Twilight Zone: Third and Fourth Shoot - Scene 6-7 / Scene 2

18th December, 2016 

Today, we went to Clearwater Bay Beach to film the beach scene. We modified the story as we thought that it was weird how good Charlotte follows Evil Charlotte into the ocean. Instead, Evil Charlotte will be pushing Good Charlotte off the cliff / into the ocean. Therefore, we had to decide on the framing of the shots on the spot, but we had sufficient time to plan and complete the scene so the shoot went well. There was a shot where Good Charlotte was yelling to Evil Charlotte from afar, and to create the yelling effect, we placed the microphone further away from the actress than usual. The sound of the waves was quite loud, but I made sure to record ambience so that later on if the sound covers the dialogue we can record a voiceover and lay the ambience track under it. We may also have to do foley for the footsteps. 

19th September, 2016

We wanted to film the street scene and reshoot two shots from the rooftop scene today. The reshoot went well, but afterwards we realised that there might be a problem with 9costume continuity because in the previous scene, Evil Charlotte puts her hood on, but in the rooftop scene she doesn't have her hood on. We need to check the previous footage and decide whether we need to do another reshoot.

I suggested that we should incorporate some more chasing in our film. Originally, we wanted to do a split screen with the crowded street scene - where Evil Charlotte is chased by Good Charlotte, but we realised that we couldn't do so because the people in the background will be different. We figured out another way to shoot the scene - I will be the stunt double (Good Charlotte). However, we encountered another problem. Since the cameraman has to follow the actresses who will be running on the street, there is no one to look after our bags (Charlotte Lai wasn't here for this shoot). Due to safety reasons, we decided that we will shoot this scene on 31st December.

Twilight Zone: Second Shoot - Scene 5, 8-9

13th December, 2016

Our original plan was to film the convenience store scene (scene 5), the bathtub scene and reshoot one shot from the bathroom scene. However, considering how we may not be allowed to film at convenience store and that our current footage already takes up almost 2 minutes of our film - in addition to the fact that our actress had to leave at 5:30 that day, we decided to cut out the convenience store scene. We will still be able to meet the production requirement (at least 2-3 portals) and it will not disrupt the storyline. My only concern was that there wouldn't be enough chasing in our film because the convenience store scene initiates the chase. 

We had to reshoot the shot from the bathtub scene where Evil Charlotte and Good Charlotte walk out the door because there was a noticeable change in lighting and framing in the two shots we filmed last week. However, there was too much light coming from the windows since the sun hasn't set yet, but we could not wait till sunset to film because our actress had to leave at 5:30 PM. We pulled all the curtains in the house and used towels to cover the window inside the bathroom to make it as dark as possible. We also used some masking tape to cover the camera's reflective surface because there was a glass door opposite the camera. 

We made sure that Evil Charlotte and Good Charlotte stayed as close to the sides of the door frame as possible so that the split screen would work. However, we were careless and accidentally moved the tripod, so the framing of the two shots were different. Also, despite our efforts to make the setting dark, you could still see our reflections in the glass door in the background, which we did not notice at the time. Therefore, we have to reshoot this scene again. Next time, we should make sure that the tripod is stable and film it during nighttime so that it will work well. 

We then filmed the bathtub scene. We filled the bathtub up with water and because the sounds of the water splashing was really loud, I brought the microphone outside the bathroom when we were shooting. Lastly, we also tried recording the sound of the clock ticking, but it was so soft that the microphone could not pick up any sound at all. I decided that it would be a better idea to use audio from Audioblocks instead. 

Twilight Zone: First Shoot - Scene 1-4

We finalised our schedule and found Charlotte Headey to be our actress. (We changed the gender of the character.) We will be filming on the following dates:

6th December (Tuesday): Tess' Place & Dark Alley in Causeway Bay - Scene 1-4

13th December (Tuesday): Tess' Place & 7-11 near school - Scene 5, 8-9

18th December (Sunday): Clearwater Bay Beach and Crowded Street in Kowloon (TBD) - Scene 6-7

We've also found solutions to all the problems of the script: See Google Doc

6th December, 2016

Today is our first shoot and we are all very excited to start filming. During class, we started recording the voiceovers for the flashback scene. Our plan was to first go to Causeway Bay to film the dark alley scene, then go to Tess' home to film the bedroom and bathroom scene, because the bedroom and bathroom scenes are set at night. 

After we arrived at Causeway Bay, we had to scout for a good location to film the dark alley scene. However, it was very crowded everywhere in Causeway Bay and we couldn't find an un-congested / quiet place to film. It would've been perfect to film the crowded street scene here, but we forgot to bring an important prop (the cigarettes). We filmed on the roof of an old building instead, which still achieved the same effect as we had hoped for because the place was quite shady. However, because of the location change, we had to think about what shots we have to film on the spot and the transitions between cuts to make sure it will be coherent and continuous. We filmed for about one and a half hour, then we went to Tess' house to film the bathroom and bedroom scenes.

One of the major challenges is that because the script requires the actress to act as both herself and her evil conscience (and they appear on screen at the same time), we have to film each shot twice with identical camera positions and think about where normal Charlotte and evil Charlotte should be on screen, so that later on we can use the split screen technique to combine the two shots. For the scenes where the character doesn't need to show her face, we used one of our film crew members (Charlotte) as a stunt double so we don't need to film two shots. There were times when we accidentally moved the camera in between the two shots because the bathroom was very cramped, so we had to refilm the previous shot so that it matches with the next shot. We also realized that there were some noises in the background coming from the living room in the bathroom scenes. I have to be more cautious with the background noises. 

Idea - place wash face cut after all the voices 

Twilight Zone: First Stage of Planning

After submitting all our scripts, we formed groups of 3/4 and read each other's scripts in order to decide on which script we will use. I teamed up with Tess and Charlotte. 

Tess's story belongs to the horror genre and revolves around two girls (one alive one dead) chasing each other. Charlotte's story "Only 16" is about a man sacrificing his son in order to redeem his life. Their stories were very interesting to me as they are very different from all the ideas I came up with in my brainstorm. In order to choose the script that is most suitable for the final production, we had to considered the following factors:

1. Is the story doable? 

2. Can the story be conveyed to the audience within 4 minutes / when put on screen?

3. Is the story intriguing?

4. Does the story match Twilight Zone characteristics?

All three of our scripts had their own flaws. My script has too many portals and will take a lot of planning because the actor has to play two roles (good side of the character & evil side of the character); Tess's script is set in a house and we do not know where we could find a house; Charlotte's script needs a grownup to act as the father. In the end, we decided that my film will be used for the final production as we agreed that it is a intriguing story and can be made doable if we cut out some scenes and do a detailed storyboard. 

The next step was the choose our roles. Tess wanted to be the director. Charlotte chose to be the editor. I decided that I will be the sound editor for this unit, as I think that it will be a challenging but interesting task to find audio for science fiction films. The three of us will also be sharing the role of cinematographer.

Next, we had to figure out what the major problems of the script are and fix them so we will be able to film it. Below is the list of problems:

1. Actors / Actresses

Who is willing to act and fits into character?

2. Mirror Scene

How will we film the mirror scene so that the camera is not reflected in the mirror? How will the evil version of the character appear?

3. Portals

Some scenes need to be taken out. Only keep the significant ones - which are the ones where the character tries to take drugs / smoke. 

Scene 7 (MTR scene) and 8 (cafeteria scene) were taken out. The two street scenes were combined into one. 

4. Clarification of script

How do we make sure the audience understands that the second character is the evil version of the first character?

5. Props

Where will we get the fake drugs & cigarettes?

6. Ocean Scene

How will this scene be filmed?

7. Locations

Where will we film the scenes?

Twilight Zone: Scriptwriting

Requirements for the Script

• Challenge what’s real and what’s imagination 
• 3 portals, don’t do “waking up and it’s a dream”
• When the character first gets introduced, name has to be in CAPS, and put age and gender 
• 5-7 page
• Twilight Zone — Usually a social critique
• Three Act Structure - Setup, Confrontation (Chase Scene), Resolution

Brainstorm 

After watching an episode of Twilight Zone - "To Serve Man", some student films, and reading some information about the series, I came up with many different ideas for my script. I learnt that science fiction films often comment on human nature, so many of my ideas revolve around themes like good vs. evil and loss of personal individuality.

Inspiration: Flash, Dr. Who, Real Life Stories about Portals 

Portals: Elevator, Convenience Store, Beach

1. Man striving for perfection, running to become a better version of himself / become someone he finds perfect. In the end he finds someone chasing after him. 

2. Man falls into portal and meets different versions of himself. Concept of Rabbit Hole. Man has a tough / sad / happier life than the other versions of himself, finding out how lucky he is / feels happy that there is a happy version of him out there in the universe. 

3. Man tries to retrieve fragments of his past. 

4. Man trapped in wall and breaks fourth wall in the end. Man coming from another dimension entering our world. 

5. Man chased by bad memories. 

6. Victim turns into villain / villain is actually protagonist. 

7. Device malfunction because of excessive use. 

8. Parallel Universe: Jumping to different worlds, same character but different personalities. Personality / emotions differ according to circumstances / happy, sad, angry version 

9. The Flash - using a device and running from the “Time Wrath” idea 

10. Finding out that third character is evil. Recurring name as a motif. 

11. Running away from consequences / responsibilities —> facing all your responsibilities (360 degree shot of the same person representing the different responsibilities)

12. Wearing masks / holding umbrellas 

13. Incorporate comedy / irony 

14. Competing at a race, running so fast that you go into a portal and discover something new 

15. Spoiled kid meets something bad / entering dystopia world 

16. Fear: 1 - Confronting fear, chased by fear; 2 - running is the only way to escape from reality; 3 - confronting your fears, future self chasing oneself to improve past self 

17. Person holding something - significant motif / sound - protagonist chasing for it 

18. Rod Serling intro / outro

19. Controlled by computer / all inside a computer game; dolls controlled by humans

20. Propaganda / Brainwashing 

21. Man in front becomes man in the back 

22. One person split into too - Good vs. Evil - Good side tries to control dark side. Hell vs. Heaven 

23. Mental Disorder: Depression - sees happy version of himself 

24. Character controlled by another person “The Author”

In the end, I decided that I will use Idea 23 as the basis for my story. In our recent CHOICES session, we were discussing stress management and learnt about the two types of stress - eustress (positive stress) and distress (negative stress). I know that a lot of students, including myself, are feeling very stressed out about school, therefore, I decided to use "distress" as the theme of my story, and wrote the plot according to the three act structure:

Setup | Boy is sad, lectured by teacher / mom, having trouble at school and with relationships. Extremely stressed out, releasing anger, negative & violent thoughts piling up in his head. Goes to wash his face. 

Confrontation | Evil (stressed out) side of him unleashes (comes out from a mirror), good side of him tries to catch him to control him. This is all happening in his head. Evil side escapes and tries to do bad things (hurting people, throwing things around, do stupid things, stealing, committing crimes, alcohol, takes drugs, smoking), boy goes to catch him and control him. 

Resolution | He returns to the same place and washes his face again. Confuse audience on whether it is reality of imagination. 

Through my story, the audience would enter the mind of a teen and experience how teenagers struggle to manage their stress (control their "evil" side). I think many students would resonate with the character in the story.

Twilight Zone: Continuity Editing

What is Continuity Editing?
A way of breaking down a scene into a series of shots.

Why 'Continuity'?

• Creates coherence and helps spectator orientation;
• Way shots are edited must permit the viewer to piece them together like a puzzle;
• Techniques of continuity editing enable the viewer to create a continuous picture from the shots presented on screen
• Connect characters, connect time. 

Continuity Editing - Key Techniques

Observing the 180 degree rule 

• The viewer is positioned on the same side of the scene or action (i.e. the invisible 4th wall).
• A film edited using continuity editing orients the viewer by placing them on one side of a 180 degree axis line of action. 
• Axis of Action, Director's Line
• Line between characters and camera can only stay on one side
• Helps to use a wide shot or establishing shot 
• One character looking to screen right, the other looking to screen left
• Camera has to move if you want to cross the line to show the movement visually
• Directors may intentionally break this rule to create disorientation.

The Eyeline match

• A character in one shot glances at something off-screen (out of frame) and a cut reveals the object the character is looking at. 
• The line of the character's glance has matched the two shots together, creating coherence. 

Point of view Cutting

• Variant on the eyeline match.
• Character looks offscreen, cut to the object the character is looking at. 
• Object is shown from the character's POV, through the character's eyes.

The match on action cut

• Cut from one shot to the next where the action is continued from one shot to the next. 
• Continuity of the same action across the shot creates coherence. 

Directional continuity 

• If a character exits the shot from the right of the screen, he should enter the next shot from the left of the screen.

The Establishing shot

• To make transitions smooth
• Used at beginning of stories or beginning of new scenes within the narrative
• A re-establishing shot may be used after many cuts to remind viewer of spatial context. 

Parallel cutting / Cross-cutting 

• Editing that alternates shots of two or more lines of action occurring in two different places, usually simultaneously 

Transitions

• Jump Cut - an abrupt transition between shots, sometimes deliberate, which is disorientating in terms of the continuity of space and time. Helps with the passing of time.
• Traditionally as seamless as possible
• Can be more creative e.g. 
• Dissolve - the first image gradually disappears while the second image gradually appears; Can be used as a straightforward editing device to link any two scenes, or in more creative ways, for instance to suggest hallucinatory states. 
• Only use Fade, Dissolve, Straight Cut

Rhythm

Why edit? Why risk disorientating the viewer? Why not just use long takes and deep focus photography?

• Because only have one shot with no movement is boring, and you want to direct your audience to look at what they need to look at. Help their understanding progress, help the story progress. 
• Gives director complete control over events and actors
• Gives viewers optimal access to the unfolding events
• Helps to prolong suspense
• Allows viewer to be more involved in action rather than focus on character psychology or actor's performance
• Eliminates unnecessary time and space

Needs element of chase. Film cannot be any longer than 4 minutes. 

FILM NOIR EVALUATION

The three major flaws of our film are the blurriness of the shots in the outdoor scene, the inconsistency of lighting, and an overcomplicated plot that was delivered poorly due to lack of time and poor acting. These three issues are all caused by our team's lack of communication and poor planning. 

• Inconsistency of Lighting due to my lack of communication with the director

In my second edit, which you can view here (note that the music and voiceovers are missing), the colour tone of the opening scene was blue and it was consistent. What happened was that I sent the second edit to our director for him to complete the final edit by adding the missing voiceovers (which he and another actor had to do) and music, and it turned out that he changed the coloured scenes as well because he seemed to disagree with my artistic choices. The final scene of the film was also changed - in my second edit, the scene of Justice talking on the phone wasn't shown again (only the voiceover was played) and instead there were longer cuts of Justice dying. I also rotated the shot of Justice on the ground in an attempt to create a dutch angle effect. I was not aware of these changes until the screening, but this is my fault because I did not communicate with the director clearly about my artistic choices and review the final edit before the screening. 

• Blurriness of the shots due to poor schedule management

The blurriness of the shots in the outdoor scene was caused by our lack of planning. First of all, our cinematographer was not there to film with us as she was busy, and the actor Hadrien was in a hurry to leave and we only had around 10 minutes to finish filming that scene. We wasted some time finding another location since filming is banned in our original location. The scene was newly added to the script, so we could not refer to the storyboard for the shots and we had to come up with them on the spot. I remember that the situation was out of control and we started to panic as we had a limited amount of time to finish filming that scene, especially because we would not be able to film during mid-term break since our director, who is our male lead, is away. We were unaware of how out of focus the camera was. If we had the chance to return to the production stage, I think that we should not have crammed all the shooting into two days when we had two weeks to film. We should have made sure that the location is available to use, chosen a date when everyone is sure that they are available, and found another actor who had more time to spare. 

• Plot cannot be conveyed well due to my lack of communication with the team

It is evident that I wasn't very pleased to act as the femme fatale in our film, but I never told my team that I feel uncomfortable with acting because previously, when I suggested to find someone who is actually enthusiastic about acting, they thought that it would be very inconvenient and difficult to match the actress's schedule. I don't think I was able to portray the femme fatale well at all since I lack a lot of emotion and the typical "seductive vibe". Therefore, our climax did not seem like a climax because I failed to deliver my lines well as the femme fatale. 

Overall, I think that all four of us seemed to lack the enthusiasm to communicate with each other - the boys and the girls were often working separately. For example, we originally planned to film after school so I filled in the equipment form and handed it in, but then it turns out that they never knew about the shooting and had decided that we would film the scenes in order. The shooting was therefore cancelled and I had to return the equipment right after we borrowed it. We could've made use of our time more effectively if we spent more effort communicating with each other. 

Another issue is that a lot of the times, even though I am a good listener and am open-minded to my group mates' ideas, I listen too much and did not take initiative to voice my ideas and opinions. I did not communicate with the director much when I was editing, so in the final edit, he made a lot of changes and I was not informed about them either because I did not take the initiative to review the final edit and justify my artistic choices to him. It is unfortunate that my ideas weren't fully showcased to the audience because I didn't take the initiative to discuss my ideas with the director. A positive point is that I was able to apply the knowledge I learnt in class about editing and I took inspiration (i.e. ideas for color correction - applying a blue color tone to the film even though in the end this was not showcased during the screening) from the two Hong Kong film noirs that I watched for the film noir critical analysis.

In our next film project, I will make sure that my ideas are heard and fight for them instead of being easily convinced to use another idea. I would also take the initiative to make a clearer schedule that all my group mates can access to avoid having any crew members missing during shootings. This unit served as a great start to Year 11 and I hope that throughout this year I can improve on my communication skills and increase my confidence in my artistic ability.