Pre-Production Test Footage

A few nights ago, Tom, James and I took a school camera and filmed some test footage at the locations planned for our OTS. We organised to film at sunset so that we could check the quality of recording at different light levels, but we also simultaneously attempted some of our different shot ideas. Below is the footage we shot, edited and compiled by James, along with some notes about the clips.



1 & 2: I wanted to attempt this shot, because I have seen it used previously on TV and in film, and it is extremely effective in coveying a sense of speed. The motion of the camera mimics the head-movement of someone watching a person run past, and so the shot adds towards a more immersive experience. Unfortunately, I found it tricky to track the subject with a smooth pan, so they are slightly out of shot for a moment. Also, the fast movement resulted in a glitch with the autofocus, causing the shot to blur out of focus, which looks incredibly unprofessional. This could be prevented by fixing fixing the focus at a suitable distance. This may even add to the effect of the shot, as the focal blur in some areas would give a sense of distance. On the second attempt, the pan was smoother, but still not perfect. The down-hill run would work better in the context of our OTS, as it would show the Victim being forced into a position of lower status.

3: After spotting the bars at the side of Elm Hill, we decided to try filming the subject through them. We have used bars to a similar effect in our continuity task; they work particularly well to enhance the theme of crime, because tall certical bars are commonly associated with prisons or areas of security, as a mechanism of containment or exclusion. The bars would also help to justify the Victim's furtive behaviour: with the camera on the other side of the bars, the shot feels similar to a POV of someone watching the Victim from an unseen place.

4 & 5: The idea for this shot arose in our first group planning session, when we were suggesting ways in which the Goon character could appear unexpectedly in order to shock the audience. In our actual OTS, the Victim (sat on the bench) will be reading a newspaper as opposed to a blank notepad, but the rudimentary mechanics of the shot will remain the same. Both shots worked well, but we decided that the Goon should be closer to the camera in order to ensure that viewers do not miss the unexpected appearance of the character.

6: This is another shot that we used in our continuity task. It did not work as well here, because the cobbled ground was less even, and it was difficult to keep the camera steady and low. That said, such footage would work well in short bursts to focus the audience's attention on the fact that the Victim is moving hurridely away from something; maintaining a sense of urgency.

7: I proposed this shot as part of the flashback sequence under the name of 'Ambiguous Closeup'. Just as the name implies, the purpose of the shot is to capture a character, who will be the Femme Fatale, without revealing their full identity. Although the framing could be improved, I feel this shot works well.

8 & 9: Work on the same principle as clip 6, but from different angles. 8 may work well along with 6 in short bursts, but 9 is more of an establishing shot, and would interrupt the flow of the scene if it was used to show the Victim running.

10 & 11: The low angle works incredibly well with the towering clock-tower, creating a sense of foreboding. The lighting conditions at this time of day also work really well to provide contrast and accentuate the bold, crisp outline of the tower.

12: This works well as an establishing shot, because the street sign gives the viewer an idea of location, not necessarily because they can read it, but because of its style. That is not to say that it would have to go at the very beginning of the OTS, but it would work best in the early parts. As in clip 3, the bars give the idea that someone is looking through them, and that the footage is from their point-of-view. For our OTS, this character could be the Goon, looking through the bars to see the Victim walking or running away.

13: A highly effective way of conveying the speed of the Victim as he runs from the Goon. Again, would work well with clips 6, 8 & 9 in short bursts. Fast cuts between the different peices of footage would also give a sense of speed.

14: Probably the creepiest shot we have, because it is full of signifiers that combine for a dark theme. The flitting sillhouette invokes a sense of fear and ambiguity, whilst the church windows juxtapose nicely with pessimistic themes of crime and danger.

15, 16 & 18: Perhaps our most professional and effective shot. The framing, the canted angle, and even the shadow on the cobbles all work incredibly well to convey the warped circumstances that the Victim finds himself in. In 15, there was a pole in the middle of the frame, and in 16, I felt the angle was too low, but in 18, I think the framing is perfect; from the moment the subject walks into the frame, they are completely captured, and the audiences eyes can follow them into the distance.

19: Same as 4 & 5, but in lower light. Still works well, but framing is a bit off. Will have to re-think newspaper, because a man reading a newspaper in the dark is way too suspicious, even for film-noir.

20: This shot works nicely as a way of capturing the environment at the same time as chartering the Victim's progress. The framing of the old architecture is good, and captures the subject's shadow perfectly. It would work well in between sets of close-up shots to show the audience more of the location, and also to show the distance between the Goon and the Victim.

21: Hand-held tracking shot. The quick, jerky movements would confuse and irritate an audience if shown for too long. As with shots 6, 8, 9 & 13, this would work well in quick bursts to convey the running motion of both the Victim and the Goon. Such a shot could be interpretted as the Goon's point-of-view.