5 O'Clock News

Though I wont show the timed edit I had to do for Mikes class yesterday I was pleased with how much knowledge I have learned with FCP. I feel comfortable using it now after a few projects he had us do and though I'm still a slow editor, I feel confident in putting a piece together with the use of random footage that is often provided. The only thing that concerns me about the edit is going onto the same computer and trying to view the work I had previously done the day before. As my edit was coming up with nothing I am hoping Mike has it stored somewhere. I am often the target of computer errors and I feel it would be tragic if the work was lost. The material that was given was about a new security tag that was impossible to remove without spilling ink all over the garment, a reporter that was nodding as well as giving the exact story, and footage of clothes, cameras and extra interviewees. For legal reasons the end result will not be published.

Other then that the class went well. It was very quit as I find often I loose myself in my work, and I hope the final product was a passing grade!

Bring Bring... Talk to Me!!!

In the world of broadcasting one very important thing to remember is emails don't always do the trick therefor actually talking to the individuals you wish to film is a key part to getting your work done.
With a 9am meeting on Thursday my group through out ideas as well as sorted out locations, equipment and interviewees that would aid our project in taking a more finished form. Though we were unable to get a few contributors we had so desperately needed, the ones we did manage to agree on all gave a different aspect to the story as well as different feel. We have lined up one women who has that's covering her body in different areas that all represent family meanings, and also a few men who have random that's that carry stories of there own.
I don't exactly find it hard to talk to people. I find most people are genuinely open to speaking about themselves its now just making sure the right questions are asked to help the interview along and provide a calm and safe environment where they can share there stories.
The group also must provide a script next week on who goes where and what is said. We have gotten a few emails sent back to us now with the short story meanings and intend to use them to aid us in writing.
As I am lucky enough to have booked a Z1 demo for Tuesday, my group should have no problem obtaining the equipment to get the best quality it can be!

Have I forgotten Something????

As my life is horrendously busy these days one thing I juggle along side University is 30 hours of work at Boots Opticians. I do love my job and find it extremely interesting however something tells me I might need glasses to take a closer look at certain things.
It was a regular day on Wednesday with the downside of being slightly ill. I woke up nice and early and got to work about 8am. Everything seemed to be going fine except my nose was running away and my throat felt like it had small people in it with saws cutting away my vocal chords. Pushing through the day I finally had a chance to go for lunch which was a very nice break. I ate chicken strips and chocolate and had a nice big refreshing glass of lemonade and felt better for it. Happily making my way back to work feeling a little brighter then earlier I walked in and put my keys down. At that point I had a massive shock. Where were my shoes?? As it turns out, I had forgotten them at home and I hadn't actually clued in until I got into work. As cool as a cucumber I simply pulled up my black socks and steadily walked around on my tipy toes as if I were wearing the heels that I had so easily forgotten and I went through the rest of the day with only my manager noticing as she kept asking what I thought was so funny!

It 'Still' counts as entertainment!

Right, So here is my attempt at FCP using still images! Enjoy

Talking Ink!

In today's class my group had to pitch our documentary to Holly and Mike who gave suggestions to how we could make our project as colorful as possible. As we have chosen the topic of tattoos and the stories behind them it is important that our final project is creative and extremely visual. The pitch itself went good and was less daunting then last semesters. With the use of the big screen flashing tattoos of some of our contributors, Carian, James and I went through our proposal step by step taking turns in speaking. Unfortunately I messed up the beginning a bit and let my nerves get the better of me, however once I was done my lines I was able to focus on what everyone else was saying and answers the end questions with ease.
The rest of the class will be focused on the Z1 camera as well as using Celtx. The one thing I have learned that has stuck is the five F's which are 'Frame, Focus, Focal length which is zoom, F stop which is shutter speed, iris and zebra and FCP! Hopefully I will get better using this camera and have signed up to the demo to learn the ins and outs!

The Final Cut Pro Star!!

Fridays class was a massive session as I was put to the test to show what I could actually do with Final Cut Pro. Given a wide selection of movie clips as well as sound tracks, my task was to create an abstract video with effect and excitement which I thought I had done quite well. Though I must admit I was a complete novice, the whole day got me thinking about Final Cut Pro and how it worked.

I signed up to do the FCP demo which was held in the broadcasting lab on the first floor. Richard wood was teaching the session and made everything seem exciting and easy. As I had already had 3-4 hours working on Fridays project, Rich decided to skim through FCP and let me have a real go at what Final Cut can actually do. He first showed me how to create a piece that merged 2 or three clips together, this was done but cropping and putting the piece in motion. I then started to play around with different speeds as well as texts to add effect to pictures I had used previously in Fridays class. Though I forgot to get my stamp, I did find the session extremely helpful and I would like to now play around with it more to become a Pro Star!

My Final treatment!

One of the things I have had to do for Susan's class was open up my mind and start thinking in the lines of script. I had no idea there were so many things involved in the actual process of writing. Whether it was log lines, treatments or character descriptions, each of these steps I found were vital in creating an organized thought process which would soon be used in my final peice. Below I have written out my treatment for you to all enjoy. Hope you all like it!

I'M WATCHING YOU
BY MEGAN LOCKHURST

The watcher has become the watch.


With her short brown fringe hung across her eyes, Sophie O’Connell swivels on a chair mocking the people she watches on the CCTV monitors that line the wall of her office.

Chatting to her best friend on the phone, Sophie starts to get the feeling that someone is watching her. As she turns an electrician is standing behind her ready to fix a monitor that had been playing up, feeling silly Sophie grabs her tweed coat and heads down the street to get some lunch, leaving the electrician alone to do his job.

As Sophie heads to a near by deli she is stopped by a local tramp that insists she buys a copy of ‘The Big Issue’, as she goes to say no the tramp starts to ramble about Sophie’s fate and how a man is following her. Sophie pushes a pound in the tramps hand and hurries on her way.

Finally getting to the deli she notices an old man watching her beyond his paper. A little freaked out about his presence Sophie grabs her sandwich and quickly gets on her way. She is bothered once again as she notices the same man sitting in the park reading the same newspaper as a old woman soon approaches her asking her for her sandwich.

Eager to get back to the office, Sophie leaves rushing by the tramp, however looking down as she has no interest in what he has to say this time. When she arrives at the office the electrician is gone and Sophie is left on her own with the dim humming noise the CCTV monitors are making.

Feeling quite spooked Sophie takes a deep breath and takes out her phone. About to call her best friend Su, an incoming call to the office interrupts her using her mobile phone and she answers. The voice on the other side sounds robotic and deep sending chills down Sophie’s spine. Nothing seems right about this call. As Sophie continues to ask who it is, the voice says hello and hangs up. Freaked out she presses send on her mobile to speak to Su, who inevitably isn’t answering.

Trying to figure out who the mysterious caller was Sophie turns her chair towards the office door again feeling like someone is watching her. As she looks up towards the ceiling a strange old CCTV camera is set staring into her room. Standing up Sophie walks towards the camera which seems to be following her every move. Pausing for a moment Sophie walks back into her office, shuts the door and calls her boss to ask about the camera. Telling Sophie the camera hasn’t worked for years Sophie convinces herself its all in her head and finishes the day off with nothing more happening.

As Sophie clocks out, she rushes by the camera and heads downstairs to the basement where her car is parked. As most employees have already left, the car park is empty and hollow. Walking briskly to her car, Sophie hears footsteps following her. She begins to walk faster and notices the echoes of the other footsteps set the same pace. Finally Sophie breaks out into a jog but she trips landing on her wrist.
Flat on her face and hearing someone getting closer Sophie starts to scream for help. As she turns to glance her stalker she realizes with great relief that it is her friend Su leaving her to feel extremely embarrassed. She explains to Su that she thought she was being stalked and has had a hectic day. Both girls get into Sophie’s car and Sophie starts to drive Su home.

On the way back Sophie tells Su in detail everything that has happened to her. She drops Su off and tells her she will meet her for lunch tomorrow.

As She leaves Sue’s house Sophie sees the same man from the deli and the park standing at a bus stop with the same news paper he had been reading earlier on. Feeling uneasy about him Sophie speeds up no realizing a new speed camera had just been put up at the end off Sue’s street. Racing away Sophie gets flashed by the camera but continues onwards finally arriving home in less then 10 minutes.

Pulling up to her drive, Sophie gets out of the car and runs up the walkway to her front door. Searching for her door key at the bottom of her bag, she realizes she is standing on 3 cigarette buds. As she isn’t a smoker Sophie grabs the key from the bag and rushes inside. Finally feeling safe, Sophie turns on the lights and goes to the kitchen to get a cup of tea. As the kettle starts to boil Sophie hears something fall through the mail slot in her front door. Peering at the door Sophie grabs the letter, gets her cup of tea and sits down in the living room. As she turns on the starts to open the letter the tv finally tunes in and she notices that she is looking at herself. Looking down at the open letter it reads ‘I’m Watching you’.

The Proposal

A proposal is almost like a cake, if you get the recipe right it can be delicious. However get it wrong and the cake will flop and so will your career as a baker! With the knowledge and experience I have gained in semester one, I have faced writing proposals and am feeling more confident with them. I love using expressive or imaginative words in my opening paragraph to give it that extra spice drawing the audience in. Some might say its cheese, however coming from a country that thrives on the over dramatic I tend to feel the more colour you can add to a piece the better the all around picture will be.

After working on the Tattoo proposal for a few hours, the group decided that not only did we want creativeness in the doc, we also felt image was a huge aspect of the story we wanted to tell. As we are focusing around the 'meanings' of different tattoos and why people get them, it is important for us to add as much visual effects as we can to keep the audience amused and entertained. It was also important to choose the right equipment as the interviews we are doing will not have an interviewer in the clips. Deciding on a shotgun microphone and the Z1 camera, I believe we can achieve a high quality documentary that will keep everyone interested.

The Boy

Ok so we were given the task the other day to put a small movie together with a soundscape and edit it. Though I chose to use IMOVIE to edit mine, I am very proud of the shots I got and thought I would put up the movie on You Tube as the quality is nicer the DivShare. The movie is called 'The Boy' starring Patrick Hall which is my boyfriend's little brother. He was very easy to work with and I will most likely be using him again when the time calls for it. I tried to use a lot of different shots to make the film interesting!! Enjoy!

FCP

So I have been doing a lot of research on FCP and what the program can actually offer. I have recently decided that I like IMOVIE as it is incredible easy to get your head around, however it is also extremely limited to what you can do with it. Watching a few You Tube clips I have discovered a few very interesting things FCP can offer. Here is one technique I found interesting! Enjoy!

Step Outline

I have been having difficulty seeing the full picture of what I actually want to happen in my short story for Susan's class. I started off with a really great idea called 'The Piano Tuner' I knew where it was going and what I wanted to happen, but the problem I had was the idea was too big to fit into 8 minutes. I am now working on that script for a calling card and taking my time so I don't rush it.

So starting a new story, I have a great idea called 'I'm watching you' well I think I am going to call it that, I am not sure yet. However the story is about a young girl who works in a CCTV office who enjoys mocking the people she watches. Though it is all innocent she soon starts to feel someone breathing down her neck and just cant shake the feeling that someone keeps staring at her throughout the day. When She arrives home she is caught speeding by a broken down old speed camera. She gets inside turns on the lights and notices a letter fall through the mail slot in the front door. Slowly reaching for the letter she bends down and opens it. Eyes now wide with fear she reads 'Sophie Say Cheese' Lights go out and that's the end of the movie.

With this script the next step is to do a Step Outline. This is easiest done on cue cards and then re arranged to make a extremely exciting story. A step outline is a sequence outline of the film you wish to create. The idea behind creating a step outline is to make sure there are no holes in the script, the strong points are where they need to be and the story moves forwards instead of moving slow or not moving at all.

In class I got to view a step outline for the BBC series Extras while watching the program. When writing a step outline it is important make sure the minimum amount of wording is used to describe what is happening and who with. As this is my first step outline, part of our homework this week is to pick one of our favourite movies or shows and create a step outline for practice. Hopefully I will be a natural but if not, practice makes perfect!

And you thought research was boring!! Enjoy!

I have been looking at a lot of different tattoos online, in magazines, on billboards and on people and each one is just as interesting as the last. As I have begun my research on tattoos I am still not convinced I would ever get one, however the people that do have them all see to have one thing in common, that being each tattoo carries a story.

For example, I work with a girl that has 9 tattoos on various areas of her body. Nothing big, mostly word art, but one imparticular that I will focus on says 'Bean'. Though all her tat's are great, this particular one is actually written on everyone in her family and could actually be a family symbol if you will, or even part of a special club. The symbolism is strong with that tattoo because it represents who she is and where she came from. The stories behind the tattoo bring up memories whenever she looks at the word scrolled across her wrist and gives her a sense of belonging.

Of course during my research there were a lot of other factors to consider when looking at tattoos. As I dug deeper into research mode, culture popped up and was absolutely fascinating to read and was recorded to have been in practice over a millennium ago by the Chinese Dulong tribe. There are stories about young women getting their faces tattoo'd by their older brothers wives at extremely young ages. This was done but scraping the face with sharp bamboo and then covering the scrape marks with the black soot from the fires. The Dulong women would often get marked as it made them less desirable to marauding horsemen that would come from nearby villages taking them for brides. There was also mention that they believed when they died these markings would help them in their after life so their loved ones would recognize them on the other side.

As for now I am going to go research some more, Currently everyone in the group is just trying to find as much as they can on origins and what not. I find everyone is doing a great job in the group and can't wait to hear what they have learnt on our next meeting. I am finding fantastic articles and have posted some links for you all to look at! Enjoy the pics!