Preliminary Task Evaluation

I have followed the task brief very well. One of my characters walks through a door, across a room and sits down opposite from the other character. They then exchange a few lines of dialogue, before being interrupted by a fire alarm and leaving the room. The brief insists that a match on action, shot/reverse shot and the 180º rule is implemented. Match on action is used as the character walks through the door because this enforces an idea of continuity. It is easy for the audience to follow because the video is smooth. The shot/reverse shot technique is used in my preliminary task as the two characters are engaging in conversation. The camera looks over the shoulder of the two characters so that the conversation is understandable from the point of view of the audience. The 180º rule is used throughout the preliminary video, however is emphases when the fire alarm goes off. The camera and characters stay on the right sides of the imaginary 180º line, which is great for the audience as it doesn't get confusing. If the camera and characters were to switch, a reverse shot would occur and the left/right relationship between the two characters would change. Obviously this would be confusing for the audience.

I am proud of the continuity that has been achieved in my video. All the continuity techniques (match on action, shot/reverse shot and 180º rule) that have been used in my video have, in my opinion, been executed to a good standard. I have created a video that is understandable and can be easily followed by an audience because of the good standard of continuity that has been edited in.
I have developed my camera work skills and editing skills throughout this preliminary task. I have had to record footage and then go away and edit it to a good standard in order to achieve the continuity I have previously talked about. I would now say that I am good to go with using the camera and the basic features of Final Cut Express, however would need additional help if I were to want to use more advanced features. My preliminary task does not really conform to any genre and does not really have any conventions at all, therefore no meaning can really be created by the audience. The only meaning that the audience can take from viewing my video is the story. Audience meaning will definitely be implemented to my final piece because there will be a genre and generic conventions will be applied. I do not believe that my preliminary video will appeal to or engage an audience at all, simply because there is no genre, no conventions, no themes, etc. and nothing to engage with. My main task should definitely appeal to and engage with a targeted audience; for a start there will be a genre.

I have learnt how to use a Nikon DSLR camera with a tripod, and can now record footage, zoom in, zoom out, along with other basic techniques. In addition, I now have a basic understanding of the editing software Final Cut Express, including how to edit a video, cutting clips, deleting clips, importing video and audio, and using text. As I have already said, I will need to develop my skills further if I were to want to use the more advanced features available on both the camera and Final Cut Express. In regards to myself, I have learnt that I am much more capable than I thought I was. I learnt all of the features of everything very quickly and can now use them whenever I wish and without any assistance. Also, I have found out that I am much more confident than I thought as I felt comfortable when using the camera and the editing software. This surprised me as I personally thought that I would be much more cautious and always be asking for help! With the film industry as a whole, I have learnt a few different things. The time it takes to edit something should not be underestimated; I now know that for my final video I will have to dedicate quite a lot of time to editing.

As I have just said, one thing that I will take in to my main task is the time that it takes for you to edit. The actual editing part of the editing process doesn't really take much time, it is the rendering that takes forever! I will give myself quite a substantial amount of time when editing my main task. Although this issue didn't happen to me, others in my class found that some of the footage they had recorded wasn't what they wanted. Therefore they had to go back, gather their actors and re-record that clip. This is quite time costly, especially if the issue was to happen many times. The lesson I have learnt here, and what I will be taking with me to the main task will be to record the same shot at least two times to ensure that you definitely have what you want; one thing I do not want to do with my main task is to waste time! Personally I do not really think I need to develop any further skills to succeed in my main task, however I will look to develop the current skills I have to make my final video look professional. Skills I will look to develop are my camera skills and also my editing via Final Cut Express skills. To make sure that I do develop these skills I will make sure that I get plenty of practice in before I start my main task. This way I will know exactly what I need to do in order to achieve a great standard of work and to make my final task appear professional.