25th March, Reviewing films!

Today, rather than properly planning out our first film session - which will hopefully happen on monday - we watched all the films from the last project and gave proper feedback on them, in relation to our former roles. Unfortunately we did not have time to get to ours, which was incredibly frustrating as I really want to hear what everyone thought. The ones that we did watch were really interesting though, and I think the fact that we have watched them before actually made for a better analytical experience, as I could focus more on the specifics rather than just trying to understand the plot. I mainly focused on, as editor, aspects of linear continuity, the different techniques/ transitions that were used and general 'flow'. Below are some notes on what I thought about each film respectively.

Natalia

• Some out-of-place shots that disoriented the audience
• Obvious changes in ambient light and sound
• Several faulty match-on-action shots
• Broke the 180 degree rule
• Quite slow (pace-wise), as well as lacking in flow
• No clear focus or aim in the film
• Nice closing shot, zooming out of the protagonist - shows how small he feels

Stratagem

• Dragging pace and slow transitions (pause between dialogue = unnatural)
• Some out-of-place shots (car keys being thrown) ruins the flow
• A couple of good match-on-action transitions - should have done more with that
• Some very obvious fade-in fade-outs; the 'waiting' scene was also strange, not only unsuitable for the theme of the film but also the camera work was quite jog-y, which was obvious when the scenes were cut into each other

The Broken Beautiful

• Nice 'drunk' effects - out of focus and jog-y
• A couple of strange black screens
• Continuity error with the gun
• Broke the 180 degree rule
• Songs could have been played throughout

Pulse

• Gritty room was a bit out of place
• Lighting was different in every location - did not flow well
• Flashback in black and white was too cliche
• Happy song with phone was out of place
• Nice closing scene - black screen 'don't wait up for me tonight'

Looking at these notes, I know that they are mostly all negative, however I feel like before I can even think about trying to produce a 'knock-out' film, it is important first to get the basics down and to eliminate all amateur mistakes. Most films made the same type of mistakes - mostly with match-on-action shots that don't flow, strange sound and innapropriate shots. In the films however there were also some elements that I really liked. The dream-like quality of 'The Broken Beautiful' had a really big impact. Watching these films also gave me new ideas into possible concepts I could incorporate in upcoming film projects, such as having a recurring track or symbol, using shots that literally show how the protagonist is feeling and keeping cuts to a certain time (possibly speeding them up).

Today I was definitely a reflective learner (see below), as I took into consideration all the aspects of editing that were being critiqued so that our next project can avoid that (even though I am sound editor in this one). I see the mistakes that I made reflected in other people's work, and during our discussion I now know what it is exactly that editing needs to bring to the project. It is not solely a matter of stringing shots together; it creates the mood and flow of the entire peace, ultimately 'making or breaking' it. During this project I will definitely work closely with our editor (Jing Ting) so that we don't risk making the same mistakes again.

Even though we were not working in our current film groups today, as sound editor I tried to take note of what could be improved sound-wise in other peoples films. When I actually get round to doing the sound editing, I will definitely go to Mr.Chiang and Ms.Wong for help when I need it - a concept that actually never really occurred to me, as I had previously planned to simply look up sound editing techniques online. I noticed that the main errors with other films were the change in ambient sound from shot to shot. The narration also sounded strange when it was on its own, as it was clearly filmed in a silent room; no background noise is very unnatural. As we have narration in our upcoming film, I will have to remember to film in a natural environment (preferably on location). I feel like I got a lot from this class, but I can't wait until next class, to see what people have to say about ours!

Reflective learners: Give thoughtful consideration to their own learning and experience. They are able to assess and understand their strengths and limitations in order to support their learning and personal development.