Video & Sound Production - Lecture Notes

28.08.2023 - 27.11.2023 / Week 01 - Week 14
Ilhan Rayan bin Khairul Anwar / 0361205
Video & Sound Production / Bachelor of Design (Honours) in Creative Media
Lecture Notes

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LECTURES 

Week 1: Introductory Week

We were introduced to the kind of work that we would be doing in this module and the three production roles we would be working, those being:

• Pre-Production
• Idea Development
• Storyboarding
• Visual References
• Location/Props
• Costumes
• Production
• Lighting
• Principal Shooting
• Acting
• Post Production
• Offline Editing
• Online Editing
• Audio Editing

Week 2: Framing & Storyboard

Cinematography

• Motion picture/Film/Video is made up of many shots compiled together
• Each shot requires specific placement of the camera in the most optimal position for that particular moment in the narrative.
• Sequence is a series of scenes of shots compiled together.

Shot Size

There are multiple types of shot sizes that determine how large of an area is visible within the frame, those being:

• Extreme Wide/Long Shot
• Shows a broad view of the surrounding landscape and surrounding area of the character.
• Conveys scale, distance, and geographical location. 
• Wide/Long Shot
• Includes the entire subject and important objects in the immediate surroundings. When used at the beginning of a scene it's called an "establishing shot."
• Medium Wide/Long Shot
• Usually shows the character shot above their knees in order to show the physical setting that the character is in.
• Can help with balancing figure and surroundings.
• Medium Shot
• Shows the character(s) that are important to understanding the scene.
• Gesture and expressions are usually shot from the waist up.
• Medium Close-up Shot
• Films the subject approximately between the forehead and the waist
• Close-up Shot
• Used to isolate the most important part of the subject, such as their head or a small object.
• Used to emphasise facial expressions and details.
• Extreme Close-up Shot
• Used to magnify details on the given character or object.
• Used to dramatise and/or give impact to something within a situation, which can help convey a message to the audience.
• Over the Shoulder Shot
• Shows the subject from behind their shoulder.
• Usually depicts something that the main character is focusing on, such as a person or an object.

Camera & Subject Angles

• Rule of Thirds
• A system used to divide the frame into thirds both horizontally and vertically. 
• The points where the vertical and horizontal lines cross are considered aesthetically pleasing points of interest used to place subjects or to be used as perspective lines.
• Facial Composition
• Face modelling is best when the subject is turned 45º (or 3/4) to the camera. The front and side of their face are usually displayed fully under proper lighting.
• 3 Dimensionality
• Most pronounced when 2 or more surfaces are photographed, such as foreground and background.
• Angling the camera in relation to the subject so that two sides of the objects are viewed can result in the most effect rendition.
• Angling the camera so that parallel lines diminish and converge can help guide the viewer's eyes to focus on important elements.
• Subject Height
• Angles can be used to contribute to artistic, dramatic, and psychological overtones can be contributed to the narrative just by adjusting the height in accordance to the subject.
• Eye Level
• From the eye level of the observer or from the subject's eye level.
• Low Angle
• When the camera is tilted upwards to view the subject.
• Can make characters look bigger, stronger, noble, or imposing.
• Also gives the impression of height.
• High Angle
• When the camera is tilted downwards towards the subject.
• Used to make a character look smaller, younger, weak, confused, or childlike.
  

Screen Direction

• Dynamic Screen Direction
• Depicts the subject moving in one direction as the camera usually tracks them. 
• A series of shots of a person waking, driving, and/or flying should be shown moving in the same direction to show progression.
• Static Screen Direction
• When the camera stays still and follows one or two characters interacting with one-another.
• Best understood in relation to the 180º rule.
• The rule enforces the camera to stay on one side of the scene / horizontal axis and never crosses section in order to prevent disorientation and/or confusion.
• The horizontal axis is known as the "line of action."
• If there's a camera on the left and right of the line of action, the cameras must stay on one side of the line of action.
• Also called "reverse angle shots"

Week 3: Storytelling in Film

Re-Cap

• Story (What?)
• The set of all events in a cause-effect relationship occurring in time and space, both the ones presented to the viewer and those that the viewer infers constitute the story.
• Plot (How and Why?)
• Everything visibly and audibly presented to the audience in the film, and material that is extraneous to the story.
  

The best way to understand plot is to understand plot segmentation, which can help create a scene-by-scene outline of the entire film.

Three Act Structure

The Three-Act Structure is a system utilised in all forms of film and television that act as a guide for how the story will progress through the narrative.

Plot Point 1: "The Plot Thickens"

• The inciting incident that starts the story.
• Turns the story in a new direction.
• Sets up Act Two
• Raises stakes
• Reminder for the narrative and the possibility of a different outcome.

Plot Point 2: "The Longest Mile"

• The climactic turning point
• Protagonist's quest reaches critical mass
• Possible solution is presented
• Biggest cliffhanger: will the protagonist win or lose?

Act 1: The Beginning / Setup

• Introduce the world
• Introduce the main characters and secondary / supporting cast
• Establish the conflict / dramatic situation
• Leads to an incident that complicates the story (Plot Point 1)

Act 2: Middle / Confrontation

• Known as the "Rising Action"
• Develop obstacles / complications
• Leads to the climax of the story (Plot Point 2)

Act 3: End / Resolution

• Ending of the climax
• Answer to all obstacles / problems
• Tying up loose ends

Week 4: Mise-en-scène

Originating from the French language, it literally translates to: mise (putting) en (on) scène (stage). It refers to what can be seen onscreen such as any and all visual elements that appear on camera as well as their arrangement. Everything in the frame can carry a meaning. Mise-en-scène also deals with:

• Composition
• The deliberate selection of frames and camera angles that make up a shot.
• Manipulating composition can accentuate the emotional themes of the story and communicate a sense (or lack) of meaning to the audience
• Set Design,
• Everything the audience sees within a particular scene. 
• These details can help build out the world of the location and add context to the story.
• Lighting
• Used to convey mood most clearly.
• High-key lighting is often used in musicals, romantic comedies, and relies on hard lighting to minimise shadows.
• Low-key lighting is often used in horror movies and allows for natural lighting to appear.
• Costume & Props
• Costumes are important tool that can be used to communicate a character's journey.
• Props are objects with a function to serve and drive the narrative or become a recurring motif to underscore themes of the film.
• Depth of Space
• The distance between objects, people, and scenery which is influenced by their placement and arrangement along the camera location and lens choice.

Week 5: No Class

Week 6: Colour Grading

• Colour Correction refers to the process where every clip of video footage is altered to match the colour temperature of multiple shots to a consistent appearance.
• It's mainly about balancing all of the colours on screen and ensuring everything looks nice.
• RGB: An additive colour model where red, green, and blue lights are aded together in various ways to produce different colours.
• Colour Grading is taking what you have done in colour correction and enhancing it for aesthetic and communicative purposes through a new visual tone.

Week 7: Audio Editing

• Hertz (Hz) is the human hearing frequency that ranges from 20Hz to 20,000Hz.
• Mono sounds are recorded using a single audio channel
• Stereo sounds are recorded using two audio channels.

Mono (Left) VS Stereo (Right)

• Decay Time: How many milliseconds the reverb takes to decay. Longer values gives longer reverb tails.
• Pre-Delay Time: How many milliseconds reverb takes to build to it's maximum amplitude.
• Perception: Simulates irregularities in the environment

Week 8: Independent Learning Week

Week 9: None

Week 10: None

Week 11 - Week 14: Stop Motion Shoot (No Lectures)