The Final Boss... Defeated (My Opening and CCRs)

Here is the link to the film opening: https://youtu.be/2YtSSrObdE4

Here is the link to my first CCR: https://youtu.be/DkDbd7jUhgo

Here is the link to my second CCR: https://youtu.be/MnDAGJpDXzE

    Goodbye friends, for this had been a journey I will always remember. 

And now for the FINAL movie quote of the day...

"In can I don't see ya, good afternoon, good evening, and good night." - Truman Burbank, The Truman Show (1998)

When will my reflection show...

     In this post, I may not be as spry as I normally am, but I have been editing for about five hours each day for the past three days. Not complaining, not complaining, but I am exhausted.

    But who cares when we've got a reflection to do! 

    This project... I don't even know how to describe how this project has impacted me. I guess the best place to start off would be my leadership. I think my team members would agree with me when I say that I am the designated team leader. Looking back, I feel like I was gaining more and more leadership qualities, not just in e=being able to delegate work, but just giving my team confidence in their own work and supporting them through all the tasks that this project requires.

    One reason that I am so impressed with my growth is because of how daunted I was by this project. When it was introduced, I was genuinely scared. This felt like a mountain that I was fully unprepared (mentally) to climb. I know that we had been prepared for this throughout the year, but when it finally came, I did not really know what to do. But, with all the time we were given and all of the help from my instructor and teammates, it grew to be less and less scary. 

    Something that this project has taught me that I will continue to carry on is the importance of confidence, in more facets than one. One must be confident in their ideas, and if they are truly important, stick to them in the face of adversity. My teammates and I did not always agree on ideas, but when I felt strongly about one, I would present it in different ways and try to make it accomodation for everyone's vision. I don't know if I put that in the best words, but that is how I got Regression to be where it ended up. 

    Kind of on the opposite side of the spectrum, I also found ow important planning was. To plan everything is to be prepared. Not for everything, but a lot of the stuff that could happen. We ran into some hiccups, yes, and when that would happen we would overcome them. But, there were times when it felt like something could go wrong, but we had something planned out just in case of that. 

    Something that I found to be a key part of this journey was having immense amounts of patience, especially when in post-production. You might be thinking that I am talking of having patience with others (which is true), but what I am referring to is patience with yourself. 

    Editing takes a long time. We know this. But it takes especially long when you have basically no guide and are creating something new that has to be coherent. As I edited the opening, I am willing to admit that I got frustrated a number of times. Throughout those times, I had to learn to have patience with myself and sometimes just take a step back. Honestly, this is one of the most impactful things I got from this project.

    Well friends, this is basically my last blog post before the final one. One might say the penultimate blog post. We shall only meet again one more time. See you on the other side. 

Tainted Roots Signing Out

And now for the penultimate movie quote of the day... (but it's from a tv show)

"I am a victim of my own success." Conquest, Invincible S3 (2025)

Back at it Again (my enemy has risen from the dead)

    We have begun the final countdown. The antepenultimate blog post of the portfolio project I have to say... I will not miss the project. Sorry all you Cabridge people, but this project was actually the final boss to my senior year. But, you know, I am glad that I had the experience. It would be wrong of me to say that I walked away with nothing, when I walked away with a lot. 

    But I'm gonna save all the sappy stuff for the penultimate blog post. Right now, we are going to talk about the current bane of my existence: the CCR. 

    So, if y'all have been aching for an update, I've got one for you right now. Both of my CCRs have been filmed in their entirety. That means the demon plot, the song and the rap are all done. Filming the demon one was actually was the final straw, but all the music videos were actually pretty chill. It did not even take me that long to film both of them, maybe a little under two hours to film both.

    But, let's talk about the post-production for my CCRs. 

    Today, I have begun the editing the first CCR media product. When I was exporting all the footage, it turns out that I have a lot of extra footage and approximately a bajillion outtakes. But that's alright. As my teacher so wisely shared, it is better to have too much footage than not enough. 

    As I am editing, I realize exactly how much I am going to have to convey in voice over accompanied by some visual aides. I wish it did not have to be like that, but it is simply the nature of the project. There was no way I was going to memorize all of the CCR responses, so I mostly filmed things that relate to the plot. 

    But, back to the stupid amount of footage that I have, as I am typing this I am waiting for it all to upload to Google Drive. As of right now, it has definitely taken more that 20 minutes and it is still going strong. It's probably the school Wifi. 

    Obviously I am not completely done with editing, but just to give everyone out there in blog world a little taste of what I am going through, here we have my current timeline: 

    Doesn't that just look terribly delightful. That's me being sarcastic. I may be the editing god, but the editing is the god over me. Blogging this right now is how I am taking a break from my good five hours of editing.

    And, oh look, the first product is still a minute over the time I have allotted it. Fantastic. 

    I know it is all going to be fine, but the clock is really ticking. To be honest, I do not think I could have any of this sooner, but I still wish I did. Alas, this is where we are. But, I am going to take a break before I crash out. 

And now for the movie quote of the day...

"Mr. Peanut signed a treaty of surrender," - The Electric State (2025) *please do not watch this movie* 

Why did I do this to myself?

    I suppose it was not my most intelligent idea to have one of my CCR products take place at nighttime, but I guess that's life. Maybe I am being a little dramatic, but having to film your project in the dead of night, when all you want to do is sleep and you are already in your pajamas is an unnoticed form of torture. Plus, when you have your mom as the camera person, it is just the extra little cherry on top. 

    Okay, but to give everyone an update on the film opening, we are almost done! All the editing is basically complete, and all we are waiting on is for Maiya to do the color grading, which I expect to be done by Friday (I mean it). 

    For an update on the CCR, I have filmed my first CCR product, and it was truly an experience. I'm not gonna lie, I didn't plan it well at all. Plus, we ran into some serious problems.

 Let me just vert for a hot minute.

    The first problem I ran into was the stupid lighting. Because it takes place in a dark bedroom, I had to figure out how to make sure it still looks dark, but that people can see what is going on. At first, I tried not to use any kind of lighting, but that was a fail. So then, I caved and I used my soft light on the lowest setting with a towel over it. Then, it because visible enough. 

    Also, I never expected it to be so hard to create glowing eyes for my demon, but it was terribly hard. I could not get the eyes to a suitable brightness to where it was not absolutely blinding the camera, which proved to be difficult. What I ended up doing was taping some notebook paper over the lights so that it was not so stupid bright. Here's what the demon ended up looking like. 

    Spooky looking, no? Anyway, I hope it good enough to at least sell the idea, but I have a feeling it is going to look kind of goofy. 

    Another issue, that was completely my fault was that I forgot to include the second question in the script... HEAR ME OUT. I know exactly why I forgot. Because I had treated the first question as two seperate questions, I just thought "Oh, I'm done with the script." WRONG. I was indeed not done. But it's alright, as I am the God of improvising. Give me five minutes and my blog, and I whipped up some transitions for the other question. The rest of my answer will be done in voice over. That's all I could come up with at flipping eleven-o'clock at night, so it is going to have to be good enough. 

    And then, switching over to my second product, I have made some progress. So, I have fully recorded and edited the rap track to use for filming the music video, which is great. Still, I have yet to edit the recordings I have of the song part, which I plan on editing tomorrow morning to have it ready for the shoot in the afternoon. Am I packing my schedule too much? Who knows, but it will all work out surely. 

    Anyway, I am sorry to say, but I am ready for this project to be done. This week is the final boss. Always the hardest battle, but the most rewarding.

And now for the movie quote of the day...

"We're gonna have fun, and we're not gonna freak out." - Charlie Kenton, Real Steel (2011)

BAZINGA PART 2: THE RECKONING

     The idea(s). I've got it. Or I've got at least one, and the other one is kind of half fleshed out, but lets talk about the idea I've got locked in. 

Idea the First

    The summary: When I am winding down for bed and get under the covers in the darkness, a demon appears in the corner of my room with a hunger for my soul. The only way to exercise the demon is through a sacred text (AKA the directions for this project).

    Now for the details. There is no rhyme or reason for there being a demon, other then I like demons (trust I'm sane). Also, I have always had this lingering idea in the back of my head that there is most definitely a demon living in the corner of my room. I am not sure if I am being the most clear here so, I'm just gonna create a script right here right now.

Here is the script for the first media product: 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Y7PZ8DvjPsO9bPw-KiWJ-1QmtGMZp_np9JWuw31Wqsg/edit?usp=sharing

Idea the Second

    Now, as you can tell I do nothing basic. So for my second product, I will be answering the questions in song form. You heard me right. Well maybe you did not because it will be song and rap. I am pulling a full Lin-Manuel Miranda.

    You all may not know, but I am a full theater kid (honorary). So, I had to put my skills to the test. I am actually kind of scared for this one because I have no idea how long this is going to be so I am praying that it is not like 30 minutes long. But, I will make it work. 

Here is the link to my song and rap:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1DUOZeBSxGfHTwwWpCy1tIxWd6Ba6YC9KHnpuEfi5cBg/edit?usp=sharing

And if you are wondering, yes the song and the rap will be in the same product (please pray for me).

And now for the movie quote of the day... (but it's from a musical)

"See you on the other side of the war." - Aaron Burr, Hamilton (2016)

CCR Cubed!

     If this project was the New York Marathon, this is the point where you see that 24 mile marker and quietly say to yourself, "You are almost there," over the cheering of the crowds from the sidelines. You want to give up, but it would be only in vain at this point. You just have to keep going to see that finish line, and then when it's all over, that's when you can finally crash.

    Okay, but in all seriousness, today we are going to talk about the third question for the CCR. Ah, yes, what fun. So, what we must take is how my production skills have developed throughout this project. Should be cake.

    For this question, I know exactly what I need to talk about. First, I'm just going to yap for a hot minute and then I'll add the final draft. 

    Development was a key part of this project. At the start, I really had no idea of how as I was going to do this project. It felt extremely overwhelming, even though class throughout the year has been preparing me for this very moment. Even though I was not starting at the baseline, there was this thick, tall wall standing in front of me preventing me from greatness. 

    That is when it starts to click. 

    When I first began to feel confident was when we wrote the script. The script allowed me to see the shots, hear the sounds and feel how it was all coming together. Before the script, it was just a jumbling of ideas that were not cohesive in any way, shape, or form. Boom! The script. Now, this is just the beginning of my growth with this project, as now I realized how one could visualize the elements of production with just a great idea. 

    The next step in my production development was throughout the actual filming. Not to sound pompous or anything, but as the director of the film, I feel like I really developed my director's eye. The shots would just come to me, expanding from thin air. Yes, I would follow the storyboard and some of the shot we planned, but as we kept on filming, I would have epiphanies. 

    Some of my favorite shots came to me in the moment, and that was after seeing how the character develops through the opening scene. Just look at this shot and tell me if you would believe this is improvised.

    

    I know I've yapped about this shot for way too many blog posts, but I couldn't care less. Every time I show this clip, a butterfly gets its wings. 

    The only way that this shot even came to fruition was because we had shot so much that day that I was able to be so confident in my blocking skills. You could probably even tell if you go through all the footage that throughout the day I became more and more confident in my skills. The first shots of the day barely had any movement and were lowkey stagnant, but then when we were filming the outside scenes at the end of the day, I started getting more creative and giving myself more freedom with the shots. 

    Another thing that I can see some development with is my overall editing skill, and you can definitely see this in the difference between the first edit versus the fourth edit. Yes, fourth edit. When I tell you that the first edit was the most stagnant video that I have ever made in my life, not kidding. 

    But, by my fourth time going through the edit, I finally made something that I was proud of that had dimension and was engaging to watch. And yes I had previous experience editing, but never something of this scale and of this length. But, after hours and hours (and hours) I finally got it. Got how to make an engaging product. 

    Actually, I lied at the beginning. I am not going to show the script (right now), but basically what I wrote the script above, but trust I will include it the next post, as I almost have my idea solidified. But, you will just have ti wait (teehee). 

And now for the movie quote of the day...

"Talking pictures, that means I'm out of a job. At last I can start suffering and write that symphony." - Cosmo Brown, Singin' in the Rain (1952)

Chapter.... Two

    To anyone who understands the reference in the title of this blog post: I love you. And to those who don't, maybe you need to lock in on Seinfeld, and don't worry I will still love you, but I will be weary. Anyway, today we are going to be yapping about the CCR. Ah yes, I can hear the cheers from the crowd. 

    To be more specific, question two of the CCR, centering around target audience and distribution tactics. Alright, simple enough.

Target Audience

    As you all know, our film is a science fiction/drama, which means that the target audience can get pretty wide. But we can narrow that down a whole lot. 

    The baseline targwt audience for science fiction is really all compassing with no real preference for who can watch it. Drama is a bit more relegated to an older audience, and by that I mostly mean teenagers. With that in mind, we must consider the the content of my film. It follows a young adult woman who goes to therapy. Ding, ding, ding. This is what is going to shrink our audience.

    Not saying that men are not going to want to watch this movie, but the fact that is is a young female protagonist does make our once wide audience much more narrow. This will bring in a lot more women, especially those in the same age range as the protagonist, that being 18-24 year olds. But I do not want to really limit myself to women, so I say that men will still come to see the film, especially those within that same range, but those older people become obsolete. 

    Some other sci-fi/drama films that fall into this target audience are Palm Springs (2020), Dune (2022), and The Day After Tomorrow (2004) are all sci-fi dramas that are all geared towards a younger audience of science fiction enjoyers. 

    One thing that all of these films have in common is a young(ish) protagonist that is going through young people problems. Well, not exactly young people problems but they have the equivalent reaction to their situations as young people would: brash and stupid. 

    Take for instance Paul Atreides from Dune.

    You see this guy? Would you guess by looking at him that he is the Muad'dib, AKA the flipping Messiah. Never. 

    Or maybe you would, but at least I wouldn't. But at the start of the movie, this little guy is nothing but a daddy's boy who really cannot make a single thought for himself. But by the end of the movie, he is super cool guy who can fight bad guys. 

    The pipeline from weak barely adult to cool, brave still barely adult is real, and that is the same pipeline that Alice has in our film. 

    In our film opening, we do our darnedest to make Alice seem like that depressing young adult who has some serious trauma, but throughout the film the audience will get to experience that pipeline of her being sad and depressing to less sad and more cool. 

    This right here is what really reels in that target audience and what we really went off of when creating the film and its opening. Also, I am just really glad to bring Paul Atreides into the conversation

Distribution Techniques

    Since we are not a big budget studio will bajillions of lackeys, we do not have to luxury of all their resources, but that does not make distribution an impossible task.

    I guess we would be considered an indie production, so you know what that means: film festivals. Ah yes, we've got Cannes or TIFF or Sundance. Sure, these are long shots, but it is worth a try. It is actually super easy to submit a film to these festivals, but getting chosen might be a whole other battle. 

    For Cannes Film Festival in france, these are basically all the requirements to submit a feature film, and the rest can be read here. There are proabbly even easier (and less pretentious) film festivals to submit to that are in the US. Sundance Film Festival is based in the United States and seems pretty simple to follow it regulations that can be found on its website. 

    I think I am seeing why a lot of indie films are submitted to film festivals, as they allow for people who are deep in the business to see all of these unknown filmmakers.

    Another way that we could get our film out to audiences is very simple: YouTube. A lot of indie filmmakers resort to putting their first feature films on YouTube as an easy and quick way to get people to watch it. Of course this must be paired with some serious marketing to get people to actually see it, but for a distribution technique it is pretty solid. 

    As an option that probably won't really get us anywhere but might be worth a shot is to pitch it to some studios, and maybe (but probably not) they could distribute it on their streaming platform. This is probably a terrible idea, but can't hurt to put it out there. 

    Okay, did I have fun researching all of this stuff? I would never admit it. But I must say, looking at all the film festival stuff was kind of fun. Anyway, I think all of this information could be good to include in CCR for the second question. Maybe not all of it, as I would be yapping for way too long, but I think we got some good work done. 

And now for the movie quote of the day...

"[talking about Paddington 2] I cried through the entire thing. It made me want to be a better man." - Javier Gutierrez, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent (2022)