Workshop evaluation

When re-dubbing the spoken word content of the scene from The Office, I found it quite challenging. Attempting to get my words completely in synch with the actor on screen was not easy as trying to speak at the exact same pace was not easy. Initially I tried to record myself using the built in laptop microphone but I was then unable to hear the words being spoken so my timing was off. I decided to use my earphones with a built in microphone instead. The result was that I was able to speak in time with the actor on screen however this was at the cost of audio quality as breathing could be heard in the mic and it was too sensitive. If I was to do this again I will try and use the laptop mic whilst listening to the scene through my earphones.

The second workshop I did was adding music to a scene from a movie. For this I chose the opening credits from the film "Zombieland" as I really liked the slow motion zombie chase scenes. In order to contrast the dramatic nature of the situation and add to the comedy aspect I decided that the Red Hot Chilli Peppers cover of "Higher Ground" by Stevie Wonder would be a good choice. This is because the funk influences in the song would help emphasise the comedic aspect but the metal guitar riffs would contrast the slow motion sequences.

My final workshop involved adding sound effects to a scene. For this workshop I chose to add the rain sound effect from a scene in The Notebook. I wanted to make the scene out of entirely foley sound effects as I wanted to be sure I ended up with a final product I was happy with, after initially browsing for library sounds the majority of them included thunder and strong winds which would have negatively effected the mood and meaning of the scene. Before recording, I experimented using different techniques to make the foley sound effects. These methods included rapidly tapping my nails on a table and ruffling a plastic bag. In the end I decided I wasn't pleased with these methods and decided to try using rice and other small grains to make the effect, similar to a rain stick. Using GarageBand on my iPad to record, I placed the grains in a bowl and recorded the sounds made from mixing, stirring and pouring then overlapped them in an attempt to make it more realistic. To create the wind in the background I placed the iPad near the back of my fridge freezer to record the electrical buzzing sounds. Once it was all played together I was happy with the final effect so I cut it down to a manageable length then looped it to match the duration of the video.

Film: White Chicks

Scene: Car Scene

Duration: 1:48

Genre: comedy

Client: Keenen Ivory Wayans

The sound effects needed in this scene will include a mix of foley and Library sounds. The foley sounds recorded will need to be produced in the studio in order to not get background interference and library sounds will be obtained from freesound.org. There should not be any copyright or licensing complications with the sound effects, as they will be recorded by myself and the foley sounds are free for people to use.

The music used in the scene will be a "Ain't no sunshine" by Dr. Saxlove and "A Thousand Miles" by Vanessa Carlton which are both copyrighted material by Lovesax Records and A&M records respectively. "Ain't no sunshine" will be non diegetic, jazz with the intension of emphasising the romantic mood the character Latrell is trying to create. However "thousand miles" will be diegetic, as the character Latrell will be singing along with it for comedic effect. When sourcing the music there will be some copyright and licensing issues as both songs are copyrighted material.

The dialogue used will be naturalistic as there is a conversation between the two characters Latrell and Marcus however one part will include the character Latrell singing. The dialogue will be lip synched by my voice actor and they the script will be recorded twice (once for each character), this is to help ensure that there is no out of synch dialogue whilst trying to stay in time with both characters at once. It will be recorded in the studio and edited with GarageBand.

Other than myself the only other personnel required will be the studio voice actor, Chris Backway. He will also be used as a studio foley artist to assist with the dog bark.

Locations: studio

Equipment: laptop, Apple Mac, microphone

Software: GarageBand

Limitations: some background may be heard from outside the studio.

Film: The Hunger Games

Scene: Cornucopia Bloodbath

Duration: 2:20

Genre: Teen drama, action, science fiction

Client: Gary Ross

The sound effects needed in the scene will include solely foley sounds. The foley sounds recorded will need to be produced outside in order to achieve authenticity and sound more believable. The countdown at the beginning of the scene will be shot inside in the studio in order to reduce the chances of their being any background audio. There will not be any copyright or licensing complications with the sound effects, as they will be recorded by myself.

The music used in the scene will be the "cornucopia bloodbath score" by James Newton Howard and it will be non-diegetic, with the intension of emphasising the intense and emotional nature of the scene. When sourcing the music there should be no difficulty as the music was made specifically for this scene in the movie.

There will be no dialogue in this scene so a voice actor will not be required. However all editing will take place studio using GarageBand.

There will be no other personnel other than myself, as I will take the roles of foley recording artist and studio technician. 

Locations: studio, outside on grass/gravel

Equipment: laptop, Apple Mac, microphone

Software: GarageBand

Limitations: some background may be heard from outside the studio.

Evaluation

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9E-lefSA-7g


The first scene I chose was the car scene from the 2004 film White Chicks. The scene includes mostly spoken word in the form of naturalistic dialogue. I found this aspect of the scene to be particularly challenging because not all of the dialogue could be easily synched in with the visuals because sometimes their faces couldn't be seen whilst they were talking. The diegetic music that was played in the scene proved to be more challenging than originally anticipated as I didn't realise in the beginning that the song had verses cut. This meant that trying to synch the song with original required painstaking and tedious editing. I was unable to find the original non-diegetic jazz music that was used in the scene so I instead opted to find my own music that I also felt was fitting. There was also a small usage of foley sounds as I recorded the voice actor doing a growl for the dog but for the most part I used sourced material.

Overall I am pleased with the outcome as the reception it received from my peers suggested that both the humorous mood and meaning in the scene are effectively communicated. The practical work in this scene is also met my intensions and I didn't need to change anything during the editing and recording process.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7PM1DOScM4Q


The second scene chosen was the Cornucopia bloodbath from the first instalment of the Hunger Games trilogy in 2012. The scene contains no dialogue and is made up of almost entirely non-diegetic music which was part of the score for the movie. There was some use of sound effects in the scene which I made sure was entirely foley.

I recorded myself tapping on a table to replace the countdown at the beginning of the scene and I used an equaliser to distort the sound to help create an atmosphere and mood for the scene. I also took a microphone outside and recorded the sound of my stepping, running, jumping and dragging my foot across both gravel and grass to create different sounds. It was not my original intention to record record myself on gravel and grass for the foley sound effects but after watching a documentary about the making of the audio for the Hunger Games I discovered that the original sound production team actually used the same technique for the film so I came to the conclusion that it would be the best option moving forward.

I am not as happy with this scene in comparison to the other one I chose but I still believe I was able to show the mood effectively. If I was to rerecord the scene again I would probably include things such as footsteps and breathing by the main character to slightly change the scenes mood.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - Train Scene

The ice being formed on the glass window of the train would be an example synchronous sounds but the train tracks at 2:50 would be non-synchronous as you can not actually see the train moving along the tracks.

"Theres something moving out there" is a line spoken by the character Ron Weasley 0:59. This line is an example of functional dialogue however the large majority of dialogue in the scene is naturalistic.

A number of the sounds heard as the dementor enters the carriage the main characters are in could be considered hyper real. The rat's squeak was unnaturally loud, this was used to highlight the fact that even the animals were afraid of the creature too. Another example is the woman that can be heard screaming "Harry" its so distorted the transition from the scream to the steam engine sound is almost indistinguishable.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - Boggart Scene

This scene uses both non-diegetic and diegetic music throughout to create two different effects.

The boggart scene consists of virtually all naturalistic dialogue. Professor Lupin explains to the class about the creature they're about to encounter. This would be exposition as the audience is learning just like the students.

The diegetic music in the scene is upbeat and lighthearted, this is because the character, Professor Lupin wanted to create a good mood for the students in the class.

The non-diegetic music on the other hand completely contrasts this. There is a glimpse of a dementor roaming the fields surrounding the castle just before we cut to the classroom. The music played is low pitched, and works as a sound bridge into the next scene (the classroom) but unlike the music used in the previous clip it lacks the fast paced string instruments as the characters are not in imminent danger. The first thing you see in the next scene is the cupboard, this is because Alfonso Cuaron wants to direct the audience's anxiety associated with the dementor onto the cupboard. The cupboard is violently shaking and something inside can be heard rattling inside which suggests that a dementor may also be inside trying to escape.

Unlike the music played previously, the non-diegetic music that begins at 2:13 initially starts out in a similar way to before but 10 seconds in high tempo string instruments start playing to represent neville's increasing heart rate. These string instruments could be considered to be a sound motif as the they are is very similar to the ones heard earlier so the viewer has learned to associate them with the dementors.

Some of the skills, personal qualities and previous experiences I have that could be valuable to a potential employer include:

can work well with others
communication skills
leadership capabilities
independence

Some of the concerns I have about my management of an interview situation include:

Nervousness when given an unexpected question
potty mouth
uncomfortable being centre of attention so interviews put me under pressure
can become forgetful

A common weakness I observed in interviewees performances included talking about our weaknesses, I think when it comes to a question asking us about weaknesses we should find a way to tackle it.

8 thinks an interviewer looks for in an interviewee include:
presentation
punctuality
formal
well spoken
enthusiastic
personable
confidence

Film Industry

some jobs in this media sector include directors, sound engineers, runners, producers, production designers, cinematographer, director of photography, costume designer, make up artist and hair stylists.

The jobs I'm most interested in are production design and directing.
These jobs are not entry level.

In production design there is an emphasis on who you know rather than what qualifications you hold although art and film based degrees such as film production are very important.

This is because you get to meet other people going into the industry and also develop the skills required for this job.

As the head of the largest department on a film crew, you must have extensive experience gained over a number of years. You would usually start as a Junior Draughtsman, moving on to Draughtsman, Assistant Art Director and Art Director.

If you graduate in film and theatre design, you will need to gain experience working on short films before progressing to junior roles on feature films.

The job involves working in a freelance basis.

Production Designers are major heads of department on film crews, and are responsible for the entire art department.

They help Directors to define and achieve the look and feel of a film. 

Production Designers deliver their design sketches (showing mood, atmosphere, lighting, composition, colour and texture) to Art Directors who oversee the production of technical drawings and models, which are used by the Construction Department to build the sets and adapt locations. Props Buyers and Set Decorators source props and organise the manufacture of specialist items. 

Although Game of Thrones is a TV series, it is one of biggest shows on television at the moment and has a lot of emphasis on production design.
Game of Thrones Season 5: Artisan Piece #2 – Set Design (HBO)
Game of Thrones Craft: Set, Costumes, Hair, and Makeup

I hope to increase awareness towards mental health illnesses whilst asking the question if the pressures of school/college are a significant catalyst amongst teens in the United Kingdom. As it's a sensitive issue there will need to be some ethical considerations taken to ensure that no one finds the video triggering.