Within this session, we were first introduced to our tutors: Sami Abusamra and Anna Maguire. They each gave a short overview of their careers, work and how they would assist us throughout our filmmaking process. We were then given an ambiguous script with no explantation of character, location or story and given the task of making it into a specific genre – either action parody or mockumentary.
After we divided our course participants into groups, we allocated roles to each of our team members. I decided to be part of the camera team as this is where I had the most experience. However, I hadn’t used a Blackmagic mini before, so I wanted to improve my knowledge of the camera before the actual shoot. We then collaborated in coming up with a backstory to our screen and planning our locations.
Our story was a mockumentary centred around a janitor showing us his day to day routine. Therefore our location was within the men’s bathroom in the BFI basement. We had to seek permission to film in here, which our producer handled. However, it was useful to learn about what is needed to secure a location and risk assessments. On the camera side of planning, myself and my fellow camera operator storyboarded our plan for the script and became more accustom with the script.
This session was extremely beneficial in determining crew dynamics and creating working relationships, as well as gaining a first insight into the preproduction process of a short film.
Holly McCandless-Desmond - NCFE Qualification 