Editing Spotlight - Audio Envelopes

During the filning process we need to record a lot of speech however, we didnt have the funds nor a compatible camera to be able to connect a microphone or external boom mic to increase the sound quality and sensitivity.This caused wind and other backgorund noise to be picked up during the filming of our production.  In order to fix this issue we used the Audio Enveloping feature which is built in to Final Cut Pro X and masked it with a soundscape on top. This is allows you to control the height and therefore the volume of the sound in each shot. In the Print Screen you can see that some of the audio tracks have peaks which show when the audio is louder or the other way round, quieter.

Editing Spotlight -- Composition of Music

Due to the restrictions involving copyright for the song we used in our production, meaning we could only use it for educartional purposes only. This lead us on to having to create a new version of the song ourselves so it met with the criteria and could be uploaded to the Blog. To solve this problem we made copyright free versions of our productiona and drafts that included our song. We tried to make the song in the same key and and chords to make it sound as close as possible to the original You Dont Know by Helen Shapiro. However, we had not a lot of tine to do this so in order for it to be done qucikly we used the Ipad with the Garageband App installed. We used just the guitar for the remake so that we could still keep the retro feel and it wouldnt be cringy for the audiecnce to listen to. The chord sequence used was C-Am-Dm-G which is exactly like the original. This didnt infringe copyright meaning that we could use it in our film. We also added some arpeggios so that it gace the song some depth and made it not boring to listen to.

Editing Digest - Hospital Sign

One of the most important scenes featured in our production is the final scene before the title of the production is revealed, in which the Pathologist informs the DCI in charge of the investigation that the investigation may have took a twist as the DNA results have been tampered with. Ideally we wanted to film this scene in a hospital to give it that look like it was situated in a laboratory. However, we realised that because we had such a tight schedule and gaining permission to film in a hospital would take time that this would not be viable. But, we still wanted it to look as if it was in some form of Lab, therefore Ross and I set out to produce signs similar to that would be found in a Lab:

Images to come

How it was made

We used many of different techniques in order to produce the signs from above, below are snippets of how they were produced.

Directional Sign - We added a bevel effect to the individual section of the sign, this created the look that the sign was actually rounded on metal however, it was actually printed on paper.This was ideal as it gave the look of typical signs you may see but was extremely easy and cheap to create. However, we felt that the size of the sign may not have been correct, but overall we were very happy with the look of the sign with other commenting that it looked very realistic.

Name Plaque  - This took a long time to produce due the use of a trailn and error method to find what worked well. The effects that were the most important and helpful are below:

For the text inside the plaque, we added a thing called noise which made the sign look old and well used. This adds realism and dexterity to the sign and breaks up the solid black text which featured previously.

One of the most useful and effective looking techniques as it creates the overall etched effect making it seem 3D and tricking the on looker into seeing depth. This effect was vital during the use in our production as the first two signs are shot fairly and foccussed on largely. It they did not perceive as if they were 3D then they would not have the same impressiveness.

The final effect i will mention is the use of gaussian blur on the text involved in the plaque to make the text seem less sharp and more worn. This creates the impression of a rough effect sometimes seen on realistic plaques.

On printing the signs for use the in our production, the directional sign incurred a slightn dent that we inittially thought would hinder the look, but luckily it enhanced the look and made it look like the sign was worn giving it a more authentic look.

Feedback - After we has produced this scene and shown it to our audience they said that they thought the scene had been filmed in a real hospital/laboratory when in fact we had actually filmed it in ross' living room.

Editing Digest - Blood Splattered Titles

Insert vid

The titles we used for out production 'August 1961' were the very first thing we created, this is because we knew that we would definitely include it in the production and we did not require any footage in order to create it. For the 'DEADMAN' title we tried make it look as sleek and professional as possible this took a lot of refining and we are in the end very proud of how it looks.

In order to create the effect of the blood overlaying the text, we first had to lay the blood over the top of the text in order for us to be able to attach it to the 'TrkMat' which needed to be changed to Alpha Trackmatte for the blood splatter layer. This process was repeated three times to give the end look on August 1961 text. We added a final blood splatter to splash on the top of Deadman at the end of the film as we thought this looked very effective. The blood splatters were created by Ross who first downloaded some white paint splatters from the internet and then morphed a blood texture onto them to make them look like realistic blood. We and Ross are both very happy with this effect as we think it looks realistic and professional.

Vehicle Use

In our production we used two different vehicles to connote different meanings.

The first vehicle you seen in the production is a Citroen Picasso:

This car is used in the first scene set in August of 1961, the reason this car was used is because we felt it would be the closest to a Morris Minor as we could get without having to fork out any money to rent one. This car is also a similar height to that of a Morris Minor so in the dark scene and the use of shadows we would be able to pull of that the car coming towards the killer in 1961 is actually a Morris Minor. A Morris Minor is featured below for your comparison.

The second vehicle used in our production is a Mercedes C220   Diesel Saloon. We used this car to connote a formal and executive representation of our Pathologist so that the audience would see them as a higher status in society. The picture of the Mercedes is below:

Location Change

In Project Diary 4 we went out near where we lived in search for possible locations we could use for the production of our film and we found a really good lane and lay by that were really close together we thought would be perfect for our film. The pictures of the setting are below:

These were are original choice of settings, however when it came to having to get the actors and the equipment to the location, this is when it became a problem, as the location is a bit out of the way along a country road meaning we had to have a rethink of where we would film. In the end we decided to film somewhere a lot closer to home, in fact it was right behind my house. This gave us the perfect place to film as it was really close to my house so the equipment and the actors where not hard to transport. 

There are pictures of the location below:

to come

We have uploaded a google maps image to display to you the logistical problem we were having:

Location 1 relevant to Freeman's House

Location 2 Relevant to Mulligan's House

Music in our Production

For the music in our production we wanted to use something that was relevant to our storyline, this meant me and my partner looked back to find what was the number one hit in August of 1961, we found out that it was a song called 'You Dont Know' by Helen Shapiro. This provided us with a subtle yet clever intertextual reference. However, to require the use of the music though we had to contact the owners/representatives of the song.

The company that we found to own the song was EMI Records so we found the contact details so that we could acquire the rights to use the song. We decided to contact the company first via the phone as we thought it would be difficult to get a response quickly enough via email. We were forwarded on to someone who told us to contact them directly via email to find out if the use of the song was plausible. He first said that the chance of using the song would be high. 

The conversation is below:

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hello, I am the student who just rang regarding the use of Helen Shapiro's You Don't know for my AS Level Media Production. If you could reply with written permission that would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks a lot for your help,

Ross Freeman

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hi Ross,

It appears this song is owned by Lorna Music Co Ltd for the publishing side. You may have been looking for EMI Records, who may own the recording. I would suggest you contact Jessica for this- 'REMOVED FOR PRIVACY'.

Best regards,

Andre

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thank you very much for the reply; I will contact her from now on.

Thanks a lot for your time,

Ross

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After this email we then moved on to contacting the new EMI Representative to request permission:

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Miss. Barlow,

I am writing to enquire about the use of a song owned by Lorna Music Co Ltd in my AS level Media Production and was informed by a member of your publishing team that I should contact you for permission. The song in question is You Don't Know by Helen Shapiro and I guarantee that it will be used entirely for non-profit and educational use and if necessary we can provide you with our online e-Portfolio's to prove it's use. 

Thank you very much for your time,

Ross

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hi Ross,

Thank you for getting in contact to use Helen Shapiro “You Don’t Know” in your media production. So that I can process your request can you please answer the questions in red below?  

SCHOOL/UNIVERSITY: To which school or university is your project to be submitted for marking?

PROJECT: What is the name of your project?

RECORDING & ARTIST: “You Don’t Know” performed by Helen Shapiro

DURATION AND NATURE OF USE: How much of the recording do you require? (e.g. 30 secs, 1 min, full duration of the recording) Will the recording be used solely in the background accompanying visual images?

MEDIA: Is the use purely for marking purposes?

TERRITORY: Is it solely UK for which you need rights?

TERM: How long do you require the rights? 6 months, 1 year?

COMMENCEMENT DATE: When do you require the rights from? 

PROJECT SYNOPSIS (Please supply visuals if available):

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any further queries.

Kind regards,

Jessica

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hi Jessica, thanks for your prompt reply. Below are the answers to your questions:

SCHOOL/UNIVERSITY: Brooke Weston, Coomb Road, Great Oakley, Corby, Northants, NN18 8LA

PROJECT: AS Level Media Production - Trailer for own film creation

RECORDING & ARTIST: “You Don’t Know” performed by Helen Shapiro

DURATION AND NATURE OF USE: One minute - Shall be featured in the background as an intertextual reference due to the film being set in August 1961 when it was a number 1 hit.

MEDIA: Purely for marking and educational, though it will be posted on You Tube so that it can be linked to our Portfolio's for moderation.

TERRITORY: It shall be posted on You Tube so I assume we will need rights for all that can view it, if that is possible?

TERM: Once it has been uploaded to You Tube we had not planned to remove it so if it's possible we'd like the rights as long as possible if not indefinitely?

COMMENCEMENT DATE: Though it will not be uploaded today, I'm not aware entirely when the finishing date of the project will be, so if possible commencement date would be from your acceptance today or when that is. 

PROJECT SYNOPSIS (Please supply visuals if available): The project is for our coursework and is to create a film trailer for a thriller. Our film is about a copycat of the A6 Murderer from 1961; to enforce this we show at the opening of the trailer snippets of the original murder with Helen Shapiro's song playing in the background as if from a car radio to set the time period. I'm afraid the film isn't shot yet though I have attached the storyboard that the music will be applied to. I'd like to add that we would be perfectly happy to link to EMI and/or a link to buy the song in the description and plan to give complete credit in the credits and description.

Thank you very much for your time, I hope you can grant us the use of the song.

Many thanks,

Ross

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hi Ross,

Please accept this email as confirmation that EMI Records Limited ("EMI") has no objection to your request to use up to 1 minute of “You Don’t Know” by Helen Shapiro (the "Artist") as you have described solely in connection with your school coursework, PROVIDED that at all times:

(i) Your school coursework is not exploited commercially in any way and is not used in any sort of commercial context;

(ii) Your use of the sound recording referred to above in your school coursework is in no way derogatory towards EMI, its affiliates or the Artist;

(iii) Your school coursework is in no way derogatory towards EMI, its affiliates or the Artist;

(iv) You only use the sound recording referred to above in the manner that you have described for 1 year from the date of this email and solely within the UK; and

(v) The Artist or their management do not at any time after the date of this email raise objections to your use of the sound recording in your school coursework. 

Best wishes,

Jessica

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This was fantastic news for our production as it means that we would be covered for the use, however, we cannot upload it to YouTube and therefore cannot link to our blogs. This means that we will have to send the exam board the Helen Shapiro version and record a similar version for use online.