Pre-Proposal for Disconnected

Concept:

The inspiration for the project came from the societal shift we have witnessed since the popularisation of the internet along with handheld technology, where we have grown to be deeply reliant on smartphones and tablets to aid our lives that we now cannot imagine life without them. So, we asked the simple question:  how would we as a species cope without the technology that we are so reliant on to actuate our lives today, if it wasn’t there anymore? Would we as a species be rendered useless by an over-reliance and complacency on technology, or would we be able to adapt and survive without its existence, despite our dependence on it? It is a question which certainly has relevance in the 21^st century today, considering how advantageous and regarded technology is as a tool to benefit our lives.

We wanted to explore this theme in the project with a video narrative, with our target audience being the society that we would be profiling in our video.  We personally felt that because of the subject matter being a contemporary issue with wide appeal, and our own personal reservations that society has become “disconnected” from reality by an overindulgence and trust in technology with a disregard to its fellow human being, we would target not a specific demographic, but a far-reaching one as the subject matter is ubiquitous and in essence, encompasses not a linear audience, but a universal one, and we would want to target as much people as we can, due to our strong feelings about society’s attachments to technology. Therefore, we believe our project would be suitable for an extensive audience.

Project requirements:

To record our narrative, we will borrow a HD video camera, along with a tripod from the FASS Loans Room. Our main asset for the video, is our main character who the narrative revolves around, will be played by group member Ceysun Dixon, with cameo appearances by group member San Mao, Kingston students and other particular individuals, who will be used to propel the main character within the narrative. The proposed video will need props: a mobile phone, a map, hand-written letters, among other props. The project would also need a range of suitable locations as detailed in the storyboard, such as an automobile repair shop, a university grounds, a commuter train and a shopping centre. The video will be edited using Final Cut Pro within the campus computer rooms. And finally, both collaborators on the project will need to be extra flexible with their schedules should any unexpected issues arise during the production of the project.

Project timeline:

·       

           November 2013

-          Finalising what concept to use for the final video

-          Finalise  800 word pre proposal

-          Submit pre-proposal on 8^th November

-          Research and gain inspiration for project by viewing media content.

-          Experiment using recommended software that we would use towards our video narrative

-          Discuss with group members the equipment that is needed for the project

-          Create mock videos to find out whether the project concept works

-          Watch tutorials on Lynda.com and websites like YouTube to gain further knowledge on how to operate production equipment

·    

            December 2013

-          Commence production on video narrative

-          Find actors and extras suitable for the video

-          Find locations that will portray our concept effectively

-          Create a script of the narrative

-          Finalise draft of storyboard if any changes occur

-          Finalise actors, locations and script

-          Start filming video

·       

            January 2014

-          Finish filming video

-          Make an edit decision list

-          Start editing  and experimenting  using various editing techniques

-          Consider and source sound for video

-          Finalise editing

·     

         February 2014

-         

                    - Gain feedback on video by distributing to different social platforms

-                                     -- Arrange public screen test for video

·         

     March 2014

-        

             Submit portfolio on 24^th March

Product Description:

The production to our definition will be a “realistic drama” centred on contemporary life, and focuses on a man’s overzealous reliance on his smartphone, with a negligent approach to living his life without it. His device would one day become inoperable, and he would realise that without his phone, he does not possess fundamental basic skills such as interpersonal communication, map reading or even letter writing which the use of his phone had covered up, which his life requires him to do and know. He would be forced to using archaic means to live his life while his phone is being repaired. He would at first find a basic way of connecting with people difficult, but over time, he learns a valuable lesson, and eventually rejects his phone, embracing his life without it. 

My blog address:

ceysundixonk1326851.blogpost.co.uk

Word Count: 768

500-Word Evaluation

 The idea for the project spawned from the societal shift witnessed in recent years in the evolution and subsequent popularisation of handheld technology, where it is now in almost every pocket. However, as more people become dependent on the technology to aid their lives, what would happen if the unthinkable were to happen and the technology ceased to exist? We wanted to explore this theme, and thus, “Disconnected” was born.

But fulfilling the project and bringing it to life, was challenging throughout, and marred by a variety of problems. The most challenging aspect I found during this project, was working with a particular group member, who for the most part, did not want to participate, rarely contributed, did not seem they like they wanted to and whose attitude was dreadful throughout, which made fulfilling the project more demanding than it should have been. Other problems which were faced included a lack of plan which inhibited filming for a while; once I was the one to take the initiative to make one, did the project take off.  An SD card which held the final day’s footage was lost as well. Although this issue was solved by filming the last day again, there is a massive continuity flaw with the character’s appearance as a result.  And finally, with all these problems, it did not leave us a lot of time to edit the video as convincingly as we could have. Under these circumstances, a lot could be done differently the next time; however, I am pleased that the project was completed in the end.

As detailed, the project was ambitious, especially the narrative. To make it relatable for an audience, I thought about what we had in terms of resources and the story we originally wanted to tell. Because of this, I had to scale down the story a little and make it more universal: about love, and considering the resources we had – actors and locations – the project then became easier to fulfil and allowed it to proceed into production, when it had stalled.

Watching the final video, I can see a number of ways that it can be improved. There was a lack of care with shooting particular sequences during production which editing could not put right, and will make immersion for an audience into the narrative fairly difficult. Owing to the number of problems the project dealt with, leaving it with little time, the video was edited quite hastily and languidly, for that matter. The project required sound to be implemented in some form and we went for it to be synchronous with the action on the screen; but with little time remaining, we couldn’t experiment with the sound as much; however the way that sound was used in the video, accentuated the narrative and made it all-the-more powerful; and arguably better.

Choosing a platform to showcase the video is fairly simple partly because of the subject matter and the age of the characters within. I believe the video would be fitting for a place like YouTube; and that is because the video has the potential, I feel, to develop a cult-like status owing to the heavy use of the Rocky theme tune and self-conscious acting, and with the power of social media, would allow an extensive audience to see it, and share it further.  

Ceysun Dixon KU ID: K1326851

Post-Production: So, That's It

The project has now come to an end, by implementing the answer to its most compelling question: "how will your product work with music or sound?" And by God, has it been answered emphatically.

Within our group of collaborators, we settled on the incorporation of sound as a narrative device. If the character is experiencing a moment of joy, or an instance of sorrow - the sound heard will communicate the story being told by the visuals, to make the story all the more powerful.

As straightforward as it would be to include sound in this way to compliment our narrative, the problem with thinking is that it is much simpler to envision ideas in the safety of the mind, then to put them into practise within the reality of a real world. And we had some issues not only applying sound into the narrative, but also deciding what type of sound should be included.

The beginning of the video was easy to add music in, as we had already decided that music would play at the beginning and we had filmed the character choosing a song from his phone before he began texting someone and walking at the same time. The reason for starting with music at the beginning was to mislead the audience into who the character was and what was really happening to him. We specifically chose the song "Levels" by Avicii due to its up-beat tempo and buoyant connotation; as the character walked down a street at the same time texting someone with his headphones blaring the upbeat "Levels", he was oblivious to anything but himself, bumping into someone and narrowing being run over by a car as he was obnoxiously engaged with his phone.

We had a prolonged discussion as to what type of sound should come after he trips and falls down, breaking his phone in the process, as the music would come to an abrupt end as the phone would become inoperable. We came to the conclusion that with a massive disconnect from the narrative and the music with the fall, the sound should represent his reality that the music covered up; that he is a man too far selfish and indulged with his smartphone to realise his reality: that he is an ordinary person, and without his smartphone, he just that. Once he falls down and the music stops, sounds of his surroundings - car noises and people talking away - are heard to symbolise his reality, when the one he believes in, no longer exists.

The story we are trying to tell in our video, is of a man trying to locate his love interest without the use of his smartphone, once it breaks. Once his phone is broken he would have to resort to using archaic methods to find her; and the first form of antiquated technology he uses is an information board, where the next sound kicks in, with the choice, rather controversial.

In the pre-proposal, we defined our video as a "realistic drama", and the footage we filmed upheld this notion. However, with the music we selected for this segment of the narrative and a lot of scenes within it, the seriousness of the narrative may be undermined. As we wanted an inspirational sound to signify the character's plan to find his love interest without his smartphone - no easy feat, I tell you - we went for arguably one of the most inspirational songs of all time: The Rocky theme tune. It works as a narrative device to suggest that the character is inspired to carry out his plan, but it takes away, I feel, from the gravity of what our piece was planned to be.

We also came across some objects within the piece that had no sound when it became active in the film, which looked really strange and felt quite odd to behold. For example, as music is placed over most of the narrative to make the story more all the more powerful, certain objects that the character interacts with - namely a phone inside a telephone box and a paper map - do not have their own sound in the film, whereas they would in the real world, as music was put over most of the narrative. To give life to some objects within our narrative, we sourced some ambient sound and placed them over the relevant objects the character interacts with, to bring them to life and to add some authenticity into our film - which is now complete, after having the piece de resistance of sound was implemented.

Which means that the long-lasting saga that was this group video project, has come to an end. For most of the project's duration, this stage never looked likely, but it is strangely the reality. From its dreadful beginnings, to its stalled middle and finally, to its cumbersome but successful ending, I am glad the project has reached this stage; and finally over - until the next one begins, that is...

Ceysun Dixon KU ID: K1326851

Post-Production: Rome Wasn't Built in A Day

Since the preceding post last week, which stated that the video was about 80% complete, the video is just about finished with the only thing separating it from its glorious end, the implementation of sound, before it is to be burnt onto a DVD disc, for submission this upcoming Monday.

This past week, Gendrick and myself have putting the final touches to the video, smoothing out the rough edges, and contemplating fitting music and sound to ensure the video resembles something of a masterpiece we would be proud of and not something that would be made fun of, by those with critical eyes and namely, by ourselves. 

Before we met to put an end to Post-Production this week, we had agreed that Gendrick would put together the remaining 20% of the video himself over the weekend, as that would help speed up the editing process for when we would meet up and because we had decided to edit using his personal laptop as the University's computers, simply, are sup-bar and frankly, unusable.

Meeting up this week, after some complications from his end putting the remaining 20% together, the video was more-or-less in a complete state, but very rough in nature with some sequences poorly linked to one another and without music, which is undoubtedly the piece de resistance that this project requires.

These were the only steps remaining for the video from being finalised, and for them to be taken, we began by watching the video in its rough finished condition, and quickly, it became obvious as to what needed to be smoothed out, and improved.

The opening of the video begins with a sequence of a text exchange between the main character played by me, and an unknown person, played by San. At the time of filming these text sequences, there were periods of 30 seconds from the message sent by me to a reply being sent back, which means as we were shooting the text exchange from my view, the camera recorded that 30 second wait.

As we have a story to tell and a a contemporary audience whose attention span in the modern age is non-existent, we obviously cannot include this 30 second wait in-between messages, and so, we have had to condense the wait to about a few seconds. The only problem however, is that these sequences do not match up whatever we do as my hand does not - and cannot - remain idle in an alleviated position for long as was required; and that is the problem within these scenes: with cuts to turn the 30 second wait to a few seconds, my hand is instantly in another position which ruins the immersive experience our film tries to provide. The only solution for such a problem that has no solution, is to make that problem as small as possible; and we done that as best as we could within these scenes but even then, it makes the problem no better.

Another scene which came to our attention, was a quick cutaway from a shot of me running, to a shot of my feet buckling, as a result of the frantic run. Whenever a film laden with special effects has something that looks counterfeit when presented to be genuine, those watching with a judgmental mind are likely to utter "that looks so fake" at the offending material. Witnessing that particular segment together, we did the same and both laughed at how disproportionately out of sync the cutaway looked within the falling-down sequence of the character and so, after the giggles died down, we cut it out, which will ensure the audience will not lose the immersive experience we want to provide, as they did with films like Sharktopus (2010) and The Scorpion King (2001).

Another complication within the video that we came across in its finished state, was perpetrated by my ill-advised but lovable group member Gendrick, who had forgotten to include a scene that was mutually deemed important to incorporate. When looking through the video together, I watched the main character who was standing at a pedestrian crossing, waiting to cross, looking at something for a long time, then walking off and thought to myself: "why was he looking over there; what was over there that compelled him to look for so long?" I turned to him and said: "Why didn't you put in the close-up of the traffic men symbols that we agreed should be in there?" His hand moved promptly to the mouse pad and in went the close up.

The consensus with the film is that not only is it to include sound/music, but also a logo of some sorts and a credit sequence to acknowledge those who made the film possible. After going through the video with a microscopic comb and ironing out the inconsistencies as mentioned, we engaged in collaborative discussion to address this topic, and it began in a somewhat facetious manner.

With suggested production titles like "Bad-man Productions" and "Rudest Boyz Presents" first out of our system, it allowed us make more sophisticated suggestions representing the theme of our "realistic drama." We decided to give the typography of our film "Disconnected", a typeface representing what the narrative is about: being disconnected from technology in the modern age. The letters for the title are loosely connected to one another, and grainy in appearance to give out an ambience of desolation. We also inserted in a credit sequence which would follow on from the title at the end of the film, accrediting the people who worked to make the film even possible: the writer, actors and producers are all rightly acknowledged, as without their hard work, we wouldn't be on the verge of finishing a video-making process which has been dismal from beginning to end, and never looked as if it would make it to this stage.

Music is all that's left to be incorporated to complete the video in its entirety, and of course, for the project to meet its end. For all the details, read on...

Ceysun Dixon KU ID: K1326851 

Post-Production: Composing the Mona Lisa

Having now completed filming, and leaving the status of "Production" firmly behind forever, the project has now moved into its final phase of post production, with editing now its only step separating it from its triumphant end.

Having edited a few videos previously, I thought it would be wise to expend some time renaming every video we shot before jumping into it, to make the process easier - as we have about 97 usable videos to edit from.

If the videos are not renamed, they will simply be displayed by a generic file name, making it incredibly difficult to distinguish a specific shot from another and subsequently make that shot harder to find when it is needed in the editing room. For example, all the files we have are by default named "MOV" followed by a number at the end indicating its position among our footage folder, the only differentiating feature separating any unique file, but that does not help reveal its exact contents.

And to make the process less burdensome, I went through each and every single one of the 97 files, naming them by what its held in its contents; giving some files the title of "walking out of the tube station" or "zoom into the red telephone box", depending on what shot the file contained.

Having solved a problem before it became one which would have seriously inhibited editing before it really began, me and Gendrick met up to enact the beginning of the editing process, to bring an end to a project long overdue.

As we had filmed our sequences in a chronological order and with the renamed files now grouping every file into a specific sequence of events, finding the files and then deciding where they would go in Final Cut Pro's timeline proved not one problem in part to the methodology in filming the narrative in a chronological manner and giving every generically named file, a specific title, facilitated a typically tedious and monotonous editing process, and made it more of a rapid and gratifying experience, to begin with, at least.

After a long period of sitting down engaged in a repetitive process with virtual cuts of a blade ending the life of an inanimate video being the only respite for two easily bored gentleman, the typical dissent displayed by young men having had to endure such an unenviable process for a few hours, finally began to show.

As straightforward as it was for us to put videos files in the timeline, cut them down to size through mutual discussion so they would link up with another video to make the narrative work, that was then replaced with petty arguments and insults as it became clear the honeymoon period had elapsed having edited for a few hours, and carrying on with the same process any further, would have been detrimental to our working and personal relationship.

It was decided at that point to go our separate ways, but we ended on a high point with about 80% of the video put together.

With little time before the video must be finished and submitted by, we agreed in the benefits of speeding up the editing process that Gendrick would put together the remaining 20% and once we meet again, we would discuss - and probably edit - the video for its ultimate form.

Step by step, we near the finishing line that we should have crossed long ago and now the only prize that we can win, is of redemption. And slowly, we near it.

Ceysun Dixon KUID: K1326851

Production Day 4: That's A Wrap...Again

As a result of an unexpected act of naivety unwittingly masterminded by my lovable but ill-advised group partner Gendrick, misplacing the SD card which contained the last day of filming on a street somewhere, we returned back to Southwark to make up for his imprudence and to move back into "Post-Production" by filming scene-for-scene exactly what we had captured before.

The problem this time however, is our return to Southwark to film the same sequences as we had before, coincided with beginning of a working week for London, which meant the location of filming was now bustling full of people and more populated than the weekend we had stepped foot with camera in hand and wrapped up filming.

This made re-recording the narrative more taxing than we thought it would be, and soon the idea that we could just as easily record what we did previously was replaced with a overwhelming sense of consternation that it wouldn't be as simple as that, by the virtue of a functioning landscape that we did not expect and could not control.

Southwark station: returning once again to film

However we had to re-record what we had lost and did the best we could do, battling to duplicate what had been shot 9 days earlier, and despite knowing what we filmed and how we positioned a particular take those 9 days earlier making the process somewhat easier than the first time we shot in Southwark, the huge difference this time was having to contend with a moving and alive city, which meant some takes had to be re-shot a few times, in part to the swathes of people interfering with camera and thus story we wanted to tell: but through trial and error, thankfully, we managed to pull off what we did before; the downside being, it took longer than the first time.

Not only that, another problem we faced filming the same sequences again, is that 9 days on, memories become quite fuzzy. A lot of time was spent reminding each other what was filmed before and from where, then debating if that was the case. Meaning a lot of time was expended arguing and trying to convince one another what we had done 9 days earlier, making the idea of simply re-recording everything again, more of a fairy tale only confined to books that drove the amount of time we were on location - in the frightening cold - trying to avenge the folly of a certain group member.

Trying to capture exactly what we had before, we hoped for another meeting with deja vu. The previous time we stepped on location to film, we required the courteous consent of others to make particular elements in the narrative work, and having requested help from members of the public to facilitate our dreams, they listened and gracefully obliged.  This time however, requesting help again from the people of London, we got it, alright - but we also got something else.

After politely requesting help from two possibly French bystanders to be supporting actors - with the unenviable task of removing a phone from a pocket and then handing it over when prompted - within the narrative, they regonised me as a bonafide acting superstar. As we had wrapped up the the take and were setting up for another scene, they approached with the rest of their friends - about 20 of them - requested autographs and pictures, and because I love my fans too much, I had to oblige. Being an actor is not as easy as it is made out to be...

Famous: signing autographs and dealing with girls 

In an earlier post, I mused if we would get the same "mutual, enthusiastic participation" that we had before from within, as having perspicuity ingrained into my psyche, I cannot overlook such factors due in part to my experience in dealings with other homo sapiens and my understanding of the way they are wired. Although there was participation, it was far from enthusiastic as I had expected and despite my efforts - or of any other - there really is - and was - little chance of generating any, but I am pleased to have received the participation aspect at least, as it meant filming could be completed.

Now, we have wrapped up filming once again, and I am pleased to say it will remain that way, as logic requested I be the one to keep hold of the SD card - and the intriguing case that logic makes, it was hard not to listen.

We move onto editing now, and a step closer to finishing a project long overdue, but now in sight...

Ceysun Dixon KU ID: K1326851

Eh...Houston, We Have A Problem...

This should have been a post, which logic would have expected, to be about editing. Having wrapped-up and finished with production, logic could have only expected one thing to be discussed at this stage.

However, a single act of idiotic naivety by Gendrick, my lovable but ill-advised group partner, has shocked my dear friend logic into doubting himself forever and ruined what this post was to be about, as my brilliant partner, has lost the SD card which contained the final day of shooting.  

Now, if Gendrick had listened to my friend logic before he lost the SD card, he would have either backed-up the files on his computer, or put the card in a safe place that would have enabled it to be secure during transit, where the card was supposedly lost. Yes, by now, I'm guessing some kid who was watching out for processed doggie treats on the pavement has come across the card, and is now laughing at our footage, with plans to record over the footage with episodes of Spongebob. 

It isn't all bad, I must say. As a believer in the power of logic, I often am compelled to listen to it, and the loss could have been far more worse than it is. You see, after the first and second day of filming, I took home the camera and SD card, and with logic making too compelling a case, I saved the footage onto my computer. So, it isn't all bad.

Now, we are forced to move from "Post-Production" and back into "Production" again. The wave of triumph that all within the group were riding on since we had wrapped-up, has been replaced with an unexpected sense of blistering annoyance. 

Listening to logic, he tells me that as a result of this schoolboy calamity, it may not be as straight forward to simply re-record the scenes that were lost. You see, he tells me that there may be a massive problem in maintaining continuity between the second day of filming with the future day of filming, as the time in-between these two periods will be 9 days. 

Let me give an example of the problem logic foresees. The second day of filming consisted of recording myself - who plays the main character in the video - getting off the train and out of the station. The next day of filming to rectify the lost footage comes 9 days later. The next set of sequences that are to be recorded again, will show me leaving the station with a close-up of my interaction with an information board. Once the video is edited together using footage recorded 9 days apart from one another, the character's hair and beard will have grown incredibly through one train journey. Thanks a lot, Gendrick. 

Perspicuity and not logic this time, tells me that the factors of mutual, enthusiastic participation that we had before, may be harder this time to guarantee again - which would certainly be the biggest inconvenience to come about from this situation. But if logic gets through, we may have a chance at least.  

Once we re-record the scenes that were lost - and most likely the ones we already have - logic tells me that I should hold onto the card containing our precious footage, once we wrap up again. 

Logic is a wonderful trait to the beholder and helps make life easier. But when the beholder does not hold any, then life is made difficult - for everyone. 

Ceysun Dixon KU ID: K1326851