Digital News - Project Evaluation
I came into this year not really knowing what's to come but i was very excited when Helen introduced us to the Digital News project, i didn't realise that i was a group project and didn't know who i would end up with. Overall i feel like partnering up with Amber, Joni and Callum has taught me a lot, both of the girls have a lot of experience and they gave me so many tips on filmmaking that i will treasure, it is also fun making new friends! After we got together as a group we started to think of ideas, straight away Amber thought of a free cinema screening that was happening in Rochester from there our ideas started to spark, after more and more talking we wanted to make a project about hidden event's that not a lot of people know about here in Kent. We really based our main idea of the 'Open Air' cinema that everyone always hyped about, we thought it would be fantastic to show people that these things exist, and even get them to go.
We really wanted to get students and adults to go out in Kent and discover things that we unleashed for them, Moonlight Cinema the Escape Hub in Maidstone a day out in Folkestone for no more than £15. While all of this was happening i started to contact all of these events and try to reach out to contributors and see if we could film at the locations. First we had some draw backs from the 'Luna Cinema' and the open air cinema in Rochester but that didn't stop me, i kept calling and emailing until someone answered! I also got in contact with several cafes in folkestone that were funky but only 2 got back to me. We started running low on time but a few days before our planned shooting almost EVERYONE had gotten back to me with good news.
We got Moonlight Cinema confirmed the day before we filmed as well as the Escape Hub. We wanted to also film in Kent Life but they also turned us down due to being student. While looking for presenters it was also very difficult, i really wanted to get someone who was already a presenter and knows what they are doing but we also started running low on time and we had no luck. Moonlight Cinema had to be presented by me due to the lack of time we had to find a perfect fit for the role, in regards to the studio section and the news package Callum and I ended up finding the perfect people for the role. Callum found Victoria to present our Studio section and i found Marcin who presented the news package for us, both were fantastic and very enthusiastic. While i don't have any experience in presenting or acting itself i feel like i did a fairly 'ok' job at the Moonlight Cinema.We also started working on the script very early as we know this was a very important part of the whole entire project, we didn't want to leave it till last minute. While we all took a share at the script i was not as confident as the others, a long the way they helped me and i grew my confidence but script writing is the one thing i am not AMAZING at and i really need to perfect this key element. Callum also started working on a shot list for us early due to this we were organised and knew where we were going and how long we were there for, including all the shots we needed to film. While i started working on the Website and Social media the rest of the group were trying to finish up the script and articles. I was very confident in creating the Website as that is what i like to do and design, as well as the social media and branding it was all very exciting.
We also needed to come up with a logo before we started shooting anything, Callum started to think of the England map with a view finder on it but then we started to design and the logo drifted from that idea into another, we finally ended up with a very interesting unique logo that you wouldn't see anywhere and i feel like Callum's ideas but great but this suited the branding more. I think the colour pallet really suites the whole idea of the project and what it consists off.
While filming our sequences we did come across some issues but not too many thankfully. When filming Moonlight Cinema we had issues with the lighting since the screening only started at 8PM it started to get really dark, but thanks to all the cars and the lighting they had at the front, it gave the whole sequences a nice feel. The audience definitely feels as they are in a Drive in cinema and they can really sit back and relax. If it was bright and well lit up it wouldn't really feel like a cinema, i started to think this after we had finished editing the whole sequence. We were complaining about the darkness but now we are kind of thankful for it! After we moved on to filming the studio section of our project and i am pleased to say this was one of the quickest and easiest shoots i have ever filmed and been on, we literally had so much space and freedom that it only took no more than an hour to film and there was absolutely no issues at the shoot. Victoria was a great presenter and the funky purple lighting made the whole sequence look even better. The owner of the Escape Hub even gave us access to change the colour of the lighting that the room had, so we could really play around and get the exact feel we wanted. The hardest shoots that we had was in Folkestone, since it was so far away and we had no knowledge of the area we were a little lost. The weather also did not want to co-operate it was storming very badly and the camera lens kept getting wet. When we were filming inside the coffee shop and the interview with Diane we had no issues at all and everything went to plan, but since we needed to shoot a lot of scenes outside that included our introductions and cover shots it was almost impossible! Folkestone was so arty and interesting we wanted to film everything. We didn't let it stop us and kept going making sure we have everything we needed, even though some shots do look rainy and wet it didn't stop us from filming and trying, anyhow we did travel all the way to Folkestone we are not turning back just because of a storm. Folkestone was a stunning place and i absolutely fell in love with it, we truly showcased this on camera after i had edited the whole entire sequence.
Almost every shot that we did we had to have umbrellas! We were thankful that we had 3, i'm not sure what we would have done if we didn't come prepared. I think when it came to our shooting/filming days we were all very prepared and on schedule, we always set up early and made sure to run over the script and shot list so we do not forget anything. Amber and Joni were very comfortable as camera operators as me and Callum made sure the shots are set out correctly and the sound sounds crisp because without the sound there is no project. I really wanted to focus on the actors/presenters making sure that they fit the part for this entire project.
During the post-production process it was very excited to get started as that was one of my favourite things to do, i have written many post's about my editing process. I was put in charge of editing the Folkestone Package while Amber and Joni took on Moonlight Cinema. I feel like the News package was actually very difficult to edit, since there were so much footage and the interviews were so long i found it very hard to shorten and it had to only be 2.30 minutes for the entire sequence which was very difficult. I also had to fit the cover shots in the appropriate places to make the entire sequence look good and also to set up the location for the audience. There wasn't any colour correction that needed to be done in the Folkestone section as it was very colourful anyway but i still wanted to adjust the brightness and contrast. Amber also decided to get some templates and put some graphics together from the introductions and in between cuts, i also helped her decide on this, while having these graphics and also the background music it makes the whole project so much more fun!
Overall, i am extremely happy with the final product. We all worked very well towards the end and really started to communicate and understand each others feedback. I feel like this idea and project could carry on going as a series and who knows maybe is could? I never felt stressed or pressured while making this project, i felt relaxed and took time to make sure everything was done to the best of our ability and that is a great feeling. We worked very hard together and made something we could all be very proud of! Amber and Joni taught me a lot throughout this project and i was very happy to work with them alongside Callum. There is still so much to learn but truly i loved creating this project and making it the best it could be! Filming and planning with this group was an actual blast and every time we went somewhere we were so excited to just go out and film, because that is what we are here for! We created a great friendship over this and i hope we can work together again.Website - www.wanderlustuk.ml
Twitter - https://twitter.com/Wanderlusttuk
Youtube - hhttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuZBjNf8mPk6WOrouL45TsQ/videos
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