1st Semester Entertainment Final

Half-Year Highlights and re-caps

1) Throughout this first semester in school, with the help of some class mates, I made a PSA and a Short Film. In addition, I also am currently working on a feature film where my role is completed through location scouting. 

Suicide Prevention PSA

The PSA project was my first video project of the semester. It was a PSA to help show awareness and hopefully prevent suicides. It took around 2 and a half weeks to completely finish the PSA. We faced actor troubles as the actor did not show up for the scheduled film time. In order to recover, we used someone in our film crew as an actor, and it turned out to work fine. I learned how to compensate for challenges that I face under pressure. I also learned in the post production phase, how to edit a blur and how to use it to benefit the video and sync with the song. The feedback I was given was to make a smoother ending because it was a little abrupt. We changed the actor for the film because he did not show up. I liked it overall, and thought it brought a strong message. 

The Babysitter Short Film

This project was an entertainment video that I helped produce that took around a week to film and edit. This short film was by far the most challenging project that I have ever worked on. My team initially planned on making a different short film, but ran out of time, couldn't get actors, and didn't have the right locations in order to make that film the best that it could. Because of that complication we did have to switch gears and make a new completely different short film. I learned how to make a film and stay calm with a short deadline. The feedback I was given was to make a stronger storyline. We ended up changing the entire short film with a new story line and actors. The overall opinion I have about this short film was that I am very impressed with the quality of the film for the given time we had to work on it. (Unfortunately I cannot include the video for copyright issues).

2) In class I spent most my time brainstorming for ideas that would help make the video as good as it could be. I stayed productive after the making of my projects by watching YouTube videos of new editing and filming techniques. If I was given 8 hours to finish a project, but ended up finishing it in 7, I would continuously revise the editing and color correction to make it look as good as possible and to keep myself busy. Outside of class I enjoy making YouTube videos as a content creator.

3) My strengths in film production consist of video editing and location scouting. I maximize my strengths by editing outside of school. Everyday I go out and drive around, I am finding new locations that I could end up using in a future project.

4) For improvement, I could work on becoming a better cinematographer. I need to film more in order to improve my skill in this area. I also need to just sit and play with a camera to get familiar with the different buttons and functions.

5) In class we were greeted by 2 amazing guest speakers. Our first guest speaker taught us how to use our skills and abilities to move forward in our lives for a future career. He told us his story and how he got to where he is now. I can use this information to help me expand my abilities and learn more techniques along the way. Our second guest speaker watched one of our classmates videos and gave them feedback on how to improve the short film. The ideas he put in my head will aid me in future videos and movies to upgrade the quality of them.

6) In November, our class took a trip to a movie theater that had 4XMD technology. I learned about all of the different elements that make a movie unique and stand out. I am going to use this knowledge from the technology to add new elements and dimensions that I never would have thought about including. I think this new technology will benefit the movie industry by adding a whole new way to watch a movie and create more opportunities for filmmakers to make their movies to accommodate the 4XMD.

7) I loved the group effort in the feature film the most so far this year. I think making one really big film that everyone in the class is involved with is a great and exciting idea. I would like to expand my skills in the following semester by learning to become a better cinematographer. Overall I took away how to get things done under pressure and with an upcoming deadline despite the difficulty of many complications. Next semester I want to make sure I becoming a very talented and skilled cinematographer. I enjoyed taking this class and am surprised to have already finished the first semester in my entertainment video class. I cannot wait for the upcoming semester and how the feature film will turn out. 

Justice League MX4D Experience Blog

My Reflection of Justice League in MX4D

MX4D is a total immersive environment where you actually “feel” the action on the screen from the built-in motion and effects in seats around you. Before I watched Justice League in MX4D, I was very excited to get to experience 4D which I have never experienced before, and to a movie I actually wanted to see. The experience didn't meet my expectations, because I thought there was going to be 3D glasses included, but there wasn't, which kind of eliminated the 3D aspect that is supposed to be in the fourth dimension. 

My favorite part of the experience was the strobe light that sunk to the gun shots and flash of lights in the movie. I liked it because it made me kind of flinch and feel like I was really looking at a gun being shot. My least favorite part of the experience was the squirt of water that would hit your face during a water scene. I didn't like it because it distracted me from the movie. 

I would say that MX4D didn't exactly enhance my overall opinion of Justice League. It didn't make me hate it more or love it more. To me it was just a new way to watch a movie.

I think that in the Feature Film we are currently working on could be a similar experience to Justice League because we are also making a super hero like movie. I would want the scents and chairs to move more in sync with the movie than Justice League though.

MX4D to me is a great first experience to watch in your life. I would recommend MX4D to anyone who has never experienced it, but I do not prefer it over 3D and regular movies. I would prefer classic viewing from films over 3D or 4D because I believe movies are made and intended for the audience to view it normally instead of these special effects. 

I would add 3D glasses to the experience, because I feel that with the glasses, the audience would actually get to fully experience 4D at its full potential. This effect may be potent enough to bring people all around and from their houses back into movie theaters.

I loved my first experience and I'm very thankful that I was lucky enough to live in the area near a 4D theater to be able to experience it. Although I enjoyed it, I don't think I would go back and pay more money to watch a 4D movie when I get the same or better experience from simply watching a movie on a Dolby Sound system that they have at movie theaters.

Can Gamers Survive A Parkour Simulation?

Thoughts, Opinions, and Observations

I watched a 22 min video on how a YouTuber who plays games got a group of other YouTubers to try and act out the game in real life. For this episode, they looked at the game 'Mirror's Edge' which is all  about parkour. These YouTubers get a professional parkour instructor to teach them easy parkour techniques. During the making of this video I noticed they used a tripod during the stable talking shots, but when it came to doing parkour, they took the camera off the tripod to give the video that handheld feel. Towards the end of the episode, they used go-pro cameras on the YouTubers as they attempted the course themselves. Overall, I liked the episode do to the entertaining topics and film techniques and transitions to captivate my attention. 

Raising Dion Short Film

My Review

This short film was a very entertaining one to watch. In my opinion this short film had all the elements for a good superhero movie. Its about  a kid with multiple superpowers including telekinesis. Filming with a kid as the main actor, can be very difficult, but all the actors seem to come together very well in this short film. The animation and special effects of the powers is phenomenal. Drones, pans, zooms, are all included in this short film. The editing, directing, and cinematography is all done very well. After watching the short film, it left me wishing that there was a full feature film.

Camera - Tips and Tricks for Film Production (cinematography)

Tips and Tricks to keep in mind while filming

As with any film production, you need a cinematographer. Whether you use a good one or a bad one, the tips in this video will help develop your filming skills even further. If you are filming a character walking from right to left, the next scene should keep that same direction to not confuse the audience.  That same rule applies to the 180 degree rule when doing interviews, so that you don't switch sides and confuse the audience. If you don't have a camera, you can always use your surroundings to steady your shot. Another very important tip I learned was that if you are filming someone at a window and they fall black into the background while the natural light outside overpowers the frame, put new/extra light on the person to reverse this camera effect. I was very interested in becoming a better cinematographer, and this video gave me tips to do so. 

Short Film "The Elevator"

Review

This short film is designed to be a comedy. It uses a boring scenario such as riding an elevator, and makes it entertaining and funny. The short begins with a man on the first floor who needs a ride to the top floor. As he goes floor by floor, each floor contains more people until the elevator is full. The man notices the weight limit of the elevator and uses his phone as a calculator to guess each persons weight to see if it is safe to still take the elevator. Eventually a very big man is walking towards the elevator and he freaks out and gets off. He gets on a different elevator which he later discovers everyone on it is sick with the swine flu. There is no actual talking in this sort, but a story is well told and it achieved its comedic goal.

Things to Know About Making Short Films

What people don't know:

The interesting thing about the video I watched was how these following tips are not rules and are not cliché like be prepared and storyboard your shots before you shoot them. This video goes in depth with specifically short films and how to make them cinematic. A good short film should be max 15 min and have an optimal 10 min length. When telling a story inside the short film, try to keep it short and simple. Don't drag out the story for so long, tell it quick. Short films are actually a great way to jump start a feature. If you make a good short film that has a long enough storyline, it would be a good idea to try and transform it into a good feature. For example the movie Napoleon Dynamite was primarily a short before it was a feature. All of these tips are incredible useful and you should keep these in mind next time you make a short film.