New Equipment... Sorta

         It is officially time to start filming and I will take you guys on a magical story of how everything might have gone just exactly average. Ok so Pearse has a MUN conference and we were supposed to start filming however our schedule is super busy. I am working a lot since I need to buy a new laptop because mine broke and my parents can't afford to buy me a new one. I have recently just ordered one but it is gonna take about a few weeks to get here because I customized to meet my needs. I upped the amount of RAM memory a lot because I am constantly using multiple windows and I need a fast laptop that won't die on me when I open more than one window. I Stayed with the one terabyte of storage because I work mostly with the cloud using programs such as Google Drive to type and save my documents. I decided to go with a newer HP model that also has the touch screen option that could come in handy at any point. This model has an i7 processor compared to many laptops in the market right now with i5 which can work as well but would be easier if the RAM memory is enhanced. I enhanced the RAM memory from 8gb to 16gb that will be a significant increase in speed and price since in total the laptop ended up costing me more than a thousand dollars. I still believe it was a needed investment since it is a device I use more than my phone in some cases and what good would it do if it can't do its job efficiently. I am posting this right after my really long 7-hour shift with almost no break time. There has been a lot of cutbacks at work and it is really starting to affect the employees. But as of next week, they are going to increase the staff amount and hopefully, it will be easier for me since I am working roughly 20-30 hours (that is right my Spring Break and all I am going to do is save people LOL). It is okay from time to time I will escape and shoot the basketball a little bit. But, back to the main topic Pearse and I are 100% filming tomorrow and we have everything ready to get this project on the road. Wish us luck!

Le De Tour France

          Today I will be discussing the set of "Younger" and why we decided to buy this house out of all houses. I would like to start off by announcing that the official name of our movie is "Younger" and was inspired by our music video project which we did fairly well on and learned a lot on. At first, I didn't want to have the same name or at least just one word in our title but I can't deny it that name sure is good, probably cause I came up with it.

If I ever saw someone wearing that mask I would literally flip and scream it is so creepy. Ok so continuing here are some of the pictures of our set that Pearse sent to me, we love Pearse.

Ok here is the dinner table where our main character will be eating dinner with his mom and sister and where his friend will catch his attention through the window. One thing that will be off about all our images will be that they were all taken during the day but we have a few tricks up our sleeve to help with filming at night.

Here is the window you see from the dinner table. Right now the blinds are shut but when we film they will be open for obvious film purposes.

Here is the room where our main character will be in the beginning when his mom calls for dinner. He will also be sneaking out through this window you see behind his bed.

Here is the actual window through the outside part where his friend will be getting him from.

This is the kitchen we are gonna use for the opening scene in order to how the credits and have the story start developing early on.

Here is the street the two characters will be running down the street to god knows where. Probably an ice cream store because I am not in shape right now and would not be able to make it anywhere far.

Might Mess Around and Edit Everything

           Pearse and I have worked together on every project possible in this class to understand the groove of our skills and energy. We have both learned a few things about each other some that we wish to ignore and others we are glad that we learned because it has become a huge asset to our projects. And Pearse's secret weapon happens to be his slightly over average editing skill. For as long as I can remember Pearse has been editing videos and posting them on social media for everyone to see. I believe as time went by he got a lot better and his videos began to receive more recognition, more locally in our school but still, there is no such thing as bad media.

             For the Projects we have worked on together Pearse has most of the editing with a program called Premiere Pro.

              This program is actually a very advanced program that has countless features that can be used to create projects. I am not knowledged in any way at all about this program like Pearse is, however, I really enjoyed the after effects feature it does have and have watched multiple videos on how to use it. Even though we won't be using After Effect I think I can begin to learn more about this program and even download it on my computer (when I get paid it is pretty expensive on my budget) to begin editing. Pearse has let me use his computer a few times to get a better feel of the system and how it works and has even offered to teach me and walk me through his process. I will continue to learn on my own and try to find a way to toy around without the need of Pearse but for now I must work with what I have.

This is how the program looks:


And here are some videos that I have watched in order to get me started:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hls3Tp7JS8E
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhBeziSa6-E

Fonts and Giggles

     Earlier this week Pearse and I went font hunting to find the perfect fit for our story. It may be perceived as a simple task that should not take much time, however, it must well throughout in order that the font captures the movie as well. Like all elements that go into making a movie choosing a font has its own process as well. The font you choose to use needs to be appropriate with the theme of everything else, especially when you're an amateur movie maker like me. You can't take big risks but should try to be as creative as possible when choosing a font for your title or credits. For us, it took longer than we expected but I found a website called FontBundles and suddenly it got a lot easier. I used a separate email when I signed up so I wouldn't get the annoying spamming but besides the many emails, you may receive from them it is a very good website to search for your font.

So here are the ones that caught our attention:

Maskoolin
Pearse found this font when we were searching for HOURS (just kidding not that much). He really liked the 90's theme is brought to our production. In my opinion, it does bring that feel to the words but I don't think our production has enough 90's theme elements to make sense.


Honey Bee
This font is kind of random but it looks really cool in a way that could work towards our film production. It is definitely something we should really think about before choosing 100% on but I really feel like we won't know which font to use until our filming is done and our video is put together.


Inflatable Flamingo
Again it is also really random but when I saw this font it reminded me of a teen movie filled with endless beach days and summer pool parties. It looks like it could really fit in with everything that we are trying to bring into this production. It could work, it really could.



       Overall, those are the top 3 as of now but nothing is guaranteed. I am happy to announce that we are filming soon and I have a feeling it is going to be so much fun and it is going to look awesome. Also, I am officially the main character so yeah it is gonna be filled with amazing acting.

#SquadGoals

          Pearse and I have decided to schedule out the sequence we would like to shoot our opening scene. First, we would like to begin with shooting the dinner scene with the main character, another character acting as a sibling, and the mom. This scene is also the foundation of the whole opening and starting with it would help get a lot done. In this scene we would need props such as actual food to make the dinner realistic as well religious decorations to show a little bit of what the family is like. Although this can seem as a bit of a touchy subject it is just to show that the family follows religious customs and takes them serious. This is important because it is a stereotype that religious families are a bit controlling and the film revolves around the concept of teens becoming rebellious. A ying yang situation. Our main character will be dressed in a conservative matter, most likely very clean wearing colors that are very plain such as white and beige to show a bland lifestyle. This scene will be the most time consuming because it involves most of the characters that would appear in the whole opening. Getting everyone to act perfectly will be very hard so it is our goal that everyone understand their role and helps us achieve it. We want to have people involved that are willing to help us make the best video we can not a mediocre piece.
           This is why I suggested to Pearse that we should have a group meeting with everyone involved to explain to them our scene and everything else. We will talk about the role everyone will be taking in our scene and how it is very important to us that they understand why we need them to do it. We want to ask the out of kindness to please help us cause we need as everyone as we can get. We also want to hear their ideas out and see what they think because it would be fair to them, even if their ideas are not acted upon. They would feel like they are being heard and that their opinions matter making them more productive. I think this meeting will be a huge success and will help our project immensely.

           So basically these are a few things to look forward to since we'll be having our meeting some time next week and getting a major portion of filming done the week after in order to catch up to the schedule we have planned. I also would like to add that I watched Ferris Bueller's Day Off and I want to implement somethings like the sneak out portion to be as exciting but not as happy and gloomy, I want it to have a more of a Stranger Thing's feel were the plot is fun but also a serious production. I really enjoyed both productions as an fyi, however Stranger Thing's season 2 does not live up to the first.

Coming Later to a Theater Near You

            And here is our very detail shot list that I promised Enjoy! It took us a while to write up so I hope it lives to your expectations.

1. Establishing shot of a house in the suburbs
Long shot of the house. In the background, sounds of dinner (forks clicking, swallowing) can be heard.
2. Medium shot of a family having dinner

Slow zoom in. Have the camera facing the back of the main character’s head.
3. Close up of sister grabbing milk
Pans with the movement of her hand to the glass. Cuts to a close up of her drinking.
4. Medium Shot of boy sitting Still shot. Camera is facing the teen. The teenager shows signs of boredom/disgust.
5. Close up of boy’s leg shaking

Camera is under the dinner table. Shows boys leg tapping vigorously signaling impatience.
6. Over the Shoulder Shot of girl entering scene
From the outside perspective of the house (looking into window). A teenage girl enters the frame.
7. Close-up/Medium Shot of girl trying to get boy’s attention
Camera is at a side angle of the girls face. She is whispering and motioning with her hands to the boy sitting inside.
8. Close-up of boy looking confused
Camera is looking straight at the main character. He looks upward and looks confused.
9. Medium Shot of girl motioning to sneak out
Teenage girl motions to the boy to come outside and sneak out.
10. Medium Shot of boy getting up
From the side view (Camera shows the whole table, window, and subjects). Boy quickly scrambles all the food and walks out of frame.
11. Close up dishes
Shows boy aggressively placing his dishes in the sink
12. Medium Shot washing hands
Boy quickly runs water through his hands then runs to his room
13. Close up opening door
In a high angle, the frame shows boy opening his room door.
14. Medium shot of window
Angled view. Boy walks through the frame
15. Lower angle shot of window opening
Boy quickly unhatches his window
15. Over the shoulder of boy greeting girl
Over the shoulder shot shows boy opening his window. Once open the shot cuts
16. Two shot from outside
A lower angle two shot shows the boy and the girl talking. He fist bumps her and says “What's up?” she responds “Let's sneak out”.
17. Over the shoulder of girl 

The guys upper torso is in the frame. He seems hesitant for a second but then says “Ok wait one sec”
18. Close up of door locking
Still shot of boy quickly clicking the lock button on his door.
19. High Angle Shot of bedBoy quickly reaches at the pillows, roughening up the bed
20. Medium shot facing the boys face.Shows in more of a low angle the boy stuffing pillows into the bed simulating a dummy.
21. Same two shot as beforeHe peeks his head out the window and says “Liz you there?” she then steps into the frame and says “yes what are you waiting for?”
22. Long shot of windowWith the boys back facing the camera, you see him quickly leap out of the window.
23. Two shot outsideGirl picking her bike off the ground as the boy lifts his out of a bush
24. Two shot long shot of street The subjects are far from the camera. Music is playing loudly. The leave the frame then the title of the movie plays.

         This is the shot list we want to follow when shooting our opening scene.

Let's Dive in!

Wassup beautiful people how are you all doing?

             I just got off my 6 hour shift at 5 in the morning so I am feeling good and the bag is secured (slang for getting money). And it is time for the second grind of the day before I go back to work. Why am I working so much? I have to buy a new laptop since my old one stopped working, but it is all good since I have been saving up since I started working.

So let's dive in SHALL WE

*Video of me diving at a competition

              We had our second gang session this past week to discuss our process and ideas we have. I listened to some of peers talk about their ideas and how they were planning on pursuing their obstacles. I was the second to last one to talk and I did not have a lot of time to talk about my idea but I did get some feedback that I think could really help me. So one of the problems Pearse and I have had is choosing between a male and female main character. The problem is if we choose a guy it would have to be me since Pearse wants to work with the camera. Pearse and I have been discussing this for sometime and he already decided he doesn’t want to be part of it and focus on shooting. However, I also want to be more involved in the producing side to see if our project is coming along the way I want it to also. And yeah I am really good looking and cameras love me (lies), but I have more to bring to the table than my good looks. Now if we were to choose a female role my group pointed out the following:

• Women’s looks are easier to manipulate. What I mean by this is we could change her hair, make up, clothes to look different when she is with her parents and with her friend. This helps show a difference in character a lot easier at our budget size.
• Women are awesome and that’s always a plus.

                  Another idea is in order to make our story more intriguing we need to add something. My peer, Amanda, suggested we could have the girl steal cigarettes. This could really add a twist to the story that shows the teenage rebel side, which is what we are looking to represent. Another one of my peers suggested that the character grabs a concert flier and shoves it in their pocket. This shows the rebel side as well but it isn’t as drastic as cigarettes. I really enjoy these talks because they give be a better insight in what I should focus on next. I will be posting the shots storyboard tomorrow stay tuned😉

Photo from our group meeting sessions. I am the one with the grey sweater