Film Narrative 2 – The Shoot
Film Narrative 2For ‘Forget Me Not’, our shoot was scheduled weeks in advance so we would have more time in post-production and would be better able to manage projects for other modules. Early on we decided to shoot the weekend Friday 25th to Sunday 27th February.
Friday 25th
Friday was designated as our ‘test shoot’ day. It was a chance for everyone to settle into their role, troubleshoot in advance, and meet the cast to get comfortable with one another before the official shooting days – Saturday 26th and Sunday 27th.
Whilst some may think the addition of a test shoot to a two-day shooting schedule is unnecessary, I found it beneficial because it allowed us to set up, solve any problems before there was a time pressure, and break the ice with our actors. I would probably schedule a meeting prior to filming again for these reasons.
Saturday 26th
As hoped for, Craiglockhart Campus was virtually empty on the weekend – ideal as we were filming in an open-air space close to the entrance that is typically busy on weekdays. I had my reservations about the choice of location as there were a lot of uncontrollable factors, but we managed to make it work. In all honesty, I would not shoot somewhere like that again due to the skylights as it meant we were unable to fully control the lighting and were subject to changing weather conditions and natural light. Our lighting wasn’t as dynamic nor as three-dimensional as I would’ve liked to have seen, but I put this down as a lesson learned for future projects.
Overall, it was a successful day of shooting and we managed to adhere to our shooting schedule and execute everything to a high standard. The only thing I have noted to be mindful of in future is the importance and subtlety of eyelines, as it was something that was overlooked initially.
Sunday 27th
This was our last day, and we were mainly shooting inserts until the call time for our extras at 2.30pm for our last and most technically challenging shot. Our final shot included a fairly complex panning motion from left to right, which needed to end in the right place each time, as well as the inclusion of a rack focus. This meant that two people were needed to operate the camera to coordinate the execution of the shot.
After nearly 10 takes, we were satisfied we had several takes useable for the edit. As the final shot served as a ‘reveal’ for the narrative, it was imperative we did it justice – so we took our time in making sure everyone knew their action and cues within the shot set-up.
After Thoughts
After we wrapped the shoot for ‘Forget Me Not’, I made sure to note down everything I had learnt on-set whilst it was still relatively fresh in my memory. It was my first time producing a short film, and whilst I feel I did well within the role and managed to organise everything to fulfil Molly’s creative vision, it didn’t feel that gratifying to me from an artistic standpoint. I’ve learnt that my enjoyment and satisfaction in filmmaking comes from bringing a creative vision to life, and not necessarily doing the administrative, logistical, and organisational work that comes with being a producer.
I am glad for the experience as it has confirmed to me I am able to produce to a high level, but that I don’t enjoy it as much as I do working in the more-so creative departments – knowing that will be invaluable for me going forward, and in clarifying what I can offer as a filmmaker.
Group D3
Overall, I am proud of the effort put forth by the crew. We may have had a few issues in pre-production – which in hindsight was mostly to do with communication – but on-set everyone came together to do their best. I’m sure there will be things we would do differently, but at least we can take pride in the fact we did our best and learnt along the way.
