Final week!
8/9 - Sunday
In the late afternoon, we interviewed and shot B-roll of our second and final Big/Little match. We shot everything in beautiful Frick Park on a 90 degree day, our first of the year. Both interviews went quite well. We then filmed them bicycling, skateboarding, throwing and catching a football, and talking. All of it was great b-roll. We knew it would add a lot of excellent content and color to the video. We were really proud of what we had captured, and of the fact that we got it all in 2 hours. We would have imported the footage at New Perspective immediately following, but the P2 card reader was out of the equipment office at the time.
8/10 - Monday
I decided to come in early at 8am on Monday to import the footage from the previous day. It was our first official day of editing. The footage imported into the Avid successfully and I began to subclip and lay down the best footage onto the timeline. All of the interview footage that we wanted to use was now in order. Near the end of the day, Sarah and I even got to lay down some B-roll over the interview dialog. We stayed till 6pm that day, and got a lot accomplished.
8/11 - Tuesday
More editing, all day. It was Dan, Sarah, and I today, all together in our small editing room. We got an excellent dialog going between us about what each of us wanted and thought was best for the video. We laid more B-roll into the timeline in the places we wanted it and the flow of the video began to feel more like a promotional video. We were very happy with what we had achieved in just two days. We left at our normal time.
8/12 - Wednesday
All four of us, Dan, Sarah, Mike, and I, were together today. Dan took over the editing for a while to help cut down parts of our main interview with the founder, Kenny Ross, which was running very long. We finished laying down the B-roll for most of the video and were all happy with it. I spent about 45 minutes adjusting the sound levels for each clip. In the afternoon, we together added the music that Dan and Sarah had chosen. We made further adjustments to the sound.
We were close to picture-lock. We had one nagging problem, however. The beginning segment with the interview with the founder was giving us trouble. We didn’t have appropriate B-roll for it, which I had known the previous week. I had shot some extra fairly neutral B-roll at the park on Sunday for this very reason, even though I knew that most of it probably would not be right either; but at least we had it. Exhausted with small red and green rectangles burned into our retinas (Avid timeline segments), we called it a day.
At 5:30, the New Perspective staff held a party for us at an Irish restaurant a few blocks away, The Harp and Fiddle. We were able to give feedback on the internship and share our experiences. We all had a wonderful time.
8/13 - Thursday
My last day at New Perspective. It was just Dan and I today. In opening the project and watching what we had put together in the past 3 days, we both quickly came to the realization (rather comically) that the B-roll we had for the first segment of the video was not going to work. So (rather spontaneously), we decided to take the company van (with permission of course) and the HVX200 and go out and shoot the B-roll I had wanted to shoot a month ago. Luckily, it was a sunny, dry day.
This is one of the great joys that the digital format brings: spontaneity, speed, and the ability to shoot much-needed footage one day before picture-lock. Yes, it was crazy, but we were surprisingly calm about it, and we managed to pull it off. We got fantastic B-roll from the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Pittsburgh headquarters and from around the city. We returned to the studio by 1pm. Since the P2 Reader was out of the office again, we couldn’t import the footage yet, so I made the lower-thirds (titles) to go on top of the interviewees’ footage and placed them into the timeline. I then made some minor adjustments to the edits we had made during the week. At the end of the day, all that was needed was the additional footage we had just shot. Since Dan’s internship was 5 days a week, he said he would add the footage. I am still keeping in contact with the other interns to ensure that the editing gets finished at the top of next week. The DVDs should be made by Wednesday or Thursday.
My tolerance for intense editing was tested, and I made it. I even still considered it enjoyable. That was confirmation for me that I would probably do very well as an editor. I never got bored with watching the footage over and over, and the intensity of working in a small room for several hours didn’t even faze me. I had to remind myself to take breaks. Once I was in the ‘zone’, the whole process was pretty straightforward and things occurred very naturally.
One piece of advice to those thinking about becoming editors: do not underestimate the good 10-minute break. Everyone needs it. It will get your blood circulation going, will give your mind a rest, and allow you to return to the project with fresh eyes, ears, and mind. If you’re working in a group, even if you are in charge of editing, don’t be afraid to turn the reins over to a fellow partner. S/he can offer a refreshing perspective on the project at every stage. Also, don’t get too attached to certain aspects of the project that someone else may wish to cut. Keep the big picture in mind and consider each clip in terms of what it’s doing for the greater project.
I also received my Intern Evaluation Form, with excellent marks and comments all around. I almost cannot believe that 11 weeks have passed and the internship is over. It was a great ride and I learned a lot. I will take everything that I garnered from my time at New Perspective back to SCAD and I know that I will be a better filmmaker now having completed this internship. I’m sure it will open many doors for me later on. I am very happy and proud of our entire group. It was a very productive and positive working environment, and I would love to work there again.
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Week Nine at NP
Another enjoyable week at New Perspective Productions. So much happened that it’s near impossible to mention all of it here. Since it’s close to the end of post-production, I can reveal the fortunate non-profit organization for which we are doing the promotional video: Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Pittsburgh.
8/4 - Tuesday
In the morning, I conducted Photoshop work on some graphics for the Pittsburgh Pirates. In the afternoon, I observed the rest of a shoot that was going on all day for an employee orientation video. The same actor from a previous shoot was on this one, and he and I had had a really good conversation. The TelePrompTer was involved again, and we even got to operate it.
8/5 - Wednesday
Wednesday marked the start of editing (at last). We had determined at the start of the internship that I would lead the editing portion of the project, and so I have. We had originally planned to have 4 weeks of post-production, but due to scheduling conflicts with our interviewees, we were left with two. I was slightly disappointed since much of the scheduling conflicts had occurred during the week I was on vacation. However, I was still optimistic that we could get it done on time.
I started the Avid project and organized all of the video footage into bins. Then I divided the footage into subclips and put them in their own bins. Lastly for the day, I laid the best interview moments from all of the interviews into the timeline. That put us at about 18 minutes. Our ultimate goal is to get everything under 10.
8/6 - Thursday
Call time was 7:30am for another exciting New Perspective shoot in the studio. I was a grip and a production still photographer. Mike and I also went out to buy a variety of props beforehand. We were now completely comfortable with green screen and we used it all day. We also had a child actor on the set, so that made it even more fun. The shoot went very well and we wrapped early at 3pm. I spent the remaining two hours cutting down the interview footage.
8/4 - Tuesday
In the morning, I conducted Photoshop work on some graphics for the Pittsburgh Pirates. In the afternoon, I observed the rest of a shoot that was going on all day for an employee orientation video. The same actor from a previous shoot was on this one, and he and I had had a really good conversation. The TelePrompTer was involved again, and we even got to operate it.
8/5 - Wednesday
Wednesday marked the start of editing (at last). We had determined at the start of the internship that I would lead the editing portion of the project, and so I have. We had originally planned to have 4 weeks of post-production, but due to scheduling conflicts with our interviewees, we were left with two. I was slightly disappointed since much of the scheduling conflicts had occurred during the week I was on vacation. However, I was still optimistic that we could get it done on time.
I started the Avid project and organized all of the video footage into bins. Then I divided the footage into subclips and put them in their own bins. Lastly for the day, I laid the best interview moments from all of the interviews into the timeline. That put us at about 18 minutes. Our ultimate goal is to get everything under 10.
8/6 - Thursday
Call time was 7:30am for another exciting New Perspective shoot in the studio. I was a grip and a production still photographer. Mike and I also went out to buy a variety of props beforehand. We were now completely comfortable with green screen and we used it all day. We also had a child actor on the set, so that made it even more fun. The shoot went very well and we wrapped early at 3pm. I spent the remaining two hours cutting down the interview footage.
Monday, August 3, 2009
Week Eight at NP
Happy August everyone! We're halfway through the summer already! It really has been amazing so far. Week Eight of my internship at New Perspective Productions was a week of shoots which led to other opportunities, which I will detail below. Here, then, is Week Eight.
7/28 - Tuesday
To start the week out, I went to a shoot at the Westin Hotel and Convention Center in downtown Pittsburgh with Mike H. and his sound colleague Chris. Our job was to interview representatives from various energy companies during the conference. Mike operated the HVX100 P2 camera, Chris mixed and operated the boom, and I was responsible for a small portable light on a light stand which could be powered with a battery.
It was also my job to run up to the hotel room (where our other equipment was and where another colleague of New Perspective’s, Bill, sat editing our footage as it came in) and bring another battery if we needed it. The light was very easy to move around, without having to worry about finding an electrical outlet and long cables. The battery was about the size of a Trimpack battery, with a small cord that came out and connected to the cord of the small light. I had never worked with that kind of battery or light before (being used to big Arri lights) but it was very simple to use. It also had a daylight filter attached to it, which could be flipped down onto the light if we were ever near a window. With help from the producer, who was getting people to be a part of the video, we interviewed 6 representatives about their role at the conference and what they thought about being in Pittsburgh. We occasionally took P2 cards up to hotel room where Bill was editing so that he could edit on the fly. It was a very organized system. We all had a great lunch together which the hotel provided for the conference. The shoot went very smoothly.
A note about interpersonal relations on set: as a filmmaker, no matter what your individual role is on set, it is your job (along with everyone else) to maintain as positive an attitude as possible with all you encounter, even if one or more of the people you are working with are not. There are always going to be people you work with whom you may not like. Some people can be grumpy, annoying, or downright rude, but that doesn’t mean you should be the same. It never leads to anything good; plus, it takes away from the work you should be doing. It’s a common phrase, but sometimes, you just have to ‘smile and nod.’ I’m not saying you should allow yourself to be walked all over; if someone crosses that invisible line, let them know, but in a proactive, professional manner. Keep the bigger picture in mind. Think of what the greater project means to you, and all those people you enjoy working with who are depending on you to do a great job. As long as you maintain a positive, hard-working attitude, committed to what you are there to do, the people around you will notice and you will be the person they call for the next project.
7/29 - Wednesday
Wednesday delivered a fun day in the form of another shoot. Call time was 8:00 am at WQED Studios in Oakland for a reality show pilot episode involving 6 teenagers. Mark from NP was my supervisor for the day. I mainly observed everyone’s roles and workflows throughout the day, occasionally asking questions. At times, I held a larger role. The first thing we shot with the WQED staff was a series of interviews with each of the students in the show against a green screen. I helped with some of the interview questions. I also went to get things the crew needed.
Later on, I assisted the sound mixer on one of the sets. We both wore headphones, which were connected to a large mixing board. When we started, I could hear a low-frequency buzz that he couldn't. When I let him know about it, he asked one of the other WQED sound designers to have a listen, and he could hear it too. It wasn’t until he turned the headphone monitor knob all the way up that he started to hear the buzz. What we couldn’t figure out was whether the buzz was being recorded or if it was just how our headphones were connected to the mixing board. Nonetheless, he found a way to change the connection to reduce the buzz; I gave him feedback with the headphones while he made adjustments. Being a Sound Design minor at SCAD, it felt good to know that I had had a direct impact on the quality of the sound for a pilot TV show episode.
It rained often and hard, and I frequently had to run out in it since we were sometimes shooting outside in an 18-wheeler truck. During a break, I met an old externship supervisor of mine (and the host of ‘On Q’ on WQED), Chris Moore. I had participated in his one-week intensive externship, the Frank Bolden Urban Journalism Workshop, during high school in 2006, with a focus in Photography. I was already passionate about film at the time. The week had been a rewarding and memorable experience. All 3 of my news articles and a couple of my photographs were featured in the workshop’s section of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Mr. Moore and I quickly caught up on the past 3 years (no easy feat), and we continued our work at the studio. I ran into him again as we were wrapping up the shoot. The 2009 Journalism Workshop at Point Park University was starting the coming weekend, and he decided to invite me to speak as an alumna of the program at the alumni panel discussion to help inspire this year’s class of externship students. I was honored and gladly accepted the invitation to speak that Saturday.
7/30 - Thursday
Back at New Perspective, I took a breather on Thursday from all the shoots. I was given the job of cutting out designs for an entry form that NP had designed. Later, I watched and transcribed footage that was taken during my vacation week. I took notes on the best clips to prepare for the editing process.
Since there were delays in scheduling interviewees who had conflicts with our timetable, there are now two weeks left for editing, with at least one interview to go. It is times like these that make me thankful that we are shooting digitally (knock on wood). There were some format issues with the most recently-shot footage, but those have been resolved now. Due to another shoot on Tuesday (tomorrow), we start editing this Wednesday. Since I’m leading the editing portion of this project, I intend to cover a lot of ground on Wednesday and Thursday. On Friday, the other interns will take over.
8/1 - Saturday
I just thought I’d note how the alumni panel discussion at the Journalism Workshop at Point Park University went. In two words: incredibly well. I met some old classmates from the 2006 Workshop and networked with some other alumni. When it was my turn to speak, everything came very naturally. It felt very rewarding to have so many students be engaged and fascinated by the work I was doing now, since graduating from the externship. They were particularly interested in SCAD and my film and sound design work.
At one point, Chris Moore decided to pull down the screen in the classroom and have me log onto the main computer so that I could pull up a recently-completed sound design project the students were interested in seeing. Afterwards, many of them were asking for SCAD’s URL and my email address. I could tell that at least 3 of them would be on SCAD’s website that night. It was all very exciting and I was humbled by their enthusiasm and motivation. The whole experience was a nice reminder of how far I have come thus far. And it all occurred because I happened to be on a film shoot at WQED.
If you’re interested, here is that sound design project from last Spring Quarter at Savannah College of Art and Design. It is a 3-minute clip from the film ‘Deep Impact’ with the entire soundtrack redesigned (music, dialogue, and sound effects).
7/28 - Tuesday
To start the week out, I went to a shoot at the Westin Hotel and Convention Center in downtown Pittsburgh with Mike H. and his sound colleague Chris. Our job was to interview representatives from various energy companies during the conference. Mike operated the HVX100 P2 camera, Chris mixed and operated the boom, and I was responsible for a small portable light on a light stand which could be powered with a battery.
A note about interpersonal relations on set: as a filmmaker, no matter what your individual role is on set, it is your job (along with everyone else) to maintain as positive an attitude as possible with all you encounter, even if one or more of the people you are working with are not. There are always going to be people you work with whom you may not like. Some people can be grumpy, annoying, or downright rude, but that doesn’t mean you should be the same. It never leads to anything good; plus, it takes away from the work you should be doing. It’s a common phrase, but sometimes, you just have to ‘smile and nod.’ I’m not saying you should allow yourself to be walked all over; if someone crosses that invisible line, let them know, but in a proactive, professional manner. Keep the bigger picture in mind. Think of what the greater project means to you, and all those people you enjoy working with who are depending on you to do a great job. As long as you maintain a positive, hard-working attitude, committed to what you are there to do, the people around you will notice and you will be the person they call for the next project.
7/29 - Wednesday
Wednesday delivered a fun day in the form of another shoot. Call time was 8:00 am at WQED Studios in Oakland for a reality show pilot episode involving 6 teenagers. Mark from NP was my supervisor for the day. I mainly observed everyone’s roles and workflows throughout the day, occasionally asking questions. At times, I held a larger role. The first thing we shot with the WQED staff was a series of interviews with each of the students in the show against a green screen. I helped with some of the interview questions. I also went to get things the crew needed.
Later on, I assisted the sound mixer on one of the sets. We both wore headphones, which were connected to a large mixing board. When we started, I could hear a low-frequency buzz that he couldn't. When I let him know about it, he asked one of the other WQED sound designers to have a listen, and he could hear it too. It wasn’t until he turned the headphone monitor knob all the way up that he started to hear the buzz. What we couldn’t figure out was whether the buzz was being recorded or if it was just how our headphones were connected to the mixing board. Nonetheless, he found a way to change the connection to reduce the buzz; I gave him feedback with the headphones while he made adjustments. Being a Sound Design minor at SCAD, it felt good to know that I had had a direct impact on the quality of the sound for a pilot TV show episode.
It rained often and hard, and I frequently had to run out in it since we were sometimes shooting outside in an 18-wheeler truck. During a break, I met an old externship supervisor of mine (and the host of ‘On Q’ on WQED), Chris Moore. I had participated in his one-week intensive externship, the Frank Bolden Urban Journalism Workshop, during high school in 2006, with a focus in Photography. I was already passionate about film at the time. The week had been a rewarding and memorable experience. All 3 of my news articles and a couple of my photographs were featured in the workshop’s section of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Mr. Moore and I quickly caught up on the past 3 years (no easy feat), and we continued our work at the studio. I ran into him again as we were wrapping up the shoot. The 2009 Journalism Workshop at Point Park University was starting the coming weekend, and he decided to invite me to speak as an alumna of the program at the alumni panel discussion to help inspire this year’s class of externship students. I was honored and gladly accepted the invitation to speak that Saturday.
7/30 - Thursday
Back at New Perspective, I took a breather on Thursday from all the shoots. I was given the job of cutting out designs for an entry form that NP had designed. Later, I watched and transcribed footage that was taken during my vacation week. I took notes on the best clips to prepare for the editing process.
Since there were delays in scheduling interviewees who had conflicts with our timetable, there are now two weeks left for editing, with at least one interview to go. It is times like these that make me thankful that we are shooting digitally (knock on wood). There were some format issues with the most recently-shot footage, but those have been resolved now. Due to another shoot on Tuesday (tomorrow), we start editing this Wednesday. Since I’m leading the editing portion of this project, I intend to cover a lot of ground on Wednesday and Thursday. On Friday, the other interns will take over.
8/1 - Saturday
I just thought I’d note how the alumni panel discussion at the Journalism Workshop at Point Park University went. In two words: incredibly well. I met some old classmates from the 2006 Workshop and networked with some other alumni. When it was my turn to speak, everything came very naturally. It felt very rewarding to have so many students be engaged and fascinated by the work I was doing now, since graduating from the externship. They were particularly interested in SCAD and my film and sound design work.
At one point, Chris Moore decided to pull down the screen in the classroom and have me log onto the main computer so that I could pull up a recently-completed sound design project the students were interested in seeing. Afterwards, many of them were asking for SCAD’s URL and my email address. I could tell that at least 3 of them would be on SCAD’s website that night. It was all very exciting and I was humbled by their enthusiasm and motivation. The whole experience was a nice reminder of how far I have come thus far. And it all occurred because I happened to be on a film shoot at WQED.
If you’re interested, here is that sound design project from last Spring Quarter at Savannah College of Art and Design. It is a 3-minute clip from the film ‘Deep Impact’ with the entire soundtrack redesigned (music, dialogue, and sound effects).
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Week Seven at NP
Hello readers! This post outlines the activities of last week at New Perspective. I had a camping trip over the weekend, which is why I'm posting this now. The week mainly consisted of trying to get people scheduled for interviews. At least one of those interviews is occurring this week (my vacation week). I am still in contact with my fellow interns to stay updated on the latest tasks going on. So here is what we did last week.
7/14 - Tuesday
On Tuesday, Dan, Mike, and I were sent to the Art Institute of Pittsburgh store to get 20 black mat boards and spray glue for some designs that were going to be presented to a client. When we returned, I, being the only intern who had any experience with gluing designs to mat boards (thanks SCAD!), proceeded to do so on the building's roof. All of this (going to the store, coming back, and gluing the designs) had to be done in less than 2 hours, but we got it done, with half an hour to spare. Luckily, the boards had already been pre-cut. The staff was very happy with how they turned out.
Dan and I then researched and called local marinas so we could find a boat and a driver to rent for an upcoming NP project. One called back quickly, and a deal was made.
Some people also emailed back regarding being interviewed for our video project and we continued the scheduling process. In the mean time, we walked around to the offices, assisting anybody who needed help.
7/15 - Wednesday
Wednesday was filled with a lot of driving. Dan, Mike, and I called and scouted out hardware stores, looking for a long, thick chain for an upcoming NP project. We also picked up a special blue screen from an equipment rental place.
Afterwards, we and several other members of the NP staff participated in a fun camera test outside the front of the building, where we all walked back and forth in front of a camera while it was on a fast-motion setting. The test was for another NP project that involved people walking in fast-motion.
We then set up the blue screen in the studio and conducted a similar camera test in front of it.
7/16 - Thursday
Thursday was the opposite of Wednesday in terms of activity. We took down the blue screen we had set up the day before and discussed equipment with Mike H. We also found a place with a long thick chain. Throughout the rest of the day, we continued to schedule interviews and helped out around the offices.
7/14 - Tuesday
On Tuesday, Dan, Mike, and I were sent to the Art Institute of Pittsburgh store to get 20 black mat boards and spray glue for some designs that were going to be presented to a client. When we returned, I, being the only intern who had any experience with gluing designs to mat boards (thanks SCAD!), proceeded to do so on the building's roof. All of this (going to the store, coming back, and gluing the designs) had to be done in less than 2 hours, but we got it done, with half an hour to spare. Luckily, the boards had already been pre-cut. The staff was very happy with how they turned out.
Dan and I then researched and called local marinas so we could find a boat and a driver to rent for an upcoming NP project. One called back quickly, and a deal was made.
Some people also emailed back regarding being interviewed for our video project and we continued the scheduling process. In the mean time, we walked around to the offices, assisting anybody who needed help.
7/15 - Wednesday
Wednesday was filled with a lot of driving. Dan, Mike, and I called and scouted out hardware stores, looking for a long, thick chain for an upcoming NP project. We also picked up a special blue screen from an equipment rental place.
Afterwards, we and several other members of the NP staff participated in a fun camera test outside the front of the building, where we all walked back and forth in front of a camera while it was on a fast-motion setting. The test was for another NP project that involved people walking in fast-motion.
We then set up the blue screen in the studio and conducted a similar camera test in front of it.
7/16 - Thursday
Thursday was the opposite of Wednesday in terms of activity. We took down the blue screen we had set up the day before and discussed equipment with Mike H. We also found a place with a long thick chain. Throughout the rest of the day, we continued to schedule interviews and helped out around the offices.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Week Six at NP
This week was pretty neutral: not too little work, not too much, and as usual, all enjoyable.
Tuesday 7/7
This day was mostly quiet. It was just Dan and I. Sarah is on vacation. I spent most of my day dividing the founder's interview transcription by which excerpts we might use and which ones we won't. I noted the timecodes for each excerpt so that we can go straight to their respective places in the video during post-production. Since it looks like we're only going to have 3 weeks of post now, we need to save as much time as possible.
In between transcribing, I answered a slew of phone calls at the front desk for New Perspective for about 2 hours.
Wednesday 7/8
The action kicked up quite a bit on Wednesday. In the morning, me, Dan, and Mike stood in for characters to act alongside actors who were auditioning for our friend Donald's film. Donald is this year's New Perspective Filmmaker In Residence student, meaning he gets to make a professional short film using NP's facilities. I had acted in minor roles before but had not stood in for an actor's audition, so it was new, enjoyable experience. The audition took place in the studio. Five actors were scheduled to come in, 3 men and 2 women. I stood in with the 3 male actors individually for the same scene. The two characters in the scene were having an argument, so there was a lot of yelling (which was quite fun, even though the emotion in the scene was pretty intense). All of the actors handled the cold reading very well, but it was clear who our preferred ones were at the end. Whenever Dan or Mike were standing in, I would operate the camera, the DVX100. We also took turns running the lights.
After lunch, Dan, Mike, and I drove over to the North Shore of The Point in downtown Pittsburgh to take location shots of Heinz Stadium for a NP project. We took turns with the camera, and matched the storyboards we had been given almost exactly. We also got a lot of exercise and sun. The whole shoot took about 2 hours.
Afterwards, we sat in a meeting for a conference call between four of the NP staff and the clients of the project for which we had just taken photos. I was slightly surprised how laid back everyone in the meeting was, including the clients.
Thursday 7/9
Today, I was the only intern in the studio. In the morning, I went to the basement and upstairs tape library to find tapes for a NP project. Afterwards, I went back to dividing the founder's interview transcription.
After lunch, Shirley, the woman at the front desk (who usually answers the phones) needed me to make copies of a Powerpoint presentation, which were needed for an important meeting in an hour. Only 6 copies were needed, but the presentation was 30 pages, and the printer could collate only 5 or 6 at a time. The printer had some issues with the last 4 pages. After we got the printer working again, Shirley and I attempted to staple them all. It worked for one copy of the presentation but not the others. So we quickly figured out a way to bind them with a special machine with 10 minutes to go. Luckily, only 4 copies really needed to be bound. I finished them just in time to give them to the meeting coordinator as he was leaving. My arms got a great workout from working the binding machine too.
I then went back to dividing the transcription, which I finished today. Another productive week!
Tuesday 7/7
This day was mostly quiet. It was just Dan and I. Sarah is on vacation. I spent most of my day dividing the founder's interview transcription by which excerpts we might use and which ones we won't. I noted the timecodes for each excerpt so that we can go straight to their respective places in the video during post-production. Since it looks like we're only going to have 3 weeks of post now, we need to save as much time as possible.
In between transcribing, I answered a slew of phone calls at the front desk for New Perspective for about 2 hours.
Wednesday 7/8
The action kicked up quite a bit on Wednesday. In the morning, me, Dan, and Mike stood in for characters to act alongside actors who were auditioning for our friend Donald's film. Donald is this year's New Perspective Filmmaker In Residence student, meaning he gets to make a professional short film using NP's facilities. I had acted in minor roles before but had not stood in for an actor's audition, so it was new, enjoyable experience. The audition took place in the studio. Five actors were scheduled to come in, 3 men and 2 women. I stood in with the 3 male actors individually for the same scene. The two characters in the scene were having an argument, so there was a lot of yelling (which was quite fun, even though the emotion in the scene was pretty intense). All of the actors handled the cold reading very well, but it was clear who our preferred ones were at the end. Whenever Dan or Mike were standing in, I would operate the camera, the DVX100. We also took turns running the lights.
After lunch, Dan, Mike, and I drove over to the North Shore of The Point in downtown Pittsburgh to take location shots of Heinz Stadium for a NP project. We took turns with the camera, and matched the storyboards we had been given almost exactly. We also got a lot of exercise and sun. The whole shoot took about 2 hours.
Thursday 7/9
Today, I was the only intern in the studio. In the morning, I went to the basement and upstairs tape library to find tapes for a NP project. Afterwards, I went back to dividing the founder's interview transcription.
After lunch, Shirley, the woman at the front desk (who usually answers the phones) needed me to make copies of a Powerpoint presentation, which were needed for an important meeting in an hour. Only 6 copies were needed, but the presentation was 30 pages, and the printer could collate only 5 or 6 at a time. The printer had some issues with the last 4 pages. After we got the printer working again, Shirley and I attempted to staple them all. It worked for one copy of the presentation but not the others. So we quickly figured out a way to bind them with a special machine with 10 minutes to go. Luckily, only 4 copies really needed to be bound. I finished them just in time to give them to the meeting coordinator as he was leaving. My arms got a great workout from working the binding machine too.
I then went back to dividing the transcription, which I finished today. Another productive week!
Monday, July 6, 2009
Week Five at NP - Thursday
Hello, this post is for last Thursday, July 2nd. I hope you all had an enjoyable Independence Day holiday weekend!
Thursday was a pretty slow day. It was just Mike and I at the studio. I finished transcribing the remaining ten minutes of the interview with the founder of the non-profit organization. We now have an entire transcript of his words, so we can look through and choose which sections we might want to use in the video. I had automatically noted the time code of any portion I thought might be useful (Sarah did as well), which will save a lot of time in post-production.
As of this writing, we haven't heard anything official from our contact person at the organization about the other people we wanted for future interviews. To save time, we might shoot some B-roll this week. I'm sure I speak for the other interns as well when I say we hope to get at least something more filmed this week so we don't get behind. We would like to have four solid weeks of post-production if we can manage it, and that is our current schedule. I start Week Six tomorrow, so we'll all talk about that then.
For the rest of the day, Mike and I discussed some post-production plans and we went around to the other offices to assist anyone who needed help. I also got to see the bishop ceremony footage Greg, Mike (equipment-Mike), and I shot the previous Saturday in Avid and on a HD television. Greg had done some edits between our 3 angles, and it looked incredible. The sound was also better than we had expected. I was really happy with all of our footage. Greg said that I would receive full-credit and come away from the internship with a solid sample of my work. He plans on posting some samples on YouTube too, so as soon as I have a link to one, I'll embed it here on the blog.
Here's to Week Six!
Thursday was a pretty slow day. It was just Mike and I at the studio. I finished transcribing the remaining ten minutes of the interview with the founder of the non-profit organization. We now have an entire transcript of his words, so we can look through and choose which sections we might want to use in the video. I had automatically noted the time code of any portion I thought might be useful (Sarah did as well), which will save a lot of time in post-production.
As of this writing, we haven't heard anything official from our contact person at the organization about the other people we wanted for future interviews. To save time, we might shoot some B-roll this week. I'm sure I speak for the other interns as well when I say we hope to get at least something more filmed this week so we don't get behind. We would like to have four solid weeks of post-production if we can manage it, and that is our current schedule. I start Week Six tomorrow, so we'll all talk about that then.
For the rest of the day, Mike and I discussed some post-production plans and we went around to the other offices to assist anyone who needed help. I also got to see the bishop ceremony footage Greg, Mike (equipment-Mike), and I shot the previous Saturday in Avid and on a HD television. Greg had done some edits between our 3 angles, and it looked incredible. The sound was also better than we had expected. I was really happy with all of our footage. Greg said that I would receive full-credit and come away from the internship with a solid sample of my work. He plans on posting some samples on YouTube too, so as soon as I have a link to one, I'll embed it here on the blog.
Here's to Week Six!
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Week Five at NP - Tuesday & Wednesday
Greetings, Areya here! Another week at New Perspective... This was our first shooting week for our intern project. On Tuesday, we interviewed the founder of the organization we are making the video for. We used the Panasonic HVX200, using High-Definition P2 cards, the same that I used during the church shoot last Saturday. The set had been set up the night before. I operated the camera for the whole interview, adjusting the frame composition in between questions, with some input from one of the other interns, Sarah. Sarah and I also made some set adjustments prior to the interview, particularly with the color gel we chose for the background light. Mike, another intern, conducted the interview, while our fourth intern, Dan, was and still is on vacation (we all have a one week vacation that doesn't overlap with the other three). The interview was an hour long, and was pretty successful. We think we have sufficient material for the video. Four more interviews to go!
Sorry, I forgot to take pictures before the shoot, but below are some pictures from the same studio, only from the day we helped on the medical video shoot last Thursday.
Sorry, I forgot to take pictures before the shoot, but below are some pictures from the same studio, only from the day we helped on the medical video shoot last Thursday.
I'll post screencaps of the video once it's finished, and then you'll be able to see how the interview was laid out.
We wrapped the interview around 11am, and then we transferred the P2 files to an external hardrive (we copied them to another one today for safety. ALWAYS do this when filming with P2, or any digital format, for that matter). For the rest of the day, we observed the editing of the medical video we helped out with last Thursday. I also dubbed 10 Betacam SP tapes in the deck control room for another NP project. Basically all of the editing stations in the editing rooms are controlled from this room. Here are some pictures of me in that very 'electric' room. Those with sensitive ears know what I mean.
We wrapped the interview around 11am, and then we transferred the P2 files to an external hardrive (we copied them to another one today for safety. ALWAYS do this when filming with P2, or any digital format, for that matter). For the rest of the day, we observed the editing of the medical video we helped out with last Thursday. I also dubbed 10 Betacam SP tapes in the deck control room for another NP project. Basically all of the editing stations in the editing rooms are controlled from this room. Here are some pictures of me in that very 'electric' room. Those with sensitive ears know what I mean.
Wednesday
Today, Sarah, Mike, and I spent most of the day transcribing/logging the interview footage of the founder from yesterday. It took longer than expected because we had some P2 format and computer speed issues. This was mostly due to the fact that all of the interview footage added up to about 65 GB (Gigabytes with a G!). That's HD for you. Also, the only way to view P2 footage (besides through a non-linear editing station) is through a program called P2 Viewer, which our 'intern' computers had, but not nearly the processing speed of an editing station. Therefore, while our sound played back at normal speed (thank goodness), the image played back in a kind of slow-motion. It was difficult to jump to Microsoft Word and P2 Viewer back and forth without some sort of delay.
The three of us also each wanted to be able to transcribe at the same time to save time. First, we had to copy the P2 files to a second hardrive (which needed to be formatted to MS-DOS first [PC basically]). I had formatted a hardrive to Mac before but never PC. It was easier than I thought, and I was able to do it with my laptop. Then, we copied the files over to that drive (which took an hour to do). I gave my fellow intern, Sarah, a crash course in Photoshop while we waited. Then, at last, we could all transcribe at the same time.
We had some playback glitches, and didn't know whether the glitch was in the playback or the P2 file itself. The latter would be very bad. Mike took one of the hardrives to an Avid suite and imported the files there to find out. They played fine, so we breathed easier.
We got most of the transcription finished today, with about 10 minutes of interview footage left. We'll finish that tomorrow. Now, the reason I just gave you a (almost) complete blow-by-blow of what we did today was to give any aspiring filmmaker (especially one planning to focus on the video format) a real-life scenario of exactly what is involved with working with P2, a format that is becoming more widely used. As with any recording format, it has its advantages and disadvantages. P2 is one of the few formats that is completely data. There are no 'movie files' once the data is imported into a computer or hardrive. The data is divided into 6 separate folders, which, when opened, have many many .omf files with alpha-numeric names which don't seem to make any sense until they are opened using P2 Viewer or an editing software program which can decipher the data.
PROS
- No tapes
- No waiting for footage to capture from a deck
- High-Definition footage
- Data footage which can be converted to practically any file format
CONS
- No tapes (I explain this below)
- Glitches can happen, in the camera, or in the cards themselves
- You have to wait for the data to transfer, which depending on how much footage you have, can be very long. Go get a sub and come back later.
- Since there are no tapes involved, and the P2 cards are usually erased soon after shooting is complete, there is nothing 'physical' actually holding your footage (like film) if something goes wrong with a hardrive or your computer crashes. The remedy for this and my personal advice? BACKUP your data in as many places as necessary (I would say 3 is safe). Don't overload your computer, don't drop your hardrives, and NEVER erase those P2 cards until you have the data safe and sound in at least 2 separate locations. I would also advise that after you have a rough cut completed, export that video to a physical tape. Do the same thing after you have a final cut. The extra steps will pay off. It's much better than losing everything, and if you have a production company, or ever work for one, this is essential. Not doing so could cost you your job.
So the moral of this story? With every new format comes new benefits, but also new cautions, rules, and guidelines. As long as you follow them, P2 should be a pretty enjoyable format with minimal headaches. Know your production budget (reliable hardrives run from $200 to about $800 each, 16 GB P2 cards run about $300 - $400 EACH, the camera much more, a P2 card reader, and a fast computer with all the appropriate software goes into the thousands if your college doesn't provide them). Do your research on every aspect of your project, and learn to anticipate the unexpected (especially the potentially unexpected to your wallet). Also, with any format, and in film production in general, it will ALMOST ALWAYS take longer to do something than you think it will! This wisdom is often-repeated, but no less true. Schedule as such!
Thanks for reading this particularly long post! I'll post tomorrow's adventures then! Take care and happy filmmaking!
Success is doing what you love and loving what you do...
Today, Sarah, Mike, and I spent most of the day transcribing/logging the interview footage of the founder from yesterday. It took longer than expected because we had some P2 format and computer speed issues. This was mostly due to the fact that all of the interview footage added up to about 65 GB (Gigabytes with a G!). That's HD for you. Also, the only way to view P2 footage (besides through a non-linear editing station) is through a program called P2 Viewer, which our 'intern' computers had, but not nearly the processing speed of an editing station. Therefore, while our sound played back at normal speed (thank goodness), the image played back in a kind of slow-motion. It was difficult to jump to Microsoft Word and P2 Viewer back and forth without some sort of delay.
The three of us also each wanted to be able to transcribe at the same time to save time. First, we had to copy the P2 files to a second hardrive (which needed to be formatted to MS-DOS first [PC basically]). I had formatted a hardrive to Mac before but never PC. It was easier than I thought, and I was able to do it with my laptop. Then, we copied the files over to that drive (which took an hour to do). I gave my fellow intern, Sarah, a crash course in Photoshop while we waited. Then, at last, we could all transcribe at the same time.
We had some playback glitches, and didn't know whether the glitch was in the playback or the P2 file itself. The latter would be very bad. Mike took one of the hardrives to an Avid suite and imported the files there to find out. They played fine, so we breathed easier.
We got most of the transcription finished today, with about 10 minutes of interview footage left. We'll finish that tomorrow. Now, the reason I just gave you a (almost) complete blow-by-blow of what we did today was to give any aspiring filmmaker (especially one planning to focus on the video format) a real-life scenario of exactly what is involved with working with P2, a format that is becoming more widely used. As with any recording format, it has its advantages and disadvantages. P2 is one of the few formats that is completely data. There are no 'movie files' once the data is imported into a computer or hardrive. The data is divided into 6 separate folders, which, when opened, have many many .omf files with alpha-numeric names which don't seem to make any sense until they are opened using P2 Viewer or an editing software program which can decipher the data.
PROS
- No tapes
- No waiting for footage to capture from a deck
- High-Definition footage
- Data footage which can be converted to practically any file format
CONS
- No tapes (I explain this below)
- Glitches can happen, in the camera, or in the cards themselves
- You have to wait for the data to transfer, which depending on how much footage you have, can be very long. Go get a sub and come back later.
- Since there are no tapes involved, and the P2 cards are usually erased soon after shooting is complete, there is nothing 'physical' actually holding your footage (like film) if something goes wrong with a hardrive or your computer crashes. The remedy for this and my personal advice? BACKUP your data in as many places as necessary (I would say 3 is safe). Don't overload your computer, don't drop your hardrives, and NEVER erase those P2 cards until you have the data safe and sound in at least 2 separate locations. I would also advise that after you have a rough cut completed, export that video to a physical tape. Do the same thing after you have a final cut. The extra steps will pay off. It's much better than losing everything, and if you have a production company, or ever work for one, this is essential. Not doing so could cost you your job.
So the moral of this story? With every new format comes new benefits, but also new cautions, rules, and guidelines. As long as you follow them, P2 should be a pretty enjoyable format with minimal headaches. Know your production budget (reliable hardrives run from $200 to about $800 each, 16 GB P2 cards run about $300 - $400 EACH, the camera much more, a P2 card reader, and a fast computer with all the appropriate software goes into the thousands if your college doesn't provide them). Do your research on every aspect of your project, and learn to anticipate the unexpected (especially the potentially unexpected to your wallet). Also, with any format, and in film production in general, it will ALMOST ALWAYS take longer to do something than you think it will! This wisdom is often-repeated, but no less true. Schedule as such!
Thanks for reading this particularly long post! I'll post tomorrow's adventures then! Take care and happy filmmaking!
Success is doing what you love and loving what you do...
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Week Four at NP
What a week! Where to start?
Tuesday
On Tuesday, I was the only intern in the studio because the others were on a New Perspective shoot. Over the weekend, the others and I had received an email from the man from the organization we met with the previous week. He had scheduled our first interview, with the founder of the organization, for the next Tuesday, June 30th. We then had a week to prepare, which was good.
Mostly, I helped out the New Perspective staff with anything they needed, mainly duplicating DVDs of NP projects to be sent to clients since the DVD copier happens to be in our intern office. Then, I got a special surprise...
The founder of the organization showed up at the studio, one week early. Apparently, he had been misinformed, or had misinterpreted the date of his interview as being for today's Tuesday and not the following Tuesday (the 30th). My supervisor came into the intern office, and informed me that he was in the lobby, ready and waiting to be interviewed. As we both knew, the studio was not ready, the equipment was not set up, and the other three interns were not even there, so there was no way that it was going to happen. I was surprised, but calmly went to see him. Since we had not been the ones in contact with the founder about his interview date, I did not feel guilty about the mismatch, but I still felt bad about having to turn him away when he was ready and eager. He was disappointed but seemed to understand when I explained it to him, and he calmly left.
When my colleagues returned from the shoot, I brought them up to speed, and for the rest of the day, we helped out around the studio and observed some projects being worked on and edited. We also got our first taste of blue screen in the studio with a NP client. We helped Mike (the man in charge of the equipment) take the set down after the brief shoot. Afterwards, we asked Mike a lot of questions about the equipment, and we talked for almost two hours straight. We learned a whole lot about the camera (a Panasonic Varicam, which from afar looks a lot like a SDX900), P2 workflow, other recording formats, as well as general industry wisdom.
Wednesday
On this day, all four of us were at the studio. At one point, we sat and observed in a room where a particular project was in the final editing process. The blue screen we had seen the previous day had been taken away and the actor who had been filmed now had various pictures and graphics around him. We got a feel for the general exchange of ideas and workflow that occurred between staff members when editing a final project together, just before being sent to color correction. The process was very similar to my own personal process when I'm about to put a final project together, which was encouraging to me.
The others and I also came up with some questions and general interview information for when we would interview the founder the following week (this coming week). We then had a meeting with our supervisors at 3pm so we could go over the questions and details of how to set up the studio and how to work a successful interview. Afterwards, we decided who would conduct the interview and who would primarily run the camera (me). I should note that when we decide on specific positions, that person is the 'primary' person working that position, but turns will probably be taken with those who would like experience with that particular aspect. So on Tuesday, I might be taking turns running the camera with one or both of the other two interns. We will also be switching positions up when we interview other people and get B-roll footage at the headquarters.
Thursday
On Thursday, all except one of us came into the studio at 7:30am for a NP shoot for a medical video. The shoot ran all day, but thanks to the quality of the actor we were working with, the shoot went a lot quicker than expected. We got some more in-studio experience, and learned a little about how a teleprompter worked and was set up. We were completely finished by 4:30pm, with time to spare. We then left at 5 as usual.
Saturday
Yes, Saturday. Earlier in the week, a film shoot in a church was being planned with 3 cameras. Two NP staff had been determined, and they wanted to bring one of the interns to work the third camera. We decided among ourselves by picking numbers. I chose the lucky number, so I had my first film shoot as a New Perspective member!
Call time was 6am, so I had to wake up at 4:30am. Not very difficult for someone who often played in almost 30 golf tournaments a year, many in faraway cities. Mike, Greg, and I stopped at McDonald's for breakfast (a first for me already) and then headed to the church. Five new bishops were being ordained and we were going to film the entire ceremony. We were filming with HVX 200s using P2 cards (my first time using them, as well as HD in general). My position was in the center balcony overlooking the ceremony. My camera angle would be the go-to shot in editing if something wasn't right with the other two angles.
We were hoping we wouldn't need to change P2 cards in the middle of the ceremony, but it ran an hour longer than we expected. Luckily, we had each brought 2 extra cards (16 GB ones); and both of them got used. I changed cards twice during the ceremony, ultimately filling up three cards, and some of one. Besides not having to capture anything, what's great about shooting on P2 is that there are two cards in the camera at one time, so when one fills up, recording automatically goes to the second card, with no interruption in recording. There is also no interruption when changing cards, since you just take out the full one while the other is being recorded on.
I had filmed with 3 cameras in a church before, so the experience wasn't entirely new, but I still learned a lot and there were quite a few differences with this shoot. The choir was singing right behind me, so I didn't have much room to move around. I even got bumped a few times. At one point, a man's foot had stepped on my power cord, bending the plug backwards (the outlet was in the floor, so this was easy to do), which made me loose power intermittently for a few seconds until I could move through the sea of legs to plug it back in. I had to do that again later in the ceremony but I didn't lose power again. Other than that, the shoot was very successful and enjoyable. I didn't sit for 3 1/2 hours, and my legs kept tightening up, but I didn't sacrifice any shot and felt good about that afterwards. We returned to the studios, exchanging our own experiences on the way, then went home. I looked forward to sleep.
What a week and what a month it has been! I look forward to our first interview with the founder this week. I have butterflies already, but am excited and optimistic about how it will play out. I will post about how it went after Tuesday.
Areya
Tuesday
On Tuesday, I was the only intern in the studio because the others were on a New Perspective shoot. Over the weekend, the others and I had received an email from the man from the organization we met with the previous week. He had scheduled our first interview, with the founder of the organization, for the next Tuesday, June 30th. We then had a week to prepare, which was good.
Mostly, I helped out the New Perspective staff with anything they needed, mainly duplicating DVDs of NP projects to be sent to clients since the DVD copier happens to be in our intern office. Then, I got a special surprise...
The founder of the organization showed up at the studio, one week early. Apparently, he had been misinformed, or had misinterpreted the date of his interview as being for today's Tuesday and not the following Tuesday (the 30th). My supervisor came into the intern office, and informed me that he was in the lobby, ready and waiting to be interviewed. As we both knew, the studio was not ready, the equipment was not set up, and the other three interns were not even there, so there was no way that it was going to happen. I was surprised, but calmly went to see him. Since we had not been the ones in contact with the founder about his interview date, I did not feel guilty about the mismatch, but I still felt bad about having to turn him away when he was ready and eager. He was disappointed but seemed to understand when I explained it to him, and he calmly left.
When my colleagues returned from the shoot, I brought them up to speed, and for the rest of the day, we helped out around the studio and observed some projects being worked on and edited. We also got our first taste of blue screen in the studio with a NP client. We helped Mike (the man in charge of the equipment) take the set down after the brief shoot. Afterwards, we asked Mike a lot of questions about the equipment, and we talked for almost two hours straight. We learned a whole lot about the camera (a Panasonic Varicam, which from afar looks a lot like a SDX900), P2 workflow, other recording formats, as well as general industry wisdom.
Wednesday
On this day, all four of us were at the studio. At one point, we sat and observed in a room where a particular project was in the final editing process. The blue screen we had seen the previous day had been taken away and the actor who had been filmed now had various pictures and graphics around him. We got a feel for the general exchange of ideas and workflow that occurred between staff members when editing a final project together, just before being sent to color correction. The process was very similar to my own personal process when I'm about to put a final project together, which was encouraging to me.
The others and I also came up with some questions and general interview information for when we would interview the founder the following week (this coming week). We then had a meeting with our supervisors at 3pm so we could go over the questions and details of how to set up the studio and how to work a successful interview. Afterwards, we decided who would conduct the interview and who would primarily run the camera (me). I should note that when we decide on specific positions, that person is the 'primary' person working that position, but turns will probably be taken with those who would like experience with that particular aspect. So on Tuesday, I might be taking turns running the camera with one or both of the other two interns. We will also be switching positions up when we interview other people and get B-roll footage at the headquarters.
Thursday
On Thursday, all except one of us came into the studio at 7:30am for a NP shoot for a medical video. The shoot ran all day, but thanks to the quality of the actor we were working with, the shoot went a lot quicker than expected. We got some more in-studio experience, and learned a little about how a teleprompter worked and was set up. We were completely finished by 4:30pm, with time to spare. We then left at 5 as usual.
Saturday
Yes, Saturday. Earlier in the week, a film shoot in a church was being planned with 3 cameras. Two NP staff had been determined, and they wanted to bring one of the interns to work the third camera. We decided among ourselves by picking numbers. I chose the lucky number, so I had my first film shoot as a New Perspective member!
Call time was 6am, so I had to wake up at 4:30am. Not very difficult for someone who often played in almost 30 golf tournaments a year, many in faraway cities. Mike, Greg, and I stopped at McDonald's for breakfast (a first for me already) and then headed to the church. Five new bishops were being ordained and we were going to film the entire ceremony. We were filming with HVX 200s using P2 cards (my first time using them, as well as HD in general). My position was in the center balcony overlooking the ceremony. My camera angle would be the go-to shot in editing if something wasn't right with the other two angles.
We were hoping we wouldn't need to change P2 cards in the middle of the ceremony, but it ran an hour longer than we expected. Luckily, we had each brought 2 extra cards (16 GB ones); and both of them got used. I changed cards twice during the ceremony, ultimately filling up three cards, and some of one. Besides not having to capture anything, what's great about shooting on P2 is that there are two cards in the camera at one time, so when one fills up, recording automatically goes to the second card, with no interruption in recording. There is also no interruption when changing cards, since you just take out the full one while the other is being recorded on.
I had filmed with 3 cameras in a church before, so the experience wasn't entirely new, but I still learned a lot and there were quite a few differences with this shoot. The choir was singing right behind me, so I didn't have much room to move around. I even got bumped a few times. At one point, a man's foot had stepped on my power cord, bending the plug backwards (the outlet was in the floor, so this was easy to do), which made me loose power intermittently for a few seconds until I could move through the sea of legs to plug it back in. I had to do that again later in the ceremony but I didn't lose power again. Other than that, the shoot was very successful and enjoyable. I didn't sit for 3 1/2 hours, and my legs kept tightening up, but I didn't sacrifice any shot and felt good about that afterwards. We returned to the studios, exchanging our own experiences on the way, then went home. I looked forward to sleep.
What a week and what a month it has been! I look forward to our first interview with the founder this week. I have butterflies already, but am excited and optimistic about how it will play out. I will post about how it went after Tuesday.
Areya
Week Three at NP - Part 2
Hello!
Catching up on the events of last week starting with Wednesday (June 17th):
Me and my fellow interns went to the organization's headquarters today to meet the other staff and take location pictures. It's a very friendly location and has many filming possibilities. We also met the CEO, who had many questions for us, but in the end, seemed quite impressed with what we were offering. We think we surpassed her expectations with our ideas. Then we set to work with identifying and scheduling our interviewees for the video. We left the headquarters with a lot of variables in our heads, but also excitement.
On Thursday, (the 18th), we spent a good part of the day discussing our ideas and adding to them, now that we had seen the location in its entirety. We discussed shooting and editing possibilities, as well as how we could take the most advantage of the shooting schedule we had to work with. We entered the weekend waiting for an email from the organization with some interviewing dates. (Pictures coming soon!)
Catching up on the events of last week starting with Wednesday (June 17th):
Me and my fellow interns went to the organization's headquarters today to meet the other staff and take location pictures. It's a very friendly location and has many filming possibilities. We also met the CEO, who had many questions for us, but in the end, seemed quite impressed with what we were offering. We think we surpassed her expectations with our ideas. Then we set to work with identifying and scheduling our interviewees for the video. We left the headquarters with a lot of variables in our heads, but also excitement.
On Thursday, (the 18th), we spent a good part of the day discussing our ideas and adding to them, now that we had seen the location in its entirety. We discussed shooting and editing possibilities, as well as how we could take the most advantage of the shooting schedule we had to work with. We entered the weekend waiting for an email from the organization with some interviewing dates. (Pictures coming soon!)
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Week Three at NP - Part 1
It's only Tuesday and already much has happened this week! Yesterday, my group and I met with our chosen non-profit organization for the first time, and the meeting went incredibly smoothly. We discussed who we would interview (one of the ideas was quite a surprise!) and what we wanted to target the promotional video to. We exchanged ideas, set up a date to go check out the headquarters (tomorrow), and then gave the representative a tour of the New Perspective studio. (I'm keeping the identity of the organization private for now, while we are still in preproduction.) I'm very excited about being able to post the final video in mid-August! So far, everything is going very well.
Today, I went on my first shoot with one of the NP staff! There was no video on this shoot (just photo stills) but still a very good experience and the company we were doing it for was up-and-coming and very friendly. We took individual pictures of each member of staff, a group photo, and then took many shots of the building and various equipment, all brand new.
Much of the film equipment we brought was very similar to SCAD's, which meant I already knew how to use it, which felt great. The only piece of equipment I hadn't used before was a Chimera light cover, but I figured out how to put it on the Arri light easily. Overall, it was a very enjoyable shoot experience. I look forward to the next shoot!
Tomorrow, we go to the organization's headquarters and take pictures to get a feel for what we will be filming! Until then, peace!
Today, I went on my first shoot with one of the NP staff! There was no video on this shoot (just photo stills) but still a very good experience and the company we were doing it for was up-and-coming and very friendly. We took individual pictures of each member of staff, a group photo, and then took many shots of the building and various equipment, all brand new.
Much of the film equipment we brought was very similar to SCAD's, which meant I already knew how to use it, which felt great. The only piece of equipment I hadn't used before was a Chimera light cover, but I figured out how to put it on the Arri light easily. Overall, it was a very enjoyable shoot experience. I look forward to the next shoot!
Tomorrow, we go to the organization's headquarters and take pictures to get a feel for what we will be filming! Until then, peace!
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Week 2 at NP
This week went by a bit faster. My group set some things in stone on Monday and Tuesday. On Tuesday, we presented what we had done so far to some of the New Perspective staff, including our chosen non-profit organization and tentative production schedule. The meeting went very well. After some minor tweaks to the schedule and calling the lucky organization, we scheduled a meeting with the representatives of the organization (for next week) and exchanged ideas and questions.We then had a little photo shoot. All four of us had our pictures taken so that they could be added to the website, http://www.new-perspective.com/. It was very exciting, and afterwards, we each felt more a part of the New Perspective family. My pictures should appear (along with my bio) on the website soon.
Afterwards, we did our usual rounds around the building, asking various staff members if they needed anything.On Thursday, today, we got to sit in on a major executive meeting, which was a great learning experience and insight into the inner workings of a multimedia production company. The week went by so fast! I look forward to what next week brings...
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Day Four at New Perspective
Hello all! Day Three was pretty slow, but my fellow interns and I conducted our research on local non-profit organizations that deserved a free promotional video. We made a list of 6 and brainstormed some ideas for each one. I also did some graphic design work for one of the staff for a few hours.
On Thursday, Day Four, our group called some of the organizations and we narrowed our list to three. It was a lot easier than we thought it would be, we got a lot of work done, and we worked really well as a team. Afterwards, we checked out one of the DVX100 cameras and conducted a few experiments around the area, practicing with the camera's features and recording whatever interested us for about an hour. We will probably be using the Varicam when we record the footage for the video, but it was good to work with a camera I hadn't used before, and we got some great footage.
Overall, the first week was slow, but at the same time, productive. We as a group are just getting used to everyone's styles of workflow, and learning what each of us is comfortable doing at every stage of the production. We feel each other out pretty intuitively, and so far, it's going really well (which of course is essential when working together on any kind of big project).
Next week, one of the New Perspective staff is going to give us a full tour of Avid on Adrenaline, which I have worked with, but my group partners have not, so it should be a pretty good learning experience. On Tuesday, we will meet again at the studio and call the organization that we have chosen to give them the good news. We will also start setting some ideas in stone for the production of the video.
On Thursday, Day Four, our group called some of the organizations and we narrowed our list to three. It was a lot easier than we thought it would be, we got a lot of work done, and we worked really well as a team. Afterwards, we checked out one of the DVX100 cameras and conducted a few experiments around the area, practicing with the camera's features and recording whatever interested us for about an hour. We will probably be using the Varicam when we record the footage for the video, but it was good to work with a camera I hadn't used before, and we got some great footage.
Overall, the first week was slow, but at the same time, productive. We as a group are just getting used to everyone's styles of workflow, and learning what each of us is comfortable doing at every stage of the production. We feel each other out pretty intuitively, and so far, it's going really well (which of course is essential when working together on any kind of big project).
Next week, one of the New Perspective staff is going to give us a full tour of Avid on Adrenaline, which I have worked with, but my group partners have not, so it should be a pretty good learning experience. On Tuesday, we will meet again at the studio and call the organization that we have chosen to give them the good news. We will also start setting some ideas in stone for the production of the video.
Monday, June 1, 2009
Orientation at New Perspective
Greetings! Today, I got my first taste of New Perspective. Today was my orientation. I was given a tour of the building (which looks great) and introduced to the staff and other interns. The atmosphere was very professional, but also relaxed. The environment inspired creativity and I constantly received a positive feeling from the building and the layout. Everyone was very laid-back and knew their respective positions well.
I along with two of the other interns conducted research today on local non-profit organizations that could possibly benefit from a professionally-made promotional video. We also sat in a Final Cut Pro editing session and participated in a script-reading and feedback meeting.
Today was very relaxed and slow but things should pick up speed as the week goes on. I've been told that we will have some side projects to help out on and even a film shoot towards the end of the week. I look forward to it. I know this will be a productive and rewarding experience. I hope to be able to post every day on my daily experiences, and that other student filmmakers can learn from this blog as well. Until tomorrow, peace!
I along with two of the other interns conducted research today on local non-profit organizations that could possibly benefit from a professionally-made promotional video. We also sat in a Final Cut Pro editing session and participated in a script-reading and feedback meeting.
Today was very relaxed and slow but things should pick up speed as the week goes on. I've been told that we will have some side projects to help out on and even a film shoot towards the end of the week. I look forward to it. I know this will be a productive and rewarding experience. I hope to be able to post every day on my daily experiences, and that other student filmmakers can learn from this blog as well. Until tomorrow, peace!
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