Unit 2, Part A & B: Arts Leadership Project Plan

What is your project?
For my Arts Leadership Project I am going to produce a short film which will be screened at the Borderlines Film Festival in 2014. I will produce the film within a group as part of the BFI Film Academy with the Rural Media Company, in order to develop and demonstrate our skills as young filmmakers. We are aiming for the film to be approximately 2 minutes in length. 

What stages will you need to complete?
There are a number of stages we will need to go through in order to produce our short film:

• Allocating roles within the group
• Brainstorming initial ideas
• Writing a script
• Planning eg. storyboards, shot lists
• Finding actors, locations and props
• Shooting the film
• Editing

Who are the participants or main audience for the project? 
I will be working on the project in a group consisting of myself and 5 other participants from the BFI Film Academy, and we will all have our own main roles within the project, as well as working together on all aspects of producing the short film. The main audience for the project will be those watching the short film when it is screened at the Borderlines Film Festival, which will be a mixed audience.

What is your main role in the project? What roles will the other group members have?
My main role within the project is going to be as the cinematographer, which means I will be primarily responsible for shooting the film. I will need to plan shots by creating a shot list and storyboard with the help of the other members of my group, in order to be organised and to make sure that I get all of the footage needed and do not miss anything important out. The other roles necessary to produce a short film will be allocated to the other members of the group, such as producer, director, writer, sound and editing.

When will your project take place?
The timescale we are working to is approximately 2 months, as producing even a short film is a long process, and we hope to screen our short film at the Borderlines Film Festival on the 5th March 2014. Our scheduled dates for shooting and editing the short film are the 17th, 18th and 19th of February 2014, but we hope to arrange additional dates in order to complete our project to the highest standard possible. Therefore, our planning stages for the film will need to be completed before the middle of February 2014, and we hope to have a basic concept and idea for our film by mid-January in order to pitch our idea at the BFI Film Academy meeting on the 15th January 2014.

What resources, equipment and support will you need?
In order to complete our project, we will need the participation of all members of our group, as everybody will be fulfilling specific roles, as well as support from our mentors Nathan Williams and Adrian Lambert. We will need a range of equipment in order to produce our short film, such as a camera, tripod, boom pole, headphones, computer and editing software. We will also need to source locations in which to shoot our short film, and actors. Specifically to my role as cinematographer, I will need to source the camera, tripod and anything additional required such as batteries and memory cards/tapes. I will either use my own Canon 600D and tripod, or borrow equipment from the Rural Media Company. 

How will you review your progress?
In order to review my progress, I am going to keep updating this blog whenever we have a planning meeting or complete any stages of the project. This will help to track my progress and review our work as we go along in order to make sure that we are on schedule. It will also help us to notice and solve any problems that we encounter. I will also keep evidence of all of the planning we complete towards our short film, such as spider diagrams for brainstorming ideas, storyboards and shot lists. 

I will be able to gather feedback about our project from the audience members who come to see the screening of our short film at the Borderlines Film Festival. I may produce a short questionnaire in order to gain people's opinions on our film. After this, I will be able to review my own progress and reflect on the skills I have learnt, especially in a leadership role. 

What will you do if things go wrong?
We aim to spend a substantial amount of time planning our project in detail, so hopefully there will be minimal problems. However, not everything always goes to plan, therefore we will need to be ready to deal with any setbacks during our project. We will need to make sure that we complete the majority of the filming early and a long time before the screening date, so that if we realise that we have missed some shots or that there has been a problem with the footage, we will have time to reshoot if necessary. We will also need a contingency plan because there may be unforeseen problems such as weather and illness. This is why, if possible, we should arrange as many dates as possible for shooting and editing our film. 

Unit 1, Part B: Arts Challenge Action Plan

My Action Plan
After researching the conventions of both Horror and Romance, I will use my knowledge of genre structure to shoot the same story in two different ways to produce two different films. My experience in editing will help me manipulate the footage to achieve the desired effect. The films will be kept very short, under one minute in length. I will use shot choice, colour, editing and music in order to change the genre. As a control method, the actor will not be told anything about genre and be asked to give just one performance. I will write a basic script and create a storyboard in order to visualise my shots. My story will be based around the following very simply concept:

 A woman/man walks into a room, sees a letter and reads it. 

Time

I will need to spend time completing research into different genres, planning each short film, shooting the films, and editing them. I am hoping to spend about 2 hours on research into conventions of different genres, 1 hour experimenting with my editing software, 2 hours creating a short script and storyboard, 4 hours shooting the footage for the films, and a further 4 hours editing.  

Resources

The resources I will need in order to complete my Arts Challenge are:

• A camera 
• A tripod
• A computer
• Editing software
• Actors
• Locations
• Props

I will be able to complete my Arts Challenge with minimum expenditure, as I will use my Canon 600D camera in order to shoot the films, my own tripod, and my computer with iMovie software for editing. My film idea only includes one character, and I will use one of my friends to act. I will use as few props as possible in order to keep the films simplistic and to save money.

Recording My Progress

In order to record my progress as I complete my Arts Challenge, I am going to regularly update my blog as I go along, documenting any work I do towards my films, including research into different genres. I will also take photographs and keep all of my planning, including storyboards and shot lists. This means that I will be able to keep track of how my challenge is going, stay on schedule, and solve any problems throughout the process.

Feedback

To gather feedback about my challenge, I am going to show my films to an audience of family members and friends, and hold a short discussion in order to gauge how successfully I completed my project, and whether or not I achieved my challenge. To do this, I could ask my audience to guess the genres of my different films, to establish whether I have understood the concepts of the different genres and used them effectively in my films.

Unit 1, Part D: Esther May Campbell

Esther May Campbell Receiving her BAFTA Award

We participated in a masterclass with Director Esther May Campbell as part of the BFI Film Academy at the Rural Media Company. During this session, she talked about her background in the film industry, showed and discussed her BAFTA award-winning short film 'September' and gave some tips to those aspiring to work in film.

Esther explained how she grew up in a difficult family where she loved thinking about people and drama, and really wanted to understand the world. After starting out directing episodes of 'Doctors', she decided that television wasn't for her and that she would pursue her real passion; making short films. She explained how, when working on a television series, you have to stick to the brand controlled by the producers, and there is no room for imagination or freedom. There is often an atmosphere of tension due to crew members being on a contract and continually trying to protect their jobs. Esther decided that she would rather work as an ensemble, meeting and forming relationships with everybody on her team, in order to work together more easily. 

Her passion is evident in her most successful short film 'September', which won Best British Short Film at BAFTA in 2009. 

At the summer's end comes September; a time for change. Concrete, brambles, flyovers and the magic of in-between moments are captured in 

mesmerizing half-light.

On this website you can view a clip of 'September' and read an interview with Esther: http://guru.bafta.org/esther-may-campbell-guru-qa

Esther May Campbell's Advice

• It is important to draw from your own experiences of the world
• Making films is not all about confidence, part of being human is being vulnerable and scared which will add things to your work
• Storyboarding is a great way of questioning your work and bringing out unconscious thoughts and ideas
• Shot lists are useful but do not stick to or rely on them too rigidly, always be prepared to make changes
• If it makes you blush, it is worth exploring! 

From meeting and talking to Esther May Campbell, I have gained a great insight into the film industry and the differences between working on a television set where you are creatively limited and directing short films where you are free to make your own choices. I have also learnt more about the role of a Director. It was amazing to meet an ordinary woman who has followed her passions and achieved something as outstanding as winning a BAFTA award. I will also take on board much of her advice, such as drawing from your own experiences and exploring difficult and sensitive areas in order to create something more personal. 

Unit 1, Part C: Alistair Clark and Geoff Thompson

This week at the BFI Film Academy, we have had four masterclasses from film industry professionals, starting with producer Alistair Clark and writer Geoff Thompson on the 31st October.

The day began with a discussion in interview format with Alistair Clark, who revealed how he managed to work his way into the film industry, and demystified the role of a producer, an often overlooked position. Alistair described his relatively 'normal' background, growing up in Warwickshire and completing a degree in Art History, before realising that what he really wanted was to be involved in the film industry. The main message I took from his story was that if you really want something, you have to go out there and 'just do it', taking any opportunities that come along - Alistair started his career by shooting three low budget short films in a week, before going on to work on feature films such as the BAFTA nominated 'London to Brighton'. 

Alistair also gave some useful tips for those aspiring to work in the industry, describing the process of producing a film as 'collaborative' - the writer, producer and director of the film all need to have the same vision in order for it to work. He also suggested that you think of the process as making three separate films - you write it, you shoot it, and you edit it, so what you see at the end will be completely different to what you began with on paper. What I especially liked about Alistair was that he did not just gloss over the technicalities of producing a film and describe it as an idealistic path to fame and fortune, but gave a realistic overview of the numerous difficulties involved, such as securing funding and distribution. 

Next, we were launched into a highly motivational and inspirational speech by Geoff Thompson, writer of films such as 'Bouncer' starring Ray Winstone, and the incredibly powerful 'Romans 12:20'. Geoff spoke of honesty and a 'universal truth', suggesting that if you remain true to yourself and create a story about your fears, a film will have a greater impact and be more rewarding. For example, when shown his film 'Brown Paper Bag', you could see how it had been influenced by his real life story, increasing the emotional impact. 

Overall, Geoff's passion taught me to think about what I really want to do and not to get caught up worrying about money, which he said will eventually come naturally if you focus on doing what you love and producing good work. He even showed us his BAFTA award ('Brown Paper Bag', 2003) as a physical reminder of what hard work and commitment can lead to. I think that I will remember this week's sessions for a long time to come, and I am currently reading Geoff's book 'The Elephant and the Twig', on positive thinking. 

Unit 1, Part C: Review of the National Theatre's 'Frankenstein'

The National Theatre's 2011 production of 'Frankenstein' returned to cinemas around the country for Halloween this year, and I was lucky enough to see a screening of the play at the Courtyard Theatre on the 31st October 2013. Nick Dear's play is a stage adaptation of Mary Shelley's classic gothic novel of the same name, and this production was directed by Danny Boyle, creator of films such as 'Trainspotting' and 'Slumdog Millionaire', as well as the breathtaking London 2012 Olympic Opening Ceremony. I was very excited about this production, as I am studying 'Frankenstein' for my English Literature A Level, and was intrigued to see Dear and Boyle's interpretation of the famous tale.

The Creation of Frankenstein's 'Monster'

The play opens with the creation of Frankenstein's 'monster', on this occasion played by Benedict Cumberbatch, who alternated roles between Victor Frankenstein and the Creature with Johnny Lee Miller, perfectly representing the idea that the two characters are doubles. The minimal clothing of the protagonist in the opening scene, and the amount of time he spends exploring the stage and attempting to walk, perfectly demonstrates the innocence and naivety of the Creature, who is effectively a newborn child. Unlike the book, the play spends the first half focusing on the Creature and his development, rather than on Victor Frankenstein, which I found to be a good change, as I find the character of Frankenstein less interesting than that of his creation. 

Lightbulbs Suspended Above the Stage

The staging of this production was very characteristic of Boyle's style, with some of the industrial scenes seeming very reminiscent of the Olympic Opening Ceremony he directed the following year. Otherwise, the use of props and scenery was very simplistic, which was effective as it did not detract from the main focus of the characters. One of my favourite parts of the staging was the use of lighting, with thousands of lightbulbs suspended above the stage, changing colour and flickering to match the action on stage, and suggesting the power of electricity, one of 'Frankenstein's themes. 

For me, one of the negative aspects of this adaptation of 'Frankenstein' was the pure deviance of the story from Shelley's original novel, because important characters, such as Justine, were completely missed out and new characters were invented. However, the production managed to capture the key themes of ambition, science and responsibility perfectly. Therefore, I would highly recommend the National Theatre's production of 'Frankenstein' to anybody interested in literature or theatre, as long as you open your mind and do not expect it to stick religiously to the original storyline. I would also love to see Johnny Lee Miller's portrayal of the Creature to see how the two actors interpreted the role differently. 

Frankenstein's Industrial Scene

The Industrial Revolution in Boyle's Opening Ceremony

Unit 1, Part A: Arts Challenge Brainstorm

For my Arts Challenge, I wish to focus on developing my skills in film-making, as this is an area in which I have some experience and find very enjoyable, and I would like to expand on my existing knowledge and learn some new skills in this area as part of my Arts Challenge.

In order to decide on a specific Arts Challenge, I have brainstormed my strengths, weaknesses and possible ideas by using a mindmap:

From assessing my strengths and weaknesses, I came up with a few ideas for my Arts Challenge which would be both achievable due to my existing knowledge, and also allow me to improve on my weaknesses and develop some new skills.

For my Arts Challenge, I have decided to combine some of the ideas I developed on my mindmap. I am going to improve my knowledge of different film genres by creating 2 or 3 versions of one short film (of less than one minute in length) in different genres, using different shots, effects and music to change the genre. This will play on my strengths of editing and camera operation, and also allow me to develop my understanding of film genres, creativity and use of effects and music to change the mood of a film.