One Word Film project submission

 For this project, we were put in groups (in my case, a group of 3), and given a word. We then had to create a short film that was at least a minute long that centered around our given word. 

Me, Addie, and Chase were given the word "Pessimist". At first, we didn't really know how to capture the tone of pessimism without using words since our film could not include any sound. But as a group we tried to find a real-life example of everyday pessimism, and we realized we had all experienced it at some point. Being teenagers, it's the little things that tick us off, even such small things like bad wifi or even our parents can mess up our moods. So, we decided to come up with a storyline that shows how the little things tick off our pessimistic main character throughout the film. We brainstormed a clear narrative for our film by creating a bulleted list of main ideas we wanted to feature and then translated those ideas onto a storyboard (first drafts both featured below) to specify and organize the story. Once we were happy with that, we began filming. 

All the filming took place in one class period since the film takes place at a school, and then we took another class period to edit. We used Adobe Express to edit, and for being our first time using this software it went pretty well. 

While I still believe this word is tricky to translate into a short film since a big part of pessimism is verbal expression, I think the body language and shots we used definitely helped convey that vibe. In future projects I think we need a little more practice with Adobe and its features since we did think we muted the video but we did not, and also a little more attention to details could help elevate our project and make it look more professional. Things like editing and post effects make such a huge difference in the quality of a film, and I'm very excited to learn how to make my films look more intentional and higher-quality. 

Link to project: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1zmw4d8wf09bFtvXzlDjKr77pFryufkTr/view?usp=sharing

Camera Shots/Angles Quiz Submission

 For our first quiz, we were given very different instructions than a regular one. We were instructed to use 15 shots/angles to convey the tone and meaning of a short story. 

This assignment was to test our knowledge in Camera shots and angles and how they help develop a story's purpose. We were to use 2 inanimate objects and could use humans as well. My partner and I began with brainstorming some ideas, but we knew we didn't want to use humans in our quiz because we wanted to challenge ourselves and use an object that doesn't have emotions and see if we could convey the right message through our camera shots/angles. When approaching this assignment, I knew I wanted to tell a wholesome story. It was the few weeks of school and I wanted to capture the feeling of starting fresh somewhere new, as I did my freshman year here at Cypress. Me and my partner ultimately landed on a story tackling themes of equality, unity, and the importance of friendships in times of need. 

Our story follows a Purple Pen starting their first day at their new high school. Upon arriving to the school, Purple Pen realizes they are the only colorful pen, being surrounded by only Black and White Pens who bully Purple all day. At their lowest point, Purple meets Pink Pen- and together, they pull through the adversities because they know they are not going through them alone. While we did leave most pens faceless, we gave Purple a little cartoon face just to make our close ups on Purple have more meaning/emphasis. But by keeping most pens faceless, we were challenged to show character in different ways. For example, to make the Black and White Pens look intimidating, we used a low angle shot to highlight their dominance over purple (who, in contrast, we used a high angle shot for to show vulnerability). Pens are also obviously tall and straight so playing around with the shots and angles gave them more movement and made them seem less inanimate...like when we used an extreme close up to show a Black pen "shoving" Purple, despite Black having no real hands. 

What I think I did well was use the shots and angles effectively to convey feelings and make tone/message  clear. I believe the story was well adapted and had a clear narrative that the shots and angles enhanced. What I could improve is familiarizing myself with what exactly differentiates similar shots and when to use one or the other. Also, making sure to define the shot/angles I use correctly. Knowing exactly how and when to use each type of shot and angle will take some practice, but careful consideration for that will show more intention over my different projects/quizzes and strengthen my future pieces tremendously. 

Link for quiz: Camera Shots Quiz