Third culture event

My third event I went to see Shepherd's Wind Ensemble concert. I have always been a big music fan since I played music for over ten years. This was a different type of concert where students got the chance to conduct the wind ensemble. This was a nice change to see and great for the students to gain experience.

The music selection was very interesting to see from every student. Each student got to choose a piece of music and rehearse it with the ensemble. There was a variety of songs; folk, classical, modern, fast, ballads, hymns, world music, chorales, and so on. There was at least one student from every section that conducted in front of the ensemble. I really enjoyed the whole concert and I had a few favorite pieces.

The first one I enjoyed was "On A Hymnsong of Philip Bliss" by David Holsinger. This piece is a hymn and it is one my favorites every time I hear it. It calms me down every time I hear and when the refrain comes in I always hear the words, it is well with my soul. The second was "Prelude and Fugue in g minor" by Johann Sebastian Bach. I'm always a big fan of Bach and when they first started playing this song, I thought I knew it. Then I looked at the program and saw it was by Bach and then it made sense. The third one was "Morning in Madrid" by Bill Calhoun. I never heard of this piece but the Spanish theme behind it was done really well. The conductor had spent a great time preparing the piece for the concert. I saw the way he conducted and how the ensemble responded to him, everybody enjoyed this piece. The last favorite piece from this concert was "Abram's Pursuit" by David Holsinger. Again you could tell the conductor and ensemble were playing the song at a high intensity. I was really impressed with this piece and give props to the ensemble for making this song sound awesome.

The whole concert was great and giving students the chance to conduct is an awesome step for their future. I'm definitely going to see more Wind Ensemble performances in the future.   

Second culture event

With my second event, I went to see William Shakespeare's play "The Two Noble Kinsmen." I've been to operas, concerts, musicals and so on but never a play. This was a first for me and I was curious to see it, to be honest. It was very the program I received, it gave a little synopsis about the play and the story behind it.

I'll give the short version of it, two cousins (Palamon and Arcite) get sent to jail as prisoners of war. They both see Emilia, whose beauty is beyond what they have ever encounter in their lives. They both ended up getting out of jail, Palamon by escaping and Arcite by an exile of the kingdom. They both end up fighting for her hand in marriage and Arcite wins the fight. Palamon is about to be put to death before the news of Arcite; he has been killed by a horse that fell on him. Palamon takes Emilia's hand in marriage and the story ends as so. Emilia is the sister of the king and always has an attitude with him. Emilia doesn't want to marry either of the two cousins, but is forced to marry one. This play consists of comedy, tragedy, and of course the Renascence time.

I really enjoyed the play and it was nice to see a Shakespeare's play that I'm not familiar with. Everyone knows "Hamlet" and "Romeo and Juliet" but maybe not this one. At first it was hard to follow along with the story, because of the old English talk. After a while, I got used to it and just enjoyed the play. I might be interested to see another one. The only thing I would possibly be a critic of is the music and sound effects. I felt if they are going to use it, then they better make sure that it's really good. I know how it is to rehearse something like this and get it ready to performance status. It's not easy and it's why I admire everyone that played part in it.

The next event is something that I'm more familiar with, a concert from the Shepherd Wind Ensemble...     

Culture event one

With my cultural events, I decided to attend different types of events and explore new things. The first one is normal to me, but I felt I could relate the film to my project. This past weekend, I went to the theaters to see the new Bond movie SKY FALL. My film is based on this character which he thinks he is a detective so I thought why not.

The Bond series has been going for so long, that it's impressive how they managed to keep it going. I really enjoyed this movie and two things stand out about it. This film seemed darker and kept me very attentive throughout the film. This is the first time where I saw Bond seem old or even vulnerable. It wasn't the Bond that we come to known over the years. Even a little more realistic in some cases, I almost thought that he could die. It didn't happen though, it would've been a short film if he did die.

A few key things I noted from the film; music, good vs bad, scenes. All the norms that come in spy/detective movies I saw in this film. It was really excited to compare my film with this one and see all the norms I put a twist on. I switched the music for the protagonist and his fellow opposite. Made a simple situation into a serious situation, but all as a perception. The use of objects to represent past events, in SKY FALL they brought back an old Bond car from the Gold finger movie.

It was definitely a different type of James Bond, but it was very well done. The next event I did was a play from the Shakespeare's time...... 

Capstone week nine

After my presentation on Monday, I have a better idea of what I can fix to make my film better. My director and me took some time to watch my film and talk about. I explained a few things I didn't like and wanted to change. He gave me a few ideas of different types of transitions I can use to make the film move smoother. So I'll probably take the next two weeks to edit and be really picking and nit picking. That's my plan for the next two weeks.

Now that this part is done, I'll start preparing for my presentation board. As I start brainstorming for what I want on it, I think I want to show my process in making this film. Show different steps I took for the completion of this film. Another part I would discuss about is probably my motivation for this film and why on this topic. The genre of parody and what I wanted to experiment with this film. I have a list of what I want to be tangible at my presentation; script, screen shots, film, props from film. These are just a few ideas and I'll thinking of what I want.

As I continue to edit my film, I will also finish my press kit about the film and everybody that helped me out. It has been a fun adventure seeing this movie coming to end and getting feedback from  a few people already. Now back to work........  

Week eight of capstone

Tomorrow is the day. This day has been creeping up on me all week long. It definitely was a busy week and I'm glad its over and done. I can easily say that it's been a fun adventure this past month making this movie. I'm thankful for everybody that helped me out and made this possible. I hope when they see this film, they can appreciate all the work we put in.

I did have a little scare while I was editing this past week. Somehow I manage to lose some of my audio and I had to replace it. It wasn't too big of a deal because, I had the original audio of the scene so I just had to put the audio back again. I can easily say that I spent about 25-30 hours just editing and tweaking my film this past week.

The only thing I didn't get done is a short flashback, so the film will be missing that. I will probably will get that scene done in the next couple of weeks. Other than that, I'm done with the film and I can't wait to show it tomorrow. The film now has a title, "Where's Haley?" I like it, so I'll stick with it. The only thing left to do is to unveil my film and get some reaction to it. I hope my professors can see all the work I put into it. Let Monday begin.............

Week seven of Capstone

As this is my last week before I get to show my work to professors, I can't wait to see my film in its final stages. I have everything I need for this week, the last scene I recorded Saturday and the music for it as well. This week will consist of me of doing lots of editing. I plan to do at least four days this week of editing and six to eight hours (each day) of devoted time to finish this project. I knew that editing would take some time and I made sure that I devoted enough time to get this project done.

I found it funny that I've been doing this project for over a month now and I haven't figured out a title for the film. Some ideas have gone through my head such as: Suits, Fine Vs Holmes, Black Panther but nothing I really like yet. This will be something I will think about this week and hopefully figure out as I'm editing. I do have one last scene to film this week and then I will have all the shots I want.

Music Sensation

Music was probably the one thing that I really enjoyed recording, because I could be creative. Whatever sound I wanted to use, I could do it. I found myself actually creating a nice little song but I'm not sure if I can use it in the film yet. The music I will use in the film will all be composed by me. There is a mixture of the Jazz sound and Classical throughout the film. Some of it might sound like another song but it won't exactly resemble it.

It's been an awesome time working on this film and I appreciate everybody that has helped me out. They have been great to work with and been pretty patience with me with the time they sacrificed for the film. Now its time to finish this movie and see the end product.......

Week six of capstone

I have about two weeks until I get to show my film to my professors. I did have a little setback with one my scenes got erased on my camera, so I'll have to do it again. It's not too big of a problem to deal with it. I have only a couple more scenes to get done and I should be done filming. Everything I have done has been already edited, so all I have to do is plug the rest of it in. Like I promised last time I would have a little clip from the film. It is the opening of the film, its a temporary one and I might change it.

Now my original idea was to have a quick sunset then stop and rewind to the top. I would repeat this a couple of times until the talent found something he liked. I found that when I sped the footage to the duration I intended for, it would look very jumpy and not smooth. I'll still look into it and see what I can figure out. I have figured out what the music will be like for different parts of the film and I'll start to record it this week.

I found it very amusing that as I'm looking at my footage, I want to redo it. I feel that I could of done it in a different way or said a line better. Though I might be a little hard on myself, it might be a good attribute that I have. What I already plan to do is after I finish the film, I'm going to watch it a couple of times and critique it and figure out what I want different. The positive and negative things in the film. I'll look at the transition of shots and decide whether or not it makes sense. I've noticed a few things I want to change already, so I have an idea of what I can do. I feel you have to be very hard on yourself if you want the best to come out of you. That is how I see it and will progress with my film.

It's been a busy week and I still have a few things to do yet. I'm making good progress but no stopping now though...............

Week five of capstone

It's crazy to think that five weeks have gone by, and now the deadline is starting to creep up. I've been editing as I go along and I have at least five minutes of my film done but I have a long way to go. The toughest problem I've been faced with is finding time that suits the actors and actresses. It's been tricky but this week I should be able to get a good portion of my film done.

Some of the goals I want to get done this week are: at least five or maybe ten minutes more of film, start composing music and incorporating it in the film, and recording a voice-over for different parts of the film. These are some of the bigger things I want to accomplish. It's been a fun time, but its also been long days in the lab room.

Since I've been doing this film, I'm discovering things about myself that I didn't realize before. I have to become more of a leader and direct everyone in what they have to do. The first day was probably more nerve racking then this past week. Now I know what more preparation can do before shooting scenes. It makes it easier and everybody isn't trying to take control. There's one voice but I wouldn't be against hearing opinions though. I try to be compassionate but still putting my foot down when I decide on a certain aspect in the scene. I realized something else, my love for music. I always enjoyed playing trombone and I thought it would be neat to use it for the music in my film. So, its gonna be a little tricky trying to find which type of sound I want for different parts of the film. Another task for the week but one that I really enjoy doing.

This week will be a busy one and I need to get a lot done. Hopefully I'll have a little clip I can show next week to show some progress. So back to work then..........

Capstone week four

This past week has been another productive one for my film. I've already started filming and had a fun time as well. It was definitely a different experience and I had to be on my toes. 

If a shot I originally planned for wasn't the best option, I had to think fast of what the alternative shot I could use. The actors and actress I had, also had a great time. I wanted them to be relaxed and just have some fun with it. I noticed at first when we first started shooting, everybody seemed a little nervous. After a few minutes of filming, we settled down and start having fun. I would give them an idea of what I wanted  to hear from them and they did a great job too. One thing that helped make things go smooth was the pre-planning of camera shots and where to place the camera. This made the shooting go by easy and everybody did their part. I also did a voice recording for a phone call during the film. The actor I had, did a great job of giving me the voice I imagined for this character and even did more then I anticipated. This was great for me, because I could get an idea of what to expect during the showdown near the end of the film. This showdown consists of the main character and his so called "rival." While filming some of the scenes, I've been changing the script if something didn't fit right. 

This week I'll continue filming and doing some of the bigger scenes. As I go along, I'll start editing while filming. The next couple of weeks will be real busy for me, so I'll have plenty to do. Now to get back to work.........

Capstone week three

Every week brings a new challenge to face and a solution that needs to be solved. The one problem I'm facing this week is a conflict of schedules among the members in the film. Some people are good on Thursday and some on Friday. So I'll have to find a happy medium with everybody helping out. I have finished the script and I have been revising it a lot in the last couple of days. I want to start filming this week if I feel its strong enough for it. I'll have to run it by my teacher and see if I need anything else done with the script. Some objectives I want to do this week; finalize script, actors/actresses, shot selections within scenes, and begin filming. My research has come along a lot faster this week.

Robin Hood

When people think of parodies, it’s sometimes viewed not as a serious film; when in fact it should be appreciated.  Most genres go through four stages in their life span; experimental, classic, refinement and finally baroque. The baroque stage is where the style of parody comes in. It’s almost a rebirth of whatever genre is being explored. Either the genre is; horror, science fiction, westerns, action-adventure, and etc. The genre I will explore is the detective movies with a splash of adventure.  This is what I’ll implicate in my film. One of the books I read, Film Parody by Dan Harris, described different techniques for parody films. The first one is called reiteration, where you establish the connection for a certain genre. Examples would be using horses for a western or a held hand camera for a documentary. The second is inversion, where the use of irony is used to flip situations on its head. The third is misdirection, where an example from "Scary Movie" the man talks about how his wife can't get pregnant and neither can he. The fourth is literalization, where they actually mean what they say. The example they use is from "Robin Hood Men in Tights" when Robin yells out to the crowd "lend me you ears" then they throw their ears to him. The fifth is extraneous inclusion, where adding doorbells on a teepee or pink slippers on a gangster. The last one is exaggeration, where a situation can be taken to the extreme. An extreme bomb from a toy box or a car that rolls and rolls still it stops and explodes. I plan to use a little of every technique in the film and make the film better.

As the weeks go by, I can't wait to see this come all together and see the end product. Another week of the film to be......................................

Capstone week 2

As I continue my progress with my short film, I will begin with my research on the genre of parody. Hopefully the library will have the books I ordered so I can get more into depth of it. Once I get my books, I'll incorporate some of the ideas I'd gained from my research and exploit them in my film. That's the plan for this week, also I already started writing the script for the film and plan to be done with it this week.

Pink Panther

I plan to watch other films that use parody in their films, as well as detective films to see what I can use for mine. One film that comes in mind is the Pink Panther with Peter Sellers. I found this film to very funny and I could easily incorporate some ideas into my film. I find myself watching a lot films and just a lot planning of what I want to in-vision. SO A LOT OF PRE-PRODUCTION IN OTHER WORDS.

I also been able to already get some actors  and crew members to help me out. I just need to find some female actresses, some said they would be interested but I need to confirm. I'm really trying to find people that fits the characters I see in my film. Sometimes I notice how they act and think, "hey they would be perfect." It's a work in progress, but it'll be worth it in the end I believe..........

Project Topic

As this being my last semester in school, I definitely wanted to do something fun for my capstone. I've been back and forth about if I wanted a short film or a graphic novel. I finally decided that I'm going to do a short film about this young guy who acts like he's a spy/detective. The film is going to be a comedy/spoof kind of deal. This main character always acts like this spy/detective on the weekends and his friend is always in the middle of it. The main character's name is Jimmy and somehow always takes situations to the max. In this film, he gets news that one of his friends has been missing. He believes that his friend is in great danger, but his best friend, Joe, tells him its probably not that serious. It starts from there and Jimmy's spy/detective mode turns on for the weekend. I'm still in the early stages of the film, but I have a good feeling that I can make it work.

Man in Suit

Some things I'm going to research is other detective/spy movies and see what I can use for my movie. What norms are used in most of these movies and what are realistic for me to use? This will be an important question for me pushing forward. Pretty much a lot of movie watching and reading articles on this topic. I've seen some consistent actions in these movies, I'll put a little twist on my film to make a change.

This will be an interesting semester for me. I have a lot of things to plan out and people to help me out with this film. I know that I have a few people that can help me out already, so the only thing I need to do is keep creating the story. Let the fun begin........................