BLK - Principles of continuity

What is continuity? Continuity is the effect created when various shots are linked together in such a way that the scene flows properly and makes sense. To create continuity, directors must use various techniques and shot types.

Camera

To ensure that the audience understands what the setting is, where everything in the scene is and give them a sense of spatial awareness, the director usually uses an establishing long shot, also called a WIDE SHOT. This allows the audience to see the setting.

CLOSE UPS provide a means of conveying strong emotion, to put the audience in the action or to focus on something important.

MID SHOTS are normally used to link other shots together, or for dialogue and action.

LONG SHOTS, besides being used as establishing shots, show large scale action or distance the audience.

MOVEMENT of the camera creates an illusion of physical movement. Tracking moves the audience, zooming forces focus onto the subject, panning/crabbing/arcing allows us to survey the scene around the subject, or tilting, which creates perspective.

Editing

Although all shots will have been planned out on a storyboard before hand, editing is where the majority of the continuity is created. The ability to move, cut and position shots according to the storyboard all help to create the continuity, as we are able to place a shot exactly where we want it.

A few continuity editing techniques:

The 180 RULE is used to prevent a confusing jump in space. For example, a two shot. If the first shot is on the left of one person, the camera must be on the right of the other to prevent confusion.

SHOT ORDER is used to ensure that the audience is taken through the narrative progressively instead of all at once, e.g LS->MS->CU instead of LS->CU. Helps to prevent confusion.

A MATCH ON ACTION ensures that action from the previous shot is correctly followed through on the second shot, i.e a shot of a man walking down a corridor must be matched by the second by starting from the same place the first one ended. This shows that no time has occurred between this shot and the last.

CROSS CUTTING is when one places two shots together that are in different places in space (in relation to the narrative). The audience assumes that these events are playing simultaneously. An example is in chase scenes.

Transitions

Transitions are what link your shots and thus, what your audience perceives to be the narrative flow. Transitions can do anything from controlling the speed of your narrative to creating tension and a sense of urgency.

CUTS are your basic transition, seamlessly moving from one shot to the next. They create a pace and rhythm.

DISSOLVES (merging one shot with another) are usually used to provide a slow, relaxed link. This slows the action right down, which can give the sense of a forward movement in time or a link between two scenes.

FADING (in and out from black) is normally used to signify that a great deal of time has passed since the last shot.

A basic opening

ESTABLISHING SHOT (character one introduced in a wide shot)
CLOSE UP (character one performs action)
MATCH ON ACTION
REACTION (performed by character two, makes audience believe that characters are in same place)
LONG SHOT (shows characters' relative positioning in the setting)

The "Accident" practical

In today's lesson (29/9/10), we were given the task of creating an accident scene (relatively minor, nothing like a car crash). The kicker is that we had only 6 shots and no editing software, meaning we had to plan out all the cuts beforehand to ensure that our narrative flow was perceived correctly. Our filming went off mostly without a hitch and the end results was more than satisfactory. Although we hadn't drawn up our shot sequence onto a storyboard, we had a basic idea of the shots we would need, with much discussion on scene.

However, one issue we found with our sequence was that our second shot, which was a close up of our actor's shoelaces being undone, did not match the previous action as closely as it could have. Since the camera couldn't capture the undone state of shoelace if he was walking as fast as he was the previous shot, he had to slow down, which caused the slight disturbance in the action. Our shot order was also slightly jarring, as some of our shots jumped between close up and long shot, which also could have lead to audience confusion, though thankfully our narrative was easy enough to understand. In the future, I shall make sure that any match on action is correctly adjusted before shooting and also check the shot order to prevent any chance of audience confusion.

Indie - A few storyboarding websites

Notes and advice
How to draw storyboards - Sort of recaps what we have in the folder, but gives a few tips that might be helpful.

Animation Meat – Animation and storyboarding notes from Spumco, The Simpsons, Brad Bird and more.
Character Design -  Interviews and designs from leading animation artists.
DC Cartoon Archive – A collection of storyboards and model sheets from the animated Batman.
Disney model sheets – Model sheets, concept art and storyboards at the Unofficial Disney Archive.
Don Bluth’s Animation Academy – Notes on storyboarding and the animation process.
Freelance advice -  Advice for building a career as a freelance artist, by Dave Roman (US).
Idea Generation – Interesting guide to idea generation for illustration by Jillian Tamaki – great NY based illustrator.
Karen J Lloyd’s Storyboard Blog – Storyboarding tips, advice and free downloads.
Storyboards: What it Takes – Informative series of articles by Larry Latham, based upon a course he taught at Disney.
Wally Wood’s ’22 panels that always work’
 
Interviews and Podcasts
Animation Podcast – Interviews with some of animation’s greatest talent by Disney animator, Clay Kaytis.
Interview with Pixar Story Animator Jeff Pidgeon – Story Animator on A Bug’s Life, Toy Story and Monster’s Inc.
Splinecast – Podcast interviews with artists and directors working in feature animation (including Brad Bird).

Film & animation resources (UK):
4RFV – UK Film & television directory
Skillset – Animation training and education; careers advice and industry information
Shooting People – Independent filmmaking network

Artists and blogs:
http://www.thestoryboardartist.com/ – Josh Sheppard’s great storyboard site
http://sevencamels.blogspot.com/ – Storyboarding and drawing blog by Mark Kennedy
http://www.drawn.ca/ – Blog devoted to illustration, cartooning and drawing
Storyboard Central – Great advertising comp and storyboarding blog

BLK - P is for Psycho

What's happening in the opening sequence?

A young white male is standing over a sink in what appears to be a school bathroom. We tilt up his body, so that he looks superior due to the low angle shot. There is an assortment of items next to him, including a watch and a photo of another white male, who is younger than this one. These items are shown to the audience for a long time, so that they remember them, as they are obviously significant. The male is bandaging up a bleeding wound, which has bled into the sink, spiralling down the drain, which leads to the audience wondering what caused the bleeding. The door then opens leading to a white male, unrelated to the picture, entering the bathroom. The bandaged man tucks a gun into his belt, and then we are presented with an extreme close up of the man's eyes, which are lit from underneath so that he looks sinister and evil. We now know that this man is definitely the bad guy, and the scene fades to black, the silence shortly followed by two gun shots.


How is the narrative flow established?

The opening sequence progresses fairly fast, as it contains several shots that are simply cut to each other and there aren't any extended sequences. However, we don't get much information from the opening sequence, only the fact that the first character we see is the bad guy, and he kills people. The opening sequence is dedicated to showing this, so the information given to us is limited.

If I were directing this scene, what would I change?

I would move shot 4 to after shot 6, so there's a sort of montage effect of him bandaging his hand and the items being displayed. In addition, I would move shot 10 to after shot 7, because it doesn't make sense for the guy to put the gun in his belt, only to pull it out again a few seconds after. I would also move 8 to after 9. This means that the man turns his head in reaction to the boy appearing, rather than the sound of the opening door. Thus, when the man turns his head, the phrase "Bad move, kid," makes more sense, as he's said it right after the boy enters.

BLK - Reasons to use a storyboard

Why is a storyboard an essential part of the film making process?

-Acts as an outline for the film
-Allows you to visualise the script/screenplay
-Allows you to decide on the shot sequence, lighting directions, camera directions and the movement of actors
-Illustrates how the narrative progresses
-Makes it easy to understand how a scene plays out
-Easy to create a "flow" of images
-Can discuss the "look" of the film before filming even starts
-Each specific shot can be carefully modified and adjusted
-Allows actors to give a more convincing performance if they know how the scene plays out
-Can be given to each technician so everyone knows how what their role is and where everything goes
-Acts as a visual reminder of what order the film progresses in in post-production
-Film editors have to use this so they know where each effect goes and when
-Allows directors to try out different shot types and the effects they have on the audience
-Ensures that everyone has something to work with

DYM - Analysis of a film opening

(to 8:07)

Blue text on black background: "A long time ago, in a galaxy far far away." Then the main theme and title appear on the screen, a linked gold font that crawls off into space via the vanishing zone. Subsequent text is in a sans serif font that crawls across the screen for about a minute and a half. The main theme is dramatic and inspiring, a true testament to the space opera genre. The text gives a bit of context of the film, such as the events just prior to the beginning of the film. The text then disappears and the camera pans down to an extreme long shot of 3 planets, 2 in the background and a large curved horizon with a blue aura. The music at this point gets more and more tense before a deep timpani crash signals the arrival of a grey spaceship, flying towards the planet and firing lasers towards something behind them, which shows that they're on the run.

The music continues to build tension until a gigantic ship flies past the camera, with it's diamond shape taking up the majority of the top half of the screen. 3 engines emitting a blue light power the ship, the blue suggesting a futuristic setting, which amplifies the effect given already by the spaceships. The camera then cuts around to the smaller ship's POV, revealing the pursuit ship. The smaller ship flies offscreen left while they continue to trade shots. At this point, the audience has no idea who is the good guy or bad guy, as neither ship show any obvious signifiers and the lasers are green (the pursuit ship) and red (the escape ship). Red is usually associated with violence and bad guys, so at this point, the audience may believe that the larger ship is good.

Then the camera cuts to a shot of a laser hitting the smaller ship, resulting in a small explosion. It then cuts to the inside of the smaller ship, where 3 droids, a silver and gold humanoid droid and a smaller, inverted bin-like droid, are shaken by the explosion. The gold droid looks behind him, when the camera cuts to a group of soldiers holding guns running down a corridor. The scene cuts back to the droids and they are rocked by another explosion. The golden droid remarks that their main reactor has been shut down. He points out that they'll be destroyed. The little droid replies with whistles and beeps. Soldiers continue to run past them in the opposite direction. The camera then cuts to the soldiers, who set up along a corridor watching a white door.

Switching to the droids again, the golden droid remarks that the Princess will not be able to escape this time. There is a loud clang above them and the golden droid snaps his head up, wondering what the noise is. The camera snaps to the soldiers, who are looking up as the clangs continue. The noise is revealed to have been caused by the ship being tractored into the larger ship. The door is then blasted open and the soldiers are killed in quick succession as white armoured soldiers enter the corridor. The remaining soldiers (the original ones) quickly retreat as the two droids walk across the battlefield.

From the opened door, a giant black armoured man in a helmet enters the ship. At a great contrast to his white surroundings, everything about the man is opposite to the ship, which suggests that he's the bad guy of the film. In addition, his arrival is announced by a dark trumpet trill. His breathing is eerie and mechanical and he surveys the dead before walking off down the corridor with a troupe of white soldiers behind him.

The scene is now on the droids once again. The little droid is with a woman dressed in white (contrasting the black armoured man), which implies that she is the heroine. She is inserting some sort of chip into the little droid, as the golden droid enters the dark corridor they are in. The golden droid complains again, before following the little droid down a little hall. From these constant complaints, we see that the golden droid is annoying, however, he provides some comic relief as well. The woman in white takes her hood off and disappears behind a wall.

The remaining rebels have now been gathered up and are being brought to a central atrium. The black man from before is seen holding one of the rebels up by the neck. We now see his towering height and are certain that he is the bad guy, as he is employing a violent method of extracting information. After trying to get information as to the whereabouts of the Death Star plans (and failing), the black man murders the man by crushing his larynx and throws him against a bulkhead.

In the same room as the droids from before, a patrol of white soldiers is searching the room. The woman peers out from behind a corner with a pistol. She kills one and then is stunned by another. The camera then cuts to the droids again. The golden one is arguing with the little one about his actions, mentioning a secret mission and plans. An explosion behind the golden one stops any arguments and he enters the escape pod, which ejects down towards the planet. The operators of the large ship choose not to shoot it down, as they detect no lifesigns on board. The planet is then revealed to be red and yellow, a desert planet.

We then see that the woman is being escorted towards some place or other when the black man appears out of a side room. We then learn that his name is Darth Vader. We find out that there is a Rebellion against the Imperial Empire, and that the Princess is his only link to the rebel spies. A brief discussion with the commander has Vader learn about the jettisoned pod. He tells the commander to sent a detachment down to retrieve it. The huge spaceship then flies off.

BLK - Reflections on my best photograph

A dark, poignant scene illuminated by a thin slit of moonlight. A fresh rose held loosely in the clutches of a cold, lifeless hand. A lover, dead at the doorstep of his beloved. Someone was murdered here, and it's our job to find out who did it.

In this photo, I've used a high angle close up, focused on the rose and the hand that held it. The surroundings are very dark, the room was completely blacked out save for the little stream of light. The rose suggests that the limp hand belongs to someone who was going to meet his girlfriend when he was killed, while the dark surroundings could connote an alleyway, or night time. These both represent the crime/detective genre as they both exclude mystery and create suspense. As a film still, we can't see the face of the victim, so we don't know who he is, or what kind of person he was, but the rose seems to imply that he was a faithful lover who cared about his girlfriend. The darkness excludes a sinister aura and the audience may be afraid of the unknowns, such as the killer and the setting.

I accomplished the effect by having my model lie down on the carpet and relax his hand, while I placed the rose in his hand so that it would look like a natural position for it to be when he 'collapsed' onto the ground. I used just a thin slit of light from the pack light, which was held low to cast a shadow from the rose across the hand and to illuminate the hand and give the illusion of night, or a back alley. I set the camera to macro and turned off the flash to make it as dark as possible.

I think that the successful things in my shot are that the model really looks dead and that the rose was placed right, so that the shot worked. The darkness really helps to give the impression that the victim was isolated and alone. The rose is in focus, so you can tell that it's the main focal point of the photo. These things all add up and the photo excludes a tangible aura of mystery and murder.

However, it's not perfect. Preferably, I'd have had the photo done on a gravel ground instead of carpet, maybe at a different angle, or showing more of the victim. I might add a few more props, for example, a ring maybe. Overall, though, I'm very pleased with this photo.