Pre Production

We found a location in a classroom as we knew we would need screens so a classroom was practical. I created a story board which covers the events in the video, we will use this to help us when filming. We decided to have a flashback of Lucy as our cut away as it tied in well with our story and ran smoothly.

Risk Assesment

There are risks involved in filming, firstly the camera strap could get caught, trapped, or pulled which could be dangerous for the person wearing the strap around their neck. To prevent this we will be careful how the camera hangs around our neck. Another danger is the tripod, if the tripod is in the middle of the corridor someone could trip over it and hurt themselves. To prevent this we will not leave the camera unattended and we will be careful when moving the tripod. Also if someone picks up the tripod they could accidentally hit someone with it. We are filming on a floor that could become slippery if it gets wet. To prevent any danger we will alert people if the floor is wet and will tell a member or staff. Another danger is that we will be filming next to a construction site. There is a barrier but in order to prevent any danger we will tell people about the construction site and make sure nobody enters it. The classroom we are filming in has lots of tables and chairs, these can be a danger if someone walks into them, to prevent this we will be sensible and be careful of where we are walking. People may trap their fingers in the door which could cause injury, to prevent this we will all be cautious when opening and closing the door.

Continuity Editing

Continuity editing is  basically invisible cuts, it engages the audience. It combines 'match on action' cuts, 'eye line' matches, and '180 degree rule' to create a smooth flow. Continuity editing was invented by Americans to create a cinematic experience.
 The 180 degree rule is a rule that must be followed, if you break the rule people will be the wrong way. The 180 degree rule is used when there are 2 people in a scene and they always have a right/left relationship to each other. They are always on the same side even when the camera moves.
 A match on action is when a person makes a gesture or a movement and it has to match between shots. So when the shot changes they are still matching the action.
 An eye line match is when a person looks towards off camera in one shot and then the second shot shows what they are looking at.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdyyuqmCW14
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHh12_JHjTg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0VPMEKCITvs

Intro to Preliminary task

Preliminary exercise: Continuity task involving filming and editing a character opening a door, crossing a room and sitting down in a chair opposite another character, with whom she/he then exchanges a couple of lines of dialogue. This task should demonstrate match on action, shot/reverse shot and the 180-degree rule.

Life On Mars

Cinematography, mise-en-scene, sound and editing can all contribute to the way people are presented in programmes. In life on mars the main character Sam is presented as a masculine, dominant character. Cinematography is used in the scene when Sam chases the suspect. The first establishing shot is the police cars with the sirens on outside the estate. The first character we see in the episode is Sam, who goes and bangs on the door to show his authority. We immediately know he is the main character and he is in charge. When Sam is chasing the criminal a hand held camera was used to make it seem more realistic. We can tell this because it wasn’t smooth, the scene was bumpy. The sound in scene 1 is what attracts the audience attention, as the sound creates suspense. Sound effects were used, as the dog barking was louder than it usually would be. This makes the scene seem more dangerous for Sam; he is taking the risk which makes him seem more masculine. There is some dialogue in this scene when the kid says “Smash his face in,” this also emphasizes his masculinity as fighting is quite masculine. A jump cut is used when the suspect is running away, this builds up suspense and keeps the audience on the edge of their seats. In the car journey scene cinematography is used, the extreme close-up shows his emotion as you can see the tears go down his face. This challenges the look of masculinity as men do not really cry; the high angle shot looking down on him outside the car, the car shows his masculinity again. There is non-diegetic music used in this scene when he is crying. This makes the audience feel sorry for him. A car horn sounds and the sound turns deigetic again and brings him back to reality. Before Sam is run over the Life On Mars soundtrack is played, and once he is on the floor the non-deigetic sound of a heartbeat is played to show he has been hurt. Continuity editing is used in this scene when the cinematography changes this creates a smooth cut. It also makes the time seem longer.

By Megan Gorman and Lucy Woods

Media Criminal Justice

Megan Gorman and Lucy Woods

Scene 1:Knife

The shots were quite jumpy this showed his excitement in the danger of the game with the knife. The camera panned from Ben to the girl when they were playing the game which made the situation seem quite intense. The only sound in the scene is dialogue, the dialogue is quite sharp. When they are playing the game there is very little dialogue, they use their eye contact to communicate what they are thinking.  When the knife goes down it is a bit louder than what it would usually be, so sound effects has been used to amplify the sound when the knife hits her hand. This shocks the audience and intensifies the atmosphere; the audience will be waiting for the game to go wrong. There was probably continuity editing during the conversation and short take as it cut quite frequently. Action match was used when the man stabbed down and then we saw it in the woman’s hand. The audience becomes aware of how dangerous the game is. At this moment Ben is feeling quite bad that he has hurt her as he was reluctant to do it in the first place. The game excites him though as it is dangerous, and with the girl encouraging him he feels he has something to prove. The alcohol in the scenes shows the audience that they are not themselves and they are probably drunk. The knife is the most important prop in the scene, it starts the danger, when Ben sees what the girl does the first time he is shocked. The lighting in the scene was quite dim and it gave a relaxed feeling but the relaxed feeling disappeared and became uneasy once the knife came out. Near the start there is a master shot to show where they are, and then it goes to a close up of the girl taking off her necklace. The audience sees this as something of importance. At this point Ben is having a good time, this is just before it all goes downhill.