Working on a showreel...

At the moment I'm a little concerned as to what my showreel should have in it and how I want to convey myself to others. Labelling myself as 'storyteller' or 'generalist' feels a little vague, yet I don't feel learned or knowledgable in any specific area to focus solely on that and advertise that I can do it. I also don't yet feel I have a wide enough range of footage to create a 'proper' show real, as I would only consider using work from my VFX module and previous module which would not really illustrate a diversity in skill. However despite all this I've begun creating VFX breakdowns of my work which could be used in a showreel.

These illustrate the process behind my work whilst simultaneously filling more time. Over summer I intend to create some more footage and perhaps use After Effects some more, so hopefully will gather enough to create a passable showreel to show in future.

Finished Film!

Subject 19 from Lija J on Vimeo.

Editing and Final Tweaks

I'm not too savvy with Final Cut, and tend to find it a little bit frustrating, however my edit didn't need to be cut too much due to the 'one shot' format, so the main narrative editing was done through the selection of footage before even using the programme. Since I'm becoming more comfortable using After Effects I found I could create some extra effects and colour change before importing into Final Cut, which saved me a lot of time.

Something I tried out in Final Cut was the Video Filter 'Bad TV', as I wanted to camera to become a little faulty and slowly respond to the 'electricity' of the Test Subject's side-effects. However I had a lot of trouble using this effect as it slowed down the programme a lot, needing time to render, and often 'blacked out' my footage or spontaneously appeared on others. This caused a lot of hassle and in the end, didn't seem worth it. Though I would have liked to have this effect, it took far too much time to render for me to see any progress with the alterations I had made.

Instead, I decided to create a 'static' effect in After Effects by following this tutorial: http://youtu.be/9t4iri8Q48w.

Which was simple enough and proved very useful in my edit.


I'm aware I still need a lot of practice with editing as there are certain aspects of my film that could be improved, for example the colours could still be altered to create a more atmospheric mood and the sound isn't as smooth as I would like. As much as I can blame time restrictions I realise I really should take sound into consideration a lot more and save time for it. Though we recorded most of it on set there are still some extra effects I could have created in a sound booth etc.

Something I should take into consideration for future projects and edits is the idea of 'pick-up' shots. In a crit it was suggested that the camera should be knocked down at the end of the film, which would cause a little more panic and destruction. This is an idea I quite like and would possibly have helped end the film. Whilst editing I gathered feedback from some of my peers in order to get a 'fresh pair of eyes' on the work, as it became easy to doubt whether the content worked due to replaying it over and over. Since their response was positive I decided I'd finally 'finished' the film.

Shutdown - Cyber style effects and narrative

At some point when working on this project I was reminded of this video Tom had shown us last year, which is similar to the tone I wanted to create in my own video.

Shutdown from Kendy on Vimeo.

The effects in this video are very clean and amplifies the cyber elements of it, along with the voice over.  The narrative is a little similar in structure, as both characters begin to regret their decision to 'upgrade'. The flashing style of edit and added text in this piece is incredibly effective and is a possible angle I could add to my own piece, as I am still considering who has edited the piece. Currently the edit still takes the form of a straight video diary but I am considering adding text at the beginning as if it were experimental documentation and evidence gathered afterwards. However this could be distracting from the over all performance of my actor and due to time limits if I can't make it look nice or believable, may be best to leave out. 

Eye and Cheek Effect - Final Shot (No sound)

Tracking the eyes and face seemed to be a lot easier than the arm, since I could pinpoint natural points on the body (such as the corner of the eyes etc.)

There is still a slight floaty aspect, but I found by adding blur the added texture blended with the original footage more. It was pointed out to me that the colours were too strong in contrast to the over all tone of the footage, so in further development I changed this. Adding shadows and a slight highlight hopefully added a little bit of detail to help sell the effect.

The cheek effect didn't need too much tracking as it only appears briefly, however it needed to merge better with the cheek, and perhaps signify it's there earlier. I'm hoping adding some crackling, electronic sound to it will help sell this effect. By lightening the eyes they set into the face better however I'm not too sold on their yellow colour and may alter them to match the cheek effect more.

By adjusting and animating the CC Glass effect I managed, a little by accident, to make the cheek effect  seem to stretch and merge when pushed. This was further enhanced by a matte choker which once animated caused a flash seemingly from under the skin. Adding a flash to the eyes too seems to strengthen the idea of the side effect being electrical. Overall I'm quite happy with the way this effect has turned out, especially since it was the main one I'd initially thought of. The implant in the arm was the result of an experimentation and I think in that case I may have bit off more than I could chew in the time given and with my skill, I think this effect works better as it is quick and moving itself, so doesn't necessarily need a perfect track or colouring. 

What makes a good showreel? What am I looking to achieve?

Since I feel I'm lacking in footage for a showreel I should take into account what makes a good show reel and keep it in mind when working on future projects. This will hopefully make me aim for at least of a few seconds of quality work in projects that I will be proud to represent my skills and ideas.

I see myself as a generalist so would want to illustrate a range of skills, though I am aware that I would probably have to create and change my showreel dependent on what I am applying for. Aesthetically I would like something that's quite striking and illustrates my interest in cinematography and strong imagery, such as below.

vfx/design reel 2012 from Tim Borgmann on Vimeo.

However I wouldn't want it to be solely focused on VFX and would like to also illustrate my interest in narrative and story based interested. Perhaps it is worth considering creating two seperate show reels to illustrate this, or at least have some form of theme or tone that follows through, such as below. I'm aware I wouldn't be able to achieve something with such range and scope since this is cinema work.

MPC Film Reel 2013 from MPC on Vimeo.

Tracking and Implant Progress - After Effects

In this footage I'd used some tracking markers on my actor's arm to help me when it came to editing it in After Effects. I think I may have been slightly over ambitious in what I wanted to achieve as it I made a few mistakes which has had a knock on effect with the quality of my work.

Tracking was a little tricky due to the framing of the shot. On set we thought holding a pillow would give a reason for the arm to be naturally still and help minimills movement (and therefore importance of tracking data), however it didn't occur to me that the markers may go off frame, and by doing so would hurt the chances of a smooth track. This meant when it came to tracking I had to manually adjust the key frames to create a smoother movement, unfortunately this seemed to produce a 'floaty effect'

(No sound in the following pieces of footage)

The above video illustrates the initial troubles with the track, especially at the end where it sort of loses hope. I was briefly introduced to the programme Mocha, which allows a selected part of footage to be tracked without the use of markers and seems to offer a smoother more solid track. If I had more time I would probably have tried to use it, but since I'd already spent time adjusting the manual track (and the Mocha track itself had some flaws) I decided against it. However it's something I will definitely investigate in the future, as it eliminates the need to use tracking markers (which can be difficult to remove sometimes) .

At a small resolution the floating isn't too noticeable, however there are still slips, especially at the start. Texture wise I created a simple square texture in photoshop and added a 'vein' through it, by adding the effect CC Glass the texture looks like it is protruding from the skin. A little bit of animation in 3D rotation had to be added to the texture in order for it to work with the twist of the arm, hopefully this matches the movement enough to be passable to the eye.

I attempted to add some blur at the beginning to see whether this would smooth it, however I think there's a little too much and the implant is lacking in visibility. This may also be due to the dulling down of colours in order for it to match the lighting/colours of the scene. However I may add a little more red and brightness to it, especially since some dialogue is 'it's red and inflamed'. Aesthetically I think I prefer the pinkness of the second video rather than the duller tones of the one below, the latter is a little too faded and light to say that it hasn't been in her arm that long. 

Collaboration - Background/Concept Art

Our last given module - the 'Responsive Brief'  - allowed us the opportunity to collaborate with each other. This felt different than are other 'team based' modules as it gave me a chance to offer help in areas I felt some confidence in whilst simultaneously still wanting to improve, without having the stress of creating the concepts etc. I enjoyed helping other people and know that if I show a willingness to get involved and help people with their work that they will (hopefully) return the favour in future. Due to my project being quite small I didn't need a straight up 'trade' with anyone, but do intend to ask for help in future projects, whether this be needing a hand on set etc.

Chris originally had a vampire-film concept and wanted a quick bit of concept art:

This didn't take me that long, as I especially enjoy drawing faces, but highlighted that I need to be more adventurous with the expressions and poses I give characters, I definitely need to work on making them seem more dynamic and less 2D. In the end Chris changed his idea so these weren't needed.

I also offered to help Ryan with the backgrounds for his animation. This was partly to help me improve on environments, as I tend to play it safe and stick to what I can do and therefore 'enjoy more', such as faces (as I mentioned earlier). I'm quite interested in set/environment design as it can be used to compliment and reinforce a strong narrative. 

Working on this allowed me to, in a way, experience working to a brief as I referenced the animatic stills Ryan gave me for colour/perspective and would ask for feedback and whether or not this is what was wanted. It was a little freeing as I didn't necessarily have to worry too much about the over all story etc, and only had to focus on aesthetic, which allowed me chance to experiment with colours/lighting. 

In hindsight I should have found out specifically how many backgrounds were needed, as I was a little caught off guard when the final amount to be done was revealed. It'll be something I keep in mind to ask before agreeing to help with other projects. Not that it was a big problem, but due to the limited time for this last module it was pushing it slightly, and meant a few pieces had to be rushed and are not to the standard I would prefer as I didn't want to impact the time spent on my own work. Each image is at a resolution of 1080x1920 so, though they look passable in the above thumbnail images, look quite scruffy when blown to full size. I attempted a washed out look as to not distract from the animation yet still wanted to leave a paint-like style. Doing this has given me a push into drawing environments more, which is hopefully something I'll continue in other work. Something I am interested in and haven't yet tried is to create an aesthetically successful Matte Painting and adding it to a filmed scene in After Effects, such as when mountains or broken buildings are added.

Filming

Monday was the day of the shoot for this film. Though initially I'd planned to film in a room at college, on the day it was decided it'd be better, and a little easier, to use my room as the environment. After all the 'test subject' is meant to be staying in the facility, so it made sense to have a slightly less clinical environment and include a bed.

Tom Bone kindly helped me with the more technical side of the shoot, as it isn't something I know that much about, the equipment we used was the following:

1 5d Mark 3

1 Tripod

1 Zoom H4n Sound Recorder

This allowed us to have a pretty small and quick set up, which meant we had room to manoeuvre and a simplicity in the performance and footage (as the concept is the test subject is just sitting talking to a camera).

When writing the script I took layout ideas from http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/ which hopefully made it clear which parts were dialogue and which were direction. I noted down the 'effects shots' for my own reference, whilst my actor highlighted the key elements of her speeches in order to give the general gist of the story in her performance.

On set it seemed easier to improvise the content and not follow the script word for word. I think this added to the performance and allowed a more naturalistic performance, as she's meant to be speaking without filter to the camera so would generally have 'ums and ahhs' in her sentences. We made sure key  story points were put across and shot multiple takes in order to get the most effective performance. Other elements that had to be taken into account were things such as lighting and environment. As each scene is meant to occur on different days we had to adjust the 'set' and alter the lighting slightly to give the effect of a change in time. This was also enhanced by a change in costume/hairstyle and marking off the days on the calendar on the wall. I enjoyed this shoot as as it was quite small it allowed us to discuss ideas and change things for the better whilst still making relatively quick time.

Two of my shots, or 'scenes' are going to be effect shots. I made sure my actor was aware of these and directed her accordingly, mainly instructing her not to move too much at certain moment as that would make tracking difficult. For one of these shots I decided to use tracking points which I stuck to her arm (though I forgot they were already stickers...) the contrast between black and white should hopefully help the tracking in After Effects. I also applied some red face paint to her arm which will hopefully help blend with any effects I add.

Video/Dialogue reference

When writing the script I wanted the monologue to seem real so decided to take reference from real peoples video blogs, especially from video applications from below (specifically taking note of young women's mannerisms, way of speech):

http://applicants.mars-one.com/

To achieve this natural flow I was fully prepared for my actor to improvise as much as she liked, as long as she got the general gist of each 'scene.'

Something I wanted to avoid was the following:

As it's cheesy and unbelievable (no ones that excited about toothpaste). I feel that leaving in pauses and breaks in speech with hopefully sell the performance more. However the character in my film is aware she is being film so won't act completely at ease, initially being a little static/awkward in front of the camera. This is also enhanced by her limited space to move. 

The United States of Television: America In Primetime - BBC

Recently I've been watching this four part series called 'The United States of Television: America in Primetime' on the BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01p3hht . Each week it focused on different aspects of American Television and how it was effecting, as well as being effected by, changing cultures and society, using a couple of programmes a week as examples. These were discussed by writers and actors in these shows (and others) creating a rather an impressive league of guests. They highlighted different characters traits and roles in their worlds and how it reflected and helped change society and views.

I really enjoyed the series as it discussed and broke down elements of stories and characters and how they worked, which on further thought could be applied to other shows.

Episode Three focused on 'The Independent Woman' and illustrated the changes in women's portrayal on television. One show it spoke of was Nurse Jackie, a series I like a lot, and her character (played by Edie Falco). Nurse Jackie is a show with a complex character at the heart of it. We feel for Jackie and can see she's a good person, however she constantly does 'bad' things and battles a drug addiction that slowly spins her life out of control. This is a giant step from the 'wife' roll given to almost every women character in television from the past and illustrates how women are increasingly being seen as 3Dimensional characters with their own motives and desires that don't necessarily revolve around men and family.

The American In Primetime was very informative whilst simultaneously entertaining and has made me consider the depth of character a lot more. Recently I've been more and more interested in script and dialogue and motives between characters and this series has been very helpful in explaining why things, though in theory shouldn't be appealing to the audience, are. For example there is a discussion on the show 'Dexter' which follows the story of a serial killer but justifies the characters reasons for it and therefore in someway wins over an audience.

The Great Gatsby

I'm really interested in novel adaptations. Because the source material is easily available and usually well loved it is up to the director to create something that must work well cinematically whilst still staying true to the origins in some way. This is why I'm curious to see The Great Gatsby.

Though I read it at school I'm a little vague on the full detail of the book so intend to re-read it before seeing the new
film. I went out and bought myself a copy, judging a book by it's cover and going for the prettiest version with yellow edging, because sometimes I'm shallow.

The below video also shed some light on the main themes of the story, highlighting the importance of Gatsby's idealistic views on love, money and 'the american dream'.

There's a great article on the behind the scenes goings on HERE, including an interview with Baz Luhrmann who explains a lot of his ideas and concepts for the film. A few key points that seem to have drawn attention is the use of soundtrack and use of scale. Everything is bigger and flashier than it would have been in that time, but this, it is argued, is to illustrate to the audience the feeling at the time.

I'm yet to see it but find the reviews interesting, as it has received mixed. The below states that it's an adaptation but not necessarily the 'defining adaptation' of the book. Adapting a book seems almost impossible to truly achieve, especially if it is a classic but by the sounds of it at least Luhrmann has attempted to keep the work and words of Fitzgerald in his work. In previous films, such as Moulin Rouge and Romeo and Juliet, Luhrmann's work seems a little gaudy however this seems to work in favour in illustrating the richness in The Great Gatsby. I'm interested to see it.

Competition - #artissmart

Though it's not necessarily specifically related to 'Digital Film, Games and Animation' I decided to give a fun Twitter competition a go. On Twitter last Monday,Gerard Way ( Lead Vocalist of My Chemical Romance, writer of the comic The Umbrella Academy) sent out the following tweet:

ジェラールド ‏@gerardway

Best drawing/art of my twitter icon gets something special. You must be the original artist. Any medium is accepted-paint,pen,digital,etc

This then became a competition to be judged on the Friday, with people getting involved by tagging their work with #artissmart. I really enjoyed taking part as it built a sense of community as people were happy to share their work and comment on each others, giving help to any one who asked for it. It allowed me to find some other artists I wouldn't have necessarily found without doing this. This was my 'entry', drawn with pencil and coloured pens:

I didn't win, but didn't expect to. If anything the best part for me about 'entering this competition' was that it got me excited about creating things again, as recently I've been in a bit of a lull. Though I'm on this course I do still really enjoy working with and on more traditional media, such as drawing portraits and painting etc. and taking part in this reminded me of this. It renewed a little confidence in my artistic ability, especially when I received such positive feedback, and I'm inspired to create more work over summer.

In all honesty I find PPP a hard module, as, though I see it's motivations in pushing us towards industry figures and situations, I sometime feel restricted and restrained by it. I entered this because it looked like a lot of fun and I was excited to put my time into something enjoyable. This is something I hadn't found in other competitions, as I felt an added pressure that I would be forcing it 'for PPP' rather than willing spending time on it for myself.

Despite expressing an interest in the more film/VFX based aspects of the course I still want to improve on my drawing skills and will definitely attempt to find more time to work on them. There's something a little more organic with more 'traditional' forms of art that is sometimes lost when working with digital forms of media. It's something that bothers me a little and is possibly something I will investigate further in my final year, finding a way to use digital processes in a less 'mechanical' way or to enhance  work created away from the computer screen. 

Room 8 - Bombay Sapphire

Room 8 from Bombay Sapphire on Vimeo.

I really like this short film, the concept is great and a little unsettling. The effects are sold by the actors' performances, who carry the story with their realistic reactions to a not-so-realistic situation. These performances are enhanced by the silent backdrop, music only being used slightly near the end, to highlight concepts and twists. This video illustrates that effects can be used as a narrative element rather than just to create action and lasers. The audience doesn't see it as a separate entity from the film, but rather part of the film that creates the drama. It shows that a simple idea pulled off well can be incredibly gripping. Complex narratives and explosive effects don't necessarily mean a better piece, in fact it's quite the contrary. 

Environment

Test Subject 19 conducts her video blogs in a room she's been allocated. I want it to be quite simple, yet hopefully signify or add to the narrative.

Early concept art for the environment/room the test subject video blogs for (coupled with colour and 'glitch effect' ideas):

My initial plan was to film in a room at college, which is quite muted in colours (lots of whites) and has a slightly sterile feel, this would allow me to dress it. Since it is just one shot a whole room doesn't have to be designed.

I created a couple of 'props' to dress the set with, such as no smoking/food or drink/mobile signs, since this could disrupt the 'electrical implant' that has been embedded into Test Subject 19's arm. Hopefully it adds a little bit of depth/context to the footage, though I'd have preferred to spend a little more time no them.

Though barely visible I tried to make the content fitting, there's a logo of the company/institution running the experiment that is printed on quite a few documents. I enjoy creating and building things, so adding extra details, such as Test Subject 19's documentation, hopefully adds a little bit of depth to the environment.

Independent Internet Film Makers

I really enjoy watching Youtube and Video films created by 'independent' film makers. A lot of their content is made with a small team of friends/contacts and illustrates how interesting and creative content can be made without a massive budget or production team. For example shown in Olan Rogers behind the scenes video below :

EPISODE 2 BEHIND THE SCENES from Olan Rogers on Vimeo.

This can be simultaneously motivating and disheartening at the same time, as quite a few YouTubers and film makers are of a similar age to me and my coursemates but produce vastly better quality work than we do. However they usually show a motivation and drive to create their work and often show behind the scenes and makings of, which can be quite inspiring and spark ideas for my own projects. Videos like these made by people of a similar age group and small budget makes film making seem incredibly fun whilst at the same time, also being achievable. Often I compare my work to industry standard which can be quite detrimental to the ego as it's easy to forget a large team and many hours were put into the work. Smaller videos created by accessible 'real' people illustrates that good quality work can be achievable and is a possibility if I improve. It makes things seem less daunting and motivates me to be less hesitant. 

Backstory/Plot and a Rough Character Summary

This is a brief backstory/character summary primarily written to 'brief' my actor, though it will be useful reference to my set designs and writing of the script.

Backstory, Plot and Character Summary:

Set in modern-day/slightly distant future, June Gieson (Pronounced Guyson) is a student and the 19th test subject in a leading experimental facility (a role she willingly volunteered and applied for). She is referred to as 'Number 19' in research documentation. The 'facility' is testing a new form of implant that is said to enhance the human body, to 'upgrade it' (there is a suggestion it is electronic). These implants are endorsed by a well known/successful company and therefore the the facility is trusted, with the experiments seen as 'exciting opportunities' by most. June is a little cocky due to being generally high-achieving and sees the experiment as a form of competition, something she can 'Win at'. Though she was accepted for the experiment, which is seen as an honour by most people as it is hard to get past the application stage, she is still disappointed she didn't make 'The Top 10', who are rumoured to be having a higher level of implant/treatment. She is quite naive and believes herself special, a part of her imagines she will be at the forefront of the experiments success and gain social recognition for it. Despite her cockiness she isn't rebellious and in general trusts the authority and systems she is under as they are what determines and dictates her success and high achievements (she follows the rules and therefore gets recognition from them). In a way she seems a little brainwashed by them.

After the implant has been embedded into her arm, June is allocated a room in which she spends most of her time when she is not being tested by scientists in white coats (who document her strength/stamina  /reflexes/intelligence etc.). She is told to document her thoughts and feelings into a camera daily, especially if she feels any significant changes. She does this and documents the following information.

Initially she is enthusiastic and excited about the experiment, but gradually becomes a little tetchy and over-energetic. These manifest themselves into slight twitches (nothing too severe, eg. a wince in the face that cause her to scrunch up an eye). Once her bandage on her arm comes off she's a little concerned about the inflammation around her skin and expresses worry that the implant is acting strange. When speaking of the experiment in general, now with a tone of slight anxiousness (her confidence fading) she mentions her lack of interaction with any other test subject, there is perhaps a hint, a suggestion, that something has happened to them. She is starting to become a little unsure of the experiment as she experiences side effects, yet still attempts to cling onto her enthusiasm. Quieter now she carries on creating video logs, her arm once again bandaged after being 'rectified' (though June suspects it has been tampered with). During one such video documentation she admits to feeling incredibly strange and suggests she no longer wants to partake in the experiment, her face twitching slightly. She nervously puts a hand to her face which causes it to glitch, causing a visible wave of electric like light under her skin, lighting up her eye. Panicked (she doesn't see it but felt it) she gets up and knocks on her door asking to be let out to see someone because she 'feels strange'.

Short-Film Concept:

The story would be told through a compilation of the videos June creates, possibly compiled by the scientists, which would cause the edit to focus on the progressive states of her reaction to the implant. Therefore everything would be either said or suggested by June and her surroundings, hopefully connecting her to the audience (especially since she will be looking directly at the camera). Using After Effects I would add the glitch effects in the last shot.

ABE - Rob McLellan (VFX Before and After)

I really enjoyed this short film, it was tense and included an interesting monologue. I'm still in the process of writing my script for this module's film and I'm trying to take note of how effective monologues, or pieces of dialogue in general, work.  This one is in keeping with the character. It's statement and facts, and has a robotic rhythm (which is good...since it's a robot). Though the robot is talking about itself there's a structure to it, it doesn't immediately declare it's intentions, it's hinted at and built. I personally think that this is especially important in human based dialogue especially if you're going for a naturalistic tone. People don't usually speak exactly what's on their mind, they may hint at it or go off topic all together, though there may be important information to give the audience it shouldn't be forced through the character if it is not in their nature to say such things, instead it would have to be illustrated through other means, such as actions and design. Allowing the story to unfold naturally gives scope for speculation from the viewer and allows them to become involved and interested in the narrative.

The tone and design of this piece is eerie and a little melancholy. There's a slowness about it which, though keeps suspense, also allows the audience to empathise with the lead character. The colours are quite clinical, blues and whites, which I'd quite like to emulate. Perhaps the colours would shift as the story unfolds (getting colder each day) to add a eerie tone. This piece also illustrates an importance to have interactivity and reference for an actor even if VFX and CG are going to be used in the final piece. To an extent I think the pre-VFX is a little eerier in performance, probably due to the stillness of the actor, which seems a lot more unnatural as a human than a robot. 

Test #04 and #05 - 'Implant'

A test with After Effects to see how tracking marks would work on my arm. Story wise I've decided that this is what will be effecting the 'Test Subject', she'll have had an implant in her arm an be documenting any changes it brings (at first it'll be 'upgrading her', she'll have more energy etc then it'll start causing the glitches).

There are some obvious problems with this test, the tracking was a little difficult (though I learnt that you can add more than two points from the menu) and still shakes despite me manually editing it. However this may be because I was using red round tracking marks. I've been told that square or marks that illustrate a high contrast would be more effective so plan to try that out in another test.

The texture was mocked up quickly so if I were to use this effect I'd make it a little bit more interesting and subtle. Half the time in the film the actor's arm would be covered by a bandage or a sleeve so I wouldn't have to worry about it needing to be tracked all the time, I'd keep it to one 'shot' (or scene since the camera is to be constantly static).

There is a possibility I create this effect by hand, or at least add a little bit of 'redness' and inflammation to the skin with make-up/face paint, which would hopefully sell the added digital effect to the audience.

Again the tracking in this test (#05) is really shaky, but I attempted to change the texture, this then resulted in me making the implant indented rather than protruding. This looks slightly more brutal and helps the problem of trying to add something to the footage without involving the background. I'm not too sure which I'll go for at the moment. 

Character and Story Development

I've been struggling a little bit with the development of my character for this story, the more I attempted to set it in a  slightly dystopian, stylised environment the more complex it became and the more I realised I'd have to create a lot of backstory and context, which then would need to be present in the design of the 'set' as well as hinted at in the script. I looked into 'gothic sceince' literature, such as the short story 'The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar (1845)' by Edgar Allan Poe, for inspiration. His prose are quite lyrical and I began trying to go down that route, attempting to imagine my character's monologue. However I think, in the case of this project, I've little time to write and create something that tonally descriptive without it being a rush job. 

In Being Human (BBC) Series 2, there is a 'facility' that aims to cure werewolves, though it's built on good intentions it has a horror element and ends up quite bloody. I want to avoid this complete 'horror'/despair tone whilst still keeping the air of unease, of something going a little wrong, in my film. I also like the idea of the 'subject' being a willing participant, actively engaging in the experiment, though a little naive as to what it entails.

Again I was getting nowhere when developing a lot of the character, the complexity and 'rules' of where she was and her being branded 'No. 19' (a concept I still like..) was becoming really messy. Taking a step back I've realised it'll be a lot easier in the time frame and narratively, to simplify this a lot. By this I mean I'd set the scene as a form of 'University Experiment', such as the Stanford University experiment, this would explain the age of the participant (my actor is a student) as well as the location (I am using part of the college). It would also mean I wouldn't need to worry too much about context regarding era etc. 

Information regarding the Stanford Prison experiement: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanford_prison_experiment

My Essay and how it relates to my interests.

I decided to write my Context of Practice Module Essay on how the Internet is effecting Transmedia narratives using 'The Lizzie Bennet Diaries' as an example.

The Lizzie Bennet Diaries is an adaptation of Jane Austen's 'Pride and Prejudice' told in the form of Vlogs through YouTube. What interested me about it was that it's presented, to an extent, as being 'real'. Lizzie (title character) directly addresses the audience in the same way people on YouTube do in their 'real' video blogs. The story unfolds in small chunks twice a week giving a sense of real time, which is further enhanced through the 'Characters' use of Twitter and other social media sites.

I really enjoyed the series so thought writing about it would be beneficial. However I do think by picking it apart I ruined it a little for myself, since a lot of Transmedia narratives that are done well work by blending seamlessly into the audiences life.

Though theories about more modern Transmedia narratives are interesting, there are some that seem to attempt to create a 'template' in which the narratives work instead of giving more credit to the actual content and ambition of the creators. User-based content such as this and other work on YouTube interests me a lot as it allows the creators to have a large amount of freedom and control over their work. The relationship between the audience too is highly important in this media and is something I touched on in my essay, by treating the audience as an equal content and creator gains a level of respect, something I will hopefully keep in mind with future work and presentation of my work.

Test #02 and Test #03 - Golden Eyes and more facial glitching

So I tried out another tutorial from videocopilot, this time to see how I could adjust the eye.
        Tutorial Here: http://www.videocopilot.net/tutorials/eye_replacement/

I decided to alter the tint a little to keep with the tone of my project, however I don't know whether this washes out some of the extra details (such as shadowing and highlights) that were put in for realism (Next time I'd maybe add a little more detail, a redness in the eye etc). I'd also have to look into creating a glow around the eye, as if it were shining - though I'm undecided as to whether I want that effect or would rather have glowing suggestions under the skin.

I attempted to incorporate this into a sequence whilst also practicing the 'glitch' effect I'd previously worked on in the first test. I'm not really happy with it as both aspects (eye and cheek) are obviously fading in and out. These are things I could tackle in the script (I could get my actor to scrunch her eyes before they change) and by further testing/designing. However Test #03 did allow me to experiment with subtlety when adding the effect to the skin and created that 'light cast from underwater' effect I'm trying to achieve. I want the glitches to seem, in some way, natural, rather than just plastered onto her face.

Gravity of Center - Departement

Gravity Of Center from Departement on Vimeo.

This video flows really well. The transitions between characters through movement is really seamless and effective, especially when one movement flows across the change. I especially like the transitions created through the arms of other dancers etc, as it gives an extra fluidity to the character's dance.

The deserted locations, desaturated tone and clothes the dancers wear gives an air of desolation in the performances yet also enhances the fluid movement they illustrate. This video illustrates how dance and movement, accompanied with the right music, can create and enhance emotion in film. It gives characters  a slightly surreal edge but is very expressive.