Year 11: Week 12 (Controlled Hours 19 & 20)

In today's lesson you will answer the following questions;

1. How successful is the rough cut of my documentary?
2. What improvements should I make?
3. When must I submit my completed Documentary & Production Log (including storyboard).

After todays lesson, you will have until we break up for Xmas to complete the following tasks;

1. Make improvements to your documentary based upon audience feedback.
2. Submit the final cut of your completed documentary (upload to School Vimeo account).
3. Complete a storyboard for your final documentary (each person in your group must draw and annotate an individual storyboard; you can't submit a group one! We have storyboard templates for you to use though).
4. Submit your completed Personal Production log (use the checklist and the Individual Progress Grid to make sure that all elements are fully completed).

To support you, here is a countdown to this deadline;

After Xmas, you will have just 3 lessons to complete the Evaluation before the final unit deadline.

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Collecting Audience Feedback in Today's Lesson

You have a page in your Production Log called "Audience Feedback". This is the page we are addressing today. Your first task is to identify what areas of your production you would like to receive feedback on. Is it the camerawork? The editing? The narrative structure? The soundtrack? Maybe you will want to ask more general questions such as "What went well?" or "What could we improve?". You decide what you want to ask the audience at this test screening (but don't have too many questions).

You must also decide how you are going to present your audience feedback in your Production Log. If you want to present a written summary with qualitative data, you will need comments to analyse and to use as quotations. If you want to present quantitative data, you will need some scores to turn into charts or graphs. Maybe you want to use a mixture of both methods? You will have 15 minutes to decide what questions you want to ask your audience and how you want them to answer (comments or score). Type them into a Word document so that I can turn them into an computer questionnaire (Socrative Test) that students can complete whilst we exhibit your film on the Interactive Whiteboard.

You will have a maximum of 20 minutes to exhibit your film and collect your feedback. At the end of the lesson, I will send you your feedback as an Excel document (so you can turn the data into charts if you wish) and a pdf document (so that you can easily read everyone's comments and quote them). You can take this feedback away and complete the 'Audience Feedback' page of your Production Log in your own time. (but before the deadline).

As mentioned above, after this lesson you will only have until the end of term to address the issues raised by your test audience, to draw your storyboard, to finish your Individual Production Log and to complete the final cut of your film (see deadline above).

Peer Satisfaction Survey

I am hoping to have time for you to complete the Peer Satisfaction Survey too, identifying the value of the contribution each group member has made. If not today, we will complete this very soon. I will use the results of this survey to allocate final marks for the documentary.

Peer Satisfaction Survey (Mrs Macey's Class)

Peer Satisfaction Survey

Individual Production Log Progress (HOO)

Peer Satisfaction Survey (Mr Hood's Class)

It's time to see how well everyone in your group is contributing. The differences in level of contribution will impact on the final mark allocated to each group member. So, at the start of this week's lesson you'll take the contribution survey...

Click Here

Year 11 : Weeks 10 & 11 (Controlled Hours 15,16,17 & 18)

You now have two weeks (4 hours) to edit your documentary IN LESSON TIME ONLY! You may not edit your film after school or at lunchtimes.

You must exhibit your film to a selection of your identified target audience in Week 13 to gather target audience feedback; that's the week that starts Monday 30th November (organise a test screening event in that week). I will post more information about your test screening event next week, including methods of gathering audience feedback.

To be clear about what you can and can't do out of lesson time for the next two weeks...

What You Can Only Do in Lesson Time Only...

• Open your project in Final Cut Pro X.
• Import footage from your camera.
• Edit your footage.
• Review your footage in FCP X.
• Import sound effects or soundtrack into FCP X.
• Edit sound in FCP X.
• Investigate the impact of effects on the clips in your storyline.
• Continue work on the final draft of your storyboard (the one that will be submitted).
• Continue work on your script (the one that will be submitted).

What Can be Completed At Other Times (for OHL)...

• Any of your research & planning documents (documentary research, existing product research, topic research, etc).
• Plan & consider elements to be included in your storyboard.
• Plan & consider script elements.
• Source & review sound effects & appropriate soundtrack extracts (search Free SFX, etc).
• Shoot additional footage (interviews, B-roll, etc).
• Review the quality of footage on your camera.

So remember, the final film, together with the final drafts of the storyboard & script, can only be worked on during formal lesson time!

Advice on Editing & Post-Production 'Fixes'

• Timing is everything; editing has a rhythm, like beats in a bar in music or the movements of a dancer.
• Editing to a soundtrack is important; cut when the music changes or at the start of bars (certainly, always on the beat at least).
• Don't use approximate clip lengths; be very specific about the point (frame) at which your film cuts.
• Don't have unnecessary gaps of silence at the start or end of interviews, etc (cut tight).
• Don't rely 100% on straight cuts; use some split edits to anticipate dialogue or new environments (cut to the new sound before we see the image on screen).
• Use some camera movement. If it wasn't there in the original footage, try the Ken Burns effect (key-frame zooms, reverse zooms or tracking shots).
• Remember, you can fix a number of framing issues in post-production. For example, if you didn't observe the Rule of Thirds when you shot your footage, zoom in a little (enlarge the image) and then crop, shifting the frame to the left or right. You can also eliminate excessive headroom or wasted space to the right of left that doesn't contribute to the meaning of the shot.
• Too much background noise? FCP can fix that!
• Dialogue a little unclear? FCP can fix that!
• Shots too dark or too light? FCP can fix that!
• Don't forget to 'connect' B-roll clips (don't try to cut them into your primary storyline)
• 'Connect' music & sound effects too (use the 'Q' shortcut, don't drag them in).
• Consider the balance of dialogue, soundtrack and effects carefully; we need to be able to hear what is being said clearly.
• Don't forget that you can use 'Show Animation' function on a clip in you want to fade it in or out (adjust opacity).
• Do you need to apply a visual effect to flashbacks or reconstructions to make them seem a little 'dreamy'?
• Make sure your documentary has a 3-act narrative; an introduction, some development and a conclusion.
• Don't forget your documentary title. Where will you place it? At the start? Between the introduction and development sections? You decide!

What Can Your Teacher Do?

Your teacher can't give you creative ideas such as suggesting a narrative, telling you where to cut, suggesting an effect or identifying elements of your production that require improving (your target audience feedback will achieve this anyway).

However, your teacher can tell you how to achieve the creative ideas you have. For example, you can ask "How do we use the Ken Burns option?" or "Can you show use how to crop the image?".

Your teacher is there to advise you on the application of workflows in FCP (show you how things work), not to suggest ideas that  impact on the creative quality of the outcomes. 

Out of Hours Learning

• Further develop the research elements of your Production Log.
• Source & review sound elements that could be used in your production.
• Complete the Lesson Evaluation document.

Year 11 Week 9 (Controlled Hours 13 & 14) : Post-Shoot Script, Scripting Reconstructions & Storyboard

Now that you have finished filming, you need to think about constructing your documentary. To help you to organise the clips into an effective and coherent product, you should produce a Post-Shoot Script and a Storyboard. The Storyboard is a very important piece of evidence as it is the only planning document specifically identified in the specification, so make a good one!

Post-Shoot Script

The Post-Shoot Script is a highly detailed record of your intentions. It includes;

• Scene Number & Shot Description (e.g. Scene 1, Shot 1, ECU)
• Time (the timecode : where in your film will this shot start, e.g. 0:01:13 = 1 minute & 13 secs)
• Narration (Is there a voiceover? What will the narrator say? In other words...his/her lines!)
• Visual (a description of what we will see on the screen)
• Audio (a description of what we will hear; sound effects, soundtrack, asynchronous sound, etc)

You can see an example of a Post-Shoot Script in construction in the example Production Log here. (Also available on the Production Portfolio Log Blog here.) Make sure you 'turn' to the correct tab in the Production Log!

Scripting Reconstructions

If you have reconstructions in your documentary, these must be scripted in the traditional way. There are very particular conventions that you must use when writing a script and I will go through them in more detail in class. Here is an example of a properly formatted script that follows industry conventions;

A film company will not even look at a script if it is not properly formatted using size 12 Courier font! You can find out more information about scripts here and here.

Storyboard

A storyboard is a highly detailed record of your intentions in terms of framing & editing. It shows;

• Shot Number (as a reference for the Production Team)
• Transitions (how you are going to move from one shot to another)
• Shot Description (EXT or INT, DAY or NIGHT, Shot Type, Camera Movements, etc)
• Image (a drawing of what is on screen)

The drawings on your storyboard don't have to be works of art, but they must accurately represent what is on screen (you can use stick men but they must be at the correct shot distance, angle, etc). The examiner & moderator will compare your storyboard to your finished film and they MUST be the same!

Now, yours is a little bit different to a normal storyboard in that you already have the footage and can't use the storyboard so plan framing (it's too late). However, it terms of planning a strategy for editing, it is still a very useful document.

At AS & A2 level, before they go out and shoot their film, students export each frame of their storyboard into Final Cut and make what's called an animatic (a mock up of their film, complete with soundtrack, etc). It is used to give them an idea of what their film will look like, shot lengths required, etc.

Here is an example of the storyboard template you should use (available in class);

And here is an example of a single page from a completed storyboard. Notice the level of detail;

Generic Production Portfolio Feedback

These are some of the trends I have observed whilst reviewing your progress. Individual feedback is not allowed, but generic advice to keep you 'on track' is acceptable. Here goes...

Production Details : Capital Letters for peoples’ names. Make sure your details are the same as everyone else in your group!

Workflow : This will provide evidence for ‘time management’ success criteria

Documentary Research : Not just a list. Requires an introduction. Better with real media texts identified (real examples)

Existing Product Research : You should have 2 contrasting examples. It is best not to present the questions from the blog; just use them to write a piece of extended writing.

Project Focus Summary : What are you making a documentary about? Why is this subject important?

Target Audience Research : You should research audiences for documentaries (use Pearl & Dean data, IMBD data or questionnaire data). You should also include a TAP (that is called a “Target Audience Profile”).

Topic Research : If you make factual claims, signpost the reader to the evidence. You could also list references (websites your used, authors, books, magazines, journals, TV programmes you’ve watched, etc) at the end of your page.

Location Research : Should include photos of the locations you are evaluating. Evaluations should include what’s good and bad about each location and what are the challenges you must overcome (lighting, access, permission to use, travel & distance). For interviews, justify your choice of background or location.

Interviewee Information : Who are you interviewing? Why is their opinion important? What can they contribute to the debate?

Pre-Shoot Script : Have you got an obvious 3-act narrative? (Introduction, Development & End/Conclusion)

Interview Questions : Have you prepared the questions you are going to ask your interviewees?

Shot List & Shooting Schedule : A record of what shots you need, when you plan to shoot them, etc.

Production Diary : Should summarise the work done; both the group’s and your own.

Production Calendar : Should identify completed tasks and future targets / deadlines.

Mr Hood's Satisfaction Rating & Class Ranking

Who is making the most progress? Who needs to spend more time completing their Production Log? Let's have a look...

Reminder & Information for Mr Hood's Class

Can the following students please update the Lesson Evaluation Document;

• Lauren
• Brad
• Marc
• Dan
• Lewis
• Lydia
• Conor
• Louis
• Ellis

If it is not completed before next lesson, I will provide you with an opportunity to update the document immediately following the lesson (that's after 3.30pm folks!).

Also, I have looked at your Production Logs and this is a copy of the summary of your progress (see "Individual Progress Grid" in the sidebar for full document).

I will now use this data to establish a "Mr Hood's Satisfaction Rank Order" for the class (number of 'greens' minus the number of 'reds') Watch this space...