Areas Of Improvement For Scenes #1 And #2

Prior to half-term, I received feedback on how to improve the first two scenes I'd (roughly) cut together. This advice was entirely made-up of things that I agree with- shots that don't quite work in the way that I'd envisioned, edits that aren't smooth, framing not always right. As a result of this, I went away from the consultation knowing how to perfect these shots, and I acknowledge that these improvements will help to create a better-rounded short film overall.


So, scene one, the opening...





Mr Michie's "Things To Work On":

1. (00:00-00:03) A personal note-to-self, I didn't think the font worked, and I preferred the more simplistic approach of the title's font at the end of the scene. Consequently, I'd like to change this font to the one seen at the end of the scene. 
2. (00:27-00:29) The reaction shot of Emily's face was too quick an edit, jolting the viewer out of the action. Therefore, I need to slow down the cut, to be more reflective of the pace of the scene as a whole. Action plan: look back at the rough shots and try to incorporate shots that makes the surprise more slow, to let Emily's shock sink in.

My Self-Assessment:
I'm proud of the opening scene. The scene's 'objectives', to create a sense of ambiguity, foreboding and ominousness are all, in my opinion, achieved. Artistically, I really like the shot at (00:16) the out-of-focus look is reflective of the persona's hazed state-of-mind. Furthermore, the over-the-shoulder shot (see 00:14) works well, and the framing of the shot at (00:18), with Emily and Will in the foreground and a menacing figure situated in the middle symbolically enforces the idea that Liam's character is menacing and commanding. In terms of things that could have been improved upon, yes, the edit was at one point a bit too quick. Coupled with the font issue, these are the things that need to be improved upon to fine-tune the scene. Otherwise, I'm pleased.


Now, scene two...





Mr Michie's "Things To Work On":

1. The shots at (00:13) and (1:04-1:06) aren't relevant to the scene and should be removed.
2. The shot at (00:02-00:11) doesn't establish Emily's character well enough. therefore, I should try to make it apparent the relevance of Emily's character in a scene preceding this one.
3. The slight lull in pace at (00:28-00:30) detracts from the action and sense that Emily's character is constantly nagging directed at Liam's character and so should be edited out.
4. The shot at (00:40-00:45) doesn't make it apparent enough that Liam's character is tuning out of the distant moaning from Emily's character. Consequently, I need to find a suitable way to convey his without jeopardising the quality of lighting.
5. The shot beginning at (00:35)is out of focus and, whilst at the time I did this intentionally, could be called up as a mistake.
6. At (00:57) Liam's head is out of frame. Mr Michie recommended that to rectify this framing error I could either- a) do a jump cut to show a close-up of Liam sanding up or b) a tilt shot. I've decided that, when re-shooting this, I will use the latter option as jump-cuts are already prominent in this scene and doing a successful tilt shot will show a more advanced skill at filming. 

My Self-Assessment:
Much of this scene was largely improvised so, in that respect, I'm pleased with the way in which I directed the actors to come up with a set of lines that added to the film's realism and authenticity. Trying to cajole improvised lines out of actors is understandably challenging, but much more preferable to rigidly sticking to my script, which would encourage a level of woodenness to the acting I'm trying to avoid. I'd like to reshoot this scene. The lighting evidently isn't great, and the black clothes on the characters appear grainy when you watch the scene back. I liked the idea of the jump-cuts; it wasn't planned, but I liked the idea of capturing snapshots of the meeting, to show, in terms of editing, the prevalence of Emily's character, wearing the proverbial trousers in the relationship. It added a touch of comic relief to what is a very dark film, and it also helps to ambiguously hint at Liam's character's motive in the climactic scene. Now that we know the lines and the shots needed to capture the scene, I reckon I could be efficient in re-shooting this scene with better lighting, whilst also checking off the things I need to improve on. Consequently, I feel okay with re-doing this scene.


In summary, I'm pleased with the progress I've made in shooting and editing these scenes. I know what I need to work on and accomplish. In the next few days, I'd like to do a comparison blog of the two scenes and how the updated versions of the scenes have dealt with things that I needed to work on. Lots to do then...

Survey Analysis

In November, I collated questionnaire results to gauge what an audience expects of my short film. Such a preliminary survey would give me a foundation with which to work from, to understand audience expectations in regards to the fairly niche short film sub-genre. Using social media allowed me to get a range of results, from different ages, genders, ethnicities and occupations, giving me a more absolute and substantial set of results. The breadth of opinion I got from the survey helped me to get ideas for my short film, working out was popular and would correlate with my audience. Consequently, I feel that making a survey was productive and advantageous, giving me the opportunity to get ideas that, otherwise, may not have come to me. A thorough analysis of each question can be found below.

Gender Question

The obligatory gender question (male or female?) came first in my survey. For this preliminary survey, it was fundamentally important that this question featured an equal split between male and female. Equal male and female participants would mean I got a range of results and opinions, which was necessary for the purpose of the survey- note that this was likely to change in a secondary survey. Consequently, I was pleased that there was roughly similar numbers, meaning that my survey was a more accurate representation of views, which is hopefully reflective in the rest of the survey.

Ethnicity Question

For the same purposes as above, I wanted to achieve a sense of equality between ethnicities. This was slightly more difficult to achieve, given that, realistically, a large proportion of social media friends and followers are White British. Therefore, it was unsurprising that the majority of responses featured 'English' or 'White British'. Whilst this wasn't ideal, it's my opinion that I don't think the diversity in opinion between ethnicities is as much as the diverse feedback seen between genders. As a result, it's more important to me that the gender question was split, and overall I'm pleased with the limited difference in ethnicities that there is.

Occupation Question

In regards to participants occupation, I was unsure what to expect, and the only real key objective I had this question was to achieve a sense of range. From students to librarians, to civil servants and a call centre worker, I feel that I successfully gleaned a number of responses from different people. In regards to theses three questions, I was massively pleased with the difference I had survey participants.

Age Question

I already had a preconceived target market before creating this preliminary survey, and so I was particularly interested in responses from the 26-35 age bracket, which makes sense given the premise for my short film 'Before'. Unsurprisingly, given my method of distribution on social media, the majority of responses came from a younger demographic which, to an extent, included the 26-35 age group I was most interested in, with 22% of participants of this age. However, this diversity, particularly at a preliminary stage, meant that I could achieve a range of opinions that would help me to formulate more comprehensive idea of how to create my short film.

Question to discern how often survey participants watched short films

This question was designed to work out the popularity of short films; moreover, it was able to discern which of my audience were regular viewers of short films, as opposed to the more casual viewer. The result makes it clear that the majority of participants weren't regular viewers of short films, meaning that my preliminary audience perhaps weren't as knowledgeable about the genre. Whilst this may have been impacted on the depth of knowledge in responses, the reality is that my target audience won't be regular short film viewers either. Consequently, I don't feel the lack of short film fans in my survey was that significant on affecting the usefulness of the questionnaire.

Genre Question

This result of this question revealed the diversity in participant's most favoured genre. Whilst Crime was most popular, the vastly different genre's such as the Thriller, Comedy and Documentary means that I don't think my decision on choosing a genre for my film would make a vast difference with my audience. However, the lack of popularity for Westerns, Musicals and Sports films means that I'm unlikely to write a script along thee lines. Therefore, as a consequence of this question, I've deciphered which genres not to include, whilst coming to the realisation that selecting a genre isn't that important.

How many characters?

The response to this question has been put into practice in my short film. 2-3 was by far the most popular reply, and I agree with this- especially with such a short time frame, five minutes, it's fundamental that a smaller cast of characters is used in my short film, partly to make it easier to identify and discern one character from another, although I also believe a smaller cast makes it easier to relate and empathise. Empathy is one of the key emotions I'd like the audience to take a way from the short film. 

Favourite aspects of a short film

Another key question; this query made me realise what was most important to an audience to place priority on those top factors when constructing my short film. Evidently, with 26%, 23% and 20% of the vote, storyline, characters and genre were most popular with participants. A focus on substance over style is apparent from these responses and, whilst I hope to make my film have an aesthetic look, I want the film to have a sufficient plot and narrative that's engaging. If I were to answer this question, Music/Soundtrack would be in my top three; the importance of music to complement an atmosphere or mood within a scene is often underestimated, and so I'd like to select appropriate music to make the film illicit the desired emotions from the audience.

Extra Comments

Briefly, these comments were significant in giving me specific pieces of advice. I agree that simplicity is key in a short film, especially within five minutes which, from my research, is short-even by short film standards. Additionally, I thinks its important to capture the audiences attention immediately; my first scene is one that's ambiguous, foreboding and menacing and so, with any luck, the beginning of my short could be described by viewers as starting with a 'bang'.

I remember this preliminary survey having a significant impact on the direction with which I took this project. An insight on audience-goer's tastes were invaluable in making me more aware of audience expectations, as well as the codes and conventions within the genre. In the future, I'd like to continue creating more in-depth surveys, almost like screen-testing, to gauge audience's attitudes of the rough-cut before I turn in my final cut. This would mean that I could attune the film more finely towards my audience, and having feedback from an outside-perspective will also be useful, as so often in the creative process you lose sight of whose opinion really matters- the audience's. Consequently, I'm glad I undertook this survey, and hope to use survey's in the future.

Rough Cuts of Scenes #1 & #2

Below are rough cuts for the first two scenes I've shot. Emphasis on the word "rough", there are still many improvements I'd like to make before my final cut. Having some received some feedback on what worked and what didn't (I'll write a separate post on this), I feel confident that I can work on these scenes and continue with the rest of production. Both scenes can be watched below; enjoy!

"Before" Poster Draft [3]

"Before" Poster Draft [2]

Filming Session #2: Marriage Counsellor Scene

One of the centrepiece flashbacks in the film, the Marriage Counsellor scene gives an insight into the troubles facing the pair. Moreover, the scene adds to the moral complexity of the film; the scene establishes Emily's unlikeable character, making the audience question the ethical wrongness of Liam's characters final action- murder. Consequently, it was important to convey the scene in such a way that the audience (to some extent) is almost sympathetic with the male character. It's been one of my favourite scenes to shoot, as it reveals the explosiveness and turbulence of the relationship whilst grounded in the supposedly controlled environment of the marriage counsellor's office.

The cast of this scene was made up with our two central characters, played by Liam and Emily, with the addition of Fiona as the Marriage Counsellor. In the original script, the Marriage Counsellor was over-the-top and eccentric, given the tone of the piece more of a sense of dark satire, which was oppositional to what I wanted the film to be, a dark, but ultimately straight-faced Drama. Therefore, I directed Fiona to play the character in a serious and authentic manner, subtly juxtaposed with a sense of inner-desperation as she attempts to control the situation. Added to this, I asked Emily to play her character in such a way that she came across as annoying and overly dramatic. I wanted to add the confusedness of where the audience stand morally; Emily's character isn't merely the innocent victim. As a result of this, I wanted Liam to be reserved and withdrawn, upset but not in an overtly-theatrical way like Emily. The couple's characters are very different, and I wanted to provide a contrast in how each character dealt with frustrations within their marriage.

I took a bit of a risk in directing this scene. I decided that my script would sound stilted and unrealistic when performed out loud. By giving my actors a clear sense of the scene, and each character's motivations, improvisation allowed for a more authentic and real set of lines. Unsurprisingly, all three characters brought ideas to the table that completely worked, things that I never could have imagined when writing the script. After AS Media, I was determined that I wouldn't stick to the monotonous tak of sticking closely to a script and storyboard. Whilst the aforementioned have provided me with a sound foundation,  using ad-lib was excellent in allowing to truly bring the vision to life.

Marriage Counsellor's Office AKA My-Dining-Table

My home's dining area doubled as the marriage counsellor's office. The mahogany look of the table, coupled with the flowers already gave the set a look that seemed authentic to what a similar kind of office would like. Added o this, I created props, such as a sign saying 'Dr Smith- Marriage Counsellor' which signals to the audience where the action is taking place. Also, I created some motivational posters. It's my belief that closeness in attention to detail, such as the props, flowers and table, permeates into the audience's mind, becoming more attached to the characters as they become lost in the illusion that what is happening is real and not constructed. I feel as though my choice of setting and props allowed me to create a scene that looked professional and carefully organised.

Liam and Emily

Lighting was selected purposefully to add to the films symbolic significance. The scene was dark, lit only by the harsh light overhead. Orange and black both have indexical connotations of danger and mystery. Furthermore, the lighting from overhead creates more shadow, which again reinforces the notion of danger. I envisaged that the entire film would be shot in such a way that whilst the action was very naturalistic and improvised in a style similar Mike Leigh, but at the same time I wanted to juxtapose this with a surrealist style of film-making, adding to the films thematic core of uncovering the extraordinary within the ordinary. From the footage I've shot, I'm pleased with this contrast, the naturalism vs. surrealism complementing one another well.


 I shot the scene multiple times from a variety of different angles, using a sequence of lines we'd roughly come up with after rehearsing it a few times. My idea is to cut between these angles; slight differences in the lines each time can be combated with a few shots I took. These 'reaction' shots don't contain audio, and include facial expressions of each of the characters, close-ups of the posters etc. This means that I can edit the footage in such a way that it looks seamless. This variety in angles and wealth of footage means that my options are more open when it comes to editing. Moreover, having so much footage minimises errors, and allows the audience to see the scene from a number of different perspectives.


Overall, I felt that this was s successful shooting session. My idea to shoot less but more frequently has definitely been effective, meaning that I can be more focused and concentrated on each scene and shot, whilst making the sometimes arduous task of shooting an entire short film appear less intimidating. This experience has definitely been a learning curve, but I'm confident that this scene will look good in the completed short film.