Evaluating our Preliminary Task

Matthew Bostock, James Parronchi and Connor Marshall

Our preliminary task went fairly well, although there were some problems.

We managed to hold most of the shots in a steady position, using a tripod where minimal movement was required. However, some of our shots could have been less shaky, but this is something that we will improve upon for our main task.

The framing of most of our shots was good, especially when doing the match on action with James opening a door. However, the framing of the shot of our two characters removing the chocolate bars from their pockets could have been better, as it was perhaps not clear as to exactly what the characters were removing from their pockets. Again, if we were in a similar situation in our main task, we could use the experience we have to improve.

We used a variety of shots in our task, include a long shot, mid shot and extreme close up. I feel that this helped to make the action more interesting, and this is something that we will try and replicate in our main task.

Our movie covered the brief of the assignment, as it was quite short and included all of the shots that we needed to have in the task. The Mise-en-scene was also appropriate, as James was dressed in a suit, and we set it in a fairly dull corridor. However, for our main task, we could put a larger focus on Mise-en-scene.

We managed to edit our film so that it made sense to the viewer, making sure that continuity editing techniques were observed. This is also something that we should try and replicate in our main task.

We kept transitions to a minimal in our preliminary, using mainly straight cuts. However, we did use a few fade to blacks before the title sequence, which indicated to the audience that the main action had ended.

We used the soundtrack ‘Eye of the Tiger’ for our music. This did the job fairly well, although it has been used in many similar tasks before, meaning that it is perhaps a bit stereotypical. The timescale of the task meant that we did not have much time to think about this, but for our main task, we will focus on this element of the task more.

Title credits were used at the end of the sequence, which indicate the names of the actors and the crew, and also the candidate numbers, which are a requirement of this task. We feel that we used titles effectively in this task.

We also stuck to the 180^o rule when filming, although a lot of the shots were exactly on the line. This ensured that the audience were not confused by what is happening, and that the action made sense.

We also used a match on action when James was opening the door, which worked well. We then edited the shots together in fast succession, so that it is clear to the audience what is happening. This is something that we can do in our main task if appropriate.

In addition, a shot reverse shot was used in our task, to show a conversation between the two main characters. This worked well, although there was a slight low angle on the shot, which made the corridor seem twisted. This is something that we can work on for our main task.

In conclusion, when doing our main task, we could work on keeping the camera shot steady, perhaps by using a better tripod. Lighting is also something that we should consider in our main task, as at times the characters appeared a bit dark, meaning that the ambient selection should also be considered.