Lara McEvoy - 319311
Unit 13: Final Major Project
week 8: 25 - 29/3/24
Monday: 25/3/24
The dress rehearsal was a very very long day for the production as we were tied to the schedule of the dance school and their rehearsal schedule. We arrived at the Bacon theatre around 9:30 where we helped the dance school with setting up, I hadn’t planned to start shooting until 12:30 which is when the first run through was (I will mention there were two run throughs of the show with different casts so only some areas could be filmed in the first run through) so the time from 9:30 – 12:30 was spent helping the dance school and ensuring that the camera kit was all set up ready for myself to use. As I was filming under the stage, I used a Canon 90D and Rode Microphone because this would be the best way for me to capture the more behind the scenes elements, giving them a sense of authenticity. For Jon, I originally gave him a Canon 90D and the telephoto lens to use as I thought this would be best due to him filming from the auditorium. Before starting to film I made sure that the cameras were both set up correctly, filming in 1/50 frame rate, as shown in the image below. It was important for me to ensure both the cameras were filming in the same frame rate as in post-production I may want to slow down some of the clips so filming in a higher frame rate gives me the chance to do so.
As Jon wasn’t familiar with the show and the dances he was allowed to film, so to help him from the running order of the dances I had been given I took a photo and ticked the ones he was allowed to film in black, and ticked the ones for the second run through in pink so he knew which dances he was allowed to film in which run through. This is mainly because there are younger pupils at the dance school who aren’t allowed to be filmed and haven’t given consent for my documentary, so it was important for Jon to understand what he was and wasn’t allowed to film. These sheets are shown below, while they are basic it just helped Jon understand what he was and wasn’t allowed to shoot ensuring it was all done correctly.
Before the first run through even started I had a text from Jon asking for the normal camera lens as the telephoto one was too zoomed in. This isn’t something I had anticipated happening because I thought that due to where the auditorium was in reference to the stage was quite far, but I was wrong, so the telephoto lens was too zoomed in meaning Jon wouldn’t be able to get any
wider shots or any shot other than a close up for that matter. However, this was easily resolved as I was able to bring the other lens up to him quickly before they started the run through of the first show.
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After I had given the lens to Jon, I was then unable to go up to the auditorium for the rest of the show until the break, so I had to trust he knew what he was doing, though I could still message him, and he could message me if he had any questions. On my end, I was focused on getting more behind the scenes content from the dressing room, as I was also in the show I had to time when I filmed the content while fitting with me coming on and off stage. Mostly for the first run through, I was able to get shots of people getting ready doing their hair and makeup, which can be used as b-roll and actuality.
At this time, I wasn’t planning on filming any external interviews, so I was trying to get footage of the three talking to camera and explaining what was happening, however due to myself being busy and the three also being just as busy and stressed I was only able to get 1 clip of each introducing themselves. Because of this as I am writing this, I am making the decision that it would be best and more beneficial to do in home interviews with the three after the show, likely to be filmed next week. This is something I need to check over with the three to see if its possible and something they would be happy to do.
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The first run through ended up taking a lot longer than anticipated, due to technical issues, meaning that we didn’t have a break until 15:30 and only for half an hour, so in that time I ran some lunch up to Jon, because obviously he needs to eat. With this I explained what was happening and that in the next run through is when the three people are the main characters so to focus on them as much as possible, while following the guidelines given at the start of the day. For me giving him the reminder just allowed me to be at ease, as I know he has been told what is allowed to be filmed and not, meaning I won’t cross any boundaries set down by Sally due to miscommunication.
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In the break I took this is a valued opportunity to get some more candid/authentic footage as I noticed Chloe and Emily practicing together. I was only able to get a couple of clips, but they show the more authentic moments of the two in the moment, focusing on the show at hand. But unfortunately, due to me also being stressed about the rehearsal it meant I didn’t get much more, this is something I expected to happen, especially due to the situation presented to myself yesterday (explored in problem solving).
Once the break was over the second run through started and I was reliant on Jon here to be getting the footage from the audience of the three. While I could get footage of them preparing under the stage, I also had to be ready for my own dances meaning there was less footage shot in this run through compared to the first one/before the first one. I feel as though this was still successful because the footage, I got allows me to create the montage style sections and use it for actuality/b-roll when the three are talking in their interviews.
Due to the first show running over there were dances missed within the second half of the second run through, but luckily none of the dances the three are in were missed so Jon was still able to get footage of the solos and duets. When it came to the finale though, we were all doing it in our own clothes rather than costume so there may be some bits of footage that can be used, but in terms of me using the footage for other days within the documentary isn’t doable for the finale. This was the only chance I got for footage from the auditorium which is why I got Jon to be there for most of the dress rehearsal to get this footage.
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Overall, I would say that this day was successful as I have been able to film both behind the scenes/getting ready footage as well as footage of the actual show. Tomorrow Jon is going to be in the wings with myself helping to film content from the wings, while I film both content from the wings and in the dressing room.
Tuesday: 26/3/24
When we arrived at the theatre, as Jon hadn’t been into the wings before I showed him around explaining where he can and can’t go, essentially where to go to stay out of the way but still get decent footage. This also gave me the chance to assess where I could also be to get footage. The video below is me showing Jon where to go.
Once I had shown Jon where he could film, I went down and made a start on shooting content of the three getting ready and prepared for the opening night. It’s safe to say the atmosphere was very tense so I wanted to try and capture it as best I can, when I say tense, I mean everyone was on edge and stressed because it was opening night. From this I was able to capture some moments such as Chloe having her hair done, Ella preparing for the show, people practicing/stretching etc. I really like these shots as they show moments where the three aren’t directly doing anything I’ve told them to, I have been able to capture them in the moment which is something I love to do.
After the show had started, I ended up not being able to get much more footage from under the stage because I was doing quick changes myself, so I decided to join Jon in the wings when I could to get footage of the show. I found this a lot more difficult than anticipated, however I knew this was my only chance to get a lot of footage from the wings because on the next two nights of the show I wouldn’t be able to. The main issue Jon and I ran into was how dark it was because in the wings there is limited visibility so getting shots of the three waiting in the wings was a lot more difficult than anticipated, looking back I really should’ve looked at filming in the dark during the research stage, but this is something I can reflect on.
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Because both Jon and I had been able to capture a lot of footage from the wings, I made the decision to not have myself positioned in the wings filming for the next two shows. While I had originally planned for Jon to be in the wings for at least another night, I realised that actually the one night of filming was more than enough. All in all, this shoot was a good one, I was able to get raw and authentic footage, which captures the emotions of the three pretty well, as well as footage from the wings which will require a lot of sorting.
Simply put, on Wednesday I didn’t film anything. While I had planned to, the three people weren’t actually main characters so the only footage I could capture would’ve been people getting ready. There was a completely different atmosphere in the dressing room which I wasn’t sure I wanted portrayed in the documentary. I don’t see this as a missed opportunity as there weren’t any chances for me to get footage which would be relevant to the narrative of the documentary.
Thursday: 28/3/24
Thursday was quite similar to Wednesday, but I was able to get some footage before the show started, as well as in the second half. They are mainly ones which focus on the three getting ready and sitting with others and chatting. This allowed me to capture them more relaxed but still getting ready. With this show, looking back I wish that I had someone in the wings to capture the final speeches that the senior girls gave, because I was one of them, I wasn’t able to. Potentially if the production company who filmed the dance show for Sally Prout release the videos in time, then I may be able to get this footage from there, but this is purely on chance that they release it sooner rather than later.
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With all of the production days I would say that they were successful, though there are some areas which I feel I could’ve done better with or filmed more, while looking through the footage I can confidently say I have more than enough footage to use within the documentary. As I made the decision on Monday to film in home interviews, I need to organise these ready for next week, but I can safely say that filming and the dance show have wiped me out so need this weekend to recover!