Obstacles Part 2

Casting was one of the greatest challenges that our group had to overcome. At first we would have preferred everything to be as realistic as we could, we originally were going  to have a basketball team use our practice scenes, it would have been the real Cypress Bay basketball team. We believed that this would make the movie appear more real because they already possess the uniforms, chemistry and the actual experience of playing together. It was strictly prohibited to record at school and that just could not happen to me and my partner due to lack of time since we both are in full schedules at school and could not waste instruction time. It was not realistic to skip classes to shoot and it would have left us behind in terms of schoolwork.

Due to this that we were forced to alter our initial plan entirely. We had to have our other guy friends come and replace the basketball players in their positions rather than getting the official team involved. This solution was successful but it brought other problems. They needed to know how to position, to play naturally on the field and to make the scenes appear as real despite the fact they are not in the team. This also required us to have schedules that suited all our schedules after school which involved a great deal of organization by having to use group chats and constantly communicating with every single person.

The same was with the role of the girls. We initially considered having the real Cypress Bay cheerleaders in the film to make the scenes more authentic and school spirited. Unluckily, they were not given a chance to film after school either. This presented another challenge since we needed to do most of our shooting out of school hours. I chose to  fill one of the positions, as well as two of our close friends. This required a rapid change in choreography and costume arrangements and ensuring that the energy remained natural.

Obstacles Part 1

Through this whole process a lot has changed. 

Getting a bunch of high school students who all have their own things to take care of together is harder than you think. Our main character Camila, is no longer our main role, it is now going to be our friend Miah filling in! As for our boy main character he is on the school baseball team and it was hard to even get him to film just him. We were going to switch him out for someone else, but we found a day to get him after school and for the single shooting at night the same day!!

Overall this experience has taught my partner and I how during film production, communication and time management is key. We knew before starting this process not everything was going to go as planned, that is why we were prepared for things like this and had a plan B.

Production Process Update

 As of right now we have not began filming, but we have everything ready to begin such as people, props, film material, and settings. Today I will be discussing the things I just previously listed and how it will be in our film. I will also be going over how we are going to take on the scenes in all!

As for the people that are going to be in the opening are our four boys, the main character boy Conor, the other boys Rick, Nick, and Melvin. There will be 3 girls, the main character Camila, along with the two other girls Halle and Avery.

The boys will be using there basketball practice uniforms and athleisure wear, and the cheerleaders are going to wear there Cypress Bay Cheerleader merch. The costumes are obviously a great way to tell the audience that it is a high school basketball team and cheer team. When Camila is in her room rushing she will be wearing an all black sweat set. 

The props used are basketball, pom poms, cheer-bag, and duffle bag (drug bag). These are the main props used in both scenes. 

MEET OUR CHARACTER CAMILA

 In creating our main character we wanted her to be natural and not over the \

op or stereotypical. We were aware of the fact that she had to blend perfectly well within the high school setting but there had to be an element of mystery to her as well. Camila symbolizes a person who will fit into the regular school life, while the twist at the beginning is more successful. We did not want to make her clearly suspicious, but to create an impression of a person who is calm and barely noticeable at the first look.

When she was developing her identity we considered how minor details would make her who she is. Her presence on screen is the manner in which she conducts herself, the manner in which she responds in times of stress and even the speed of her movements. She is not too emotional or dramatical. Rather, she is intense with subtle facial expressions and restrained body language. This aids in keeping the mysterious feeling of the beginning. 

We have also thought over her character in the world of the movie. She is placed in an environment that appears to be ordinary and common, and her actions become more crazy and out of the ordinaru afterward. Such a contrast is crucial as it makes the audience doubt their knowledge about her. We do not tell you everything about her life, we just show the viewers and ask them to make their own opinion.

CAMLIAS VIBEE

EDITING

 Editing is one aspect of our production process that is very crucial as it is what unites it all. We have checked all our clips and then selected the best ones after filming.

In the initial scenes in the gym, we will use slower cuts to demonstrate the regular school life. We do not want the pacing to be hurried either early in it since this assists in creating contrast later.

In the packing scene, we are also going to utilize faster cuts to increase the speed. It will enhance the intensity of the scene and make it more stressful. We can also make the color a little darker so as to suit the serious tone.

We will also do a close editing of the final car scene to make the final line effective. The suspense before Are you ready? will be significant to create suspense.

Editing helps with mood and pacing and this is extremely crucial in thriller-type openings.

LOCATION

 Our two main locations in the our film "Extracurricular" are the school basketball court and our main character Camilas room.

We are going to first film in the basketball courts and make sure to get the various camera shots including wide shots that will capture the entire gym set up, and medium shots where the main characters will be positioned. There were also several tries of the mysterious look between two characters to ensure that it did not seem artificial.

Schools basketball court that we are using.

Background noise at the gym will be one of the obstacles that we are likely to encounter. Gyms are echoing so we needed to ensure that our camera was in place and the audio was comprehensible. We will consider the possibility of making a few improvements in editing in respect to some sounds. Recording of these scenes aided in setting up the scene of normal school before the atmosphere changes in the later stages of the opening.

In the second setting its going to be dimmed lit in the characters room. Giving a completely different vibe from the beginning. 

LOGO

 For our logo we decided to keep it simple and professional. 

At first we were thinking to into it trying to connect it to our film, but as we looked at the time it was angel numbers! My partner and I then decided to go with "333 Lucky Productions". The number design would almost repersent a four leaf clover to symbolize the luck.

In coming up with the logo, we gave attention to simple font and graphics in order to make sure that it was not crowded. The time it would take on the screen was also a consideration to us. The majority of professionally made logos in production are very brief and direct hence we ensured that our version took just a few seconds at the start of the film.

Overall, helped the project feel professional and real, and made me more excited for the final product!!

Our production logo