Practical Skills
Equipment
A big part of my role as the director was to make sure that all the equipment we needed was on set at the right time. In multiple cases, some equipment was forgotten and lead to time being eaten up as I have to either run back to the unit base or get a fast car ride with the D.O.P. In addition, the tripod used in the film was sometimes very irritating as when it was static the footage was still a little shaky because of the wind hitting the tripod. There were a few screws loose on the tripod for most of the filming which made the footage shaky and sometimes wasn't able to be saved in the post, therefore the footage was a little bit ruined by the tripod. However, it was the only tripod we had so we had to deal with what we had got. The slider used in some shots of the film was also a bit of a burden, due to the rugged look it gives to the footage when it's used. The slider needed greasing up because it was getting really hard, however, on the certain day we needed it there was no grease on set so the slider shot had to be cut out of the final film. The track and dolly were useful to get some very cinematic shots, however, it was also very annoying when it came to using it in the woods or on any type of uneven ground. Overall, the equipment was difficult to use but the end results were very pleasing.
Collaborating with the D.O.P
Directing The Animals
The biggest worry and focus point of mine was the integral element of animals throughout 'The Lonefret'. The animals being a Great Dane, two horses and a flock of geese. A friend of mine, Zoe Hollingsworth, is the owner of the Great Dane and the two horses used in the film. It was ever so important that I clearly explained to Zoe what I needed out of the animals, she could then tell me if the animals were okay to do that or if they weren't. The first day of filming the first horse went a little south, the horse got angry and at one point almost bolted off. This lead to the horse having to go home early but thankfully we got all the shots I needed, but I knew if the horse wasn't behaving correctly there is no way I will be risking the safety of the crew by continuing to film. The second horse was far better and much more well behaved, which was crucial for that particular day because the horse would be galloping and cantering in a wooded area. The Great Dane was very well trained and had no issues with filming, the flock of geese took a day to track and film but in my opinion, the entire day to get that shot was really worth it. Overall, thanks to my clear communication and organisation with the animal trainer, Zoe, the animal scenes went very well overall.
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Directing the Crew
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During the production of 'The Lonefret,' the main principal crew consisted of three people. The three people included the sound man, the director of photography and myself the director. Having a small crew like this was very useful and efficient as it was easier to convey my ideas to a smaller crew then have to individually tell people the same thing which takes up more time and can get irritating. This also meant that there was nobody standing around who didn't have a job, everyone in the crew was always in the zone and nothing else at the time mattered then getting the best shot we can get. I found that leading the crew was an enjoyable element to my role, I believe I enjoyed it because I was well organised and managed to know what I was doing every time we set up a new shot. When I had to talk to the actors, I made sure to tell the D.O.P to be setting up the shot with the sound man so by the time I have finished talking with the actor about the shot then we can get right into filming. I found that this process was very helpful throughout production, if I was happy with the shot the D.O.P set up then I would proceed to call ready and the sound man and the D.O.P would hit record and then I would call action extra loud so that the actor could hear me if they were far away.
Directing the Actors
An essential collaboration on set was with the Directory of Photography, Jake P. Benham. Before any shot was set up, I went through the script with him of the certain action being acted out by the actor in that shot. Then from there, I would bring up my idea for the shot and if the D.O.P has another idea then we could decide which to embark on. I would often watch the shot from a camera monitor on a c-stand, however, I often refrained from looking at it too much when I was watching the performance of the actors as I believe you see far much more if you actually look at the actors then through a screen. In some shots, I had to be a stand-in for the actor. This lead to me being dressed in costume in front of the camera after composing it with the DOP and telling him about any camera movements that are needed for the shot. I often double check with the D.O.P regarding the aperture, focus and overall composition of the shot just in case he has missed something and I find out in the edit that there are issues that I can't change in post. When composing the shot with the D.O.P we would often debate which lens to use, we had a long 100mm lens that was good for long distance and close up shots, a 50mm shot which was good for mediums and face close-ups and finally a 35mm which was the widest lens we had and used it for most of the animal shots so that the animal would stay in shot if it moved a little.
I found the most enjoyable element of directing 'The Lonefret' was directing the actors. I really enjoyed seeing the actors act out the characters I have written. The process I went about directing the actors is as follows, before the shot is set-up I make sure to tell the actor what scene we are filming and what I expect the actor to be dong then once the actor is clear and set on what needs to be done I set-up the shot with the D.O.P and make sure the sound man is okay. Then, I return to the actor once the shot is set-up and then go through the blocking of the scene, such as where the actor will stand and how he moves around a scene. Once the blocking is accomplished, I will also ensure that the actor knows where the shot starts and ends so that he doesn't end up exiting frame halfway through a shot. After the actor is happy and is clear with what I expect from them, I go for the first take. Usually with the first take I use it as a trial take to see if the actor has understood what I have asked in some cases the actor has done it perfectly but in other cases I like the actions to be very specific and I keep going take after take until I am satisfied with the level of detail and authenticity by the actors.
As well as directing 'The Lonefret' I also edited it, the way I approached the editing of the film was very similar to how I approached directing the film. I kept a close eye on everything as a single frame or action that didn't sit well could completely ruin the entire film. Therefore, I was very cautious when editing and the main aim of the edit were to make it as seamless and invisible as possible. I never wanted the audience to notice the film cut, other than one particular cut that with sound design is meant to have more of an impact on the viewers. My research into reading the book 'In The Blink of An Eye' really paid off when editing as most of the film's "dialogue" was said through the eyes. Such as in the opening scene where the Treasure Hunter bites the dust to Ed's bullet, I told the actor portraying Ed to look at a branch in the distance and pretend that is the Treasure Hunter, as the treasure hunter wasn't their aeons item, he did that every single take (as I told him to). Upon viewing all of the takes of the shot I noticed that the eyeliner of Ed and the Treasure hunter didn't match up. Ed was looking off to the right when the lumberjack was looking at Ed from the left, therefore, the eyes were not looking at each other. I got around this issue by horizontally flipped Ed's footages so he was looking right at the Treasure Huyner, this I one example of how multiple shots were saved in post-production. I
Directing The Edit
Directing The Colour Grade
I found the most enjoyable element of directing 'The Lonefret' was directing the actors. I really enjoyed seeing the actors act out the characters I have written. The process I went about directing the actors is as follows, before the shot is set-up I make sure to tell the actor what scene we are filming and what I expect the actor to be dong then once the actor is clear and set on what needs to be done I set-up the shot with the D.O.P and make sure the sound man is okay. Then, I return to the actor once the shot is set-up and then go through the blocking of the scene, such as where the actor will stand and how he moves around a scene. Once the blocking is accomplished, I will also ensure that the actor knows where the shot starts and ends so that he doesn't end up exiting frame halfway through a shot. After the actor is happy and is clear with what I expect from them, I go for the first take. Usually with the first take I use it as a trial take to see if the actor has understood what I have asked in some cases the actor has done it perfectly but in other cases I like the actions to be very specific and I keep going take after take until I am satisfied with the level of detail and authenticity by the actors.
