CAP Hollywood Reflection #3

This is the last stretch in the CAP Hollywood film project, and the question of whether we're going to finish in time is kicking in. 

During this last week, we need to do a number of things. We need to import new footage Juliette filmed over the weekend and edit it. We also need to try to fix the audio, or else we won't be able to show our film at CAP Hollywood. We can try to make the whole film voice overs and add an effect to make it sound more natural, but I would rather not do this because it's pretty obvious when an audio clip is a voice over, and it sounds pretty unprofessional. 

The second option is to make our whole film a narration. This would be a tangible idea, but that would mean we would need to change a number of things to our film, and I don't think we have the time for that. 

Another thing we need to do by the end of this week is to import voice overs and try to fix any static shots. We need to make our film fast paced and suspenseful since it's a kind of dystopian film, and so far we haven't really captured that in Act Two and Act Three. 

In order to accomplish all of this, we're going to need to put in a lot of extra time outside of class. This week is HSA week, so that means we have the mornings off if we don't have an HSA. This might mean we have to sacrifice a few hours of sleeping in to come into school on time and edit. We may also have to come after school and during lunch in order to make this work out. 

Wish us luck :) 

CAP Hollywood Reflection #2

Last week, I wasn't exactly the most enthusiastic toward seeing all the footage we got during the week. Because we were rushed, the filming process was a bit sloppy. I was a bit nervous about how our movie was going to turn out. Now, although my concerns are still there, they aren't as great.

When Vu and I started laying down our clips and such for the rough cut, we were amazed by some really good shots and disappointed by a few shots.

Another concern I have is about our audio. In the scenes in the TV Studio, the fan is in the background and it's extremely loud. Vu and I tried to fix it with Audacity, but often the sound would come out mechanical and unnatural. Also, in the outside scenes, there's wind so it's also hard to hear the actors.

Also, we have a lot of boring, static shots. Unfortunately, we don't have a variety of shots to choose from to replace some of the boring shots.

On the bright side, our intro came out really nice, and it proved to me that we may still have a slight chance of making a quality movie despite our current issues. We just need to work on each section individually and carefully.

We need to capture all of our voice overs, finish filming some last minute shots, and try to fix the audio. These are the most major problems with our movie that need to be solved PRONTO.

CAP Hollywood Reflection #1

At the beginning of the project, I had a clear vision of what I wanted some of the scenes in the film to look like. However, when we were filming, it was a huge challenge to film accurate to my vision. This was because of time constraints and the ambitious ideas I had. 

Another challenge was improvising and changing some scenes due to the time constraint and the need to film all of the movie at school. We had to change the setting and lines of a variety of scenes to make it fit with what we were filming. 

Surprisingly, though, we were able to finish most of the filming in the span of two classes. It was cutting it close, and it was quite hectic, but it happened. 

One of the concerns I have is about audio. Some of the scenes we filmed had a lot of background noise and sometimes the actors would talk a little to quietly, so I hope the audio was still caught on the camera. Another concern I have is that the plot may not be completely clear to the audience. The story was complex in the first place, so we made sure to script and storyboard it very clearly and carefully. However, in the chaos, some of the scenes were omitted, and I hope after creating a rough cut, the plot will be clear.

I have the role of the director in this production, so I have found costumes, and put in my two cents about possible shots and lighting. I've also approved ideas for improvisations. 

This week, we really need to crack down and build our rough cut so that we can spend ample time editing the nitty-gritty details, as those take the most time. We also need to film two short scenes to complete the filming process.  

Weather

Okay, what is going on with the weather?

Starting Saturday, and stretching out along this week, we are being hit by cold weather, with lows somewhere in the 30's.

I just want to know what's causing this, and why its happening. Are we paying for those warm 80 degree weather days in January and February? Or is the whole weather system just  screwed up?

Scratch that. I really don't care what the reason is. Whatever the reason, I'm not happy with this at all. I was so happy to leave winter behind, but now this. As I wrote on my blog a while ago, cold, winter weather puts me in a worse mood than sunny, springtime mornings.

First it seemed like we were skipping right over spring and into summer, going from 30 degree weather to 80 degree weather.Now, it seems like we skipped over summer and went right back to fall. This is unacceptable.

And of all days, the first day of the cold front hit on the day of a track meet. It was beautiful running weather in the 70's just a couple days before, but BAM, on the day of the meet, its 50 degrees. Thanks. I appreciate it.

This cold front better fly by fast and never come back until next winter. Hopefully.

Justin Timberlake

Justin Timberlake's newest album was released, and I was extremely excited since he is my love. His single Suit & Tie was definitely one of my top 10 favorite songs for the past month or so, and I was so excited to see what other songs were on the album. 

After Suit & Tie came out, people were telling me that Justin Timberlake should not come back in the music industry. I thought differently. I believe that he has always been a musician, but decided to pursue acting and other things instead. I thought, if anyone, Ne-Yo deserved the criticism Timberlake was getting. Ne-Yo's old songs were all amazing, but his new songs are too pop-like. 

Back to the main point, Justin Timberlake's new album had come out. 

I listened to the entire album. I was so disappointed. 

I love the jazzy feel he is giving his music, but I couldn't finish most of the songs. Most of them are well over 6 or 7 minutes. 

Also, most of the songs featured on the album did not seem polished. I was expecting a tremendous album after all this time he spent not writing music. Luckily, he has another album coming out later this year which will hopefully be more polished. 

SPRING!

Spring is finally on its way! You have no idea how much I dread cold weather, and I don't think I'm alone.

There was an article in Silver Chips, the school newspaper, about Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). This is a type of depression that occurs at the same time every year. Now, I wouldn't say that winter depresses me, but I do find myself a lot more tired and unenthusiastic in the winter.

In springtime, however, I'm the exact opposite. The sunshine and the beautiful weather puts me in an amazing mood immediately, no matter how horrible my day was. Not only is the weather amazing, but the days are longer, leaving more time to go outside.

Spring motivates me to go places, while in the winter time, I don't want to do anything besides go from school to home and vice versa. I do admit, though, that if I were to stay in either cold or hot weather for the rest of my life, I would definitely choose cold weather, only because there's an escape. When it's cold, you can bundle up with as much clothes and blankets and eventually get warm. In the heat, however, stripping down to your shortest shorts will not help you be any cooler.

Award Shows

I'm watching the Oscar's right now, and I can't help but wonder how many award shows there are in America. It's a bit ridiculous. Just last week we had the Grammy's, and soon (maybe not? I really don't keep up with award shows. I just watch them when they come on) we have the Tony's. I can understand the Grammy's for music, the Tony's for Broadway, and the Oscar's for film, but think of the amount of award shows there are for music alone. There's one for country music, there are the MTV awards, and countless others.

How are the nominee's and people who win picked? Do people vote? Because I've never heard of anyone voting for these award shows. Are there professional critics? I just don't know.

Wow, a nine year old was nominated for best actress. I guess anything can happen. Don't give up on your dreams!

Catch-Up

Well, I haven't written a blog post in quite a while, so let me catch you up on everything that's happened so far.

Ravens won the Super Bowl!! Although I'm a true Redskins fan at heart, I was still happy for this Raven win. The game, however, did not feel like a Super Bowl game at all. There was barely any competition. A game, especially a Super Bowl game should keep you on your feet at all times, but that didn't really happen.

Also, the commercials were horrible. First off, most of the commercials were for CBS shows. Second, even the ones from other companies were not funny. Not even Doritos. Nothing will ever top the Doritos commercial with the little boy.

Twitter, however, was extra entertaining Super Bowl night. Meme's immediately came pouring in, and jokes about paying the electric bill and Beyonce were all over. Definitely one of the few highlights during the game.

"I need Ray Lewis to give me a speech to go to class everyday. I'd have a 4.0"

"Rihanna needs to get her forehead out there and shine bright like a diamond so we can finish this Super Bowl."

"109 yards in 11 seconds. I can't even get out of bed in 11 seconds."

"He was running like he wanted to catch Beyonce in the tunnel before she left. Waitttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt"

And those were just some of them.

The British kids came to America, and it was fun trying to mimic each other's accents and learn about each other's countries. It also meant a week off from work in most CAP classes.

In more recent news, I finished White Collar Season 3, and I'm excited to catch up to Season 4 :)

A Day in Silver Spring

For this challenge, I decided to do a montage of shots I filmed while roaming around my neighborhood. I compiled a good list of shots throughout the life of the assignment  but once I went in to edit the shots, all of them were gone. Apparently, something happened to our computer and all my shots were lost. Now, I had a total of one day to both edit and get new shots. With the limited time, I decided to use my phone instead of my camera to film. I filmed the sky in the morning, the drive to Sunday School, some kids at recess at Sunday School, the drive back from Sunday School, a local field in my neighborhood, and then the sky at night. After I got all of these shots, I started editing them using VideoPad, but then the program decided to spazz out. I lost all my work, yet again, and I had to start a new project with 3 hours until this assignment was due. Lastly, when I finally fixed all the glitches, all my text overlays stopped working. Therefore, I had to take snapshots and insert them in. The fact that my computer was acting extremely slow didn't help. This is not my best work, but it was the best I could do given the circumstances. I really enjoyed the idea of the challenge, but I regret that I wasn't able to embrace it. Now I fully understand the meaning of, "What can go wrong, will go wrong."

Super Size Me

For my documentary analysis, I watched Super Size Me, which follows a guy named Morgan Spurlock around for 30 days as he eats nothing but McDonalds for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I chose this documentary because, first of all, there's the movie poster in the classroom. Also, I eat fast food, not a lot, but enough to be interested in the effects it has on you.

After watching the documentary, I was surprised at the effects eating McDonalds had on Spurlock. Of course the results are a bit exaggerated because, hopefully, no person eats McDonalds for all three meals every single day, but they were still worrying.

The documentary didn't have any fancy editing or lighting, which gives it a home movie style, which gave it a realistic, personal feel to it where everything seemed real. To transition from one topic to the next, Spurlock uses art picturing McDonalds in a very negative way.

Super Size Me was definitely both an expository and interactive documentary, as Spurlock is trying to inform us about the harms of McDonalds, but he is the main focus of the film. The main sounds are diegetic and narration. Spurlock is the narrator, and the diegetic sounds are used when he is in McDonalds or talking to the doctor.

At the end, Spurlock uses text tracks to tell the story of what happened after his documentary was released about how his health progressed and other useful information. In the text track, it says that McDonalds removed the SuperSize option after this was released, but denies that it was as a result of the documentary. Despite the denial, I still think the documentary had something to do with this decision which surprises me, because I wouldn't think a documentary would have that huge of an effect.

Spurlock uses fades to transition from one shot to the next, which worked because it was a subtle reminder of a shot change.

Spurlock sometimes used low-key lighting for a purpose. For instance, when he was not feeling very good, he would use darker places to shoot while when he was eating, it would usually be in high-key.

Overall, this documentary was very effective. Will I stop eating McDonalds? Ehh, probably not. Will it make me think twice about eating McDonalds often? Most definitely. 

Pressure

The stress that comes from school is always being talked about, and I have used it as a go to topic whenever one was needed, but now is when I'm really feeling it. This year has been a huge stressor, and I can see it in my friends as well. We are always tired, and always working. Me and Rachel were talking the other day about the amount of things we do, just to get the tiniest bit closer to being recognized in college. We both do sports year round, and we both take high level classes from CAP to Honors PreCalc to Honors Chem, as do a lot of people we know. The amount of time that these courses and activities take up are a lot, but we both hoped that it would all pay off in the future.

The problem is, we can't always guarantee that everything we do will pay off in the future, which is unfortunate. Sometimes, it just has to do with luck. 

Documentary Topics

Oh gosh, time for the picking of documentary topics. There were so many good ideas presented in class that I don't know which one I want to do yet. Maybe I should do a profile on my friend's dad who is a former NFL player and now owns an investment company. Or maybe I could do it on the conceptions of beauty, where I could go around and interview people in the school about what beauty means to them. Hmm, or maybe I could do it on the immense pressure that students feel to do well in school since that is accessible. OR I could do a documentary about how sports affect people's lives.

There are just so many things that I am interested in, that I can't decide on one topic. I can visualize what each of these would look like, but, unfortunately yet fortunately, I can't do all the topics. I guess I will have to decide sooner or later. But my top three are probably:

1. Profile on my friend's dad
2. Conceptions of Beauty
3. Pressure in School

Those aren't in any particular order.

Fallen Leaves

This is my Capture the Fall project. I had much more fun doing this project rather than the 5x5 independent film project since this one was more challenging and involved more creativity. This project gave me a chance to be artsy since it, to me, involved nature. I filmed it with a Canon T3 and I think it came out pretty nice. This is one of the first project/assignment that I haven't procrastinated on in a LONG time. I was actually excited to do this project since photography is a passion of mine, as is video editing. I also got the chance to play around with the video on my T3 which I haven't done much in the past.

The film spots ended up being random places I went throughout the time of the project. Since I take my camera practically everywhere, I was able to take it out whenever I saw an opportunity for a good shot. I filmed outside my house, at my mosque, at my cousins' house, and random places on the road. I had a lot of other shots that I felt were strong but I couldn't include them since they didn't have to do with leaves.

I used a video editor called VideoPad since I heard the YouTube editor was basic and I didn't like my past experience with wevideo. VideoPad was surprisingly user friendly and it gave me good results.

The ending of the project was a bit chaotic. I had started off using a song called New Soul, but then I realized I had to use Creative Commons. I hastily found a song to use and it actually ended up fitting in well with the video.

Overall this was a fun project, and I look forward to future video challenges.

End of Quarter Numero Uno

Quarter One is FINALLY over.



Many people have warned me about sophomore year and the stress that comes with it, but I never paid it much mind. Walking into it, however, was a completely different story.

The quarter has been extremely stressful, yet I could never pinpoint the actual cause of this stress. I did know, however, that school was definitely a part of it. No matter how hard I tried, I could never organize my schedule. I got home from practice at 6:30 but due to dinner and showering, I wouldn't be able to start my homework until 7:30, that being the earliest.

The end of the quarter was the most stressful. We had two days off due to the hurricane, and I only had three days to bring my grades up. In addition to improving my grades, I also needed to meet several deadlines, such as the Dystopian Trailer.

In addition to that, procrastination is also a problem I have. I tend to procrastinate more than I should, and this also added to the stress. Going into the second quarter, I need to learn how to better manage my time through Ms. Cullen's calendar technique and through to do lists.

I also need to find time to study and revise, as I find myself coming into tests without having had studied due to no time.

All in all, it was quite a quarter that I learned a few lessons from, that I will definitely apply going into second quarter... hopefully.

Eid

Friday was Eid-al-adha, a Muslim holiday. This is a day of celebration including food, friends, and family. My Eid turned out great, and it was definitely the best Eid I've experienced in a long time.

First, I had to wake up at 6:00 am to get ready to go to the mosque for the first prayer. This was a bit annoying since it was supposed to be my day off, but I was waking up early anyway. But,surprisingly, I felt very awake. At the mosque, I saw a couple of friends from school and spent some time talking to them after prayer.

After that, my dad and I went to get new tires for his car and get them aligned. Immediately after, we went to  my uncle's house to visit my cousins since their dad was in Saudi Arabia making the pilgrimage called Hajj. Once there, we had fun laughing and eating.

After a while, us kids got bored while the adults talked so we decided to go outside and roam around the playground since it was such a beautiful day. At the playground, I got some footage for the new independent film project about what fall means to me. I also took some pictures of my cousins acting crazy at the playground.

Later, after we left my cousins' house, I went to the last Varsity volleyball game at Northwood. Although we lost, it was such an interesting game. I was also able to see my fellow JV teammates at the game which was also fun. We all lost our voices from cheering too much.

After I left the game, I went to my other cousins' house. There were a bunch of us here, and the more cousins the better. We played computer games, we played Xbox games such as NBA 2K13 and dance central. We also had some cake, and I LOVE cake with all my heart.

By the end of the day, I was exhausted. I got home, changed, and passed out on my bed.

This day was just the break I needed. I've been so stressed lately that this was a nice breather. I also learned the value of friends and family. The reason my day turned out so great is because I was able to spend it with them. I also realized how much of a community the Muslim community is. I felt immediately at home once I reached the mosque as multiple "Assalaamu Alaikums" and "Eid Mubaraks" were thrown around.

Sports for a Gym Credit

Sports should count as a gym credit in high school. One season of a sport should count for one quarter of gym.

People work harder and put more effort into their sport than they do into gym anyway. Rachel and I take weight training just to complete our gym credit, but we're both on sports teams. We work out a little during weight training, but we most definitely do not push ourselves to the fullest since, "it's just gym." When it comes to practice, however, it's a completely different story. I push myself through all the drills and put forth my best effort.

Gym should still remain an option for those who truly enjoy the class and for those who don't participate on sports teams. But for athletes, gym should not be a mandatory class. This class takes up space for athletes who can, instead, take another class they enjoy.

Taking gym also adds to the soreness, and who likes that?

Hijab?

I am Muslim, but not many people know that about me because I don't where the headscarf (hijab) that Muslim women wear. Many people ask me why I don't wear it, but I never know how to respond, because I don't know the reason myself.

Some people think that it's because I'm too scared about what other people think, but that, in fact, is not the issue at all. Blair is one of the most diverse and accepting communities I have ever been a part of, and if I were to be concerned with other people's thoughts of me, I wouldn't be worried about it at Blair. Others believe it's because I don't like being defined as Muslim. This is quite the opposite, as I am very proud to be Muslim.

The hijab represents purity and modestly in Islam. Whenever I wear it, I feel just that, modest and pure. I would wear it to school, but I feel as if I'm not ready. Although it is just an article of clothing, while wearing it, I represent the whole Muslim community, and that is a big responsibility I'm not sure I'm ready for. I've decided to try to wear the hijab whenever I go out with my dad, since he is where I get my religion from. This will, hopefully, gradually grow to me wearing it full time. Wish me luck :)

Dystopian Trailer Homework

Our script for the dystopian trailer is going well. We have easily incorporated dystopian elements such as the use of propaganda and conformity into our script. The only element we have had trouble with is the illusion to the citizens that they live in a utopian society. All of our audio is dialogue and music, but we have text slides to better explain certain elements that the audience may not be able to understand from the trailer. Our trailer follows the basic beginning, middle, and end structure. Another problem we are having is the ending. We are not sure how to end the trailer.

I found two sound clips that we could use in our trailer. One of them is Scary Scapes, which we could use at the beginning of our trailer to introduce the hazy mood of the trailer. The other sound clip is Dronetail, which we could loop somewhere in the middle of the trailer when Matt, our protagonist, becomes flustered and helpless.

Here are two sound clips:

5x5 Independent Film Project: Getting Ready for School

1. Waking Up to the Alarm
2. Taking a Shower
3. Eating Breakfast
4. Putting Shoes On
5. Leaving the House

I used a Canon T3 to film and I used WeVideo to edit my clips. I found the process fairly easy, but the edits I could make were basic. I have been using Final Cut Pro as a video editor since middle school, so I felt limited as I was using this editor. I couldn't, for example, cut out parts within a clip. I was only able to trim an entire clip.

I believe my 5x5 is okay, but it could have been a lot better if I had thoroughly planned it through. I could have also done a lot more advanced editing if I had the patience to play around with WeVideo.

I don't really have a specific idea about what our next project should be, but it should be something that allows us to express ourselves through the film.

Dystopian Trailer Critique: Minority Report

Minority Report . Steven Spielberg . PG-13 . 2002

In the near future, the government is able to stop crimes before they happen and arrest those who are suspected of almost committing those crimes. John Anderton (Tom Cruise) believes in the system until the government predicts that he will murder someone in 36 hours, but he doesn't even know the victim's name. The movie follows Anderton as he attempts to prove his innocence.

Minority Report Trailer

This trailer incorporates both text and dialogue in order to give the audience information about the premise. From the trailer, the audience can learn that the government is constantly monitoring citizens and society is an illusion of a perfect utopian world. The music is dramatic, which keeps the watchers on edge and filled with suspense. The catalyst is clearly identified in the trailer and so is the protagonist. The supporting characters can be inferred, but one cannot be completely sure. Overall, the audience is able to get the gist of the plot and the dystopian characteristics featured in the trailer.

I can use several of these techniques in my trailer. I can use the text to explain parts of the premise that I may not be able to portray through dialogue and acting. I can also use music to ultimately control the way the audience feels about the trailer.