Editing

We didn’t edit because pinnacle was not working. We tried to open this app but it didn’t open. It was anticlimactic. It was boring. It was sad. It was just horrible. Wait I’m over exaggerating. After we got into the class we went on the computers. We sat on the computers. After we are sat we waited for the instructions to commence editing that what I thought. But we were told that pinnacle studios didn’t work. How tragic. So we had to put all our videos onto google drive and saved it. We already did that though the week prior. With this in mind over the weekend I took it onto myself to start editing. The editing was not that hard. I have prior experience with editing and I did it really easily. I added the videos to the editing software and did my thing. I never finished because I didn’t have any ideas. I asked my teammates but hey were useless.
Back to the classroom. We had to do a blog. Most of the time we were procrastinating but we actually started to do it. My teammates were arguing most of the time about who will use the computer so I just decided to do it on my phone and not bother with that. That’s beside the point. Pertaining to the editing or lack their of. I’m really concerned about the ability of the editing software we are provided. I think I’ll be more comfortable using my own editing software rather than that. It’s a shame that the school can’t provide us with computers that aren’t made out of rocks. I think for this commercial I’m going to go back home and edit it myself. It’ll will be for the best. Even though my teammates are lazy and don’t provide anything to better the project I think I should sacrifice my time to edit it at home while they watch anime.

Filming Process

The filming process was a hectic process and it was very stressful. I came into the classroom with all intention to film but that was not the case. Quincy had issues with his past blog so we had to spend almost 10 minutes trying to figure out the problem and fix it. It didn't help that the computers in classrooms were extremely slow. It was the slowest process in the world. The processing power of those computers was unbelievable trash. We opened multiple computers to have the signing in the process go fast but that didn't help it at all. We were stressing and getting mad that this was gruelingly slow. After getting our cameras we ran outside to start the filming. It was a hot day as well and we were sweating like crazy. Then took out the camera equipment come to find out that we are missing a piece for the tri-pod. I ask Quincy to run back and get it and that wastes another 5 minutes. He finally comes back with the equipment then we begin filming. Our huge issue with the filming process is we didn't think we would have enough footage to meet the time requirement. So we came out there expecting to have a lot the footage. This was a problem because Quincy didn't bring a soccer ball also Markins didn't have the Gatorade we needed for filming certain scenes. This was a huge bummer as we had to scrap most things from the final product. We were really stressing over it and were honestly blaming each other for the lack of props. Then we finally were able to start filming this wasn't shy of many hiccups. Apart from trying to figure out the way the camera works we had to get the lighting perfect and be in the correct position so the sun doesn't ruin our shot. We had to film where no one was to not have any persons in the background.

Then after that was figured out we started with the running shots this was easy but the lighting had to be perfect. Then we moved to the football section which was kind of hard because we were very picky about the shot. We needed to have the quarterback and me in the same shot. On top of me catching the ball, we had to shoot where no one was in the background. We did a lot of basketball shots and shots of the shoes which I really enjoyed. We did have a lot of shots and man mistakes but after we got it right we moved on with no hesitation. It was really hard trying to stay serious for some shots but we had to get it right in order to finish on time. I wish I could go back in time and changed some things. It was a hard process and we went through many trials.

Story Board

When doing the story board it wasn’t that hard to come up with ideas as I grew up watching Nike commercials. When doing it I tried to make the drawings as detailed as possible to help us understand what exactly we are going to film. My little drawing experience helped with that. I did most of the work while my group dished out ideas. I played devils advocate and emphasized what was possible and what was not. When it comes to the story board it’s pretty simple. We have an array of activities that the actor/ athlete will be performing. This includes, running, catching a football, and bottle flipping. Throughout the commercial we tried to keep Nike the main focus of the commercial. It was hard as the activities the actor were performing could distract the audience but having the actor in all Nike attire really kept the focus of the commercial. The drawings I believe were very creative though I had to rush a little with some I put enough effort in others to make it eye candy. The descriptions were as descriptive as possible with the amount of space I had. The descriptions really described what needs to go on in the scene even describing the ambers angles.

Editing Lesson Blog

When filming and using the camera there is a lot of things you can do physically that you don't have to do with editing. The camera is going to be held hand so a lot of tracking shots and moving shots can be easily achieved with your bare hands. There is also a tripod that can be used when there isn't anyone around to hold the camera and it also allows for a more steady shot. The tripod can be adjusted in many ways. It can be raised up, which can allow a better view of the subject. It can be tilted, which can allow the filmmaker to introduce a Dutch shot into their film. It can be manually turned left to right and vice versa. This allows the implementation of panning shots. Lastly, the tripods allow an up and down movement, which can be used creatively for many shots.

During this lesson, I learned about the fundamentals of editing in the software, Pinnacle Studios. Before editing can start, you obviously have to film your commercial first. When filming you will obviously have a lot of footage to go through. Most takes won't be used in the final product so editing is necessary when trying to make any film. I learned that after filming you will have to dump all the footage onto a folder titled commercial footage. You will dumb all the footage by plugging in the SD card into the computer. After plugging in the SD card you will have to access the footage through the DCIM  folder. If the footage isn't found there you will have to go through the folder "private" then "AVCHD" then "next" then "stream" and that is where you will find your footage. Once you've found your footage its all about dumping it all into a folder on the computer that will be accessed at a later date. This is when you begin your editing process

When doing your editing process on Pinnacle Studios you will have to be extremely patient. The software isn't the best so when using it, you shouldn't touch anything while any audio or video or anything is loading because the software will crash. When realizing this flaw you then can Import all your footage and audio onto the software. Then, you will have to click and drag it on the track to start your editing. You can cut your footage because not all the footage will be needed. You can add FX to your film. This can be from color changing like black and white to animations. The FX can be minor or great. I also learned how to add a voice-over, when editing you can separate the audio from the video. Doing so will allow you to delete the audio from the footage and add another piece of audio, for example, a voice-over. You can also add a title to your film, by clicking the T icon on the software you will be allowed to. You can change the font, color, font, size and duration of the title allowing you to do a lot with it.

Research blog: Commercial Conventions

When researching the conventions of commercials specifically Nike commercials it’s shown that the product is not only shown but it’ also shows the potential of the product. It is common that the product would be shown in action since Nike is heavily correlated with sports. Heavily being correlated with basketball, tennis and running most Nike commercials feature athletes of great popularity. On top of that, most commercials have narration over the action, commonly informing the consumer the innovation in the product, for example how it provides faster running speed to the athlete who eats them. When researching the information it was easier than I thought it would be, I just looked up commercials for different Nike products and used first hand knowledges of commercials I’ve seen online. When it comes to any commercial it’s all about putting the product in the best light as possible. The advertisers try to make the product as appealing as possible whether through visual, information or both. The Nike commercials lean more towards visuals but still provide examples of information giving. It’s not as boring as other commercials since their consumers aren’t as attentive but they all find a way to balance this. When doing my commercial I will try to accomplish this balance between visuals and information.

Planning Blog: Scripts, Storyboard, props, costumes, schedule

We decided to do the project on Nike. For this commercial we are going to utilizes the props

- The Nike shoes 

- a Basketball

- a Football 

- Hurdles 

For costumes 

We will have an actor in 

- Nike headband

- Nike socks 

- Nike shoes 

- Nike shorts 

- Nike shoes 

For our schedule we will set up the props for the outside activities where we run the track, do hurdles, catch a football and dribble the basketball. We will then do shots of the shoes itself in a well light setting indoors. The filming won’t take too long as the shots are simple and require minimal acting.
For our script we will start off on the track and have an establishing shot to a actor running in Nike attire past the camera. Then the narrator will begin to speak about how great Nike products are and the advantages it gives athletes. Then the actor will jump over hurdles as fast as possible. Then the camera will transition to the actor catching a football and then seamlessly transition to another actor dribbling a basketball. The narrator will continue to narrate over the greatness of the product of Nike. The last scene will be a shot of the shoes and text comes over and says “Just do it” with a Nike sign.

The backup shots will be if it rains or we can’t go to the track. We will be indoors and have a person dancing in Nikes and have the narrator stating how great the Nikes are for dancing. We can still shoot certain shots without going to the track, we can still shoot our dribbling shots and catching the football scenes even though it’s raining. If there’s someone absent we can easily take their place as there aren’t any importance in anyone’s roles and they are easily replaceable. 

Introduction

Hello my name is Aridsondez a sophomore at Fort Lauderdale High school. I’m currently apart of the Pre-law and Aice program and I love it. Even though I sometimes have trouble with the classes at the end of the day I really enjoy them. With 3 Aice classes 1 Law class and the rest honors you would think my school life would be hard, but honestly my sophomore year is as easy as it comes. I can honestly say it’s a lot easier than my freshman year. I rarely get homework and my classes allow a lot of free time, it’s kind of ironic how easy the higher level classes are compared to the normal classes. I continue to work hard in my classes and try to avoid slacking but it always sneaks up on me.

When it comes to Aice Media studies I believed will truly enjoy this class. I don’t look at films as just moving pictures but more of an elaborate form of storytelling that takes more effort than is shown. Usually when I watch films I don’t stop there, I try to do my own research and see the behind the scenes. It’s as or more enjoyable to watch the production of a film then a film itself. It’s also amazing to see the hidden messages the directors have in their films. I really like to spot Easter eggs or outline amazing choices the director implements. From memory I can remember a scene from Spider-Man homecoming, a film not necessarily known for stylistic between the lines scenes but I fondly remember the scene where the villain, The vulture figures out Spider-Man’s identity the street light turns green and the light hits his face in a way that subconsciously lets the audience know that he knows. There’s many more amazing forms of storytelling discreetly hidden in movies that I really enjoy. 

When it comes to family life, it's something. I have 3 other siblings and I live in a home of 6 including me. Well not necessarily, my sister doesn’t live with us anymore since she moved for university. I really enjoy spending time with my family when I’m in the mood but as I live in a strict home where I have to stay home 24/7 I am extremely elated when I’m away from them. Not saying they aren’t great to be around, I just rather not be. My dad is funny and is rarely serious, he is always messing around with someone or being loud laughing or something. My mom is mostly serious and sometimes jokes around, she Stern and a hard worker and I really look up to her. My big sister is always joking around and sometimes a little slow but always wholesome. My little brother is annoying and always wants to be the center of attention. Lastly, my little sister is funny and sometimes mean when she wants to be. I live in a family full of jokers and there’s not a day where we aren’t laughing. We always mess with each other and never want to see anyone sad.