Filming: Thanksgiving Break

           Hello again! Thanksgiving break has now come to an end. We are back to our virtual learning today. Even though my group and I did not film this week, we did not let this time go to waste. My group and I have been doing lots of planning for our short film. To start off, we made the decision that we will be using our phones to film. We thought that this would be the easiest and most efficient way. Last year, my group and I used our phones as well. We had a really good outcome with our phones which helped us come to the conclusion on how we would film. We also discussed the very important topic of masks. We will wear our masks at all times except when playing parts in the film. That way, we can stay as safe as possible. 

          With our very few filming locations, this will also help us with out safety. My group and I will not be exposed to many different places. We will also not be coming in contact, or around anyone who is not apart of our short film. We are taking our health, and others very seriously during these hard times. Luckily, due to our limited locations, we will be as safe as possible. I am so excited to start actually filming for our short film. In the past, this has always been really fun and my favorite part. I am not the best actor, so I have always filmed and directed for my group. I’ve always enjoyed this part because I get to see the film come together. I can’t wait for my group and I to get together and start filming to bring our ideas to life! 

Turkey Day!

          Yesterday was Thanksgiving! With the Coronavirus still spreading, we can’t be around large amounts of people. Every year for Thanksgiving, my family and I always get together with everyone. Due to the virus, we couldn’t this year. I only had Thanksgiving dinner with my family that’s in my household. It really sucks that everyone can’t be together for this holiday. Especially since it’s the time of year where you’re supposed to be with your family. However, it is for the best and is very important for everyone’s safety. I have been working a lot, especially this week with no school. I was grateful that my job was closed on Thanksgiving so that I could spend the day with my family.   

          So far, my group and I have not filmed. Over break, my group and I have been spending time with our families. I have also been working everyday so far. With yesterday being Thanksgiving, we didn’t film either. However, my group and I have a good idea of our plan. We decided that we would give ourselves this week to have a break. We figured out how to stay on track by not filming this week. We have a couple days planned for filming coming up. It would be best for us to get as much filming done in one day as possible. That way, we have more time for editing. As well as reviewing it to see if we need to re-film certain parts. We want get our filming done in a timely manner for the safety of ourselves and others. 

Marketing Campaign for Short Film

          It was finally time to start the marking campaign process! To do this, I had to create different social media platforms and create a website to promote my short film. I first started off by creating the website. I went on Wix and it gave me two options. The first was to answer some questions and Wix would create the website for me. The second option was to start off with a blank template and I could create the website from scratch. I decided to go with the first option since I was new to this and never made a website before. I entered the name of our short film and included what I wanted to be on the website. After answering all the questions, the website was created. I then just changed the pictures on the website that related to our short film. 

         Now that I finished setting up the website, I had to make the social media platforms. I started off with twitter, and went to create a new account. I signed up using the email I had previously made. I made a new gmail account so that we could use the same email for all of our accounts related to the short film. That way, everything would be organized and easy to remember. After creating the twitter profile, I headed over to Instagram. I then setup an account here for our film. Next, I created an account for Youtube, and then for Facebook. For Facebook, I had to use my name to sign up or else it wouldn’t work. Once I finished creating all the accounts, I copied the links onto the website so they are accessible through there. 

Storyboard for Short Film

        This week our group worked on our storyboard. Before we started we wanted to decide whether we should meet up in person or do it over FaceTime. Meeting up would’ve made the process easier since we’d all be together and could work on it in one session. However, meeting up would’ve been a hassle so we ultimately decided to talk about it through FaceTime. We all got on FaceTime and first planned how we would approach doing the storyboard. Our group didn’t want one person having to do all of the actual storyboarding so we decided against that. Our final decision was that we would split the storyboard 3 ways so that everyone could do equal work. This was also a efficient way in our eyes. Brooke would do the storyboard for the first two scenes, Kelly would do the third and fourth scenes, and Leo would do the last two scenes. We gave each other creative freedom but made sure it followed our screenplay and it had the necessary criteria. That criteria being the drawings of what’s going on and the description for each box with what type of angle/shot is being used. Once that was made clear we split off and worked at our own pace. We also made it clear that if anyone needed help just to call and we’d be there to help the most we could. Once we finished the storyboard we all sent them to each other and reviewed them. We reviewed them to make sure nothing was missed. This is essentially our guide for when we start filming so it was key that everything was right. Now that we have the storyboard finished we’re one step closer to filming. We now have a vision of how our film will look. The storyboard will help navigate through the process and make sure we’re on the right track. Overall, the storyboard process went pretty smoothly and we think we approached this the best way possible.

Planning for Short Film

• Schedule: 

11/11- storyboard 

11/14- shopping for props and anything else we need for filming 

11/21- filming 

11/28- filming

12/5- editing 

12/12- editing 

12/19- re-shoot

12/27- re-edit

1/3- final touches 

• Location: The locations we are going to film at consists of only two places. The main location will be the main characters house which will be where the majority of the scenes are shot at. We will be filming both inside and outside of the house. The other location we are filming at is the neighbors house. There are a few scenes that we will need to shoot at this location. These scenes will only be on the outside of the house.
• Participants: As of right now we plan on Leo playing the “creepy” neighbor. One of Brooke’s friends will be playing our main character. If something comes up where she can’t anymore then Brooke or Kelly will play the main character. As for the stalker who only shows up in the photo and at the end we’ll have one of Brooke/Kelly play them. 
• Health and Safety: Seeing that we’re still in a pandemic that affects how we’ll make sure we’re safe. Everyone will have a mask on unless they’re acting in a scene. Hand sanitizer will be present incase it is needed. We will get tested for the virus before we begin filming. If someone becomes infected with Covid-19 during the filming process they will quarantine for 2 weeks and the others will get tested. 

• Props: For our short film we will have a variety of props. 

-For scenes 1 & 2 props consist of a car, moving boxes, picture(s), house key and a letter. 

-For scenes 3 & 4 props include a security camera, drill (?), and another letter. 

-5 & 6 props are a cell phone, and a stack of letters. 

• Costumes: 

-Scene 1: Protagonist is wearing causal clothing, suitable for a day of moving in. Possibly some jeans, a casual top and accessorize with some sunglasses. Neighbor is also wearing causal clothing and could consist of cargos. 

-Scene 2: Protagonist is wearing clothing for working out. Spandex, running shoes, and her hair will be up. Neighbor is wearing casual clothing.

-Scene 3: Protagonist is wearing casual clothing once again. Leggings and a simple top. Neighbor is wearing shorts and a top.

-Scene 4: For this scene the protagonist can wear anything. (Will be decided when filming) -Scene 5: Protagonist is wearing comfortable clothing. Could consist of pajamas or sleepwear. 

-Scene 6: Protagonist is wearing comfortable clothing and casual clothing. The neighbor is wearing athletic wear such as basketball shorts etc.