Ideas for next video

1.  I want to show people interacting, but I want it to be composed entirely of jump cuts.  It will be similar to the scene in Julian Donkey Boy where Julian and his brother are fighting in the kitchen and Julian makes his brother eat some shitty looking bacon.  This will deal with people trying to understand instructions for assembling something but are completely confused and the jump cuts will add to the confusion. 

2.  In this video I will be making a cup of tea.  I will be dropping the tea-bag over and over continuously for 5 minutes.  The sounds will consist of plopping and heavy breathing.

3.  In this video sound will be the only element up until the end.  The sounds will be indiscernible and will only be understood when the image is revealed at the end.  

Lunanova write up

This video deals with human dependancy on other people and technology.  It displays an isolated modern man hunched over a television.  He's wearing a suvival blanket in hopes that he will be rescued.  We soon realize he is focused on white noiose on the TV screen and quickly retreat from the figure because he has obviously gone a little nutty.

I really enjoyed using music in this video.  I think it gives the video a dramatic quality.  However, it could have really turned out cheesy if I had the wrong transitions.  I would like to try and use more sound in my work, but I'm sure it's really difficult to choose or to actually create music for certain videos.  

Lunanova Project Video

How To...

VP Debate Extra Credit

The lighting on both candidates as well as the moderator looked flooded, but not too bright.  They were all back lit and their faces looked equally bright on both sides.  There were very little shadows under their chins so I guess they were well lit in that sense.  The break up of shadows on the walls behind the candidates made the figures stand out from the background.  The US flag was really small and dimly lit above the moderator, which looked sort of cheap.

All three people were centered in the shots.  There were also many different camera angles.  Many of the shots that displayed both candidates were over the shoulder shots.  These shots also zoomed in and out a few times.  It seemed like very straightforward filming with very little action.

New Idea for Luna Nova Video

I want to start with a pan shot from left to right and stop on the figure and the TV.  The TV will only display fuzz.  The figures eyes will be fixed on the TV with little to no motion.  I've thought about having close ups on the figures face and close ups on the TV, but I'm not certain what will work yet so I plan on shooting lots of different angles.

I'm still going to use the same piece of music.  I've decided to portray one of my other painting/drawings.  This one focuses more on dependency on technology and looking to other people for answers.  It also deals with isolation and uncertainty of what to do in dire situations. 

LunaNova music and storyboard

http://lunanova.org/2008audio/combustion2.mp3

I am going to try and make a video that represents one of my painting/drawings.  I have a rough storyboard, but it might change depending on the feedback.  I might use more zooming than initially thought.

I (or the person I get to act in this) will be wearing a black suit and covered with an orange survival blanket.  

The idea of showing someone trying to light a fire in a white room is weird.  I think it will hint at the absurdity of trying to perform basic survival techniques without actually having to go out in the wilderness.  Also, not even using basic survival skills.  They will be completely dependent on technology.

Write up for Instructional Video

After finding the best shot of me yelling, "Hey, you wanna buy a chicken?" I tried to find the perfect point to loop.  This proved to be quite difficult.  I began by looking for a spot where I was standing completely still.  That was out of the question.  I wasn't standing in the exact same position at the end of the shot as I was at the beginning, so I started scrolling through the clip to find a spot where I was in motion.  After about 5 hours of going back and fourth I finally found a pretty decent connection.  I'm not going to say where the loop begins and ends, because that's all you will see if I tell you where it is.

Editing seems pretty confusing after first but once you get the hang of it and remember what all the buttons do it starts to flow pretty naturally.  I would like to try and make a piece similar to one of Martin Arnold's videos, but I'm sure that stuff is way beyond my skill level at this point.  I'm pretty satisfied with my results.

Assignment Write up for Instructional Video Shoot

After the first shot at the beginning of this project I realized how ridiculous it is to yell, "Hey, do you want to buy a chicken?"  I pretty much ruined every shot because I was smiling and on the verge of laughing.  After that I decided to widen the shot and get a few good takes.  I ended up looking quite stern in the next few takes and decided to shoot the first part of the joke from both distances as well.  (Just in case I ended up using one of the closer shots.)  I plan to use one or two good shots and loop them.  I want to try and line up the beginning and end of each one so it looks seamless.  

If I do decide to have side by side shots, I'm not sure how I want them to play.  Either a call and response style or just let them talk over each other.  I think if I let them talk over each other it would be more confusing, so that might be the way to go.  I'm not 100% certain I'm going to like the white room rather than the shell, but hopefully it will come together nicely when I edit.  Actually I think the white room will work out fine.  Now that I think about it, the shell would add too much meaning to the piece that I'm not intending.  

quiz 2

1.Explain standard 3 point lighting set up.

Main light is the Key light.  It should be the brightest light and positioned at the 7 to 8 o'clock position.  The 2nd light is the fill light.  It should be more of a flood light in brightness and set up around the 5 to 4 o'clock position.  And the 3rd is the back light.  This lights the hair and should be positioned above and behind the person in the shot.

2. How can you lower high contrast?

You can lower contrast by using bounce cards and reflective surfaces that have an off white or dull finish.