Filmmaking – In-Depth

In-Depth Introduction Post

Filmmaking 

 

2001: A Space Odyssey

Time has definitely flown by since my last in-depth project, but I am more than excited to start this year’s journey. For my second, and final in-depth Project, I will be studying filmmaking with an emphasis on cinematography, editing, and color grading. This will involve learning about shooting, and editing video, before showcasing my improvement through short films and clips on my blog. I am super excited for this project, and I can’t wait to see what it holds. This project will run from now, to May 31st. 

What:

To be more specific, I will focus on lighting techniques, composition techniques, camera movement, focal length distances, and color theory (also falls under color grading) for the cinematography portion of this project. For the editing portion, I will focus on editing for pacing, editing for continuity, and stylistic editing effects. The color grading portion will simply be based around getting my videos to look good. This will be done through accurate or fitting color grades, and appropriate amounts of post-processing, exposure correction, and sharpening. These skills are all essential to the process of creating powerful video, so I am excited to hopefully master them.

Why: 

For this project, I have decided to pursue filmmaking for two main reasons. First of all, filmmaking is an extension of my work last year with photography. Filmmaking, and cinematography utilize many of the same lighting, composing, and incamera exposing principles that I learnt last year studying photography. This means that I am able to move forward with a starting point, and continue pursuing the photo + video path that I am very interested in. This is the other reason I am studying filmmaking. Creating videos is a huge interest and passion of mine, so I am gladly taking this chance to learn more about the process. I see this project as a stepping stone to help push me closer to my goal of working in the video production field. 

Previous Ability: 

Like I previously mentioned, I have experience in the form of photography coming into this project. Since there are many shared principles and concepts between the two mediums, I have a good amount of base knowledge. Additionally, I have spent a fair bit of time before video editing, so I have some minimal skills in that areaThis means I have the necessary video editing software, and the rough knowledge to operate that software. I am by no means an expert in the filmmaking field though. I have a lot to learn during these next five months, but I am very excited to do so – with the help of my mentor. 

Mentor/How:

For this in-depth, I have arranged a mentorship with a video editor and camera man named Kevin. Kevin has worked extensively in the video production industry as a senior editor and a camera man for many years on some very popular Canadian shows. I am very excited to learn from him, and I cannot thank him enough for agreeing to mentor me amidst what is currently happening. Though I am slightly disappointed our meetings will have to be over video calls, I am very excited to just have a mentor. When I cannot meet with Kevin, I am planning on using online forums, my Cinematography Textbook, and YouTube to help me learn. With a few keystrokes, I am able to access tons of online content which will definitely benefit this project. 

Gear wise, I have a camera, some lenses, and a tripod for my project. While I don’t have any expensive Fresnel lamps, or gimbals and sliders, using some digital tricks, natural lighting, and some creativity can help set me up for success for this project. 

When (Process/Timeline) :

While it is impossible to predict perfectly how this project will go, I have a rough outline that I want to follow. 

  • Mid to late January: Meet with mentor and discuss outline of the project, and what we want to cover over the 5 month period. Continue to read and research topic.
  • February to April: Cover all the relevant skills I wish to learn. Start shooting video for blog showcase.
  • April to end of May: Start working on short film/final project. Continue meeting with mentor and learning about filmmaking.
  • End of May: Finish and present final project.

 

Equipment Needed: 

As mentioned, I have much of the basic video gear needed. While I have no intention of spending large amounts of money on any gear, I do plan on buying parts, and building some DIY equipment to aid me in my project. Though I am unsure about what I am going to exactly get, I plan on building some DIY lights, and maybe a backdrop stand. This will be possible at a very low cost. 

 

I am super excited for what is to come with this project, and where it will lead me. 

 

 

1917

1 comment on “Filmmaking – In-DepthAdd yours →

Leave a Reply to qmtk Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *