Production Question sheet- Megan Wildsmith

Production Evaluation Questions

As editor, I hope that my role in the filming was invisible as that is the main task of an editor. I hope that people watching the film will not be focussing on the editing and be focusing on the storyline or music. An example of my editing that I think is particularly good is the end of the chase scene with the young girl. There are three or four shots that run really well together and are nice and flowing so you are completely focused on the action.

(SHOW THE 3/4 PRINT SCREENS)

As there were only two of us in our group, I collaborated with the ‘sound designer’ and also worked together with her because our roles required us to. When I edited, for example, the end scene in the grave yard, I told charlotte that the shots were going to be fairly long and slow paced and she created music to fit the shots. She suggested an Adele song played on a piano which was perfect as we could get the shot changes to the beat and rhythm of the music.

(SHOW FIRST 2 SHOT TYPES OF END SCENE)

In our team of two, we shared the responsibility of the other roles. We both directed and filmed but as editor I kept an eye on the 180° rule, the 35° rule and the continuity so that when it came to editing, it would be easier to edit, and not jumpy. I played a part in director as I recruited the main actor and two minor characters for the film. We worked well and asked people we knew would act for us and when it came to directing, we both took turns while the other person set up the shot. We also wrote the script together and both injected our ideas into it.

Further evidence of my editing skills that I am particularly proud of is in the scene with the young girl being watched by the antagonist. In one shot, there is an over the shoulder (OS) shot of the girl walking towards the swing with the camera behind a pole, and then there is a mid shot from behind her, then an OS of the boy watching the girl. The audience goes from watching someone stalk the girl to knowing who - the boy from the first scene and things become clear.

(THREE SHOTS: POLE OVS, MS, BOY OVS)

An example of how I created and built tension through editing is when, during the first scene I graphic matched two individual shot scenes, the boy and the mother, together so that the audience found out at the same time the characters did, who wrote the letter who read it and why.

(BOY WRITING LETTER, MOTHER WITH LETTER AT END)

I am most proud of three shots of the boy, opening, closing his bedroom door and walking across the landing. These shots are some of the best shots in this sequence as they flow together really well. Some things we changed that weren’t in the script were simple shot types changed as they no longer fitted in with the location. For example, some long shot were mid shot and vice versa.