Rescheduling Filming

 My group and I tried to film on many various occasions. We tried to make plans and failed because people couldn’t show up, cars broke down, and family issues occurred. We initially tried to film the Monday that winter break started. Unfortunately, on Sunday night something came up and we wouldn’t be able to film. A family issue occurred with one of our group members, and another group member had to go to work in the afternoon. This left a very slim window to film, and we knew that we wouldn’t have enough time to do so. As a result, we decided to film the following day. We decided to meet up at Tekla’s house at 10:30 am. Some actors (including myself) carpooled to Tekla’s house because we live in the same area. However, one person didn’t carpool with us. Once we arrived to Tekla’s we decided to call the other group member. However, he didn’t pick up his phone. We waited until 11:30 to see if he would call us back, but he hadn’t. As a group, we decided to recast the role. We called our friends that live near us and asked if they could be in our film. Luckily our friend Jake volunteered to take the role of Grayson to replace the other person. This particular role had already been recasted from one person to another, and then to Jake. Luckily, we didn’t film anything before Jake became part of our group. If the other person played Grayson, we would have to refilm everything because he can’t be in the short film anymore. Rescheduling the times and people were somewhat stressful, but we got through it.

Filming Day 1

 Yesterday, my group and I began filming. Since it was a weekday, we decided to not film the entire movie. However, Tekla, Dominic, and I all met at my house. They came right after school. Once everyone was here, we adjusted the bathroom to our liking and started to set up the camera. We printed and annotated part of the script. This was helpful because we had notes as to what we have to do. We also decided to print the storyboard. This allows us to know what angles we have to film as well as the camera movements. This helped filming run smoothly. 

Once everything was set up and in place, Tekla and I put on the clothes that we wanted to film in. We quickly freshened up our hair and makeup and then started filming. We decided to start filming the scene where the character Bella wakes up. This scene took approximately 15 minutes. Next, we moved to the bathroom scenes. These were a bit more time consuming because there were more scenes. This took roughly 45 minutes, but the process was smooth. Lastly, we did the kitchen scenes when Bella was pouring cereal. This scene took about 5 minutes. We are happy that we printed the storyboard because it allowed us to film smoothly. In addition to this, we are excited to film the rest of the short film.

Changes to Filming Schedule

 This past week, my group and I didn't have school. This was because Thanksgiving was this past Thursday. Initially, my group and I intended to film over the course of the week. However, we didn't consider the fact that our groupmates could be going out of town. Our group consists of 9 people, so it is difficult to agree on a date with somewhat short notice. Because of this, my group and I decided to film on separate days. There are certain scenes where we don't need everyone. As a result, we can film over the course of a few days, so it is more convenient for everybody. For example, in the first third of the short film, the only actors that need to be present are me (Stephanie), Tekla, Olga (Stephanie's mom), and Mats (Tekla's Dad). Therefore, we are planning to film different sections of the film on different days.

 Over the break, various group members did travel for the holiday to visit their families. Because of this, we are cautious about COVID. My group and I are insisting that everyone (including the people who didn't travel) to get tested to ensure our safety. We understand that being in a group is a high risk, and we are taking precautions for everyone's safety.

 In addition to this, different people were out of town at different times. This made filming impossible. We couldn't film the majority of the film, so we just planned the new schedule. We decided to divide filming into 3 separate days. This allows the actors to focus on fewer scenes, and we will have to film for less time each day. In addition to this, Tekla, Olga, Dominic, and I will most likely film the beginning of the short film within the next week. 

Music Choice

 My group and I have yet to decide what music we want to include. However, we researched different music choices. To use music that is copyrighted, we would have to go through a complex process. First, we would have to select the soundtrack. Then, we would have to contact the producers and people who could legally allow us to use the songs. After this, we would have to wait for the producers to respond. At this point, the producers could either give us copyright rights or they could deny us rights. If they deny us the rights, then we would have to find additional music. This leads to doing the process all over again. As a group, we decided that we didn't want to take the risk of getting denied. Because of this, my group and I will use uncopyrighted music. However, we will have to ensure that the music is uncopyrighted. We will most likely find our music on YouTube. We then have to go through the descriptions to make sure it isn't copyrighted. Once we ensure that it isn't copyrighted and downloadable, we will download it and put it in our movie. We have yet started the process of selected our music. However, we know that we also want some sound effects. These include diegetic and nondiegetic sounds. Overall, we are excited to select our music as well as the sound effects. We have a broad idea of the music style, but we still have to discuss it in further detail.

Marketing Campaign

 My group and I recently made various social media websites to promote our short film. These social medias include Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube, and Tiktok. TikTok was not required but we decided to go above and beyond our teacher's expectations. The TikTok username is @theslicermovie. We decided that we will be actively posting on all of our social media accounts. This is so we can promote our short film. Everyone in our group has all the usernames and passwords for the social medias. We all wrote them down just in case we forget them. We agreed to not assign a particular social media to an individual person. Instead, we will collectively work together on all social media. We know that we work well as a group. Because of this, we will be collaborating to ensure that the social medias are up to date. In addition to this, we will be asking our friends and families to follow our accounts. This will help our social medias get a larger following. Hopefully, more people will be able to see the accounts because of this. We will also be using hashtags on our Instagram, and TikTok to try to get the movie trending. We know that this is unlikely to happen, but I have gone viral before so I know it is possible. My group and I are optimistic about the marketing process. We will promote it to the best of our abilities. Overall, we are really excited to begin filming for "The Slicer".

Storyboard for Short Film

 My group and I worked on our storyboard. Stephanie and Tekla met at Tekla's house, and Dominic was on FaceTime because he couldn't join. The entire process took approximately 4 1/2 hours. Stephanie worked on writing the descriptions. This includes the camera angle or movement, location, and description of what is happening during the 6 second period. Tekla worked on drawing the pictures for each of the storyboard boxes. She then colored them in so everyone can distinguish the characters from each other. Dominic was on FaceTime to help us decide what to write and draw. Since Stephanie finished her part of the storyboard before Tekla, she helped Tekla color the storyboard. Stephanie had to go home before the storyboard was finished, so Dominic left the call. At home, Stephanie finished up the drawings. The next day, we all were on FaceTime to write this blog. This process went smoothly and didn’t take a long time. Our team worked efficiently to finish the storyboard. We now know how our film will look like. This will be really helpful when it comes to the filming process. It will allow us to save time because we know where we need to be, and what the angles have to be. The storyboard will keep everyone involved in the film organized and on track. The storyboard is an essential part of filmmaking for this reason. The storyboard process went smoothly. Overall, our group works very well together and we are optimistic to begin filming.

Planning For Short Film

My group and I decided to film on one day. Everyone will meet at Stephanie's house at 11:00 or 1:30. This depends on which character the actor is portraying Then at 11:15, we will begin filming the opening scenes in which Bella is waking up and getting ready. Then at 12:00, we will film the kitchen scene and the news reporter scene in Stephanie's house. At approximately 12:30 we will have lunch until 1:15. Then we will set up the camera in Tekla's house. We should be filming by 1:30. From that point, the rest of the actors would already be there in costumes. We would film all of the scenes that are in Tekla's house. We should be done by 3:00. Then, we will set up the camera in the neighborhood that Stephanie lives in. Then we will film the scenes in which the character Bella is walking to the character Brandon's house. After that Stephanie will quickly do special effects makeup on herself (Bella). This should be done by 4:00. Then, we will film the last scene in which all of the characters are looking for Bella and eventually find her. This should be completed by 5:15

The locations include Stephanie's house, Tekla's house, and Stephanie's neighborhood.

Our participants include Stephanie as Bella, Tekla as Chloe, Dominic as the News Anchor, Olga (Stephanie's mom) as Bella's Mom, Mats (Tekla's dad) as The Slicer, Blake as Brandon, Julia as Sasha, and Luca as Grayson.

Since there is an ongoing pandemic, we have decided to keep our masks on at all times except when filming. If a person is currently being recorded, they will not have to wear their masks but everyone else will have to. In addition to this, everyone will be tested for COVID-19 a few days before filming. We will also be washing our hands whenever we feel necessary, and always have hand sanitizer with us. 

One prop that we have is the board game at the character Brandon's house. This is because they are playing the board game when Bella enters the house.  Another prop is a mobile phone. This is because Bella's mom calls Brandon in one of the scenes. Other props include beds, makeup, cereal, a bowl, tv,  a mask, and a tv remote.

Our costumes are normal clothes that a typical teenager would wear. This can include jean shorts, a tee-shirt, a cropped shirt, a skirt, etc. However, the Slicer will be wearing dark clothes, and possibly some type of face-covering/ mask.