Story-telling | Project Evaluation

What worked?

I enjoyed the writing process and I feel I benefitted a great deal by writing the outline of the plot and notes on my characters before heading in to the actual script – this gave me a foundation to base my work on when I got stuck.

I took the script feedback from Simon and Steve Coombes on board and found their input very useful, allowing me to take a more objective look at my script to see what I could add, remove or tweak.

I am pleased with the final product as well, both in the script and the first two minutes of the film, as they both fit into my vision of the story I wanted to tell, and have both developed for the best from the start of the screenwriting process.

The shoot itself also went fairly well; I am pleased with how the actors carried out their roles, and how well it translated from the script to the screen.

Whilst the audio recorded on the actual shoot did not come through how I would have liked, I was able to amend this through rerecording the audio and dubbing over the video tracks – some have commented on the sound design, claiming that they would not have noticed I had done this unless I told them I had.

What didn’t work?

I feel the script initially was not paced as well as it could have been, but this did develop through advice from Steve Coombes on how I could distribute the scenes and add material to expand the story within the ten-page limit.

There were moments whilst editing the script that I found I could not change certain aspects, as I was not brave enough to divulge from the initial plan, and so the plot outline limited me in a way.

The shoot as a whole went smoothly, but there were a number of issues we came across.  I spent a lot of time perfecting some of the shots, which frustrated some of the talent causing the atmosphere at the shoot to deteriorate toward the end of the shoot.  This is down to the order in which I decided to shoot – I opted to film chronologically, but most of my actors come in toward the end of the sequence, and so I wasted time with the talent out in the cold, getting disgruntled, when I did not need to.

Whilst editing, it also became apparent that the audio had not recorded properly and there was a constant static throughout all the footage I had shot.  The cause of this was unclear – likely a faulty mic cable – yet this did highlight that I did not have a large enough crew; between acting and directing, Will and I shared operating the sound and camera equipment, rather than having an extra team member to be dedicated to operating the sound equipment, who would have been more likely to pick up on the audio issues as they happened.  Unfortunately, neither us noticed as we were preoccupied with operating the camera, boom, lighting, providing direction and acting.

The editing process also took much longer than it could have, largely down to the issues I had with the audio.  The only useable audio from the shoot had to be tweaked extensively in Adobe Audition to be used, which wasted a lot of time that could have been spent improving the visual quality of the video or perfecting the script, so I was under more pressure to complete other work with less time to spare.

What did I learn?

I learnt a lot about the screenwriting process, particularly how much scripts rely on action to be interesting as well as the dialogue.  I found in my script that I spent a lot more time writing action than dialogue, as I felt it would be much more effective to tell the story of an introverted boy meeting a homeless man through their actions more than what they explicitly say – ‘show don’t tell’ was in the back of my head through the entire production.

As well as this, I realised how beneficial it was to plan out everything from writing the script to shooting via the plot outline and shot list.

I discovered that I really enjoy directing, as I had the ability to control how my initial vision translated from my mind, to the script, and finally to the screen.

I also learnt that time management is a vital part of producing films in order to shoot in the most efficient manner so that both the crew and the talent can wrap up as soon as possible.

Although the circumstances to which I learnt this were not ideal, I gained a lot of practice in editing audio using Adobe Audition – I have previously used software such as Audacity, but Audition has shown me a lot about how sound can work in a film.

What could I develop?

Next time I write a screenplay, I would like to stray further from my comfort zone, rather than restricting myself to what I have already thought out and planned – this was not so much of an issue in this project, but in future, this may be beneficial to how I produce my stories.

I could certainly develop how I spend my time effectively, so that I do not waste time with filming GVs when I could be optimising my time with my acting talent, which would also allow me to develop my relationship with the acting talent, so I can make the most of them without being a complete drain on their energy and motivation.

I could also develop how I manage my resources and the people around me so I do not run into issues, as I did with my audio whilst shooting ‘The Way’.  I can do this by ensuring I have enough people dedicated to particular roles, so that there is somebody to check for anything going wrong at the time.