End of Project Evaluation
End of project evaluation This unit was all about working together as a group to create an image based on the painting Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose by John Singer Sargent that we would then use to create a short film. Our short film became a montage of a man and a woman cut into different shots of urban scapes. The man being scenes from before his death and the woman buying candles and releasing paper lanterns like in the original painting.
Looking back at the start of this project, at first, I was overwhelmed with the possibilities of what I could create with the brief of creating a photograph based on a famous painting and even more so with the idea of creating a short film and narrative based on the photo we had taken.
So, to start off I thought of creating a modern take on the painting Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose by John Singer Sargent. I decided on using modern clothes such as tracksuits along with modern sources of light such as phones. When it came to the day of shooting we wanted to use something more similar to the Chinese lanterns so I used jars filled with coloured gels and LEDs.
The photo came out better than I expected and so I then moved onto trying to create a narrative for the photo. I started storyboarding and came up with the idea of having a girl paying tribute to a friend who has died by leaving candles at a memorial.
In preparation for creating the photo and short film I looked at artists such as Gregory Crewdson who uses large sets and film lighting techniques to create photos that look cinematic. This style was inspiring as I liked the detail of his photos and wanted to recreate this aesthetic in my own photos.
To help get a feel for what the shots may look like I began creating a set of test shots by filming parts of my storyboard with Will on Victoria Gardens. I also went around taking photos of different places around Medway such as alleys in Strood and sites of skips and bins in Chatham. After, I worked with the tutor Curtis Tappenden to help understand the creative process of writing a script and lines for the short film.
To film the video, I went into Chatham and filmed scenes of Helen buying candles in Wilkinson’s to get shots of her picking up the candles and putting them into the basket. I also experimented by placing my phone on the bottom of a shopping basket with the lens facing up whilst recording. This created some interesting angles and footage of Helen holding the basket and then placing the candles over the camera as she placed them in the basket.
I had some tutorials with the CMPT year one tutor Rob Roach who showed me how to use a ceiling camera and then also how to use a green screen. This was useful as it gave me the skills necessary to creating the photos of Helen inspired by the painting.
To get more inspiration for the piece I went on a trip to London and visited the Tate Modern on the London Bankside. Inside I saw an exhibit where the piece ‘The Clock’ by Christian Marclay was playing. This video was very interesting as it pieces different scenes together to show the time in real time. Whilst around London and the Tate modern, I took some photographs using my DSLR for my own personal interest and also with the intent of saving them for a later date.
To help promote my own film I created some promotional material, first I created a poster using some of the images me and my group took to recreate the original painting. I then went onto photoshop to add a title in my desired font along with some credits and some mock-up awards, age rating and release date for a more realistic approach.
I later also created a banner that was made with the intention of being the banner of Facebook page but also could be used in advertising on the side of buses, or even on the walls of the London underground’s many stations. This banner consisted of a landscape image of me and Helen from my group posed holding the jars of lights. It then featured the same title, credits and awards as the poster. I then went onto making posts for social media. Firstly, by making tweets that looked like real promotional items from a film production and then by also creating interesting GIFs with the intention of being eye catching and to be shared around social media platforms and messages.
My final piece of material to promote the short film was a mock-up of magazine create using a template given to us from myUCA along with my own images. This was to create the impression of how an article about the film would look in a magazine.
In this unit I also had a workshop with Rob Roach where I was shown how to use a medium format film camera. We shot on Ilford XP2 Super 400 120mm film and I was able to use the whole roll of 12 shots. Although I have developed the film, I am yet to have them scanned to be able to use and check the images. I’d like to do more with these cameras to better my skills and also because I quite enjoyed the analogue process of creating and developing your photos.
In conclusion, this first unit of this second year of the course has been a strong start to the course. I have already progressed through learning different skills such as framing a shot for photos and film and also how to use medium format film cameras, and then a dark room to develop them. I have enjoyed using photoshop to create posters and to create a mock-up of a magazine to promote my short film.
