Foley Sounds

Foley effects are sound effects added to the film during post production. They include sounds such as footsteps, clothes rustling, crockery clinking, paper folding, doors opening and slamming, punches hitting, glass breaking, etc. 

Learning about Foley sounds will enable my trailer to appear more professional as without these particular sounds my trailer will look much more amateur. The technique is named after Jack Foley, who established the basic modern techniques still used today. 

Montage Editing

What is the Kuleshov effect?

The Kuleshov effect is a film editing technique that was recognised and demonstrated by Russian filmmaker Lev Kuleshov between 1910-1920 during his montage experiments. These experiments indicated the usefulness and effectiveness of editing and formed the theoretical basis of Soviet montage cinema. The technique is when unrelated images/clips are seen, viewers create what they believe is happening for themselves. 

Who is Sergei Eisenstein?

Sergei Eisenstein was a Soviet Russian film director and film theorist, often considered to be the 'father of montage'. Eisenstein applied Kuleshov's theory into film and used it to create many productions including his silent film 'Strike'.

What is montage in film editing?

Montage is a technique in film editing in which a series of short shots are edited into a sequence to condense space, time and information. 

The rules of composition

Headroom

The space between the top of the head and the top of the frame. The eyes should be roughly in the top third, not in the centre of the image.

Photo with incorrect headroom

Photo with correct headroom

Looking room (nose room)

The negative space between a character and the edge of the frame in the direct that they are looking. There must be a large amount of negative space to contrast the occupant of the image. The negative space balances out the "frames weight'.  (Below: the first image shows incorrect looking room, the second shows correct looking room.)

Rule of thirds

The guideline proposes that an image should be imagined as divided into nine equal parts by two equally-spaced horizontal lines and two equally-spaced vertical lines, and that important compositional elements should be placed along these lines or their intersections.

Depth of field

The distance between the camera lens and what is in focus. Shallow focus is when there is only a short distance between the camera lens and what is in focus whereas a a deep focus is when the is a long distance between the camera lens and what is in focus. You can change the deth 

Shallow depth of field

Deep depth of field.

You can change the depth of field by changing the f stop on a camera.

"The Meeting" and evaluation

Narrative is defined as "a chain of events in cause-effect relationship occurring in time'

- Bordwell and Thompson, Flim Art, 1980

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In order to evaluate our skills in terms of basic continuity editing and filming, in groups, we came up with ideas for a short sequence about the theme 'The Meeting'. We had roughly 40 minutes to plan a storyboard and film our short sequence before returning the the classroom and editing our shots to show continuity editing. 

When filming we had to make decisions that we believed would improve our sequence. These decisions included factors such as shot types; whether there was controlled use of the camera using a tripod, whether there was attention to framing including composition of appropriate elements, choosing the variety of shots that would be used (for example an establishing shot), paying close attention to miss-en-scene which includes make up and lighting along with making appropriate choices for special effects.

During the editing process we had to pay close attention to ensure that only appropriate use of shot transitions and captions were used. In terms of sound it was vital to record and edit sound with images appropriately and also choose a sound track that is appropriate to the form and convention of the sequence.

Feedback

Once our short sequence was finished we sat as a class and viewed each others work, giving both positive feedback and constructive criticism. The feedback we received is stated below:

• Showed good use of matching action - However when editing we must pay attention to small details e.g.the door being completely open in one scene, then in the seen straight after the door was being opened again.
• We must be cautious of using effects - as everything must have a reason/purpose to enable a story to be portrayed effectively.
• There must be enhanced use of make-up/props/captions/setting - This will enable our story to be more easily understood as currently, when watched by the class, was difficult to figure out the storyline.
• To further enhance our story there must be developed use of dialogue.
• There must be close attention to character motivations and how they are expressed through dialogue/make-up/costume/props.
• Be aware of copy right infringement
• Always make sure music lyrics link to what is being portrayed on screen.

Continuity editing using the trim tool in Adobe Premiere

Continuity editing using the trim tool in Adobe Premiere

To create a continuity edit in the short sequence I filmed, I used the trim tool in Adobe Premiere. In order to do this I had to ensure that the current time indicator was situated between the two clips of footage that I wanted to trim; as shown below in the screen shot. This allowed me to look at both pieces of footage at the same time to make certain that the clips had continuity. 

Blog research

Introduction: My current practical skills level

Currently my practical skills level is average. I use my iPhone and Cannon SLR digital camera to create home videos of things such as birthdays, Christmas and filming holidays abroad. I am also able to use editing programmes like iMovie to add background music and cut the clips I have filmed to turn them into DVD's for home viewing and gifts.