AICE Media Studies Short Film Blog

We filmed everything on the 22nd of December. We had many issues due to scheduling. Some members have many after school activities such as swimming and jobs. However, we finally picked a date, and we filmed everything then.

During the week of December 18th, 2017, we cast actors for our film. My partner Connor is going to be the protagonist of the film, and my other partner Ryan will be the dealer of the poker game Ryan will be good for the role of the dealer because he understands what this character is supposed to be like, and can deliver a great performance. Connor will be the protagonist because we believe he is the best for this role. The two chasers will be played by Dylan and Kyle. Dylan and Kyle are perfect for their roles because they can play the tough gangster persona. They also have experience acting in film.

During the week of December 11th, 2017, our group has created the script for our film. We thoroughly went over how the film was going to end. We wrote two drafts of the ending and decided on one choice. It was originally going to end with the protagonist looking left as he exited a door and seeing one of the chasers waiting for him. Now it ends with a car speeding towards the protagonist while looking at the rear-view mirror. I typed out the script, and I took necessary input from my partner Ryan. He helped with a lot of the dialogue, and I had a big hand in the stage directions. We wanted the dialogue to sound as realistic as possible. We tried to leave some hints in the writing to who these characters are. I came up with the mild action sequence of Ryan running while dodging a man swinging his pool cue at him. I thought this would reveal the kind of place he is at, and how dangerous it is.

During the week of December 11th, 2017, our group has created the storyboard for our film. I am not that skilled in drawing by hand, so Ryan did the literal drawing of the storyboard. I printed out a template of the storyboard. I also came up with the implementation of an aerial shot while the characters are playing poker. I came up with the ending of car in the rear-view mirror speeding up. I feel this creates suspense and would be a good ending point.

During the week of December 11th, 2017, our group has created the shotlist for our film. We used the already written script and storyboard to make the shotlist. I wrote it; however, I went over all of it with Ryan, one of my partners, and he gave a lot of input that was implemented. We researched many templates and examples of shotlists to implement into our own. We are trying to convey a constant feeling of suspense, so we are planning to implement many tracking shots, and steadicam/closeups.

In the film The Departed, some of the plot is revealed. Tracking shot was used to follow Jack Nicholson's character as he monologues. An establishing shot of a grocery market is shown followed by a long shot of the main character entering and exiting the shop. A Rolling Stones song is being played throughout the opening scene. The costumes resemble an urban vibe in that era in Boston. The film had a budget of 90 million dollars and made 289.8 million dollars. The film won Academy Awards for Best Motion Picture of the Year, Best Achievement in Editing, and Best Achievement in Directing. It was nominated for many Golden Globes in the acting department.