Evaluation of Filming.

Filming Evaluation. 

This week we went to film the tunnel scenes, using Greenwich Foot tunnel as our location, Here is a evaluation of the day, how it went, and if there were anythings that went wrong, or could have been improved. 

Location: Tunnel 

The tunnel was compliant with the requirements in which we wanted, which was the sole purpose of us choosing this tunnel to film in, the only problem we had was whether to include the lift into the shot or not, as we were not sure whether we wanted to show it, as it could have shown a escape route, but we included it, as we thought that even though there was a escape route, what would happen to our protagonist would be inevitable. There was a lot of grime and scratches along the tiles on the wall, in which tied in with the plot, and also shows that more supernatural occurrences may have happened here at some point. Also linked in with this the grime appears to be dripping, and running down the tiles, in which can link in with blood, and also the stains within the walls, linking to our plot completely and also foreshadowing what is to come for the protagonist. Some of the tiles appeared to be missing, which also showed the age of the tunnel, which meant that the supernatural occurrences could have been going on for many years, linking to the horror genre. 

(See next three images for tunnel shots on the day). 

Business: 

As we went down to the tunnel at around half 10 and started filming, we tried to hit the time in which people would be already at work, and not out for their lunch breaks, although there were many tourists who were using the tunnel, and were quite stunned as they were greeted by a clown halfway through the tunnel, with some even deciding to take pictures, and stare for long periods of time! Each shot that we did had to be timed to make sure that there was no one walking through the tunnel, or anywhere close to our section of the tunnel, to ensure that the tunnel would look completely deserted, fitting in with our plot and genre, as if there were other people within the tunnel it would raise the questions of why would it not happen to them, why did it only happen to our protagonist, and also we can not control someone's reactions if they are not part of our cast, so if they laughed, it would just ruin the mood completely. 

Setting Compliant with Costumes & Make up.

The make up and costumes fitted in perfectly with the tunnel setting, and although they looked completely parallel, as you would not expect to see a clown within a tunnel alike this, it looked perfect for our genre, and also scared a few members of the public walking down the tunnel, who defiantly did not expect to see a scary clown in the middle of the tunnel! 

Lighting. 

The lighting in the tunnel created a enclosed feel to the tunnel, also creating lots of different shafts of light, varying both from lots of light, to very little parts at all. We could not control the light as it was already there, but we could change the camera angles, to enable us to use the light to our advantage in which we did. Which also as we used the camera in the monochrome setting, allowed there to be darker patches on the CCTV styled shots, which then enabled us to create and set up the supernatural typed horror location we wanted, as it created a division between light and darkness. 

Did we get the shots we needed. 

We successfully got all of the shots that we needed, and completed all of the tunnel shots, now all we need to do is edit them, and decide if there is any of them that we feel we need to reshoot for any reason. I think the day went successfully, and we got everything done swiftly and efficiently, with a lot of team work, and hard work from everyone involved. 

Changes to Filming

On location, we discovered that there were problems with some of the original decided features of our scene:

• When filming our test shots, it became apparent that the path we had originally chosen for the victim to follow around the Royal Naval College into the foot-tunnel would cause difficulties. We had to block out a separate route through the grounds ensuring that no restaurants, passing visitors, sign posts for the gift shop or shots in which the glass casing of the Cutty Sark were visible. This proved difficult due to the lack of lighting upon the foot-paths in the area and the obvious commercialisation of the location.
• On our original storyboard, no filming was included from the individual view of the victim as we decided to film the majority in CCTV format due to no intended empathy being felt towards the victim as an emotional bond between them and the audience as their character is insignificant as part of the plot.
• The skyline shots we are using within our scene originally were not planned and were added as a decision during filming. We had planned to include establishing shots to determine the importance of our location as an anonymous city (London) but originally of the college and Cutty Sark itself but on location, we found the brighter and more definitive example of London as a location would have been better represented using the skyline shot of the City buildings across the Thames as a universal symbol.
• Our first plan depicted the entirity of the scene filmed in the tunnel to be produced in black and white as CCTV footage but due to the supernaturality of our plot and our intention to emphasise this, we can now chosen to switch between colour during these shots to distort the image.

3rd Location Visit

On our third location visit we decided to re film the London Skyline because we didn't have a good quality and therefore it needed to be re filmed otherwise it wouldn't be acceptable for the short film. We went a little bit earlier and this meant that we had more light in order to test out different times in order to determine the best time in order to film for us. We arrived near sunset an filmed then but then decided to stay until it was dark and all the lights where turned on.

During the time which we waited for the sun to set we went around the college and looked at other potential places in order to film and although it was a really nice place in terms of lighting and architecture, it was too far away from the tunnels entrance for us to consider it as a place for filming and therefore will keep it in mind for future reference about whether or not if needed it could be reconsidered as another place in order for the victim to come from.

We found coming again to film the skyline extremely useful as we were able to film in different lights and therefore then pick out favourite version of the skyline in order to pick the best one for our film opening. We felt that overall when it is darker it is better as all the lights are on and te reflections of the water are really nice and therefore we are more likely to go with the darker shots rather than the lighter ones due to the effect and also that the other shots are filmed in the dark.

Evaluation of Practical Progress So Far

Our Visit to Location

• When we took our first visit as a group to visit our location and started test shooting to ensure when it came to post-production, we would not be faced with having to refilm sections due to lighting and other issues that may occur.
• We established in which order and when we would film certain shots, scheduling them in sections and in order of importance.
• Also, we blocked out where and how the camera/actors would move, altering our original decisions due to what was more easily achievable and effective within our choice of location.
• One of our changes made was to attach our camera onto the top of a bicycle to enable smooth, steady movement when the camera follows the actor's path.
• We were also able to establish where we would chose to film our opening shots to establish the region and background to our plot.
• In terms of costume, our visits also confirmed to us that the antagonist being dressed in white and red would be far more affective in terms of visibility due to the lighting available to us (allowing us to choose a final costume).
• By the finish of our first visit, we'd made effecient progress in determining exactly how we would film and also it enabled us to discover what we would need to negotiate and compromise in future, therefore allowing us to plan our next visit.