BLOG QUESTION: WHAT IS A DOCUMENTARY

Imagine you are talking to a person who has never before seen or even heard of a documentary film. How would you describe it? What are some essential elements of a documentary film? What distinguishes a documentary film from a narrative (Hollywood) film or a broadcast news story?

A documentary is a film that showcases the realities and facts of a topic or story through first or secondhand sources. It could range from stories about history, a specific person, place, or thing. Some essential elements of a documentary include an objective or driving question to lead your documentary, you should have a plan on the style of your documentary (such as interviews, narration, etc.), and you should know what emotions or message you want your audience to get out of watching your documentary. A documentary's purpose is to inform/educate someone on a topic, whereas a movies and television have a broader range of style/content. 

BLOG QUESTION: MUSIC VIDEO REFLECTION

Reflect on your performance in your music video group. Look back at your pitch. What was your role in the project? What went according to plan? What didn't? How could you improve future productions?

I was the DoP for my music video group. Pretty much everything went according to plan, and we got things finished earlier than we expected. We didn’t strictly stick to the shot-list, as some shots depending on the location didn’t fit, or we had better ideas. I do wish we could reshoot some parts, especially the car parts and the build up where the main character is driving to the final location. I also didn’t stick strictly to the script in my edit, as some scenes fit better with certain parts of the lip sync. On future productions, I will definitely try to do something more experimental to tell a narrative, rather than what I did for this project.

BLOG QUESTION: SOUND UNIT SUMMARY

Revisit your earlier blog posts about sound. What are 3 things you learned during this unit? What did you learn about them? Explain in detail. What are two things that you still feel you need to learn more about? Why? What was one thing that you found the most interesting? Why?

Some thing’s I learned during the sound unit are how to hide audio hiss/noise, how to correctly check for levels, and how to properly set up a mixer and use a boom mic. I learned that there are many options and settings on audition that you can utilize to hide certain noises in audio. To check for levels on a mixer, you can look at the meter which will show you whether or not your audio levels are peaking into red. Lastly, I learned how to setup a mixer and boom mic using XLR cables. One thing I found the most interesting was learning about the different polar patterns that mics can have, because I wasn’t aware that each mic could be used for different situations depending on their polar patterns.

BLOG QUESTION: THE ART OF SOUND DESIGN

After watching this video, what do you notice about the importance of sound design in film? Why is it so essential?

Pairing videos with sfx and music can amplify the experience by making the visuals feel more dramatic and immersive. You can add sound effects on beat with the music if you want to amplify the pace of a video. You can find sound effects on youtube, epidemic sound, and other online resources. It takes a lot of experimenting to perfect sound design. You can begin by adding atmospheric sound (ambient noises such as nature, traffic noise, etc). Then, you find sounds associated with what the subjects are doing. After that, pay attention to details of the scene such as animals in the background, objects moving, etc. It can be easy to overdo or underdo sound design, so a good starting point is 3 sounds per scene. Base your sound design around your subject.

BLOG QUESTION: USING EQ TO MAKE DIALOG SOUND BETTER

Explain the process of using the EQ to enhance your dialog. Why would you want to use this process?

- Go to effects, filter and eq, and choose parametric equalizer. Turn on high pass filter, set frequency to 60 Hz on the left side. For the low pass filter, leave at default settings. Begin by getting rid of the harshness in the dialogue by boosting one of the mid frequencies, and the Gain -> middle to about 9 dB, and change the Q setting to 20 to get a narrow tool. You can keep adjusting the mid frequency, gain, and Q while listening to your audio in order to find the right sounding audio. You can repeat this process throughout the equalizer columns.

BLOG QUESTION: HOW TO FIX AUDIO IN POST

What are three common issues you might encounter editing your audio? How could these be fixed?

Some common issues include background noise, unwanted dialogue sounds, inconsistent audio levels, and dull-sounding audio Background noise: If you can't re-shoot your video, you can use noise reduction software such as RX. Unwanted dialogue sounds: Lip smacks, breaths, clicks, etc. You can use RX de-click module to eliminate some of those sounds. Inconsistent audio levels: normalized function in premiere, or audition, apply compression, or automation. Dull-sounding audio: play around with the parametric equalizer, try to eliminate sounds you don't want with narrow bands and amplify sounds you want with wider bands.

BLOG QUESTION: HOW TO EDIT AUDIO

Summarize the steps in editing your audio for video. Why are they each important?

The steps are file management, syncing your audio, dialogue editing and ADR, sound design fx/foley, background music, and Final mix. For file management: create and name a project properly, import the media and organize it (name it, folders, etc). For syncing your audio: Plan how you want to sync your audio before starting (Use slate, record from camera, etc.) You can synchronize your audio in premiere by right-clicking and pressing synchronize audio, or you can use third party software (such as pluraleyes) and create an xml file and import it into your software of choice. For Dialog editing and ADR: go through and choose the best take. Clean up the audio, apply cross fades, close gaps, etc. use noise reduction software. Record ADR using the original talent while watching the pre-recorded video, try to shoot it in the same room and use the same microphone. For Sound design fx/foley: record specific audio or manipulate pre-recorded audio. Can use sound libraries t find certain effects. Foley requires re-recording everyday sounds. When choosing background music: compose the music, use royalty free music, or use music subscription services that let you download songs. Choose music based off the mood of the film you want. Lastly, for your final mix: mix and balance the audio. Make sue you have consistent levels (adjust the gain, single band compression), ore automate by drawing volume rides across the timeline.

BLOG QUESTION: AMISH PARADISE MUSIC VIDEO PARODY

Compare and contrast Amish Paradise with Culio's Gangsters Paradise video. What is Wierd Al making a parody of in this playful video? What kind of mood are the filmmakers and Wierd Al creating in the video? What are 3 techniques that you noticed they used to create this Parody? Use what you've already learned so far in the class to craft your response.

Weird Al is making a parody out of Amish people and their way of living. Weird Al and the filmmakers are trying to create a funny mood while recreating similar shots from the original music video. To create this Parody, Weird Al has altered the lyrics to match the Amish theme, and he uses costumes, set design, and also matches the action on screen with the lyrics. He pokes fun of their practices such as churning butter, and what they do in their daily life. He also exaggerates how they feel about modern technology, having them stomp on phones and computers, adding to the humor of the parody.

BLOG QUESTION: RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS PARODY

What are the artists in this video creating a parody of? What kind of mood did the filmmakers and the artists create in this video? What are 3 techniques that you noticed they used to create this mood? Use what you've already learned so far in the class to craft your response.

The artists are creating a Parody of other older bands and artists such as Elvis, The Beatles, Nirvana and more. These artists are from different eras and genres. The filmmakers create a fun, energetic, and upbeat mood and as the music becomes more intense, so does the performance of the artists. Some techniques used were zooms, close-ups, lens effects, special fx (such as smoke), and exaggerated performances. They inter-cut between band members to keep the music video fast paced and they also have frequent costume changes to keep the audiences engaged.

BLOG QUESTION: LUCASFILM FIELD TRIP REFLECTION

After hearing James Tooley speak at Lucasfilm, what insight or piece of advice from his experience in filmmaking and visual storytelling stood out to you the most?

I think the fact that he started off with no animation experience and only had a passion for art, but later developed his skills in mathematics and computer science after interning at Disney and joining industrial light and magic was inspiring to me because he managed to combine STEM with art, making a successful career for himself. I never realized how much STEM is involved in visual effects, and I always assumed it just involved having artistic and technology capabilities. I also thought it was really cool how he managed to find a career with the company that sparked his passion for visual effects.

BLOG QUESTION: BLACK HOLE SUN

What kind of mood do the filmmakers create in this video? What are 3 techniques that they use to create this mood?

The filmmakers create a scary and uncanny atmosphere in the music video by using green screen, slow motion, and face distortion effects. By using these effects and techniques, along with the happy and vibrant visuals, the filmmakers are able to create a stark contrast and emphasize the creepiness through the visuals and the lyrics of the song. By the end of the music video, the lip syncing becomes more intense as the wind pickups in the background, effectively creating buildup along with the narrative part of the music video where everything blows up.