Video & Sound Production / Exercises

29/08/2022 - 21/11/2022 / Week 1 - Week 13
Anna Ong Su Kuan / 0353775
Video & Sound Production / Bachelor of Creative Media / Taylor's University
Exercises

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CONTEXTS

- Instructions
- Feedback
- Reflections

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LECTURES

Week 1

We were briefed about what the module consist of, as well as experiencing what a production process would be like. We will be learning & practicing what is pre-production, production & post production.

Week 2

Film Sound

Sound Elements
- the mixing of sound elements (speech, sound effects, music) creates an audio setting that supports the action & engages the spectators

Speech 
- dialogue (convos between characters in movies), voice over (voice of an unseen narrator speaking)
Sound Effects
- ambience (background noise present at a given scene/location), hard/"cut" effects (every sound present in movies that isn't dialogue/music)
Music
- is to enhance the dramatic narrative & the emotional impact

Dubbing / Automated Dialog Replacement (ADR)
- process of re-recording dialogue after the filming process  to improve audio quality/reflect dialogue changes

Foley
- a sound effects technique for synchronous effects/live effects

Framing & Storyboard

Cinematography
- motion picture/film/video
- shot is continuous view shot by one camera without interruption
- sequence is a series of scenes, /shots, complete in itself
- scene (may consist of series of shots/sequences depicting a continuous event) defines the place/setting where the action is laid

Shot Size
- extreme wide shot
- wide shot
- medium wide shot
- medium shot
- medium close-up shot
- close-up shot
- extreme close-up shot

Week 3

Storytelling in Film

Plot Segmentation
- a scene-by-scene outline of the entire film

Story Structure (3 Act Structure)

"Plot Point 1" - the plot thickens
- turn the story in a new direction
- sets up what Act Two is going to be 
- presents the possibility of a different outcome

"Plot Point 2" - the longest mile
- the "climatic turning point"
- possible solution is presented
- protagonist's quest reaches critical mass

Beginning - setup/introduction of a story
- to introduce the world, main characters
- leads to an incident that complicates the story (plot point 1)

Middle - confrontation of a problem
- to develop obstacles / complications
- leads to climax of the story (plot point 2)

End - resolution of problems
- ending of climax

Week 4

Mise En Scene (means "putting on stage" in French) 

- what we see onscreen (visuals, meaning, elements that appear on camera & arrangement)

Composition
- the deliberate selection of frames & camera angles that make up a shot

Set Design
- everything the audience sees within a particular scene; helps build out the world of the location & add even more context to the story

Lighting
- often the tool that conveys mood most clearly
- high key lighting; often used in musicals & romantic comedies (to minimize shadows)
- low-key lighting; used in horror movies

Costume & Props
- one of the most powerful tools in communicating a character's thoughts & journey
- props is an object with a function serves to drive the narrative/become a motif to underscore the themes of the film

Depth of Space
- determined by the distances between objects, people & scenery; influenced by their placement along with camera location & lens choice

Week 5

Video & Sound Production

- invented by
- functionality
- apply in film
- well accepted

Purpose of Storyboard
- show important action
- continuity/editing point
- shot composition
- indicated camera angle/movement
- map out the scene

Animatic
- series of images played in sequence, often with a soundtrack 

Advantage of Animatic
- timing of every shot
- rhythm of the scene
- audio & music added

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INSTRUCTIONS



Editing Exercises

Fig 1.1, Screenshot, Week 1 (29/08/2022)

We were guided by Mr Martin, on how to combine multiple clips together to create a short film using Adobe Premiere Pro.





Video 1 was given to us in the right order, but we learnt how to combine multiple clips together throughout the process.
Video 2's clips was given to us in a mix order, so we learnt how to identify which clips should be in what order in order to create the original short video.

3 Act Structure Exercise

Guang (2011)

Act 1
- Wen Guang who is an austic young man, is cared for by his younger brother called Didi after the death of their mother when they were just kids
- Guang goes for an interview at a flower shop to get a job, as his brother has asked him to get one
- however, he was unsuccessful to get the job which made Didi annoyed
- one day, Guang meets a young lady called Sue Ann at a piano store who wanted to sell her piano 
- Guang & Sue Ann became friends later at the bus stop
- Guang starts collecting glasses from multiple places, such as markets & trash bins
- He meets Sue Ann at a stall & explains to her that he is finding glasses in specific lengths, he is currently only missing 2 more

Act 2
- it is revealed that Guang has stolen an expensive bowl which he found in a dumpster truck, which the police then came & asked for him to return it
- Didi loses his temper and slams Guang against the TV, Didi then throws Guang glasses outside 
- Guang goes missing after he gave his statement at the station, which causes Didi to panic and he tries to find Guang
- Didi meets Sue Ann at the bus stop, who then informs him about Guang's intention with the glasses
- Didi flashbacks to when he & Guang were kids as he fails to locate the whereabouts of Guang

Act 3
- one day, Didi goes home to find Guang asking for the suction used to clean fish tanks
- Guang starts to make music inside his room using water on the machine he made using glasses he has collected, which is heard by Didi from the outside
- the song that Guang plays, was the song that he couldn't perform for his mother when they were young which made Didi finally understand why he was collecting the glasses
- Guang eventually became a piano tuner by using his pitch

Lalin (2011)

Act 1
- Lalin is first introduced, she is known to be a very popular Thai Net Idol in Japan
- it shows the sad backstory of her past & how she used to get bullied
- she's always wearing a mask, even at home
- at a new year's party in her 12th grade, she decides to go to Japan for her studies
- she felt safer & more comfortable knowing wearing a mask feels normal, & she can start her new life/chapter
- she then created a social media account to start her new profile
- that's when a journalist contacted her for help, he needs someone to translate his comic
- Lalin saw his profile picture & starts to develop feelings for him
- they both started to text more, & got to know each other more
- the boy comes to Sapporo to surprise Lalin, as she wasn't expecting to reveal her bare face to him
- Lalin has a difficult time on deciding if she was ready to show her face to him, but ends up not doing so
- the boy ends up leaving the comic on the table & left

Act 2
- the boy ends up being a person who she has met in the past
- he has been working hard to change his appearance so that he's able to be a better version of himself, so that he can be with Lalin
- when she finds out the truth behind the comic, she instantly runs out of the cafe trying to find him

Act 3
- Lalin however was too late, and was not able to catch up with him before he left

Storyboarding Exercise

In this exercise, we were tasked to identify the different shot frames & create a storyboard in google docs.

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REFLECTIONS

Experience
Week 1 : I've never used Adobe Premiere Pro to create a short video using multiple clips, so it was quite difficult at the start to understand how the software works.
Week 5 : We were given exercises to learn how to create a storyboard , as well as identifying the different frame shots.

Observations
Week 1 : Adobe Premiere Pro seems quite complicated with a lot of features & functions, which can be intimidating for new users like me to use.
Week 5 : This exercise was relatively easy although it was quite time consuming, although it's a nice way to recall the different shot frames.

Findings
Week 1 : Being able to ask the lecturer for help at any time throughout the class was really helpful, as I learnt how to use the software better & became less intimidated by using it.
Week 5 : Having done the previous exercises & tasks, it helped me to develop & improve my identification skills.