TRANSITIONS BLOG POST: EVALUATION

Evaluation

At the beginning of this unit, I was very excited to finally focus purely on the job role DoP/Cinematographer and to learn about how to get into the industry. However, due to certain events that no one saw coming this unit became a real pain as the side of production, which I love was lost. I enjoyed researching into my chosen role, but I felt like I lost an opportunity to really make something and to really test my abilities with a camera. On the other hand, without these circumstances, I probably would not have put as much time and thought into the explore and research side of this unit so for that, I am grateful as I feel I have really learnt new skills and ideas about my job role (which I will go into more detail).

EXPLORE:

The explore aspect to this unit I found really useful and interesting this is because I finally sat down and started to really get to understand my job role. I knew what my job role is, but I found out new jobs that I did not know at first, little jobs which I thought would have been someone else job. I knew that the DoP was the head of the camera department, but I did not realise that they were also the head of the lighting department, with this it gave me a new sense of direction that I needed to follow to produce good lighting for this production. I researched more into lighting on the research side of this unit. 

I looked into basic information that I would need to know and understand before filming, which I knew that the DoP was meant to know like Composition and framing, exposure, lens and filters, camera movements, and going over rushes once the shoot has finished. I already knew what all of these basic skills and information were due to the fact that I have focused on the camera for most of my units to try and get the best possible outcome for any production I work on. I then wanted to focus more on specific skills that a DoP would need if they wanted to be known and they were:

1. Photography 
2. Technical knowledge of cameras 
3. Editing knowledge
4. Organisation 
5. Communication

Exploring these skills really helped me when it came to pre-production especially communication as it was my job to help get the directors vision to life, so I worked very closely with Ethan and we discussed a lot on how we want the show to look and that's when we took inspiration from shows like Top Boy.

However, not everything in the explore section was easy to find especially the section of 'First steps in the industry' I found this challenging as when I tried to do research on this topic it was all subjective meaning that it was different for everyone. I learnt that there is no right way to getting into the industry, the only real way is by just putting yourself out there and trying everything. Build up networking by using apps like Linkedin and by showing initiative by applying to film festivals. Personally, for me I enjoy shadowing others and learning from them I have done this many times by applying for film companies like Film Suffolk, which gives anyone a chance to prove themselves.

Overall I feel like the explore section really benefitted me into understanding what my job role is and the skills that I will need to master to get noticed in the job role. 

RESEARCH:

The research I always struggle with as I never know where to start, however, with this unit as I knew my research needed to be specific for my role it made the process a lot easier. Before conducting my research I discussed with the producer and director about what the show actually is about this is when our producer sent over the treatment of the show. With this I then knew what the show was about, she also sent over a script for us to read. With these being given to us it made the research a lot easier as now I had a good idea and vision on how I wanted the production to look like. I also spoke to Ethan as he was the director because at the end of the day it's all about what he wants it to look like, my job is to fit his needs.

Firstly, after some thoughts and discussions, Ethan and I decided that the show would be best as a Netflix Orignal, meaning we would have more creativity with the show. For this, I Knew that it would be vital to get a Netflix approved camera, so I looked into 3 different cameras, ARRI Alexa LF, Black magic URSA Mini 4.6K, and the RED WEAPON VV8K. Due to COVID-19, I knew that we would never actually get to make anything so I decided to look at these as I wanted to imagine that we had an unlimited budget for this production and this would be the camera I would use if that was the case. Doing research into camera gave me another insight into how other cinematographers think whilst in pre-production. I immediately liked the features of the ARRI Alexa LF and with the comments made by a DoP from Top Boy (a show I thought to be similar to Brotherlidge) and she really persuaded me that this should be the camera uses for our production. I definitely want to use this camera in future production as it's very praised among the industry. However, due to budget reasons so we had to decide to use the Sony A7 iii, which can be supplied at University.

Once I knew the camera that I wanted to use I needed to know how to get it and at a reasonable price due to our production being low budget. So I decided to find some reliable renting websites to see what one would be cheapest to acquire. I knew from the budget breakdown (which our producer made) that I had £12,000, but that was not just for me as there are other departments that needed to use that money as well, so I had to take this into consideration. After doing this I found two websites, which were DV Camera Hire and Fat Llama. Both websites were very easy to use and I found the majority of the equipment that we needed, however, on DV Camera Hire I struggled to find lenses, which was a big must as we can't film with one lens. Also with this website the prices came up to £1045, which is reasonably cheap. On the other hand, Fat Llama was really good and cheap I managed to find every piece of equipment that we needed and for only £656, with it being that low we could then use the budget for something else which could really help boost the production value of the show.

I then went into looking at colour grading as this was going to be the main part of the pre-production that I would be involved with. I knew that I had a vision that when the brothers are outside I wanted to give the impression that they are always on edge as they are working for a gang boss so it would give a sense of unease. Then when the actors are inside I want to make the audience think that they are safe so I would give it a warmer atmosphere. Moving on from colour grading I then wanted to research into different lighting techniques as I knew that this would be a major part of my job. There were two techniques that I really wanted to use throughout this unit and that was practical lighting and natural lighting. Both techniques can be used together to light the scene and when talking with our Director he liked the idea of using these two techniques.

Overall, I believe the research that I conducted throughout was sufficient for our production I made sure that everything I looked into was relevant for me and was useful. However, I do believe that if I weren't in lockdown that the research I have done might not have been the same, but due to the situation we are all in I decided to really go into depth in different techniques and cameras. Doing this gave me a new way of looking at production as normally I would just use the basic camera university would give us, but now I have really looked into what camera would look the best for our production rather than just using the basic camera.

MAKING:

The making element of this unit was a big shame really due to COVID-19 I was really looking forward to having the opportunity to make this show. Unfortunately, this was not the case so for the making anything I did what any DoP would have to make for any production. Firstly, I made some mood boards for the purpose of looking at similar shows/films I did this so it gave me and the others in my group an idea of what I wanted the show to look like. Also with words from my director he made it clear he wanted it to look similar to Top Boy. The first two mood boards I made were specific around lighting and how I wanted the scenes to be lit. So I looked into Top Boy and the film Four Brothers and as you can see in that blog the lighting in both shows were very practical, which is what I wanted and then links to the research I did. The third and fourth mood board I did were both specific on-camera techniques and movements which were handheld and cinematic. As I spoke closely with Ethan we both agreed we wanted the shoot to be very cinematic, but to use handheld as well to help get the gritty-ness of their environment. Doing this gave me a sense of how other shows done it too, however, they all do it for a purpose so we can't go crazy with these two movements they need to be done at the right time to get the right emotion for the audience. I also worked closely with Ethan to make a shot list, which was interesting because normally during production I would be working alone so having another opinion when crafting what shots would go well with the script. Thankfully Ethan broke down the script into eighths which made it easier to decide what shots we should have during the short section of the script we were planning on shooting.

I then decided to further my research on colour grading by doing a few grades on some photos I took. I wanted to display how I wanted the shots to look for the production. For the inside dinner scene, I wanted it to look warmer as I wanted the audience to feel safe inside the mother's house, however, I felt like the colour correction could have more work done to it, but due to not having the university advantage my laptop was struggling to run Premiere Pro and it kept crashing, which did not help. The other photo I graded was of my Dad sitting in our garden I'm wanted to show through the photo how I want the grading to look outside. I was really pleased with the outcome of these photos as was Ethan. Overall I believe that the grading was good, but if I had the right facilities and a computer that did not keep crashing I would have created a better grading, but I am proud with the outcome considering the circumstances.

WORKING IN A GROUP:

Throughout this unit, I was really looking forward to working in a group as I enjoyed the process last year when doing our documentary unit. The reason for this is because it really feels like I'm working for an employer. Unfortunately, due to the situation, we are currently facing I could not work as closely with the group as I originally wanted to. I tried to keep in contact with our producer by asking her questions whenever I felt confused or needed to know information regarding the show. She was really helpful and I know she had a lot going on as she had to look after her children whilst completing this unit so I have a lot of respect on why she was busy some days. Luckily, if she was busy Ethan (the director) was always there to talk to. Throughout this unit I had the best relationship with our director as it was my job to film his vision of the show, this is why it was important to work closely with him. Overall, I believe our group worked really well with each other and someone was always free to talk to even though we were all spread out across the country in lockdown. I have learnt a lot from this group especially with being very organised and having everything done in a professional manner.

CONCLUSION:

To summerise this unit I can say it was not a complete disaster, with everything that is going on in the world. I really was worried about going into this unit due to the fact I had to do everything at home and without the resources, I would be able to get to University. I feel like if I was at university then I would have had a better chance of making something a lot better in quality. As a perfectionist for getting the best quality shot, I was always thinking that the work I was doing was just not up to the best quality, but I had to deal with this due to the situation. Although we had this unforeseen circumstance I still tried my best and have definitely learnt new attribute for my specific job role, which I will use for upcoming productions and I will definitely be using them for the third year.