This year, I was asked to crew for a total of 11 shoots, 7 shoots being for people in my year.
The first film I crewed for was Amanda Fox's "Lamia".
My role for Amanda's film was to be Director of Photography (DOP) (making sure all of the shots look interesting, are technically correct i.e lighting/mise-en-scene etc and that the cinematography portrayed the right message for the audience).
However, on the shoot, I was happy to take the role of both DOP and 1st Assistant Director (AD), meaning that I helped Amanda on many, if not all aspects of the shoot, and helped her organise the day.
Amanda's large crew meant that we could delegate extra roles to each person if needed - for example, George Smith was originally a runner, but because of his knowledge of lighting, he was asked to be the Gaffer (lighting), and position the lights correctly.
Overall, Amanda's shoot was a complete success, and I was happy to be both AD and DOP, as I could work closely with the crew, actress and director.
The second shoot I was on was George Smith's production called 'Revolt'.
Being Camera Operator, I worked closely with Rebecca Hilton, who was the DOP of the shoot. Starting at 6am, the shoot began by filming cutaways of as many natural elements as possible, such as trees, branches, berries and water. Throughout the day, we then met with the 3 actors George had cast, and worked with them until 5pm. Being the camera operator was initially a struggle, as the natural, harsh winter light made some shots impossible to film. Therefore, we all had to think on the spot and work out how we could film the shots. Nevertheless, once the shots were decided on, I thoroughly enjoyed being a camera operator, as I would like to work in the camera aspect of filming, and it gave me an opportunity to work on the EX3 cameras and get experience on them. The shoot ran extremely smoothly, and was a brilliant shoot overall.
George's Film!
Revolt from George Smith on Vimeo.
The next shoot I was a part of was Rebecca Hilton's film, 'Facade'.
Being the DOP of the shoot, I was working alongside James Harris to get the shots Rebecca wanted. Due to a technical issue which was out of my control, I could not work with a monitor, however, this was remedied by myself and James looking at the eyepiece before each shot was filmed. Although not ideal because of the short amount of time we had to film in, it was a necessary action to take, which allowed us to get the shots Rebecca wanted. The shots were powerful, emotively strong and portrayed a message to the audience, which was the brief we were walking towards.
I loved working with new people who I've never had the chance to work with before, and enjoyed seeing everyone work well as a team in order to help Rebecca get the film she wanted!
Rebecca's Film!
FACADE from Rebecca Hilton on Vimeo.
Rebecca Hood's shoot was the next crew I was a part of.
I was the Camera Operator for Rebecca's shoot - which I thoroughly enjoyed. The scope of shots used were inventive and creative, but Rebecca let her crew have an input in what shots to do. One of my favourite shots was a high angled shot pointing down, as her main character (Ernest Vernon) spoke on the phone. Her film looks beautiful, and Rebecca had a strong crew behind her to give ideas when needed. I felt that I progressed the most in the shoot, as I had to perform several smooth pans, micro-movements and focus pulls, which have all turned out successfully.
Lisa Stephenson's shoot was located in the heart of Stoke-on-Trent, which was my next crew to film with.
I was the Camera Operator for Lisa's shoot. I believe that as a crew, we managed to create an impressive film, and persevere when many issues interrupted our filming. Whilst on set, myself, George Smith, Rebecca Hood, Clark Stevens and Stephanie Scott re-wrote a part of her script, shot ideas, and created a floor plan, in order to help the shoot go much more smoothly. This was a success, as our plan for the rest of the day ran in order, and with the help from the rest of the crew, we managed to obtain the shots Lisa wanted.
Lisa's finished film
Final bereavement film from Lisa Stephenson on Vimeo.
The next crew I was a part of was Stephanie Scott's.
One of the most impressive aspects of Stephanie's shoot was her choice of actors. Both her actress and actor were an amazing attribute to the crew, and worked wonderfully. I enjoyed being a camera operator for Stephanie's shoot, as I learnt how to control movements of the camera, even with a damaged tripod. All of the shots came out stunning, and we added extra shots in to develop the film even further.
I enjoyed being on Stephanie's shoot, and cannot wait to see the finished footage!
The last 2nd year film I was a part of was Clark Stevens' film, 'Abduction'.
I was DOP on this, which meant I worked closely with Stephanie Scott (Camera Operator). I believe that we worked brilliantly as a team - her intuition for visually interesting shots is wonderful, and we worked together to get creative, emotive shots. The shoot as a whole was a relaxed, happy ending to the shoot week - we all worked well as a team, and with the addition of a 1st year runner, we were a full crew with many ideas to give to Clark. I loved being able to help Stephanie with shots, and assist her when needed, as she hadn't been on camera before. Using my room as the location, I knew where the light hit, therefore, we blocked all natural light from the room the night before, and set up the camera ready to film - which allowed the shoot to go smoothly.
Overall, I have learnt an immense amount being on shoots, and I have found that I can work well both as a team, and by myself. However, to improve myself as a DOP, I would like to work on the lighting aspect of filming, as I knew what looked good/bad, but didn't know how to resolve it. Therefore, I am going to study the art of lighting, and ask to be crewed as a Gaffer in future shoots.
Many thanks to everyone that let me be a part of their crew - I am very grateful, and cannot wait to see the finished footage!
