VIDEO & SOUND PRODUCTION - EXERCISES
21.04.25 - 1/06/25 (Week 1 - Week 6)
Michelle (0373843)
Video & Sound Production / Bachelor of Design (Honours) in Creative Media / Taylor's University
Exercises
Michelle (0373843)
Video & Sound Production / Bachelor of Design (Honours) in Creative Media / Taylor's University
Exercises
TABLE OF CONTENTS
LECTURES
Week 1
Shot Size
based on the main subject.
- Extreme Wide Shot (ELS), makes subject appear small and feel distant, showing scenery.
- Long Shot (LS) / Wide Shot (WS), closer than ELS, subject's whole body will be in view, but not filling the shot, showcasing subject's surroundings.
- Full Shot (FS), subject full body fills the frame.
- Medium Long Shot (MLS) / Medium Wide Shot (MWS), frames the subject from roughly the knees up.
- Cowboy Shot, frames the subject from roughly mid-thighs up.
- Medium Shot (MS), frames subject in more detail, roughly from the waist up through the torso.
- Medium Close Up (MCU), frames the subject from roughly chest-up.
- Close Up (CU), fills your frame with a part of your subject, to isolate from background. In face CU (no hair, no chin), reveal a subject’s emotions and reactions.
- Extreme Close Up (ECU), emphasize a specific feature of your subject, dramatic, shows in detail (e.g. textures).
Framing
- Single Shot, captures one subject.
- Two Shot, features two characters in frame.
- Three Shot, features three characters in frame.
- Over-the-Shoulder Shot (OTS), shows subject from behind the shoulder of another character (perspective). Doesn't always have to be shoulder.
- Point-of-View Shot (POV), camera placed with a character's hip in foreground, and the focus subject in the plane of acceptable focus.
Camera Angle
- Eye Level Shot, neutral.
- Low Angle Shot, frames the subject from a low camera height looking up.
- High Angle Shot, camera points down at your subject, creates inferiority.
- Hip Level Shot, waist-high.
- Knee Level Shot
- Ground level Shot
- Shoulder Level Shot, camera as high as subject’s shoulders, making them look shorter.
- Dutch Angle/Tilt Shot, camera is slanted to one side creating a sense of disorientation.
- Bird's Eye View/Overhead Shot, from way up high, looking down on subject with scenery surrounding it.
- Aerial Shot, shot from way up high for large expanse of scenery (taken by drone/helicopters).
Composition: the arrangement of visual elements in a camera frame
to convey an intended message.
Quiz Result
Week 2
Three-Act Story Structure by Syd Field 1978
Used in storytelling, particularly in film and literature.
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Figure 1.2.1 Three-Act Structure (Source: https://www.studiobinder.com/blog/three-act-structure/) |
1. Act One (Set Up), introduces protagonist and their
world.
- The hook: captivate audience.
- Inciting incident: kickstarting moment for story to progress (problem to solve).
- First plot point: the point of no return.
- First pinch point: first minor obstacle, usually involve antagonist.
- Mid point: turning point
- Second pitch point: setback
3. Act Three (Resolution), climax (peak of conflict) &
resolution.
- Third plot point: highest stake of story.
- Climax: the big bang, the final battle, the big kiss.
- Resolution: how journey affected the characters.
Quiz Result
Week 3
Storyboard :a visual
representation of a film, animation, or video game in a form of:
- Drawing/sketches/referenced images/photograph in sequence, per frame.
- Description of the shot (action, dialogue, or composition).
- Shot specifications (camera angles, shot size, lens-length, etc.).
- Arrows, indicate camera and/or character movement or how each shot connects to the next.
- Details (effects, sound, etc.).
Objective: communicate ideas and visualize the scenes for production
team. The more detailed, the easier to execute later.
Storyboard allows filmmakers to experiment different visual approaches,
identify potential problems, and make necessary adjustments before the
actual filming begins, saving time and resources.
Quiz Result
Week 4
- Production - planning & preparation: writing script, creating storyboards, casting actors, scouting locations, designing sets and costumes, and hiring crew members.
- Pre Production - filming: using plans & preparations made as guide.
- Post-Production - editing: cutting and arranging scenes, adding music and sound effects, color grading, and visual effects.
After, the film/video is distributed/marketed.
Production Crew
- Director: overseeing the entire production, ensuring the creative vision, direct the actors' performances, and determine the look and feel of the film.
- Producer: logistical and financial aspects (funding, hire crew, coordinate the schedule and locations), ensure project completes on time and on budget
- Cinematographer/Director of Photography (DP): visual aesthetic pf the film, choosing the right camera, lenses, and lighting to achieve the desired look and mood for each scene.
- Production Designer: visual design of the film (e.g. the sets, costumes, props), create visual world for the story.
- Sound Designer: recording and editing dialogue, sound effects, and music.
- Editor: shape the pacing, tone, and structure of the film.
Quiz Result
Week 5
Mise en scène (French for placing on stage): the visual arrangement and
presentation of a scene
Key Components:
- Setting and Location
- Physical Space: environment, realistic or abstract.
- Time Period
- Props & Objects - items used by character or present in scene.
- Costume & Makeup - express character (personality, status, occupation, etc.).
- Lighting - Use of light and shadow to create mood/atmosphere or highlight elements for audience's focus.
- Composition & Framing - Positioning within frame/stage (e.g.camera angles).
- Performance & Acting - Actor's movement, expressions, and interactions.
- Color Palette
- Spatial Relationships - The distance and arrangements between characters and object.
Note: each component affects each other.
Quiz Result
Week 6
Color Theory:
- A scientific principle on how color hues and saturation are created.
- A creative discipline on the use of color to achieve emotional effect in visual art.
- Key Components:
- Hue: the actual color.
- Saturation: intensity of a color.
- Brightness: light & dark.
- Color design strategy in pre-production is crucial, as post-production color grading can be costly and time-consuming. Filmmakers explored color schemes to evoke powerful moods and emotions to their audience.
Color Wheel: ranges of color.
- From back in the early 18th-century with Isaac Newton’s natural philosophical text Optics.
- Initially divided to 2: original (rainbow) & compounded. Progressively offers wider and more diverse ranges of spectral hues.
- Color Schemes
- Monochrome, varying tones of just one color.
- Analogous, colors that are next to each other on the color wheel.
- Complementary, colors that are colors that are opposite to one another on a color wheel.
- Triadic, colors that connect together on a color wheel to form an equilateral triangle.
- Tetradic, colors that connect together on a color wheel to form a rectangle.
Color Temperature:
- In color theory, blue is associated with cool, orange with warm.
- In color temperature opposite. Light in hotter temperature appear blue, and in cooler temperature appear orange.
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| Figure 1.6.1 Color Temperature (Source: Studio Binder) |
- Warm colors: romantic, dangerous
- Cool colors: calm, sad
White Balance: how color temperatures are registered.
Once set to a temperature, any light source with :
- the same temperature will appear white.
- higher temperature will appear cooler.
- lower temperature will appear warmer.
Color in Movies - strengthen meaning & emotions
- Background, environment, settings: desaturated, singular hue, etc.
- Characters: costume & make up to express personality/situation or provide emphasize & contrast.
Color Correction VS Color Grading
Color Correction - fix technical problem in post production (first, mandatory)
Adjusting brightness/darkness (exposure), contrast, color, white balance (in camera/editing).
Color Grading - creative flair, subjective, unique (optional)
Create consistent visual tone, in consistent color theme. Evoke emotion through color shifts.
Quiz Result
INSTRUCTIONS
EXERCISES
Week 1 (23/04/25)
On our first week, we are given an introduction to the module and also Adobe
Premiere Pro. Our first two exercises in getting to know the software is to
edit 2 videos: Mints & Doritos.
Mints
Doritos
Week 2 (30/04/2025)
We watched some videos like Christmas Advert video John Lewis, Thailand
Adds: Random Acts of Kindness, and Lalin to understand the difference
between idea, story, and video while also get to know the various kinds of
shots used in the clips along with their function. We were told that the
most important objective is for us to be able to translate idea -> story
-> visual board (creativity), video making is technique.
To accustom ourselves with the many different shots, framing, and angle, we
were instructed to form groups of three and record 8 shots of ourselves.
Then, we continue in training our editing skills by putting the clips
together and giving them caption in Adobe Premiere Pro. Below is the result
of my edit.
Week 3 (07/05/2025)
We viewed 2 videos: Allegro & Nash Edgerton (Spider) to get used to
determine the different story structures (e.g. inciting incident &
turning point). We were also taught that no problem = no story.
We also did a part of our assignment for week 4 in class. We were made into
groups of 5, and together we prepare a spreadsheet with a detailed list of
the need of audio tracks for a video clip from Everything Everywhere
All at Once to lighten our assignment for next week.
For exercise, we received a similar task like the previous week, which is to
shoot using different shots and angles. Then we edited them together. Below
is the result of my team's shooting video combined with my individual
editing.
Week 4 (14/05/2025)
We are given a tutorial on how to edit audio using Adobe Premiere Pro for our Project 1: Audio Dubbing. Then we follow along in class and edit the video clip from Everything Everywhere All at Once given with the audios we've recorded and collected the week before.
Week 5 (21/05/2025)
This week we practice making a storyboard from a shot list as preparation
for our final project. Planning steps in video making:
- Find an idea.
- Create approximately 2 sentence story for a 1 minute video.
- Breakdown the story.
- Form a shot list (storyboard without image).
- Make story board (with details of shot number, shot size, shot description and additional information like dialogue, sound effects, costume, etc.).
Note:
Shots are determined according to necessity of communicating the story, on
what is the main focus for each shot.
We also went to a studio and did a practice shooting with our assigned
team for our production project. I was assigned as the director of the
team.
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| Figure 1.5.1 Production Shoot Practice |
Week 9 (18/06/2025)
We practice editing special effects in After Effects.
- Background-only video: replace background of masked object/subject.
- Plain background (usually blue/green): for easy masking.
Steps:
- Import shots.
- Workspace: effects.
- Trim beginning &
- Shift Key to snap video while moving
- Split clip in the middle
- place in beginning & end with a gap
- Add background in gap
- place hand on first layer (top)
- effect, keying, keylight 1.2 - eyedropper, select color to remove
- dropdown menu - position *x,y)
- add jumping effect 2nd layer)
- roto brush - mask 1st frame, the rest AE do (green-add, red-subtract
- edge
- select all key frames - right click - keyframe assistant - easy ease
- motion blur on jump
- layer - new adjustment layer
- effect - color correct - lumetri color
overlap to have reference on size (scale) and position
FEEDBACKS
Week 1 (23/04/25)
Every camera shot, angle, and framing used has reasoning behind it - to convey parts of a story accurately.
Week 2 (30/04/2025)
When shooting, don't stand too close to background, have some distance.
Week 3 (07/05/2025)
- Most important objective: Us as new learner be able to translate idea to story to visual board (creative part - pre-production). Making video (production & post-production) is technical.
- Idea, story, and video are different. Story: what you see, what you get.
Week 4 (14/05/2025)
When given tutorials, focus and pay attention first, then try on our own. This way we'll less likely skipped on information.
Week 5 (21/05/2025)
We must pay attention and practice as much as we can to understand and get used to our own roles, as the real production will be limited to 3 hours.
Week 9 (18/06/2025)
- For final project, find visual effects with tutorial available.
- It's okay if we're confused and don't fully understand everything yet.
- Adobe keep crashing -> so keep saving
REFLECTION
Experience
Through this module's classes and exercises, I am able to learn about video and sound production effectively in many different ways. All the knowledge gained from reading, watching, and listening to the materials provided, were reviewed in QnA sessions in class which makes it more understandable and memorable. The tutorials was also given slowly with repetitions, making the process of discovery and follow along painless. The direct and short-in-time-exercises during the class also pushes me to be wise and quick in order to complete the task effectively. Overall, I felt like I got to learn and comprehend this module well due to it's variative activities.
Observation
I've noticed that the world of movie production is subjective. Though me and my classmates were given the same resources and instructions, the end result still varies. Sometimes, the personality and identity of a person can be seen through their works.
Findings
I've always imagined the world behind movies are complex. But I never precisely knew about it's production, pre- and post-. From this module, I understood and experienced the different stages of video and sound productions along with some of its the necessary tools and medium.
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