Major Project - Evaluation

'Moj Tata, My Father' Evaluation

An evaluation is a key part of a project, looking over the entire project thinking about what could've gone better, what went well etc. I'm going to start from the beginning. Before I had even started 3rd year I knew I wanted to create a passion project abroad, I knew this would be difficult in a group so I prepared myself to work alone, anyhow I don't really work well in group projects a lot of people don't really see eye to eye with me and my ideas. I wanted to create a personal, heart-warming documentary about something that is close to my hear, I wanted to tell a story that would really get the audience to be intrigued. Planning this story was a very long winded situation, it was changed over 6 times, developed and improved. It was keen for me to understand the reasons why I am doing it. Originally I wanted to create a documentary about Eastern Europeans struggling with their lives in the UK but it was too vague, nothing that hit me close to home. Then I started thinking about my past, about how I ended up in the United Kingdom it was such an interesting story to develop. After speaking with Simon he was all abroad the idea, that it could have a lot of potential if done the right way - I have to say I was very excited to make this project come to life! I also knew I would have a lot of issues and troubles a long the way with the way that life is treating me at the moment, but this just made me work harder. 

Organising Production/Development:

Since I followed through with my idea from the pre-production stage I was pretty much set with my plans, I had a script, schedule, call sheets all ready to go - but of course they were developed along the way. During this process I struggled with the script the most, expressing my worries to Simon we had both decided it doesn't have to be the key feature within my project but I had to have something giving me ideas of what I would film and do during my shoot days - which he was completely correct about. Going to another country and filming without some sort of help in front of me would be 100% more difficult. One thing I was lucky with where I didn't really have to spend any time doing was think about costumes, props, social media, promotion because it is a personal documentary these were not needed. I originally started doing poster promotions and social media but Simon encouraged me not too, it was too much on my plate since I was already multi-tasking everything and it was unnecessary. In regards to costumes and props they were also unnecessary, I wanted my documentary to feel real and raw. I remember planning my pre-production package and I knew that I didn't make it detailed enough although the re-search that I did throughout that really helped me with planning the whole production. 

However, I realised how I didn't do as well in my pre-production as I should have done. I didn't think through my story well enough, I should have changed the format of my script and worked a little bit more on it. I knew that the contributors were confirmed, the location and travel these were the least of my worries but the main story was jumbled. I couldn't put my finger on it at all times, I kept going in all different locations to where I kept confusing myself. I knew for a fact that I planned out the shots I had wanted to film, I outlined these in my script and production schedule. The documentary was mostly filmed with actuality shots and hand-held shots, as I mentioned above I wanted it to feel real and raw for the audience to understand that I am truly trying to found out the lies that my father has been telling me. When I was travelling I was also running through my script and schedule to know exactly how I am planning to make this. I also spent some time making sure I have a small crew on hand with me since there was no way I could film myself, I needed at-least 3-4 people on hand with me. As well as making sure that my risk assessments are correctly completed so I could successfully go film overseas, my risk assessment actually took a month to do - this made me realise how prepared I have to be for an overseas shoot. 

Production / Shooting Process

I was personally very scared when my shoot days were approaching, my risk assessment was only accepted 3 days before I was due to fly out of the country. 2 of my crew members dropped out over the weekend the day before I had to leave, this put me under a lot of pressure and stress but thankfully I still had 2 confirmed, I was also annoyed since I spent a lot of money on travel and necessities etc. When I had finally reached Poland I ended up being very Ill this had an impact on filming and slowed everything down since I had to visit a clinic. I was recovering the entire week of filming, and this can be seen in some of the sequences and shots, I mess up a few of my piece to cameras and look unmotivated, mainly for the reason that I was really under the weather but this didn't matter since I still pushed through and managed to get everything about of me being there. We got over 100gb of footage, which is a godly amount. There were a few things that really let me and the project down. 

The first 2 days on location the weather was brilliant, I straight away went to go and will all coverage cinematic shots since I didn't have any of the contributors available then. When shooting some shots I didn't notice the problems until I either watched them over or started the post-production process and as you can imagine I did not have time during my shooting days to look over 100gb worth of footage, which I do wish I did especially with the important interviews. When looking over the footage after shooting I started to get worried for the story since I knew I started to lose track, this was mainly to the reason that the contributors either didn't remember anything or give me the information that I was looking for originally. Following my script it was something completely different compared to what I received. The biggest let down was that my father really did not do a good enough job for me, he knew how important it was and his answers were simply pathetic. After speaking with Beth and Simon I received a lot of good advice on how to improve the story, they could also tell my story was loosing touch because of not getting the footage/information that I went there to get, but this didn't mean I should give up on it. I had a lot of hope and passion for this to be something I had always wanted to make. I received some reassurance from Simon to really tell the audience how the filming really went down, how my father didn't tell me what I wanted to know - I did think through voice over and really changed the story-line - I ended up learning a lot about myself and the connections between me and the community.

I was personally really worried for my project but then realised I was not alone, other peers had not gotten the ending or story they were thriving for, this happens and you learn from it. There was a lot from the shoot that I filmed and was unnecessary but I was happy with the fact that we shot a lot more because I wasn't able to have a re-shoot and there was always a chance for me to pick and choose my sequences. When talking with Simon we both decided that the piece to cameras don't really work well merged with my voice overs, I then removed some of them since they felt forced and I kept mumbling on about something that made no sense, I knew this could be instantly fixed with a recorded voice over as I didn't have to be under pressure and could re-shoot it as many times as I wanted to. One of the PTCs that I removed was when I was standing in front of the community talking about why I am here, this felt unnecessary to be in the documentary. I also removed the PTC where I was sitting on the stairs evaluating my trip, when filming these I wasn't actually sure if they are necessary but I'm glad I filmed them because it's better then missing footage. Also, the PTC outside was too dark and gloom, it simply did not fit with the overall feel. 

The reason I originally filmed these pieces to camera was to implement into the edit, of course we decided to remove them due to the story not going the direction it was original going. During filming these I was expecting the documentary to be really emotional and I was expecting to be finding out something completely outrages where I'd be upset, since I didn't it had no sense to be added into the final piece. I had these shots for a while in my edit, throughout all 4 rough cuts I had finally removed them at my final edit since they didn't look good and simply did not fit with the overall project. 

The advice that I received a few times made me look through the film, Simon was pretty happy with all the coverage shots and the way that I had filmed there was on issues there at all. I was also stoked about the sound that I had shot, this was the one area I did not want to mess up. Audio is very important, I remember Simon telling me this a few years back, without audio there isn't a project. I had a few issues where the clip mics would get disconnected and where I had to keep buying batteries as they didn't last long but with the sound outcome that I managed to get I was fairly very happy with it. I also had the Rode microphone attached to the DSLR at all times just in case the clip mics did not pick up important sound, but we checked before filming any sequence that the Tascam is working. One shot that we filmed without the Tascam had Lama Rinchen talking with a microphone, you can hear a lot of fuzzing in the background I managed to get rid of this by editing the audio in Adobe Audition as I have clearly explained in my 'Editing Process' post. 

It is also very important to be aware of how many changes you can make to your footage and edit. With all of Beths, Simons and Helens feedback I had acted upon a few of the changes they suggested but it is also important to not make changed if you feel strongly about what you had done, in this instance when I was told by Beth to not include Isabella's interview I decided that I wasn't going to, Isabella's interview was a key feature in the film and a very important person in my life. After filming with her we really re-connected and that can be seen through the footage. I feel like it really enhanced the documentary since the story changed to me finding out more about myself and the connection I still have with all these people.

When filming with Lama Rinchen I realised at the end of the day that the filmed sequences were very yellow tinted and grainy which I was upset about since the background was very pleasant. Originally written down on the script and schedule the interview was supposed to be a follow shot of me and Lama Rinchen talking but since the weather turned into thunder and storm we had to relocate inside the temple and since the walls are all yellow and red the colour that came out on camera wasn't the best. I knew that I could possibly improve this in the post-production process which I have explained in full detail on my 'Editing process' blog post. I remember after watching the sequence I was fairly upset with the outcome because Lama Rinchen actually left the community to go to Nepal, I wish I looked over the footage straight after it was filmed. 

When filming in Izabellas house I was very happy with my DOP and how we made the sequence look raw, you can really tell there is a connection between us. Within post-production I colour corrected this shot to make it brighter and make us pop within the shot. I also filmed tracking shots with myself and my father inside one of the buildings we used to live in, we were talking about the area in which we had access to ect but in the end I did not use this in my final version since it did not fit in with the overall story, my father didn't reveal anything important during that time and I didn't feel like it connected with the overall project so I decided to leave it out. The shots were also way too dark since the building we filmed in was very secluded and had barely any natural lighting being let in, we also couldn't carry round the aperture LED lights as it would give off different shades every time we changed rooms. 

Music and Sound - Post Production

As I've mentioned briefly above music and sound was very important to be so I was happy to hear that the Tascam provided me with fantastic quality throughout the project. When hearing it compared to the Rode microphone I had connected to the DSLR at all times it was a major difference. All audio clips from the Rode mic I had to edit in Adobe Audition as it seemed to always have the fuzzing background sound which bugged me a lot, I thought to myself this project is too important to have fuzzy audio or any sort of audio mistakes. I researched into Adobe Audition online and taught myself how to increase volume, remove background noise, capture noise prints etc. This is one of the videos I watched in regards to making my audio a little bit better within my project. What I really liked about Adobe Audition is that any edited audio sequences would get automatically replaced inside premier pro and would be saved in 1 original and 1 edited file. 

Capturing Noise Print before any edits begin

Noise Reduction Sequence

Increasing or decreasing volume 

Generating Noise

Originally I never knew about Adobe Audition until I started to have issues with background noise, I tried to do this in Audacity but it was too difficult so I started research into how to remove background fuzz and noise - this is where I came across thousands tutorials on Audition. It's very interesting to see how others start their audio edits and how they change them - every client is different and that is how each individual edits.

Of course then I had to start looking for background music, I originally thought that I could get someone to create music for me but the prices for this were too high, I did not have the budget for this. In this case I started looking online for copyright free music and came across Epidemic Sound, they have a subscription for £10 a month and have a full library of free copyright free music and sound effects. It was perfect since all of the sound fit right in with my project. I feel like music really boosts emotions and forces the viewer to feel happiness, sadness or worry with how music comes across. I specifically used this technique when walking with my father, the background music was slow and sad making the viewer understand that the situation is sad and enhances the moment. 

'Usually, background music is used by filmmakers to enhance the emotional depth of a scene by adding an extra layer to what you see on the screen. So clearly, background music can convey emotions and story to the audience without having any dialogues or sometimes acting.'

https://www.epidemicsound.com/

In regards to sound effects I only used 1, at the begining of my project I added Bird Sounds, giving the atmosphere around us a sense of nature. I simply wanted the audience to understand that I am basing them outside for the opening sequence. Overall my project was not big on sound, I didn't rely on it too much since I could it was only there to enhance certain emotions, it wasn't as necessary as it would be within a Drama or a Thriller. But, since I did use sound I wanted to make sure that it fitted in correctly and sounded correct, I had a choice of many different sound boards on Epidemic Sound and tested out a few making sure it fits in well with my montages and sequences. What I also managed to do is sync my opening montage with the music so that when certain instruments go off the photos/clip changes, I personally like this small detail since everyone can notices it and it brings me small amounts of satisfaction.


Small audio issues I had with Lama Rinchen - this was adjusted and fixed with Adobe Audition. Beginning of the adjusted sound also includes a snippet of music I had used from epidemic sound which enhances the emotional feeling of Lama Rinchen not being able to remember my father.

I went into my project knowing that sound is very important and having someone check this before we film was key! I completely made sure to do that with the Tascam and Rode Mic. They were always both tested before any shoots started, always double checked even when the camera was rolling with my DOP and Sound OP that the sound sounds good enough. Both of my crew members always stopped me if there was something that didn't sound right so we re-recorded. I was very happy with the teamwork on that part, I would've had to spend most of my time fixing damaged audio. I was also lucky enough not to have any disturbances throughout filming since most of them were shot in quiet areas of the community. 

1 small issue I had with filming sound is that some of the contributors kept touching the clip mics or placing them in different areas which was something that made a lot of noise, this I had to either cut out of my edit of use coverage. The only sequence that was very important to me was when Izabella and I are talking on the sofa about a memory she remembers and she kept touching the clip mic, originally I kept it in adding coverage over every time she did this and I tried to lower the sound but it still felt unnatural so I ended up removing it from my final piece. 

In regards to my editing process it was something I was very excited about since it is my favourite area of work. I originally did not know where to start my edit but then picked up on my speed, after many of my feedback sessions I knew what I had to work on. I had around 4 rough cuts I was working with and around 20 different versions of them. Although I did come across many issues with Adobe itself, it crashed on me over 35 times and I lost over 6 hours of work which really frustrated me and I was really unmotivated to work but I gave myself a break and carried on going. 

I knew that this could happen again so I made sure that my Adobe had auto save turned on. I started working on my opening montage and interviews first and then went onto adding sub-titles so that for my feedback sessions I had something to work on. I knew that I had to edit the entire project all by myself with no professional help, this scared me a little but I was happy with myself that I kept working on other small project so I don't loose my Adobe skills, this came in very handy. I didn't really have to create anything difficult it was mostly making sure that the story was going the right way and not being jumbled. This is how it began I had no real order, I was confused since I didn't receive the answers that I originally came to the community for. I was stuck, not being sure on how to work around this. That is when Simon gave me an idea to voice-over the sequences with my real thoughts and feelings and to round up the documentary with how the trip and whole project affected me. 

Colour grading is something I only did for certain sequences and clips such as the Lama Rinchen interview in the temple which I explained in detail in my 'Editing Process' blog post. 

Original

Second Attempt

Third Attempt

Final

This was the only sequence I was originally unhappy with. In my rough cuts I also had Lama Rinchen talk about the future of the temple but in my final feedback session with Simon he mentioned to remove it as it was unnecessary to include since the viewer will just get bored and drift away from the main reason as to why I am there. I had to really be careful with colour grading this sequence because by removing the contrast and saturation I started to remove the colour in the background elements which I didn't want to do. I also decreased the brightness in Izabellas interview since we filmed it in a very bright area, this did make the shot look overall dream like. 

First Attempt

Second Attempt

Final

Colour Correction Panel

This is one of the videos I had watched on colour grading, he made a lot of valid points for me to follow as well as teaching me the different ways to use the colour wheel and how to change skin tones. I was also thinking about using Davinci software but I realised since I didn't have a team I had no time to learn how to use a brand new software and export different kinds of footage. Colour grading wasn't a big part of my edit but it really did make a huge different in most of my sequences that maybe are seen by the viewer or not - but it makes a huge difference to me. I also want to develop the edit a lot more after the hand in since I am inspired to go ahead and submit it to the Kinoteka Film Festival that occurs every April in London. In addition I tried to add Wrap Stabilisation feature which is included in Adobe Premier Pro since I didn't have any equipment to stabilise all my tracking shots, but this didn't look right in the end so I remove it. 

https://kinoteka.org.uk/

Overall Thoughts

In conclusion I have over the moon with the work I had produced, very proud of the fact that I did this all on my own it feels very rewarding. Even though I struggled with a few production skills I still managed to make them and develop them in a way that I understand. I wish my pre-production would have went a little bit better so I could have been more prepared for what's to come but then again my writing and planning skills are usually not so good in comparison to me actually going out and making the production. I was lucky enough to be surrounded by people who believed in my and helped me with the process. Even though I didn't end up with the story that I originally wanted, I made it into something that worked even better I realised a lot about my skills, passion and the connection I had with the community. 

The important things that I learnt throughout this project were; 

• Per-production 
• Schedules
• Crew
• Post-production 
• Cut unnecessary sequences out 
• Don't give up