Editing

      During the editing process, we tried to make many improvements to our commercial that we could only make digitally. Adding sound to a shot can drastically change the mood of the scene for the better depending on what music you use. For our scene specifically, we wanted to use school appropriate music that still gets our point across to the audience. From the footage that we dumped onto the computer, we went through our choices and decided which ones go best with each other and which ones needed to be deleted. All of our videos were in the folder DCIM. Pinnacle studios was giving us problems on the computer we used and this made editing difficult. Usually the application is easy to access and should be located on the desktop of the device. Since we were unable to make any actual changes to our commercial we just made visual notes and ideas for the future when we revise our project. We transferred our footage, and then we used our google drive to store our videos to improvise after the pinnacle studios was slow and not working. Today we spent plenty of time looking for other computer applications to use that have the tools we need for the film.
      While our videos were importing into the file we thought about different techniques to incorporate in our film because the computer was running really slow and we wanted to use our time wisely. Adding text can also be useful when editing if you want the audience to have a deeper understanding of the scene. Pinnacle studios not working was very frustrating, because in a way it makes us behind on our schedule and we have to improvise to fix our commercial.Our phones were very useful during class today because we used them to use the application iMovie while the computers were taken. This helped us edit some since Pinnacle studios and the app are similar to each other. If Pinnacle Studios worked correctly we could’ve finished the editing process of our film already most likely, but due to technical difficulties this was not accomplished. We still had a productive day filming our final shots to fill the rest of our commercial and then retrieving all of them  to see which scenes need to be edited. My group mates an I made an outline of what we are planning to do to ensure that when we actually start to finish up with editing we will have no delay and we will know what to do. Editing is important, because many commercial would be plain without it and the process adds extra to each scene that you film. Pinnacle studios wasn’t working for many other groups as well and we observed how they were editing for some ideas.
      Even though today didn’t go as planned, we still utilized our time to look over our commercial and piecing it together. We were not able to add sounds or any text to our film due to Pinnacle Studios not loading which was frustrating. However, class was useful to double check that the shots we filmed were what we were trying to capture. As well as thinking of ideas to use and what to insert into our commercial. For a few of the scenes we filmed we took multiple takes because we wanted to make sure that we correctly shot what we wanted to show the audience. The computers not working did not stop us from going further in completing our project and we stayed on task throughout the day. For the start of class we took up a few minutes filming so we didn’t have as long for the editing process. After finding out the application did not work we quickly worked to catch up on what we are supposed to be doing for the period. Next class we will continue to edit our commercial and add finishing touches so that the final product has no flaws. This completes the process for today and I look forward to finishing our film on google docs or Pinnacle Studios.

Filming

      Today in class we spent the day filming our commercials based on the storyboard we created. We used a series of shots, for example an establishing shot and close up shot. The purpose of our commercial is to persuade upcoming freshman to join our school campus. We made sure to capture the schools environment and the people within it. Our costumes consisted of school t-shirts and other accessories to reinforce school spirit. Each shot had multiple takes so that we can chose the best one in the end and to see what mistakes need to be fixed in our film. The storyboard helped a lot for the making of our commercial because it gave us a plan as to what to do first or what to do in general. We were not allowed to use any indoor buildings for our scenes so all of our shots are located outside on our campus. Using the notes we took on the equipment we were able to figure out how to work all of it correctly.
      Personally, I did many different things to benefit our commercial. I helped behind the camera to get shots of many different places in our school using the angles that we decided to use precisely. I also was in front of the camera for some scenes and acted to my best ability depending on what the scene was about. I persuaded others from different groups to join our commercial since they attend Fort Lauderdale High and we needed a large amount of people for a specific part at the end. We also had to make sure that the lighting was good in each take so that the audience can see clearly to ensure they understand what’s happening and why. Towards the end of class, we used the computers and techniques we learned recently to dump our footage from the SD card onto the computer of our choice. We utilized the SD card reader to do this process and recovered our footage successfully. This was an interesting experience since it was my first time ever filming something with actual camera equipment and I believe our final product will do well. We will continue filming our last scenes next class so that we can edit our project and do our best to revise/add whatever is needed.
     We filmed a total of 7 scenes for our commercial and many takes for each one. We have many options to chose from for our final product.For the first scene, we are inserting an establishing shot of our school from our website and then cropping it to show how our campus looks. Our next scene was a close up shot of one person and we applied blue face paint to show our school spirit and school colors. Next, we did a pan shot of many of the students who are here at Fort Lauderdale High in front of our media center. Another shot that we filmed was of the outside of our cafeteria and we showed students making conversation while enjoying their inexpensive school lunch. We filmed a number of shots showing the environment of our school for example a tracking shot of one of our school murals. Our last shot was a few of our students coming together to form the shape of a flying L our schools mascot. The purpose of all of these scenes is to suggest the benefits of our school and persuade people to come to Fort Lauderdale High.

Storyboarding

Today in AICE Media Studies, we storyboarded for our current commercial project. In our storyboard we have our project plans, our different scenes, angles, shots, camera movements and edits. We felt that it was important to make a storyboard so that we could write down all of our thoughts and ideas for this project and I have a flexible plan when filming and editing. This way we stay organized and limit the amount of mistakes we make during this project.  Angles that we used include high angles and low angles. For movements we used tracking and pan. We used many shots for our scenes including an establishing shot, stock shot, close up, and a long shot. We haven’t officially decided on transitions but we have thought of some, like a closing circle (iris out) and jump cut.

Editing Lesson Blog

   Today I learned a number of useful techniques as we start to ease into the filming process of our commercials. To start, every time when checking out a camera, we must take a paper from the front of the classroom. We will not receive a camera to film without it. All of the cameras are numbered and everyone should write where it says the item number so we know who is using which device. Another tip that I learned, is the camera takes a while to charge but it lasts a long time once fully charged. To turn the camera on all you have to do is flip the top open. If you are not using it and the battery is dead you must close the camera or else it will not work. To record press the red button. We talked about how to use our tripods as well and rules to follow. When we are carrying our tripods we must have them closed instead of open. Tripods are useful for when we use pan/tilt techniques in our scene.
   For editing, we will use the application known as Pinnacle Studio. Begin by inserting the SD card in the reader as well as the USB plug. Only one person should log in from your group each time you have to work. Create a folder and move it to your desktop to access all of your footage. DCIM should be the name of your project. You should always go to the bottom to look for yours initially. If you can’t find you group’s click on private and the name should be (AVCHE). To see everything on your SD card go into stream. Drag into folder by highlighting everything that you want to include. Put the SD card back into the camera/bag when you are done using it. This is known as “dump” and you do this to put your camera footage on a computer.
   We also learned how to import and export our information. You must go to Pinnacle Studio for this as well. Click on import, then my computer, and add to desktop. Find your folder on the desktop of your computer. Always import all of your footage while filming. Click start import on the bottom next and then click edit. Raw footage should be seen on the top left of the screen and you should make sure to build on AV Track 2. The title is held on the first line and on the bottom is the music/sound of your project. Drag raw footage and wait for the completion bar to be finished loading.  To cut something, move red line in front of what you want to cut with the razor blade or delete button. To transition, right click Fex Editor and then click Transition In. To export, go to your commercial folder and wait for export and give it a name. Export at the end of your film not every single time you are working.

Planning Blog for FLHS Commercial

      Today my group partners and I planned an outline out for the final product of our commercial for the school. The commercial will start with a stalk shot giving an overview of Fort Lauderdale High for the viewers to see how our school looks. Our commercial will include props, costumes, and different locations. We planned our film today in order to decide what to use for each of these categories. Planning is important because it allows you to focus on everything you want to mention/include in your project efficiently so that when the time comes we won’t forget anything in the actual product. We also discussed our schedule and back-up plan for what we are working on. This is important to ensure that we don’t make any mistakes and makes our filming process a little more organized. If we did not make a backup plan, if something were to occur that interferes with our idea and we didn’t think of something ahead of time that would be hard to come back from since we would need a new plan.

• Props: School IDs, Backpacks, Food (Emphasizes that we are on school campus)
• Costumes: FLHS merchandise, Blue/Black/White clothes, Blue accessories, Blue and White face paint (School spirit)
• Schedule: 10/10 - Planning our commercial 10/14 - Storyboarding with our ideas 10/22 - Filming day 10/24 - Editing commercial to revise mistakes 
• Location List : Fort Lauderdale High School - Building 5 Stair case, Senior Patio, and Bus loop (Shows a variety of places located on our campus) 
• Back-up Plan : If it rains, instead of filming at the senior patio we will film at the picnic tables outside of the cafeteria. We will extend the scene at the stair case instead of the bus loop as well. If someone in the group is absent we will instead use another student that is in our class. 

Research Conventions/Codes

      Today in my Aice Media Studies class, we picked our groups and did research for our commercial project. My group members are Montana and Reese. I think that we will be a good team because we all share the trait of creativity. I think that having all this creativity in our group will help our assignment in the long run. However, I do think that it may cause some bumps along the road. When deciding which topic to do our commercial on we had narrowed it down to two topics, anti-vaping or a FLHS commercial. We decided on doing a commercial for the school, advertising to persuade 8th graders to attend Fort Lauderdale High School, for the next school year.

      In a commercial there are many aspects relating to conventions and codes. They can be described as techniques, props, and characters that are used to enhance the scene. In our particular theme we focus on an academic and friendly environment at school. We will provide information on what makes our school unique and take footage of our campus and the clubs/activities within it. We also might show students in the commercial to persuade others about our atmosphere and the benefits of coming to our school.
     We chose the topic of FLHS for a few reasons, such as, the video can be used to show upcoming 9th graders a little about our school. Another reason is, since we currently attend the school why not make a commercial to advertise why others should attend as well. Our designed filming area for this course is conveniently the same that our topic is regarding. This makes the filming process less of a struggle and allows our location to be accessible. Since filming the location is important for one of our topic’s convention, Fort Lauderdale High was the ideal topic for our final choice. 

Introductory

      Hi, my name is Amanda and I enjoy having fun and living life to the fullest. Listening to music and going to the beach are two of my favorite things to do in my free time. I love to learn new things and utilizing my creativity. "Go with the flow" is a saying that I live by and I love being outdoors. My favorite season is Summer because during that part of the year it’s always sunny.  I currently am in the classes Sociology and Media Studies along with others.
      Listening to music is a great way to relieve stress and can change my mood completely on a rough day. It has a big impact on my life and I don't miss a day without listening to a playlist. The beach is my second home. I am an artistic person and drawing is a great way to use your creativity and to pass time. These are just to name a few of the things I do when I have downtime.
      I have learned many new things/skills already from my classes this school year and look forward to learning much more in the future. Media Studies in particular has taught me to analyze films in a way that I never did before. I chose this class because I watch shows often and I am interested to see how they are put together as well as learning how to make one on my own. I can now identify a scene by its camera angles, movements, and shots along with the sound that it has. Sociology has showed me a lot of new information as well and has given me perspective on how our society works. I chose Sociology because the course sounded interesting and I wanted to learn more about the topic.