Week 3
What practical work have you
done and how helpful was your
earlier planning?
Upload your behind the scenes
photos and videos (explain what
they show)
What issues did you encounter
when filming and how did you
overcome them?
What locations did you use and
why did you choose them?
This week you worked on your production
This week my group have been filming our music
video out in Marlow and in the surrounding area. The
planning we did helped us to make sure we got the
right shots and all the necessary shots because we
had location recces to tell us exactly where to go
and also a shooting script to know which scenes had
to be filmed in what place. The storyboard allowed us
to be certain we got all of the shots we would need
because we could see on the story board the exact
angle and look the shot needed. This means that the
earlier planning was helpful when filming. Our group
all had the same vision of what we wanted our
production to look like which meant the filming went
smoothly.
This photo shows Dillon
crouched down in
front of the bridge in
Marlow to get a low
angle shot of me and
josh standing on top
of the bridge. This was
supposed to be one of the final shots where we show
the two main characters successfully getting the
money but it ended up being used as b-roll.
This phot shows Fergus
inside the boot of Josh’s car
getting the shot where the
boot is opened from the
outside. This shot will be
used to cut between the
scenes of guns being shown in the boot.
When filming we encountered the issue of not having
all the actors we needed for the whole day since
they were still at college. This meant we had to
slightly alter the story for the scenes with just me and
josh to make sense. Another problem was the fact
the house we filmed the shootout in was not an
abandoned house like we had planned but in fact it
was Fergus’s house meaning it was far too ice to fit
the scene but we made it work as well as we could.
We used various different locations in Marlow such as
underneath the motorway in these tunnels and also
the carpark next to them. The only other location we
filmed at other than this was at Fergus’s house which
is also in Marlow. The first two locations we chose

How did you find the editing
process?
What new skills did you learn
when editing?
Upload screenshots of the editing
process and discuss why you
made these changes.
deliberately and were happy to use because they
looked fairly urban and fitted the codes and
conventions of a hip hop video, however we only
chose to shoot in Fergus’s house because his parents
were out and he lived in the area so it was the only
house available to us at the time.
I found the editing process difficult at times since it
turned out we did not have as much footage as
would be needed to cover the entire song. The way I
overcame this was sometimes repeating clips and
using a lot of slow motion which ended up adding to
the video and making it look better. Other than this I
edited quickly and efficiently and think it is one of my
main strengths on this course.
While editing the main new skill I learnt was how to
draw onto the videos in after effects to create a cool
effect and I also learnt how to use slow motion on
premiere pro which I think will come in useful in my
final major project since I am creating a music video
for that and these two skills both help to improve
music videos.
In this screenshot I
am speeding up the
clip of me in the car
from 100% to 150%
in order to make it
look as if the car is
moving faster. I also
added slow motion
to the clip after this
one at 60% normal
speed. Not only does
this highlight the scene and add to the effect of it, it also
makes the slow motion more drastic and also look more
effective. This is a technique that Ben in my class showed
me and it is very effective at making slow motion look
better. This also adds effect because the car was not
moving very fast in real life so speeding it up plays more
to the codes and conventions of the genre.
In this part of the edit
there was supposed to be
a shooting scene but
because I did not have
the time or tools to
create a realistic effect
for a gunshot I decided
that I would cut the music
and have a blank screen
with just the gunshot
sound effect. This means
the actual gore and gunshots that would be hard to
create are left to the imagination. I have seen this many
times in music videos, specifically in the music video for

What issues did you encounter
when editing and how did you
overcome them?
How well have you worked to
your production schedule?
Are you on track for this week? If
not, how far behind are you?
What work do you need to
complete outside of lessons to
stay on track?
High Grade Tips
YNW melly’s song “murder on my mind”. This way of
signifying gun shots is used at the very beginning of the
video before the shots starts playing to set the scene,
although this is a high budget music video it can still be
more effective to show gunshots this way because it
leaves more to the imagination which is always better
than what can be filmed.
When editing I managed to complete the process fairly
smoothly however there was a problem at the beginning
where I did not think I had enough clips to fill the full 5
minute song, however although I did repeat clips at times
I did manage to use slow motion repetition and pauses in
the song to fill the full time. In my opinion the repetition
of certain clips adds to the story and the pause in the
music signifies gunshots. This means it I do not think it is
obvious that I was trying to fill time. In future to avoid his
I will make sure that I film more than enough clips and
follow the story board exactly In order to make sure I
complete the music video fully without repeating and
clips or using slow motion for effect rather than out of
necessity.
I have worked to the production schedule by editing and
filming in the allocated times however this was by chance
because I was not following the schedule.
I am now on track for this week after completing this
weekly blog.
I need to check though my unit 6 checklist and make sure
I am fin finished and also finish my story board since I lost
it but after this I should be finished.

Use screenshots to support your analysis – especially when comparing your work to other pieces.

Considered and capable demonstration of processes – detailed documentation of your

production process – such as still images, and annotated screenshots of your specific production and
editing process – including ‘what’ and ‘why’ and not just ‘how’.

Specific – be specific! Don’t just say e.g. ‘the lighting was good’ – show us where the lighting looked good
and why you think that.

Week 4 This week you worked on your production

What were your production I would say the strengths of my group’s production
strengths? and of my edit are the cutting to the beat and use of
B-roll. I say this because these are the main things that
work in the video because the story is not so clear so
it is made up for in the b-roll. I think the main thing
that we had planned to do in the final edit and
actually did was the scenes in the tunnel with the
smoke bombs and also the scenes in the car, these
are a few of the only scenes we ended up using for
our final edit. In the tunnel scenes the lighting from
the sun in the back of the tunnel creates a silhouette
which with the smoke added to it creates some very
cinematic
looking
footage as
can be seen
in the picture
to the right.
This is one of
the clips I
repeated
often and also put in slow motion, although this
sounds as though it would not look good it actually
comes across as more a recurring theme than an
over repetitive clip in my opinion therefore I think this
is another strength. I also consider the use of slow
motion a strength for example in the scene where I
am leaning out the car I sped up the footage and
then cut the clip into many different sections and
made them get progressively slower in order to give
smoother slow motion and to also make it look as if it
has been slowed down more. Overall I would say I
am happy with this production however the unit as a
whole I did not put enough effort into the written
aspect of the course which I will need to improve in
order to up my grade for the final major project
because I will be very disappointed in myself if I get
another pass my final.
What were your production
weaknesses?
How did you work as a group?
Although I am happy with my production as a whole I
also recognise there are many ways I could improve
it. First of all the planning was not very applicable to
the actual filming since we did not have the exact
locations we planned, an example of this is we
planned to film the final scene in an abandoned
house that some of our group said they knew around
Marlow but when it came to filming it we realised
using Fergus’s house was much easier and more
practical especially with more actors. Although his is
not a major problem it does take away from the
believability of our production and clearly shows it
was made by students which is disappointing but
unavoidable at the filming phase. To make sure
something like this does not happen again it would
be sensible to plan to film in paces and at times when
every actor needed can easily get there and also a
place that fits the narrative. Another major weakness
in our production is
that a lot of the
shots are out of
focus as can be
seen in this
screenshot on the
left. This is mostly
due to the fact most of our shots where off the top of
our heads as opposed to having planned exactly
what we are filming and from what angle. Because
of this lack of planning the person filming didn’t
always know exactly what to do which would explain
the lack of focus. Another thing I should’ve noticed
when editing was the fact that the ratios for the video
didn’t always add up meaning some shots are lower
quality and zoomed in which does not look very
professional. Although I could’ve made the shots all
the same size I do not know the reason they all came
in the wrong aspect ratio and after adjusting some of
them they still had black sections on the side of the
screen where they did not fit correctly. Next time I will
make sure that I ask Adam, Chris or James why this is
happening and make sure that I can rectify it.
Despite small disputes over the song we would use at
the very beginning of the unit we worked very well
together as a group. This mostly because once we
had agreed on the song, we all liked it and had the
exact same idea of what we wanted to do with it
which meant the planning, filming and editing phase
all went smoothly since we all had constructive ideas
and no one was trying to contradict what someone
else wanted to do. Even though I was ill at the
beginning of the unit the group still stayed on top of
the work and left me an amount to do to help out
rather than just letting the bit I should’ve been able to
help with fall behind. Another problem we

What was your role and how did
you perform?
Complete a written comparison
of your work to professional
productions you researched
previously. Use screenshots of
both productions to support your
analysis.
encountered was a lack of motivation while out
filming but once we had started and got the ball
rolling we got very productive and nearly finished all
the filming in one day. The actors that we used where
in the other class and where friends of everyone in
the group therefore it was easy to get them to help us
and do what they had to do. This meant that a lot of
the project went very smoothly just because of how
well we were working as a group.
My main role in the group other than helping with the
workload was being an actor which I think I did well
at. This is mainly because most of my acting was
dancing
with a mask
on and
creating
shapes with
the smoke
grenades as
shown in the
screenshot
to the right. However I was still tasked with helping to
complete some of the groups work load which I don’t
think I did very well at. This is mostly because I was ill
during the week we did the group work but I
recognise it was my responsibility to catch up with all
of this in my spare time which I failed to do. This was
bad of me not just for the course but also as part of
the group so I tried to make sure I caught up after this
and helped the group be productive as much as
possible.
In this unit I tried to make my music video look as
professional as possible through use of editing
techniques such as
cutting to the beat
and slow motion
and camera angles
that fit the codes
and conventions of
the genre of the
music I am creating
the video for which is hip-hop. In this screenshot from
the Biggie smallz song “juicy” butterfly lighting is used
and also a high angle which both show there is
drama since he is saying he has this nice mansion but
does not forget where he came from. A high angle
shows this because typically we are used to looking
down on someone who is below us in either social or
physical class. A comparable scene in my production
shows me and josh celebrating after pulling off the
heist. The angle in ours, as you can see, is not as well
planned out and is handheld meaning on a flat
surface the camera can only get so high. These two
screenshots act as a good way of demonstrating the
differences between my production and a
 professional one. This is because it shows we did not
have access to premium locations or equipment but I
still feel as though we have captured the same raw
feeling.

High Grade Tips

Use screenshots to support your analysis – especially when comparing your work to other pieces.

Considered and capable demonstration of processes – detailed documentation of your

production process – such as still images, and annotated screenshots of your specific production and
editing process – including ‘what’ and ‘why’ and not just ‘how’.

Specific – be specific! Don’t just say e.g. ‘the lighting was good’ – show us where the lighting looked good
and why you think that.