Allyssa Beatty Media Studies AS

Today is turn in day for our project and the reflective questions. My group and I are so pleased with our project and how it turned out. We did one final review of it today before we turned it in to make sure everything was correct. The journey for this project has been such an amazing experience that has helped my group and I grow and learn so much. I can't wait to start working on the next project!!

Today my.group and I talked about how we felt overall with our project before we turned it in tomorrow. My group and I overall felt very proud of what we were able to create given all the circumstances that came about that we worked around. My group and I worked very hard together throughout this process in order to crete the opening that we made. The project exceeded above our expectations and we could not be more pleased and happy with how it turned out. Through all the ups and downs, in the end it was totally worth it as our project tuned out amazing!!

Today I am starting on my reflection questions for the project since it is basically completed with only needing a couple small changes here and there. These reflection questions will really allow my group and I to reflect on this journey for the project as a whole and really see the growth and progress that was made along this journey.

Today kennedy sent the opening of the movie again to the group message as it now has titles and music behind it. The opening really came together however, there was a slight issue with capitalization on the titles but we made sure to tell her so it got fixed and was proper. Since we have to turn in the project by may 8th, me and my group are making sure to finish up all the other work that comes along with the opening. Now that our opening is basically done with only touch ups needing to be done here and there, me and my group can focus on the reflection questions.

The type of music my group and i choose for the opening is a subtle, soft music, with an indie vibe to it. It is called "Pictures of You" by Lauren Ruth Ward. Once my group and i first listened to the song we knew it was perfect for the opening as it fit right with the theme.

For our movie opening we decided it would be best if we really didn't have transitions and it just went directly from one clip to the next.  This will give it the quick change to the different perspectives look that would make the opening look the best. With the titles and how they would appear and disappear, my group and i decided a simple fade in and fade out would look best as we don't want anything that will be too quick or sudden to where the focus is lost.

Looking at titles to movies intros, there have been a couple types that have been of interesting. One being those with a shadow behind them. These ones are cool because it makes the title like its 3-d or standing up.    

After kennedy sent us the rough draft, we have been looking at lots of different ways to put the titles in the opening as to where they should go. We know the title of the movie is going to appear at the end of the opening and everything else will flow in between. The names of the actors will go on shots that the actors are in and the other like film and producer will go on landscape shots probably.

Today kennedy started putting all the clips we had filmed to get a rough draft of the opening. After she had finished putting it together she sent it to me and izzy in our group message to get our inputs  on it and see what all needed to be fixed or changed. Me and izzy note some simple shots that needed to be switched order wise and as well as considering what title effects would be good to use since it was just the video without the titles yet.

Today we went back to kennedy's neighborhood to film the shots with me and kennedy in them. We filmed shots of each of us walking separately in the grass and on sidewalks. We also filmed shots of us walking together, and of us finally meeting up. When filming we also got cool switching shots from behind a tree, over the shoulder shots, and feet shots. During filming we had to work around the trash truck as it was coming by the same places we were filming at, so we had to film the shots that we didn't need sound for at that time to make the most of filming.

Today me and my group met up to film the establishing shots for our opening. We went to kennedy's neighborhood and got open shots of empty lots, retention ponds, houses for sale, the roads, and the sky. During our filming we had to work around cars that would drive by as they couldn't be in the shots and around people that would be walking. We overcame the problem by going to a different location until they were gone to make the most out of our time.

For our opening, our new setting for filming was in kennedy's neighborhood. The reason we chose kennedys neighborhood is because it had a lot of open lots and fields to film in to make it look empty. Her neighborhood also had retention ponds to film at for more scenery and location changes. Lastly, and probably the most important part is that it was in a neighborhood, so it showed houses where nobody was outside so it made it look empty. The neighborhood also had some houses for sale so it made it look like the people that lived there left. With the empty lots and houses for sale it can make it look like what we wanted in our opening which is that we are are the only ones left and everyone else is gone.

So in this new storyline the jobs are pretty much the same. Kennedy is an actor in the film as well as the editor. Izzy is the filmer and producer. I am an actor, and co-producer. Even though we have jobs our group does a good job with helping each other out and having a team effort to everything as we share ideas and opinions so our opening can be the best it can be.

The camera shots that we would need to include is feet shots, head shots, over the shoulder shots, landscape shots, establishing shots, action shots, as well as still shots. These all will be beneficial in providing a variety of angles that will be useful to the opening.

The inspiration behind our plot came from a couple different places one being from a netflix show called "The Society" in which a class of kids return from a field trip only to find out no one is there and they have no way out of their town, another is from the movie called "Passengers" in which they are being sent to live on another planet but two pods get woken up and they have to manage living on the ship for another 90 years by themselves when they were supposed to be asleep for the whole 180. THE SOCIETY TRAILER https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-MMEQA2UgXQ PASSENGERS TRAILER https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7BWWWQzTpNU

When it comes to editing our opening and putting it all together, we got the idea that it would be good if we put a hue on the whole thing. My group and I have had two in mind that we think would add to the concept, one being yellowish vintage hue and the other being a simple black and white one.  

For the outfits for our new storyline we were thinking of a vintage style. So not too nice of outfits but outfits you would see kids wearing that were on an adventure. We also got some inspiration for our outfits from the netflix series called "Stranger Things". In this series they are constantly on adventures and is based in the time period around the mid 80's.   

My group and I have finally figured out everything for our project to get it back on track and film what we need to create our opening. We decided that due to not being able to go to any public places, we are going to film in Kennedy's neighborhood. Our story is going to be about two kids who realize they have been left behind and have to find each other in their journeys so they can figure the mystery out, as no one is around and the town is empty. The two kids being myself and Kennedy.

Due to many of the places we were planning to film at closing and us not getting to film much before everything closed down, we are making a change.  My group and i have decided that in order to create our best product for the opening we are going to come up with a new plot that we can film in one of our neighborhoods.

Today another update from Cambridge was sent out. Even though we are still not sure what this means for our projects, we are still going to continue working on our projects as planned until we get a definite answer to our questions.

Me and my group have been planning when to film some of the opening over the break once everything has calmed down. However during our planning as we were going over our storyline and plot we realized we night need some more people than we planned on in our opening. Therefore me and my group are seeing if any of our friends are able to step in to help with what we need.

We received an update from Cambridge about the exams for the May/June 2020 series and it said how they would not be running the May/June 2020 series in any country. As of right now me and my group aren't sure exactly what this means and what will be happening as far as the projects, but we will still continuing to work on our project until we have further clarification.

Public Places are officially closed now to help stop the spread of the corona virus. Due to this, my group and I are gong to have to relocate our filming to possible one of our neighborhoods instead since places like the library and the coffee shop where we were gong to film are closed.

Even with everything going on me and my group have been able to still communicate with each other through group text to talk about the changes being made to work around the problems that have arisen. In our group text we discuss what problems we come in contact with and our solutions to the problem so we can still film the opening while still being safe at the same time. Our group text makes it really easy to get ahold of each other so we can continue to work on our project even though school is not in session right now.

This evening we just got more news in relation to the corona virus and school. School has been canceled until April 15th now. This means that we will have to continue to work outside of school to film the opening as well as seeing if the places we were gong to use to film are shut down due to the corona virus pandemic. If the places like the library and the coffee shop are closed we will have to replan our opening and possibly change the locations or even the plot to work around this issue that has risen.

So today me and my group went to the school to pick up the filming equipment that we would need to film the opening of our movie, as school has gotten canceled until further notice due to the corona virus as said in my blog before this. We made sure to have batteries and chargers, an osmo, as well as a Panasonic camera so that way we would be prepared to still be on track for filming.

Earlier today when picking up the equipment my group and I also got to discuss with our teacher how to plan everything out accordingly due to everything that has been going on recently so we can continue to push through given the circumstances. We also were able to get more information on how we should approach the project of the movie opening as well as a timeline to help keep us on track even though there is no school right now.

With school being closed until march 30th that means we will have an extra week off as we were already going to have the week of the 23-27th off because that is spring break. Since this this week was canceled that means my group and I will have to work extra hard to stay on top of filming and editing for this project so we don't get behind.

So today we got the news that school has been canceled until March 30th due to the outbreak of the corona virus. With this news me and my group will defiantly have to work around this problem and figure out a solution as far as getting equipment to film the opening as well as editing the opening. Therefore we will have to push back filming until we are able to get the equipment needed.

So things have been kind of busy lately as we were in the middle of contest season for our broadcast journalism class. However today was the last day as we had to submit everything and upload it. Since we are finished with that we are now able to focus on our movie opening and get to filming everything and perfecting it so our movie opening idea can come to life. We are planning to film next week after school since the areas we need to film in are close to our school and we will be able to make the most of our time.

Another inspiration behind the detective idea and mystery solving is the Nancy drew book series. The books tell the story of a graduating high school student whose name is Nancy drew. As a teenager she set out on solving mysteries some which were new and some which were her fathers. This relates to our opening as we are tennagers who are detectives as well, and it can give some information to us as how teenage detectives like nancy solve the mystery.

In one of my earlier blogs I mentioned about how one of the shots would contain a patio area or a place to have brunch. When visiting the winter haven public library, there was perfect area for that shot as they had a small patio area. This patio is also right next to a fountain which could be useful in shots as well.

This is what the inside of the library looks like in one of the many areas it has. Since there is obviously big windows all around we will need to go during a time when it is dark out and not as bright.

Today my members and I had a brief meeting to go over everything and make sure we are on schedule and planning. We also came up with the idea that as we go forward we should set up calendars to plan it out so we can see it laid out. This should help keep everything on track and make it easer.

After going to the alleys, we determined this would also be another good spot to film. One thing to keep in mind would be that it would need to be at night as it would look more mysterious as well as using the Panasonic Cameras since they have a light on them to help with the lighting. Another thing to keep in mind would be to make sure there are no cars in certain alley ways that could interrupt filming.

The next place we are going to scope out for filming are the alley ways in downtown winter haven. These alley ways will show those scenes that you see in most mystery movies and create a sense of suspicion as you never know if someone will pop out.

After going to the library, we determined that some areas would be good to use in some of our shots for the opening. The only thing we would need to figure out is if they will allow us to film there and so we just need to get in communication with someone about that.

 Today we are planning on going to the library as it is one of our locations we were thinking to use for filming. At the library we will figure out the areas that will be best as far as lighting and sound wise. We will also be looking at if this environment creates the right scenery and mood we are trying to create.

After trying to create the opening idea in motion, my team members and I figured out that it was not going to make he process easier. It was only going to make it harder and take up too much time trying to figure it out. So we decided to go back to our original idea and not create it in motion.

My group and I decided to explore the options of creating our opening idea of the detective board in motion. Motion is a program in which you can create and edit motion graphics, as well as creating titling for video and film production. My team members and I have all used this software before and are familiar with it as we have incorporated it into our videos before.

After our opening to the movie, the actual movie will start off with the detectives sitting at a table meeting for brunch. At brunch they will be introduced to their latest case which is presented by their agent. This case will be intriguing to the detectives as it is a very prized mystery that is worth a lot if figured out. From here on, the detectives will set out on their journey to figure out the case. Throughout the movie the detectives will have to work together and use all of their knowledge to figure it out.

One of my Favorite movies to watch has been the James Bond movies as they are always action packed and filled with scenes that keep you on the edge of your seat. Here is a link to a trailer of one of the movies he is in- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixZc90cnhgM&feature=share

The locations in which we would use to film for the opening could be in alley ways in downtown winter haven, coffee shops and the library. These places are ones that you would usually see in movies where they are solving a mystery or problems as a detective.

Another opening that has always been eye-catching and unique as far as music and the title bars as well as graphics is in the Monsters Inc. movie. The link is included below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCfv5P8GXU4&feature=share

For the equipment we would use a still camera called a Panasonic AG 30. As well as an osmo to get action shots that require quick following and turns around corners.

Some supplies that would be needed for the pin board include: -Brown cork pinboard -Tacks -Green or White notecards -String - Tiny sticky notes

For the transitions between Kennedy and I investigating and the other scenes, the idea was to be going from photo to photo on a bulletin board (cork). Each photo will be on the board with a tack and then there will be string going from photo to photo to show how we are tracing steps at different scenes as we are trying to figure the case out .

For the opening, some costumes will be needed. Since Kennedy and I are going to be detectives some items will be needed to match our character. Some of the items that will be needed include: -Trench coats -Magnifying glasses -Glasses -Notepad -Pen -Duster (for fingerprints)