Prior to our shoot day, we were able to prepare for shooting our first set: the 'wall of clocks'. This helped me to feel more calm and prepared for our shoot day as we had everything prepared for filming so the following morning we could then focus on preparing our artist in costume and makeup.
When waking up to the morning of our shoot, I felt nervous yet excited to complete our filming ready to edit. I made sure that I had all my props ready to bring into the studio so that I didn't have to worry about packing and organizing on the day. Although I was feeling nervous to shoot because we had a limited time slot, I felt prepared as as a group we had completed a thorough process in our pre-production stage of planning everything such as props, costume and makeup so that we weren't making last minute decision on our shoot that would eat into our filming time.
Before starting to shoot, we had to prepare our artist, Nubia, in costume and makeup. This process took slightly longer than what we anticipated as our artist had to work on her lip-syncing as she was unsure of some of the lyrics. We overcame this problem by allowing her to listen to the song when doing her makeup.
The day before our shoot, we were able to pin up all the clocks on the wall which was very useful as when we first came into the studio we just had to worry about our artist and the lighting. I was really happy with how our first set up picked up on camera and I think that our concept really came to life. Initially the wall panels came across more yellow than I anticipated but with the use of lighting we were able to create a really ambient sunset effect which looked beautiful and hit the glass on the clocks really nicely.
On the actual shoot, we all participated in the creation of the video, taking over different roles. Throughout the day, I was in charge of coordinating the clapper board when filming which is important as it allows us to sync up the track with the footage when we come into the editing suite. When doing this role, I had to make sure that the clapper board was focused and in frame so that the editing process would be as easy as possible in post-production. I also got to coordinate the camera when filming our pendulum set and filmed a panning shot up the artist's body having to draw focus whilst doing so which was a challenge but I think that I achieved the shot we wanted. Although we all had a say in directing the shoot, Tilly mainly took on this role as she shouted directions as well as 'stand by' 'roll camera' 'playback' and 'cut' which is vital in achieving the footage we wanted. Anna predominantly took part in the camera work and filmed on the Dolly and Track during the sofa/apartment set up which she did well.
Personally, I feel as if I did particularly well in dressing and preparing our artist, I think that I helped her to feel more confident and comfortable as I went over the lyrics with her as well as giving her movement directions and gestures to perform whilst filming. I also used my makeup skills to get her ready and I think we created some really visually appealing looks for her that went with the aesthetic of our concept for 'Golden Hour'.
During our shoot, we did run into some problems. Nubia, our artist, struggled to remember the lyrics and therefore we took more time when we initially started to film as we had to film the same shot multiple different times so that she could grasp onto her lip-syncing. However, we stayed calm so that we could still be as efficient as we wanted and although losing time, we were still able to film what we wanted. We also took more time than expected when getting our artist in costume and doing her makeup, this meant that we were not able to complete the set of just having the artist on the distressed wall. However, this was overcome as we were able to shoot multiple none sync shots of our artist that we can then place into our video when editing.
I think that the most successful part of the shoot was filming the swinging pendulum. Prior to shoot day, we were unsure of how it would pick up on camera but with the added effects of lighting and the use of the smoke machine, it look really visually appealing on camera. In addition to this, I also think that we successfully shot enough footage for editing and was able to film some great non-sync, panning shots of the smashed up clocks on the table. As well as this, when filming the projections on the artist, I think that the close up shots we gained from this set were particularly successful.
I feel that we could of filmed the wall of clocks with more thought, because it was the first set we filmed we were all quite nervous and weren't in the flow of filming yet and therefore I feel that we could of used our time more efficiently and therefore we could have got more footage of this set up. However, we did manage to get a wide, close up and mid as well as some non-sync close ups of the clocks.
I really enjoyed directing the beginning of the apartment/sofa set up. I was able to direct our artist when lighting a candle whilst filming and then direct her movement on the sofa. This was exciting for me as I was able to see our vision come to life.
When it comes to editing, I am most looking forward to seeing how our table set footage will come together as we are editing our artist into a duplicate screen and therefore our concept will come to life in the editing process and help to make our video unique.
I think that as a whole, my group and I worked really well as a team in pre-production and in filming. We all contributed ideas and took on important roles on shoot day which allowed our filming to go smoothly and successfully. However, it was stressful at times when we knew we had to keep to a schedule and at times we had to realize that thinking calmly was more rational than rushing through the shoot.
When given the chance to next shoot something, I will be able to take in everything that I have learned from my shoot today and transfer those skills. I will be able to transfer my styling and costume skills onto my next project as that was a key factor in our music video with the shoot being based on our artist's star persona. To make my next shoot even more successful, I will make sure I keep strictly to schedule in order to shoot everything I plan too.
Overall, I am really happy with how our filming went and I am excited to be editor in our group so that I can piece together our footage to the song and create an effective music video.
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