Filming tomorrow!

Wednesday, March 29, 2017

This little late night post just includes a couple updates. Since I've been figuring out many different details of my production, I haven't been able to film just yet. But tomorrow I'm finally ready to start! To fully prepare, I built a better green screen today out of green poster-board and duck tape and sketched a more specific storyboard: 


Hopefully everything will run smoothly tomorrow, I'll post again tomorrow night describing the process and the results!

xx Maria



Green screen?

Monday, March 27, 2017

Helloooo once again everyone! I literally posted like an hour ago regarding my 'Sample Film' and kinda left you guys hanging... but i couldn't wait to post about the solution I talked about for my film's coloration issue!

So today I spoke with my teacher regarding what possible solutions my coloration issue had:

  1. I could just film and then slightly color correct it with the limited features available to me on iMovie, OR
  2. GREEN SCREEN! This idea is brilliant and solves my coloration problem altogether. If I film my subject and my background separately, it will be MUCH easier to color correct each according to my preference. However, I'm scared that the Green Screen may be too much of a hassle, since I have to double film everything and really capture each shot accordingly to the other. I tried doing a sample of my sister to see just how it works on iMovie, and it actually worked out pretty well! 

Since there was a really intense shadow of her body on the green screen, her left side is a bit fuzzy. But I think if I improve the lighting and really coordinate each shot to the background, I can make it look really cool.

Oh and also, maybe make it look a little more professional....sorta


xx Maria


Sample Film

Monday, March 27, 2017

So on Thursday I decided to go to Lowes and try to create a sample film. This is a really rough draft of my final product but it's basically an overview of how I want my shots/angles. I  wasn't able to include many scenes I want to incorporate into my actual film, and only filmed about 55 seconds. 

 The sample is basically a compialation of clips from that day, with no editing at all. I did TRY to play around with some editing techniques (especially with color correction) and encountered a couple problems. 

First off, here's the video: 



Soooo I tried editing the video to adjust the coloration only in the background, but iMovie doesn't allow you to only color correct certain areas of the clip. This is an issue because I don't really want the colors of my main subject to change as drastically as the background (by the way, this isn't my real actor). I want to be able to change the background colors and adjust the colors of my main subject without doing both at once... I might've found a solution to my problem, but I won't be sure until I try it. 

Check out my next post for the inside scoop ;) 

xx Maria

SWATCH

Monday, March 27, 2017

So I just finished up making/buying all of the props that I'll be working with throughout my production. Here they are: 


These are the tangible credits for my film! As you can see, the 'music by' paint swatch is still pending (since I'm not sure what music I'll be using yet). Also, the 'directed by' swatch is repeated , because I'm not sure which color I'll end up using. I don't think I'll include all of these, only three or four. 

I also decided to make the title a tangible object, which I printed onto a paint can. The worker will pull down the paint onto the counter, and there will be a close up shot of the can displaying the name. I also used the same Futura font that I used in the credits, and I will probably use it again in the poster I plan to make for the film. 
Today I also put together what Daniel will wear in the film. As I said before, I wanted my main character clothing all of the same color. I recently decided I want him to wear all yellow, since it matches the bicycle he rides and I like what the color represents (imagination, knowledge, dishonesty, etc.). Turns out it's nearly impossible to find yellow pants... I did however find a mustard-y yellow shirt which I think will be worn with black jeans and black shoes, along with yellow socks. Also, I bought the ski mask he will be wearing in one of the scenes. 


It was also really hard to find high yellow socks at a store (since I don't have time to order online), so i decided to improvise: 



Yea so basically I had to tie-dye some old white socks in order to complete Daniel's outfit. I'll post pictures of the full outfit when the socks are rinsed and ready! 

xx Maria

Filming Details

Sunday, March 26, 2017

In my media class the other day I was freaking out because I didn't know how to mount my camera for my film production. + my teacher had already lent out her tripods to other students.... However, I had to stay in school to meet with my art club officer board, and a gift was sent to me from the heavens. As I went into the closet to grab some wire we needed for a project, I spotted 5/6 tripods on the top shelf. My eyes lit up and I asked my sponsor if I could borrow it for the weekend! Thankfully, she agreed and even taught me about all the features it includes.

The tripod is perfect for all the my shots that only require panning and tilting rather than moving the camera itself. However, when I do plan to move the camera around, I'm going to attach the tripod to a rolling chair. 

Also, GREAT NEWS! I was finally granted permission to film at Lowes, which is a nice setting for my production. I went ahead and did a sort of sample film, a kind of rough-draft for it. However, there are still some MAJOR details I need to work out. 

  • I went  ahead and grabbed some color samples to print the titles onto... Need the titles in order to film. I'm thinking about making the font Futura, as it is one Wes Anderson includes in the credits of almost all of his films. This article further explains his choice amongst many others. 
  • I need a Tangible object for my movie title to be shown... By the way, I don't think I fully mentioned what I want the title to be, but I think I want it to be "SWATCH" (for paint swatch, of course). Anyway, I want the name to appear on a paint can and it to be emphasized when the paint can is placed down onto the counter. 
  • Clothing! As I said before, I want my main character to be dressed from head-to-toe in the same color. On the previous 'Lowes!' post I analyzed some color psychology to help me with my choice. I think I want either yellow or orange, as they can emphasize youthfulness, humor, vibrancy, knowledge, imagination, etc. (click here for the Lowes blog post) 
  • Besides my homemade rolling chair camera mount, I also need to bring another large item with me: the trademark yellow bike. My main character will arrive to the paint store in this bike, and since it is yellow it also represents similar elements to the clothing. 

The paint swatches I took from Lowes to print the titles onto.

The beautiful tripod!

 xx Maria








Lowes!

Wednesday, March 22, 2017

I went to Lowes today (again) to check if the manager would let me film in their store. I actually like the setting so much more than Home Depot, especially since there's less people, it has a cooler color scheme, and the decoration is more simplistic. I was told to come back tomorrow since the store manager wasn't there, so HOPEFULLY by then I will receive good news. I also took some sample pictures and edited them:




Here I have some of the warm colors shown in the paint section. I want the color of my main actor's clothing to all be the same, but have a deeper meaning behind it. Here are what some warm colors represent:
  • Red: anger, passion, rage, desire, excitement, energy, speed, strength, power, heat, love, aggression, danger, fire, blood, war, violence 
  • Pink: love, innocence, healthy, happy, content, romantic, charming, playfulness, soft, delicate, feminine
  • Orange: humor, energy, balance, warmth, enthusiasm, vibrant, expansive, flamboyant
  • Yellow: wisdom, knowledge, relaxation, joy, happiness, optimism, idealism, imagination, hope, sunshine, summer, dishonesty, cowardice, betrayal, jealousy, covetousness, deceit, illness, hazard 


On the other side, here are some of the cool colors they have. Here are what some of them represent:
  • Blue: faith, spirituality, contentment, loyalty, fulfillment peace, tranquility, calm, stability, harmony, unity, trust, truth, confidence, conservatism, security, cleanliness, order, sky, water, cold, technology, depression
  • Green: healing, soothing, perseverance, tenacity, self-awareness, proud, unchanging nature, environment, healthy, good luck, renewal, youth, vigour, spring, generosity, fertility, jealousy, inexperience, envy
  • Purple:  erotic, royalty, nobility, spirituality, ceremony, mysterious, transformation, wisdom, enlightenment, cruelty, arrogance, mourning, power, sensitive, intimacy







  
Above is the wall I would want to use in one of the main scenes of my film. This wall is perfect for what I want: continuous and very colorful (including both warm/cool colors).



This is a sample picture of the specific color palette I would like to maintain throughout each scene. Since the wall includes a variety of colors, it will be hard to narrow down similar hues, but I think I will filter my shots to make them warmer/cooler depending on my preference. 

I'm going to revisit the store tomorrow, and hopefully they will allow me to film my favorite wall!!! 

xx Maria

Citations:

Fusco, J. (2016, June 24). Watch: The Psychology of Color in Film. Retrieved March 26, 2017, from http://nofilmschool.com/2016/06/watch-psychology-color-film

Quick Updates

Wednesday, March 22, 2017

So today I decided to be productive and revisit Sherwin Williams, Home Depot, and Lowes for my filming location. I also sorted thorough my email to see if any of the bands responded to me about using their music.

Two good things happened today:

  1. Heard back from Spirit Ghost! They're allowing me to use their song Youth in a Garden as long as I credit them in the beginning titles and share their Facebook page. Not sure if I'll end up using the song but it's a good start! 
  2. Home Depot is allowing me to film in the store!

However,  I still have a couple of things to worry about:

  1. Sherwin Williams isn't letting me film at their store, but I still have Home Depot just in case.
  2. I haven't heard back from the rest of the bands!!!


I'll keep updating my blog to make sure everything will continue to run semi-smoothly, but for now, that's what's happening! Also, I'm filming this weekend so I'll post more about that soon.

xx Maria 

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