The End

c3296935                            CMNS1234                     BLOG During this week’s lesson, the film was looked over by everybody in the team with the tick of approval for submission. I have to say that I’m very proud of how far our team has come, not only in terms of the film’s success, but how we have grown within our roles. I’ve come to learn over the last 6 – 7 weeks that cinematographers/directors keep their vision in mind as well as the studio’s desires. Each week during postproduction, I sought out criticism from both the group and our teacher. I had friends watch the film as I looked for their reactions from most scenes, anything that didn’t feel right I adjusted, if I felt the criticism was too far, I would take the matter very seriously. I became very protective of my work, as did Nick when it came to talking with Ellia and Brodie about how his characters should be portrayed. Ellia made sure everybody was safe, including those who may have felt left out. Brodie took a lot of pride in his art, I mentioned changes that he felt he didn’t want to stick to out of a protective instinct for his work. As these tasks may have seemed challenging, we each understood our personal desires and what was fair. Adams absence from the classes was the biggest challenge of them all, as film usually contains a ratio of 40% picture, 60% audio. My work felt empty for a time, until the group and I brought ourselves together to share uncopyrighted music and sound effects from YouTube. This in turn allowed us to pull each other together to finalize the film, with light touches to be made before final submission next week. After viewing our collaborative film for the hundredth time, I always notice something new each viewing, whether it’s a shot that’s a second too long or a part of the soundtrack that doesn’t quiet feel right. I struggled to know when it was time to trust that the editing process was finished, to seal the envelope and post it in a sense. I found that just like the writing, cinematography and sound for this film going full circle, so did each of our roles within this task of creating something meaningful. In making a film dedicated to an unhealthy relationship, ours was tested but came out healthier than ever. It was true privilege, and I couldn't have asked for a better team.

The Meaning of Love Trap

C3296935                            Blog                             CIND1004                        With most of Production over, the team and I have come to terms with the project’s direction, now ready for the ‘Postproduction’ stage. Brodie has begun the cover art (poster) for the Goldfish Film Festival, as well as Ellia placing the pieces of the project together. Nick (Wu) and I have been working closely to navigate the shots of the film, as the 3 minutes we face is often challenging. Cramming everything into the 3 minutes is a wild challenge, however, the element of cutting footage and linking has provided a satisfying touch to my craft so far. Now that the editing process has begun, I have had to re-learning editing software such as Adobe Premier Pro.

Within the editing process, I began to deconstruct the film for meaning that may or may not be hidden. Personally, I feel the film tricks the audience in so many ways. Jake as the centre of the film experiences dreams that are sequenced in a loop that’s never ending, in this process he has tried countless times to break the sequence by guessing the correct birthday gift for his partner. As Jake may seem like the victim, the film portrays the dream sequences as a euphoric wonderland (Jakes love), with his girlfriend (Ellia) as the centre of it (portrayed as an antagonist). In the first dream sequence and when he wakes up, the time is 10:10AM, this is linked to a biblical reference suggesting - “For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.” - Romans 10:10

However, as Jake becomes exhausted from the loop, he steps backwards in mentality to control the situation, capturing his girlfriend who in all actuality has done nothing wrong, Jakes reality is dark with his girlfriend as the victim. Once Jake wakes up from his second dream sequence before this action, the time in the dream and on the alarm clock in reality is 10:04, another biblical reference stating - "Arise, for it is your task, and we are with you; be strong and do it.”- Ezra 10:4

Jakes girlfriend only speaks when he assumes, however, it’s not until Jake demonstrates that he listens to her, replying that he knows she doesn’t want the handbag, in turn, revealing his girlfriend’s gift as a need rather than a materialistic desire. Upon this realization, Ellia reacts in a hostile way, demonstrating that the couple are indeed unhealthy, however, as Brodie wakes up, he realizes that the dream was indeed a nightmare, realising his wrongdoing through Ellia’s uncharacteristic behaviour, resulting in a happy chant in understanding her needs. In the final scene, the gag is Ellia asking about Valentine’s Day, implying further loops as if he was being punished, when in actual fact, this line demonstrates that relationships take work, to the point that it can almost drive you mad. Healthy and unhealthy behaviours, wants and needs, listening and assumptions, relationships are challenging.

Light’s, Camera & Action!!! (Week 9)

Wednesday was a whole different meeting this week, as we are now in a stage of production for the film project. ‘The Love Trap’ has officially began filming, with each member of the project contributing to the role perfectly. However, we have bumped into a few issues along the way as Adam has becoming more difficult to reach, as well as no attendance to the meetings in the last two weeks. Upon noticing this the crew members and I have begun filming. On Thursday morning we started filming in the park for the opening, middle and closing scenes. Brodie is extremely camera shy and has proven to find acting on que difficult, that is why we have decided during editing that I voice over his dialogue, understanding that Brodie can still behave as the character can physically. Ellia has scheduled everything well, along with Wu’s (Nick’s) advice to both actors during shoots. After day one everybody became more passionate towards the project, as I had sent them footage within the group chat. Members were quite impressed when it came to the stabilization of the camera, not to mention the editing that comes with large amounts of footage. Right now I’m currently in the process of finalizing the editing for Friday morning’s shots too as Friday was an even bigger success than Thursday. The crew and I went to my house to shoot filling scenes that we like to call the films “reality scenes.” As Thursday began as a colourful and bright school due to the movies upbeat dream sequences, Friday was a more depressing and dark mood. Wu thought it would be a good idea to keep minimal lighting in the shots, as the black and white ambiance during editing would convince the audience of who dark the protagonists’ life is, compared to the dream sequences. As Adam could not make it on both days, the crew and I believe that Adam can come in for Monday’s shoots, as well as contributing music towards postproduction. Both Thursday and Friday’s shoots were more than anticipated in terms of laughter and enjoyment, as each member of the film crew realized how important their roles within the film really are. As a result, Brodie has committed to the cover art further, as Ellia and Wu have both followed Brodie through pro-active production and add-ins with writing. Everyone is excited for what comes next.

Production is Ready (Week 8)

C3296935                      Kurtis Wynne                         CIND1004 

The Wheels Begin to Roll (Week 7)

C3296935                          Kurtis Wynne                           CIND1004

The Beginning of Something Beautiful (Week 6)

C3296935                      Kurtis Wynne                    CIND1004