Wednesday, 9 December 2015
New Wave Film Evaluation
Planning-
Before beginning on the production of my new ave film I planned where I would shoot footage to use in my film and how I would shoot it. Footage I used was filmed in 3 different locations including, Manchester City centre and art galleries around Manchester, the urban areas of Digbeth and finally certain areas of Bedworth. I used these areas in particular as I felt that they were able to give my film the gritty and urban feel that I was going for. Whilst filming in these locations I visited places within Digbeth and Manchester which were covered with graffiti and also visited Art galleries, this was so I was able to create a contrast between the 2 forms of Art in my film.
Digbeth
Whitworth Art Gallery
Bedworth (Car Wash)
Research/Influence-
Throughout my contextual study of New Waves 2 of my texts 'Easy Rider' and 'Midnight Cowboy' used trippy and psychedelic imagery which I found interesting. Due to this I decided to use this style of editing as an influence and use it to develop my film to look as psychedelic as possible. The particular sequence I used as an influence from Easy Rider is the LSD scene toward the end of the film where 4 characters take the drug and begin to trip, the overall imagery of the scene suddenly becomes psychedelic and trippy to fit in with the way the characters are feeling. The same thing happens in the sequence I was influenced by in the film Midnight Cowboy, where the 2 protagonists visit Andy Warhol's factory club which can also be viewed below.
Methods and Techniques-
From my initial camera and lighting tests that I carried out earlier on in the year I ensured that I improved on a number of different technical elements. One key technique in which I improved on was ensuring that all of my footage was in focus and that the image was not overly exposed. When I first carried out my initial camera and lighting tests exposure was a key problem and affected quite a lot of my footage. By handling the exposure and focusing correctly it ensured that my footage looked more professional and suitable for a client. I handled the exposure by ensuring that I had the correct aperture and ISO settings selected when I was shooting each part of my footage, something that i was not able to do very well in my initial camera and lightning tests.
In my final video I have a made a short film that appears trippy and psychedelic and includes footage filmed in places such as Manchester, Digbeth and Bedworth. Throughout the course of the film I try to showcase many new wave techniques as possible, these include jump cuts, psychedelic imagery, long takes and non digetic sound. I used these specific techniques to show that I used the period of the new waves as an influence when shooting footage and when editing footage.
I found out throughout my research that jump cuts were used a great deal in Jean Luc Godard's films and also in the texts which i focused my contextual study on, because of this I felt that it was essential to use jump cuts in my film. Psychedelic imagery was also a key part of my film, a lot of my film includes layered footage which gives off a sort of 'trippy vibe'. I used this because in the film midnight cowboy, there is a scene set in Andy Warhols factory club which uses a lot of colour over the top of film and different patterns masking the characters, therefore I felt that by including this in my film it would be a great way of incorporating specific techniques used within the New Wave into my film.
Updated Design Brief-
Although I generally stuck to that of my original design brief there was some parts of it in which I scrapped and new parts which I included. I decided to not film an actor standing in the same spot for 10 seconds whilst a time lapse was happening as I felt that it would not of fitted in well with my film and also it would of taken too long and interrupted my strict filming timetable. Although I filmed in both busy and not so busy parts of each city I only decided to include the footage filmed in not so busy parts e.g. the galleries of Manchester, the graffitied areas of Digbeth and a car wash in Bedworth. I did not include the footage filmed in busy areas as I did not think the quality of the videos looked high enough to feature in my film. A lot of my footage was left out of my film mainly due to the fact that I had filmed so much footage and I simply did not have enough time to edit al of the footage into the film.
Challenges I Faced-
Although I did not face many challenges or problems throughout the course of my New Wave Film production, one issue that i did have was that when editing my footage I discovered that a few of my clips did not render to the full size of the screen. However I was able to find a way around this and overcome the problem, I discovered that in Birtish New Wave films the images did not always fill the screen. I also used a scene in Midnight Cowboy as an influence to amend the issue. Visual evidence of this can be seen below.
Midnight Cowboy
My New Wave Film
The top image is a scene from midnight cowboy and below it is a part of my new wave film. Due to the clip not filling the screen I decided to leave the footage as it was, I did however duplicate the footage, stretch it, lower the opacity and have the duplicated footage playing over the top of the original as can be seen below. I saw this as an effective way of dealing with a problem. I ensure that all of my footage was labeled throughout the course of my production (as can be seen below) this was to ensure that I would not become confused as to what was what and to also ensure that everything was organised. By doing this I made sure that I was never spending valuable time looking for specific clips as I was able to look for the name of them and find them straight away.
Labelled Footage
Before beginning on the production of my new ave film I planned where I would shoot footage to use in my film and how I would shoot it. Footage I used was filmed in 3 different locations including, Manchester City centre and art galleries around Manchester, the urban areas of Digbeth and finally certain areas of Bedworth. I used these areas in particular as I felt that they were able to give my film the gritty and urban feel that I was going for. Whilst filming in these locations I visited places within Digbeth and Manchester which were covered with graffiti and also visited Art galleries, this was so I was able to create a contrast between the 2 forms of Art in my film.
Digbeth
Whitworth Art Gallery
Bedworth (Car Wash)
Research/Influence-
Throughout my contextual study of New Waves 2 of my texts 'Easy Rider' and 'Midnight Cowboy' used trippy and psychedelic imagery which I found interesting. Due to this I decided to use this style of editing as an influence and use it to develop my film to look as psychedelic as possible. The particular sequence I used as an influence from Easy Rider is the LSD scene toward the end of the film where 4 characters take the drug and begin to trip, the overall imagery of the scene suddenly becomes psychedelic and trippy to fit in with the way the characters are feeling. The same thing happens in the sequence I was influenced by in the film Midnight Cowboy, where the 2 protagonists visit Andy Warhol's factory club which can also be viewed below.
Methods and Techniques-
From my initial camera and lighting tests that I carried out earlier on in the year I ensured that I improved on a number of different technical elements. One key technique in which I improved on was ensuring that all of my footage was in focus and that the image was not overly exposed. When I first carried out my initial camera and lighting tests exposure was a key problem and affected quite a lot of my footage. By handling the exposure and focusing correctly it ensured that my footage looked more professional and suitable for a client. I handled the exposure by ensuring that I had the correct aperture and ISO settings selected when I was shooting each part of my footage, something that i was not able to do very well in my initial camera and lightning tests.
In my final video I have a made a short film that appears trippy and psychedelic and includes footage filmed in places such as Manchester, Digbeth and Bedworth. Throughout the course of the film I try to showcase many new wave techniques as possible, these include jump cuts, psychedelic imagery, long takes and non digetic sound. I used these specific techniques to show that I used the period of the new waves as an influence when shooting footage and when editing footage.
I found out throughout my research that jump cuts were used a great deal in Jean Luc Godard's films and also in the texts which i focused my contextual study on, because of this I felt that it was essential to use jump cuts in my film. Psychedelic imagery was also a key part of my film, a lot of my film includes layered footage which gives off a sort of 'trippy vibe'. I used this because in the film midnight cowboy, there is a scene set in Andy Warhols factory club which uses a lot of colour over the top of film and different patterns masking the characters, therefore I felt that by including this in my film it would be a great way of incorporating specific techniques used within the New Wave into my film.
Updated Design Brief-
Although I generally stuck to that of my original design brief there was some parts of it in which I scrapped and new parts which I included. I decided to not film an actor standing in the same spot for 10 seconds whilst a time lapse was happening as I felt that it would not of fitted in well with my film and also it would of taken too long and interrupted my strict filming timetable. Although I filmed in both busy and not so busy parts of each city I only decided to include the footage filmed in not so busy parts e.g. the galleries of Manchester, the graffitied areas of Digbeth and a car wash in Bedworth. I did not include the footage filmed in busy areas as I did not think the quality of the videos looked high enough to feature in my film. A lot of my footage was left out of my film mainly due to the fact that I had filmed so much footage and I simply did not have enough time to edit al of the footage into the film.
Challenges I Faced-
Although I did not face many challenges or problems throughout the course of my New Wave Film production, one issue that i did have was that when editing my footage I discovered that a few of my clips did not render to the full size of the screen. However I was able to find a way around this and overcome the problem, I discovered that in Birtish New Wave films the images did not always fill the screen. I also used a scene in Midnight Cowboy as an influence to amend the issue. Visual evidence of this can be seen below.
Midnight Cowboy
My New Wave Film
The top image is a scene from midnight cowboy and below it is a part of my new wave film. Due to the clip not filling the screen I decided to leave the footage as it was, I did however duplicate the footage, stretch it, lower the opacity and have the duplicated footage playing over the top of the original as can be seen below. I saw this as an effective way of dealing with a problem. I ensure that all of my footage was labeled throughout the course of my production (as can be seen below) this was to ensure that I would not become confused as to what was what and to also ensure that everything was organised. By doing this I made sure that I was never spending valuable time looking for specific clips as I was able to look for the name of them and find them straight away.
Labelled Footage
Tuesday, 8 December 2015
Contextual Study Review
I began my research for my contextual study by looking at New Waves as a whole to understand what they were and why they happened. I began looking at the french new wave as that was the first new wave to take place and change cinema. Once I had a firm understanding of what a new wave was I began looking at the American New Wave which was my topic of choice for the course of my 'Contextual Study'. I began the study by gathering information from the American new wave and the time period in which it took place and then moved on to look at 3 film texts which I had chosen to focus my study on. I did this so that when I watched the films I was able to apply slight contextual knowledge, which helped with my overall understanding of my 3 films 'Easy Rider' 'Bonnie and Clyde' and 'Midnight Cowboy'.
Throughout the process of carrying out research I collected primary research from books and articles which helped to extend my knowledge of the American New Wave and also to help develop my own different interpretations of each individual film text. Whilst doing my research I found that the books I used provided me with great in-depth contextual knowledge of the New Wave and the 60's, however articles online which I read where much more straight to the point and I found them easier to find relevant information from.
I tried to only use information that was relevant to my topic, and cut out bits of information that did not support my study, this helped to ensure that my overall essay was concise and that i did not waffle on too much.
The most difficult part of the contextual study for me was analysing specific sequences of the film's as I found it particularly hard to analyse specific edits and develop an interpretation from those edits. I really had to persevere and look at a variety of different sequences throughout my films in order to ensure that my analysis on these edits was good enough to include in my contextual study.
Throughout the process of carrying out research I collected primary research from books and articles which helped to extend my knowledge of the American New Wave and also to help develop my own different interpretations of each individual film text. Whilst doing my research I found that the books I used provided me with great in-depth contextual knowledge of the New Wave and the 60's, however articles online which I read where much more straight to the point and I found them easier to find relevant information from.
I tried to only use information that was relevant to my topic, and cut out bits of information that did not support my study, this helped to ensure that my overall essay was concise and that i did not waffle on too much.
The most difficult part of the contextual study for me was analysing specific sequences of the film's as I found it particularly hard to analyse specific edits and develop an interpretation from those edits. I really had to persevere and look at a variety of different sequences throughout my films in order to ensure that my analysis on these edits was good enough to include in my contextual study.
Freud - Structure of The Personality
Sigmund Freud's model of the human personality was considered pioneering, he suggested that the human psyche was made up of 3 interacting elements:
The Ego- The ego operates alongside the reality principle, it works out realistic ways of satisfying the id’s demands, often by postponing pleasure to avoid negative consequences of society. Like the id the ego avoids pain and seeks pleasure, however unlike that of the id, the ego remains realistic in its search for pleasure. Freud made the analogy that the id is like the horse and the ego is the rider, "The ego is like a man on horseback, who has to hold in check the superior strength of the horse" (Freud, 1923, P15). The ego engages in secondary process thinking, which is realistic, rational and is orientated towards problem solving.
The Superego- This is the regulator of pleasure, it will censor the id, but will also license it. For example in the film 'Fight Club' the superego appears in a number of different forms, initially in the self help groups which allow him some sleep and then within the fight clubs which allow the acts of aggression. The superego may also be identified with the police who enter the narrative at moments of crisis. The superego is developed when one realises the social norms of society.
The id- This part of the human personality is formed via the desires of an individual and can be seen in the film 'Fight Club' through the character of Tyler Durden who effectively does what he wants whether thats hurting people, sleeping with whoever he wants or stealing whatever he wants. Whenever he has a desire he acts upon it, even if this causes pain or inconvenience to others. The id demands instant satisfaction and when this happens we experience pleasure, when it is denied we experience displeasure or pain. Freud believed that the id operated on the 'pleasure principle' which is the idea that every wishful impulse should be satisifed immediately regardless of the consequences.
References - http://www.simplypsychology.org/psyche.html
The Pocket Essential 'Film Studies' - Andrew M.Butler
The Ego- The ego operates alongside the reality principle, it works out realistic ways of satisfying the id’s demands, often by postponing pleasure to avoid negative consequences of society. Like the id the ego avoids pain and seeks pleasure, however unlike that of the id, the ego remains realistic in its search for pleasure. Freud made the analogy that the id is like the horse and the ego is the rider, "The ego is like a man on horseback, who has to hold in check the superior strength of the horse" (Freud, 1923, P15). The ego engages in secondary process thinking, which is realistic, rational and is orientated towards problem solving.
The Superego- This is the regulator of pleasure, it will censor the id, but will also license it. For example in the film 'Fight Club' the superego appears in a number of different forms, initially in the self help groups which allow him some sleep and then within the fight clubs which allow the acts of aggression. The superego may also be identified with the police who enter the narrative at moments of crisis. The superego is developed when one realises the social norms of society.
The id- This part of the human personality is formed via the desires of an individual and can be seen in the film 'Fight Club' through the character of Tyler Durden who effectively does what he wants whether thats hurting people, sleeping with whoever he wants or stealing whatever he wants. Whenever he has a desire he acts upon it, even if this causes pain or inconvenience to others. The id demands instant satisfaction and when this happens we experience pleasure, when it is denied we experience displeasure or pain. Freud believed that the id operated on the 'pleasure principle' which is the idea that every wishful impulse should be satisifed immediately regardless of the consequences.
References - http://www.simplypsychology.org/psyche.html
The Pocket Essential 'Film Studies' - Andrew M.Butler
Lacan - The Mirror Stage
Lacan's theory of 'the mirror stage' refers to the idea that when baby's look into the mirror they believe that what they see is superior in comparison to themselves. They fail to understand that the reflection they see is them and instead set the reflection as an icon to worship and will strive to correspond to the image in which they see.
In the same way women often take on the same behaviour in cinema; the ideal depiction that they see on screen is a representation of a superior being that they see and straight away wish to transform themselves into. By seeing the ideal image on screen it therefore can result in the female audience believing that they are nothing more than an object to be watched and admired. Because of this people can develop body dysmorphia.
Monday, 7 December 2015
Wednesday, 11 November 2015
Design Brief
For the New Wave task I am taking inspiration from the American New Wave of the 1960's, particularly Easy Rider. This will be done by the use of experimental camera work and by filming on various locations such as Birmingham, Manchester and Bedworth. Throughout filming on these locations I will ensure I visit both busy and not so busy parts of each town/city in order to capture a range of footage. These will include the hustle and bustle of a busy Manchester environment, to the dead and abandoned suburban areas of Bedworth. I will use a mixture of high and low key lighting with colour changing between black, white and greys then to blue green and pink, this will help to link in to the inspired overall psychedelia featured throughout Dennis Hopper's Easy Rider.
A technique I am going to use is something called a 'Time Lapse' I will do this by placing a camera in a specific place in each environment and then leaving it for a specific amount of time. When it comes to editing the film I will be able to speed up the footage and watch all footage recorded in a short clip of 10-20 seconds. I am also considering filming a 10 second video of our actor standing still in the same spot that the time lapse is happening, then I shall edit the 2 images so that they overlap each other. Camera techniques that I am interested in including in the production of my new wave film is using a higher shutter speed whilst recording to give the image a 'crystal clear' and also rather jarred effect. I also plan to film at night whilst driving in a car, I shall use an f.2 sense in order to ensure that the inside of the car is in focus but the outside is blurred and out of focus. By doing this it will ensure that everything outside just looks like colours and everything is distorted, this helps to link in with my idea of being influenced by the Trippy and psychedelic idea of the American New Wave.
A technique I am going to use is something called a 'Time Lapse' I will do this by placing a camera in a specific place in each environment and then leaving it for a specific amount of time. When it comes to editing the film I will be able to speed up the footage and watch all footage recorded in a short clip of 10-20 seconds. I am also considering filming a 10 second video of our actor standing still in the same spot that the time lapse is happening, then I shall edit the 2 images so that they overlap each other. Camera techniques that I am interested in including in the production of my new wave film is using a higher shutter speed whilst recording to give the image a 'crystal clear' and also rather jarred effect. I also plan to film at night whilst driving in a car, I shall use an f.2 sense in order to ensure that the inside of the car is in focus but the outside is blurred and out of focus. By doing this it will ensure that everything outside just looks like colours and everything is distorted, this helps to link in with my idea of being influenced by the Trippy and psychedelic idea of the American New Wave.
Thursday, 5 November 2015
Wednesday, 21 October 2015
Health and Safety
Despite the majority of filming taking place on the college site, there are various subjects that mean extra safety precautions must be made:
- When filming in a classroom we must ensure that there are not any items that can be tripped over, for example ensure that things such as wires and students bags are moved out the way of where we are filming.
-When using different pieces of equipment we must ensure that they are secure, this mainly refers to tripods. When using a tripod ensure that it is set up efficiently so that it does not fall over as it could hurt someone. Also make sure that when placing a camera on the tripod that it is secure and will not fall off, as this could result in damaging the camera.
-Whilst in the photography studio, as it is a rather confined space, we must ensure that wires are kept out of the way and are taped down to the floor. By doing this it minimalises the threat of tripping over the wire and injuring the subject. Also when dealing with studio lights they must be switched off at the wall and left to cool down before being handled by anyone as the bulbs become very hot and could burn someone.
- We also have to be aware of the dangers of different locations where we film. For example when filming outside of college on the road for example there are cars about. Also by filming outside we need to ensure that we are extra careful with equipment as if dropped it will most likely break. Also we have to ensure whilst filming we keep an eye on equipment as in busy places such as a town centre there may be thieves.
- When filming in a classroom we must ensure that there are not any items that can be tripped over, for example ensure that things such as wires and students bags are moved out the way of where we are filming.
-When using different pieces of equipment we must ensure that they are secure, this mainly refers to tripods. When using a tripod ensure that it is set up efficiently so that it does not fall over as it could hurt someone. Also make sure that when placing a camera on the tripod that it is secure and will not fall off, as this could result in damaging the camera.
-Whilst in the photography studio, as it is a rather confined space, we must ensure that wires are kept out of the way and are taped down to the floor. By doing this it minimalises the threat of tripping over the wire and injuring the subject. Also when dealing with studio lights they must be switched off at the wall and left to cool down before being handled by anyone as the bulbs become very hot and could burn someone.
- We also have to be aware of the dangers of different locations where we film. For example when filming outside of college on the road for example there are cars about. Also by filming outside we need to ensure that we are extra careful with equipment as if dropped it will most likely break. Also we have to ensure whilst filming we keep an eye on equipment as in busy places such as a town centre there may be thieves.
Aperture Experiment
F8 Wide lense
F8 Standard Lense
Experimenting in F.2
Experimenting in F16
Throughout this experiment I was experimenting with aperture and a range of different camera lenses. By doing this I was able to discover and learn about aperture. My strengths throughout this experiment were ensuring a range of lenses were used in order to effectively test the change in aperture when each lens was put onto the camera. By doing this it helps my overall knowledge of camera work as I now know how to adjust the aperture in order to have an effect on an image.
A weakness however in this experiment is that in some of the footage shot, specifically when shooting at F.2 the image was over exposed, meaning that parts of the image seemed white and overall too bright. Some of the technical challenges that I faced was struggling to get to grips with different lenses, I struggled with focusing the image and it took me some time to focus the shot. Some shots were also overly exposed which can be seen in the clip "experimenting in F.2".
Overall all of the above footage was filmed in order to further my understanding of Aperture, which I feel has been a success as I know feel more confident in what Aperture is and what it does to an image when altered. In order to improve my videos I would ensure that I deal with the exposure better so that videos are not overly exposed and perhaps use a tripod in all videos rather than in just a few as my camera work in 2 videos out of the 4 is rather shaky, with a tripod it would be steadied.
Shutter Speed Experiment
Both videos are effective as they clearly show the difference between a shot with High shutter speed in comparison to a shot with low shutter speed. My strengths were experimenting whilst filming these examples, as I used a spinning chair to highlight the difference in shutter speed, I felt this was a clever and different way of showing what shutter speed is. A weakness within these 2 videos would be the fact that I am spinning at different speeds in both videos, meaning that the comparison between the videos may not be completely accurate.
A specific technical challenge I faced during this experiment was that the images at first were over exposed due to the fact that I was shooting by windows which were allowing a large amount of light into the room. I overcame this issue however by lowering the ISO and adjusting the Aperture. I have made 2 videos highlighting the difference between a video filmed with a high shutter speed and a video filmed with low shutter speed. I have made these videos in order to help show my understanding of what effect changing the shutter speed has on moving image. I would improve my video by ensuring a film in a different location so the lighting isn't so much of an issue. I would also make sure that I spin on my chair at the same speed so the 2 video's are more accurate.
Lighting
Reflectors
Rembrandt
Butterfly
3 point lighting set up
For this experiment I had to use a range of lighting set ups including '3 point lighting set up', 'The Butterfly', 'The Rembrandt', and we also used 'reflectors'. Using reflectors was a key strength of mine as it was easy to do, it showed that you can light up the object without using a direct light source. The rembrandt was also a strength as I was able to create a perfect shadow of a triangle to the right of the subjects nose, which was the aim of the task. The three point lighting set up also went very well as the set up was correct and by doing so it lit the subject in a well lit and texturised manner.
However a weakness of mine was creating 'the butterfly' as it was much harder to create. Although the set up was correct, the 'the butterfly' you're supposed to be able to see is not evident. All footage was filmed in order to help further my understanding of lighting techniques and set up, which I feel was a success as I am know more confident in the way I use lighting to shoot film with. In order to improve my video's I would focus on improving the butterfly and make the shadow on the subject's face much more prominent.
Tuesday, 13 October 2015
Bonnie and Clyde
For linking sex with violence, glamorizing its protago- nists through beauty and fashion, and addressing itself to the anti-authoritarian feelings of young audiences, Bonnie and Clyde is among the most important U.S. films of the 1960s. Together with other countercultural milestones such as The Graduate (1967) and Easy Rider (1969), it heralded the end of studio-style production and the beginning of a new youth-oriented film market, one that revisited film genres of the past with a modern sensibility. However, as we have seen, it was not only the film’s content that was innovative; Bonnie and Clyde’s editing and the climactic linkage of gunshots with camera shots also influenced viewers—ranging from French New Wave filmmakers to the American public.
Monday, 12 October 2015
Lighting - Shadows
Creating Shadows in an experimental set up.
Reflecting light
Using low key lighting
Using high key lighting
My video's were very effective in using light in an experimental set up. My strengths in this task were definitely the creating of shadows in the video's as I used lighting very well in videos 1 and 3 to create shadows in different ways, in video 1 I was able to create and move shadows on the wall and in video 3 I was able to create a shadow across the face of the lego character, giving it a mysterious noire feel. My video's area of weakness is that some of them are more like pictures as toy's have been used for footage rather than people. This therefore means that the videos can seem quite boring as there isn't much going on in them.
The main technical challenge which I faced was with lighting. I struggled to get the lighting correct for sometime as videos at first were either over exposed or under exposed. I overcame this by constantly changing my lighting set up, whether that was drawing or opening blinds to allow more or less light into the room or using LED lights to adjust lighting.
I have made a range of video's using lego characters in order to experiment with lighting and create shadow effects in an experimental set up. By doing this it has helped to further my understanding of lighting and how it can be altered. To improve my videos I would use people rather than toys to make them more interesting and to allow more movement.
Friday, 9 October 2015
Contextual Study - Bibliography
Bibliography- http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/new%20wave (1)
http://www.newwavefilm.com/international/american-new-wave-1.shtml (2,3)
http://www.mortaljourney.com/2011/03/1960-trends/hippie-counter-culture-movement (4) (5) (6)
Easy Rider Raging Bulls Documentary (7) (8)
Easy Rider York Film Notes (9) (10)
http://www.filmsite.org/easy.html (11)
movementmovementhttp://digital.lib.lehigh.edu/trial/reel_new/films/list/0_63_9 (12)
http://www.theguardian.com/film/2010/oct/17/bonnie-clyde-crime-shoot-out (13
Easy Rider Raging Bulls - Peter Biskind (14), (15)
http://www.theguardian.com/film/2007/aug/26/thriller.romance (16), (17)
http://www.film.com/movies/whats-the-big-deal-bonnie-and-clyde-1967
http://www.newwavefilm.com/international/new-hollywood.shtml (18)
Easy Rider (19)
http://www.film.com/movies/whats-the-big-deal-easy-rider-1969 (20)
Easy Rider film (21)
http://www.biography.com/news/andy-warhol-and-the-factory-20750995 (22)
Bonnie and Clyde (23)
Midnight Cowboy (24)
http://www.newwavefilm.com/international/american-new-wave-1.shtml (2,3)
http://www.mortaljourney.com/2011/03/1960-trends/hippie-counter-culture-movement (4) (5) (6)
Easy Rider Raging Bulls Documentary (7) (8)
Easy Rider York Film Notes (9) (10)
http://www.filmsite.org/easy.html (11)
movementmovementhttp://digital.lib.lehigh.edu/trial/reel_new/films/list/0_63_9 (12)
http://www.theguardian.com/film/2010/oct/17/bonnie-clyde-crime-shoot-out (13
Easy Rider Raging Bulls - Peter Biskind (14), (15)
http://www.theguardian.com/film/2007/aug/26/thriller.romance (16), (17)
http://www.film.com/movies/whats-the-big-deal-bonnie-and-clyde-1967
http://www.newwavefilm.com/international/new-hollywood.shtml (18)
Easy Rider (19)
http://www.film.com/movies/whats-the-big-deal-easy-rider-1969 (20)
Easy Rider film (21)
http://www.biography.com/news/andy-warhol-and-the-factory-20750995 (22)
Bonnie and Clyde (23)
Midnight Cowboy (24)
Easy Rider
Easy Rider Social Representations - From book 'Easy Rider - York Film Notes
Drugs - "An alarmed reaction was merited. Not because acid meant madness and breakdown, but because the underground pleasures of it and other drugs broke a major taboo"
"Many more like Billy and Wyatt made cannabis a more comfortable part of their way of life; dope as an enhancement of everyday living, not a pathway to nirvana. The smoking scenes in Easy rider provide some of its happiest moments."
Gender - " Easy Rider demonstrates a lack of interest in women and feminism more than misogyny, and indeed a minimal interest in sex, which appears much less of a lure to Billy and Wyatt than drugs and rock 'n' roll."
Drugs - "An alarmed reaction was merited. Not because acid meant madness and breakdown, but because the underground pleasures of it and other drugs broke a major taboo"
"Many more like Billy and Wyatt made cannabis a more comfortable part of their way of life; dope as an enhancement of everyday living, not a pathway to nirvana. The smoking scenes in Easy rider provide some of its happiest moments."
Gender - " Easy Rider demonstrates a lack of interest in women and feminism more than misogyny, and indeed a minimal interest in sex, which appears much less of a lure to Billy and Wyatt than drugs and rock 'n' roll."
A contextual study of the American New Wave between 1967-1970
I will be studying the American Wave from 1967 through to 1970. I will be focusing my research around on Arthur Penn's 1967 film Bonnie and Clyde, John Schlesingers's 1969 film Midnight Cowboy and finally Dennis Hoppers 1969 film Easy Rider. I have chosen these films in particular as they were so important in the change of American cinema, each offering a very new, fresh and interesting style of narrative. I will be looking at the social conditions of the production of the film and study its cultural impact.
I will be studying the American Wave from 1967 through to 1970. I will be focusing my research around on Arthur Penn's 1967 film Bonnie and Clyde, John Schlesingers's 1969 film Midnight Cowboy and finally Dennis Hoppers 1969 film Easy Rider. I have chosen these films in particular as they were so important in the change of American cinema, each offering a very new, fresh and interesting style of narrative. I will be looking at the social conditions of the production of the film and study its cultural impact.
Monday, 5 October 2015
Audio Recordings
Audio on the inbuilt camera.
Audio recored on the Zoom H1, recorded on the camera.
Audio recored by the Boom Microphone, plugged into the recorder, plugged into the camera.
This experiment was conducted within the photography studio due to that being the correct environment to help record sound. This experiment was carried out to highlight the difference in each microphones recording quality. By recording sound using the audio recorder on the camera itself, the 'Zoom H1 microphone' and on the 'Boom Microphone' I was able to discover which microphone is best for recording audio and which microphone has the least background noise (The Boom Microphone). Recording audio on the inbuilt camera is the worst for recording sound as it picks up a lot of background noise and is of poor quality. This was a successful experiment as it helped to further my knowledge of audio recording using microphones.
Friday, 2 October 2015
"In 1967, two movies, Bonnie and Clyde and The Graduate sent tremors through the industry. Before anyone realised it, there was a movement - instantly dubbed the New Hollywood by the press - led by a new generation of directors." (Easy Riders Raging Bulls - Peter Biskind.)
"Warners released the movie in 340 theatres. In September, it had grossed $2600 for a week at one theatre in Cleveland; it played the same theatre in February and grossed $26000."" Still, the numbers were dramatic. By the end of 1967, the picture had netted $2.5 million in rentals. In 1968, when it was re-released, it netted $16.5 million in rentals, the making it one of the top 20 grossing pictures of all time"
Bonnie and Clyde - "Disregard for time-honored pieties of plot, chronology, and motivation; a promiscuous jumbling together of comedy and tragedy; ditto heroes and villains; sexual boldness; and a new, ironic distance that withholds obvious moral judgements."
(Stefan Kanfar on the characteristics of the New Cinema, from the book "Easy Rider Raging Bulls" by Peter Biskind.)
"Warners released the movie in 340 theatres. In September, it had grossed $2600 for a week at one theatre in Cleveland; it played the same theatre in February and grossed $26000."" Still, the numbers were dramatic. By the end of 1967, the picture had netted $2.5 million in rentals. In 1968, when it was re-released, it netted $16.5 million in rentals, the making it one of the top 20 grossing pictures of all time"
(On the success of the re-release of Bonnie and Clyde - Easy Rider Raging Bulls - Peter Biskind.)
Wednesday, 30 September 2015
Development of Editing Technology
The Development of Editing Technology
Editing is something first seen in the 1800's where George Melies filmed a bus coming out of a tunnel, when his camera jammed, when the camera was working again the bus had gone and was replaced by a hearse, this was the invention the jump cut. Melies then continued to use this new editing technique in order to create disappearing and reappearing effects on screen in his films. Going into the 1900's film makers discovered that by editing scenes together it not only contributed to the audiences sense of the story, but also allowed film makers to produce much more complexed films, for example 'The Great Train Robbery' in 1903. George Melies included cuts in his film by placing a puff of smoke infant of an actor, he then turned off the camera, and when the camera turned back on the actor had left the stage. By doing this it therefore produced a disappearing effect.
As the 1900's progressed new editing device was introduced, this device was called a Moviola which was the first device for editing motion picture, it was invented by Iwan Serrurier. The device allowed the film editor to view the film whilst they were editing, this was a step forward for editors as it allowed them to study individual shots in the film and therefore helped the editor to determine where the best cut point may be. The editing devices were used throughout the 1900's until the late 1970's when Flat bed editor systems became more common. The flat bed editor system is another machine used to edit motion picture, the machine involves picture and sound rolls loading onto separate motorised 'disks' called plates. The machine was manufactured in Germany, the most popular brand of the editing system was called 'Steenbeck'. The use of flat bed editing lasted up until around the mid 1990's where the systems were replaced by Non-Linear editing systems.
In the mid 1990's the introduction of Non-Linear editing computers became widely available and opened up a whole new world of editing power and flexibility. The introduction of this type of editing created a sort of 'new wave' which some refused to follow. Although Non-linear editing computers did have their problems, the advantages of them were too good to be ignored and by the 21st century forms of 'linear' editing had been abandoned completely as digital editing had became so popular.
Editing is something first seen in the 1800's where George Melies filmed a bus coming out of a tunnel, when his camera jammed, when the camera was working again the bus had gone and was replaced by a hearse, this was the invention the jump cut. Melies then continued to use this new editing technique in order to create disappearing and reappearing effects on screen in his films. Going into the 1900's film makers discovered that by editing scenes together it not only contributed to the audiences sense of the story, but also allowed film makers to produce much more complexed films, for example 'The Great Train Robbery' in 1903. George Melies included cuts in his film by placing a puff of smoke infant of an actor, he then turned off the camera, and when the camera turned back on the actor had left the stage. By doing this it therefore produced a disappearing effect.
As the 1900's progressed new editing device was introduced, this device was called a Moviola which was the first device for editing motion picture, it was invented by Iwan Serrurier. The device allowed the film editor to view the film whilst they were editing, this was a step forward for editors as it allowed them to study individual shots in the film and therefore helped the editor to determine where the best cut point may be. The editing devices were used throughout the 1900's until the late 1970's when Flat bed editor systems became more common. The flat bed editor system is another machine used to edit motion picture, the machine involves picture and sound rolls loading onto separate motorised 'disks' called plates. The machine was manufactured in Germany, the most popular brand of the editing system was called 'Steenbeck'. The use of flat bed editing lasted up until around the mid 1990's where the systems were replaced by Non-Linear editing systems.
In the mid 1990's the introduction of Non-Linear editing computers became widely available and opened up a whole new world of editing power and flexibility. The introduction of this type of editing created a sort of 'new wave' which some refused to follow. Although Non-linear editing computers did have their problems, the advantages of them were too good to be ignored and by the 21st century forms of 'linear' editing had been abandoned completely as digital editing had became so popular.
Tuesday, 29 September 2015
Video Essay
For this task I was asked to create a video essay showing and explaining different shot types via my own examples, written explanations and different cinematic examples. The essay includes 9 filmed examples of different shot types along with another 9 cinematic examples.
Throughout the task I ensured that all of my footage was labeled and in order and also in the same folder as my premiere pro session. By doing this it meant that my footage was always linked with the session, meaning that I didn't have to spend valuable editing time re-linking media to the session. I was also able to film each example of each shot accurately without any difficulties and was also able to explain the shot's in detail in a summary after the example was shown. Another thing I believe I did well was finding cinematic footage of each shot to put after my own examples, this created a comparison between my own examples and the cinematic examples which helped to show exactly what the shot was more clearly.
There was weaknesses within my video essay, one of these is that some of my clips involved in the Einstein Montage are not cut as well as they should be. An example of this is when the subject is running around corners, the camera is almost waiting for too long for the subject to run past, if it was cut correctly the part of the clip where the camera is waiting would be cut out and the subject would run past straight away. Another weakness and area I could improve in is that my own examples go straight into the cinematic example without any introduction, to improve this I would include a titled clip saying exactly what the film/TV show the clip had came from along with what shot the clip was showing.
Overall to improve I need to ensure that I cut all of my clips precisely and ensue they look smooth and professional. I also need to include small introductions between my own examples and the cinematic examples to break up the jump between the 2. Finally I need to ensure that some of my cinematic examples are of a a higher quality as the resolution on some is a lot smaller than my own examples.
Wednesday, 23 September 2015
Focusing
Here is an example of me using the pull focus, it effectively demonstrates what a pull focus technique is. I was able to change the focus from the bottle to the glue stick smoothly in order to create an effective pull focus. However an area of weakness would be that my camera work was a bit shaky as a did not have a tripod to steady the camera. Technical challenges I faced included not being able to do the pull focus at first, this was due to the camera being on the 'Auto Focus' setting. I had to change the camera to manual focus to be able to focus the camera myself. I made this video in order to demonstrate what a 'pull focus' is. I would improve this video by making the video longer than 7 seconds, and also by using a tripod in order to ensure that the footage is not shaky.
ISO
When using the camera set on 3600 ISO it was very difficult for the subject on video to become visible even with the use of LED lights. This could of been due to the lack of lighting in the area in which we shot the video's. If I were to do this task again I would ensure that I filmed in a more well lit area to ensure that by changing the ISO and Aperture it had more of an impact on the overall picture.
Monday, 21 September 2015
Tutorial Video
For this task I was asked to create a video explaining different camera shots by using my own filmed examples and a range of cinematic examples. The video contains 10 examples of shot types and 10 examples of shot types within cinematic examples alongside brief written summary's explaining exactly what each shot type is and why it is used. This tutorial video was made for an audience of AS media students, and I feel that it effectively demonstrates different shot types and explains them well.
Throughout this task I feel one of my strengths was ensuring that everything was organised, this included making sure all video footage was shot and ready to include my tutorial straight away. I also made sure everything was labeled and in the correct place. By doing these things and staying organised it I was able to put the tutorial together in a much more stress free way than if I was disorganised.
However the production of this task didn't come without its difficulties, as it was the first time I had ever used the software Premiere Pro. This meant that one of my main weaknesses was my lack of knowledge of how to use premiere pro, by having to learn how to use the many features of Premiere Pro it meant that the creation of my tutorial was a lot slower than what it would of been if I was an experienced user of the software. Another weakness was that there was some difficulty recording the shots, in particular the 'Zolly' which took more than 10 attempts just to get a fairly average version of it. I was able understand Premier Pro however and was able to complete and fully edit the tutorial, so my lack of knowledge of the software will not be an issue for future projects being created on that software.
Overall in order to improve my tutorial I would of used some different equipment in order to capture specific shot's better than I did, for example the use of a track in the tracking shot and the use of a Dolly to capture the 'Zolly' shot rather than using a chair! I would also of used a tripod used for video to help the fluidity of the motion in the Panning shot, as in the shot the motion is slightly wobbly rather than smooth. I would also include cinematic examples of a higher quality, the majority of examples are of a decent quality but my 'establishing shot' and 'panning shot' cinematic examples are of a lesser quality than the rest of them.
Friday, 18 September 2015
ISO Experiment
ISO 100 - Over the shoulder/ISO 1600 - Pan Shot
As this was the first time I had experimented with the ISO and aperture on a camera it was difficult to know exactly what to do to alter the image when exposed to different lights. However although it was more first time I still feel I was able to shoot 2 rather effective video's which clearly show the experimentation of different ISO on the camera. I feel my strengths whilst recording this was that I ensure that the image recorded stayed in focus throughout the duration of the clip, this is a strength because if the shot was out of focus the video would not show the change in lighting and ISO as well. Another strength I would say was my ability to pick to particular shot types in order to film.
My overall weakness was monitoring the light exposure of an image, it took me more than 2 attempts of filming to get the lighting and exposure right to make the subject within the video visible. Technical challenges I faced throughout this task were being able to alter settings on the camera itself, this was mainly due to the fact that this was the first time I had been introduced to things like exposure, ISO and Aperture. By continuously altering settings and shooting a few different video's I was eventually able to understand ISO in an image, this can be seen in my final video's of ISO 100 and ISO 1600. These video's made purely to help my understanding of ISO, and by creating video's at different ISO's I was able to achieve this understanding. Overall to improve my video's I need to improve my knowledge of light exposure so I am able to control lighting more and therefore have a better picture on my video's.
Wednesday, 16 September 2015
Aperture - Shutter Speed - ISO
Aperture-
An Aperture was created in order to control the amount of light entering a camera, what was created was a hole smaller than the actual diameter of the lens. This helps to control the amount of light entering the camera the same way the iris in your eye controls the amount of light entering it. By controlling the amount of light entering the camera it therefore ensured that photographers were able to reduce the amount of light exposing the image, and therefore get a better picture.
An Aperture was created in order to control the amount of light entering a camera, what was created was a hole smaller than the actual diameter of the lens. This helps to control the amount of light entering the camera the same way the iris in your eye controls the amount of light entering it. By controlling the amount of light entering the camera it therefore ensured that photographers were able to reduce the amount of light exposing the image, and therefore get a better picture.
Shutter Speed-
Shutter speed is how fast the camera takes an image, just how the aperture halves or doubles the amount of light entering the camera, the shutter speed has the same halving and doubling effect, depending on the length of the exposure. For example long shutter speed can be used to intentionally blur a moving image for artistic effect.
ISO- The ISO of an image controls how sensitive your image is to light. The ISO was measured in numbers, the lower the number the lower the sensitivity of the film and the finer the grain of the shots you are taking. Higher ISO are usually used in darker filming to get faster shutter speeds.
Wednesday, 9 September 2015
Induction Video's
Video
I placed the camera underneath a trampoline in order to try and capture some unusual footage by positioning the camera looking upwards.
Here I placed the camera underneath a sun bed in order to capture the changing of lighting. It slowly changes from natural lighting, to the bright light of the sun bed itself, before fading out and returning to its natural light.
Here I placed the camera on the floor next to the cats food and captured footage which is eye level with cat itself.
Induction Task
How and why lighting affects camera techniques for moving image?
In the book 'Motion Picture and Video Lighting' there is a section which talks about the mood and tone of images and moving picture. It mentions that lighting and camera techniques are used for specifics, the example used in the book is that the lighting and camera techniques are used in fashion shows in order to make the model look incredible.
Lighting is also very important in order to add shape depth and dimension to a scene, it is important as to where the lighting is coming from as this helps to build the overall depth of the shot itself. This is shown in the book 'Motion Picture and Video Lighting' it say's "Lighting from the side or back reveals the shape of an object" followed by "This is important for the overall depth of the shot". Lighting is important as it can shape the mood of a scene, for example low key lighting can help to ensure the scene is mysterious or scary e.g. horror films often use low key lighting.
Separation ensure the subject stands out from its background a range of lighting techniques such as "backlight" and making the area behind the subject "significantly darker or brighter than the subject". These are all ways in which lighting has a significant effect on moving image.
Info comes from book 'Motion Picture and Video'
Info comes from book 'Motion Picture and Video'
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