectical.   Now there might be examples like gladiator where there is emphasis on action but these are further and fewer between.




Crime

Single camera is great for crime drama as the ability to play with lighting often improves the look of the film in the way a multi-cam setup can't compete with. Here is a great example the moody Noir thriller Drive. Winding Refn uses lighting to convey artistic suspense.

Soaps

Soaps aren't generally made with single camera techniques.  This is not an economical option due to the time constraints of the 24 hour time frame most shows have to be made in. This means that they are using multiple cameras to make sure the takes are alright and they can get it done quickly.

If there is a familiar cast and sets this will provide solidarity across the series as its more likely cameras will have fixed tracks to work on, this will provide a coherent look to the show.

One of the few examples of a single camera soap is British TV show Brookside. Which is popular for tackling social issues like incest and drug use.



Documentary

Documentary is primarily made by single camera production  This is because of the immediateness of situations the camera needs to record.  It needs to be carried and the production needs to be able to pack up and get around quickly.

An excellent example of a professional single camera documentary would be the work of documentary star Louis Theroux.  He needs to be able to get right into the action with alot of his interviews. I would be surprised if he had more crew with him than a camera man and a sound recordist to make his shorts in production. This wouldn't be feasible to use for a multi camera setup as the hassle of the setup could interfer with the state of the people being filmed.




Multi-Camera techniques

The multi-camera technique is a means of making television series on a much lower budget, it's generally associated with sitcoms where you generally don't leave one specific set. A great example of this is the hit 90's show Friends.



Formats

There are three often used formats in single camera production which get used apart from features

Serial

Serials are one ongoing series that tell one outstretched story. These where often used in the early days of cinema to help sell features. Here is some of the first batman and robin serial shown in the 1940's.

Series

Series are different from serials as they often have their own sub narratives to every story. The Walking Dead is a popular AMC show that uses single camera techniques in its post apocalyptic environment.

Single Drama

Single dramas are one story shown in one full sitting.  These can often be also referred to as TV movies. The Girl is an Alfred Hitchcock drama set during the production of The Birds staring Sienna Miller.

Comparison

Single-camera

Advantages

• Cheaper to shoot
• Easier to setup and crew.
• Better for feature / short filmmaking ( can be relocated )
• Easier and more expressive to light

Disadvantages

• Often less coverage
• More complicated to edit
• Generally longer production period

Multi-Camera

Advantages

• Shorter turnaround time
• More coverage
• Better for soaps and sitcoms

Disadvantages

• Expensive
• Little space for creativity
• Sound either needs to be lapel or hidden microphone

References
http://ansraudio.com/33-86-thickbox/am-10-replacement-lapel-microphone.jpg
http://www.studio1productions.com/images/boommic.jpg
http://contemplatrix.files.wordpress.com/2011/01/rachael2007.jpg

Commissioning Prezi