Timetable

Phase 1

Week 11(7/10-13/10) confirm the general idea about my project.

Week 12(14/10-20/10) add information about my project.

Week 13(21/10-27/10) find problems in my learning agreement and revise them.

Week 14(28/10-3/11) read books and understand film theory from them.

Week 15(4/11-10/11) research references and continue writing Learning Agreement.

Week 16(11/11-17/11) write one case study

Week 17(18/11-24/11) write one case study

Week 18(25/11-1/12) make 2 short post-production film practice.

Week 19(2/12-8/12) come out a good film idea

Week 20(9/12-15/12) make ‘The Cultural Differences’ film in Broadway workshop.

Week 21(16/12-22/12) edit the short film and show it to audience and acquire advices from them

Week 22 (23/12-29/12) write some case studies of some typical directors’ films such as Telry Gilliam and Jean Pierre Jeunet or others and prepare for presentation.

Week 23(30/12-5/1) Analysis the key book that I refer to in journal.

Week 24(6/1-12/1) Presentation

Phase 2

Week 25(13/1-19/1)Research materials and come out general understanding of post-production theory and practice in Journal

Week 26(20/1-26/1) explain which fields visual effects works on (colour, graphics, objections, background )

Week 27(27/1-2/2) Case study of Todd Sweeney with Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events

Week 28(3/2-9/2) Read the book Fairy tale film write the reflective journal

Week 29 (10/2-6/2) Read the book Fairy tale film write the reflective journal

Week 30 (20/1-9/2) Case study of big fish with Amelie

Week 31 (10/2-16/2) Case study of Black Swan with The wolfman

Week 32(17/2-23/2) make the 3^th post-production practice.

Week 33(24/2-2/3) Read the book Digital compositing for film and video and write a journal.

Week 34(3/3-9/3) Read the book Digital compositing for film and video and write a journal.

Week 35(10/3-16/3)Case study of Jack the Giant Slayer with Pan's Labyrinth

Week 36(17/3-23/3) summarize how post-production makes fairy tale films in different styles.

Week 37(24/3-30/3) make the 4^th post-production practice. Summarize what makes film fairy tale characteristics.

Week 38(31/3-6/4) Summarize what makes film fairy tale characteristics.

Week 39(7/4-13/4) prepare for presentation

Week 40(14/4-20/4) presentation

Week 41 (21/4-27/4) write script

Week 42(28/4-4/5) write script and design storyboard

Week 43(5/5-11/5) Studio shooting

Week 44(12/5-18/5) Studio shooting

Week 45(19/5-25/5) outdoor shooting

Week 46(26/5-1/6) post-production

Week 47(2/6-8/6) post-production

Week 48(9/6-15/6) post-production

Week 59(16/6-22/6) post-production

Week 50(23/6-29/6) come up with the project, to present my objectives above.

Week 51(30/6-6/7) prepare for final assessment.

Week 52(7/7-13/7) final assessment preparation.

BLACK SWAN Featurette: Visual Effects Reel

Alice in Wonderland - Visual Effects Highlights

Gravity visual effects

Gravity is 2013 special effects film, I have seen it in Broadway. The 3D effects is perfect but the realistic effects made me dizzy after 30 minutes watching. When I watch this film there is a question to my mind. This film should not be shot in the universe, but how to make weightlessness on earth. I have read plenty of reports on the internet, belowing is the answer of the question.

In every universe thematic film, present weightlessness is the hardest point. To achieve the agravity, there are two methods, one is use specialize plane named The Vomit Comet, with the high speed flight, this plane can create seconds of weightlessness. Apollo 13 is shoot in this way. However, this plane can not satisfy Gravity. Cameron require minutes of weightlessness effects. Therefore, Gravity crew come out an conventional entertainment combined with advanced digital technique. They use large-scaled puppet to manipulate actor’s body, to immerse weightlessness action. Cameron mentioned in a interview about the most difficult shot is the actress back to the capsule, she take off her spacesuit and huddle herself like a baby. In real scene, the actress was sitting in a small bike saddle to support her body; one leg was tied up with a special facility to fix her position. So the slow motion is controlled by puppeteer. The tied up leg was added by post-production.

Making an CG film is a test of filmmaker’s patience and technique, within CG film, everything could be possible.

Link to the tidbits video: http://www.56.com/u64/v_MTAzMjkwODQ1.html

Reflection of reading the book: Fairy Tale Films Visions of Ambiguity

The main book that could help me to develop my project is Fairy Tale Films Visions of Ambiguity. It introduces every fields of fairy tale film such as the narration, sounds, visual effects, and so on, it used plenty of examples and case studies to demonstrates fairy tale film. After reading this book, I have got following ideas:

 

 Firstly, fairy tale film is not only presents a fiction story, but also shows a reflection of audiences themselves.  As Greenhill and Matrix (2010)stress  in their introduction, “the mirror of Fairy tale film reflects not so much what its audience members actually are but how they see themselves and their potential to develop (or, likewise, to regress). The research of post-production is the important way to know how to allow audiences to comprehend more about themselves.

Secondly, research the post-production features in Fairy tale film would offer better understanding of making this genre of films. Filmmakers could easily deliver their thought to audiences when making a fairy tale film. As Greenhill and Matrix (2010) argues that “the fairy tale film’s frame—not only the physical limits of what it actually shows but also its containment in time and space—allows an often-succinct and telling expression. Its metaphorical flexibility means that viewers can potentially return at different times and receive different, sometimes even contradictory, impressions of the film’s meanings and intentions.”  Fairytale film is not only what it shows, but also the film spectators could get their different opinions after watching it. Therefore, my research is a important way to stimulate audiences’ different ideas about fairy tale film.

The wider context of visual effects on fairy tale film

Fantasy films sell tickets not only due to the impressively visual effects but also because they could somehow offer escapist entertainment. Such films can show opinions in a nonthreatening way as fairy tale films (Greenhill and Matrix, 2010) which were made”for adults who needed to lay bare the real in order to entertain the hope that change might be possible… the goal of fairy tales is not a conservative but a Utopian one… as if to say ‘One day we might be happy, even if it won’t last’” (Petrie 1993, 26).  Fairy tale film is to show people a world which could not exist in real situation. What is more, to make the imaginary world “come true”, post-production should be the best way. The advanced technology of post-production is transforming the way visual effects are used in films (Cram, 2012).Visual effects (VFX) is a term used to describe any kind of special effect that is added after an image has been captured (on film or digitally) (Cram, 2012). “One thing that modern effects have brought is the ability to be utterly perfectionistic” says Dixon (cited in Cram, 2012). To make the unreal film looks real, use post-production should be better than design a real object.

 

Greenhill and Matrix (2010) explained about fairy tale film that, once the story has explained what the supernatural event is, why it has occurred, and its meaning within the person’s life, the fantastic then becomes either the “marvelous” or the “uncanny.” The mystery helps audiences know that, there are plenty of possibilities in their lives they never aware before. It enables them feel anxious and grateful, and it makes them regard lives as small as the mysterious powers that around them (Andrew, 1984). Fairy tale film could influence spectators’ thoughts, so the effects of film would partly reform audiences’ cognition of the word even themselves.

 

Therefore, fairy tale film is relevant with supernatural events, post-production, and could influence audiences’ thought.

The cultural difference between China and Britain

This is the final  editing of Roger's cultural difference task. It is really a excellent experience of making a such video. I have get an idea that, post-production is not only about post work of film, the preparation before shooting is also the vital part of making film. If you watch this video carefully, you can find some goofs which can not be revised by post-production. What is more, special effects is not only relevant with the post-production technique , designed the way of shooting is vital for post-production process, such as if you want to mask something off, you can shoot in the green background or use Matte difference tool.