Process Evaluation of Ultra Short Film

Software Application

Software application is the editing program which you use to edit the short movie. The program is considered as online editing as you digitally edit on a computer device. The software allows users to edit their footage which they have by cutting and editing specific scenes or clip.

The software application which we have used for this post production was Final Cut Pro version 10.2.3, this is one of the latest software which has come out i was very lucky to use. Final Cut Pro can only be used on Apple products like their Imac or mac-book.

The effect of the software application was that it made editing a lot easier in a way as their were features which other software applications do not have, Final Cut Pro is compacted for example they have many features like their image editing section which other software's do not have, this makes it a lot easy for the editor as they do not have to use other software application.

Hardware

Hardware is the physical device which you can edit with, this can be a computer or a laptop. The hardware is very easy to access, without the hardware you will not be able to get the software application.

The physical hardware we used was the Imac, the Imac is an non linear editing process and also is an product of Apple which allows us to use the software application Final Cut Pro, we used this hardware as we only could get that specific software application on Apple products. Imac are very well known for editing as they are made for that which means they'll operate a lot faster.

The effect of using this hardware was that we know we were using a reliable hardware which will not give us that many problem. Also another factor would be the speed as the Imac is known for operating speed this meant our software application freezing or crashing as we had reliable hardware. Also we were very lucky we had the latest Imac that had built in SD card ports which meant us not needing a adapter this saved us a lot of time as some adapters did not work.

High/Standard Definition

High and standard definition is basically the quality of the video this is usually done when exporting the finished project as it allows the editor to have their selection, also depends on what kind of file types you want to compress it to, this can have a effect of the quality. Another factor which can effect quality is what you have filmed the film on.

When i was filming my ultra movie i had filmed it at high definition frame as it was 1080p HD the frame per second were 25, this meant us having the best quality. Also when i was editing i had made sure that we exported the video on the best quality as i think it makes it a lot easier to watch.

The effect of recording high definition is that you want to make sure everything is clear and easy for the audience to see and it makes it look more professional. I think it also shows that just because it is a short movie it does not mean we do not put effort in.

Tapes

Tapes is where all our footage is kept and stored so we can upload to the hardware to actually edit without the tapes we would have no footage to edit. Tapes are used when you start to record footage for your project then after you're done you will upload to hardware so you can edit.

When i was recording my ultra short movie i had used a SD card which is known as a memory card where all the clips were being stored. After we finished recording all the shots we would import it on to the hardware which was the Imacs, if we had lost the tape it would mean us having to record the scenes all over again. Without a tape you will not be able to record footage on a camera.

By having tapes the effect was that if any of the clips got corrupted or did not work we always had the raw footage which is on the memory card, this is why the tapes help the editor stay reassured that if anything bad does happen they still have all the footage backed up as you don't know when you're hardware will break or get corrupted.

Hard Disc

Hard disc is basically where the footage was imported to, this is usually the internal hard drive that is on the hardware that you will be using to edit you're ultra short movie, all hardware will have built in hard disc with different size of hard drive.

The hard disc which i stored my footage was on the Imac local drive as i had uploaded all of my footage on the Imac. By doing this i was able to import it on to my software application and then actually edit the clips. As i was using the Imac it meant me having a large hard drive where i could import all the footage i had without any worries as i know it had the capacity. 

The effect of hard disc was that it allowed us to store all the footage which we had at the same time as not all hardwares have such a big capacity this means it being a lot quicker for me as i had all the footage on the editing software application this meant it being a lot easy for me as i could get any footage when i wanted it.+

Data Transfer Rates

Data transfer rates is the speed of the tapes transferring all the footage to the hardware, this can take a lot of time but it truly depends on how much you are transferring. It can also depends on the hardware because it needs to have fast downloading rate.

When i was transferring data i had transferred it from the SD card to the hardware, it did not take as long as i though it would. The speed was 80mb/s, this means that for every 80mb it would take a second this is very fast speed rate. 

The effect this had was that it allowed us to edit more quick when we have the footage because of the hardware we have nowadays, whereas in the past editors would wait a long time and then the hardware might crash which will mean them wasting time.

Exporting Productions

Exporting productions is the last stage after you have finished editing you're project. When you export the finished product you get many options which will make you make decision on what platform or quality you want to export at, it has different options for different needs.

When i was exporting from final cut pro it was very easy but their were many options which i decided from. I decided to export the ultra short movie in high quality as i wanted the audience to see the movie in the best quality. Also the software which i was using allowed me to upload straight to YouTube from the software application. 

The effect of exporting production is that it allows the editor to show the final product and also distrbute the film across the world this is how most film are exported. I think by using Final cut pro exporting was really easy as we saved a lot of time as it allowed us to export it straight to YouTube. 

File Types 

File types is the what you export the whole project as, the can MOV,AVI,FLV, MP3 and MP4. The file types have specific platforms which they play on. When you export you get to choose and then depending on what you choose it compresses. 

The file type which we choose for my ultra short movie was MOV because of the hardware which we were using, the imac use quicktime conversion which automatically exports as MOV. Also by exporting as a MOV file i think i got the best quality which i wanted 

The effect of file types is that it allows you to choose which target audience aiming at as different file types have different platforms which they work on this means you have to decide very quickly, I believe my choosing MOV the audience will have less problem loading the film and i think the quality is a lot better on MOV. 


Compression

Compression is when you have finished editing and then want to render it so it can compress to the size, by this it means making the size a lot smaller so it can turned into different file types. This usually the final stage after you finished editing.

I had compressed my ultra short movie to export  it as an MOV, it did not take long than i thought. When i finished editing i had rendered it which compresses it in a way then when i was exporting i had wait as my project was being compressed even more so that it would not take that long to load or even add because by compressing it means making the drive a lot small. 

The effect of this process was that it allowed me to make the size of my video small which meant it being able to play on different platforms. A downside of compression is that you tend to lose most of your quality 

Technical Evaluation of the Ultra Short Movie

Technical evaluation

Montage (Technique)

Montage is when you put different footage together,  by this i mean that there are range of shots from a different seen or place, this technique is used so they keep the audience interested and special used in scenes which are long and dragging.



An example of this is above from my ultra short movie, as you can see above at 0:23 to 0:29 the is a montage of the protagonist getting ready, we see the camera moves to different positions which means that they are from different footage.  Montage allows the audience to watch the film quicker because it allows scenes like above get boring after time, this is why film makers may use this technique so they can keep the attention of the audience, also i think film makers think that it makes it look a lot more exciting

Fade (Transition) 

Fade is a transition which gradually disappears, it is a very good way to start movies especially if you're looking to create a static moment. Transition can be used anywhere but you need to decide carefully.

An example of fade will be from my ultra short movie at the start of the movie you will see a fade into the movie, this is the best place i thought i could put a fade as it gradually goes to the start of the film, creates a static moment. This transition would be used to give the film a nice flow and it makes the audience know it is a start or end of the story, this is why film makers may use it. 

Creating Juxtaposition (Convention)

Creating juxtaposition is when you decide to have two scenes which are the opposite, by this i mean it what you want expect and often does not make any sense as it creates two different moods. 

Creating juxtaposition has been used in my short movie because at 0:12 we see that the protagonist is angry and then we see antagonist is enjoying the normal life, this is too opposite scenes and we see that they do not have any relevance but that is the whole point as the audience get to know at as the movie goes along. The intention of the directors is that they want to make the audience ask questions and think why they have put that specific scene there at that specific time. This makes the audience more keen to watch the whole movie. 

Effective Pacing

Effective pacing how fast or slow specific scenes are, this is usually done so that it creates tension or gives a larger detail which they want the audience, effective pacing is usually done when editing as they can make the clips faster or slower.

I have used this technique in my short film as you can see at 0:23 i have made the clips a lot faster to keep the aduience entertained as you can see the actor is getting ready which can take long but by cutting the and making them faster more entertain to watch. The intention of the director is that effective pacing helps them create a mood and it allows them to make specific scenes more dramatic because if a specific scene is slower it allows the audience to have greater detail.

Convey Information Effectively

Convey information effectively is whether the editing has been clear and whether the movie actually shows the story effectively, by this i mean does the audience understand clearly.

I have used this technique for example in my short movie at 0:17 we see the actor who is angry and then punches the sofa, this helps convey that he is angry and is going to be seeking revenge. The director intention is that by conveying information effectively it allows the audience to enjoy it more as they understand the story line more which is very important for the director. The impact this technique has on the audience is that it makes it a lot easier for them to understand.

Use Sound to Create Impact 

Sound to create impact is when you use sound to your advantage and it makes it more dramatic for the audience to watch and it entertains the audience more in a sense, this will make them watch the whole movie.

I have used sound to create impact at the very beginning which is around 0:02 when we see the actor enter the home then we see very drama sound being used to create a specific mood as the actor reads a suicide note which his sister has wrote. The intention of the director is that the may use this technique to make a specific moment dramatic and make the audience feel empathy for the actor. The audience think more as the sound is dramatic which tells them something serious has happened.

Synchronise Sound and Vision

Synchronise Sound and Vision is when you change the sound depending on what is on the screen, this can be by cutting to the beat, this is where the audience thinks and tries mixing the sound depending on scene or clip.

I have used the above technique in my short movie because at 0.50 we see the music i had from the beginning stops and then new sound starts at 1:12, this allows the tension to build as the audience think why the sound has gone but we wanted to create tension as the actor breaks in to another persons house. The director intention is that they want to make sure that they want to create tension or make the audience aware of something important which is taking place.

Mix Soundtrack

Mix soundtrack is when the editor decides two different sound, by this i mean that they would be different sound or music, this is done so that it creates a tense moment or if you want to create different moods. 

i used this technique in my short movie at 0:50 when the music stops and then we have another music at 1:19 this creates makes it a lot more entertaining to watch and fun to watch. The directors intention when using this technique was that they wanted to make sure that the music actually matched the vision which they were showing. The impact this has on the audience is that they will be more entertained as it keep the movie flowing faster this makes them watch all of it.

Overlap Sound

Overlap sound is when you decide to have two different sounds playing sound together this can be if the character is speaking having background music, this helps the ultra short movie be more entertaining to watch for the audience as it can get bored if the scene is just people talking.

I have used this technique above in my short film at 1:19 because we see the background music is still playing while the actors are speaking, i chose to do this because i thought some of the audience may get bored so by having overlap sound it will allow the audience to be more entertained. The intention of the director is that they want to make sure that the audience do not get bored and some director use it too make it dramatic as it depends what kind of background music you use.

Offline editing/online editing

Online editing is when you do it through an digital editing program. Offline editing is when the  you do use a digital item, this can be the script as it is often handwritten

Offline and online editing was used by me because in order to create a short film you have to do both. Offline editing we used is when we first imported the clips we had to complete a rushes log where we said the clip number, how long it lasted, what it was of and if we discard the video or not. The reason why director and editor uses the rushes log because they want to know where each clip are and what it is of so it can be easier for them. Online editing is when you use digital software, this is when i used the final cut pro to edit the actual short film.

On Screen Text

On screen text is when the editor adds graphics which are words, in most ultra short movies they include the title which is considered as on screen text, also they also tend to have the credits which tell the audience who has created the short movie.

I have used on screen text at 0:20 in my short movie as i wanted to let the audience know the name of the ultra short movie. The on screen text allows the audience get more detail which is important for the audience as they can recommend the movie also. The director has done this so they can get information which the audience may need by this i mean maybe the directors name to watch other movies which the same director has used. 

Image Editing

Image editing is when you change an image, this can be done by different software it helps create mood. Image editing is done by online editing systems to make the image look up to professional standard.

i used image editing in this short movie as i changed certain images, for example at 0:05 we see the image colour changed as i wanted to show that was in the past, i think i was very successful as the audience understood that it was in the past. The intention of the director is that image editing helps them make the movie a lot more realistic and it helps the director send a mood. This makes it a lot more realistic for the audience to watch.

Audio Editing

Audio editing is when you may cut the audio and change the place or you may change the sound level at times when you think the movie will need it to match the theme of the movie or specific part of the movie.

I have used audio editing at 0:50 because we cut it and lowered the sound level to make sure that it ends very nicely with a nice flow, this means me editing the audio, also i had edited the sound level of the clips as i wanted it to match the background music as i did not want to make it too loud. The intention when the director using this technique is that they want to change the music depending on the vision. 

Preparing Footage for Editing

Ultra Short Movie

The Hit

Rushes Log

The Development of Editing

Before Editing 

Before editing is when the first conception of video camera came out as they Lumiere brothers were the founder after experimenting a long time, the first footage ever was created in 1895, Lumiere brothers were known for the great invention as nothing like this product was created before. The Lumiere brother had created a video of people entering and exiting the train station. Below is an example of the first footage. 

Before editing was a major milestone because this is where we see the video camera being first used. As you can see the example above clip was the first recorded footage of people entering and exiting the station at 0.20 the clip had a big impact on the audience as it was the first recorded footage that's why people had been shocked without this invention editing would not have existed in the future.Lumiere brothers were two brothers who had come out with this concept of recording footage were called Louis who was aged 33 and Auguste who was aged 31 at that age creating a new invention which was a milestone had an impact in their life as had bought the concept of video recording without them the present date today will have been different,  

In-Camera Editing 

 In-camera editing was another milestone to make an video which had multiple shots, this was the very first time in history that some one had come up with this concept. and we start to see a change of scenes in the shots. The pioneer of in-camera editing is Robert W.Pauls, this is the person who was the founder of the concept, he had created the first ever movie called 'Come Along Do'. 

The above video was a milestone as there was a major development from before editing as now we see multiple shots conception being used for example in the above clip at 0.44 sec we see the shot change this show the conception of the multiple shot being used. The impact this had on the audience was that they could see various scenes and also created a greater understand to the audience. Robert W.Pauls was 29 when he had come out with this concept after creating 11 films then he had pioneered this editing technique. 

Following The Action 

Following the action is when we see the camera follow what is happening, this gives the audience more detail and this was another milestone as no one had known the conception of following the action. The pioneer of this conception was George Albert Smith who had made a film called 'As Seen Through A Telescope' 

Following the action was a massive milestone and development as we start to see clips go in more details as they follow the action and we also see the conception of the shot reverse shot for example at 0.11 we see shot A then we see another shot after that it returns back to shot A. The impact it had on people was that following the action allowed them to have greater detail and we also see the concept of editing building for the audience as it makes it a lot easy to understand. George Albert Smith was aged 35 when he had discovered this concept, he had made 7 other films before finding about this development.

Multiple Points of View

Multiple points of view is when we see the same scene with different shots which are positioned in different places, this was another milestone because no one had known this conception. The pioneer of multiple points of view was James Williamson as he had made a clip called 'Attack on a China Mission Station'.

Multiple points of view was another milestone as we see a development in editing, because we start to see story lines in films and also there is a lot of crosscutting and more shot in the clip, this has a big impact because by having more shot and crosscutting to different scenes it tells a story this means that the audience would know what is happening and why it gives them a more detail. An example from the clip would be at 0:01 as we see an establishing shot and then we see the second shot of the army coming out, this tells us it contained multiple points of view. James williamson was 45 years old when he had discovered this concept after making 5 films. James willamson allowed the future film makers to tell a story and a meaning behind it.

Shot Variation

Shot variation is when there is different shots, as this was a milestone it means that this is the first time people found out about different shots which are close ups and long shots. The shot variation had an effect on film makers as they know close up and long shots added value. The pioneer of shot variation was DW Griffiths as he had created film called 'The Birth of A Nation'

Shot variation was another major milestone as the development here we see is that the film start to get longer and the are different shots, we start to see that the different shot start to create meaning as we see in the above use close up throughout to show facial expression of the actors and we also know by using close up they allowed the audience to know how to feel. We see the shot variation in the above clip at 3:28 as we see an close up of the lady. DW Griffiths was aged 30 when he found the concept of shot variation, he had created 2 films previously then he had found the concept of shot variation.

Manipulation of Diegetic

Manipulation of diegetic was the first milestone where we discovered rhythmic montage, rhythmic montage is basically like cutting to the beat or editing to meet the pace of the action which we see. The pioneer of this was Sergei Eisenstein as he created a film called 'Battleship Potemkin'.

This was another milestone as we start to see editing changing as it meets the pace of the action which we see and it builds suspense for the audience because it cuts to the beat we know that this keeps the audience entertained as there are cuts in the clip, this was a milestone as the audience did have a clue about the editing technique. An example from the clip would be at 2:32 because we start to see the pram going down the stairs the pace and music changes. Sergei Eisenstein was aged only 27 in 1925, he was very young he had created 2 other films before finding about this editing technique. 


Film and Video

Film to video was a major milestone as everything was moving to digital meant more easy to edit as the traditional was a lot longer as when you were editing you cannot see the final version this made it a lot difficult. Digital format was very expensive and most film productions could not afford it, the first big film production company called Columbia Pictures had funded a film called 'Once Upon A Time In Mexico' which was directed by ' Robert Rodriguez' in 2003.

This was another milestone as the major development here is that film used to be recorded on reels and video was digital and easier to edit for film makers, this made it a lot more less time consuming and also you could see the finish product while you were editing where as on reels it was a lot more complicated as you could just cut it and wait till you had finished to see the finishing product. Robert Rodriguez was aged 35 when he had created the first ever film which had a big budget and was digitally edited this was a huge milestone as it made it a lot easier. 

Analogue

Analogue aka linear editing is when Moviola was introduced, Moviola was a home projector which was for sell to the public, but after a time period an editor had recommended to the inventor that they should try and make the projector into more of a editing device, after a period of time they were adapted to editing devices and sold to editors the first buyer was the editor who had recommended the features his name was 'Douglas Fairbanks', the editing software was popular and it was known as Moviola. The pioneer of analogue was 'Iwan Seminer's' as he had created the first editing device for the film makers

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The major development we see that analogue made it very easy to add transition on and it fastened the process to edit this impacted the audience in a good way because it meant films being edited quicker and released more quicker. Moviola was the start of editing being more advanced as now you could see the finished piece while editing and also you could cut anywhere you wanted. 

Digital 

Digital aka non-linear editing started off from the 1970's onwards, it had developed over the years. Digital simply meant it being computer based and use of software apps, in comparison to the analogue editing system called Moviola it was more technical as it was more computer based. The first ever director to use non linear editing was George Lucas who had created a film called 'Star Wars' this is where we see special effects being use a lot more easy.     

The major development here we see is the fact that special effects being used, this was a major milestone as people in the 70's were scandalised with what they had seen because it was something which they had never seen before. special effect had a big impact on the filmmakers as they could now turn the dreams into a film because they could literally record anything. Digital had a big impact on editing as now it made a lot more easy for the film makers to record films which were futuristic, for example in the above clip we see them use the digital editing system which allowed them to use special effects to create the spaceship in space.

Production Reflection

What were the main strengths of your production phase?

I think as a team we had many strengths one would be that i think that as a group we worked well and could communicate well as we all know where to be and when. Also if we had a problem we made a group decision and then would reschedule to make it more suitable for example we were meant to meet at five o clock on Saturday but then it was rescheduled till 6 as i was held up elsewhere. 

Another strength was that i was really happy with where we had decided to film because the house which we filmed at had a lot of space this meant me being able to put the camera in various places and experimenting with different shots and i was really happy as i was able to do shot in detail of the person walking up the stairs, this made it look more professional i believe. We also very lucky as we had completed all the shots which we were meant to. 

What challenges did you face during the production phase?

One challenge we faced was the props as when we were doing the pre-production we thought one of the team member had the prop which we needed but he could not find it as he did not use it for a while, this meant us having to go any purchase the prop as a group, this meant that we slightly behind schedule as we had to go shops but as a group we decided to stay back and finish the shots which we had agreed to. 

Another challenge we had was that when we were recording the battery of the camera ran out, this meant us not being able to record until it was charged this was a group fault as we should have checked before hand, however we managed to charge it in the house we were filming and then after a short break we went back to recording this had impacted the whole group as time was wasted but as a group we manage to complete all the shots on the day. 

What changes did you make from your planning? Why did you changes these things? What was the impact of the changes?


Changes which we had made where due to the locations which we had recorded at, on the script our group had decided that the victim will be on the computer or seated towards a screen but due to the size of the bedroom it meant me not being able to have both people in the same shot, this meant us having to change the scene as we had decided to make the victim should stand up near the door on the phone as it would be more suitable as i could record them both this would look a lot better visually as it gives more detail i believe. 

Another change we had made was when the antagonist was walking to the protagonist house as we were meant to have an over shoulder shot but because it was the night it was very bad visibility as the antagonist was wearing a black hoodie this made it extra difficult to see the over shoulder shot this is why we had just used long shots from different position. This allowed us to see the antagonist walking to the house made it a lot more visible.


What improvements would you make to your production process if you were to do it again?

Improvements i would personally make is that i would change the second leading actor who is Rayhan because i think he does not look like a character who would bully people as he looks a lot more civilised then who the character was meant to be, by having a person who look a bit more rough and spoke differently it would have given it a better feel as it would have made it look more realistic. Another improvement i would make is the setting as the setting was set the same vibe it was meant to as it look like Rayhan lived well and had a good life, however we were trying to show that he was more rough and against the law, by changing the location i believe that it would have created a better vibe and more of the audience would have believed the story line more. 

The script

Logistical Paperwork

Call Sheets-

Cast List-