Week 14 – Dan Rahmel’s Top Ten Tips for Short Filmmakers

I came across this site before the final project and now I want to analyse each of Dan’s tips to see whether I agree or diagree and whether I accomplished it or not. It’s a great feeling knowing that the film is finally done and that I have followed (or perhaps done better) than the list. It’s very daunting when you first look at it!

1. Make sure you have a story worth telling
   When Alam and I discussed various ideas of mocking our Asian culture, he suddenly made the decision to make a film about the first night between an arranged marriage couple. After the change of the genre and the list of scenarios we created, I instantly got hooked by the story. It was its own ultimate selling point and when we presented this to other groups, friends and family, they too thought of it as a clever idea. It has never been done before and you start to ask yourself questions about an arranged marriage, regardless of whether you follow the tradition or not. This story was worth telling because it would engage audiences to question the tradition and perhaps, feel for the bride and groom as well as think that it may not be as bad as people make it out to be. In the UK, the BBC always reports the negatives of arranged marriages and how the mother in law is always mean to the bride; this real life account supports our project even more as people will expect to see something negative.
2. Don’t start production without a budget
   Films always cost money and the group agreed to start pitching £50 each. In the beginning, we did production plans and daily budget sheets via a spreadsheet. With this format, we were able to be confident in our filming approach, knowing that the group will support one another to pay for the project. I did several film projects for the Wolverhampton City Council and I was happy to put most of the money to the project as a result. We had to over-estimate our budget and it came to £400-£450. This was including the details such as bottles of water, plastic cups to petrol, make up and hotel bookings, among others
3. Get all clearances before shooting
   We all understood the importance of releases for actors, music, crew and many more. We also knew it was best to do it now rather than later. The process is very daunting and tedious, but it adds to the professional touch of the group. Our actors were very surprised that we had high standards in our approach to them and the final project, We were serious about this film and therefore had to follow the rules of filmmaking as well as the law. You never know what will happen if you forget to get someone to sign a release form! In addition to this, risk assessments and health and safety forms must be cleared also. Originally, I anticipated problems with weather that might do damage to film equipment and borrowing the Univeristy equipment for longer than we expected. We had to jot down things that needed attention, for example, bringing an umbrella and gaffer tape to stick on top of the camera (if it rains). These small details saved us from damaging equipment! But we also had to make sure the lecturers at the Uni were willing to lend us the equipment for two days and so they signed a form.
4. Make the film shorter than you want
   I’m not clear about our editing stage as of yet, but I hope the group don’t literally follow their initial shot list or storyboards. I always let the editing tell the story as it offers a variety of options. This is why it is a very good idea to film from a variety of angles and include filler shots. Our actors repeated their lines on a dinner table numerous times from different shots and then we would make them do certain actions, such as filling a glass with orange juice and film that as a filler. As a result, we can use the dialogue of the actors while the juice is being poured, for example. These scenes are overlooked in mainstream cinema – the editing machine is a powerful tool that we are so used to these shots without thinking about it. Our film may be longer or it may be short.
5. When using non-professional actors, cast with personality
   Our group had experienced actors, although they’ve never done student short films before. We launched auditions and went through the process of picking the right person(s). We did cast on personality, but also the appearance. What I liked about Ashwin and Bhavna was their ability to act when not doing their dialogue – they would improvise by making facial expressions and certain actions, such as eating a piece of food and taking a few bites before they talk again. And as I mentioned many times before on this blog, I appreciated them both for their fun attitude off the camera. They were down to earth and friendly, which created a good working environment. As a result there were a lot of off set laughs and they were willing to repeat scenes regardless of how tedious it got. Ashwin was a hilarious person but when it came to acting on the screen, he was a true professional. Bhavna was more focused throughout the process of filming and I appreciated her commitment for the film. Both were different and lived miles away from Coventry (Lancashire and SPAIN!) and this is just a highlight of their personality.
6. Invest in good sound
   The University had a professional sound mixer that was handled well by Chris Cattle. The sound is very crisp and delivers the dialouge. Chris went through the effort of going to the skills instruction and learning everything about the equipment. Without good sound, you can’t make a good film. But I think the group overlooked the wildtrack and atmos sounds. Hopefully the editing process in terms of sound is alright for when shots cut to another shot, meaning that you don’t hear different background noise on each cut. I always follow the tip of recording background noise for one minute and looping that when needed.  
7. Fix it now, not in post-production
   If I have to be honest, the only mistake the group made was not moving the film equipment from the bushes (it was in a scene when the actors sit on the bench) and that’s it. Every scene we went through was professionally handled, ensuring that no mistakes were made that we would regret in post-production. I was in charge of continuity and there were no problems at all. I even did little tasks such as taking images of the props that would be moved and make sure that I reference them for when they need to be put back.
8. Don’t zoom in a shot
   There were no zoom shots and we would have disagreed with the shot anyway. We relied on the dolly track easing in on our actor rather than the zoom function.
9. Know the indie/short film clichés
   What I enjoyed about this film was that everything was fresh and coming from us. We had certain references that inspired us when we produced this project, but the style of filming techniques were devised by us. We didn’t emulate popular techniques unless it helped move the story. In a way we created our own independent cliche. We knew of all the techniques out there, but it was a question of whether it was needed.
10. Unless you’re shooting on film, avoid night exteriors
    ‘Darkness is the enemy of most camcorders. You’ll become acquainted with noise, color shifting, definition drop-out, and more if you choose to shoot at night without a medium size lighting package. It’s usually a lot easier to change the script than deal with all these problems’ – because we had all the necessary equipment from the University, such as dedo/redhead lights and white sheets as a diffuser, we created a perfect lighting set for the night exteriors. When you watch it on film, it does look like it was filmed within a studio, but we were actually filming in the cold rain! What was also in our advantage was the usage of the new JVC camcorders which was of very high professional quality. Even without the lighting set up, the camera would still have picked up our actors in the night exteriors.

Week 13 – Analysis of Rough edit

So far we have been able to get a rough cut edit of the exterior scenes. First of all, I am really impressed with the quality of the footage; I knew that the new JVC cameras were very powerful but I didn’t expect the professional quality that you often see in mainstream films and TV. So visually, it is very pleasing to watch. Of course, because the footage was  over 7gb, it took a lenghty amount of time for the rough edit, along with the grading and synching with the sound. So all we got to see was the exterior scenes; for a quick edit, it was a good piece as it sent out the message of the characters’ intentions. However, some of the camera shots/angles used weren’t ideal and I think in terms of media language, I didn’t enjoy it as much. For example, there would be a long shot of our characters in conversation followed by a close up of them dancing and then back to the original long shot. We could have used a variety of camera angles just like we did for the interior scenes. However, this was caused by the rain and the time constraints (our actors had to leave very early) which made these shots look jarred. I may be wrong and there may be more shots/angles to be used for the final edit, but I’m only judging on what I saw.

The sound was excellent and you could hardly pick up the rain, which was pretty distracting on the production day. I was extremely happy with Chris Cattle for his excellent role in the sound department. I was happy to help him with the boom as well as pay for my mistakes from last years module. It was clear and crisp, as you could only hear what you wanted to hear. There were no distracting footsteps or sounds of the crew walking around or clothes rustling etc.

For a rough edit, this was a good start. Hopefully there are more shots to be used for the exterior scenes because I think it falls flat in contrast to the interior scenes. As a filmmaking group, we will have to sort out this problem in a professional manner. Again, heres to the second cut, third cut and eventual final cut.

Week 12 – Invitations

Cheaper to design by myself!

A free greeting card by Smilebox

Week 12 – Images

Week 12 – Reflection of my work…

During the pre-production and production process, I have been describing my activities and haven’t done enough critical reflection. Now I feel is the right time to take a step back and critically analyse my role and work over this term. First of all, I just want to show you this image of the whole group (well, kind of) including our actors and emphasise how happy this project was.

When the group got into the pre-production stages, we thought it’d be like the fiction module where we got everything finalised within a few weeks. But this was different, apart from it being a final project, we all knew this was our ‘baby’ project and that a lot more effort would need to be put in. As usual, the starting process took a bit of time as things weren’t organised; we didn’t follow the production schedule which I would have preferred as it would keep us on track. Furthermore, it would have helped for us to plan our Degree Show in advance, rather than leaving it till later (which is the stage we are at now and finding it difficult). Alam and I began briefing each other on arranged marriage scenarios and jotted them down for future reference. It proved to be a vital process as some of the things we mentioned, be it big or small, ended up on the film and helps support the film. To make it more sense, it gave the film a more natural look rather than two robots reading a script without any sense of direction or movement. Alam and I wrote two different drafts, where mine was incomplete and of another genre. We debated with the group on what kind of genre we were aiming for. Mine was all route comedy and what the group preferred was drama with hints of comedy (not Jim Carrey comedy!). To this day, I can’t believe the amount of drafts we had for this project and the many run throughs and alterations it had. I give credit to Alam for burning his fingers in completing the script. It was a lengthy tedious process and we handled it very well. This was a good method as it showed that we wanted the story to be perfect (with no plot holes or contradictions etc) and were willing to do as many drafts as it takes. No draft is ever perfect and we might not like some parts in the final versions, but it’s all about the journey the script has undertook and that there was time for development.

My role began as a Producer and I kept meeting minutes weekly and took notes on what needed to be done. What I’m disappointed about is that the group hardly turned up for these initial meetings and made my role meaningless. To emphasise this, my role was given to Alam and I was made Assistant Director without being told. There was a break in communication and it seemed that everytime I wasn’t present, things were changing and I was never notified. I was in charge of props as well and made an initial list that was never actually followed. The props were brought by Luke and Alam on the day where I was working – again I felt disappointed that I wasn’t notified. My absences were due to projects in Wolverhampton in which I could use the money to help for fundraising our film. But due to the recent confusion about how the Degree Show is being handled, again it was meaningless to do this. On production day, I was hoping for a little bit more input from Curtis who was the Director – and as his assistant directior, I’d be helping with developing shots and making sure things flow correctly. But he only communicated with the camera operator and most of the times I was sent outside of the room. I didn’t really prefer this approach but I did my best to keep the cast and crew happy with food and drink and general conversation. Altogether, I’d say I didn’t fulfil my role as a 1st AD because of the lack of communication.

I was happy with the group’s ethic and striving to do everything perfectly. From beginning to end, from paper work to filming, everything was handled professionally. We would have to improve on the number of people we have on our future projects, as we needed much more for this one. I found that I was doing AD, operating on the boom, being a runner, getting food and drink and driving people to their destinations. The best part of the whole filming was getting along with the actors, Bhavna and Ashwin. They were very down to earth and easy to talk to. This is something I’ve learnt from filming with actors, that breaking down the barriers will always create a friendly atmosphere, thus making filminf easier. Those two days of production were fun for me purely because of the actors sense of humour. At all times I was making sure that they were OK, whether they wanted their water and that their costumes were right for continuity. They were impressed with our high standards and expected this film to be entered into a film festival. This was encouraging and I hope the group can research into this process.

Overall, I’m happy that the project has been complete in terms of production. But I wish I had more to do with pre-production and as my role as AD. Looking forward to the final edit.

Week 11 – Overview of Two Day Shoot

The group has finished production and will enter the post production stage within the next few days. We filmed on two days, Monday 22nd March and Tuesday 23rd March. A lot of preparation was ensured for this shoot and it was at a high standard. To date, this is one of the most advanced projects I’ve been involved with – in terms of effort, money and filming techniques, for example.

On the first day of shooting, the group were to meet at the Ellen Terry before 12.30pm. Luke and I had our vehicles ready to put in any equipment. Luke had a family car and made room to put in all the necessary camera equipment, the dolly track, the jib, the dedo’s, the redheads and tripods among others. My car was for the props such as clothes, bed dressings, wedding decorations and the cast and crews food and drink. To emphasise the detail we went through, we had plastic cups, tea bags, milk, biscuits and self designed t-shirts with our names, our roles and the title of the film. We even brought a floor mat to wipe our feet and to take our shoes off before we enter the hotel. Again, I have never been involved with such an advanced project and now I know what to do in terms of preparation for future shoots. After the equipment was set up, the group made their way to the Old Rectory Hotel – the plan was to set up the equipment and props at 1pm and film by 3pm. My role was to pick up our actors from the Coventry Station Square/Railway. This was also new to me, in terms of travelling and picking up actors. It doesn’t sound like much of an experience but it was for me. For example, when I met the actors at the train station, I got to have an informal conversation with them, get to know them more and this resulted in a friendly atmosphere. It was a big improvement from last years fiction module, where the actors hardly spoke to me and vice versa, creating a gap in our film relationship. Bhavna was the first person to arrive and we would have to wait another ten minutes for Ashwin. I did my best to ensure both were comfortable during their journey and I would ask them if they wanted any hot drinks or snacks. I felt a bit nervous due to the heavy rain because I wasn’t used to the Coventry roads and the ring roads. But due to the comfortable nature with Ashwin and Bhavna, I was able to concentrate on the driving and get to my destination.

On the filming aspects, it took a little longer than we expected to begin. This was due to the make up and costume for Bhavna, which is a tedious process anyway. This gave the group plenty of time to block and light the bedroom. Along with being the 1st AD, I was also in charge of continuity and taking care of the cast and extra crew. I enjoyed this process due to my career aspirations of wanting to be a teacher involves close communciation and reassuring. I was like a ‘shoulder to cry on’ and had to make sure that everything was flowing nicely. For example, when a scene was done and the actors weren’t needed, I’d take them to the lounge and have a brief conversation with them. I’d travel to local shops to bring them snacks and drinks as well. Our aim for the first day was to finish all the interior scenes, but we took too long on certain scenes and had to leave the rest for the next day. There were only minor problems, such as the rain, construction work and birds that affected the sound. Chris Cattle did an excellent job in ensuring the best quality of sound; I wanted to make amends for last year (as I spoiled the sound in the second year fiction module) and help Chris with holding the boom. I got to learn about the new sound device that the University purchased thanks to Chris and it’s another skill well developed. I did my research into the sound via Paul Hardy’s ‘Filming on a Microbudget’ – and would always ask the camera operator of a frameline to ensure that the boom wasn’t in shot. The filming shots went perfectly and the actors did a very good job in their performance. They were upbeat at all times, even ready to repeat their lines in parts or full at numerous takes. This made it easier for the group so we could aim for the best shot and performance. When the first shoot ended, we made plans for Bhavna’s and Ashwin’s accomadation. Bhavna would stay over at the hotel we were filming at and Ashwin would be staying at the Hyland’s Hotel (also in Coventry). I gave Ashwin a lift and let him and the group know that I would pick him up the next day and head off back to the hotel.

The second day of filming as a bit of concern due to the expected rain. I had checked the weather status for a week and it was the same prediction for the Tuesday. The reason this was a problem was due to the planned exterior scenes. We had to think about our actors safety as well as the cold conditions they’d be filming at. Warm coats and umbrellas were provided for the shoot. The interior scenes were complete starting from 12pm to 6.30pm approximately. Again, there were no problems except long takes. The exterior scenes were next and we had little time to waste as I’d have to take Bhavna and Ashwin to the train station before 9.30pm. The rain made things difficult as  expected – Bhavna’s high heels got stuck in the mud, the sound was picking up different levels of rain as well as the construction sounds and it was pushing away some of our equipment. This included the large white sheet we put on light stands (behind a redhead light) to make a fill light and remove any shadows on our subjects and props. The stands weren’t strong enough and were blown by the wind constantly. As a result, we had to make sure somebody was holding the stands. Another problem that was out of our hands was the dolly track; the media loan shop had forgotten to give us a support for the track and we had to use a substitute prop which held it. It was disappointing to see this and I expected much better from the loan shop. The dolly track itself was in poor condition, with the box casing almost ripped apart. This was by far no means a professional standard equipment and task. But the group managed to improvise by using a series of gaffer tape to hold things together as well as sticking an umbrella to the camera and lights. This taught me about not always using equipment the way it’s supposed to be. There’s always a way to achieve certain things, especially filming in the rain. We filmed the exterior scenes in time, even managing to get a cast and crew full picture and it was time for me to take the cast back to the train station. I managed to get them back within fifteen minutes as the rain stoppped and there was hardly any traffic. This was very fortunate and I was happy to see the cast leave on a high note. They were prasing our high standards and said that we were more professional than those already in the industry. They enjoyed the process and the fact that we were taking care of them constantly. This was encouraging to hear and I hope to do this and much more in the future projects.

However there were some criticisms that I found within the whole project; I felt there was little input for the whole cast and crew when certain scenes were being filmed. Often, I was sent outside of the room and it was hard to keep note of continuity and which scene was being filmed. Even though the director (Curtis) did an excellent job in bringing the script to life, I would have expected more communication with him rather than him conversing with the camera operator (Luke). As a 1st AD, I’m so supposed to be like another opinion and gather the cast and crew to make production run smoothly. I didn’t feel I was on board with the AD role as I was often standing around or being sent outside of the room. Communication was a bit of a failure in my opinion and I hope this is improved within the future. I felt the group were taking too much time on certain scenes and it got tedious; there is such thing as being a perfectionist but I think we did much more than that. On the first day shoot, we had to prepare the lights for the scene where Bhavna sits on the bed and Ashwin comes in from the door. The lighting wasn’t correct and we kept on rearranging them. The problem was that Bhavna was sitting in the same position for almost an hour – given the fact that she was wearing a heavy sari, jewellery and make up, the intense heat from the lights wasn’t making things any easier for her. And we scrapped the shot anyway which made it a waste of time. It was a trial and error process, but I think the group should approach a brave decision in whether the shot can be filmed or not. With this example, we could have let the actors take a break and get the crew to act as stand ins. This will also be improved for the future.

Overall, the commitment to this project was excellent. I gained a lot of enthusiasm and confidence from the group and I learnt more about production. Lighting was very important and something not in my skills department. But having watched Luke and Alam set up the lights and test whether it would work or not, I know the ways of doing this now. Everyone was taking care of one another and wanted to accomplish the best results. Like I said, communication was a bit of a failure but that was the only real problem I had with the project. The rain made things difficult but we still managed to the get the shots we needed and used the rain as part of the film. I can not wait for the post production stage and the group will certainly celebrate in the weeks to come.

Week 10 – Final Pre-Production notes

It’s been a lenghty process for pre-production but the group will finally shoot on Monday and Tuesday. Here are the final notes/sheets sent to all cast and crew;

Call Sheets:

Crew Info:

Props Checklist: