Group discussion

    So today we met in groups to discuss the progress we have made so far with various individuals' projects. My project is further down the line than I had realized in relation to other people in my class but we had to speed up production due to the fact that Paulina will not be here during spring break nor the week after so our filming has to be done by March 17th. Since we already filmed our project (if you haven't read my post 'Filming Day 1 (FOR REAL)'  definitely head over and do that now!!), there was not too much feedback we needed help with.

    Above is a picture of everyone in my group, they were all so sweet and helpful. I loved hearing about their ideas and helping them make their project better!! The main piece of advice that was very beneficial was in regards to our title. We originally were going to make the letters melt off the screen like a candle but we were afraid that would be too cheesy or cliche. However, after a group consensus, we came to the agreement that it would be cute for our opening. Over spring break we will work on editing our opening, the distribution/production company logos, and the title animation. We were also considering animating the beginning of our film however due to the time restraint we have, I cannot foresee that occurring. I am so excited to edit and I will update you all soon!! That is all for now!

Filming Day 1 (FOR REAL!)

 The day finally came!! It is two weeks later than originally planned but like they say, it is better late than never. Rather than spoiling too much of our film, I took some funny behind-the-scenes pictures of some failures and successes we encountered as we filmed. 

    We wanted to film from two angles but make sure we avoided continuity errors so Paulina hid behind a tree and filmed and we may have looked ridiculous - but it worked. Believe it or not, she is actually standing in the same spot in both of those pictures. 

    Daniela's dog,  Max, was looking for his big break. In every scene we filmed, he was there. The only way he would ever move was for a bribe - a banana. While filming, we managed to go through two bananas and filmed with a dog next to us for a majority of the scenes. We even had to refilm a scene because Max's tail was in the bottom wagging back and forth. Above is a video of us feeding Max a banana except I had to speed it up because the file was too large and that messed up the sound but it is okay. 

    In Danny's room, there was a sign that we could not take down that said in neon pink letters "Danny". So, we decided that Berkley's full name will be Berkley Daniela "Danny" Morgan. Now, Danny can be her nickname and we avoid the issue of a new name. 

    We also did not have any filming supplies besides our phones. We thought we had tripods at home from previous projects but they were nowhere to be found and we were going to borrow a stabilizer but we forgot to ask so we ended up attempting to make our own tripod. We used an old paper towel roll and scissors and followed a YouTube tutorial. It ended up being a massive fail and we relied on handheld shots. Overall, the handheld shots gave us a more realistic and relatable feel so it did work out in the end. We are very pleased with how our footage came out and we learned a lot of important lessons. Thanks for reading and I will update you all soon!!

Script

 

    We finally, finally, FINALLY,  finished our script. There is not a lot of audio as our excerpt mainly relies upon visual elements to show the story. 

    We begin with establishing shots showing the room of Berkley. Her calendar is shown as the very first clip. The day is Friday the 13th and it is her birthday. This alludes to the day of March 13, 2020, the beginning of the Coronavirus pandemic. The date of Friday the 13th is a date associated with bad luck and misfortune, mentioned in a horror movie titled Friday the 13th. Then, shots of her awards, desk, and other parts of her room are shown to establish a little more about who Berkley is, before she is even shown.

    Then, she wakes up to an alarm playing the Happy Birthday song. She turns off the alarm and is shown going to the bathroom to get ready. Not many sounds are here aside from the occasional grunt and groan. She rifles through her clothing to find a special outfit for her birthday. She tries many outfits which do not fit her aesthetic until she finally lands on "the one". Her phone is buzzing off the hook however she ignores it as she focuses on getting ready. She is finally ready and leaves her room, turning back to grab her phone which she has forgotten. Berkley leaves and goes outside, dropping her phone. This repeated loss of her phone leads to the assumption that something bad will be associated with the phone which is shown in the next clip. Berkley finally turns on her phone when she receives a message telling her to turn on the news. 

Production and Distribution Company

    Who is making this film (besides me, Daniela, and Pauliana of course)? Someone has to produce it like the many, many distribution and production companies from the film, The Princess Diaries. When we were designing the logos we had a few requirements we had to be careful to make sure they were there. 

These include:

- must be simple enough to create an animation

- must fit the tone of our film

- must fit the time period (early 2000s)

- cannot be too similar to our film

- must be visually appealing

    These are the four options we have come up with. Smaller films typically do not have quite an excessive list of production and distribution companies as the film The Princess Diaries has. We will use one to two of these options as our production and distribution companies. The one I have the most vision for is definitely the top left, Starlight films. However, all can be animated to look really cool. I am very excited to share the image in my head with you all once we animate this, it is going to be beautiful. These all have interesting visions of what we could do so stay tuned to see which one(s) we choose!!

    If you have any suggestions for changes or other input (which one you like the best, which need to go, etc.), feel free to leave it in the comments below. I will update you all soon!

Our title and font and a bajillion other things

     Okay, we have established our title is "Birthday Blues" (and if you don't know this please check out the post titled "OUR TITLE"). Now, the important part - font and color!! 

A few things to keep in mind:

- It has to look good with a video behind it (our film)

- It should match our color scheme (mainly pinks)

- It should match the mood of the film (eerie happy birthday)

These are a few prototypes we have come up with:

    The last one definitely fits the idea of what we are trying to portray but the only concern is the pink may not show as clear as we want. Luckily, we have the same thing in black and we could always go back and just change the color again to fit the film. We have a candle as the "I" in birthday blues to fit with the theme of birthday and the fading letters representing the fading happiness Berkley experiences throughout the film. We will finalize the title when we are editing and will update then but for now, this is our title!! I hope you like it and if you have any recommendations, concerns, or questions leave them in the comments below! Talk soon!!

VLOG #1

    I made my first vlog today! Hope you all enjoy it!!

    Also,  be sure to listen to What If I Love You if you have not already!! It will be heard in most of our opening so it is very important!! Big thanks go out once again to Gatlin for letting us feature her song in our film!! Have a wonderful day and talk soon!!

Filming Day 1

 Well, that title is a lie. Yes, we were supposed to begin filming yesterday, but no matter how much you plan, it is impossible to 100% stick to it. We devoted yesterday to filming as it is the only weekend for the next two weeks we would be able to film due to a DECA competition two of our group members will be attending. One of our members has unfortunately fallen ill (not Covid luckily) and because of this, we were not able to film. Agh. This is a major setback and the stress of trying to plan around this has caused me to lose a few years off my life but it is okay. We shall push on forth and succeed. 

    As absolutely horrific and cheesy as that quote is, it works. Well, I hope it does. I know if our group has one thing, it is enthusiasm. I have really never seen three teenage girls this excited about something like an early 2000s film opening but wow are we excited. Our idea has been fully created and planned by us so our enthusiasm is not unearned, but to someone on the outside looking in, it could definitely appear questionable for sure.

    Anyways, we hope to film after school sometime this week and next week to make up for today's loss. We will make our storyboard in class (which we were going to do yesterday but oh well, life goes on!) and research even more. This film will come back better than ever, just get ready. Prepare for your breath to be taken, jaw to be dropped, and please be sure to hold onto your hats, scarves, loose belongings, and small children as they will be blown away with the amazing, fantabulous, and all-around awesome film. Okay, see you all tomorrow for the next life-changing update. 

OUR TITLE

    Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, the moment you have all been waiting for... WHAT IS OUR TITLE??? Well, before I announce that, some background.

    So, by this point you all should know the plot of our film is about a girl's birthday and the natural disastrous event that occurs on it, eventually changing her life. From the beginning of the film, it is very clear to the viewers that her birthday is a momentous occasion for Berkley. The disaster is very disappointing for everyone but the significance of that date has led us to name our film... drum roll please... Birthday Blues!!

    Birthday Blues is a psychology term that basically means feeling abnormally disapointed or sad on your birthday. Although as a child, birthdays are glamorized and seem like the best day of your life, as you get older, this feeling begins to fade and can be replaced with a phenomena known as 'birthday blues'.  Whether it is the feeling of being let down, scared of aging, or about a million other factors, birthday blues are very real and felt in millions of people across the world every day. Enjoy the infographic up on the left as well as the image depicting the literal feeling of birthday blues on the right.

    That's all for today! Stay tuned for our final storyboard, filming schedule, and much more to come. 

Music/Intro to Berkley

    Although copyright-free music is readily available on the Internet on resources like YouTube, BenSound, TakeTones, and much more, we decided to contact an artist named Gatlin for permission to use her song, 

What if I Love You. We feel this song not only matches our plot but the overall genre characteristics as well. It has a very upbeat and similar feeling to the overall idea regarding our project. In order to get in touch with Gatlin, we decided to contact her using Instagram. Our groupmate, Daniela (Dani) sent a direct message (DM) to her and she responded quite promptly. We received permission and look forward to using her song in our intro. Right below, in the middle, you can see a screenshot of the message we sent. On the right is the single's Apple Music cover and on the left is the song we are using within the list of songs Gatlin has released. How will we use the song? That is for us to know, and you to find out.

Who is Berkley?

    She is your typical 16 year old in 2005. She loves her friends, jewelry, and anything pink. The film will be set on the day of her 16th birthday in her bedroom. Berkley is clearly passionate regarding her birthday as she spends a seemingly excessive amount of time preparing and getting ready for her birthday. 

What does her room look like?

    Berkley's room is scattered with typical teenage features. From hair clips, neon signs, and nail polish, she truly captures the essence of an early 2000s girl. We will use reference photos from Pinterest as well as on the Internet. Filming in Daniela's bedroom, we will combine our resources and create the dream "Berkley 2005 teenage room". 

    One last thing. Okay, just kidding - two more things. Today we are completing our storyboard!! And we chose a name for our film!! So stay tuned for the storyboard reveal, name reveal, and like a gazillion more updates!!! Talk later!

Bullseye!!

Who even watches coming-of-age films anyways?? Today we will discuss the target audience of our film as well as the effect this genre has on its audience.

Our target audience is girls ages 12 to 18 which is the typical audience in coming-of-age films. This age group is typically caught in the Identity vs. Role Confusion level which allows them to relate more to the characters and plots frequently portrayed in this genre. Films like the Princess Diaries show an awkward teenage girl who has the opportunity of a lifetime and becomes a princess. The age group of 12-18 is typically a more awkward stage of one's life so they can relate to Mia's struggle in the beginning. The transition shown from "awkward" to "glamorous" caused the teens to feel hopeful that maybe they will find out they are a princess just like in the movie. In this time of their life, they are not sure who they are, what they like, and are trying to learn who they are. 

These movies are typically overexagerated versions of typical teenage experiences. These movies act as inspiration and motivation for teenagers who may be going through a rougher part of their childhood. They can use it as means to keep looking up because opportunity may be just around the corner. With our film, we want to show it is possible to overcome environmental factors in your life - even as a teenager and that no matter how dark it may seem, there is always light to be found. 

Also, if you didn't get it by now, bullseye is a target when playing darts and this is about our 'target' audience. I know - once again, hilarious. Alright, that wraps it up for today!!

Props to...

Props!!

Haha, see what I did there? Props to like congratulations but props like what we are using in our film - I know, hilarious. Anyways, in order to truly sell the 2005 look of our film, we will be utilizing a variety of props and accessories. Here is a basic breakdown of what we plan to include and what it will do:

• Tiny butterfly hair clips:
• Notorious to the early 2000's fashion trends, these butterfly clips were all the rage. Lately "Y2K" fashion has been trending and we have noticed a comeback of these clips as well. Our main character, Berkley, will either put these in her hair or have them placed near her as she gets ready for her birthday.
• Trophies and medals: 
• In order to display her lifelong passion, dance, around Berkley's room there will be trophies and medals from her dance career. 
• Jewelry
• 
  To express Berkley's girly side and sense of style, we will have an assortment of jewelry around her room as well as some she will wear when she gets ready.
  
• Neon sign:
• Like the one shown on the right side, it will be a statement piece in her room, matching the lava lamp (which we hopefully will have!!).
• Magazines
• Stand alone mirror
• She will use this to aid her getting ready. It will show how focused and how much detail she puts into getting ready that day. This will hint at the significance of the day.
• Throw/decorative pillows and pink bedding:
• A staple for every 2000's girl's bedroom.
• Disposable cameras
• House phone/Landline
  
  
  
• Clothes (pink, bright,youthful)
• Diary:
• She will be shown writing about her excitement regarding the day and the audience will get to know her feelings. Possibly could have a voiceover to introduce Berkley's voice.

• Bedazzled ipod
  
• Pen
• Calendar (dry erase board)
• Pink fuzzy socks:
• What teenage girl doesn't have pink fuzzy socks
• CDs / CD player 
• DS:
• Pink DS, a very popular gaming system back in the early 2000s that many people played with their friends or individually. 
• Happy birthday necklace
• Birthday banner / decorations