Group Meeting #2

Group Meeting #2

This is officially Week 7 of the Portfolio Project; time flies when you are having fun. This a late post, but on Wednesday in Class, we were assigned to new groups of students from different Portfolio Projects so that we could get a variety of feedback from them and, at the same time, give feedback to them on their projects so that everyone could improve. This group meeting helped us see new ideas on ways we could do our Creative Critical Reflection Video Projects.

Above is a picture of my group for this Group Meeting. We went over the guidelines of what had to be accomplished in both videos and the overall structure of the Creative Critical Reflection Video Project. Some of their ideas were pretty interesting and unique; some of them had the idea of doing videos where they are doing like an interview with someone else which gave it an interesting twist.

CCR Video Guidelines

• 2 Videos - 2 CCR Questions Per Video
• Max Length - The Max Length for both Videos Combined is 11 Minutes
• Target Length - The Target Length for both Videos Combined is 8 Minutes
• Each video is around 4 Minutes (X2)

This group gave me ideas on what I could do to improve on my Creative Critical Reflection Videos. The next steps would be to construct the video and make sure that it meets all the guidelines. 

Research for CCR Question 4

CCR Question 4

The Fourth and Final Creative Critical Reflection: How did you integrate technologies – software, hardware and online – in this project? Throughout this project, I used a variety of technologies, including Cameras (iPhone Cameras), Editing Software (Adobe Premier Pro, Adobe Photoshop), and online resources (Pixabay, Adobe Fonts, Flaticon). Each of these tools helped to enhance the storytelling of the project.

Hardware

• Camera - Using the Camera on the iPhone helped me get normal shots + cinematic shots. This helped make each clip get the suspenseful atmosphere that I needed from the Poker Game for the Film Opening. I also played around a lot with the focal lengths, which helped with the Close-Up shots and the Long Shots.

• Lighting Equipment - Since I didn't have any actual lighting equipment, I had to get creative and use the Lighting that I already had in the environment where I was filming. For different shots throughout the Film Opening, some included using the Lamps at all times while others also included having the Ceiling Lights.

Software

• Adobe Premier Pro - I used Premier Pro for the video editing and the pacing of the film. This software allowed me to edit the clips and overall make the film have the right amount of suspense and tension that I wanted to include.

• Adobe Photoshop - I used Photoshop to create the Title Cards (Character Cards) and the Graphics (Title, Credits). This helped make it easier for me to play around with the overall design of each of them.

Online Resources

• Adobe Fonts - I used Adobe Fonts to find the right font for each Character Introduction. this helped make it easier to match the texts to their personality and role that they had in the film.

• Royalty-Free Music - Pixabay helped me get the music that I needed for the background of the film and the some of the sound effects that I used that helped create the atmosphere and the tension throughout the film.

• Film Blogs - I used other Blogposts as inspiration as to what I could also create. I learned new methods and some Camera Techniques that helped improve the quality of the film.

By combining the Hardware, Software, and the Online Resources that I used, I was able to create High Stakes at a better level than I would have with only the previous experience that I had. I was able to enhance the technical and creative aspects of the Overall Film that allowed for this vision to become true and hopefully engage the audience more.

Research for CCR Question 3

CCR Question 3

The Third Creative Critical Reflection Question is: How did your production skills develop throughout this project? Throughout this project, I improved on my techniques, and I found new solutions to make the Film Opening Project Better, improving on the Storyboarding, Filming, and Editing Phases of the production of High Stakes.

Pre-Production:

• Storyboarding - I learned the importance of pre-planning, which makes it easier when deciding what each scene is going to be to make sure it has a purpose. Creating the Shot List helped keep everything organized, which made it more efficient when recording.

• Character Development - Making each personality different for each character allowed for the costume development and the font choices to be easier to gather.

• Set Design - Knowing how to create the environment for the Poker Game, the Props that would be needed, plus the framing of the characters to let the Film Opening have more tension.

Production:

• Camera Techniques & Editing - I improved my camera techniques by having more close-ups and reaction shots, which helped build suspense. This allowed the audience to be more focused on the players' reactions/expressions and their movements.

• Directing - I developed better communication skills, like making adjustments to the shots that would get used when recording. I also played around with the actor positioning to increase the storytelling potential.

Post-Production:

• Text Formatting - By using different fonts and different placements for each text that was used for each character introduction (Character Cards), this helped me understand how this can affect the storytelling and how much the viewer gets engaged by it.

• Pacing - My skills improved in editing the clips so that I could create more tension, making the Poker Game feel more intense and keeping the viewers engaged.

• Sound Design + Music - The music in the background was very important because this was the main thing that would help create the tension and suspense throughout the Film Opening. Learning how to use the correct audio helped me make the right choice so that the sound would have the biggest impact on the viewer.

Each phase and the overall production of this Project helped me gain a better understanding of visual storytelling, how to execute everything better, and the creative problem-solving needed to make a good Film Opening or any Video Project. This experience has strengthened my production skills that will prepare for future projects.

Research for CCR Question 2

CCR Question 2

The Second Creative Critical Reflection Question is: How does your product engage with audiences, and how would it be distributed as a real media text? In the film Opening for High Stakes, the audience engagement is made through the tension that is created by the characters playing the poker game as well as the way the story is told. The film introduces the three players that have different backgrounds, each having their own personality. this allows the audience to have a chance to connect with one of them or feel more connected to one of them because of their emotions.

Engagement with Audiences

• Character Personalities - Since there is a mix of characters, some that are more adaptable than others and then the overconfident ones, it allows for the plot to be a mystery. It makes it so that there is sort of a balance on how smart each character is. The viewers are then introduced to the game and are allowed to sort of predict how each character will act through the game.

• Font Choices - Each Font is different for each Character, allowing for their introduction to be distinct from each other. This helps make sure that the viewer stays engaged with the Film Opening, allowing them to see what characteristics or personalities they may have.

• Marketing & Social Media Appeal - 
• Teaser Clips - We can show intense scenes in the game on platforms like Instagram or TikTok to show interest in the Movie.
• Character Introduction Posts - Since we already have Character Cards for each Character, we can post them to create an audience group on who they would prefer to win.

Distribution as a Real Media Text

• Digital Platforms - 
• YouTube - This would allow for the Film Opening to reach a wider audience.
• Short Film Platforms - Tubi could stream it to show it to maybe some film lovers.

• Local Screening - This could be hosted at a School Club or School Showcase, and it would allow for there to be a Live Audience to give feedback on how well they engage with the Film Opening.

• Possible Expansion - If the Film Opening were to be successful and people were to like it, later it could be developed into a longer film or complete movie.

Overall, High Stakes is made so that the viewer stays engaged with the Film Opening. It focuses primarily on those that like to see crime, thriller or Poker-Driven plots.

Research for CCR Question 1

CCR QUESTION 1

Now that I have finished the Film Opening Video, the next step would be to answer the Creative Critical Reflection Questions. The First Question: How does your product use or challenge conventions and how does it represent social groups or issues?

In the Film Opening of High Stakes, I used a lot of conventions from Thriller, Action, and Crime movies, specifically those that were focused on poker scenes or where tension needed to be included.

• Poker Game Setup - Any game that includes gambling always gives a symbol of high tension. Since this is the main theme of the film opening, it helps give it an immediate sense of suspense from the very beginning.  

• Typical Characters - Each Character/Player plays a role that you usually see in other poker/action films. These characteristics allow the viewer to understand what type of character they are and give a little of the backstory.

• Different Approach to Suspense - Since the usual approach to building suspense is there being a lot of action or dramatic events to gain something, my approach had to be different since, for multiple reason I could not achieve that mainly including the budgeting reason. I decided to approach creating suspense through the game of poker and how the characters would react to the game rather than based on physical appearances.

High Stakes reflects the ways that many people will go out of their way to make sure they win at any cost. The characters in the film show how, even though coming from different parts, greed and ambition can go a long way to ensure that they come on top. The Poker Game Symbolizes how people will take all the risk to get what what they want even if they don't know what the consequences could be.

Day 2 of Editing

Editing Day 2

Day 2 of Editing was Easier; it was mostly just wrapping all the character cards. This involved getting all the cutouts of each person and then also adding the information for each person into the Graphics on Premier Pro.

In addition to the Character Cards being finished, all the graphics for the credits were added on. Since all the credits and Character Cards were added on all that was left to do was play with the timing for the clips to make sure that the story of the film opening flows to make sure that viewer understands what is happening. I also played around with the transitions between clips and graphics to make it be more smooth.

Below is a screenshot of what the first 30 seconds looks in Premier Pro, it shows the first few credits, Title of the Film and the first clip of the film. The order for these was though carefully since I wanted to make sure that when important credits were shown it wouldn't distract the viewer from what the actual film.

Editing Day 1

Editing Day 1

Now that I have finished recording, it is time for the editing phase of this project. Since this film opening is a bit heavy on the editing side, it might take a while to wrap up the editing. When making this film, it was known that editing would be key to ensure that every little detail could be told. 

Today was spent on learning how to use Photoshop to be able to create a cutout of someone to make a character card. It took a while since the application had to download first, but after that and after watching a few videos, I was able to figure out how to do it. After learning how to do a cutout of someone, I also had to learn how to make the background a clear background. this took longer than the actual cutout since, after multiple iterations of saving the picture, it got a bit annoying, so I had to take a break and finish this later.

Above is an example of a prototype of what might be used as a Character Card. This is also just an outline of what it could/should look like at the end. I am planning to let the Character Cards run about 3 seconds each so that it has time for it to pop up, but also time for the viewer to get a chance to read the actual card. In this character card, it is still missing the graphic for the view details about this character and who the actual actor is, but that is still being figured out on where the exact position of it will be since it is different for each character.

Final Recording Day

Final Recording Day

Today, we wrapped up recording. We got everything we believed would be essential to use in the film opening. Multiple Angles were important to get so that they could be used as inserts. This would allow me to play with timing since sometimes the deals of the card were faster than what I wanted, or to slow, which could lead to the storytelling of the film opening being confusing. Below is a clip that will be used as an insert.

Apart from also taking multiple clips for inserts with common angles, it helps cover mistakes from other clips. So, for example, in the clip below, there was a mistake where one of the players accidently touched one of the cards while placing the chips. So, to cover this up, I will either add another clip that will continue the game or add some dialogue from the dealer saying why they touched the card.

3rd Day Recording

Day 3 Recording

Day 3 of Recording went well. We managed to get a variety of shots that can be used as inserts throughout the film opening. Getting multiple angles and shots allows me to be able to play around with timing later in editing. Having the ability to play around with timing and shots is very good since when I wrap up recording, I will not have the ability to reshoot anything and will have to use some shots that might not be essential and could mess up the storytelling of the film.

Tension Rising

With 1 more Day to shoot, Tension arises as having all the essential shots is very important since after this, there will be no more rerecording. Today, we managed to get all the essential shots needed for the Tension inside the film to happen. The game has started, and bets are going in, making every bet count as every little move counts for each character to walk out with their own advantage.

Above is a clip of a recording in which all the bets are placed to add on to the pot. This creates tension since more money in the pot means that their is more risk for each person that put money in the pot since they would like to away with more than what they put in it.

Above is a clip in where the Main Character is showing his cards as it is time to showdown the cards to see who was won the game. Since it is pre-determined that he will win this game by getting a Royal Flush him placing down the cards 1 by 1 allows for tension to build since his cards are finally revealed to the viewer.