Blog 5 Final Evaluation for Script to Screen

What went well?

Overall, this project has gone well from a personal perspective. Right from the start, the group aspect went well. We were each set clear roles, for which I was able to prepare. I was able to communicate my thoughts and ideas to the director and he always took my feedback into consideration which helped build my confidence and kept me feel a member of the project team.

I feel I was able to develop my research skills in this project. I found it especially interesting to research similar tv shows/ films and this helped me choose an aesthetic style to replicate for our own film. 

I spend quite a lot of time looking into how different shot types are achieved, what specialist shot types there are and what equipment is used. This helped me put together a plan for the shooting day. 

I was well prepared for all group meetings and did better with meeting timescales. I was prepared to bring relevant products to meetings at the right time.

While there were a few incidents on shoot day that could have jeopardised our production, we worked well together to respond and provide solutions. 

During the shoot itself, we made some changes to responsibilities and split the camerawork across two members of the group. We adjusted the schedule successfully and I enjoyed filming the variety of different shots on the day. 

What didn’t go well?

While the pre-planning went well overall, we fell behind on some of the key timescales. For example, we were not able to source actors in time to shoot before the Easter break. This meant we were under pressure to complete the shoot over the break when we had been planning to focus on our individual pitch projects. It also meant we were pushed for time for editing and other elements of post-production. 

I hadn’t anticipated timings changing as much as they did and had not done enough work on the blogs before the Easter break, meaning I had the blogs, editing and the pitch to prepare which was challenging for me. 

I also didn’t do as much reading as I had planned to and this made the research harder. 

On the shoot day, our female lead fell sick which meant we had to find someone else to fill the role at the last minute. We manged to delegate the acting to someone in the group which worked well. 

What did you learn? What could you develop in future? 

One of the key learning points for me from this project was the importance of solid pre-production. Completing all the stages as early as possible is key as well as planning the workflow after the filming. 

In future, I would break my tasks down more and set clear targets for each element, such as blogs, research and key points for collaboration with the group. I know I can complete the work if I break it up and give myself enough time, so I do not panic. 

I learned a lot from working with this group. I often think I work better on my own but actually working in a group is helpful to keep me on track. I think I could do more to explain to others that my brain works a little differently which means I sometimes take a little longer. I also learned that working in a group enables me to delegate tasks to others can ask for help with certain tasks.

What have you become better at and what remains as a target for further learning?

I feel I have become better at pre-production. I have a much better understanding of how it shapes the final product. I feel more confident now dealing with critical incidents and feel it was a great test and challenge. 

I also think I have improved my aesthetic research skills and I am able to effectively analyse media and identify how to apply the same skills and style to apply them to my own product. 

I think that overall we were able to bring our vision to life in our final project. The final film was executed and shot as planned and looks aesthetically pleasing.

I think I made some good contributions overall and applied my camera skills to achieve our described look and feel of the scene. However, in future I would like to be more organised at pre-production stage and ensure all tasks are completed on time. 

Bibliography:

Groundhog Day (1993) Directed by Harold Ramis. Available at: YouTube (Accessed: 23 February 2024).

Gilbey, R. (2018, December 3). Groundhog Day: the perfect comedy, for ever. The Guardian. Available at https://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/feb/07/groundhog-day-perfect-comedy-for-ever 

Kuczynski, A. (2003, December 7). Groundhog Almighty. The New York Times. Available at https://www.nytimes.com/2003/12/07/style/groundhog-almighty.html 

Casey, B., Casey, N., Calvert, B., French, L., & Lewis, J. (2005). Television Studies: the Key Concepts. Routledge.

Bignell, J. (2012). An introduction to television studies. Routledge

Mitchell, W. (n.d.). Cinematographer Robbie Ryan on bending the rules for ‘Poor Things’: “It’s not meant to be a realistic look.” Screen. Available at: https://www.screendaily.com/features/cinematographer-robbie-ryan-on-bending-the-rules-for-poor-things-its-not-meant-to-be-a-realistic-look/5189260.article 

Variety. (2023, December 14). “Poor Things” cinematographer Robbie Ryan breaks down Yorgos Lanthimos’ hilarious ball room scene [Video]. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-sZZzsVw0A