creative critical reflection

 ITS DONE

CCR #1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upqVJaVtU1c&feature=youtu.be

CCR #2

https://youtu.be/JhkEreIDMew

final countdown

ITS TIME. Today’s the day, but before I officially release my film opening and post the CCR’s I just wanted to reflect on the past 9 weeks (sappy ik but I actually learned a lot and I wanna talk about it).

These 2 months of nonstop work have been intense and insane and quite frankly I’m surprised I was able to complete this project without procrastinating (ok I procrastinated a little bit, refer to last post, but that wasn’t my fault :/). My time management skills have improved SO MUCH, like before I started this project I did not think I would be able to work on this project step by step. I greatly prefer just sitting down and grinding on a project or assignment, but for this huge project, I knew I had to change things up. This project really required the entire 9 weeks to fully complete the project in a way that made my opening the best it could be.

I also learned a lot about the time and effort that goes into a film. It took me 9 weeks to do a 2 minute video, I can only imagine what it would take to make a full length feature film (I would die). Planning is such a huge part of the filmmaking process, and honestly the most important part, as I learned throughout this project. Actually filming is the easy stuff, because once you have it all planned out, it’s just a matter of putting your vision onto the screen.

Oh, and I also wanted to talk about something cool I did with the CCR, so sidebar real quick cause I wanna talk about it. For my second CCR, as I said before, I did a WIRED autocomplete interview style video, and in those videos there is a little animation that plays while the actor introduces themselves. 

[like this]

So, I thought it would be cool if I did a similar thing, so here’s what I was able to create. It literally took me like 20 minutes to make for like a 2 second thing, but it looks cool so it was worth it. 

[look at how many layers are in this timeline to get that effect]

Anyways, sorry about that little rant, but back to this project. Yeah, I thought it was really cool and I learned a lot about the process of filmmaking and how to organize myself, which will be useful in really any aspect of my life. 

Next post will be the film opening and the CCR’s. 

It was a pleasure, 

Rat, signing out

i hate editing (kinda)

I have decided that I hate editing. Yes, I used to like it before, and don’t get me wrong it’s still really fun to do, but not when you have to push out two CCR’s in a couple of days because I just love to procrastinate. I tried to get some editing done over break, but with the craziness of my trip (I threw up and then my mom got really sick and now I have an ear infection (fun!)) I just really didn’t have that much time. I was, however, able to get a lot of the first one done once I got back. 

[what the timeline looks like so far]

The most annoying part of editing everything together is not the actual editing part, but rather figuring out what I want to show instead of my face. It’s easy when I specifically reference a piece of text of film, but not so much when it’s just me talking about random things (they’re not random they do pertain to the topic, but whatever) and there isn’t really anything to show. But, to make my CCR a little more entertaining and not just a video of me talking (cause that’s boring), I have to include clips or really anything other than my face. 

So, I’ve decided that during the periods where there’s just a little bit too much of me just talking to the screen, I would add in some clips from my actual film, content that kinda relates to the topic that I’m talking about so it’s not as awkward and just boring. 

The title of this blog is a little misleading, I don’t hate editing, I actually quite like it and it’s really not that bad, it’s the figuring out what I actually want to edit where I struggle. But, creating these CCR’s are definitely going to help me with this weakness that I have, so I’m grateful for that (kinda). 

I still have to film the second CCR (ik ik, the project is due tomorrow, I’ll be fine…hopefully) and I HAVE TO GET IT DONE TOMORROW. Right when I get home from school, I’m filming that and getting it over with so I can edit that one together. I’m going to finish editing tomorrow during study hall, well hopefully I finish, and then film after school and finish editing everything. Not too bad (it’s pretty bad).

See you tomorrow, submission day :000.

[me too spider-man, me too]

finished filming + editing part 2

Filming weekend Part 2 :000.

This weekend was filled with filming, AGAIN. It’s like deja vu. On Saturday (the 23rd, sorry for the late update, there has been a lot going on), I, once again, acted in another one of my friend’s projects for A Level. She’s doing a short story as well and asked me to be in and I, of course, said yes. What can I say, everyone wants me, watch out Hollywood. But ya, I had a great time, her project is awesome.  

[me playing the character ;)]

Like I said in my last post, I did actually finish filming the re-do clips on Saturday, so even more filming that day. YAYYYYY!!!! FILMING IS OVER and the shots actually look good this time. WE DID IT. 

Quick comparison of the shots from before and the shots now:

LOOKING AT SHARPIE

[before]

[after]

LOOKING INTO BOX

[before]

[after]

FLIPPING PEN CAP OFF

[before]

[after]

That’s a few of the shots that I had to re-do cause of lighting, and they turned out SO MUCH BETTER. I’m glad I re-did them, even if it was annoying. 

Ok, now that filming is actually over, I can get back to editing. Flashback to a while ago, after editing the first 40 seconds of the opening, I went back in the next day [the 21st, so before finishing filming] and finished up the rest of the opening, without the new shots that I filmed on Saturday. I included the bad shots to again act as a place holder like I did for the beginning part like I said in my last editing post. But, it’s not at all close to being done. I was having SERIOUS trouble with figuring out what kind of music to put in for the second portion of the opening. For context, after Iris gets the text message from Helen, the music from before stops as she responds, but then I want to have music again cause it’s just so awkward without it. But finding the right fit for music SUCKS. So, I just skipped over that and just went on with editing everything together, not worrying about music (cause it doesn't really need to be matched up to the music like the beginning portion does). The sounds that I did include, however, were the environmental sounds, which I used the same platforms I did before (Youtube Audio Library and Pixabay!!).

Flash forward back to today, now that I have all the re-done shots, I can go back in and replace them. So that’s what I did. Oh, and I did in fact find a decent piece of music to have for this part of the opening, once again from the wonderful Purple Planet. 

Now that I have the entire opening edited together (that’s insane) I have to go back in and add in all the credits and whatnot. I, of course, had to credit Purple Planet, but other than that most of the credits were just going to be to me. However, for the actors, since most opening scenes to a film include all the major actors, I had to make up a couple of names for the rest of the main cast, who I would say to be the mom, Helen, and the guy who befriends Iris after everything, and of course Iris. So I just had to come up with three random names, pretty easy. 

Anyways, here’s the beginning of the opening with all the credits edited together (no spoilers, you don’t get to see the entire thing just yet):

title brainstorm and fonts

If you’ve been paying close attention to my blog posts, then you might already know that I’ve had an idea for the title of my film for a while now. But here is a necessary post about how I actually got to this name.

 

Keeping the theme of greek mythology, I figured my title should allude to this in some way. I want it to relate to the myth of Icarus, which would work well since the beginning of the opening is about Iris working on a project about this myth. I don’t want it to be obvious thought, I want those who know the myth be the ones who can point out where I got the title from so during a rewatch they can notice the similarities between Iris and Icarus. So, after some intense brainstorm I came up with the title: Fallen. I choose this because Icarus falls from the sky, just like how Iris falls from what she is expected to be. Her parents want her to be the perfect angel and her friends want her to be more normal, but her coming out acts as a catalyst for her fall. However, unlike Icarus, she survives the fall and finds a life that is better than before. She meets new friends, those who accept her for who she is and won’t criticize her for being herself. She falls, but she gets back up again, and I want that to be the most important part of the film, so by having Fallen be my title, I can show this. 

Now onto fonts. On my editing platform, there are options for different variations of title fonts, so as I was looking at them, I came across one that was called JITTER. This title style was an animation of the title one letter at a time, with a slight wobble effect. I choose this style because I feel like it embodies the mysterious nature of the film, and also aligns well with the coming of age genre (at least in my eyes). The font that I chose was one called Open Sans Condensed, which is very simple and again I feel like it just captures the title perfectly. This font is also the one that I’m going to use for the credits that are placed throughout the beginning of the opening.

[the title sequence, with a cool sound effect of a typewriter cause I thought it was cool]

[picture of the font that I used for the credits]

Oh yeah, and I decided the order that I would put the credits in, which is:

1. Major actors

2. music producer

3. writer

4. editor

5. cinematographer

6. director

7. producer

[basically how I feel right about now]

ccr #2

I know, I know, you guys want to hear all about what I’m up to with editing, and I promise I’ll get to that, but I’ve still gotta plan out the second CCR. I’m leaving for a trip today, so I’m gonna have to film once I get back, which will be cutting it extremely close to the deadline, but I’ve got no other choice. 

Anyways, for my second CCR, I’m going to do a video similar to the WIRED Autocomplete Interviews that a ton of celebrities do. Here’s an example:

Instead of WIRED, I’m going to call it BIRED, just cause I thought it would be funny and would be a good way to kinda hint at where I got my idea from. So, here’s my script for that:

My name is Ayami Ratnayake and this is my BIRED autocomplete interview. 

[offscreen]

Here are some questions about your upcoming film Fallen.

Ok! I excited!

First up: What is Fallen’s target audience?

Fallen’s target audience consists of teenagers, typically ages 15-18, since it is a coming-of-age film. More specifically, however, the film is targeted towards teenagers that are a part of the LGBT+ community, as that is a major plot point that many can relate to. 

How does Fallen engage with this audience?

Through the content of the film, Fallen engages with it’s audience as the struggles that Iris, the main character, goes through is very relatable for many queer teens out there. They can see themselves in this character, which is something that hasn’t been available to them before. Queer characters, especially as the main character, are extremely rare to come up on, so with Iris and Fallen I hope to change this for the better.

How is Fallen going to be distributed?

My film will be available to audiences on free to use online streaming platforms, such as YouTube and Vimeo. I’m an amateur film maker, so it is unreasonable to think that my film’s would be made available on paid streaming platforms, such as Netflix, or in theaters. I will be posting the film on YouTube and Vimeo to gain traction and to start off my film career. 

What did Ayami Ratnayake research and plan her film opening?

The first thing I did, before even thinking about plot or anything, was research all about genre. Through my research I was able to find the coming of age genre, and I got sucked in. The coming of age genre is characterized by the main character’s journey through their life, mostly focusing on middle or high school years. I knew that I wanted to do a story about a queer kid, so I started to research about queer stories in the media and how they are most commonly portrayed. 

After research came planning. I created a Notion calendar, which allowed me to stay on track with my schedule. Then, I got to work on writing up a script, drawing a storyboard, and developing a shot list. All these preliminary steps allowed me to visualize and plan out how I wanted my opening to look. 

How did Ayami Ratnayake approach production of Fallen?

After finalizing my script, storyboard, and shot list, the next thing that I had to do was actually film the opening. But, before I could do this, however, I created a list of all the necessities I would need for filming day. This includes all the props I would need to have, my phone, tripod, and lights. Planning it all out beforehand really allowed me to stay organized on actual filming day. 

How has Ayami Ratnayake’s process evolved throughout her project?

In the beginning I didn’t really know what I even wanted to make my film about, so researching was really helpful. But, one day I sat down for the entirety of the class period and just wrote down every idea that popped into my head. This really helped me to figure out the actual plot of my film. I might’ve gone a little overboard, but at least I had an idea now. Planning took up a majority of the time, but I feel like I definitely could have planned a bit more, so that way during production, everything could’ve gone a lot smoother. The very first production day was a relative success, except, me being the dummy that I am, forgot to change the lighting for some of my shots, so a couple of them looked really bad. So, I had to set up another filming day to re-shoot these shots, which was annoying, but I’m glad I did it. Definitely for next time, I’m going to make sure to remember to set up the lights for every shot and not make that mistake again. 

Thank you BIRED for having me. I just wanted to end this by saying that in the beginning of this project I didn’t really know what I was doing. In class we had done a bunch of projects to get us ready for this huge portfolio project, the biggest one being the Music Marketing Project where we had to create a brand new artist and create a marketing plan for them. This project really helped me with how to approach this project and not just take it head on. It helped me understand that for such a big project you need to approach it step by step. The Music Marketing Project and all the other projects we had done throughout the school year we’re a HUGE help for this project. I feel like I’ve gotten so much better at all things filmmaking, especially the planning and production stages. I now understand that planning and brainstorming and just as important as filming and editing. 

CCR #2 script is done!

ccr #1

Ok switching up a little bit from editing and whatnot, it’s time to get to work on the CCRs (uh oh). I know in my last post I said I would re-film everything on Thrusday but that did not happen… oops. I’ll do it today I promise, I’ll update you guys soon, after I re-film. But today, I’m focusing on working on the CCR, cause, yeah, that’s a part of this project, almost forgot. 

For my first CCR, I want to do a vlog where the viewers are following me as I walk my dog and answer all their questions. Kinda like a walking Q and A. It would be chaotic, but I think that matches the entirety of my project, so it works.

 Now to write the script.

 

CCR #1 Script

What’s up ratSters, and welcome back to another video. Today I’m going to walk my dog and answer all your burning questions about my upcoming film FALLEN. Oh and spoiler alert, if you haven’t watched it yet, now is the time! 

First up, RatlikesCake asks: How does your film use or challenge conventions and how does it represent social groups or issues?

Wow, that’s a great question. Ok, so the genre of my film is coming of age, which in essence is a film that follows the main character as they overcome the challenges that comes with the “transition from childhood to adulthood”, as MarsterClass states. Most coming of age films discuss topics such as romantic relationships, going to middle or high school, or parental struggles. Major characteristics of these types of films include character growth, emotional dialogue, and social commentary. For the most part, I stuck pretty close to these general conventions. My film follows the struggles of a young teenage girl as she learns who she is and overcomes the many obstacles that are thrown in her path. The film follows Iris as she finds out that her old friends are using her for her smarts, and her own parents don’t see her for who she truly is. As she finds a new support group, she learns to love herself in a way that never seemed possible before.

Another example of using these conventions is with the symbolism that I do through the action figure. Many coming of age films use symbolism to forge the path of their characters and the growth they go through in the film. For example, in Lady Bird, the protagonist breaks her wrist in the very beginning of the movie and wears a bright pink cast for the majority of the movie after that. The cast represents the separation between Lady Bird and her mother as they grow farther apart, especially as their struggle is exactly the reason why she gets the cast in the first place. Actually, here’s a clip of that scene (insert clip of LADY BIRD). Like Greta Gerwig, I used symbolism in my film to indicate the growth that happens throughout the film. The action figure that Iris finds symbolizes her strength to come out to her parents. She loves action figures, but isn’t supposed to because it’s not considered “lady like”. But after she finds it in her older brothers old things, she realizes that she is strong enough to be who she is. 

Geez I went on a rant there. Oh and I didn’t even answer your full questions, sorry bout that RatlikesCake. About representation in my film, the most obvious is that of the LGBT+ community. My main character, Iris, is a part of this community, and the story follows her as she comes out to her parents and friends. I wanted to incorporate this into my film because there are simply not enough films about the struggles of this community. I think it’s really important to showcase queer individuals in a positive light, and through representation in the media, especially through film, society can see what this community goes through, normalizing their existence, especially after the intense backlash that they have gotten, and still get to this day. It is especially important for queer children to be able to see that people like themselves do exist, and that even if they are currently surrounded by homophobic people, they can understand that it does get better. So yeah!

Wow that was a long question, jesus. Ok next question is from FilmLoverBoy: How did you integrate technologies such as software, hardware or online, in your project? I wanna make my own film but don’t know where to even start. 

Amazing question FilmLoverBoy. I’m no pro, but I’m happy to tell you all about what kind of equipment I used. During the pre-production phases, so like planning, brainstorming and all that crap, I used Notion, an application that allows you to keep all your ideas in one place. This was where I drew out a calendar for the entire project, from brainstorming, to filming, and then to editing. This app was SOOO useful, it kept me really organized and was basically the hotspot of all my creative endeavors. For script writing, shot planning, and research, I used Google Docs, a Google powered platform, free for anyone with a gmail account, that allowed me to type up any document I wanted. 

On the day of filming, I used my phone to capture all my video, but I used an app called BlackMagic that allowed me to manipulate my flimsy phone camera into a high level filming device. The shots turned out so cool with this app, plus it’s free, so for all my newbies out there check the app out, it’s awesome. Then for hardware stuff, I used a tripod to keep my phone steady, especially since this was all a one-man job, well except for when I forced my brother to film the things I couldn’t. But anyways, my tripod was a life-saver, so definitely recommend one of those. For lights, I used a simple ring light that could change color temperatures. I specifically used the yellowish temperature because that’s the kind of lighting that I thought would make my shots look more cinematic. 

The editing app that I used was called Davinci Resolve, and it allowed me to clip together all my videos into its final product. This app was also really helpful with animating the text messages that appear on screen. Oh and speaking of animation, I used FlipaClip to animate my production logo screen. Both these platforms were relatively easy to use, but make sure to watch a couple of tutorials before you start or it can get really overwhelming.  

Oh and how could I forget my one true love. Blogger. Blogger allowed me to track my progress throughout the entire project and especially helped me stay on track with my deadline. This is where all my deepest, darkest thoughts went, and also where I documented the entire process, so FilmLoverBoy, check my page out if you want any guidance on creating your own film. I started from the bottom, and so can you, I believe in you. Here’s the link to my blog, everyone go check it out. 

Wow and would you look at that, we’re already back home.  Time sure flies when you’re having fun. That’s all the time we have for today, especially since my dog is begging me to go inside and escape the Florida heat. Hope you enjoyed the video, and sorry if we couldn’t get to your questions. Feel free to DM me with any more questions you may have and I’ll do my best to get back to you! See you later, peace out, and goodbye.

Boom. Script #1 done.