Time(-machine)`s are hard...part 4

Yesterday, I had a meeting with Michelle from the Nottingham Youth Orchestra, we`ve talked about the transitions I`ve done and I`ve got a chance to see the orchestra and the choir at work during a rehearsal (which is supposed to be good in making me feel the importance of my effort, or something along those lines...psssst, it was touching though!). All in all, everyone`s happy and looking forward to the concert on the 27th.

There are a couple of things they`ve suggested I change:

- no music for the transitions

- a couple more transitions, introducing Les Miserables and The Pines of Rome

- look for some pictures for the Planets, Rome and WW2 bits

- produce some fireworks for the 1812 piece (I`m going to use some Particular effects in Adobe AE, nothing fancy so far, I am playing around with the default settings, maybe if I get any wiser in time, I`ll try my luck at something more spectacular)

Having said that, today I`ve been in the studio again, helped by my lovely assistant...I mean, friend...Sam, getting on with the last two transitions. In line with the same theme of our now famous and lovable (yeah, right!) glass-headed traveller, here are the last two transitions:

Also on my to do list for this evening...learning how to create some (hopefully mind-blowing) photomontages, because nobody wants to keep it still and boring....right? 

Time(-machine)`s are hard...part 3

Two more of the lot...

Time(-machine)`s are hard...part 2

An another one of the transitions...

This one is supposed to introduce the audience to the 18th century, with the discovery of the planet Uranus in 1781 by William Herschel. The piece that it introduces is Uranus, from Holst`s Planets. Basic idea, but I think it works well...our curious little clear headed friend meeting the man (i.e.,  Herschel) face to....hand!

Time(-machine)`s are hard...part 1

I should have mentioned this when I had my first meeting with Michelle from the Nottingham Youth Orchestra, but I guess this will have to do now...

For the past few years, the Nottingham Youth Orchestra have given a concert at the end of February. They wanted to spice up the performance a bit, so they started a collaboration with Nottingham Trent Multimedia students. A theme is set each year, and this year it was Time travel/time machine, with each piece in the repertoire, corresponding to a certain time period, from the Roman empire, up to the WW2. Whatever I come up with (pictures, video, animation) will be projected unto a screen between the pieces.

So, here is what I`ve done. I started off with a very basic idea: present vs past. I initially thought of shooting models dressed in their everyday clothes, and then have them transition into costumes representative of each period. I have managed to secure most of the outfits via the Theatre Design`s course collection in Waverley, and arranged to film in a studio. All fine so far, until...surprise!...the human element made its way unto the scene...yes, I was let down by people (shocker!).

But, as it would seem, my muse didn`t abandon me, and thanks to a last minute idea, I managed to do part of the transitions required.

I have completed 4 of the 8 transitions, so at least, I won`t feel really bad about tomorrow`s meeting (which will be the first rehearsal with the orchestra).

Ok, so you might ask...what`s up with the glass head? Well, besides the fact that it looks a tad awesome, I thought I could play around with the idea of it being a spectator (not having a body, he can but be witness to the unfolding of images from the past in front of his/her eyes). And, of course, our perception of history is something strictly confined to the realm of the mind, as we cannot physically interact with it. Enough of the talking, here is one of the transition videos (I`ve only uploaded this to Youtube because it`s the smallest):

 

Bogdan - Day 0

Monday, 16th November...alright people, note that date down in your calendars, for you shall look back upon that day as a turning point in the history of mankind. Yes, we have started rehearsing for our uni project, Bogdan...and yes, we have focused today on the exterior shots, which proved to be an initiation rite into the glorious realm of movie making, under a drape of clouds and rain and generally horrible weather. Thinking back to the editing suite...it just warms me up with memories of coziness and hot chocolate. But back to the real world.

Main thing today, we had to relocate for the legal office exterior shot. Reason: the car park at the previous location proved to be too much of a problem, and also, the general feel of the surrounding area felt unconvincing today. We are still near the DICe building, but have moved to another entrance. We feel that the ramp and the rails can be useful for adding depth to the shot, and also, the tracking shots on the ramp that we`ve tried seem to add dynamism to the scene. Duncan has drawn up a shot list for the location, with 2-3 backup angles in case we are unable to get the desired shots in time on the day. As camera operator, I find the opening shot the most difficult, as it involves a tilt, matched by the coming into the scene of Bogdan, and then a track on a diagonal line across the frame, and ending in a pan to follow the lawyer as she catches up with the main character. It is possible of course, but I really need to work on my pace and coordination.

Umar has also been recording some of the sound effects, mainly ambient sound and some footsteps.

The second location for the day was the tram stop at Hyson Green. We talked about various angles we could shoot from but unfortunately couldn`t try them out, because the weather got really bad and we had to be back in time to hand in the equipment (we`ll need to bring some umbrellas for the day). Nevertheless, it might still be a good thing since we managed to get a rough idea of what we want to do.

After this, we had a meeting trying to think about the props for each scene and we will then see who can provide what. Also, we are still having a bit of trouble with the interior office location. We have been looking at some group work rooms in Boots Library, and I will try to talk to someone at York House reception to see if we can get something.

Picture this...

Since we have agreed to use the tram station at Hyson Green for one of our locations for the Bogdan script, I decided to take a look at the location again and try to think of some interesting camera angles. I know that the results might be very deceiving, as in the absence of a model, I had to add a silhouette for where the character might be placed within the frame, and it is likely that in terms of size the pictures are not really trustworthy. Still, I hope that they will be useful for tomorrow`s practice as a guideline. 

I`ve tried to place the subject near the vanishing points created by different elements within the frame. Also, it might be a good idea to try a shallow focus on some of them.

Thought bubble of the day...part 3

I`ve just found some time to have a read through a book (Terence Wright - The Photography Handbook)  I had for a few weeks now and I`ve come across something interesting already (after 5 pages, I`d say that`s fast!). Just a short entry, as I`m going to have a read through in more detail on the subject this weekend. Basically, it is about photography and the three main aesthetic approaches:

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  realism - concerned with the subject of photography (in other words, who is it that you frame to tell your story)
  
  
  
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  formalism - shifts the focus away from the subject, to the response the overall composition elicits from the viewer (having had a quick look at some works, it is quite clear in some of them that they lack the classic `subject`)
  
  
  
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  expressionism - is looking at what might have determined the taking of the photo in the first place.
  
  
  

Really interesting to consider for the composition of the shots in films as well...Food for thought