The Searchers

This was, as Andy said, “just a great movie”. It had everything you would expect from a good western and, for that matter, from any good story. Having seen the first three minutes in our previous class I had the opportunity to predict where the story might go. I was way off. I had thought due to the subtly detailed opening of the film, where John Wayne’s character Ethan returns ‘home’, that it was going to be about a roving, reckless rogue trying to settle down but perhaps realising that it is too late and his only real home is in the saddle. As it turns out, the introduction of Aaron’s family is not loaded with so much information in order to set-up their story but to set-up their sudden removal from Ethan’s story. That is the inciting incident of the film and therefore we need as much information about them and Ethan’s relationship with them as we can get as this must last us for the duration of the narrative and give us a foundation for Ethan’s motivations and actions. The set-up is skilfully implemented and, like the Indians in the film, John Ford misdirects us, setting us off on the wrong trail before galloping into the main narrative.

Derrick Ritchie – Lighting Gaffer

I’ve been a bit unfortunate when it comes to technical classes with industry practitioners so far. First it was Cammy for Sound and I was at the Mòd, and this time it was Derrick for Lighting and I had an MER Meeting. So I only got the benefit of an hour of his class though that was enough to pick up some very handy tips and gain an insight into the role and responsibilities of a Gaffer. One thing I would have liked to have asked him was if he knew where names like ‘gaffer’, ‘best boy’ and ‘grip’ originated from and how they came to be used for roles in a film crew. I did a bit of personal research and it seems that ‘gaffer’ is a traditional English name for a grandfather or respectful term for an elder and has been used as the name for Chief Electrician on a film set since 1936. ‘Best boy’ is much the same in origin and dates back to the apprentice system where the ‘best boy’ was the Master’s oldest and most experienced apprentice, the second-in-command, and this is reflected in their role on a film set. ‘Grip’ on the other hand seems to originate from the circus, and possibly from the early days of filmmaking where ‘grips’ were men whose job was literally to ‘keep a good grip’ on the camera to prevent it moving. All this really fascinates me and I’d love to research it more, but certainly it was very interesting to have a session with a real Gaffer even if it was, for me, rather brief.

Twelve Angry Men

This was the third time I’d seen this film and I was perfectly happy to sit through it again. It is a very well-written drama and the story unfolds with pace and precision as the characters open out and underlying hypocrisy, prejudice and bitterness are exposed. The one major issue, which struck me the first time I saw it, is its inescapable ‘theatricality’. It is a play, and works as such, but the very premise is, I’m afraid to say, ‘cinematically’ boring (I can imagine Richard’s reaction if I were to pitch something similar to him!). What jarred most, and reminded me that this was really a piece of theatre I was watching, was the constant getting up and walking around. It seems unnatural that whenever someone has line they have to get up and do something while they deliver it. This is necessary though as there is little visual excitement to be had from twelve men sitting round a table and it is all credit to Lumet that it is in fact as engaging as it is.

Good Bye Lenin!

So I finally got round to watching Good Bye Lenin! and I was a bit confused initially. It had been recommended to me as a comedy, even on the DVD cover was the quotation “A brilliantly original comedy”, but although it was certainly original and the premise had potential to be very funny I didn’t find it as comedic as I had hoped. A serious drama with humorous moments is probably a better description I feel. However, I was watching it for a purpose; as part of my study of German cinema. Interestingly this film broke the trend somewhat. Where previously the emphasis seemed to have been on Production Design more than story this film focussed primarily on story and character. However, design did play a crucial role as the story centres around the changes within Germany as the Berlin wall comes down. Much of the ‘western’ influences are told visually, for example the ‘Coca-cola’ logo popping up all over the place. Westernisation is seen as negative in the film and yet ironically this film is more ‘westernised’ than the other German films I’ve seen. Although it has lost that unique German look and texture it has not forsaken the artistic quality and emotional depth of a European production; the contrast in style and tone would have been immense had Hollywood got their hands on this premise first.

Avid Editing

I am certainly an avid editor, though it may take some time before I am an AVID editor. Gavin introduced us to the AVID editing software and highlighted some of the differences between it and Final Cut. I think I could get the hang of it relatively quickly; the basic principles are the same as any other NLE system. What excites me about it so much actually is its grounding in the original physical process of ‘cutting’ a film, even down to the symbols for an open and closed ‘bin’ where the footage is stored. Somehow this association with the past changes the whole approach of the editor and certainly gives me a more professional, even reverent, attitude to my editing. I also get the impression that AVID is a much more reliable piece of software. I feel I can trust it more for after all it is what the professionals use and has been first choice in the industry for at least a dozen years. I really look forward to using it more and discovering new levels to editing as I take this next step.

The Conversation

I don’t feel I have much to say about The Conversation. It was a good film and I found it reasonably enjoyable. It is hard to judge how much of a breakthrough it was in terms of sound as I feel Ben Burtt with Star Wars and WALL∙E is more on the front-line in that area. I do like this sort of mystery genre where the significance of one event becomes greater and greater as we discover more but I felt the film was a bit slow-moving for it to completely satisfy this style. It was certainly an interesting study on the issue of privacy and paranoia.

Sound

My Gaelic songs came in useful elsewhere also. I felt very bad about turning up late and leaving early from Cammy’s class so I could get to and from Oban but I am consoled that I did have an authorised absence sheet and that I sort of bought my permission by performing some songs for us to practise recording! Cammy seems great. He really knows his stuff and is very willing to impart as much knowledge as he can. He is not a teacher he is a sound recordist working in the industry which means he has no specific teaching method but in my opinion that is exactly how it should be. Better to have someone who really knows what they’re talking about and is certain to be communicating information that is definitely applicable than someone who is simply following a syllabus and doesn’t necessarily know how it practically applies.

The Royal National Mòd 2009

The Mòd is a Gaelic festival not much different from any other music festival except in its celebration of the whole culture surrounding the language, not just the music and poetry. So why mention it in my Reflective Performance Journal? Well, I competed this year in the Silver Pendant competition (for solo singers; the Silver pendant being the highest accolade for learners of the language) and to my delight I won (picture is me receiving the trophy for highest marks in the men’s competition). Though this may seem to have little to do with my studies in film and television it is nevertheless performance and, as I am now aware, this is a Performance Journal. There is a lot to be learned from standing up in front of an audience to communicate a song, especially if you yourself are not fluent in the language you are singing. It is a good insight into the actor’s process in terms of getting inside a character, and communicating that character, even if they themselves do not reflect that personality at all. I did also record a song for television (and I got to sit in the BBC studio for a bit to watch them work) which, again, was invaluable first-hand experience of what it’s like to perform for a camera, or in this case three or four. Moreover I think there is something in the communicating of a song in a language that I am not completely familiar with, but that in most cases my audience was, that directly reflects where I am as a filmmaker right now. I’m not going to pretend I am fluent in the language of film. I am definitely learning it, and am able to understand, interpret and speak it more and more, but as yet my knowledge as a filmmaker does not match that of the audience, who in most cases have been brought up with it. Yet, like my Gaelic singing this does not necessarily limit my ability to tell a story through the medium of film. I know neither my Gaelic nor my music was flawless in my songs but it wasn’t entirely because of technical ability that I won. I believe it was because I knew the message of the song and I put all my effort into communicating that with the audience. They engaged with the character, they felt the emotion and the slight technical problems didn’t even matter. The same is true of film. If the message and meaning is convincingly and wholeheartedly portrayed the audience will not worry that the filmmaker is not quite fluent in the language; they will sit back and enjoy the performance.

FilmG 'Shooting Your Film' workshops

On Saturday I was in Inverness at the Highlands & Islands Enterprise building for a workshop day organised by FilmG to help in the process of practically turning a script into a film. It basically consisted of three one-on-one tutorials with industry professionals; a director – Eleanor Yule, a Gaelic producer – Morag Stewart, and a designer – Mark Lease. I found it extremely helpful. As it happened my script came out needing to be totally re-structured and re-written but it was worth it just to thrash out the problems with some people who really knew what they were talking about. Of course we didn’t only talk about the script. I also had lengthy conversations about good DPs, Kevin Macdonald and The Eagle of the Ninth, German Expressionism and what it takes to make it in the industry. I experienced a rainbow of emotions as I met these people, allowed my work to be scrutinised and opened myself to their comments and criticism but ultimately the day was both challenging and rewarding. I got a feeling, which I’m not going to try and explain, where I just knew that this was the day I would look back upon and remember as the day I knew my goal was possible, I have the potential, and that if I really want to then I can make it in this industry; my dream became, just for a moment, a visible reality.

Strike (Stachka)

The first two-thirds of this film were skilfully constructed and very engaging. I was pleasantly surprised to find myself understanding the characters, appreciating the editing and following the story without being distracted by the less familiar silent film style. Moreover the story content was refreshingly original for me; I don’t know many stories about worker-strikes. So I bought into it and was even enjoying it… then Eisenstein went a bit crazy… and very Russian. The last two sections of this film in six chapters just completely lost me, confused me, amused me (unintentionally I’m sure!) and ultimately bored me. My main issue was with character. Cleverly Eisenstein had set up various main characters amongst the workers who we knew and recognised but then in the build-up to the climax, when our emotional attachment to the characters is of greatest importance, they disappear. Worse, he actually introduces a whole bunch of new characters – some crazy people who live in barrels – and goes off on a complete tangent. This community has not been set up in any way and neither has the set-up of our previous group of characters been paid off. I just became totally lost. Further to this problem is Eisenstein’s insistence, like in Potemkin, of making ‘the mob’ his protagonist. We become emotionally engaged in a story if we know and care for the characters. A mob is kind of hard to engage with, on any level, especially if they’re running around willy-nilly doing goodness knows what without a moments breather. The intended theme of injustice doesn’t work unless we somehow know this crowd and feel their pain. When they are hosed down we are obviously supposed to feel angry at the unfairness of the situation but because I had no emotional attachment I felt nothing and instead watched it with mild discomfort and occasionally amusement. Even the baby being thrown off the balcony produced horrified hilarity rather than serious shock and the cow being slaughtered, though unpleasant to watch, had little emotional significance for me. So I don’t think Eisenstein set up his pay-offs, or paid off his set-ups in this film and despite some ground-breaking editing it lost both my emotional attachment and engagement with the story.

More New Starts

Our first class of the Cinema Movements module followed on from our screening of Metropolis and was about Production Design. The visual language of film is something which fascinates me and I am reading up a bit on Semiotics at present, purely for interest sake. Production Design is one of those elements which, like Music, if done well should be unnoticeable. It is, as Andy said, there to enhance the story, not supplant it; “The most beautiful ballroom on earth means nothing unless it helps the context of the story” Patrizia von Brandenstein. I did have an idea for a film where the design was what excited me about it, rather than any element of the story, only to discover that A Very Long Engagement might already have implemented my idea. That’s another one for the viewing list! We also touched on the place of CGI in films as an aid for Production Design. I was delighted and impressed by a birthday card I received from a friend (hand-made!) which pretty much sums up the issue.

Not much has changed in our Screenwriting classes. Still starting with a warm-up, still certain of receiving homework and still not all sure about theme! I’m very glad we are still having classes as I find them very helpful and motivational. I am determined to be regimentally self-disciplined this year with my writing and make the time for it. Hopefully by the time we move into tutorials my writing will be habitual and self-motivated. I do enjoy it, I just don’t do it regularly enough.

Our module on TV Content with Adam started this year with a brief from Channel Four for a programme idea. This is apparently what we will be working on this year and I know already that I will be rubbish at it. I don’t watch enough television and I’m pretty sure the kind of idea Channel Four will be looking for is not my type of thing. I am determined to try and think out of the box and do my best with it but if I’m honest it’s not really my cup of tea.

Technical classes started up with a ‘quiz’ to test our retention of information from last year which was accessed through Moodle (Ray’s new toy) and was unexpectedly difficult. “Multiple choice,” thought I, “how hard can it be?”. Many of the questions covered things that I’m sure we never learnt last year… or maybe my memory is just worse than I thought. However, we did also break out some kit and even now there is an irresistible surge of excitement when handling and learning about new and more professional kit. Somehow even just the sight of a 570 sitting on a Ronford Baker tripod is enough to get the adrenaline-pumping and to awaken the urge to get out there and shoot movies!

Metropolis

I need to explore more German cinema. So far the German films I have seen (e.g. Nosferatu, Der Architek) have shared a quality and rich texture which has fascinated me. I get the impression that Germans go for the look first and foremost, and then story is secondary and this held true for Metropolis. The production design was immense and I can well imagine that the inspiration for the world came way before any characters or story were created to populate that world. This is interesting because it conflicts with the basics we looked at with Zam, and have been taught by Richard, where Story comes first and style follows (something which I discovered Petra, our exchange classmate from the Czech Republic, disagrees with). I suppose this comes down to a fundamental contrast between the Americanised view of filmmaking and the more art-house stylistic method which is often seen in European cinema. In short, perhaps one is commercial and the other art? But I digress. Metropolis kept me wide-eyed and mildly entertained, though I did find myself laughing at moments which I’m certain were not intended to be funny, and all in all it was an innovative and inspiring visual feast. I am aware that most of my comment at this stage cannot merit more than mere speculation but I do intend to educate myself further if possible on German cinema in particular. My first step will be to watch another German film which has been recommended to me: Good Bye Lenin!

New Starts

I was shocked to discover, on reading the Programme Handbook we were given at the start of last year (yes, I got round to reading it eventually… it is now my constant study!), that I have been deluded for an entire year. RPJ is not, as I had thought, an acrostic for Reflective Personal Journal but for Reflective Performance Journal… and I blame Creative Beginnings. Therefore where last year I kept a personal journal this year I will try and make it more of a performance journal and instead of recording my reflections in weekly entries I will write a separate post for each significant reflection.

As is to be expected there was a lot of talking to sit through during our welcome to first the School of Drama and then the DFTV Programme most of which was very encouraging. By far the most exciting piece of information was the news that our second year will be focussed on performance (as if to spite my personal journal...) and what happens in front of the camera, working with actors and bringing characters alive. Also the introduction of a Directing module sounds intriguing and all in all it seems to be shaping up to be an adventurous and challenging year. I can’t wait.

No gentle transition for us busy second years. We kicked off on our first afternoon back with an introductory class on Factual Filmmaking. I’m finding I have an unexpected interest in non-fiction storytelling, research and the gathering and organising of information. I am really keen to try my hand at some serious documentary-making. I have a few ideas in the pipeline which was hugely helpful as I could apply them as Andy went through the process of research and practically walk it through in my mind. I also really enjoyed our blitzed research project on the enigma that is ‘Andy Dougan’ which was perhaps more fun than it was informative but I’m sure I won’t forget the things I learned in that class anyway!

Principles of Directing, in theory, sounds amazing and I know it’s early days yet but I couldn’t help feeling that what we were doing with Zam Salim on Wednesday – showing our favourite films and discussing them – we had already covered in either Andy’s first Cinema module or in Screenwriting class. However I can appreciate that this is probably more for Zam’s benefit than ours at present. He needs to get to know the class. I must say I’m rather impressed with him so far… but maybe I’m just star-struck by someone who is actually living the dream; and not just any dream… my dream!