Production Diary 3

Date – 22/11/17

Location(s) – D2, Manshead School

Description –

Our third and final day of production was spent re-filming

scenes in the ‘room’, following feedback from our first
draft. In order to build upon this, we added a greater
number of photos, tickets and posters, making the room
feel increasingly claustrophobic and ensuring no area of
wall was left bare. In addition to this, we added a black
‘feature wall’, which constructed a darker, more visually pleasing mise en scene, and further covered
unwanted items within the frame (i.e a whiteboard). Within this, my specific role was to set up the room
and decide where each prop would be placed, to double check and oversee the framing and position of
shots proposed by the camera operator, as well as to ensure efficient use of lighting and direct the actor
in their portrayal of relevant emotion. In terms of equipment, we used a Sony A7X2 camera, tripod and
Neewer CN-160S light.

Evaluation –

Overall, I feel as though this was our most successful day of filming. I was able to build upon previous
experience, as having already filmed each shot on our
second day of production enabled me to ensure we were
shooting as quickly and efficiently as possible. Due to the
use of only a single location, the shot list could be
followed chronologically, thus making it easier to mark
each completed shot and track our progress. The set-up
of the room, however, was the most difficult part of this
process. Not only did props have to spaced appropriately
for framing of shots and in order to ensure narrative
credibility – for example, though the majority of photos
were taken on the same day, we needed to make it
appear as though they spanned a longer time frame –
however we also had to set up the black wall using two
large sheets of black paper. Both sheets had to be
seamlessly integrated in order to construct the
appearance of a single wall, and further had to be stuck
to the top of the wall with sufficient strength as to not be
weighed down by the photos later stuck to them. In order
to achieve a more sombre atmosphere, intended to
juxtapose that of the ‘memory’ scenes, I opted again not
to leave all lights in the room turned off, and instead use
only the Neewer light we had brought with us. This
allowed us to focus on certain props or on the character
whilst keeping the lighting generally low-key, hence
communicating our intended mood. This was increasingly
effective with the addition of a black feature wall, as the spotlight contrasted it well and created a darker
tone. Overseeing this, in combination with directing our actor, allowed me to contribute effectively to the
team and have my input within group decisions.