The TaskHow are specialist camera techniques used in films?
•LOTS of variation of shots and angles. •Whip pans! •Camera movement (panning to the side, tilting up or down, tracking a character as they walk), faking single takes with clever techniques. VARIATION OF SHOTS AND ANGLES •Adds interest and energy to a scene. •When edited together quickly it increases the pace of the scene. •Provides different perspectives. •Conveys additional information (e.g. about power) through framing and angles. Example (count the shots in the kitchen, starting at 0:40): •https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ru0f0o6a2_M ACTIVITY 1: A Story in 10 Pictures •Using only 10 photos, tell a story about anything! •You must include at least 4 different angles and 6 different shots. WHIP PANS •A trademark of many Edgar Wright (‘Scott Pilgrim’) and Damien Chazelle (‘La La Land’) films. •Can mask transitions so that the action flows seamlessly from one scene to another. •Adds interest, energy and pace. •Can convey a character’s alarm, disorientation or changing focus. Example: •https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IW_cH-2DySw Activity 2: Whip Pans •Film an interaction between a group of people, using whip pans to move from person to person. •Option: imagine the camera is an object being thrown around and we’re seeing it from the object’s perspective. •Plan ahead and hit your marks! CAMERA MOVEMENT •Creates interest and energy. •Directs our focus (both on and away from specific things/people). •Tracking can connect us to the character the camera follows by narrowing our focus. Examples: •https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NkYK4Drekeo •https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFMr2Xi3VLk Activity 3: Single Take Sequence •Shoot a short sequence/scene in a single take. •It must be long enough to tell a story and involve multiple characters! •Plan, rehearse and hit your marks! THE FAKE ONE TAKE •Creates interest and energy. •Maintains focus on the action at hand, rather than removing the audience from the immersion of the scene. •Tracking can connect us to the character the camera follows by narrowing our focus. • Examples: •https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFZGmzsvSlg •https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uSMfLV8nmfw Activity 4: Fake Single Take Sequence •Shoot a short sequence/scene using a minimum of four separate shots and locations, but edit it together to look like a single continuous take. •It must be long enough to tell a story and involve multiple characters! •It must incorporate a colour match, a foreground object cut and a motion blur/whip pan. The examples above explain how to do this. •A good example of these techniques in action starts at the 2:55 mark of the first example above from the James Bond movie “Spectre”. |
Download PowerPoint
Due DateFriday, 28th August 2020 (Week 7)
| ||
The Final Task!!!!
|
You're going to make your own version of the "The Winchester Plan" scene from Shaun of the Dead. (the clip on the right)
This scene incorporates a number of the techniques you've already used in the other tasks (whips pans, crash zooms (which are similar to whip pans, short, sharp storytelling, quick shots and quick edits, etc.) As you can see in the Shaun of the Dead scene on the right, they come up with an original plan, then they alter it two times, so eventually coming up with three different plans. Your finished product should do the same. There should be an original plan and then two altered version of it before the end of the film. You shouldn't just copy the SOTD scene though. The storyline and plans being made for your film should be original and created entirely by you (i.e. don't just copy zombies). If you don't have a second person to do the plan with, you can just film yourself in different clothes. Like with the other tasks, this is a creative task. So have fun with it. Enjoy the challenge and be creative. Due Date: Friday, 4th September 4pm (Week 8, Term 3) |
|