Hi blog! In a couple of days I will start filming. However in my opening a song is needed for my montage. So, I will share with you guys the different options and my thought process.
So I was looking for an indie/upbeat song that teenagers would listen to while having fun. Specifically at the beach or on the boat in this instance. I would have really loved for the song Kids by MGMT or Brazil by Declan McKenna. Sadly I cannot use either of those songs in my montage because they are not copyright free. Sooo there are websites that gives out copyright free songs. I am going to show you guys my options and why I like it and then tell you guys my final decision.
I searched up electronic rock and I have found a that I think can be good. The first one is called Happy Bounce. I then searched up Indie and found this song called Indie Cred. Both songs are definitely on my top 5 to choose from because I think it would be a good montage soundtrack while getting that upbeat fun vibe I am going towards.
I searched up indie and didn't find anything, so I searched up energetic and still didn't find anything. I then searched up upbeat and still could not find anything so I am moving forwards.
I searched up upbeat indie then energetic and still did not find anything what I was looking for. If I am being honest this website in my opinion was the worst one. However they do have good songs that would fit other situations greatly but they had nothing I was looking for.
So after deciding between Happy Bounce and Indie Crew I decided on Happy Bounce by Electro Rock. I think it is the closest to what I am looking for and I am so excited to see how that song looks with my montage. Yes I would have preferred the other songs I mentioned previously but for copy right reasons Happy Bounce is the best choice.
I plan to use this song when James asks Marco to put the music on and then it will turn into the montages soundtrack.
Hi blog! Today I will be sharing my official screenplay with you guys.
I found this video that goes over the basic elements of film scripts. This video really helped me understand the terms and cryptic lingo used within them.
I have also found this website called Masterclass and there is a section called ''How to Properly Format a Screenplay" which I have found most beneficial throughout the page. They provided the proper format and I will share with you guys the fundamental elements of a screenplay.
1. ''Action Lines''- Place action descriptions in line with the page's left margin.
2. ''Camera Angles''- Not often used in screenplay unless camera angle is essential to how a scene unfolds
3. ''Character Names''- Write their name in all caps along with a short description in parenthesis
4. ''Dialogue Descriptions''- Any explanations of the character's line delivery should be positioned in parenthesis right above the phrase.
5. ''Dialogue''- Write the character's name in capital letters, 3.7 inches from the left edge of the page, and centered on the page. The character's lines should be centered on the page beneath their name. Each conversation block should be indented 2.5 inches from the page's left edge.
6. ''Font''- Size 12 Courier typeface is used in industry standard screenplays.
7. ''Locations''- Scene headers should always come first, with EXT standing for "exterior" and INT for "interior''.
8. ''Off-screen or off-camera''- O.C. is used when characters are speaking off-camera and O.S. is used when characters are speaking off-screen.
9. ''Page margins''- The page should contain one inch of white space at the top and bottom, one inch of margin on the left, and one and a half inches on the right.
10. ''Page numbers''- All script pages, excluding the first, should be numbered. Generally, one minute of screen time is equivalent to one page.
11. ''Scene headings''- Scene headings belong in all caps, aligned left on the page. The abbreviations EXT. (exterior) and INT. (interior) appears at the top of each new scene
13. ''Transitions''- Write transitions like FADE OUT, FADE IN, or SMASH CUT TO
So now I am starting my screenplay but there will be adjustments to the cast. So since I got into the accident and obviously could not film two weeks ago one of my friends who I initially wanted to play Stephen will be here. My friend Lucas would play Stephen's part much better than Michael would. Also since Michael's boat is totaled we will use our friend Frankie's boat instead so he will take the place of ''Marco'' instead of the other person who was supposed to play Marco initially.
Here is the updated cast:
Anastasia Johnson (Played by Dahlia) (16) (female) - the main character - brown hair - ''baby'' of the group - quiet - laid back - gets perfect grades - best friends with Morgan since elementary - wants to be more fun - she knows her friends are bad influences but they make her have fun- strict parents - does not live in Fort Lauderdale so she comes on the weekends
Katy Walters (Played by Ashley) (16) (female) - bad influence - fun - blond - the group listens to her - full of energy - exciting - smart but doesn't care about school - best friends with Amber since they were toddlers - street smart
Stephen Parker (Played by Lucas) (16) (male) - bad influence - gets in trouble - light brown hair - full of energy - loves to have fun- overdoses at the end - dropped out the second he turned 16
Amber Harris ( Played by Brianna) (16) (female) - rich girl - small but feisty - brown hair - does not care about school - met Morgan in art class in freshman year at 14 -
Morgan Owens (Played by Kelsey) (16) (female) - quiet - very sweet - not as crazy as the others- the mom of the group - knows how to have fun when gets the chance - blond - cares about school but not the smartest- moved to Fort Lauderdale and introduced Anastasia to her new friend group
Marco Lopez (Played by Frankie) (16) (male) - quiet - doesn't drink - very nice - smart - does well in school- not street smart- owns the boat
James Reed (Played by Michael) (16) (male) - very nice- dark brown hair- best friends with Stephen
I found this screenplay maker called YouMeScript and it was so easy to work with I am so happy I was able to find a good one. It took me a while to find a good one, easy to work with, and free.
Surprisingly, I enjoyed making this script it didn't feel forced because I had to do this for my project. It was actually fun. However, I have a feeling that some adjustments will be made when I am actually filming, because things change at the moment. I might think of a better idea and want to change something. For example, the screenplay in the movie Interstellar, directed by Christian Nolan differed greatly from the actual outcome in the official movie. I know this because in film 2 class we were given the screenplay for the opening and compared it to the movie, so as a class we discussed the differences and there was plenty. So, I know this happens a lot, but I plan to let you guys know the different choices I made or if I did not change anything at all.
Hi blog. As of right now, I am very upset. I had worked on this blog for about two hours making sure it was great and it was all deleted. I still needed to take pictures of the paper storyboards that I drew and wrote out. So I saved it as a draft so I could upload the pictures when I was done. I came back and it was all deleted. I worked so hard and I am so upset. But I will restart.
So before I show you guys my storyboard and tell you guys about it, I wanted to do some research.
I found this website called BBC Maestro and it has been very helpful. They first start off with what storyboarding even is. To sum it up, it's basically your movie's visual script. It breaks down the action into separate panels and shows what occurs in each scene of your movie, from the first to the last frame. The next beneficial advice they gave was the process of creating a storyboard. I will put the tips they gave in order.
1. "Work out what your key scenes are": What they mean by this is since the storyboard is a "map [of] the storyline you're telling'' they advise to "break down [the] script into the main scenes". They also say to highlight the main points after going through the script and to include locations and camera angles.
2. "Map out your key scenes": Give your scenes a name and a title
3. "Sketch out your scenes": They mentioned Edgar Wright who gives a tip on his storyboard process. He states, " "I begin my storyboarding process by scribbling simple doodles in the margins of the printed script as I start to visualize how I want to frame and stage each scene." Next when he has a clear idea of what he is trying to "convey" he will create "formal doodles" before submitting it onto his storyboard. However, it is advised to draw simple stick figures rather than going all out.
4. " Fill in the details": Add a scene description to each sketch and add details like arrows when needed. BBC Maestro gave an example of when to use arrows, for example when a character walks. The arrows ''indicate direction''. Information on props, camera angles, sound, framing, and dialogue should be included as well.
5. ''Walk away and revisit'': According to the website, it is best to leave your storyboard alone for a couple days and revisit with ''fresh eyes''. The reasoning of this is that when you come back after a couple days you may notice mistakes or things that need change. It is easier to overlook things when immediately reviewing your storyboard after hours of working. I definitely will use this advice because I have noticed myself that after a couple days of looking back on work I did previously I notice mistakes more often as opposed to when I first reviewed it.
Here is a great YouTube video explaining how to properly create storyboards.
This video was beneficial for me since I am a visual learner and I loved seeing the process of the storyboard being made. The guy in the video did a great job of describing and explaining what he was doing and why it was important. This video really helped me understand how proper storyboards should turn out.
Here are the storyboards I have drawn and written out:
This took me longer than expected and if I am being honest storyboard making is not my favorite. It's really hard to draw these images that I have pictured in my head and make them make sense. I hope my drawing is not terrible and is somewhat clear. What is ironic is that I am actually a good drawer and especially when it comes to drawing it needs to be perfect. So seeing these drawings kind of stresses me out but it's okay. If I really tried on each drawing like I normally would, each box would have taken an hour and that wouldn't have been good.
Hi Blog!! It feels like it has been forever and I am so excited to start working on this project again. The reason why I have been out for so long was because after reporting back to my pediatrician on March 4th they had told me they found blood in my urine and my hemoglobin had dropped by two points. This worried my doctor so she advised us to go back to the emergency room again that night. But instead we scheduled an ultrasound the next day. My ultrasound technician and the radiologist told my father and I that I had free fluid between my liver and kidney meaning I had internal bleeding. We went to the emergency room that night and did blood work, CT scan, and another ultrasound. We discovered that I had a stage four out of five laceration to my kidney and a stage two out of five laceration to my liver. Hearing those words come out of the doctor's mouth scared me so bad. I had no clue it was that serious. I then stayed at the hospital for an entire week. Four days in the ICU and three days in the medical floor. That week was definitely the most draining and depressing week of my life. They would draw my blood every six hours to every eight hours to every tweleve hours and every twenty-four hours throughout my stay. That was definitely one of the worst parts. I hated the feeling, they hardly did it right so sometimes they would poke me multiple times since my veins are so small, and my good veins were starting to hurt so bad. I hardly got rest since the beds were so uncomfortable and I had so many doctors interupting my sleep throughout the night. I also was not allowed to eat for two and a half days or walk at all. Not even to the bathroom. This entire experience has definitely changed me as a person and has taught me so many lessons. I understand now how quick life can change. Before the accident I always thought that this type of thing would never happen to me and I would never get into an accident. I kind of thought I was invincible in a way and I know many teenagers feel the same. This is something you understand once something like this happens to you and when it does it changes your mentality completely. Now I know why my dad can be so strict on some things and that he is not doing it to be mean. I thank the support of my family, nurses, and friends that helped me get through this and I am so grateful. Since now I am feeling better it is time to start working on this project that I was so excited to do. I was going to change my story and re-start my project but I decided to continue my idea. This time I am going to be very cautious about being on the boat and will for sure wear my lifeguard off camera.
Here is a picture of my friends visiting me when I was in the medical floor. They're also a part of my project:
But let's jump into this project now!
So the agenda for today is to create my shot list. At first I wasn't too exactly sure what a shot list was so I did some research.
This website called Milanonte which helped me understand what a shot list in film is and 7 easy steps to create a shot list. So... here's what I got from the website
Definition:
Shotlist-a simple checklist of each shot (or scene) you need to capture on the day of a shoot. It usually contains a list of specific shots, some visual references and extra details like camera angles or lighting set-up so you don't forget a thing.
The 7 Tips:
List the scenes-Make a list of the key scenes that you plan to film first. Including reference photos or sketches will facilitate scanning over your shot list.
List the individual shots you need- Camera angle, location, position of the camera, and shot size (how big or small the subject is in the frame)
Add extra details- Include any particulars regarding the way you plan to film on the day. These could serve as a helpful reminder regarding the scene's tone, atmosphere, composition, or camera movement.
Add a simple gear list-Question yourself: What equipment will you need to shoot these scenes?
Organize and Refine- It's time to add some structure once you've made a list of every shot you need to shoot. Assemble similar photos and display them in the sequence you intend to take them.
Share it with your team
Reference it on the day
So now that I have my information put together it's time to create the shot list. I found this great website that has storyboard makers, shot list makers, script makers, and mood board makers. So I will be using this website to create my shot list
Sooo... after a while of using Studio Binder I realized that you had to pay to add more shot scenes or to even download the document. Instead I created my own shot chart similar to the one on the website off of word.
What it was looking like^
Anddd the problem it was giving me ^
So here's my new shot list from word:
SHOT
DESCRIPTION
SHOT SIZE
SHOT TYPE
MOVEMENT
TIME
1
Katy holding bottle on the dock
LS
Eye level
Static
2sec
2
Friends cheering on boat
LS
High Angle
Static
1 sec
3
Anastasia not found of this and her friends hyping her up behind her
MS
Eye Level
Static
2sec
4
Marco asking Stephen to put the music on the boat
MS
Eye Level
Pan
1 sec
5
Stephen amping the music up with friends in the background dancing/ singing
MS
Eye Level
Static outro pan
2sec
6
(montage) girls dancing in front of the boat
LS
Eye Level
Intro pan
2sec
7
(montage) boys jamming in the drivers seat
MS
Two-shot
Static
2sec
8
(montage) Anastasia sitting on seat hesitating to drink with friend behind her asking to until she finally does
MS
Eye Level
Static
2sec
9
(montage) Friends jump off boat
LS
Eye level
Static
2sec
10
(montage) Friends putting tube into water - friends jump into water
LS
Eye level
Static
2sec
11
(montage) Friends tubing
Extreme LS
Eye Level
Static
2sec
12
(montage) Katy puts a bunch of lifeguards on as as joke and we all laugh about it
MS
Eye level
turns around
2sec
13
(montage) boys fight each other off the tube
Extreme LS
Eye level
Static
2sec
14
(montage) friends drink
MS
Eye Level
Static
2sec
15
(montage) more tubing - girls
Extreme LS
Eye Level
Static
2sec
16
Anastasia, Amber, and Morgan sit in the drivers seat
MS -
Three Shot
Static
2sec
17
Anastasia asks the girls where Stephen is
MS- shot reverse shot
Eye Level
Static
2sec
18
Morgan says probably in the front and Amber agrees
MS- shot reverse shot
Eye Level
Static
2sec
19
Anastasia gets up to go look
MS
Eye Level
tracking shot
3sec
20
Anastasia bends down to go wake Stephen up
Close up
Low Angle
Static
1sec
21
Stephen passed out - not waking up
Medium- Close up
Over the shoulder
static
2sec
22
Anastasia concerned
Medium- Close up
Low Angle
Static
2sec
23
Anastasia calls for help
Ls
Hip Level
Static
2sec
24
Friends rush over
Ls
Hip Level
Static
1-2 sec
25
Anastasia says he's not responding - one of the friends pushes Anastasia out of the way
MS
Over the shoulder- Anastasia looking at friends
Static
1-2 sec
26
POV of what Anastasia( sitting on the seats) is seeing - friends hurdling over Stephen
LS
POV
Static
1 sec or less
27
Anastasia in fear/shock and anxious
MS
Eye Level
Static
1 sec
28
Katy ( in anger/fear ) shutting the others up telling them to listen
Medium-Close up
Over the shoulder
Static
2 sec
29
in the background Katy Marco amber and Morgan drag stpehns body ( lower left thirds) while Anastasia sits in the same spot in shock ( towards the right/ middle thirds)
