EXAM

Well the exam is over. It’s been an interesting ten plus weeks with many ups and downs along the way. But we all made it to the end and crossed the finish line as a team. The exam went well. There are of course things I would have liked to have improved upon, which is why hindsight is a wonderfully woeful thing.

We shot the same five-minute script twice using two different shot lists and a different actor for the male lead. From the offset, I’d wanted a mature actor that was age appropriate for the role. Yet by the time I got the greenlight and was able to get the script to my actor, there was little time left to memorize the lines. Which was a shame but in no way a reflection upon the ability or willingness of my actor.

Everyone worked well together. The floor manager was particularly versatile, dressing the set, managing the studio floor and feeding lines to the actor. Which I’d like to have done using a discreet ear piece placed in the actors’ ear.  But time would not allow for such a concession to be made.

From 09.00 I was all too aware that the clock was against me. Initially we had to set the scene which ate up a few minutes. I should have stayed in the studio and walked the cast though the entire physicality of the scene. But I was too caught up in the routine of directing from the gallery. I wish I’d had the confidence to follow my gut rather then doing what I assumed was expected of me.

I felt comfortable in the directors’ chair, some of the shots looked really good. Killing the house lights in the studio added a sense of visual depth we hadn’t seen before. Watching the other director and the younger alternate actor was interesting. The physicality of the other performance was well rehearsed and highly polished. They had developed onscreen chemistry which made for genuinely compelling viewing.

My dual role of q-lab operatior was fairly-easy. There were a few technical hiccups, but they were promptly resolved. I had the opportunity to observe for long periods between my cues to play the required file at the required time.

What I think I learnt today is that I still have a lot to learn about directing. I didn’t take the position because I wanted too, it was a job that no one else wanted. I can direct and I’m getting better with experience, but it’s not something that comes naturally to me.

Directing is like conducting and orchestra. But, I’m inherently an off-beat. I have a terrible sense of rhythm. The only way I’m directing my way to Carnegie Hall is with fastidious practice. The thing which I enjoyed the most was seeing and hearing the dialogue I structured being spoken by the actors on screen. Seeing the words come alive in a visual sense from page to screen was the part I took the most pride in. I think, whereas I like directing, I love scriptwriting and should perhaps focus more on my passions in future.

Week Ten

This week marked not only our final session in the studio before our exam, it also marked my last ever class as an undergraduate. If I had a smartphone, I’d have taken a selfie, but I don’t, so I didn’t. This week we focused on refining our roles for the exam. I directed for the first half again. The difference this time was that our producer was now acting as my directorial counterpart. We are short on crew, so are stretched very thin in terms of manpower.

As well as taking the directors chair, I was assigned the role of QLab operator during the second half. Initially, I was not comfortable with this swap. As I hadn’t performed the task prior, I didn’t feel very confident in doing it for the first time halfway though our last session. It seemed like a potential spanner in the works so to speak. However, as we are short staffed, I continued to fill the role despite my reservations.

We had another disastrous set-back this week. When both our actors dropped out at the very last minute. The funny thing is, the actors who failed to turn up were not my first choice in terms of casting. I had wanted to cast a mature student in the role of Jon the police chief/chef. As he would have been more age appropriate for the character and would have been far more visually interesting, in terms of the visual distinction between the ages of Jon and Faith. Given that my choice is a mature student, they would undoubtedly have been more committed to the role. But my ideas in relation to casting were shot-down. When the actors didn’t turn up there was nothing I could do, as it was to short notice. In hindsight, I should have fought harder for my choice of casting.  This quote from 130 lessons in leadership from the directors’ chair perhaps best illustrates how vital casting is in pre-production.

“Directing is mostly casting. Some say directing is 60 percent casting, others say 90 percent. Regardless, it’s a lot. There is not a more important single decision you will make during the production than who you put into a role.”

Operating QLab during the second half of the session, was a bit boring. All I had to do was press the spacebar when I was instructed to do so. Whilst doing this, I got to view the opening credits sequence a few times. Which admittedly is very well put together. However, it made me think/feel that I should have a writing credit for the project. I worked a lot on the script from it’s original draft. I refined it and made it work where it was lacking in style and structure. At this point, having the writing credit is inconsequential. I don’t want to come across like a diva, demanding acknowledgement for my work.  

All in all, the session went well, and I think we are on track to do well on the exam. We have consistently worked as a team despite setbacks beyond our individual and collective control. I will post one more blog after the exam and one final entry after grading to reflect on the module as a whole.

Week Nine

This week’s session was my second time in the directors’ chair. I think things went better this time around but it’s difficult to judge objectively. Initially, after reviewing the script and giving it a good proof read, I proceeded to edit the script. There were a few typographical errors which I found amusing. Police Chef was referenced twice instead of Police Chief. In context, it was meant to be chief, however a drama about a Police Chef does sound vaguely interesting and certainly entertaining. Gordon Ramsey’s Kitchen Nightmares meets The Bill.

Some of the grammar and sentence structure felt a bit clumsy, so I tweaked the dialogue. I did feel like I had at least partially overstepped my mark as director. This quote from 130 Lessons in Leadership from the Director's Chair, illustrates my potential error in judgement. “Don’t change the author’s words. Director Lloyd Richards said that if you continually find yourself itching to make changes to a script, consider whether you should give up directing and take up playwriting”. However, after reviewing my edit, the scriptwriter was happy with the work we had produced in this collaborative fashion.

Halfway though the session, we were meant to switch roles in preparation for exam conditions. I left the gallery and assumed my secondary position as a camera operator. Everything quickly fell apart during the second half of the session. The other director became unwell and had to leave the studio. This was no ones’ fault, it’s just one of those things that happen. Unfortunately, we as a group were not prepared for this eventuality.

The second half of the session was detrimental to our groups morale. Another practise session has been scheduled. However, with my childcare restrictions, I can’t make myself available at the required time, so another member of the crew will have to replace me for that extra session.

My half, went well. We were slightly behind schedule but were still on track. I would have preferred to have dressed the set, immediately after we entered the studio instead of going over text describing our individual roles. This process took 30 mins. Time in which we could have had the set dressed before the cast had arrived.

I would have liked to have had at least one more rehearsal session with the actors prior to getting into the studio. But we are working with unpaid actors, so availability is at their discretion. I’m going to end this blog with another quote from 130 Lessons in Leadership from the Director's Chair “The best compliment for a director: “You seemed from the beginning to know exactly what you wanted.” Actors and others will follow you even if they disagree with your direction. But they will not follow if you are afraid to lead. A clear, confident presence and strong direction are highly reassuring to everyone.”  We only have one final session this week before our practical exam. At least, by this point I feel somewhat confident in my skills/ability as a director.

Week Eight

This week’s session was exhilarating. After such a long hiatus it was a relief to get back into the studio. The set had been built and we were free to walk through and around it. The layout is of two boxed rooms with doors and furniture. It kind of felt like playing with a real-life doll house.

An actress joined our session to help us run through the script we were using as source material to cover the basics of shooting a multi-camera drama. It was a stupidly hot day so were allowed to bask in the sunshine whilst we blocked the scene. Whilst blocking the scene, we found out that there had originally been plans to build an amphitheatre, but someone thought that a parking lot was more important.

We were set a reading for this session. I went to the recording studio, recorded me reading the chapter, scanned all the pages from the chapter and created a multimedia version of the chapter. I found it to be an engaging way of understanding and memorizing the chapter. 

In this session, I got the opportunity to operate camera one. This was my first time in session using one of the big studio cameras. It was a lot of fun. I was shooting a Medium/Close-up of the actress answering the phone. In the beginning, the actress was seated on the sofa and her head was partially visible in the bottom corner of the screen. I tried to crop her head out but was told to leave the shot alone. It took me a moment to realise that it didn’t matter that her head was partially in shot whilst she was in the seated position because my camera wouldn’t go live until she was already stood up. As such, all I had to do was maintain the shot composition and follow direction as given.

As a group, we started to select and research the roles which we intend to undertake during our practical examination. I was hesitant to approach the directors chair again. But the producer from the last project I directed said I did a good job but need to communicate with the production assistant more effectively. With that constructive criticism in mind, I’m intent on taking the reigns one final time. In the words of Samuel Beckett “Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.”  My last effort as a director didn’t go as well as I’d have liked, but I did learn a lot and intend to apply what I have learnt to this next challenge.

In researching my role as director, I came across this great book which I highly recommend to any and all aspiring directors, 130 Lessons in Leadership from the Director's Chair. Here is one lesson which I most certainly will bear in mind, “You are not the parent of this child we call the play. You are present at its birth for clinical reasons, like a doctor or a midwife. Your job most of the time is simply to do no harm. When something does go wrong, however, your awareness that something is awry—and your clinical intervention to correct it —can determine whether the child will thrive or suffer, live or die”. It is a really good read despite being a tad dated, with a reference to Bill Cosby which sticks out like a sore thumb.

We are meant to select a second smaller role to assume during halftime of our exam. I have opted to use the autocue again. Although I haven’t been able to find any academic writing on the operation of the autocue itself. I have been researching editing practise as a comparative skill to directing.

I’ve found Film and Video Editing by Roger Crittenden, to be especially insightful. “Kevin Brownlow has described editing as ‘directing the film for the second time’, and it is not surprising that the cutting room is the single most frequent source of directing talent from amongst the various crafts.” My experience in video editing has given me insight into directing and vice versa. I like editing because there is much less social interaction. Editing is a long, almost private process with man, mind and machine blending together to create cohesive moving images. Directing, by nature needs people to be directed. You must socially navigate through everyone’s expectations to birth a sustainable project. 13 Questions every director should ask according to Crittenden are included in the following appendix.

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Bibliography

Crittenden, Roger. Film and Video Editing, Taylor & Francis Group, 1995.

Hauser, Frank, and Russell Reich. Notes on Directing : 130 Lessons in Leadership from the Director's Chair, RCR Creative Press, 2003.

Beckett, Samuel Worstward Ho. 1983

Appendix

“The shooting script or, in the case of documentary, the shotlist, is meant to provide us with a template for the film or video before it exists. However, each director is dealing, at the moment of shooting, with the fundamental question: how do I shoot to provide the most effective material for editing? If we understand the dramaturgy of the script we can analyse how the details of the mise-en-scène can be captured on the film or tape to provide the raw material that the editor needs. So what questions should be kept in mind during the shooting? Each scene should be examined to identify the following:

1. Where is the focus of interest?

2. When and to what does that focus shift?

3. What is the mood and consequent pace of the scene?

4. Does that mood/pace change?

5. Are there natural pauses which should be reflected in silence and stillness?

        6. What significant detail must be seen?

7. Conversely, when is it important to see the whole area in which the action takes place?

        8. When is a reaction more important than an action?

9. How should movement be encompassed?

10. Does any off-screen or non-synchronous sound contribute to the scene?

11. How do the beginning and end of the scene relate to those immediately before and after?

12. Does the setting occur more than once in the script, and therefore need to be established in a particular way?

13. Can the turning point of the scene be pinpointed?”

EASTER BREAK

The Easter break was so long it deserves its own blog. I was lucky to get the opportunity to work with Aberystwyth TFTS alumni Luise Leschik on a conceptual performance piece titled "Heul doch!" I got the chance to gain additional practice using both a single and multi-camera set up. Filming continuous action from two angles then editing the footage together utilizing continuity editing principles.

The project was by nature experimental. Which afforded me the flexibility to learn new editing techniques and think abstractly which, was a refreshing change of pace. Unfortunately, I got severely ill two thirds of the way though the project and was unable to be present in the physical space towards the end. However, I processed as much material as I could once my health was back up to 100%.

Week Seven

INTERVIEW

In the studio this week I was on the opposite side of the camera. I, along with the producer from last week and the two performers were interviewed for a short music television themed segment. I wasn’t exactly comfortable or confident on screen. For the most part I prefer to be behind the scenes. I enjoy acting with a script but talking as myself tends to make me “corpse”, badly. We started off the session by learning two methods for coiling XLR cables. I was already familiar with the process through my day-job, but these techniques were very effective. I reckon I could coil cables as quickly as Forrest Gump assembles and disassembles his rifle.

What we did in studio today was only a small part of everything we as a production group worked on and accomplished since the last session. We had two days of shooting on location which went well. Although we did have some teething trouble to start. I didn’t check the equipment prior to bringing it to location. The battery was flat which initially hampered production. We shot as much as we could of the first verse scene. As we only had a small window in which to use the space available for shooting. We had to keep stopping to charge up the battery enough to finish filming the scene. If I had made sure to charge the battery beforehand, production would have gone a lot smoother.  Although it was in these instances of waiting around for the battery to charge that we talked about ideas. We attempted to do a vertigo shot but failed spectacularly. We were like the three stooges; the shot didn’t work but it did make for an excellent team building exercise.

 When the project was brought to me, I had never anticipated making a music video for a Dolly Parton song. I just felt that as a socially conscious male “artist” I didn’t feel comfortable with the concept of having the singers’ happiness being dependent upon a man. I pitched a bunch of ideas to the producer. One where Jolene would have been a mythic siren, luring men to their deaths at sea. That would have been a nightmare to film on location with the snow. Thankfully we went for a simpler option. Where the singer who is singing about Jolene is Jolene herself. We didn’t really flesh out the concept, we don’t know if the character is aware of the fact that she is “Jolene”. The point is that “Jolene” is a femme fatale who preys on men.

It was a bizarre concept and is undoubtedly one of the most twisted interpretations of a Dolly Parton song ever to be imagined. As well as directing I undertook a significant portion of the editing responsibilities. It was difficult syncing up availability. Thankfully we were able to network and share workflow as it progressed. I was able to piece together a number of rough-cuts which were evaluated and critiqued by the group. Reference points in the timeline where created where changes could be made. All in all, I’m pleased with the work we produced and look forward to our next production task…

Week Six

DIRECTINIG

The producer offered me the directing role and I accepted. It was difficult at first trying to function without my laptop. But the supplier guaranteed that it would arrive this week. I’m relived to say it did and only a day later then promised.

This time around I undertook a lot more responsibility behind the scenes. I chased up the producer for details of meetings with performers and script progress. I wanted all the nuts and bolts of the projected laid out in front of me. Things didn’t really unfold like that. We held a production meeting on Monday. Which I attend during my lunchbreak from work. Sadly, not everyone from the team could be in attendance but we made significant progress nonetheless.

I broke up the lyrics to the song Jolene and assigned different shots for each camera. I was hesitant to use the handheld camera in the studio set up. I mentioned my concerns to the producer. As I wanted to be cautious of breaking the 180-degree rule with two performers on stage. I would have been happy using just the three cameras, but I wanted to ensure that that was a role for everybody on the production team. 

Against my better judgement, I planned out a shot list including all four cameras. I though that if we had to use the handheld, then we might as well try and use them almost exclusively for close-up shots. The only reason to have a handheld camera is to utilize a range of motion not capable with a tripod.

On the day, we decided to keep camera two static, so it didn’t have or need an operator. What we should have done was scrapped camera four altogether. But hindsight is a disturbingly wonderful thing. The first two takes went well, despite a few communication errors. For example, I asked the floor manager to move the performers to stage but they didn’t hear or respond. The executive producer then asked me to ask them to move. As they were sat talking just off shot when they could just as easily be sat on scene chatting whilst we get all the equipment prepared. I already knew this and had already asked for them to be moved a few minutes before I myself was asked. After giving another prompt to the floor manager, the performers moved on scene. We made the two adjustments recommend by our producer and began rehearsing for a live broadcast.

The executive producer wanted to change most of the shots on camera four, opting for a wider angle which was beautifully composed framing one of the performers silhouettes in the background. Yet, all the combined changes to the shot list at the last minute effected our sense of rhythm and perhaps to some extent our confidence as well. We were running out of time and as such were not permitted to live broadcast directly. Instead, we, the production crew were relegated to the role of audience. Which as director is entirely my fault. 

Maybe I should have fought against changes and kept things exactly as we had rehearsed and gone through during the previous two takes. We were just developing a sense of rhythm in time with the music and the lyrics. Now we have the off-site shoot scheduled for Saturday with a second shoot in the recording studio booked for Tuesday morning. Hopefully the production and post-production work will go according to plan before Thursday’s session.