Preliminary Task Evaluation

What did you learn about the cameras and editing software during the preliminary task?

During the time spent on the preliminary task, we got given video cameras and taught how to use them, then got sent to film the task. When we had planned our shot list, filmed the shots and made sure we had everything we need, our group started to edit the film using Final Cut Pro 7. In Final Cut Pro 7 we learnt to edit a video clip by selecting the pieces we need, adding it to other clips and in doing so, creating match cuts, jump cuts, shot reverse shots, low angle shots, high angle shots and many more.

In the filming and editing of your project, what worked well and what could have been improved?

There were a few things that went very well during this small project. One of these was the great acting of the two members of the group that were being filmed for the project. In addition, one of these members was also extremely good at editing which helped greatly during the latter stages of this project. The team as a whole are now very comfortable working together and have gelled well.

How did you make sure that you didn't break the 180 degree rule? Or if you did, what have you learnt from this?

As a whole we feel that we performed this task very well, however when filming we accidentally broke the directional rule by filming character A going in two different directions. This is quite a simple mistake and one that we will now make sure not to do in the main task.

Give a detailed, specific example of how you have used a shot/reverse shot combination in your film

Character A and b are sat at a table in a canteen. We did a shot/reverse shot between the two characters by shooting the whole conversation from Character A’s shoulder, then Character B’s, and then achieved the shot reverse shot by mixing the conversations in post production.

Give a detailed specific example of how you achieved match cuts during the editing process.

During the production process we wanted to film a match cut using the actors feet to create more shots and variety of shots within the film. We filmed an extreme close up of one of the actors, only getting the feet in the shot, walking through the canteen. In the editing process we were able to match this with a close-up shot of the actor walking using Final Cut Pro 7. This was easy to achieve as using Final Cut Pro 7 software it’s not that hard to edit shots.