For this assignment I have been challenged with creating a short film that has the running time of four minutes at minimum. My idea is to create a short film that is aimed for a 16 to 30 year old target audience, the short film being an action comedy and will answer the question of whether I can replicate the style of the auteur, Edgar Wright, as that is the task at hand, the working title being ‘Two-Tied Thieves.’ 

 

The concept behind the film was that I planned to grip the audience with was the aftermath of a bank robbery, the audience wanting to know what happened in the robbery but only gets split information. I also planned to hook the audience by using Edgar Wright’s techniques with a high amount of detail in the characters and the story line. I chose the audience of 16 to 30 year olds as I believed this would be the most fitting audience to an action comedy, many of Edgar Wright’s films being aimed at an audience of this age and would be the most fitting for my story line. The purpose of the video is to entertain the audience, using the comedy, story and the characters to hook the audience into the film, keeping them interested and entertained throughout.

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The filming process went well, the three actors turning up on time and being able to perform to the standard needed from them. They understood the need of re-doing shots to make the performance much better and took the production seriously, coming up with ideas that they thought would be best implicated into the film. With their understanding of the script and the filming process, it was easier to direct them and they could easily get into their characters. Throughout the filming process I felt that it was going well didn't know whether it would be long enough overall, this being a constant worry whilst filming as I altered to get more shots that I didn't plan to have beforehand, making sure that I would gather enough usable footage. I chose Kings Arms as my location as it is local and has a British feel to the location, the inside of the pub fitting my colour scheme and resembling some of the pubs seen in 'World's End', this pub being my first choice to visit and ask to film at. The manager of the pub was welcoming on the day and left us to our own devices, making sure that those around in the pub were aware that we were filming and that we were comfortable throughout the filming process. They played music suited to the style, being able to be heard in the background and didn't overtake the audio of the talking but works as filler in the background. When we went into the pub the atmosphere was calm and nice and we spoke to the manager, him being welcoming and accepting us to film at his establishment, making the filming production feel much more calm than beforehand.

What also went well in the filming process was the camera movements, being able to perform the whip pans from the practices that I did beforehand. I learnt that to create a whip pan you need to start from your frame before whipping to the right, allowing the shot to become blurry when moving, making it easy to perform on the day and remember which were the exit and intro shots in comparison to each other. The camera movements were made easier with the use of a gimbal, making the shots steadier and made the running scenes easier to record and follow after the actors, being able to keep the audience entertained and interested throughout. I believe that I managed to fit to the style of Edgar Wright as an auteur but was proven to be a challenge. I had researched and practiced the techniques to try and perform them but are nothing in comparison to the originals. By using a well thought out script and the camera techniques necessary, I think that I managed to replicate his style but also implement some of my own style throughout the video.

The editing process went easily and smoothly, being easy to edit the whip pans as I had practiced them beforehand and was able to perform them in the filming process. By performing them in production, it was easier to blend the shots and make them transition between each other as I expected them to look. Throughout the filming process I was thinking that I wouldn't have enough footage for four minutes but throughout editing I discovered that I had enough footage and was able to play around with the order to make it look more professional than what I had originally planned. This production was edited in Premiere Pro Cc, having a good and regular experience with this editing software and knowing how to use to it to the best of my abilities to try and replicate the style of Edgar Wright. I gave myself a week at minimum to edit, maximum being two weeks, the planning being an important element to this production. In editing I also added a LUT over the footage, adding an overall feel to the film and to be represented to the audience, following the colour scheme of Edgar Wright's style. Throughout editing I tried to stick as close as possible to Wright's editing techniques and perform them, being able to do so throughout the editing process. I managed to create and show the style that I wanted to create through the edit and was one of the elements that went well throughout the whole project.

The main issue that I faced was whether I had gained enough footage throughout the filming process, being proven that I had enough for five minutes despite my worries. The weather was also an issue, the weather changing between rain, snow and sun but we managed to work around the weather and keep the overall look of the film, keeping the same style of weather in the background. Things I could have improved was the pacing, some of the parts in the editing being too quick and felt like it needed a few more clips, myself wanting to add more clips in this scene to make it feel more natural and to fit to the style of Edgar Wright. Another issue was that my actors kept looking down at the script but I worked around this issue by cutting to the other person when they glanced down towards the paper as often as I could.

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My overall feelings of this project is that it went as I expected and turned out similarly to how I imagined it, if not better than I imagined. I had moments where I thought that I wouldn't be able to create the video I wanted in the correct style of Edgar Wright but have managed to do so even with the doubt. Overall, this production has taught me things I didn't know beforehand such as the whip pan and how to perform it but also that it is difficult to replicate someone else's style when it is so unique such as Edgar Wright or any other auteur without including some of your own style into the video. I am glad with how the video turned out and that people are enjoying it, finding it funny and well produced from the planning beforehand, the responses being positive.

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