Chapter 25: Extra Credit

 In the rubric for the project, it states that I have to list the credits for my opening. In order to streamline that process, I have started making my list of credits for the film. I have listed out who my acting, writing, and producing credits will go to, and the reasons for that here:

For the acting credits, Sydney, Ria, and I will be listed. While Sydney and Ria are the main stars, it is seen in other films to put "and" before the name of a supporting actor, which is where my name will go. This hopefully will look similar to actual productions in the film world, as that has been the goal of my project from the start.

For writing credits, Sydney and I will be listed, as we wrote the original script for the film. After a bit of research into some productions like The Office and Thor: Ragnarok, improvised lines are not enough to receive writing credit, and lines that Ria improvised were not enough to receive writing credit. Although, I will give Ria an Executive Producer credit, as she did have a lot of say over what did and didn't work in the film. That role really helped the film, and she deserves credit for that.

The directing credit will be given to me, as this project was an outlet for me to be creative and take control of production. I am excited to finish editing and move on to my CCR very soon.

Chapter 24: In the Blink of an Eye: A Perspective on Film Editing

Now that filming has been completed, we now start post-production! While I am very excited to finish the project, editing does happen to be my least favorite part of the process. It can feel draining to stare at the same footage over and over and trying to get sounds to come together perfectly. However, I am hopeful that the editing process will not take too long and my project will look amazing.

One thing that is integral to the editing of my piece is sound. There is a shot that requires overlapping voices and gasps and requires sound editing that I am less equipped to do. Therefore, I have brought in my friend Alex to help with the sound editing as he has experience with the subject. He will be credited in my opening, and I do appreciate his help.

Another thing that is integral to my piece is lighting. In my group meeting, we had discussed the importance of lighting, and specifically how the lighting around Cassie should be dark and the lighting around Cara to be light. So, when editing, I would like to use a filter to give lighter and darker tones to these shots that I did not have due to lack of lighting equipment.

Chapter 23: Experimental Film

It's finally been filmed! After almost six weeks of work, my project is finally filmed! Looking back on the amount of work it took to get to this point feels strange as it wasn't a very complicated shoot. The filming process was relatively easy and only took about two and a half hours. We were lucky to have such an easy filming process, although we did run into one roadblock.

We realized halfway through filming that the roles of Cassie and Agi would be better if we switched the actors. The original footage with the original casting felt less authentic, and we really wanted the characters to feel real. However, when we switched the actors the scenes felt more real. Apart from Cassie and Agi, we still needed a Cara. When I couldn't get anyone else to be available for filming, I stepped in to fill the role. It was fun to get to be a character in my opening, although I really do prefer to be behind the camera.

During filming, we also did realize that the situation depicted in the film gave way to a lot more comedy than we thought. Therefore, a lot of Agi's character got rewritten to be more comedic than dramatic. We also realized when filming that it would be easy to have the character break the fourth wall, which is a fun tool in comedies that I always enjoy.

With filming over, we're moving over to the editing process, which I am not looking forward to. However, the project will be completed very soon, which makes me very excited.

Chapter 22: The Astonishing Color of After

 As tomorrow is the big day, I wanted everything to be perfect for filming. More specifically, I wanted the costumes worn by my characters to be perfect. Therefore, I did a bit of research into colors related to anxiety. Hopefully, this research will give some more meaning to my characters.

First, I did some research into colors related to anxiety. One color that stood out among the research was the color grey. The chart below lists varying shades of black and grey as the "mood" of those with anxiety. The use of greys and blacks was a planned aspect of Agi's costume, however, I would now like Cassie to be wearing some shades as well. It would be interesting for Cassie to move from a light grey to a dark grey from the first seconds to the last seconds. It would be an interesting tie to Agi, who I now plan to have to wear entirely black (in the same outfit throughout the opening).

Second, I did some research into colors that relate the opposite of anxiety, confidence. A Wall Street Journal identifies red as the color of confidence, as it is a "regal color". As Cara displays opposite emotions of Cassie, I would now like to introduce and show her wearing red. This would also add some more identity to the character, as she would be identified as someone who commands attention and is noticed, which is in contrast to Cassie feeling invisible.

Sources- https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna35304133 

              https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748703369704575461831595519768

Chapter 21: Brief Answers to the Big Questions

 In addition to my group member meetings, I also had a meeting with my teacher to discuss some ideas with editing techniques. As I had struggled with identifying editing techniques in mock essays, I felt I needed some help with establishing my knowledge of editing techniques in my film opening. During our conversation, I got a suggestion that I feel will really help me.

My teacher recommended the "shot-countershot" method for editing. As my film contains two characters having a conversation, so the shot-countershot technique would fit well into my film. Using this style of editing would allow for the use of POV or over-the-shoulder shots to be used within the scene, which would be helpful with camera technique. It would also be a relatively easy technique to employ, as it does not require an immense amount of skill to implement properly.

I hope that I am able to use this editing technique well, as editing the film opening is the part of the project I am most scared for. Editing is a lengthy process that will also need me to employ my skills when dealing with sound, which will also be quite difficult. Hopefully, this process will be easy, as I am still nervous about the length of time that editing will take as I also need to film and edit my CCR.

Chapter 20: Help for the Haunted

We had another group meeting in class today to be able to bounce around ideas. Being able to talk about my project again as I start getting into the harder parts of my project was really helpful to talk about some last-minute issues. Two problems I was facing were the script and making characters stand out

1.  Dialogue 

One issue I was facing was making my dialogue seem realistic. Although it was created right off the top of my sister and I's heads, we did face some issues with reliability. Therefore, my groupmates suggested having conversations with others in order to improve my dialogue. I hope to later this week have some (virtual) conversations in order to have some more realistic and relatable lines in my script.

2.  Lighting

A second issue I was facing was creating differences between Cassie and Cara. I wanted to have the colors of their outfits be a big contrast, such as one in red and one in blue, or one in black and one in white. Therefore, my group members suggested having Cara be portrayed in brighter lighting than Cassie, who would have darker or more harsh lighting. This (hopefully) will give more contrast between the characters during filming (which is THIS SATURDAY).

Thanks to my group members, I think I was able to get some better ideas to make the best opening I can.

Chapter 19: Delayed Rays of a Star

        So, due to a lot of hectic work given in the last few weeks of the quarter, my leads could not have filmed yesterday. Therefore, filming has been delayed to next Saturday, March 20th. This was disappointing as my script had been completed in time to film my project, and I had a basic idea of a shot list. However there are always silver linings, and this is no different. Two good things have actually come out of this delay.

        First, I do get the opportunity to use a stabilizer when we film next Saturday, which will make the shots look cleaner than shooting without one. During the "one-word" film we had made in class earlier this year, I faced some issues with stabilizing the camera during a pan shot, which made the film look sloppy. In order to create a cleaner look, that stabilizer will be incredibly helpful in making shots avoid looking "shaky". "Shaky cam" is my biggest pet peeve and being able to avoid that will make me feel more confident about this project.

        Second, I would get to further complete my shot list for the opening. I only had a basic idea for a shot list, so hopefully being able to flesh out what I wanted to do will give more efficiency to the filming process. I had discussed my idea with some friends who said that I needed to flesh out technique in a fairly basic opening, so having a shot list will be better to brainstorm what types of camera techniques I can better implement into the piece. 

       While filming has been pushed to Saturday, I look forward to getting to go through the process of shooting and making my idea a reality.

Chapter 18: Zen in the Art of Writing

 In anticipation of getting to film my opening, I have written my script (including locations). 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Kpeou2vn9eDgVdHKch19E6vtT-mOTA-m/view?usp=sharing 

While writing the script, I had my sister give me some ideas for what the character Agi would say. I gave her a scenario, and she started messing around with dialogue that could reflect exaggerated anxieties over the scenario. These discussions largely affected the dialogue used by Agi, and most lines delivered by the character are verbatim what my sister had used as an example. This gave some realism to very exaggerated dialogues.

However, with Cassie, her lines were created in reaction to what my sister thought Agi should say. These were fairly fluid reactions to an exaggerated character, which places Cassie as the "straight man" character in an exaggerated scenario. This, hopefully, will make her reactions to her anxiety seem more real, and be presented on film as more realistic. 

As we go onto the filming phase, I look forward to seeing my script onscreen, and I'm excited to see it onscreen!

Chapter 17: The Book of Lost Names

    While preparing my script for the project, I realized that I needed to give my film opening a title. Therefore, I tried to come up with a name that captures the essence of my project. I thought of doing an adjective as a title, as seen with Disney movies like "Tangled" or "Brave". These types of titles give the idea behind the main character without giving away the bigger plot. However, I tried out a random line from the script as my title and really liked it.

    I decided to name the film opening "Stop Telling Me What To Do" as it reflects key points from the script that I wanted to be presented. The plot deals with Agi and Cassie in a struggle over Cassie's actions and presents the idea that Cassie feels manipulated and unheard in her life. This also reflects the idea that Cassie is struggling with Agi wanting her actions to reflect Agi's will, and how Agi can feel unheard by Cassie, even if some of her suggestions are nonsense. 

    This would also contribute to giving my film opening an identity. I have had some issues trying to create an identity for my film, and having an identity most likely will make the film better. Having an identity to put to the film will also be helpful in shaping what techniques I want to use when filming, as my film will adhere to both genre characteristics and its own artistic identity. 

    This title felt unique and fun for my project, and its identity is shaped throughout the time I work on it, I am excited to see what the final product would be.

Chapter 16: My Brilliant Friend

In order to better show how Agi is only seen and heard by Cassie, I wanted to add a situation where Agi wouldn't be seen . So, in order to accomplish that, I added a new character. By adding a new character, I can create a situation where it would be evident that Agi is not real, as well as providing some insight into Cassie's character outside of her interactions with Agi. 

I gave the character the name "Cara" as it means "friend". Cara is shown in the opening as a friend of Cassie's, which is why I gave her that name. Cara is also supposed to be a minor character, so she will only be seen in a brief scene in the opening. Cara's character is supposed to show how Cassie can hear Agi even during her interactions with others, which gives some insight into how Agi controls Cassie. 

Cara's relationship with Cassie is presented as positive, and their interaction is supposed to be a harmless and supposedly meaningless encounter. However, I wanted to give some insight into Cassie's life. As Cara is Cassie's friend, I want to write dialogue for Cara that reflects Cassie dodging talking to or hanging out with her friends. I also want to write dialogue for Agi to give the audience some information on Cassie's perception of her friend and the state of their relationship.

By including Cara, I hope to be able to create more meaning behind Cassie's character.

Chapter 15: The Exact Location of Home

In order to limit the amount of time shooting will take, I have narrowed down where certain scenes will need to be filmed. I first needed somewhere that could be used to show the general anxiety that Cassie deals with because of Agi. I secondly needed somewhere to show that Agi is only a personification of a voice in Cassie's head and not an actual person.

To show the general anxiety that Cassie deals with, I decided to shoot some of the opening at my house. This would be easy to show the relationship between Agi and Cassie as it allows Cassie to speak directly to Agi without fear of being overheard. As Cassie can't talk to Agi unless they're alone, this makes shooting scenes that feature the two a lot easier. It also makes the dialogue given by Agi much simpler as the lines can be more general anxieties rather than being focused on the actions of the day.

To show that Agi is only a personification of a voice in Cassie's head, I decided to shoot a few scenes where Cassie would need to be around other people. This made Weston Town Center a perfect location. As I needed a reason to have Cassie be around other people, I wanted to have her run into somewhere where it would be easy to not have Agi onscreen. If Cassie had to interact with another person, it might be easier to have that conversation in a more public place.

Chapter 14: Casting Off

I'm writing this post with some good news, I have finally cast my actresses! I am very excited to announce that Sydney Cameron and Ria Tomlin will be playing the leads in my opening! Sydney will be playing Agi, and Ria will be playing Cassie! Both of these people will be available for the March 13th filming date, which is perfect since they will need to be onscreen together for most of the opening. Another great thing about these actresses is that they are already friends, so having them work together will most likely not be awkward, which could have been an issue with other actors.

I wrote the script for a female lead, however, I did not write Agi as being a female character. Agi was written as an imaginary follower, and gender was not essential to the character. Sydney put her own spin on the character when I asked her to read a few lines, and represented Agi's dialogue as more chaotic than I had pictured when beginning the script. Her interpretation was more true to what the opening needed and gave more personality to the character. I had changed the opening to focus on Agi a bit more as well because Sydney was so engaging as the character.

Cassie was always meant to be a sarcastic but well-meaning character that is struggling to deal with her anxiety. Ria resembles that type of person and understands what anxiety can feel like. This made her a perfect fit for Cassie, and because of that, I hope that she feels like a more three-dimensional character. I've tried to make Cassie's character seem more realistic, and by having her played by someone who has dealt with her issues, hopefully she will be.