What Can I Learn From The Bloopers?

What can i learn from the Bloopers? from Megan-Jayne Forster on Vimeo.

I thought I'd add the bloopers on, as a learning tool - because despite how it appears, i learnt a lot from all the things that went wrong - These being just some of them.

Clip One (Actor bangs arm)

Clip Two ( Zana points at plane)

Clip Three (Zana false grin)

Clip Four (Tripod Antics)

Clip Five (Lamp falls on Zana)

Clip Six (Dancing Frog Girl)

(Clips 1 and 5) Coordinate exactly what happens on screen.

It would be sensible also for continuity, to plan out exactly what the actor does, this way continuity flows and the actor cannot hurt themselves via stepping too far forward. It was my mistake that i did not position the lamp switch close enough to Zana and she pulled it off, the next shot i positioned the switch so it was easy to reach and the shot worked.

(Clip 2 and 3) similar to the last point, my actor must have motivation, the must have something to work with during a shot. The first shot i took i told Zana just to walk and talk to me, this failed (as you can see in the Blooper) as we had mind blanks, so i gave her the motivation that she "wanted to tell me something" but "i had to go" and the shot worked because we had some audio to work with and the body language matched (which is what we needed). Same with clip three, i said to Zana "grin" but i wanted a sly grin, she gave me manic :'') so i have to specify, this was the same with my brother - i wanted a shadow disappearing as the FF appeared and asked him to stunt double run (Zana's half-hearted, looking around her, hurried walk) and he SPRINTED because i didn't specify.

(Clip 4 and 6) Being professional isn't majorly important but pick an actor who knows the severity of the scene, or the deadline, because at times the focus can be lost on both sides :')

Zana mucked around sure, but she got the job done too.

Also.. in Clips 1 and 5, Zana actually hurts herself. Now it is vital that precautions are taken when filming, we must identify any dangers and work to avoid/prevent them. In my case I made sure Zana stepped on a certain spot as to not hit her elbow and I placed the lamp switch in close range so she needn't reach for it.

And i almost forgot to mention a great complication in filming. As the door was frequently opened in my room by Zana during filming, the lovable mongrel native to my room was understandably confused to why she was removed and locked in the kitchen, and so snuck out and came into the room during filming on multiple occasions.

Solution was to put her outside during filming so she couldn't sneak back in, it's important to eliminate ( in a nice way ) or avoid the public, be it people on the street or animals.

Luckily Cassie was welcomed back after filming (:

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Location Justification (:

LOCATION LOCATION LOCATION

LOCATION LOCATION

LOCATION

I was very quick to choose that certain alleyway for my OTS, I knew when I'd finished my storyline where it would be shot and so went to the alleyway to observe it's potential. The lighting was very important and I felt the street lamps cast a very eerie glow and created distinct shadows that I really wanted for my Opening title sequence.
It was also very quiet so I knew we would have little or no interference (which we didn't during shooting apart from when we were outside the alleyway alongside Park Rd, a very long and busy road - see googlemaps and search "park road, spixworth").
The area around and overlooking to alleyway is very suburban and so i felt it fit the character's normal, comforting environment - yet it is morphed by nightfall. The fences along the alleyway also continue a fair way and are very high, this could link with the character feeling trapped or claustrophobic, running endlessly.
I then decided it would be a sensible idea to being filming before night fall as to establish which would be more suitable:
- filming in the light and darkening my film during the editing stage.
- or risk filming in the dark and hoping it will lighten during the editing stage.

In the first image you can see the street lamp gives off a very bright glow that (on the night of filming) also illuminated the damp ground adding to that surreal atmosphere i wanted to achieve, my character doesn't quite believe what's happening - either she knows who sent her the text and can't quite acknowledge that she's been found, or she's so taken aback by the text, it frightens her and sends her into panic - i want the closed in alleyway to reflect her feelings in comparison to the open road she stood alongside moments before.. in the presence of cars and a person she knows. I love the alleyway's suitability simply for the eerie way the light bounces along the alleyway, along the ground and the fences.

We came prepared each night with an umbrella just in case the weather turned on us and so the camera would be undamaged and the filing unaffected (water droplets on lense). Also for health and safety during filing, an adult attended during filming with the knife - to warn of passers by and in case a passerby was to question our motive to carry a knife in an alleyway (':

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