CCR Wired Autocomplete edition

 Hopefully, I can recreate this if I become famous...

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1esGPGL2nfh0BLeeTwpaYSIjJKTMQYSMl/view?usp=sharing

Genre: Suspense/Thriller 

AMBER

 The day has come...

After months of planning, weeks of writing days of filming, and hours of editing it has come down to the final minute to submit. Every second of this project I enjoyed and I hope you enjoy it too!

Film Opening:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1TzupunXT_0qrlJooM7Q9Vv0N1os7JA7M/view?usp=sharing

Editing Day 2

 My timeline is all complete i will be asking everyones opinions on my credits. I  can just not decide on if i want it at the end or beginning of my opening. If i have it at the start my opening is 2 minutes ad 6 seconds long when I put it at the end it is 2 minutes and 11 seconds long. This is my current status of my timeline a huge difference!

This took me  about 4 hours to assemble and get to my liking. Editing is one my favorite things to do i believe it's way more fun than actually filming. I am going next week to ask my teacher on her opinion and where the credits should go. If i do put it at the beginning it will be overlayed on my establishing shots. This could take away from the shot im trying to show you but it also feels more like a film opening. If I put my  credits at the end it wont take away from the shots im showing my audience but it feels more of a film close. Let me know what you think i'll attach some pictures also so what i just said makes more sense.

Filming day 2

 I have gotten ALL of my footage! I am so happy with everything I got I might have a new favorite shot....  I filmed in Matlacha a very island town if you couldn't tell when you watch my opening. I gathered a total of 40 shots but I am only using about 25 of them. I wanted to get a huge variety of shots with lots of colors so here is a couple of stills so you can see what I'm working with.

This is the equipment setup that I used.  

Also later today I filmed some extra footage in the car of my brother tuning the radio and i believe that is going to be my opening shot now. This was a last minute decision on my part of going out to film him but I do think it was worth going back out. 

Editing day 1

 Hello! It's actually just the same day but I have started editing and my timeline looks pretty cool. I am missing a gap which I will film the rest tomorrow but so far my story looks good. All the audio checks out and it looks like I don't really need to refilm anything at all. Here is my lime line. I am using adobe premiere pro to edit my whole film opening. I did find a song that fits my opening perfectly I found it on some jazz websites. I put the link below if anyone else wants to browse the selection was pretty great.

https://freemusicarchive.org/genre/Jazz?sort=date&d=0&pageSize=20&page=12

I also added in a squeaky door effect that I found on the youtube library. YouTube library has an amazing selection for anyone looking for sound effects or music that does not require attribution. My footage on the timeline currently only takes up about 45 seconds to a minute depends what I do with the credits. I also added a Kodiak filter to my footage. as you can tell it's more blue and given a yellow tint which is what  I want. These are my settings for the color...

:)

Filming Day 1

 Day 1 of 2 of filming was a success! My brother Noa Batista was my main actor and I got some pretty cool shots. I have included a still that might be my favorite out of my whole film opening. Today I filmed the last minute of my opening. It would make sense to film the beginning first but that was not the most convenient nor conventional thing to do. I also included a picture of me getting my shot ready😁

I recorded a total of 12 times with different shots each time I couldn’t figure out exactly what I wanted until I stepped foot inside of the actual car. I filmed on my Nikon Z50 camera and checked out a DJI Pocket Ronin. I don’t love the shots that came out of the mini ronin. The quality wasn’t all the way there and the positioning is slightly awkward. I have also included a short video that I captured on the pocket ronin.

Okay off to editing now!

New Screen Play

 Long shot 

Town of Matlacha being shown with white jeep passing by

Long Shot

Jeep continues and the camera shows the long empty road

Medium Shot

Jeep pulls into home

Close up

Close up of gravel and shoes stepping into frame.

Bodybag falling next to feet

Medium Shot

Bodybag dragged through the side of the house

Medium shot

Dumped in water

POV Shot

Face looking down into the water after a body was dumped

Long shot 

A person goes inside the house and turns off lights

Long shot zoom in

 

Title card appears

Written by: Mia Batista

Directed By: Mia Batista

Screen Play by: Mia Batista

Sound By: Mia Batista

Group Meeting

Today in class we had a group meeting and it was productive. My main problem was running out of topics to talk about. My group members gave me their list of blogs and how I can incorporate those into mine. My group members had some idea problems which I was able to help with. We were all at different points in our project which allowed for constructive advice. So since I haven't filmed yet and Joe did he was able to tell me his experiences and what he could have done differently.

                                     

Some examples of blogs include

*Audio Samples

*Casting

*Costume

*Vlogs

*Lighting

*Foley

* AD Poster

They really liked my blog how it was set up and the background. They said it was easy on the eyes and was entertaining. They appreciated the menu on the side directing them to my blog posts. (That was cool someone noticed) I'm so excited to start filming now since I have feedback and have a backbone from my fellow classmates.

Helping Others

 As a student film producer, I guess you can say there are other students that need your help. Today I helped out not one but 2 of my classmates. I have a background knowledge of cameras and angles which I used to helo their film. I am not an actress but I was acting in one of my friend's film openings. This doesn't seem so important to my project but it is an important factor of production. Helping others so you can build connections.

 Now I have 2 other people that are willing to help me when I need it the most. Some other things I picked up on set are things NOT to do. My friends were not that prepared so filming became hard. I know I need everything drawn out so when my actors do get to set they know what they are doing. I like to see myself as an independent filmmaker so having help from others is a bit out of my comfort zone but I do know help may be necessary. 

The next following posts will be very productive with more videos and pictures of my new plot. I know this sucks that I'm changing it so late but it must be done. It does have elements from my original storyboard but not totally the same.

Ronin

 This week I checked out the Ronin. This piece of equipment will stabilize my camera shot. I have no experience using this but it should be fun. I am hoping to put my own camera on this stabilizer and create perfect shots.  My camera is a Nikon Z50. This is a "mirrorless" camera that will accept different lenses but does not use a mirror to reflect the image into the viewfinder. Also called a "mirrorless interchangeable-lens camera" (MILC), "hybrid camera" and "compact system camera" (CSC), the body is thinner than a digital SLR (DSLR) because there is no mechanical mirror.

The ronin "tracks" the action and this will be great for the type of film I'm producing. I will post a video of behind-the-scenes shots of me using it to maybe help others that will use a Nikon or a ronin.

Location Change

 This weekend I went to my vacation house in Bokeelia Florida. Knowing I needed a new spot to film I decided to scout the place a little bit. I found some amazing locations I included a video of a small cafe I found on the side of the road that can be used as a cool intro spot. I also walked around the island of Matlacha. There were many spots that I can utilize. 

I figured I will be back in this location from March 17th-28th so I will use that time to film and edit my whole project. I know I needed to start filming already but with such a unique place how can I pass this opportunity up to make my film opening so much better. I also will be changing my storyboard because indeed it fits my location more. So much for those other blog posts...

Kodak

 I've been doing a lot of research on Kodiak films and Kodiak filters. I attached some videos that I myself will be following to make my project.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tva6fwYmSmg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pXlLMlWvng

The picture above is some presets that come from premiere pro themselves. This can be used to add dimension to my project and hopefully upscale it. Next blog post I will talk about all the equipment I
will be using with pictures. There are plenty more presets that I can download but this is just an example of some of them. 

Before

After

Moving Out

 I am in a world for hurting guys... I just completely packed up the house and my filming location is GONE!!! I need to get a new location fast. I find this to be very challenging considering my whole plot was based on the fact that there was a pool in the backyard of my film. I might need to use my new community pool. I even have a lake in the back but that's too much. I have found more music though! That's the bright side to all of this. My score for the film will be amazing. I believe the most important part of my film will be the music considering my plot has some holes in it.

I am also helping a couple of friends with their projects. I haven't started filming but I need to soon. I will develop a schedule to help me plan out my exact dates and exact times. I find this helps a lot with the execution of the overall film. 

Play by Play

Scene 1: 

Close up camera focus on shoes to shorts

Foley sound of the waterfall and water moving

The camera pans from clothes sitting on the floor to the production

credits behind the pool.

Scene 2: 

A birds-eye view of the pool with a person floating in it

Scene 3: 

The camera switches from a bird's eye to behind the pool seeing a

kid witnesses his father laying in the pool. He walks out and walks up

do his dad gets  in the pool flips him over, runs out, and runs inside

Scene 4:

The drone shot starts with the music and the shot gets smaller and smaller.

Scene 5:

Cop lights form in the distance making pursuit and while they make

their way the screen turns black and white.

Scene 6:

With the screen turning black and white the name of the film

appears in yellow.

8D

 The people I emailed for the music copyright still haven't contacted me back I've been looking at other sites. Youtube audio library is a very safe option and lots plan Z if I can't find anything ng but the type of music I want is not on the audio library. I actually downloaded an 8D version of "Everyday" that I would love to incorporate into my opening.  8D is a type of audio that makes the audience feel like they are listening to the song in person. So using 8D would make this opening more complex and enjoyable for the audience. 

"8D audio or 8D music essentially tricks your brain into thinking there is more space than there actually is. 8D music creators use software to manipulate a song's various stereo parts, placing and moving them within a virtual 360-degree space."

The ambience

 Today is senior skip day a big chapter in my life. I decided to write this blog a little earlier to update everyone. Here's a 5-second sneak peek of the animation I made on procreate on my brother's Ipad. This took around 30 mins to make and I had to watch a tutorial. This is just a but of short frames clipped together in a loop but I think it works out just fine.

This was also edited on premiere pro where I will be editing my whole project. The idea behind my logo is to take my last name and combine a  coffee mug. I've worked at Starbucks as a barista for 1 year and fell in love with coffee. So combining my 2 favorite things is the inspiration behind my film logo. I also think it's simple enough for an audience to look at. Easy on the eyes, I guess I shall say.

Stills

Here are a couple of stills I would like to incorporate into my opening. 

             Old School                                                                    The Joneses

I'm showing these  2 photos because they replicate the underwater movement and content I want to create. I don't have a waterproof camera to copy this exactly but I can show a birds-eye view of the death. I will incorporate a lot of medium shots and extremely long shots. There are 2 other examples of what I would like to do.

 

These are some other ideas I have in my head and what I would want the shots to look like. The first one is a really up-close shot of pants and the second would be up close of shoes with a blurry background. The background would be a pool setting instead through.

Everything is still a work and progress but to get you in the same mindset I think these shots would help.

Paying

 My budget for this film opening is a whopping $0.

For having such a flexible budget my filming location will be my backyard. I don't have pictures to show you guys yet but when I include the behind the scenes I will make sure to label everything. After talking to my teacher about my ending she suggests a backup plan. So I will be conducting another storyboard with a different ending. I have also run into a speed bump for my project. 

My parents are selling the house and I need to move out by March 10th! This gives me approx. 16 days to film all my footage. I still don't have all of my thoughts in place to execute my opening so soon.  I have been looking into other locations like my friend's backyard or a community pool but this totally messes up my vision. 

Ordering

From my last post, I developed a rough sketch of my storyboard. I need to develop my characters thoroughly so my audience and readers can grasp a better understanding. With my film only having 2 characters, this means I can go pretty in-depth with designing them. They will both be male characters. The impact this scene will cause the younger male character is trauma without having a fatherly figure in his life. Shawn Lib is the character floating in the pool and Zach Lib is the younger character watching his after die.

These mood boards describe the similarity yet differences between my characters. In Zach's board, you can see how alone he becomes and copes with it by doing different activities. Skateboarding and photography are 2 ways we can see Zach cope with his father's death. Shawn, you can see what he has been involved in like drugs possibly a cartel deal. I don't exactly know where my opening will take place in the film world but dealing with drugs will be the main component.

Still Waiting in line....

 Here's my storyboard. There's not much to this post but a visual idea will maybe help you guys build a better concept of what I have inside my head. Soon I'll post pictures of my filming location. I also need to find actors that will play the 2 parts.  Still coming up with ideas to make my opening a bit longer but so far I'm thinking of making the credits a huge part of the opening. 

The Paper is a bit degraded but it's the closest thing I had to me at the time of thinking of this idea. This actually was my second idea the original thought was taking place in a town called Bokeelia but filming in that location would be tough with school, sports, and my job.