I have always had an incredible love of film and television. As a form of visual art they truly allow the viewer to go on a journey and become engrossed in a story. While teaching MYP Drama in Hong Kong, I did a Documentary Unit which required the students to produce a Documentary of a person or event. In preparing the students for this Unit, I myself realized that there was much more to filming and producing a final product than one may think. We are fortunate to have a great technology coach at our school and he did a workshop with the students about the basics of cinematography. Needless to say, I was hooked from that moment on. I attended a couple more workshops with him, learning how to use filming equipment and editing with Final Cut Pro, but I still wanted to learn more. I enrolled for a cinematography course at the International Academy of Film and Television. Since then I have mostly been working on small projects related to school.
Check it out
You can also view more of my work through my Vimeo site here.
Silent Movie
I produced a silent film for our school's Christmas assembly. It's purpose is to showcase the teachers and entertain the students. I was the Writer, Director, Camera Man and Editor of the film.
Preparation
A mentioned above, there is a lot more that goes into a final filmed product than people know about. As this was the first proper film I produced, I wanted to be meticulous in my planning.
1. Writing the script
It is important to remember the dramatic arc when writing a story. How will you introduce your characters, what complication will they face and how will it be resolved.
2. Story board
Any good director first creates a vision of what they want to accomplish through the camera. It serves in guiding the camera man, actors and preparing the setting.
3. Scouting locations
This was quite easy, as I knew the story was going to take place around school. The only challenges here was finding quiet moments to use locations without interference.
4. Resourcing
I had to ensure that I had the adequate equipment and props needed for each scene. As this was a silent movie, it was important to have the right music. As I had limited time and little music writing abilities, I decided to make use of karaoke tracks. It required a bit of research and time to find the songs that will create the correct moods for different scenes.
5. Casting
These script was written with a particular lead actor in mind and as this is a school collaborative project it wasn't too difficult to get others to participate.
6. Filming
I mostly had to play the filming schedule by ear, as I was working with various teachers and their time-tables differed. I created a time line to roughly out-line what scenes I wanted to film at what time, but often I had to compromise according to what setting or extra was available. There are some scenes that I would have liked to re-shoot and improve, but as I was working with volunteers it was not feasible.
7. Editing
Here the final vision comes together. Having had a descriptive story board really paid off here and made it quite easy to sequence shots. I am still learning how to use Final Cut Pro, but with every project I am making new advances. The most challenging part of editing is getting the rhythm of the music to work with the action in the scene and creating cuts that feel less intrusive or distracting to the audience.
1. Writing the script
It is important to remember the dramatic arc when writing a story. How will you introduce your characters, what complication will they face and how will it be resolved.
2. Story board
Any good director first creates a vision of what they want to accomplish through the camera. It serves in guiding the camera man, actors and preparing the setting.
3. Scouting locations
This was quite easy, as I knew the story was going to take place around school. The only challenges here was finding quiet moments to use locations without interference.
4. Resourcing
I had to ensure that I had the adequate equipment and props needed for each scene. As this was a silent movie, it was important to have the right music. As I had limited time and little music writing abilities, I decided to make use of karaoke tracks. It required a bit of research and time to find the songs that will create the correct moods for different scenes.
5. Casting
These script was written with a particular lead actor in mind and as this is a school collaborative project it wasn't too difficult to get others to participate.
6. Filming
I mostly had to play the filming schedule by ear, as I was working with various teachers and their time-tables differed. I created a time line to roughly out-line what scenes I wanted to film at what time, but often I had to compromise according to what setting or extra was available. There are some scenes that I would have liked to re-shoot and improve, but as I was working with volunteers it was not feasible.
7. Editing
Here the final vision comes together. Having had a descriptive story board really paid off here and made it quite easy to sequence shots. I am still learning how to use Final Cut Pro, but with every project I am making new advances. The most challenging part of editing is getting the rhythm of the music to work with the action in the scene and creating cuts that feel less intrusive or distracting to the audience.
Final Product
Unfortunately the film does not have a filmed ending as we performed the last scene live on stage.
Anti Bullying
To advocate anti bullying week, my tutor group and I decided to create a video. It is based on the concept of cardboard confessions. The students write down ways that they have been bullied, but then later show how they have overcome. I did the filming and final editing of the video.
RCHK Fashion
As a House Director at Renaissance College in Hong Kong, I help to cultivate community and encourage participation in school events that are not academic. In order to push my own creative boundaries and technical skills, I decided to produce short videos inspired by Fashion Police after each major House event. I get a teacher to join me as a guest and then we break down the 'Must see looks' of the event. I always include a special segment in the show where I showcase (or make fun of) teachers in related activities.