Storyboards!!!

 

Storyboards and Storyboarding

Week 3 Post 4

MY STORYBOARDS:

What is storyboarding?

A storyboard consists of illustrations and/or images that display in sequence the visuals of a motion picture, animation, motion graphic, or interactive media. Storyboarding is a crucial part of the pre-production of a film, television series, animation, game design, advertising, comic, book, or any other form of visuals. Storyboards are used a visual script.

Based off of my research, storyboarding can be used for the following...

Art of the plan

As it is used as a use of drawing, storyboarding can help to illustrate art to communicate context. This cam limits the potential of a story or script, by visualizing a scene to reduce the shooting of too many scenes.

Aspects and ratio

Each frame can be used to represent what the camera and, moving forward, audience, will see. The rectangles provided in the graphic organizer most of the time is based on the planned shooting aspect ratio, or the width to height of frame. Storyboards can aid in choices made about lighting, depth of field, location, and camera angles. The arrows indicate where the movement of the character or object is headed. 

Some key drawing conventions and features include:

• Anatomy
• Shapes
• Composition
• Scale
• Viewpoints
• Frame division
• Depth of field
• Light and tonality
• Horizon lines, vanishing points, and perspective

Sharing a vision

Storyboards are a great way for people to visualize ideas and brainstorm new ones, especially while working with others.

Citations:

Wikimedia Foundation. (2022, February 25). Storyboard. Wikipedia. Retrieved February 28, 2022, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Storyboard

Ari Chand Lecturer in Visual Communication Design and Creative Industries. (2022, February 27). Explainer: What is storyboarding for film? The Conversation. Retrieved February 28, 2022, from https://theconversation.com/explainer-what-is-storyboarding-for-film-131205

Who's Who

 

Casting and Character Specifics

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When it comes to casting, of course they need to be able to play hockey, or at least have gear and can skate. I know a lot of hockey people who would be willing to help and play the part well. 

The following is specifics about the characters and mood boards for the main two.

The Girl (ME):

This character is going to have a very motivated personality. She will not let anyone stand in her way, regardless of the norms of the sport. She will maintain eager to grow in the sport and want to prove that she can compete with the boys. Her emotions will show that she thinks this stereotype is ridiculous and her frustration with the situation.

Main boy (has lines as of right now): 

This character will show judgement toward the girl. He thinks that she does not belong on the ice, playing with the boys. He refuses to have her participate with the rest of the group while they are playing. 

Group playing (no lines as of right now):

These characters are not playing a main part with lines but play in an important role in establishing the purpose of the film opening. They show dominance as males in the sport, compared to the one girl. They will most likely just be playing in the game that the girl is being denied playing in.

I used Canva for the graphics!

Filming in Public

 

Filming Locations

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When it comes to filming, there are only a handful of options, as it needs to be filmed in an ice rink, and well, since we live in Florida, there are not that many options. In South Florida, some rinks that I would have access to are Pines Ice Arena, Panthers Ice Den, Kendall Ice Arena, Palm Beach Ice Works, Palm Beach Skate Zone, Rink by the Beach. Another option is Hertz Arena in Estero, Florida, which is a little further, but my brother attends school across the street, plays out of that rink, and works there. Because of this, I could probably have access to film during a less busy time. Pines Ice Arena is the rink I usually go to when I want to skate, but it is usually crowded. Panthers Ice Den is another option that is close and also offers opportunities to skate. The other locations are further and not as convenient, but from experience, I know that Rink by the Beach is not crowded and would be easy to film individual shots.

This is not the only thing to be taken into consideration... 

According to New York Film Academy Student Resources about things to keep in mind when picking film locations, interior/exterior locations, permits, company moves, authenticity, resourcefulness, courtesy, thinking creatively, location photos, and unexpected contingencies have to be thought about.

The Film Academy also suggests that filmmakers on a tight budget (me), may not be able to afford the best of the best location, as that could be very expensive. Also, making sure that the location is authentic and matches the film is important. Technical problems need to be considered about the location, as you do not want to run into problems when filming.

Citations:

By. (2017, November 9). 11 things to keep in mind when picking film locations. Film School And Acting School Of New York Film Academy. Retrieved February 23, 2022, from https://www.nyfa.edu/student-resources/11-things-to-keep-in-mind-when-picking-film-locations/#:~:text=%2011%20Things%20to%20Keep%20in%20Mind%20When,shooting%20on%20private%20property%2C%20permits%20are...%20More%20

Representation

 

Women and Hockey

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Me on the National Women's Hockey League Facebook a few years ago :)

Representation:

Representation is often known as an image of something. This is to imply a visual component to this act. In terms of minority groups, such as women, people of color, all non-normative sexualities, the issue of representation is one that many film theorists and filmmaker’s struggle to contend with.

To reflect on this, after researching and recognizing that this is a struggle for filmmakers, I wanted to focus a lot on this aspect.

For minorities, representation relies on the roles of size and power. The size of a minority group is an important component that plays a role in shaping the experiences of minority group members.
I learned that when describing the representation of characters in a film, an important factor is to make a specific and detailed reference to production elements, like camera techniques, acting, mise-en-scene, editing, lighting, and sound, all adding to character development. I reflected on this in a previous posting.

I found a comparison to the opening sequence of The Dark Knight; director Christopher Nolan uses a number of techniques to establish The Joker as particularly villainous. In the early part of this sequence, dialogue is used to establish The Joker before he appears onscreen. In my film, by establishing a rink full of boys, they will appear as dominant in the sport.

Women and Hockey:

The first game of women's hockey in the United States was recorded around 1920. The period of women's hockey history in North America had peaked in the 1930s, which soon disappeared with World War II. Ice hockey was seen as a men-only sport in the post-war era.

Ice hockey is now a sport for everyone. In fact, more and more female players have joined the game in the past two decades and numbers are still increasing. Between the years of 2007 and 2018, the number of registers female players in the world had gone from 156,665 to 205,674. Women's teams can be found in North America, Europe, Asia, Oceania, Africa, and Latin America.

Girls' hockey is one of the fastest-growing youth sports in the United States. In 2018-2019, almost 83,000 girls and women had participated in the sport. Girls' hockey has increased about 34% in the past 10 years. 

The National Hockey League (NHL) currently has a "Hockey is for Everyone" campaign, in which they state that "We support any teammate, coach or fan who brings heart, energy and passion to the rink. We believe all hockey programs - from professionals to youth organization - should provide a safe, positive and inclusive environment for players and families regardless of race, color, religion, national origin, gender identity or expression, disability, sexual orientation and socio-economic status.

As read above, they want to use the game to influence and drive social change around the world, for a more inclusive community.

The NHL is a male only league, but in 1992, goalie and Olympic silver medalist, Manon Rheaume, played for the Tampa Bay Lighting in an exhibition game against the St. Louis Blues, in which she became the first female NHL player. 

In 2016, the NHL gained their first full-time female coach, serving as the Arizona Coyotes skating coach. 

Recently, women have becoming more and more prominent in the league. Although not as players, many women have taken on coaching, management, and broadcasting jobs. These powerful examples have a huge influence on girls in the sport today.

My view and film:

I love this sport and have ever since I started playing. Being a girl had never set back my mindset and motivation to keep playing. I have always, and still do, play on a team with boys, with the exception of a few teams of all girls. Luckily, none of them have been nothing but supportive of me on their team. When I played on the team with all girls, we still played against the boys' teams, and still did very well in the league. One of my teams was highlighted on Sports Extra, a few years back. This was such a cool experience, as I was interviewed for the first time and even scored in the game! I hope that women continue to prosper in hockey as they are today.

When this project was introduced to us, I knew that I wanted it to have a purpose. I wanted to use my love for the game and issues that girls may face. The representation of gender is my focus, and hope that the elements of my film add to this. Acting, camera techniques, and mise-en-scene will add to this.

                                 

Me with my first ever goal puck and my first High School Hockey goal puck.

Citations:

Burden of representation in film. TermPaperWarehouse.com - Free Term Papers, Essays and Research Documents. (n.d.). Retrieved February 20, 2022, from https://www.termpaperwarehouse.com/essay-on/Burden-of-Representation-in-Film/112767

Onwuamaegbu, O. by N. (2018, May 25). The importance of representation. The Stanford Daily. Retrieved February 20, 2022, from https://stanforddaily.com/2018/05/25/the-importance-of-representation/

IIHF - women's Ice Hockey. IIHF International Ice Hockey Federation. (n.d.). Retrieved February 20, 2022, from https://www.iihf.com/en/static/5068/women-s-hockey

Content search. Girls & Women. (n.d.). Retrieved February 20, 2022, from https://www.usahockey.com/girlshockey

Women in the NHL. Pro Stock Hockey. (n.d.). Retrieved February 20, 2022, from https://www.prostockhockey.com/hockey-resources/miscellaneous/women-in-the-nhl/ 

Tech Stuff and Editing

 

What Goes into It?

Week 2 Post 4

Lighting:

Lighting is an important aspect when developing picture in films. I think that considering a lot of my film will be visual, that good lighting is necessary. Down below are certain lighting techniques that can be used for my film.

• Use key lighting when you want to draw attention to a subject or make it stand out from the rest of the scene.
• Use fill lighting to counteract shadows, or to bring up exposure and decrease the contrast in a scene. With fill light, your viewer can see more of the scene clearly.
• Backlighting is used to create a three-dimensional scene, which is why it is also the last to be added in a three-point lighting setup. This also faces your subject—a little higher from behind so as to separate your subject from the background.

These three lightings are considered "three-point lighting," which are main lighting techniques.

• Side lighting brings out the textures or edges in a scene. Using side lighting creates a better sense of depth in a location. It can make subjects seem farther off by accentuating the space between them.
• Bouncing light off the ceiling creates more diffuse illumination and results in even, soft light. When you need more ambient light across a whole environment, bounce light is a great choice.
• Hard lighting emphasizes changes in contour, shape, and texture. Use hard lighting to create a more intense look.
• Use high key lighting for dreamy sequences, or situations that require overwhelming brightness.
• Use low key lighting for moody scenes that require a film noir look or for nighttime scenes.

An issue that is approaching is bringing a huge light into a hockey rink, where other people will be. Unfortunately, I most likely will not have a whole ice rink to myself. With this, using the natural light from the rink and the camera angles to create different lighting will be important. These leads to camera angles.

Camera Shots/Angles:

Down below are pictures of my notes on camera angles. I will be using this to guide the camera. This is super important in my film opening. I plan on a majority of the shots to be medium, close up, and extreme close ups. There will be only a handful of others, like an establishing shot in the beginning, and few long shots.

When I do the actual filming, a more in-depth description of the shots and angles will be talked about.

Editing:

The editing of this film has to be quick and close cut. This is important so that the clips are not to dragged out. This will also help the pace of the film and keep it connected throughout. The sound editing will most likely be one of the hardest for me. In order to make the sound, you know, sound good, I will need to pull the sound and edit it on its own, and add it back in. TBH this sounds difficult.

Down below are editing notes:

Sound:

As mentioned before, the sound is going to play a HUGE role. I will have a future post just on sound!

Mise-en-scene:

This is the placement and usage of scenery and stage properties. The mise-en-scene will be for the most part simple, due to the fact that I will be establishing the location of a hockey rink, with hockey players in gear. Most of the properties will play out on its own because of the location. Using an actual hockey rink for filming makes this process A LOT EASIER. No setting up, no extra supplies!

Filming:

The issue here is that I do not actually have a real camera. Using an iPhone for this may be difficult and maybe even blurry. If I can try to find a real camera, that would awesome, if not the iPhone 11 will have to work.

Citations:

Types of lighting in film: Basic techniques to know - 42 ... (n.d.). Retrieved February 20, 2022, from https://www.adorama.com/alc/basic-cinematography-lighting-techniques/ 

Outline of Film

Plot

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Plot can relate to any type of narrative, like a film, T.V. show, book, novel, play, or others. Plot relates to the sequence of events where the outcome of each affects the next. This creates a cause-and-effect sequence. The events can be seen as a series of events linked through "and so." They can be simple or complex within the structure of the film. This divides the piece into parts. These parts are known as the plot line. The plot line is the course or main parts of a film or other narrative and a connected series of occurrences that for the plot or part of the plot in a story or other drama. The five features include the exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution. Below is a description of each part and a mountain of the features.

Exposition: The exposition is the beginning of the story and sets up the future events. Characters, setting, and major conflicts are established.

Rising Action: The rising action occurs when the main conflict is addressed with action. The rising action always leads up to the climax. During the rising action, the protagonist often encounters some sort of crisis that creates tension.

Climax: The climax is the pivotal point in the story when the protagonist deals with the events. The climax often centers on the protagonist's most difficult challenge or bleakest moment, according to Pasadena City College.

Falling Action: The falling action occurs immediately after the climax and details the consequences -- good or bad -- that the characters must deal with after the turning point of events

Resolution: The resolution tells us what happens to the characters after the conflict is resolved. All the loose ends are tied up, unless the author plans to write a sequel and purposely leaves room for further plot developments. Some stories have happy endings; others have sad endings.

My Original Film Plot Ideas

Exposition: I am thinking to establish the setting within the opening, by showing a crowded ice rink filled with predominately boys. I plan to show the credits during me getting ready in my gear and taping my stick, etc. I think that this is good time to show the credits because nothing super important is happening. I can either use a song or sound of the gear, like velcro.

After further consideration I will be keeping this. 

Rising Action: In the rising action, a boy can be seen entering the locker room and reacting a negative way to seeing a girl. This creates the conflict between girls in hockey, which is mainly a boy sport. After this, there will be different scenes and cuts of playing hockey. The sound and movement will be focused on, as I think it will add a lot to the opening. 

This will include dialogue which will add to the conflict. 

Climax: The climax will include me getting hit or injured by the boy who had walked into the locker room, judging me for playing hockey. The climax is where the opening will end.

I have actually decided to change this, as it would create another plot line of an injury. Instead, I want to show how the boys do not want to play with girl, pass her the puck, or etc. 

Falling Action: The ending happens quickly, as I want the climax to be the end, but the falling action can be me being disappointed with what happened.

Still, this will be fast. The girl, me, will be shown angry and eager to prove them wrong. 

Resolution: As stated before, the resolution will be my motivation to keep going.

Again, there will be motivation to prove them wrong. 

Citations:

Wikimedia Foundation. (2021, September 13). Plot. Wikipedia. Retrieved February 18, 2022, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plot

Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Plotline definition & meaning. Merriam-Webster. Retrieved February 18, 2022, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/plotline

Tucker, K. (2021, November 5). 5 parts of a plot in a story. Pen and the Pad. Retrieved February 18, 2022, from https://penandthepad.com/5-parts-plot-story-8394628.html 

I'm the Main Character

 

Characters

Week 2 Post 1

The characters in my introduction are most likely going to be very limited. I want to keep the video simple, so that it is easily understandable, and the audience can obtain the message. 

I intend to be in the movie introduction, as the main character, as I relate to what my project is about. I will have one more, male, character who plays hockey. This person will serve as the initial conflict in my movie. I am considering having more male characters to depict the dominance of the gender in hockey. These characters will not be specifically highlighted, like the main boy character.

Originally, I had thought that the acting had to be up to par, but after researching, according to wtopnews, acting in sports films do not make or break the piece. In fact, sometimes the acting can be corny or over-the-top, and fit the movie. One thing that I also want to make sure is that the actors that I chose, know how to play the sport, as I do not want anybody getting injured. 

From my thoughts, I think that creating a tension between the characters is crucial, considering my intended purpose. According to reporter, Megan Cloherty, she believes that an important aspect is "Tension. An underdog story," which is perfect because my intentions are just that. Although considering my research, I think that the importance of my character is a crucial part of the introduction, being the only girl, amongst all boys in the sport of hockey. It is necessary to show my self-doubt, yet ambition and desire to succeed.

An underdog story example in a sports film, is Rudy. This is a 1993 production that focuses on the life of Rudy, small football player who was told he would never be play college football. Amongst all odds, he never gave up and ended up playing at his dream school, Notre Dame. More information about Rudy can be found here: Rudy

A short trailer for Rudy can also be seen below:

Rudy Short Trailer

Citations:

Mazzocchi, A. (2019, July 4). WTOP: Washington's Top News: DC, MD & VA News, Traffic & Weather. WTOP News. Retrieved February 16, 2022, from https://wtop.com/

Drama and Sports?

Sports Films

Week 2 Post 1

My movie will be a sports drama. 

After researching, I learned that a sports film is a type of film genre where sports is the theme. The production includes a sport, sporting event, athletes, etc. These aspects are made significant or the main topic of the film. In these types of movies, sports fans are not necessarily the target audience, but tend to be a large majority. In these films, the outcomes usually vary from the protagonist winning the championship or large event, or loses, and then searches or enlightenment. Traditionally, these movies may include romance, injuries, a social obstacle, and an action-oriented climax. From the opening of my film, a minor injury and social obstacle will stand as part of the film.

Some sports films are very well-known and respected. For example, Raging Bull, Rocky, Creed, Rudy, and one of my personal favorites, Miracle. Miracle is also a hockey film, that is based on Team USA, the underdogs, beating the Soviet's in the 1980 Winter Olympics, leading to a Gold Medal. More information about these films can be found below.

(Rocky, 1976)

(Raging Bull, 1980)

(Miracle, 2004)

The inclusion of 'drama' comes from the conflict between the main character and another character, which will be shown at the start. Character vs. character will be directly depicted, while character vs. society would be intended if the film were to continue. Society comes from the stereotype that people have of women in hockey. A character vs. self-conflict could also come into play, as the character may face self-doubt and overcome obstacles in her head.

Citations:

Wikimedia Foundation. (2022, January 9). Sports film. Wikipedia. Retrieved February 16, 2022, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sports_film

Subgenre - sports drama. AllMovie. (n.d.). Retrieved February 16, 2022, from https://www.allmovie.com/subgenre/sports-drama-d965

The Start🎥

Beginning the Project

Week 1 Post 1

Beginning with organization, I want to start off my project strong by not procrastinating. I want to stay organized with my blog posts and not fall behind doing them. I plan to set times on my blog posts ahead of time, so that they post when they are due.

Onto ideas for my film opening, right from the start, I knew I wanted to create something that I was knowledgeable about and could relate to. I started to think of aspects of my life. The first thing that came to me was my favorite sport, hockey.

I have been playing hockey since I was six years old and being a girl in a predominantly boy sport has not always been easy. My goal within my project is to project this, but with intentions that this set back can we overcome.

One thing that stood out to me as a contribution to the project being based on hockey, was the sound that can be created. The sound of pucks hitting the ice and the skate blades digging into the ice, is music to my ears. I plan to make this an important aspect to my project, as I intend to use a limited amount of dialogue to express my purpose clearly.

I am currently envisioning me getting ready to skate when a boy walks into the locker room, judging me for being a girl at the rink, then when on the ice, hitting me to try to scare me away from the sport.

Music Marketing Blog Post #2

 

Overview of Music Marketing Project

Eddie and the Technicians

At the beginning of our project, our first task was to pick one song out of four. Finding the most catchy and likeable song between our group of five did not take long. The song that we decided on was Night Running by Cage the Elephants (song link below). We picked this song because it had a fun and upbeat vibe to it and matched our genre, Alternative Rock, fairly well. After listening to this song, part of our group already had ideas for a music video, which I will continue to talk more about.

04 - Night Running_alternative.mp3

We began to develop a logo for our band (see above). We had just used templets to outline our logo. We used bright and electric colors to match the genre. This pops and stands out to people, which we wanted to include. I had also made a logo, which we used on the website and for merchandise (see below).

During this, we began to work on our case study research. Myself and Sachate had worked on the case study research. Sachate had researched Universal Music Publishing Group, focusing in on the artists Drake and Adele, while I had researched RCA Records, Radio Corporation of America, and individually researching Cage the Elephants, who our music video song is by, and Doja Cat. For myself, this process was interesting, as I was given the opportunity to explore how different artists from different genres, market and distribute. From my research, I had seen a more modern approach to marketing and distribution by Doja Cat, who has a younger audience. To be more specific, she creates more of a connection with her fans by revealing more of her personality through social media. She also has a full merchandise store in her website, which her fans can buy and rep. Now compared to Cage the Elephant, they do not use as much of a social media presence. What I mean is that they are not constantly updating and posting on their social media. In fact, their last Instagram post was from over a year ago. Like Doja Cat, they also have merchandise, but not a wide variety... only one T-Shirt, in which the proceeds go towards the Kentucky Tornado Relief Fund. They conducted a giveaway for free virtual concert tickets last year, which they could not perform live for a live audience due to Covid-19. Down below is an example of our case study research.

 

After this, we began to discuss our intentions for our music video. Luckily, Reid, Santiago, and Sachate had joint ideas for the music video, which we were able to implement. They had developed a premise and outline to which we would follow. After, all group members had contributed ideas for the music video. I had done a little research on the true meaning of the song 'Night Running,' to which matched pretty well to the other group members ideas. One thing that they FOR SURE wanted to do, was wear suits and have Eddie play a main role. Their idea was for them to be partying and then Eddie, the cop, busts them, but then join in on the fun. This was introduced at the beginning of the video, when Eddie was found in the trunk of a car.

Filming the music video was a lot of fun, even though it was brutally cold outside that night. I had filmed a majority of the music video, because I was not in it. This is because Cage the Elephant is a band made up of all boys. There was a possibility that I had to play the cop, because Eddie was not feeling well a few days before the shoot. Luckily... he felt better. It did not take us a long time to film the video, although at the start it took us a little bit to begin. I think we just were not sure where to start. (The music video is at the end of this post)

We had used story boards that Santiago had made to guide our video. This made the process a lot easier, because then we knew what the outline was and what shots we would use. Of course, we did not follow the storyboards directly, but they were definitely a good basis to follow.

     

While filming the video, we also included taking group pictures of the band, and individual pictures. We used this to promote the band on social media, our website, and for the cover of an 'album.'

I had spent a majority of the time working on the website for our band. We thought this an important aspect for our band, as it would act a centralized location for all information. I had used a website maker, wix.com, and it was pretty easy to navigate. I had never made a website before, so I just tried to have fun with it. I added all the information regarding an upcoming tour and album (Dark Wires), pictures, the music video for Night Running, merchandise, an about page, social media, and a contact page. Merchandise is important in the marketing and distribution process. I had made a sweatshirt, T-shirts, onesie, and tote bag. Just simple things for now. WEBSITE DOWN BELOW

HOME | Eddie&theTechnicians (sjkaiser04.wixsite.com)

For social media, we created an Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. Instagram has a wide variety of ages, that way we can expand to all ages, beyond our target audience of 16-34. We also created a TikTok because of the younger aged people, that way we can spread our music and band to a younger audience. We utilized the social medias to promote our music video and posting band photos. The YouTube channel has our music video, that way anyone can view it. 

TikTok Example:

We finished our project by creating a PowerPoint presentation. This had all of our information and marketing campaign. To be honest, I thought the PowerPoint was a little too cluttered and could have been a lot simpler and more condensed. Unfortunately, we did not have time to do this.

The presenting itself had gone well, as for everyone knowing their parts and what to say, although we did have some technical difficulties.

Down below are a view examples of slides on the PowerPoint.

AND FINALLY... THE MUSIC VIDEO

https://youtu.be/X6croDIDq7M