It's All Over!

So today was our last day at uni. We handed in our final projects we have been working so hard on for the past 4 and I have to say I am really proud of them all. Even though I have a few issues with the final films I know how much hard work went into them and what a challenge these projects have been.

I know that working on 3 projects was a bit to much for me but I know that I worked as hard as I could and did everything I could for Maddie, Dan and Dean and their projects. However if I had of only concentrated on 1 or 2 I would have had more time to work hard for me by getting my report done earlier and updating my blog more frequently and job hunted before leaving uni but I simple haven't had the time.

I have had an amazing time at uni even though this year has been such a struggle for me. I know that I have worked so so hard this year and I have done the best I can and I just hope that Simon can see that.

I'm scared about what the future holds for me but I am excited to get stuck into the industry and start climbing that ladder to becoming a producer.

Producer Questions

To help with my report I decided to try and get in contact with some producers working in the industry and try and find out if the producer role I had taken on was similar to the role of a producer in the industry.

I made a list of production companies I liked and would want to work for in the future and I gave each one a ring and told them what I was doing and to see if they could help me. By ringing the companies first, rather than just emailing the company email address which I found online, I was able to get more direct email addresses and it prepared the people to receive the email.

I sent a letter with my questions to explain to producers what I was doing. For each company I personalized the letter to explain why I was specifically targeting them. I explained what shows of theirs I liked and wanted to find out more about.

I was a bit disappointed withe the amount of replies as out of the 18 company's I contacted only 3 came back with replies and they weren't producers who had worked on a show I had mentioned in my email. None the less the answers I got were very helpful and made me realise that my role on the 3 projects had been very similar to the role of a producer in the industry and it gave me great information to include in my report.

Surveys

To help with our report I thought it would be a good idea to get feedback from  the cast and crew members who worked on all 3 projects to find out how professional they thought the shoots were and what they thought about me, Maddie, Dan and Dean in he roles we had chosen to take on.

I created these surveys and sent it to all of our cast and crew on each project. As it was an anonymous questionnaire I asked everyone to be as honest as possible.

Click here for the Totally Maisy survey

Click here for the Love Always survey

Click here for the If I Was King survey

We got some lovely feedback from people and they let us know what we did well and what we could improve upon.

I found this a very beneficial tool as it was great to get feedback from people to help improve in the future and to build my confidence as a producer.

If I Was King - Script Readthrough

Today we had our script read through and I have to say it went really well which made it very disappointing that we were not actually able to film it. The cast we had for the read through was far better than the cast we originally had for the project which was even more frustrating.

We rehearsed the script twice and gave pointers to each actor and then we recorded it twice so that we had alot of coverage to edit with.

If I Was King - What a Disaster

So on Monday we were supposed to start filming for If I Was King but one thing after another went wrong and we have had to cancel the filming. Last week our DOP dropped out and then today 2 of our actors pulled out 2 days before the shoot. We have not had much luck with this project at all which is really really disappointing.

Me and Dean have worked really hard on this project and I really wanted this project to be amazing for Dean as I know how passionate he is about this project.

We have decided to film a script read through instead and we will be getting a new better cast for this read through and we are going to make it look as amazing as we can.

Totally Maisy - Genre Conventions

Characters

The characters in a teen comedy will be teens themselves and are often exaggerated sterotypes such as “dumb blondes” and “geeks”. Teen dramas often focus on social groups and usually split characters into these groups however the shows main characters are often based on a group made up of misfits from other social groups.

Costume

Costumes in a teen drama are quite modern as they are usually set in the present day however each character will have their own individual style and this will reflect the kind of character that they are.

Locations

Teen dramas are often set in a secondary school or college as this is where most of teen life takes place and it is also a convenient and practical location to film in. Characters homes are often used in teen dramas to help the audience understand what kind of person the character is whether they be rich or poor, modern or traditional.

Themes

Teen dramas deal with a lot of teen problems and often show teenagers coming of age, first loves, rebellion, conflict with parents, teen angst, and alienation. They also deal with controversial issues such as underage sex, eating disorders and mental health issues to highlight these issue to young people.

Structure

Often in teen dramas the main character gives some narration whether it be to introduce the characters or help the audience understand what they are feeling and empathize with them. Flash backs, flash forwards and daydreams are often used to show what has happened to a character, what could happen or what they want to happen. This adds a fun comical element to the show and allows the audience to see things they would not be able to see or know about the character. Graphics are often used to modernize and make the piece appealing to a younger audience. Teen dramas are kept up to date by including things teenagers do such as texting and using social networking sites and also emphasizing the language they use.

Music

Music is used in teen dramas to help an audience understand how they should be feeling at certain times. Usually it is modern music used so that the audience can also relate to the music and feel closer to the program as they share the same tastes in music.

Lighting

Lighting in a teen drama is often light and bright as they are usually light hearted and comical and so this is reflected in the lighting.

Camera Work and Editing

Panning and split screens are often used to fit as much in 1 shot as possible and keep the show modern and fast paced. Close ups are used so that the audience can really see how the character is feeling and point of view shots are used to put the audience in a specific characters shoes and therefor feel empathy for the character and their situation. Handheld shots are often used in teen dramas to emphasis how hectic a school can be with teens shoving and rushing around everywhere.

If I Was King - Genre Conventions

Characters

The characters in a comedy drama will always be relatable and will be dealing with emotional themes. Comedy dramas often have diverse characters from different backgrounds so that an audience has the opportunity to relate to at least one of the characters. The main character in an comedy drama is often an “Average Joe” who is dealing with day to day problems which many members of the audience are also dealing with. The characters are often in conflict with themselves and face tough choices which question their morals. The character with the comedy is happy throughout the series therefore keeping the comedy constant throughout.

Costume

Costumes in comedy dramas are quite modern as they are usually set in the present day however each character will have their own individual style and this will reflect the kind of character that they are.

Locations

Locations for comedy dramas vary but they are always simple and identifiable either a café, a pub, a living room or a work place. The characters homes are also often used to help the audience understand what kind of person the character is whether they be rich or poor, modern or traditional.

Themes

British comedy dramas deal with a lot of issues that the audience watching are also dealing with such as financial, work and status issues. They also deal with relationships in a conventional and relatable way whether they be love interests, friendships or family. There is also a common theme of the main character being trapped either in their situation or in their environment. Humor is used throughout the piece but with an equal balance of comedy and drama so that the program seems realistic and similar to everyday life.

Structure

Often in comedy dramas there are storylines which run throughout a single episode but also story lines which span across the entire series. For example in “If I Was King” the ongoing story lines would be Jamie and Stefs fight for the job and also the relationship building between Sophie and Jamie. The structure is very linear with an obvious beginning, middle and end with a problem being established at the beginning of the episode or series and it then being resolved by the end of the episode or series.

Music

Music is used in comedy drama’s to help an audience understand how they should be feeling at certain times. Usually it is modern music used so that the audience can also relate to the music and feel closer to the program as they share the same tastes in music. A catchy theme tune is used so that the audience becomes familiar with a show and when they hear the music they have an idea about what they are going to see.

Lighting

Lighting in a comedy drama is often light and bright as they are light hearted and comical and so this is reflected in the lighting.

Camera Work and Editing

More often than not comedy dramas are filmed on a multi camera set up in order to catch all of the action as with comedy you may only get the right reaction ones. Close ups are used so that the audience can really see how the character is feeling and point of view shots are used to put the audience in a specific characters shoes and therefor feel empathy for the character and their situation. Camera movements are often used to make the program more fluid, modern and interesting to watch.

Totally Maisy - Day 4

Today was our last day of filming and I can not be happy with how the whole production has been. All of the cast and crew have been so professional and easy and lovely to work with. The extras were also amazing and I think it was so beneficial to have them there as scenes would have looked so empty without them.

Today was the only day we had any kind of problem and that was the fact that we had not been able to get in contact with our actress who was playing Katie all day and we were beginning to panic. We started to come up with a contingency plan but luckily we had a text from her saying she was running a bit late but she was going to be there and then we could relax. This taught me the importance of a contingency plan and having multiple contacts for each actor.

I have thoroughly enjoyed working on this project and I can not wait to see what it looks like in the edit.

Totally Maisy - Day 3

Today we had a day filming at Maddie's again this went really well and it was our only day with our actress playing Maisy's Mum and just like the others she was professional and and fit the role perfectly.

We had a few issues with the Barney the dog running away but it was something we were able to work around which was good.

We realised today that we would have benefited from having a hair and make up artist as I think it would have saved us alot of time rather than me, Maddie and the actresses doing it.

 

Totally Maisy - Day 2

we have just completed our second day of filming. Today we were at my house and we were filming the scenes in Maisy's and Cassie's bedrooms. Today was a pretty relaxed day as we did not have as much planned to film. We managed to get everything we planned filmed and also a few scenes which we had scheduled for other days which will hopefully save us sometime on our other shoot days.

I am really pleased with the performance of all of our actors and I am so glad that we found them.

Totally Maisy - Day 1

Today was our first day filming Totally Maisy and it went brilliantly. Today was one of our busiest filming days as we had alot of extras and we knew that today was the only day we had to film at the school and we had alot to get done. Jordan's way of filming was very different to the way we had been taught and when I questioned him on this he said he was filming to to edit and so as I had confidence in him I allowed him to carry on I just hope it looks good in the edit.

We stared off the day with a meeting with the whole cast and crew to discuss how the production was going to run and to go through health and safety. Then we quickly rehearsed and blocked out the first scene with the 3 main girls and then began filming.

If I Was King - Logo

For If I Was King we wanted a rough regal look for the logo. We gave our graphic designer a copy of the synopsis and sent them this picture of Notorious BIG to give them an idea of what we are looking for.

We also sent them these logos which I made to give them ideas of what we thought would look good.

The graphic designer came back with these ideas:

We liked the logo on the below on the right but thought it was a bit too dark and so we asked them to lighten it.

The graphic designer sent over the following 2 logos and we have decided to go with the bottom one.

Totally Maisy - Working With Teens

It is very important that we know the laws when working with under 18's. This is the information I found regarding this and the laws I need to make sure we stick to.

16 and 17 Years of Age
Sixteen- and 17-year-olds may be employed for unlimited hours in any occupation other than those declared hazardous by the Secretary of Labor. Examples of equipment declared hazardous in food service establishments include power-driven meat processing machines (meat slicers, saws, patty forming machines, grinders, or choppers), commercial mixers and certain power-driven bakery machines.

14 and 15 Years of Age
During the school year, hours are limited to 3 hours a day and 18 hours a week. On days when there's no school and in the summer, working hours increase to 8 hours a day and 40 hours a week. There are limits on when children can work, too - no later than 7 p.m. during the school year and no later than 9 p.m. between June 1 and Labor Day. Fourteen- and 15- year-olds may be employed in restaurants and quick-service establishments outside school hours in a variety of jobs for limited periods of time and under specified conditions.

The local council would be Dartford and so I have sent them an email to see if they can help me.

If I Was King - Platform

Backdoor Pilot — "Not a Variety creation, pilot episode filmed as a standalone movie, so it can be broadcast if it is not picked up as a series" - http://variety.com/static-pages/slanguage-dictionary/#b

After researching to try and find a platform and a format for If I Was King. Dean and I finally found out that the way the script is written actually fits the format of a backdoor pilot. A Back door pilot is a stand alone film which if it is picked up by a commissioner that it could be stretched out into a series.

Totally Maisy - Logo

For Totally Maisy we have managed to find a graphic designer and animator who will be working together to create the title sequence and the logo, booklet and poster for our show.

Below is the information we gave to the graphic designer and animator to give them an idea of the show and what we were looking for:

Here is the synopsis for ‘Totally Maisy.’

"This brand new 25 minute pilot tells the story of awkward 15 year old Maisy’s life. She lives at home with her single mum who is much cooler than her and is going on way more dates. Now shes going into year 11 with her BFF’s Cassie and Gemma, and she has a whole new set of dramas to deal with. The girls spy new sixth form hottie Jack, and Maisy knows she just has to make him hers! Luckily she has her boy best friend Rob to walk home with and tell him all about her problems but Maisy just can't see how much Rob likes her. There's the coolest house party on Friday and Maisy and the girls just have to find a way in to it! Meanwhile whilst this is all going on Mums stared to date again, and Maisy can’t work out why her hot new history teacher is being so nice to her…"

There is also a strong multi-platform element within 'Totally Maisy,' as Maisy often makes vlogs through out the series. 'Totally Maisy' is live action but animation will feature during each episode. A strong USP of 'Totally Maisy,' is the language she uses. Maisy is a slave to current words (e.g soz and embaz!) with her favourite catchphrase being 'cringe o'clock.'

Think cross between Inbetweeners and Angus, Thongs and Perfect snogging.

The audience is 12-30 olds.

I made the following logos to give the graphic designer an idea of what we were looking for in the way of a logo.

This is the final logo and me and Maddie both love it.

How To Make Independent Films

I have just found this website and it has really given me good advice on what kind of people I need to hire for my project and also helped me define my role a bit more. It explains everything to think about when making an independent film and it has helped me to decide what credits everyone involved should get.

http://www.independentfilmadvice.com/IndependentFilmAdvice.com/Filmmakers_Home.html

As I was reading through the website and they were giving me advice on certain parts of the production I realised that these were actually the steps I took when making Love Always and they are also things I need to remember when making Totally Maisy and If I Was King.

If I Was King - Production Meeting

Today Dean and I had a production meeting to talk about the shoot as it is a week away now. When we spoke to Simon this morning we still hadn't spoken to our DOP but I didn't see this as an issue as I had been communicating with him through email and had scheduled a phone call with him after Simon's meeting with us. I did however start to panic when Dean said our actor playing Stef still hadn't confirmed and neither had the locations and also that he was not confident in the script. Me and Dean had a meeting to discuss our communication issues and to talk about our plan of action for the project. We decided to move the dates of the shoot until after Maddie's shoot so that we had more time to prepare, confirm actors and locations and for Dean to improve the script.

We also had our phone call with our DOP today and he really seemed to understand the style we were going for and it sounded like he really knew what he was talking about. We looked at some of his previous work and we were impressed and were glad that we had found him.

I am hoping that this extra time will allow us to get everything perfect and make an amazing pilot.

Love Always - Shoot Day 4

Today was our last day of filming at Kent Life and Love Always.

The day started off quite slowly as we did not have a room to set up in and so had to be outside on 2 picnic benches as all the function rooms were being used for school trips.

This is the hair and make up station.

Also there was quite alot of traffic which also slowed us down but once everyone was there and hair and make up was done we were ready to go. We knew today was going to be quite a simple but intense day as we still had 13 scenes to film but 9 of them had no dialogue and were quiet short which made things easier. But we also had to get voiceovers and establishing shots which we tried to do during costume changes.

We scheduled the scenes with just Mary on her own last so that we could wrap the other actors as soon as possible.

Some of the scenes performed today were very intense as Tara gave an amazing performance as Mary and I hope that the emotion that we all felt on set translates well into the final piece.

We had a few more issues with Kent life about what time we had to be finished by but we managed to get everything we wanted done so thats alright. 

We then had to head off to Aylseford and Boxley for 2 quick scenes which we managed to get before the sun went down.

Love Always - Its A Wrap

We've finished all the filming for Love Always and I am really happy with how everything went. It has made me realise that I want to be a producer even more.

I did learn a few things like how important it is to get a location agreement so that you have in writing what times you are allowed to be on site.

I also learnt the importance of a good crew. We had quite a large crew for a student production on the shoot days alone and they were all phenomenal no one let the team down, we all worked really well together and everyone was lovely to be around.

Now the filming has wrapped it does not mean my job is over. I need to supervise the edit to make sure Tim is creating the story in the way we discussed and I also need to find certain people to make different sound layers.

I have put a casting call on Music Network Pro for a composer to score the film. I have contacted someone about producing some Foley for the film and I need to find a sound designer to make sure all of the dialogue is clear.

I am really excited about seeing all our hard work come together and see how well we have achieved a period piece on a student budget.

Love Always - Shoot Day 3

Today we had a different hair stylist and we had 2 extra cast members. We had Ollie playing Arthur and Louie playing Johnny.

Today Dan and I decided to use 2 cameras so that we could speed up the filming of each scene.

We had never worked with children on a shoot before and I have to say it was quite and experience and we all learnt a lot. At the beginning of the day he was willing to do a lot but by the end he didn't want to act anymore. I changed the schedule round a bit so that Louie would get lots of breaks. These breaks ended up being quite long and so I think he tired himself out. In hindsight we should have made his breaks shorter so that he was willing to do more acting but still getting time to rest. In the afternoon when he said he didn't want to do it anymore we still had 5 scenes left to film with him. 2 we tricked him into doing by creating a game out of it and we managed to get a good shot as we had a 3 camera coverage. The other 3 we decided they could work without him and so we had to quickly write him out and plan to film those scenes on another day.

On some of the scenes I had to put in my creative input as I did not like the lighting in the shot and so I was suggesting how we could create a better look by using different lights and positioning them in certain places.

Today there were a few more members of the public and so we had to make sure we told them what we were doing.

We had more issues with Kent Life today to do with times and areas we could use. Today they said we could stay till 5:30 but they also said that we could not use our base room tomorrow as they had schools coming in and so we had to move all of our stuff. So we had to make sure we had as many scenes as we could filmed by 5 so that then we had half an hour to pack up and get out.

I went home and amended the schedule so that we could make sure we got any scenes we hadn't filmed  on the other 3 days filmed on the last day as filming.