Filming

This weekend we are filming. I have gone on SISO and booked all video equipment that will be required this weekend, 2 HMC Cameras, 2 tripods and 3 30 Watt lights. Oscar will be in charge of booking out Audio equipment, as he is in charge of sound.
We have organised exactly when we are filming what scenes and what locations we are using. As Kate is art direction, she was in charge of going to these locations and making sure we are able to use them, as director, I made sure she did this. On Friday 28th we shall be filming in the halls of residence, from 12pm. The next day we shall be filming in the lounge, the restaurant scene and anything else we may need to film in there. I hope to get everything filmed in those two days and maybe even start editing on the Sunday, if not, we have Sunday to carry on filming, however, if filming isn't completed this weekend, we will be behind on schedule and will no longer have that spare week at the end, so we have to make sure we are all prepared to film.

The Result:-

Filming was completed over the weekend, Sunday included. Everyone involved had their own copy of the script, I made numerous notes on mine telling me what shots would work best a certain points and then split the script into two days.
Day one, Friday, didn't go as well as planned, but was still a day in which things got done. It took a lot longer to get the actual room set up than we thought, getting the lighting right took quite a while and finding a good place to put the boom mic was reasonably difficult too.
Our actors weren't fully confident with the script and found it even more difficult on camera, this is something I probably should've anticipated, and the next time I organise filming days I will be sure to include more time as a just in case, better to have more time, than not enough.
Day two was a success, everything that I wanted to get filmed on that day, was filmed in plenty of time, I think this was probably because it was in the University Lounge, there was already reasonably good lighting, and as for audio, we had learned from our mistakes the day before and were able to set it up much faster.
Day three was used to film the bits that weren't completed on the Friday, so I am very happy that I gave myself a little bit of lee way just in case.

The Office

Keyboard Warrior is a mockumentary film. I have found inspiration from the TV series The Office, to help base my filming and editing.

This clip of The Office shows how I want to film and edit Keyboard Warrior. The camera isn't still, it's slightly shaky and pans around the room and zooms in and out, giving it a documentary feel. There aren't that many cuts, a lot of it is just one shot, rather than cutting from one character to another, the camera just moves. The clip often cuts to a different scenario, an interview of one of the characters in the scene, and then cuts back to the original clip. This is very typical of a mockumentary styled film, and will be doing this frequently throughout our film.

In this clip of The Office we are shown two characters having a conversation in an office. The shot-reverse-shot technique is used to shoot this scene. There is a scene within Keyboard Warrior in which the main character and a female character are on a date in a restaurant. I shall film the scene in a very similar way to which this is filmed. Each shot is slightly shaky still, not placed on a tripod, to give it that documentary styled effect. Plenty of lead space is given in both shots used to get that feel that they are actually talking to one and other. The 180 degree rule isn't broken, this way the audience follows exactly what is happening and doesn't get confused by the complex camera angles and choices of camera positioning.

Watching clips from shows like The Office helps me get a better understanding of how our film is going to look visually. 

Characters and Gantt Charts

After the script was selected, and all roles were assigned, we then had to take into consideration the characters. There are 4 characters, Max, Kane, Elaine and the interviewer. All 3 of us asked the best possible people that we feel fit the roles, fortunately for us, they all agreed to act for us.
As I am partly the director, I made sure I got the script online and pasted it to a word document, in which I then printed off, and gave to our actors, and told them what lines to learn for when.
I organised a rehearsal date and filming date, the rehearsal was purely to see how well the actors knew there lines and how good there acting was and what they needed to work on, I made sure it was at least a week before the actual filming, to give the actors plenty of time to work on any problems they may have.

After this we all decided it would be easier if we to create a Gantt Chart, a chart in which shows us what we will be doing each week up until the deadline. All 3 of us pitched in to do this, and we left one week at the end free in case we needed any extra time. At the moment we are on track.

Role Selection

In our production we have decided to film the script Keyboard Warrior:-
http://www.australianshortfilms.com/keyboard-warrior.html

I am working with Oscar Evans and Katie Donaldson, we split our roles into 3, to make sure we are all doing an even amount of work and to make sure the work gets completed at a reasonable pace.
Oscar is in charge of sound. He will edit sound, record the sound, and make sure all sound in our film is to a high standard.
Kate is in charge of art design and costume, creating storyboards, getting props, sorting out costumes for our actors to wear.
I am in charge of filming, I will film the scenes, I will edit the film, as I have most experience in those areas. I feel as though all roles were appropriately selected as it's our key areas, and the production will come out better if we are given those roles.