The first thing to do when planning the production design of your sequence, "the look" of the film, is to work out every property (prop) and piece of set dressing you will need. The first stage is to "line the script". This means going through the script with different coloured highlighter pens and highlighting every important piece of wardrobe or costume, props, which includes all objects characters interact with and any elements that you'll need to "dress" the set. These might be things you need to add character and detail, such as posters or signs, as well as elements needed to hide or camouflage inappropriate fittings and fixtures, i.e. hanging baskets or plant pots to hide satellite dishes and plug sockets in period dramas.
Go through your script and highlight any instances where props, etc are mentioned explicitly, as in this extract from one group's script:
In other cases, re-reading the script might make you see new situations in which the addition of a specific prop or piece of set design might help the viewer understand what's going on more quickly, as with this extract from a different group's script:
When you have done that, write up the results in a table on your blog as follows:
1) Find a definition and briefly explain what matte painting for film is.
2) Plot out a brief history of matte painting describing the key points in its development and use in film and TV.
3) Find a use of it in a film and analyse why it was used, how it was used and critique the final piece (is it convincing etc).
Again - just like the research for the green screen - starting with wikipedia (here and here) is useful as long as you use the references at the bottom of the document.
Also have a look at the following articles and videos:
How digital matte painters work
The best matte paintings of all time
Watch and write notes on the above tutorial.
Then on a blog post (with pictures if appropriate) explain the numerous ways you can take a Premiere project/footage into After Effects.
Having composed a moodboard of costuming ideas for each character, your next task is to create a model sheet for each character. The first part is to begin mocking up what this character might look like, using a generic mannequin diagram.
When you have designed a model sheet for each character, combine this with the mood board and the character bio written up on your blog into a single character background sheet
The term 'costume' refers to any clothing worn by actors in the course of a production. The costume department is responsible for this along with accessories, footwear, underwear, millinery and any other garments (http://www.bbc.co.uk/design/design_roles.shtml)
Costume is a quick way to suggest character. What clothes people wear and the way in which they wear them tells us a lot about their personality and perhaps quite a bit about their social background.
TASK
For each character in your script there should be a Character Bio. Using the bio as a starting point, create a mood board of photographs that suggest the kind of visual look and costume ideas that could be appropriate for that particular character. Don't limit yourself to a Google image search. Look on flickr.com as well as instagram, deviant art and elsewhere.
The mood board should be a collage of ideas and influences, a collection of snapshots that show a mix of stereotypical and individual takes on different looks and that demonstrates that you've thought about every aspect of costuming, from hats and jewellery down to what kind of shoes or trainers the character would wear and why. You can individually create a storyboard for each character or divide the characters up amongst different members of the group. It's important that each character stands out individually, even, as in the case of St. Trinian's they are supposed to be wearing the same uniform!
For the first AO of the Visual Effects unit you must understand and analyse the use of 3 different effects types. The FIRST one will be GREEN SCREEN.
Write on your blog a response to the following:
1) Find a definition and briefly explain what green screening is.
2) Plot out a brief history of green screening describing the key points in its development and use in film and TV.
3) Find a use of it in a film and analyse why it was used, how it was used and critique the final piece (is it convincing etc).
To help you research - use Wikipedia - it's a great start but follow up you research by looking at the references at the bottom of the document.
Watch this documentary - the man is annoying but it is useful:
Then search on Youtube or for articles about use of green screen in certain films. Look for obvious big budget special effects films but if you look for its use in TV dramas like Ugly Betty you'll be surprised just how much it is used.
Today's production meeting will be a review of your animatic. On your blog, consider the following prompts and what do the answers tell you about the production of your planned sequence:
1. SHOT LENGTH - Average shot length in Hollywood is now 2.5 seconds, i.e. shots are held on average for two and a half seconds before cutting to the next. That means for a two-minute sequence you would expect to have on average around 48 shots. What is the average shot length (ASL) of your sequence. If it is over 3 seconds you need to look at breaking up your scenes into more shots, with cutaways and faster paced shot-reverse shots.
2. CAMERA MOVEMENT - If the camera isn't moving then you need to ensure that your static shots are well-composed and have enough visual interest to hold the viewer's attention. Does the animatic/storyboard show enough consideration of shot composition?
3. SOUND LEVELS - Does the audio mix of the sequence work? Can you hear dialogue clearly over ambient noise and/or music? Is the recording of the dialogue competent, with enough blank space at the beginning and end to make the clip work in the mix?
4. VOICE ACTING - This is the first time you will have heard your scripted dialogue spoken aloud. Does it work? Do the lines sound convincing? Is the voice acting convincing or will you need more time to rehearse or even find new voice talent?
5. VFX - Is it clear from the animatic where and when the three visual effects sequences will occur?
6. PEER FEEDBACK - What issues did other people not familiar with your script raise when watching the animatic? Did the sequence make sense? Hold their interest? If not, why not?