final project!!!

 

photo dump!! :p

The making of this project was actually SO FUN!!! I got to connect to my friends on a deeper level while letting our creative juices play. Lots of settings and met-ups were made. Though it was hard, we always found a way to be productive. I don't know what I would've done without my group since they got so much done. I took role as a behind the scenes photographer and I have collected a folder of all these shots. Here are some of the MANY photos we took while filming! 

cutting our final project

Once we finished filming, we were on a tight schedule for editing. Kash did A LOT, and I'm super duper grateful for her help. Though it was hard, everything was done on time and dandy, however we had a good minute over time. We managed to cut certain scenes , worrying that it wouldn't make sense. However, I think it turned out really nice!

The vibe we captured was exactly how I imagined! We were able to let out all our ideas on this project and it flowed well with each other. 

Here's a video Kash sent us about her editing process:

foley in our film

 The role that Foley plays in movies isn't truly appreciated. particularly when playing music during a movie. For example, we had to add music to the opening of my film because the recorded videos did not match the sound quality. We also had some dialogue after that audio was moved, so I had to muffle the girls' voices. I had to record two distinct voices using a professional microphone, then sync the audio. It was challenging, but because we were facing away, it appeared realistic—possibly just the right amount of realistic to some.

The role that Foley plays in movies isn't truly appreciated, particularly when playing music during a movie. For example, we had to add music to the opening of my film because the recorded videos did not match the sound quality. We also had some dialogue after that audio was moved, so I had to muffle the girls' voices. I had to record two distinct voices using a professional microphone, then sync the audio. It was challenging, but because we were facing away, it appeared realistic—possibly just the right amount of realistic to some.The role that Foley plays in movies isn't truly appreciated. particularly when playing music during a movie. For example, we had to add music to the opening of my film because the recorded videos did not match the sound quality. We also had some dialogue after that audio was moved, so I had to muffle the girls' voices. I had to record two distinct voices using a professional microphone, then sync the audio. It was challenging, but because we were facing away, it appeared realistic—possibly just the right amount of realistic to some.

  

last filming day

 

On our last day LOTS was done! We managed to film our death scene and Irene's memorial. I persuaded my sister to act as our murderer, which she did really well. 

Though it was hectic and we had a short amount of time to do anything, everything was finished and edited at the end of the day.

We met up at Memorial Regional Park and set up all our equipment to film. We found outlets by what was meant to look like a bathroom wall. Towards the end, we still had lots of rose left , so we gave them to these girls having picnic nearby! They thanked us, and we went on with our day.

our roles behind camera

 The four of us all had our respective roles while filming:

Kash : Camerawoman

Kash did very well on camera. She conducted the crew with grace and kept the positioning stable as we transitioned from clip to clip. She knew how to take good care of the equipment and we trusted her with her critique while we entered the frame. In general, Kash was crucial in our group as she raised morale and kept things in control.

Abby : Lead role (Irene)

Our lead actor did splendid! Without her acting skills, we wouldn't have the finished product we have now. She did amazing with her makeup, character, clothing, accessories, and much more. She always provided us with help behind camera. Though her job was to act, we could still count on Abby to lend a hand if we needed it. 

Haaniya : Microphone

Haaniya helped a lot with the making of Irene's plot. She originally came up with he plot of Irene, though we all tweaked it to something more accessible. She also wrote us a whole packet of ideas for the film, which was INCREDIBLY useful. While on set, she held the microphone beneath Abby to track her footsteps. The foley would then be useful while editing, so we were grateful Haaniya had thought about it before we got to editing.

Me : Lights 

Though 'lights' may seem like a silly job, keeping the lights up was crucial. The stands were a bit flimsy and it was important it wouldn't crash in the middle of filming. If it did, we would have to film all over again. Obviously, we didn't want to damage the equipment either since we would have to pay Becon thousands of dollars.

inspiration~~

 

Hannah Baker's locker in '13 Reasons Why'

 

When it came to the after-math of Irene's death, we wanted to show the school mourning. So, the first show to come to mind was '13 Reasons Why'. Though I watched this show years ago, I still remember the impact of her death on her friends and those that caused her to take her own life. Though Irene didn't take hers, we still want to show the consequences of her murderer's actions.

 

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'Mean Girls' (2004)

When inspired by Mean Girls, we didn't want Irene's friend group to be like their dynamic. Rather, we wanted them to have the same sense of style with the pinks and whites. Irene can be depicted as a 2000s setting since lots of costumes and plots are similar to those popular in that era. Personally, I mostly watch older movies that took place from the 80s to 2000s. So, I knew that if we were to have a friend group, they'd have to have personality. They must assert their dominance compared to the rest of the school. This powerful dynamic would stun the school and audience far more after Irene's death, especially as their leader. 

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'Heathers' (1988)

With Heathers, we aimed for that murderous, conniving feel of the opposing friend group. Though we know the perpetrator was the only girl, you can sense her gaslighting and toxic ways when controlling the boys beside her. Just like in Heathers, we see Heather Chandler as the antagonist and 'leader'. The hierarchy of this group is something we wanted to see in the Irene's antagonists. 

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'The Princess Diaries' (2001)

Opposing to the antagonists friend group, we wanted our protagonist group to start off as quirky. Just like in Princess Diaries, the three girls are close and ditsy. Though they have their drama, they stick together to figure out the issues at hand. They also all have that cliché feminine personality many movies try to portray. We wanted Irene's death to be like a coming-of-age film gone wrong. So before all went down in flames, we thought the girls needed a light-hearted sisterhood to keep us on our toes.

behind the scenes of 'Irene'

 The setting of Irene consisted of Mrs. Beruty's lovely classroom, the school bathroom, the locker room and Abby's bedroom. Carrying the equipment back and forth was quite a lot, and quite heavy. But as a team, we trusted each other with carrying bags throughout the school day. Kash and Abby would alternate between keeping the equipment at their house and it was always well organized. The cause of chaos has been scheduling. As we entered third quarter, things starting getting hectic with after school activities and assignments. Thankfully, we got most of the filming finished before things got busy. What we have wouldn't have been the same without our lovely friends that volunteered to cast as our classroom. Also a big BIG thanks to Tri for helping us with setting up and instructing our classroom.

As the photos show below, the vibe of Abby's bedroom was PERFECT! Very dainty and cutesy, just like Irene. Abby's style was very easy to work with since she was heavily inspired for Irene. She kept things accessible with clothing and props. Not to mention her demeanor very similar to Irene's. I am very grateful for the smooth sailing while filming and my amazing partners. 

wishlist!!

 If I had heaps and heaps of money, I would've made this movie much more technically developed in regards of editing. I think another software would have helped to achieve color grading and sound. Costuming also could've been more cohesive since the daintiness we tried to achieve with friend #2 was difficult. Since I was this character, I can see me using a lighter pair of jeans and shoes to complete the outfit. I would change nothing about the actors since they all did their best part. However, I wish scheduling would be smoother for the actors, though I realize that is difficult in itself. I am pretty happy with location since the classroom we used was well decorated, fitting the mise en scene. 

Mostly I wish color grading could have been easier to achieve through just lighting. I was still really hoping for the Twilight, green/blue coloring like shown above. I would also have added more depth to the characters and their close-ups. I would have done more lowkey lighting for these clips to add shading and darkness on certain features, as shown below:

With this edgier look, I think it would have encapsulated the psychological state of the character better and how drastically she changes after her death. We transition from this light, high key lighting to represent her bubbly personality, to a darkly shadowed one. I feel like the software my friend recommended to me, Premiere Pro. But it costs money and we're trying to keep things very low budget. I found a photo showing what would've been the software we would work with.

specific camera shots/angles

 

In the beginning, a point-of-view shot was used although the scenario was not from the character's point of view. The point of view was the mirror. This was used because we needed to make sure that Irenes's immediate expression of dissatisfaction was seen to the viewers. The Medium close-up was the next shot type employed, and it was used in the movie's last scene. When Irenes heard more and more voices in her head. Or, in this instance, it grew worse over time as it became louder.

Irene was on her way to class when a cowboy shot was used. Only the area above and below the hip was visible. This was done to convey the idea that Irene is unimportant, even in front of a camera and a throng. The camera doesn't give her a complete shot because she doesn't signify anything, and her peers don't see her either. Thus, they disregard her. The final shot type to be covered in a close-up is this one. Since it's just a close-up of an object, this close-up is unique. These items demonstrate that Irene's once-moral possessions, which held great significance, are no longer useful to her. 

editing post 2

My group members and I have dedicated quite a bit of effort to editing. We have edited for almost four hours, but we are still working on it. This is because in order to determine whether scenes are cohesive, we must rewatch, recut, and review them in alongside adding sounds. If they don't work together, the movie doesn't make sense and can turn off viewers. For this reason, we invest a lot of effort on who we are and what we are doing when editing. Additionally, the reason we spent slightly over three hours editing such a brief clip.

Me and Kash have opted to do the editing of our project. Since we both know a bit about editing, I believe we'll do well. Kash is also very good as I've seen her use editing for posts on social media. I am glad she's helping me since she can come up with lots of ideas to keep our story cohesive and intriguing. Thanks Kash! 

 

day 2 of shooting

When I am writing this blog, I refer to the days of shooting at places other then school. Technically we have had 4 filming days, two of which were at school. So for this day I speak of, we are at Abby's house. Here is where we really got everything done. Kash filmed Irene tossing in turning, getting out of bed, and struggling in the bathroom. We also worked on bruise makeup on our friend Tri. As shown below:

That day was very productive, but so were our days at school. Afterschool, we managed to have our teacher, Mrs. Beruty, to borrow her classroom to film the classroom scene. Though it took lots a lots of work to ask a whole room worth of children to volunteer, we made it happen! Thank you volunteers! And we also managed to film our friends scene during Mrs. Woz's class under her permission.

representation

 Regarding representation, I am fairly proud of it. Since we live in Florida, there are all sorts of ethnicities in our crowds and I really enjoy the mix. But what we were really reaching for was representation of mental health. It was hard for Abby to act out a mentally unwell character. Lots of film was cut, but she ended up acting it out really well. She wanted Irene to seem very unwell in sense of fatigue, injury, and mentality. It is quite evident as we see her look at her reflection. She tends to hit herself and huff and puff. Tossing, turning, and more are all signs of trauma, and I think out character could be easily diagnosed with PTSD and mania.

renting equipment

 As we struggle with scheduling, we have had to rent equipment once again. We managed to film for 2 days back to back, and we got lots done! We also would bring equipment to school to film if we our Media Studies teacher allowed us to, which really helped. Ultimately, we only have one more scene to film until we're finished. Woo!!! I know my group member Haaniya plans on picking it up, but it's quite difficult to arranged that since she has no ride. I also struggle with the same thing. I believe Kash is planning on picking up the equipment this time instead of Abby, so I really do hope that works out!

updated storyboard

 

I planned on helping my group with drawing the storyboard this time. I must say I am proud of the first page I drew. With this new storyboard, I hoped to portray her as distraught and disheveled. I added the descriptions of angles and scene on the side as she enters and exits. Lighting is shown shaded on the drawing itself. I intended on drawing Irene tossing and turning to a transition of what occurred before her death. Until she gets up out of bed, we see a glimpse of her homecoming photo, and then her looking at her reflection. Though I didn't draw every scene before her death, what that capsule summarizes is her time with friends before her death and then her death. Lots have changed since the first storyboard and I think now it's a bit more simplified and easier to understand.

lighting

 In terms of lighting, we are using high key lighting with a cool blue tint. Though it isn't 3 point, we still achieved the color with 2 lights. We chose this lighting as we didn't have much of a choice. BEACON gave us the equipment and we put it to work. If we were to use more equipment, I believe 3 point lighting would turn out lovely. We probably would've used blinds to try to block out the sun a little bit, but what we had wasn't dark enough. But all is well in the end! The lighting we did use portrayed the mood and dark psychology of the character quite well. However we do plan on using color grading as we edit. Thank you bright Florida sun! 

group dynamics

 In regards of my group, I enjoy all of their company. Everyone tries to pull their weight and its very admirable. However, I struggle to do that and I take and I take full responsibility for it. I appreciate my group for their hard-working traits and creative minds and I wouldn't change it one bit. I will try my best to make it up to them by editing or any other thing they need help with. It was challenging to discuss what had to be met for our project and a lot of last minute change of plans. Though I can't blame them since it always ends up looking nice. I'm honestly glad I chose the group I have. We work with each other well and we are close too. So being with them is always a blast. 

planning

 An issue for us with filming has been planning the days we film. As Kash said, "It's a shame we're all so achieved". Since we all have lots of afterschool activities, such as choir, theater, debate, gym, and more, it's hard for us to actually meet up. I, for one, am guilty of this since my family tends to travel a lot. Blame it on my sister's debate tournaments, not me!! Just kidding we love Jeanise. But at the end we always work through it. Hopefully we can find a way to get editing and filming done in time to turn it in.

editing

 For editing, we went to our friend Andres for advice. As he is educated in editing and such, he advised us to use Capcut. Though it isn't the best software he recommended, it is easy to use and me and my partners have used it before. For video effects, there will be quite a bit. Video effects won't be very complicated, since we don't intend to overpower the plot with effects throughout. Though we do plan on using certain effects in our title sequence. We planned to transition from scene to scene rather quickly, though no special transitions such as J and L cuts will be used. We are still fighting to figure out what we plan on doing with editing, but I can see color grading as an issue in the future. Andres will definitely be of help later on and hopefully help us fight through the process. As of now, we intend on focusing more on filming. Though I have recommended my group to get some editing done and then transfer in our last clips.

title sequence

 

For our title sequence, we decided to go with the font shown above (thanks Haaniya). This font, with its sharp edges and stretched letters, gives the dark vibe we intend to give. I think we should just introduce the title as we introduce Irene. 

sound

 Regarding sound, we are reaching for an ominous background for some and diegetic natural sound  for others. As for filming, we followed Abby (Irene) with a microphone. We were aiming for that natural sound rather than background music. Though it was difficult to stay out of camera, we tried out best to achieve those heel clicks and movements. Without our friend Tri, we wouldn't have been able to do so much.

Thank you Tri!!!

first day of filming!!!

With day 1 of filming, not much was done. We tried getting an overall feel for equipment and angles. Kash is seen in a crazy pose in the photos below. She was really reaching for an overhead angle. I believe though this day wasn't very productive, it was still very important. We were all able to learn the settings of the camera and its stand, we explored angles and poses, and either way we ended up changing the setting to Abby's room rather than Kash's. At the end, we discussed our plans with meeting up the next day and our plans.

equipment

 When it came to equipment, we chose to rent from BEACON TV. Since it was free, we reached for it and rented it for a week of filming. 

We were leaded and taught by the man we rented by. He specified the uses of different tools and how to care for them. The only problem was how short some of the cables were, but we tended to move around rather smoothly. We had a camera, its stand, to lights on stands, and a microphone along with its deadcat. Producing was smooth, though we should've used a tool to differentiate the transition of sound to video. Without these tools, we would have had more difficulties with filming the final project we wished for.

Thank you BEACON!!!

supporting characters

 Our supporting characters include:

Friend #1

This friend is delicate and smart. She wears rather comfortable clothing but she is clearly girly just like her friends. After the death of Irene, the distraught is clearly shown on her clothing and demeanor. Her and friend #2 search for the perpetrator and their reason for madness. She is in mourning, personality leaving her person. 

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Friend #2

Friend #2 is facing very similar amounts of pain as friend #1. They both show a want to search for their friend's murderer, but she doesn't dwell on it as much as friend #1. She doesn't want to go dipping her nose is business that can get her killed too. Everyone mourns in their own ways, and it left friend #2 rather lazy.

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Main Murderer

Our murderer the girls are looking for doesn't show much remorse. She did was she did to protect a secret, thought she plays a part to make herself seem as sad as her peers. She wears dark clothing to show her dark ways, and we can tell she is very controlling by the way she speaks to her accomplices. A lot is unknown of her, as we don't know her face or name. Though her identity is secret, there is only so long until she is caught.

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Accomplice #1

This accomplice is devout to our plotter. He wears dark clothing as told and continues to do what he is told through action. Whether he is scared or other motives, Irene's planned murder was successful due to the men who worked along her.

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Accomplice #2

Our second accomplice doesn't seem as loyal. He wears lighter clothing, though casual, in an attempt to change plans. Though unsuccessful, he is genuinely seen distraught throughout. He regrets his actions, though there isn't much left for him to do other then keep his crime a secret.

color in our project

 With coloring, we wanted to achieve something very similar to the color grading of the first Twilight movie, as we are major Twilight fans. If you aren't aware of the colors, here's an example:

Basically, we wanted to get that musky blue grading throughout to keep the ominous vibe. Considering it's quite the mysterious opener, we thought Twilight achieved the mysteriousness well so that's what he chased. Color grading in general for the franchise is admirable, though the movie content in itself is quite cringey in my opinion. We achieved this color through placing the lighting we had at a cool toned blue setting. As we edit, we intend to emphasize the colors as shown to give more of those dark undertones.

Irene *:･ﾟ✧

 

In our movie opener, we follow a teenage girl searching for the purpose and perpetrator of her demise. We see through her eyes the terror it has brought to those who love her as she attends the school in her afterlife. We wanted this to be evident, showcasing her in the same outfit she wore we she reached her last breath. The viewer doesn't know what the purpose of her death was, leaving that cliff hanger for them to ponder. She was beloved, we know that, and her death is mourned. She is extremely popular amongst her peers as she was very bubbly and sweet. Her delicate style we achieved was meant to display that. Her mentality now must be shown on the multiple bruises that trace across her body. She constantly loses it upon seeing herself, obviously her death has put a mark on her. Her sole motivation now is to find who killed her and why.

costuming

With costuming, we thought it would be important to keep our main character in the same outfit that she passed in. This being a red strapless dress with  big velvet bow in the back. She wears white pumps and pearls on this night. Throughout it is evident she isn't actually present just by her clothing. This provides a clear view to the audience that she is meant to stand out, wondering why her outfit stays the same. That is until the flashback with her friends...

This outfit for Irene is shown in the flashback with her friends. With see her personality displayed in her clothing. Light pinks, pearls, white, and cotton tops show her delicate demeanor. However, one can tell a popular person through their clothing. Irene dresses the part, as a sociable person. But she means no harm to her friends and peers.

Out of her two closest friends, we wanted to keep this one fairly simple. Not too flashy, just here to learn. But it was important to keep the pink tones throughout. We grabbed lots of inspiration by the movie 'Mean Girls'. Though they shouldn't be viewed as mean, they're definitely well known throughout the school. 

For the friend I acted, I chose to play with the pinks and pearls as well. But I tend to have a bit of an edgier, darker style. Therefore, it was difficult for me to find pants that would be considered 'delicate'. So, I went for my favorite pair, my black Converse, and my prescribed glasses. For a touch of lightness, I clipped in some pearly hairclips into my hair and called it a day.

The main killer was meant to look mysterious. As we don't know her identity, we didn't want to make her outfit out of this world. The dark colors really give into the dark secret she holds. So we went for a sophisticated look as well, proving she doesn't mean well. She means business. Whether revenge or plotting was the plan, a bleakly colored outfit was the way to go.

Her accomplice didn't need to wear anything extravagant either. He dressed rather casually with a button up rather then a tux over it. Black dress pants and grey dress shoes also keep in fairly simple. The main goal wasn't to put much attention onto these boys, as they aren't the identity we're searching for.

For the second, we didn't want anything fancy either. However, this accomplice isn't dressed as dark as the others. Although he's rather casual, maybe his white shirt proves a redemption? A purposeful want to change plans? Although he did not succeed. Overall, the two killers simply helped in Irene's killing. They didn't desire her death as our main murderer.

Her friends are now seen, mourning the death of Irene. So unexpected during homecoming, they dress bleakly and comfortable now. In sorrow, they bagginess displays a change of heart. Warranted, there is a drastic change of delicate clothing to depressing clothing that followed their closest friends death. 

Here my character is seen again, wearing in all black, rather baggy outfit. She wears a clip, Converse, leggings, and a black hoodie and calls it a day. The poor friends clearly display their depression in their clothes, very known to the school how devastated they are.

(UPDATE) Irene storyboard~~

OK!!! So, change of plans. I know the idea was  ✨murderous tradwife✨, but our groupmate Haaniya came up with this amazing idea and even script. Now, we follow Irene, a dead girl looking for the reason she was killed at homecoming.

To put it simply, we start with Irene in bed. She tosses and turns as we face an overhead angle. We then flashback to her and her friends walking into the bathroom, having a dandy time. Fixing up makeup and such. We then back to Irene in bed, tossing again. Until we're met with a flashback pattern of her walking into a rowdy class. She takes her seat as the camera is at a mid-angle beside her. Back in her bed, she steps out and heads to the bathroom to see her beat up reflection. We then see the reason for her wounds in a flashback.

Here, we start to see into her death. She stands in the bathroom mirror during homecoming... Inspecting her makeup and such. Until three figures enter, her being social she says hello. Little did she know the threat the could be. All of this at a mid-level angle. She awkwardly attempts to shake off the two men holding her still, until she ultimately gets beaten to death. All in all, we don't know who is guilty of the murder, we only know she is a girl amongst her.