Unit 6: Producing a Feature Film

 Task 1: Research

My Media CV

My Application Letter

The TV Drama Genre

 TV drama is a popular genre that has been captivating audiences for decades. It refers to fictional programs that are designed to be shown on television and typically feature complex characters, intricate storylines, and emotional content. Some of the most popular TV dramas include shows like "Game of Thrones," "Breaking Bad," and "The Sopranos."

Codes and Conventions of TV Drama

 TV dramas have certain codes and conventions that are used to create the desired emotional impact and keep the audience engaged. These include:

 Character development: TV dramas typically feature complex characters that evolve over time. This can involve exploring their backstory, personality traits, motivations, and relationships with other characters. The audience is drawn to these characters and invested in their personal journeys.

 Plot twists: TV dramas often include unexpected plot twists that keep the audience on the edge of their seats. These can be used to create suspense, shock, or surprise, and are often used to build tension before a climactic scene.

 Emotional content: TV dramas often deal with heavy emotional themes like love, loss, betrayal, and redemption. The audience is drawn to these themes and invested in the emotional journeys of the characters.

 Cinematography: TV dramas often use elaborate cinematography to create a specific visual style that reflects the tone and mood of the show. This can involve using different camera angles, lighting, and colour palettes to create a unique atmosphere.

 Music: TV dramas often use music to create a specific mood and enhance the emotional impact of certain scenes. This can involve using original music or licensed tracks to create a unique sonic identity for the show.

Using codes and conventions in your own TV drama

 To create a unique visual style, I would experiment with different camera angles, lighting, and colour palettes to create a specific mood and tone for the episode. As the director, I have been working a lot with the art department throughout pre-production to try and make sure there is a consistent style of direction, whether it's through costumes or production design. I personally am a surrealist when it comes to things like this, so this project has been an exercise in toning that down, in order to create a more realistic and grounded environment for the characters and the story. I would also use music to create a unique sonic identity that reflects the emotional themes of the story, which may include looking through music tracks with the editor during post-production.

 Ultimately, the key to creating a successful TV drama is to create a story that is engaging, emotionally resonant, and visually compelling. By using the codes and conventions of the genre, it is possible to create a show that stands out from the crowd and captures the attention of the audience.

Task 2: Your Role on the Shoot and Your Team

My Role

 My role on this project is a director. This role is a big responsibility, and it means that I must look after the creative vision of the film. This entails providing actors with instructions on how to play their characters, telling the DOP what kinds of messages you want to send and what feelings you want to create with each shot, pointing the design team in the right directions, and more. Most of my job entails letting people know the specific way I want them to use their skills, and the creative direction of the film, hence the name.

 As part of my job, I not only work with my other director, but I work most closely with the producer, writer, DOP, art director, and of course, the actors. 

Peer Review

 Tamara Mills is the art director on our film. During pre-production, my co-director worked a lot with the camera department, whilst I worked a lot with the art department, making Tamara my first point of contact with that department. 

What Went Well

 Tamara was focused and hard-working, being the brains behind the majority of the film's costumes in particular. She was a good listener, and was able to take criticism and suggestions in a meaningful way, allowing me to properly communicate my vision with her.

What Went Wrong

 As organised as she was, due to Tamara pulling most of the weight for the art team, there were a few moments when she was pulled under by the workload. However, this was her first time doing a job like this, and I'm sure that if she was to do the job again, she would be much more prepared.

How I Affected Their Role

 Just as she was the first point of contact for me with the art team, I was also her first point of contact with the directing team. I was also their to guide her work into a certain direction, and help her understand the characters and the world in a way that she understood.

My Team

 My team was the directing team which consisted of me (Co-Director), Martin (Co-Director), Freya (Producer), Josh (DOP), Robert (1st AD), and a few others. Our jobs are each unique in their own way, but the common thread is that we all overlook a ton of the different processes that take place throughout all stages of production, whether it be creative, business, or technical.

Task 3: Pre-Production

The Schedule

The Cast List

Equipment List

The Casting Call Sheet

Storyboard (Sample)

The Screenplay (Sample)

Task 4: Production

 06/02/23 - Today was the first day of filming, where we filmed scenes 11 and 21. The set was quite small, so it was quite difficult having a lot of people in the room, and a lot of people who weren't as essential had to sit this one out. 

 07/02/23 - In the green screen room today, we filmed scene 19. More people could fit in the room this time, however, it was still a tight squeeze. Martin seemed to take more charge on directing today, so I decided to help more with set design instead, which was a lot of fun.

 09/02/23 - We went to Enderwick's Martial Arts Gym in Middlesbrough to film scenes 20, 22, and 8b. 

 06/02/23 - This day we only filmed around the college to films scenes 8, 7 (I did this one whilst the other director filmed scene 11 at the same time), and 21.

 07/02/23 - Today we filmed scenes 9 and 6. Scene 9 had to be moved to later in the day as the changing room in the college which I wanted to use was on the same corridor as the musical theatre classroom, in which the students from that course were using loud music, which could be heard from the filming location. So we filmed scene 6 at that time instead. We went to the corridor near our classroom and filmed the scene, though it took longer than expected as the corridor became busier than I anticipated. We then went back to filming scene 9 in the afternoon, as the area around the changing room was now much quieter. 

 14/02/23 - We filmed scene 12 by the riverside near college. 

 16/02/23 - It was scene 4 today in the green screen room. However, the call time wasn't until 2 PM, and I had to go to a prep-for-employment session at 2:30 PM. So, I used my half an hour to block through the scene with the two actresses, before I had to go and leave my duties to the 1st AD, as the other director was absent. They had finished filming the scene before I returned.

 27/02/23 - We were originally going to film at Roseberry topping today, but we've just come back from the holidays and it's a big job to do having just come back. So instead, we just filmed the coffee shop scene today. The coffee shop location that was used wasn't a coffee shop at all, but a small café window in an office building. I personally didn't agree that this was the correct location, however the odds were against me as the other director and DOP liked the location.

 02/03/23 - We came back to the martial arts gym to film scenes 8, 10, and 18. It was another full day shoot, but everything got finished in time thankfully.

 06/03/23 - We filmed scene 5 today, however, all that happens in the scene Jess driving around a car park, so it was a relatively simple scene to direct and film.

 14/03/23 - Today we filmed the social club scene (16). It took us so long to secure a location, and the location we ended up securing wasn't even a social club, but a party venue. It was a massive scene (11 pages) so I was convinced it was going to take two separate days to film, but thankfully we finished it in one day. My other director was absent on that day so it was a big job to do by myself, however my tutors were able to help me.

Task 5: Distribution

Advertisement

 Countless posts were made on the UFilms Productions Instagram account from the early days of pre-production, all the way until the premiere date. This ensured that people who did not attend the college could find out about the film and the work we are doing.

The Trailer

The Premiere

 The film premiered at the ARC on the 2nd of May, they majority of people got all dressed up as though it were the premiere of a Hollywood production. It was really fun seeing the film on a big screen like that for the first time, however this was not my first time viewing the film of course, so I wonder what it would have been like for all the actors who had never seen the film before. 

The Film

Task 6: Evaluation

What Went Wrong

•  Certain locations that were initially planned were then later substituted for smaller, less appealing locations
•  Production took longer than planned, which then gave us less time to work on our next project

What Went Well

•  All actors had learned their lines
•  Some locations, such as the boxing gym, were exactly how we wanted them
•  The film got completed
•  Everybody enjoyed the premiere

What Have I Learned

•  Miscommunication or lack of communication is like poison to a film project

What I Should Improve On

•  My communication skills
•  My ability to be assertive

 Overall, I'm glad that the film got finished, not that I thought it wasn't going to be finished. however I knew that there was a lot that needed to go into this film in order for it to work. Considering Kelly wrote the script years ago and never saw anything done with it, I hope she's pleased with our rendition of it and hope we did her script some justice.