Projects

let's make something.

Montage
Due on/before 5/12

Gonna need a Montage...

From Team America

The Job:
Make a montage. There are many definitions/subsets of “montage,” but the one that we’ll use is “a series of very short shots edited into a 2 – 4 minute sequence to condense space (at least 4 locations), time (ostensibly at least 4 days), and information.”

You’re not necessarily telling a whole story, just making a sequence that shows the passage of time, often with “a little improvement,” as Team America has it, or more generally, just “change.” Something needs to be very different at the end than it was at the beginning.

It may help to imagine the story in which this montage fits, but the only part you need to make is the montage itself. Unless you just have to, use no diegetic sound — unify the whole thing with one piece of music, so you don’t have to deal with editing/syncing audio.   If you want, give it narration a la Hot Fuzz storytelling, but this is not necessary.


Have a least one shot you are proud of technically, maybe a tracking shot, or a rack focus, or an aerial shot, or a match cut, etc. Montages are almost all quick cuts, 30+ per minute, so there should be very few long takes. Try to mix up the shots – close-up, medium, long, etc. Note: although maybe 20 seconds can be time lapse / stop motion, the bulk of your piece needs to be a traditional montage.


Random Ideas:
have a twist — set up the idea and then surprise us; do an homage — even copy something shot for shot; use your song as inspiration (c.f., almost any music video); think of your shots as video-only — all audio is the soundtrack; use a film convention (or 2 or 2) as inspiration; get better at cooking; learn how to make something; get better at feeding a baby; get a dog to do a trick; learn how to parallel park; conversely, work at something really hard and fail at it, either comically or tragically…

A Note:
Mostly what I've described here is American Montage. If you are interested in a more impressionistic, less narrative form of Soviet Montage, talk with me.  It's on the table, too.

Planning & Shooting
:
Plan shots meticulously before you shoot. If you consider the students films we’ve watched so far, you can most likely see the clear outcomes that came from deliberate decision-making and planning. Background distractions, continuity errors, shots that don’t cut together- all hallmarks of unplanned, amateur and bad films. In order to be precise, you must plan.

Production Requirements

  • a useful and varied mix of shots – establishing, medium, close-up; static, moving; low angle, high angle;
  • Established patterns of repetition throughout the montage
  • at least one “cut on motion,” between angles
  • several mechanically smooth tracking shots
    (e.g., slider / dolly / skateboard / car / bike / shopping cart )
  • Varied location- at least 4 separate locations/backgrounds
  • at least one shot you’re technically proud of
    (composition, lighting, movement, psychological effect)
  • NO SHOTS TAKEN IN “PORTRAIT MODE”

Production Considerations

  • keep the camera moving purposefully- steady, shaky, pans, and tracking shots all have their own psychological feel. It’s visually tiresome to overuse handheld.
  • quick editing generates its own “motion” and less camera movement may be required
  • use the compositional rule of thirds

Due Dates: 

April 14: Preliminary Plan
April 28: Shooting Finished & footage imported into iMovie
May 12: (by the start of class): Everything finished & uploaded by classtime 


Submission Requirements:
Handbrake your exported film to reduce file size using “Apple 720p30” preset.
Name film “lastname, Montage”.
Submit it through Dropbox before class begins on May 12.

CHECKLIST/RUBRIC SUBMIT FINISHED FILM

Sample Student Films

Samples from Features

The Noir Trailer

Goal:
Recognize and exaggerate the elements of film noir using footage from a film that we've screened this year. Review the films that we've screened and examined this year. Then decide which film would make a good noir trailer
(Sorry: Totero, Edward Scissorhands & The Village aren't available for local editing)

Extra goal: aesthetic pride. That is, be proud of what you do, trying to make the final product better than the original.


Considerations

You can be serious about this: make a trailer for The Maltese Falcon or Double Indemnity, in the style that the movie is intended,

You can be ironic about this: How could one make Moonrise Kingdom feel like a noir?  What about Raising Arizona?  These are not their intended genres, so the resulting trailer may be at odds with the film itself, like the Spiderman trailer below. If you choose this route, be sure not to lean into silliness, but take the genre and rules of the genre seriously. Let the irony be in the contradiction between two disparate, but well-executed style.

It doesn't have to be an "honest" trailer: You can choose to highlight characters or moments from the film that are less important to the actual movie than you make them seem. If the images, dialogue, music serve noir tropes well, you should give them strong selective consideration.

Movie trailers follow a dramatic structure: You don't have to tell the entire story of the film, but trailers usually follow a dramatic arc to introduce and engage audiences to the thematic and visual strengths of the movie.


Some samples...

Editing Requirements

  • Footage converted to black & white (desaturated, then consider playing with contrast for a sharper look).
  • Use of overlapping sound "J-cuts" (dialogue or other audio carrying over from one shot carrying over to the image of a very different shot).
  • A music track that fades and swells at appropriate dramatic times to be able to identify highlighted dialogue.
  • Deliberate selection of dialogue and images that lean into the noir style.
  • Editing transitions that are consistent in style.
  • No longer than 2:30 (that's the maximum trailer length set by the MPAA).
  • Include the title of the movie at some deliberate point in the trailer (or several places).
  • Starts or ends with a the rating of the movie.

Some classics...

Thoughts to consider...

A Black & White filter seems like a pretty obvious first step...
Consider the quality of music and how it can seriously identify a tone and a genre. Play with contrast to enhance the look.  

Voice-over can be re-created
Not only is the voice-over a feature of many film noirs (dare I say a cliche?), but also a feature of trailers to unify the mix of disparate shots. Consider writing and recording your own voice-over for this, or use a monologue from a character to carry through a unifying feel.

Text and titles can lead the audience
Old-fashioned trailers made heavier use of text than modern ones do.  They might try to sell the audience on the plot, or the actors, or some other thematic intrigue.  Consider using them wisely.


Submission Requirements:
Handbrake your exported film to reduce file size using “Apple 720p30” preset
Name film “lastname, Noir Trailer”
Submit it through Dropbox before class begins on March  8. 

CHECKLIST/RUBRIC SUBMIT FILM

Late films lose 10 pts per day late,
Maximum 70% point value after 3 days

(MTA Late Work Policy)

One-Shot Music Video:
iMovie Re-cut

Goal:
Learn basic post-production skills in iMovie by adding visual energy, focus, and rhythm to a structurally simple single-shot clip. 


Extra goal: aesthetic pride. That is, be proud of what you do, trying to make the final product better than the original.

DOWNLOAD ONE-SHOT MUSIC VIDEO FROM DROPBOX LIST

Basic Tools to Use

Things to try with clips using tools in the Adjustments Bar

Things to use/try from the sidebar
Content Library

  • Title over image
  • Fade to black beginning/ending
  • Transitions
  • Edit > Connect cutaways 
  • Cut/move/repeat clips

Advanced Ideas to Play with:
Duplicate video to upper timeline

  • Play w/opacity/colorization between
  • Split screen
  • Picture in Picture

About repetition:
Not only is repetition/rhythm a key element of music that we like, it’s a key element to be aware of in good editing – but not slavishly. Most art is about setting up expectations (e.g., rhythm) and then messing with the expectation (e.g., change of rhythm).
https://youtu.be/1lo8EomDrwA


Submission Requirements:
Handbrake your exported film to reduce file size using “Apple 720p30” preset
Name film “lastname, One-Shot”
Submit it through dropbox before class begins on Dec 21 

Late films lose 10 pts per day late,
Maximum 70% point value after 3 days

(MTA Late Work Policy)

CHECKLIST/RUBRIC
 SUBMIT FINISHED FILM

Sample: before/after

Time Compression:
10 Second edit

Action doesn't often happen in real time in movies.

Why would we want to see a character take 30 minutes to drive to work? So we edit. Audiences accept that the edits are happening to eliminate all the unimportant stuff in between action to understand what’s going on.

In this assignment, you’ll compress the time- removing all the little pieces in between and reveal only what we really need to see.

Take this scene as one long shot- it probably takes the hero about a minute to fully “gear up” for a fight. 

In action movies, we want to just get to the good parts. We want to see what's most important to the story, and its okay to cut out all the little stuff in between,

Create your own tone.  Add some music.

Enhance the natural sound effects of the weapons by increasing their volume on the close ups. Really listen to the musicality of the sounds. Can you make a rhythm? Could you record your own? Or find sample audio clips from the internet? Freesound.org is a good one.  There are thousands of other sites you could try as well.

Make a 10 second or shorter edit from the provided footage.  

• Open and close your film with “Fade to Black” and begin with the “Standard Lower Third” title and type size on black : Time Compression

• When you’re done, iMovie > File > Share > File… > HD 720, named with your name and the assignment title e.g., “Prince, Compression .” Then run through HandBrake, Apple 720p preset.

• Upload here via Dropbox "Submit Finished Film" link.

DOWNLOAD FOOTAGE CHECKLIST/RUBRIC SUBMIT FINISHED FILM

Get Someone from Here to There...
And then Do Something

"Every character should want something, even if it is only a glass of water."
– Kurt Vonnegut

What characters want can be very simple, but they have to want something, have some kind of goal – Vonnegut’s glass of water, Lola reaching her father at the bank, Chris escaping the Armitage House,  Totero helping to find the missing Chika. Characters can want multiple things as they go along, but when they don’t have an overall goal the audience is denied the pleasure of expectations – thwarted, mysterious, or fulfilled.


The Job: Make a 2+ minute action sequence following a character as they move from one place to another and at the end do something, maybe with their hands. The action is linear and purposeful – it is not a montage.


Planning & Shooting
Filmmakers plan shots meticulously before they shoot. This is called preproduction, and no fiction film can exist without it. Background distractions, continuity errors, shots that don’t cut together- all hallmarks of unplanned, amateur and bad films. You’ll need to storyboard at least one sequence of shots before you can begin filming.

Production Requirements

  • a useful and varied mix of shots – establishing, medium, close-up; static, moving; low angle, high angle;– think of all the things we looked at in Lola (who’s got a crane? selfie stick!)
  • framing/edits that follow the 180° rule and are aware of consistent lateral direction
  • at least one “cut on motion,” (maybe one of which is “walking (moving) through the camera”...)
  • mechanically smooth tracking shots (e.g., slider / dolly / skateboard / car / bike / shopping cart )
  • handheld-seeming shots
  • At lest one POV shot, where it’s clear we’re seeing what the character is looking at as they move along
  • at least one shot you’re technically proud of (composition, lighting, movement, psychological effect)
  • NO SHOTS TAKEN IN “PORTRAIT MODE”

Production Considerations

  • keep the camera moving purposefully- steady, shaky, pans, and tracking shots all have their own psychological feel, but too much handheld is distracting
  • use the compositional rule of thirds
  • jump cuts can be jarring and usually should be avoided…unless they add something to the emotional moment

Post-Production Requirements


  • give it some air – starts black with faded-in sound, ends black
  • Give it a title and credits
  • no diegetic sound - use a soundtrack and focus on the images
  • You can crosscut a couple times to the goal if that’s fun/effective, and crosscut more if it’s a chase scene, but not so much that you avoid the problem of how to vary the mix of shots and tell the story linearly.

Due Dates: 

Oct 12: Preliminary Plan

Oct 28:  
Updated to 11/02 Shooting Finished (upload screenshot of footage in iMovie)

Nov 4: 
Updated to 11/12:  (by the start of class): Editing Finished & Uploaded by classtime 


Submission Requirements:
Handbrake your exported film to reduce file size using “Apple 720p30” preset
Name film “lastname, Here to There”
Submit it through dropbox before class begins on Thursday, Nov 4

Thoughts to Consider
For some people this is an exercise, learning to think about how to shoot a sequence. For others this can turn into something aesthetically complete, interesting, and satisfying. Either is fine – no need to shoulder the burden of “art” unless you want to. Then again, if you want to be an auteur, it’s good to play with style.

You can create film crews for shooting and then share the resulting footage. Everybody, however, edits their own final cut. Most people in the past have just done the assignment on their own, with one cameraperson and one actor, and it works just fine.

When transferring your clips to iMovie, iMovie itself is pretty good at seeing into your phone or camera (using USB – see iMovie Essential Training, Chapter 1). Image Capture gives you more control, though.

Late films lose 10 pts per day late,
Maximum 70% point value after 3 days

(MTA Late Work Policy)

CHECKLIST/RUBRIC SUBMIT FINISHED FILM

Technique Tutorials 

The "Rule of Thirds" in framing

Sample Student Films

Second Editing Project:
Cinematic Technique Analysis

Mobirise

First: Pick two conventions.  

You're going to make two videos demonstrating  two cinematic techniques.  It will have voice-over (yours), a definition of the technique, and at least one clip to visualize the technique. So...

On the SignupGenius, you'll find a pretty extensive list of different camera or editing techniques used in modern cinema. Most of these are defined from the book Anatomy of Film, which we have in the classroom. You can also use a definition from a web search if you'd rather.

Click the link and sign up for TWO film conventions. You're going to make two short films in which you define a film convention and demonstrate its use in a clip from Run Lola Run. By screening your films in class, you will be teaching the class about your cinematic technique.

You should use class time on Friday, 9/17 to sign up for two conventions and begin work. The signup is here. 

Sign Up!

Next: Find your technique in Lola

Search through the film for when each technique is used. You'll need to demonstrate it visually in your instructional film. Use iMovie to grab the clip.

Your goal is to make a film similar to this:

Film Requirements

  • Make 2 films- 1/technique
  • each: 30 seconds-2 minutes long
  • Film stands alone with an “ease-in” and out – from black– for watchability.
    (Fade in, fade out)
  • Name of technique appears first in "Standard Lower before other visual information.
  • The definition of the convention is accurate, appears in text on the screen, is clear and legible.
  • Voice-over narration is smooth and clean, audio normalized with clips
  • Your examples of the technique are accurate, appropriate and varied.
  • Examples come from more than one film.
  • Follows established naming convention: (lastname, techniquename)
  • Handbraked to 720p
  • Turned in on time

CHECKLIST/RUBRIC DOWNLOAD LOLA SUBMIT FINISHED FILMS

                   Final Due Date: Thursday, Sept. 30

First Project: Using iMovie

Mobirise

The Nightmare Edit

I'll give you the footage for the first project.  You can download it from my linked Dropbox with the "Download Footage" button below. This project is all just about using iMovie.  As an editor, you'll need to 

• import footage
• select best takes
• "String out" the shots in sequence
• fine-edit a final cut
• export the film & reduce the file size
• upload final film

If you do these steps on-deadline, you'll get an A.

Requirements:
• Start from black
• edited so that sequence & space make sense
• Have credits
• sound optional- not graded
• follows naming requirements
That's it.  We're just getting started- there's no need to make "art", let's just start getting used to the tools we'll be using all year.

At the screening, I'll ask you: "what are you proud of about this film?"
Have in mind a technical aspect that you thought worked well. 
This can be the result of anything from your tedious hard work to a "happy accident" or something in-between.

DOWNLOAD FOOTAGE CHECKLIST/RUBRIC SUBMIT FINISHED FILM

                   Final Due Date: Tuesday, Sept. 17

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