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Comparing film to art.
Chosen Artists – Jean Michel Basquiat and Keith Haring
Films Chosen – Pending
Art pieces chosen to compare to films
- ”RIDING ON DEATH” – By Basquiat – https://arthive.com/jeanmichelbasquiat/works/390783~Riding_on_death
Two possible options for keith haring
- ”CRACK IS WACK”
- ”UNFINISHED PAINTING”
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Introduction
I’d like to introduce this project before focusing on my research and influences. This portfolio is to present my factual production process and to highlight my key learning points in the journey to complete a one-minute factual documentary, shot in London. However, despite this portfolio being shaped around the documentary, it is strictly about the production process leading up to the documentary and for me to write in a reflexive manner of which I will be able to personally distinguish the progress of my learning in this assignment. In addition to this, I aim to use this assignment to engage effectively in learning and bounce ideas of my peers, as well as become educated from others from diverse backgrounds and apply good time and resources management to positively affect the production process. As well as this, I am excited to conduct new research into film and documentary which will aid my knowledge and understanding of the tools of film and television production and will help me defend the use of creative & technical considerations when planning and using production equipment for the documentary.
For a more focused introduction, my group consists of four other members all of which are equally dedicated to expanding ideas and knowledge in film. As a group, we brainstormed potential ideas and roles within production. Firstly, we came up with the idea of potentially documenting something very different and something quite psychedelic; dreams. We thought about diving into sharing someone’s extreme dream and how we can use B roll to keep the wavy look throughout the documentary. However, a week later, one of the group members, Sam, came up with an idea which is much more accessible and equally as exciting. Four words. Jazz band in Soho. Trendy, funky and super fun to work with. Sam saw them perform a couple of weeks before reaching out to them, he said they were fantastic. He then decided to tell the group and then message the band, whose name is, ‘’The Fallen Heroes’’. Below are multiple screenshots I took from our Facebook group chat, showing the messages Sam sent. These are the first initial steps showing the development process, planning and production management.
As you can see from the inserted screenshots, the band plays, quote, ”All over London & Europe”. As well as this they said, ‘‘We’ve played every Sunday in Soho for 12 years this November”. Hearing back from them with such a brilliant response has given me full confidence with this project and the band. With them proudly holding a spot in the trendy location of Soho for 12 years and playing all over Europe, I have a great feeling that I am going to learn so much over the production process of this project as well as be able to show how I can engage effectively in new groups whose members are from diverse backgrounds and develop a much more open and well-educated mind.
Evaluation
Introduce the project in your words
My project for this year’s Final Major Project has been my favourite and I have thoroughly enjoyed all of it. To start of summarising my project, it is a based in the medium of a video, that addresses the issues surrounding Anxiety. To be more specific, my story highlights an Anxiety attack and dives into the mind of someone suffering from Anxiety. The reason as to why I have chosen this subject, is due to many reasons, ranging from personal reasons all the way to creating content that can bring awareness to Anxiety. My project is in the form of a video because I personally think that people are more likely to be hooked by something that is visually stimulating, by something such as a video, or a magazine etc. In visual terms, I wanted my video to have a very strong visual stance, I feel I have achieved this though material I have filmed and found over time. I am very happy with the outcome of the final product, as well as my hard work and effort involved in the whole process of this Final Major Project.
List five strengths and five weaknesses in your final design
My final design is something I can say I am happy with, especially when I know how much work went into the editing side of things too. Here are five strengths to start this off; My video has a strong visual stance to it, my video is focused on the topic of Anxiety, I feel I have expressed my creative side through this video, it is not too long nor too short and I have stuck to my vision. I will now list the weaknesses that I feel are in my final piece of work. Firstly, the lighting was a small issue (computer screen glitch), I wanted to enhance the Anxiety attack better, I lacked some clips I wanted to film, the video ending could have been a little more informative in terms of storyline and lastly, I lost my camera charger for my own camera, I had to use cameras which were older which was a disadvantage in terms of the quality of my production. Now I will go into detail about each strength and weakness and talk about them in depth for a better insight as to why I have listed them.
Starting with the strengths. The first strength of my final design that I listed was, ‘’My video has a strong visual stance to it’’. This was a feature that I talked about a lot in the initial planning process, at the start of my Final Major Project. I wanted it to be heavily packed with visuals that can accurately display and represent what it is like to have an Anxiety attack. I feel I have very much achieved this. The creative visuals were a process of thinking of my surroundings and what I could use to create this idea I had. I used a variation of materials, one even being my hot tub lights as they have a setting which creates quite an aggressive flicker, which can make an anxious feeling. In addition to this, all the techniques I used on the material side of things had a lot of thought go into them. I will talk in more detail about these further on in this evaluation. The next strength that I listed was, ‘’my video is focused on the topic of Anxiety’’. This is a strength because it has not gone off topic, it is not ‘’misleading’’. My video is very focused on how Anxiety can make someone feel and how dramatic the effects can be. This can also keep a viewer stimulated and hooked on the video because it doesn’t go off topic or change, it keeps to a storyline, which also relates to the title of the video. This overall makes the video more smooth in the way it runs and tells a story. After that, I said my next strength from my final design was the following, ‘’I feel I have expressed my creative side through this video’’. With the creative aspect being mentioned a lot during the initial work process, this (to be creative) is a strength because to show off skills in a creative way for me can make something so much more special in a personal way. I think in the video, the actual Anxiety attack part really reflected my creative nature and being able to find a way of which I can present the feelings of Anxiety through a variation of creative materials. I also think this has made my video more interesting to watch too, mainly because of the colours and the rush from the creativity. In addition to this, the next strength was ‘’ it is not too long nor too short’’. The reason I have listed this as a strength is because the editing involved also links to this too. My video is not painfully long, nor it is ridiculously short. In my opinion, it is just right. There are in some ways, two strengths that come with this, the first being the fact that I have managed to keep my video at a steady length that can keep viewers hooked and interested in my video and the next strength with this is the fact that I have managed to cut down a lot of footage to create what I have now. I believe this is a key skill to make a video and understand what clips and sequences work the best. The last and final strength is the following; ‘’I stuck to my vision’’. The fact that I have kept to my vision and turned my idea into an actual video is a strength to me. This is because, from past experiences and previous videos I have made, it is quite hard to turn a vision into reality, with accuracy too. This video is real proof of my progress in the world of film and media.
Moving on from the strengths, it is time to talk about each individual weakness I have mentioned above, just as I have with the strengths. So, the first weakness that I listed was, ‘’the lighting was a small issue (computer screen glitch)’’. With this weakness, the reason as to why I said it was only a small issue, was because about ninety percent of the lighting was good enough for my film, however, some bits were a little duller than others, as well as this, in brackets I said ‘’computer screen glitch’’. When I was filming the laptop, I have the camera in focus and all the settings were good. However, the way the laptop screen and the camera mixed created a glitch effect which really made the video quality downgrade a little, in my opinion. This is a weakness in my video, I am not sure why this happened but I think in terms of on-screen visuals, this isn’t great for quality etc. The next weakness I mentioned was the following; ‘’I wanted to enhance the Anxiety attack better’’. Now, despite the overall Anxiety attack being a great visually creative scene, there are still areas I wished to improve on that. For example the sounds used. I wanted to get more shocking sounds when the camera zooms into the actors head, I wanted a sound more capturing and bold. Like I said, despite the overall scene being good, I still feel I could have made improvements, which is why I have names this a weakness. The next weakness from my final project is, ‘’I lacked some clips I wanted to film’’. This is a weakness because there were certain clips I wanted to film, but I didn’t get the courage to film them. For example, I wanted to get some clips of kids laughing and talking the library but I was too shy to do so, this negatively impacted my video as I lack things I wanted. Whilst this is a weakness in my video, it is also a lesson. As well as this I think I have made up for these clips with additional creative footage too. The fourth weakness was, ‘’ the video ending could have been a little more informative in terms of storyline’’. I say this because I feel I could have closed the video better. For example, I ended the video with a blackout, which seems logical as the Anxiety attack can end in blackouts of some sort, which also makes the video more dramatic too. Then I cut to the end where the actor, Riley is outside smoking a cigarette. I feel maybe by showing how he got outside would have perhaps made the story more full and made more sense too. This is only a small weakness, however, it is still something I have considered. The last and final weakness was, ‘’I lost my camera charger for my own camera, I had to use cameras which were older which was a disadvantage in terms of the quality of my production’’. This was a big disadvantage to me. I love my camera and know how to work it well. As well as this, my own camera can shoot in 4K quality, which would have made my production really visually amazing. Since I lost my charger for the battery and I couldn’t afford a new one, and no one had a charge for my camera, I had no choice but to use the college cameras, which are older and shoot in a max of 1080p I believe. This really downgraded my vision and the overall quality of the production too. This is a weakness in my eyes because quality is a strong thing to consider.
Overall, for this section, I have fully recognised my strengths and weakness and have taken them all into consideration. In some ways, the weaknesses especially, are a lesson to be learnt and I can understand the faults in this project and apply the learnings to any future projects and productions I do. This can only lead to improvement and better successes. Learning and developing has been a key thing in this Final Major Project and I am very happy with the outcome, despite the weakness, that I have also embraced.
Was there a theme for the design ideas? Can you describe it? Can you reference anyInfluences here? – Art movements, designers, media companies/campaigns, etc.
My project, which I have already mentioned in previous paragraphs above, is all about the issues surrounding Anxiety. The theme to say, was mental health and bringing awareness to the issue of specifically Anxiety. This idea was born out of many things, some being external influences and media materials but the main sprouting of this subject idea was from my self and my personal battle with Anxiety. This might sound a little cliche, but it is true. My Anxiety got to the point where I couldn’t leave the house and I was scared to do many things. I had many opportunities that I wasted which was all thanks to Anxiety. Furthermore, I have always had the idea of making a video that can strongly express the struggles of suffering from Anxiety. As well as this, my own experience made this project a lot more special and in some ways, made my video and my overall interpretation of Anxiety more realistic, despite it being such a flexible subject and everyone experiencing it in a different way. In addition to my personal issues having an impact and influence on this project, other sources and ideas helped me with the execution of this idea and my FMP. Firstly, there is a young filmmaker on YouTube called ‘’Mikey Murphy’’. I have already mentioned him in my research section of this project, but his video was one of the moments where I was motivated to create my own video about Anxiety (I will post a link to his video). What really helped and inspired me with his video is firstly, his actual short film was amazing, the visuals and graphics and the overall execution of the video but not only this, before the short film began, he filmed the whole process of making it. From the cinematography, the lighting, locations, sound etc. This showed me a step by step process which was really interesting and from a filmmakers perspective, it was very helpful too. Here is a link to his video – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXiqond9hmY. The video was dramatic yet calm and had a vibe to it. This inspired me, I wanted to create something like this. As well as the video side inspiring me to make what I have, I was also inspired by the way it affects people in general. As weird as that may sound, I am intrigued by the way people can be affected differently by the same thing. I conducted questionnaires to establish a few questions and aid me with my target audience. This just motivated me more to produce material online that could potentially help someone as well as raising awareness to the issues of Anxiety. Furthermore, I am a very creative person. I like to show my work in a very detailed and creative way. I was inspired by art and in many ways, the video by Mikey Murphy was a form of Art. Since this evaluation is a lot of words, I will break it up with some images that show fascinating and inspiring art pieces that represent the feelings of Anxiety. (I will insert all image references at the end of this evaluation).
In my eyes, these pieces of art are all very unique. I used the first one on the far left in my presentation for this Final Major Project. All the images and art, in general, I have been aware of in the past as well as be inspired by it too. They are visual representations of how Anxiety can make you feel. This inspired me to create something that can also be a visual representation of how Anxiety can make someone feel, but my inspiration was through video as opposed to a series of images. These images as well as other video influences helped shape and craft my ideas and aided me in the video I have produced for my Final Major Project.
What experiments and exploration did you do (what happened). How did it affect Development of your project?
With my project, I didn’t carry out a lot of heavy experiments that affected my final piece. Essentially, my main focus for the video was the Anxiety attack and for this, I needed to think of ways I could express this through a variety of materials. I looked around my house and the first thing I could think of was to go to the hot tub and look at the light settings. There was one setting that made the lights flicker really fast and expressed a distressed feel. I didn’t manage to upload any videos however, there are some images from the videos (Inserted below).
The images are very vague but they are screenshotted images of the extreme flashing from the hot tub. Whilst this may not show the video in full effect, it is still evidence of experimentation in my project. In terms of the ways this has affected the development of my project, it made me feel more confident in terms of what I can include in my video. I didn’t really conduct any other pieces of experimentation, though I wish I did. I would love to have material that shows me experimenting and playing around with different content and materials etc. This is something I most certainly regret.
Find a similar type of design publication – place it next to your own – whatComparisons/difference can you identify?
During the research period of the Final Major Project, a lot of it was looking into similar existing media products. This was a way to generate inspiration and to understand different codes and conventions of filmmaking in this area of my subject idea. I mainly looked at short films on YouTube that were about Anxiety and Anxiety attacks etc. One video, in particular, was my favourite and was unbelievably inspiring to me. The video was by a young YouTuber called, ‘’Mikey Murphy’’. This YouTuber has similar visions to me, I could understand his type of filmmaking, which is why I think I found it so inspiring. What I loved about this video is the fact that the audience was able to see the making of the video. Before the initial film begun, Mikey inserted some clips of the making of the film. For me, as a filmmaker, this was deeply helpful. Now, I will insert the video below and some analysis of it too!
screenshot that image and out link in box
This video specifically, in terms of how it can ”represent the world” would mostly represent certain individuals in certain situations. I say this because this video is more like a short film that focuses on a young boy who suffers from Anxiety. During the video, we see him in certain situations. For example, when he is in the cafe and starts having anxious thoughts which can be used to represent an Anxiety attack. This is what I mean by representing individuals in situations. The video can also help to shine a light on the issue of Anxiety and can help cover more than just the individual, but rather a whole group of people who suffer from Anxiety. In terms of whether it is a positive or negative video, I’d say that it does not really focus on one. But if I had to say, then I would call it a positive video with the way they have artistically covered the issue of Anxiety and in the film, they cover the way in which he deals with his Anxiety attack. Others can use this to help, so I’d say it is a positive video which can impact others in a good way. This video is an overall representation of what Anxiety is like and what comes with suffering from it.
In terms of ways it can compare to my own video, there are traits and similarities since this is the video that I got inspiration from. For example, similarities include the sharp cuts and sharp breath sound effects, the desk shots and the rush of materials used to create a dramatic Anxiety attack. These similarities are all drawn from that video. It was the first video I watched that really captured me and made me feel great about the production side of things. Both my video and this one, by Mikey, capture and express the feelings and frustration caused by Anxiety. This is a similarity that I am happy to share because in my initial proposal I said how I want to create something that expresses Anxiety, and I have, especially thanks to inspiring videos such as this one. The use of materials such as lights, water and books etc. In this film were all used to create a dramatic sequence, which was the Anxiety attack. This is a similarity in the sense that I used a range of materials such as a smoke bomb, hot tub lights flashing and other materials too. However, it is also a difference in the sense that different materials were used etc. Which creates a different visual effect. But with that being said, my video is not the same anyway. This leads to the differences. There is a lot of differences visually. Our videos in their own individual ways are different, completely. The storyline, in some way, is the same yet it is also different. Th setting is different, the actor’s ages and environment. It is telling a story of the same thing in such a different way which I think is really great in terms of representing a subject with flexibility.
What were the key areas of development in this project? – use your daily reflections to Help you with this.
I think for me, a key area of development was turning the storyboard into an actual video piece, that I was also proud of, as well as producing something that was accurate to my storyboard. In addition to this, I have never edited a video to the level of this type, which is not just a key area of development in this project, but it is also a key area of development within my self and my skill set too. I have always enjoyed editing and stringing together a video out of clips I have filmed, and this project had the perfect ending with the editing going so well. Another key area of development was in the pre-production pack. For example, last year I really struggled with understanding different concepts of the pre-production pack, but this year I found it fairly easy, which is something that is also reflected in my weekly tracking. For example, in week 9 I aimed to complete health and safety, recce and the storyboard, which I did, with confidence. For example in a part of the tracker I said, ‘’This week I completed the health and safety and the recce as well as drafting my storyboard on paper, which I really took my time with, and am happy with too. I took my time on the health and safety and fully educated my self on slips, trips and falls etc. This really helped me to also be more aware of how these things can occur in my locations too. The Recce went very well and I found it easy to write confidently about each location too. The storyboard was really fun. I added some colour to it to brighten it up and make it more realistic in terms of how I feel about my story’’. This shows I was happy/content with the work produced in that area, so they are my key areas of evident development.
Review your proposal – what changed, what developments did you make, did you manage to complete everything you set out to achieve?
What did the client think of your concept? How did that make you feel?
I made my video for many reasons. Firstly, I wanted to have some creative material out there which is something I can be proud of. In addition to that, this video does have a very personal background with myself having influences in it etc. That is one reason I made this, however, I also made it for other clients too. I wanted to make a video for those suffering from Anxiety. I wanted there to be content online that could potentially help others. I showed a few of my friends, some of which also suffer from Anxiety. There was nothing but positive feedback. They said how it really captures the whole panic of what an Anxiety attack can feel like and what it can do to your body and mind. I also explained how I understood how we all suffer from the same thing yet in different ways too, they agreed with me. I also showed my family. My mum was very pleased with the video and since she has seen me grow up with creating various video content, she could see the progression I have made with my creativity and editing skills etc. All the feedback I got from my clients and other people I showed my video too made me feel really good. I felt so confident that people liked it, I was happy and relieved too. All the hard work I had put in has paid off which makes me feel like I can do anything. I think self-confidence is key to life and the responses I gained definitely helped me a lot.
What could you do to adapt the work produced to improve and develop it?
With my strengths and weaknesses which I have previously mentioned above, with this particular question, I think it is relevant to highlight my weaknesses. This is because I can learn more about my weaknesses as well as identify ways I can adapt them and my work in order to improve. Firstly, I will repeat the list of weaknesses that I highlighted above, at the start of this evaluation. The lighting was a small issue (computer screen glitch), I wanted to enhance the Anxiety attack better, I lacked some clips I wanted to film, the video ending could have been a little more informative in terms of storyline and lastly, I lost my camera charger for my own camera, I had to use cameras which were older which was a disadvantage in terms of the quality of my production. With all these weaknesses in mind, I only want to address the ones that mean the most and have affected my project in some way. In terms of adaptability, the first weakness that I can talk about is the lighting. I can adapt to lighting by assessing the situation I am in when filming, assessing the lighting levels etc. As well as this I can use my camera to adapt different settings, which can improve the quality of light and picture display too. I also want to adopt different storylines in my line of thought, I want to change and adapt in general and not just create non-dialogue films. I want to challenge myself in filmmaking and this adaption is a start that can also improve my skill set overall.
Is the final work appropriate for the needs of the project? Does it sufficiently answer your
Brief?
I would say that yes, my final workpiece is appropriate and sufficiently does answer my brief in a great way. I started off with my brief and overall research directing me towards showing what Anxiety is really like. I looked into various research about young people and relations to Anxiety. I also mentioned in my brief how I wanted to portray Anxiety though a young person perspective as well as keeps my creative streak through a video like this. I believe I have achieved this. For example, my video features a young person in a learning environment such as a college. My video shows the stress and panic that is experienced due to Anxiety. My video then highlights an Anxiety attack which is through the use of create material and visuals, which relates to and highlights my creative side etc. Overall, I think I have produced great content that can reflect all aspects of what my initial brief said to do etc. I am also overly happy with my final piece as well as the process and hard work with the build-up to the final piece.
Reflect on your pitch to the board; how did you feel about it before?
My pitch was a big obstacle in this project since I have always feared public speaking etc. This means I was of course not looking forward to this and it was something I thought would go terribly. However, I was quite wrong. Before initially starting my presentation I was very nervous, which is normal, however, I get extreme nerves, which can sometimes have an effect on my presentation. But, I started the presentations and got the flow of things. I was pretty confident to start with, mainly with the way I had styled the pitch. It was adapted to my style and interests and made it more, me, which is another aspect of why I enjoyed it. This year’s presentation was an evident improvement from last year, in many ways. Firstly, I was much more confident in my self, this allowed me to come across more comfortable too and made the atmosphere less awkward etc. I managed to be more direct and more clear or projected with my words, which was something I have always aimed for. The many presentations I have done have been hard but very useful with my self-progression and the way I handle them. I would say that from today, I have very evidently seen how much I have improved and how far I have come too. In addition to what I have just said, I feel like other people found it easier to understand what I was saying as I was able to speak better. This was very beneficial to me and of course, others who were listening.
The timescale that we were given for our presentations was about 5 minutes long. This gave me plenty of time to get my presentation done and say everything I needed to say too. My presentation lasted about three and a half minutes which was the amount of time I was aiming for. It was within the given time frame and it wasn’t too long and boring, nor too short. That is something I am happy with. However, I feel as if, despite how happy I am with this, the reason it lasted this long was that some of my information was a little repetitive and therefore I skipped a few bits of information, to avoid rambling on. Next time, in the future, I will ensure that I do not repeat. With my feedback, my tutor said that I had created a very good and detailed presentation. It was very to the point and I presented it well. She was overall very happy with it and the feedback was all positive, which was all that I had aimed for too. She then further explained the work I needed to do in order to keep on top of the Unit 13 project. This was overall, very good. This leads me to my next point, which is where now? Since I have uploaded the video and written all about it, next I need to progress further with the next tasks given in Unit 13. These are all needed in order to succeed and I will do my best in each task and try to complete them within the given timescale. To conclude, overall, I am very happy with my progress in terms of my presentation and how I presented and dealt with it. I am so pleased with my own personal progress made in this area and will continue to progress too. The presentation was clear and made sense too, which is what I wanted.
Did it go better or worse than you expected?
My overall idea of my project before the production started was not that strong, I had many doubts about the way this would go and the way I would pull off the most crucial part of the video. I wanted it to be how I had pictured it in my mind, which was complex and especially with other video material I had watched as inspiration, I had made my self-feel as if the bar was raised high. Despite these feelings of unease, as the project went on I became more and more confident. With the way the research and the whole portfolio started to come into place, I could envision ways of achieving what I wanted. This is a summarization means it did go better than I had originally thought it would have. The main part I wanted to look good, which was the Anxiety attack section, went very well. I managed to find existing materials that made my vision come to life. For example, I used my hot tub lights, smoke bombs, tunnels, stock footage and close up shots of the actors. This all helped me to achieve the look I wanted. In terms of other specific things that I thought went better than expected, the whole experience filming in the Library went well. I was feeling cautious as to whether it would go well, filming in a place with a lot of kids. I thought I might have been a distraction and the kids could get in the way, however, I was wrong and it went much better than I thought. This is because the background noise was at a perfect level for my video and it wasn’t too loud nor too quiet either. Also, no one was surprised or distracted by me and I didn’t get many disturbances either. Of course, people occasionally walked past the camera, but it was manageable. With all being said, this can confidently conclude that yes, my project did go much better than I had originally expected. This can mean that I have had a good experience whilst filming and editing and the whole overall process went much better than I thought it would have done.
What was the feedback from your lecturer?
My lecturer was very pleased with
What do you think you could improve next time?
Next time, I think I can take my time more with editing and look into better sound effects. This is because, whilst of course I am happy with my video and the whole outcome, I still believe there are better sounds out there, which can make my video feel more capturing and energetic. However, I feel I have still managed to create this effect well and it has made me proud. Next time, in order to fulfil this wish of improvement, I will make a folder on YouTube and I will experiment with as many royalty free sounds as possible in order to create something great and use the best quality of sounds as possible. In addition to this, I think I could improve on my whole idea of a film. Last year for my FMP and this year I have created non-dialogue films. Maybe I can challenge my self-next time and in the future with making a real film, with speech and dialogue between characters. Which is another thing I can develop and improve on, including multiple characters in my movie? Last year I had none, this year I had one, so perhaps I could switch things up and involve some characters to create a really great piece of film.
Image References
Anxiety Image 1 – SAATCHI ART – expressionism by Arturo Leal – 2018 – [online] – https://www.saatchiart.com/art/Drawing-Anxiety/798893/2539363/view – Last Accessed 31/05/18
Anxiety Image 2 – deviantart.com – by Madstalfos – 2009-18 (specific date unknown) – [online] – https://madstalfos.deviantart.com/art/Anxiety-118824535 – Last Accessed 31/05/18
Anxiety Image 3 – deviantart.com – by beethy – 2015 – https://beethy.deviantart.com/art/anxiety-314402192 – [online] – Last Accessed 31/05/18
Health & Safety
The Health and Safety is a necessary factor that is taken into consideration in many lines of work and in environments with a lot of people. To look into each possible location or surroundings for an activity is vital. Being able to recognise possible unsafe features in a location is needed to ensure that the working space is safe and no one can get injured. Reducing the risks of harm can benefit a place and make people feel better about working there. For my Final Major Project filming locations, I will be inspecting them for any risks or features that could pose a threat to both me and those who will be working alongside me too. This means thoroughly looking and inspecting the area, as well as thinking about the following; The activity taking place/location, The hazard, what are the risks?, who is at risk?, how can it be controlled/what measures you need to put in place to prevent the risk?, Level of risk (High, Medium, Low). These are in-depth factors that I will consider with the thought process about my locations for filming.
During the consideration for Health and Safety, for anything, it is important to consider some key foundation aspects that can really affect the safety of a workplace. For example to briefly list the following; slips, trips and falls, electrical safety and fire prevention/safety. These are all aspect to think about and there is so much more to each considerable hazard. Down below I will write a little about each one and how I will take care of them etc.
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Slips, trips and falls
Slipping, tripping and falling have happened to everyone, but in some cases, especially in a professional working environment, these things can be prevented. Some easy control methods to reduce the chances of these happening are the following; keep areas clean and tidy, stay organised, explore the area beforehand, dispose of waste and make sure walkways are clear. For more detail, I will add some examples of the control methods.
For example, firstly with keeping areas clean and tidy. This can be done by putting all rubbish in the bins and keeping the doorways and stairways clear, or as clear as possible. A lot of slips and falls occur on stairs which is why it is vital to ensure this area, specifically, is kept clear. Furthermore, staying organised. This can be done by keeping objects in areas that they belong, keeping the camera in a camera bag or strapped around the neck of someone. Keeping all equipment organised and tidy reduces accidents and breaking of equipment too. Keeping walkways clear can be done by putting rubbish in the bin, having a space for bags etc. Keeping equipment in bags and out the way etc. There are other things that can cause slips such as liquid spills. If this does occur, then it should be cleaned up immediately.
2. Electricity safety
If working in an environment which has electrical equipment, there is always the possibility of an electrical hazard. For example, computers and cable wires are common in work places and this of course can result in accidents if something went wrong. Most electrical equipment will be pat tested before use and before being distributed to common work places, however this does not get rid of the possibility of electrical faults happening. Pat testing means Portable appliance testing which is essentially the testing and inspection of electrical goods to ensure they are safe. Firstly, with electricity, if you spill any liquids over or near electrical equipment, then it is a danger. People can be severely electrocuted and this can result in serious injury. Furthermore, with electrical equipment, it is vital that with any damaged material, it is to be removed immediately. This is to reduce the hazard and risk of being electrocuted. With being at college it is important that if any electrical faults occur, then it is vital that only trained IT staff can deal with these issues in depth.
In terms of me doing filming, equipment such as lighting is something that needs to be dealt with properly. I need to make sure I know how to use them properly. Lighting can get very very hot, which can result in many bad events such as a fire etc. With the cables from the light, it is vital they are checked over before hand for no tears or anything unusual too. Safety gloves are available when dealing with lighting as the heat can get very intense so it is important that I am prepared.
3. Fire Prevention
Fire prevention is a big feature to consider. A fire can break out almost anywhere, which is why it is so serious. In a work place fires can be the result of an electrical fault, over heating, possible flammable material that hasn’t been stored properly and human error too. There are control methods used to reduce the chances of these fire outbreaks. Essentially, the first thing is to make sure that the work place is tidy. This means no rubbish around, bin any rubbish, and dispose of waste regularly too. Make sure the place is organised and keep equipment tidy and in check.Store cameras in bags and keep things where they need to be. Do not use anything which is electrically faulty, this can result in someone getting electrocuted and also cause an electrical fire too. Essentially, it is vital that people are well educated on hazards surrounding fire. People should know not to place objects over heaters etc. And at the end of the day, it is important that work areas are thoroughly checked and to make sure everything is switched off.
Pitch video and Evaluation
This video is my pitch and presentation for Unit 13 (FMP). It is essentially in a form of video as proof that I have completed the presentation. Below is the video.
Firstly, I want to start off by saying that I am overly very happy with the way that my presentation went. I was pretty confident to start with, mainly with the way I had styled the pitch. It was adapted to my style and interests and made it more, me, which is another aspect of why I enjoyed it. This year’s presentation was an evident improvement from last year, in many ways. Firstly, I was much more confident in my self, this allowed me to come across more comfortable too and made the atmosphere less awkward etc. I managed to be more direct and more clear or projected with my words, which was something I have always aimed for. The many presentations I have done have been hard but very useful with my self-progression and the way I handle them. I would say that from today, I have very evidently seen how much I have improved and how far I have come too. In addition to what I have just said, I feel like other people found it easier to understand what I was saying as I was able to speak better. This was very beneficial to me and of course, others who were listening.
The timescale that we were given for our presentations was about 5 minutes long. This gave me plenty of time to get my presentation done and say everything I needed to say too. My presentation lasted about three and a half minutes which was the amount of time I was aiming for. It was within the given time frame and it wasn’t too long and boring, nor too short. That is something I am happy with. However, I feel as if, despite how happy I am with this, the reason it lasted this long was that some of my information was a little repetitive and therefore I skipped a few bits of information, to avoid rambling on. Next time, in the future, I will ensure that I do not repeat.
With my feedback, my tutor said that I had created a very good and detailed presentation. It was very to the point and I presented it well. She was overall very happy with it and the feedback was all positive, which was all that I had aimed for too. She then further explained the work I needed to do in order to keep on top of the Unit 13 project. This was overall, very good. This leads me to my next point, which is where now? Since I have uploaded the video and written all about it, next I need to progress further with the next tasks given in Unit 13. These are all needed in order to succeed and I will do my best in each task and try to complete them within the given timescale.
To conclude, overall, I am very happy with my progress in terms of my presentation and how I presented and dealt with it. I am so pleased with my own personal progress made in this area and will continue to progress too. The presentation was clear and made sense too, which is what I wanted.
section 1 rationale
With my ever-growing progression in the field of Media, the past units I have worked hard on during this course have helped shape and influence me as a person, and have aided me in skills development, specifically in film, as well as allowing me to acquire new skills over a period of time. Furthermore, my skills in filmmaking such as planning, directing, and editing have evidently become better since my first year and before. The vital knowledge that I obtain now is something I have built over this course and I aim to apply it to future projects/work. My journey has also influenced my passions and has directed me to this Final Major Project. With any areas of concern, in relation to my project, I have none, as I am fully comfortable and content with my subject/idea, which has all stemmed from my experience and various other factors that have shaped me over the past years.
section 2 concept
This year, my chosen medium for my project will be video, due to it being a strong favourite of mine as well as something I have experience in. Furthermore, it is a platform that I can flexibly represent whatever I want. This leads me to what the aim of my video will be. My video will be based on the issues of Anxiety and will be presented in an artistic way through the cinematic movement. I want to stress what Anxiety does to an individual. My major influences for this is a filmmaker called Mikey Murphy and also my own personal issues of suffering from Anxiety. Furthermore, my research will be based solely on Anxiety and the different forms it comes in, as well as how it affects us differently. The first target audience that comes to mind is young people as I know I can create content that they can relate to. With video production having a lot of major roles, I will have no aid in this. I will be creating and filling all the production roles etc. The technical requirements for my project will involve me ensuring I have all filming equipment in check and ready to go.
section 3 eval
My methods of evaluation and reflection for my project, include self-reflection and weekly progress tracking as part of keeping up to date on my self, work and progression overall in this Final Project. I will use my research to effectively keep my knowledge sharp and make development in my project all the time to ensure it is effective. This can also allow me to change any ideas I have during my project and efficiently keep the research I am doing relevant. My project aims, for specifically my research involve expanding my knowledge on the subject, Anxiety as well as understand more aspects of it. Furthermore, my video aim is to present something that can represent anxiety as well as be content that people can relate too. I aim to effectively evaluate all my research findings to confidently conclude what I have learnt and how it can affect the development of my project.
Continue reading “Final Major Project – drafting to copy n paste –”
Maddy Curtis / media production 