Due to my hiatus, this post is essentially the blogging equivalent of going on an incredible holiday...without telling your friends you left; or phoning them when you get there...or bringing them back any souvenirs...or even worse, bringing back shark tooth necklaces.
But fear not! I'm back now with plenty of news updates and general waffling to keep you entertained before desperate housewives is on.
For anyone who hasn't clocked on to the metaphor yet, my holiday was actually an intensive 2 months of balancing university, freelancing, students union work and a social life. People really weren't kidding when they said that second year wouldn't be the easiest, although it has definitely been the best in my filmmaking career.
First order of business is we finally completed the short film for our Drama Production module 'Damp Patch'. Which can be found here:
Overall, I am incredibly happy with how the project turned out. The level of intensity our team poured into pre production, the tightness of the shoot, brilliant performances and the way we pulled together in the manic post production phrase (the 3 days I had to learn an entire media composer and edit a short film would not have been possible without my friends keeping me sane) makes this my proudest achievement so far.
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| The Cast and Crew of 'Damp Patch' |
My aim for the project was to set a new standard for myself in filmmaking when compared to previous work. This has been reflected in our feedback for the film which has been hugely positive, with the main praise being overall level of quality in the production. We have been awarded a First for our efforts, and hope that our next production fairs even better and continues to this new high standard we have set for ourselves.
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| Editface. |
Another aspect of 'Damp Patch' I am proud of is the editing, which was one of my main roles in the production. I was originally going to use the familiar software 'Premier Pro' for the job, but due to an abundance of time constraints, technical errors and screens-falling-off-laptops-errors, I was tasked by my lecturer to learn new software. So I spent hours learning 'Avid 6' and completed the film with the software, subjecting myself to the banter of the technicians who have been dealing with my 'Avid Attitude' for over a year. However, the new version is actually, dare I say, quite good. I enjoyed learning the software and facing the challenge, which whilst frustrating has pushed me to become a more efficient editor.
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| Award, what award? |
So, whilst the technicians have been hailing me as an 'Avid convert' I will simply say that it does its job, like any good tool should, and it does it very well. I just prefer using my new chainsaw: Final cut X.
(The change of heart was in no way influenced by the 'Most original short' Award they sponsored a while back, I promise...).
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| Money raised for Children In Need: Over £150, Steve's pain: Priceless. |
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| Partying it up with Lauren Flynn for her debut music video. |
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| The various dance societies at LJMU prepare for the Xmas showcase. |
Alongside all of this I've been taking on various jobs as part of my new role as 'digital content producer' for the students union, so far consisting of dance photography, charity filming and promotional videos. I will be posting more in depth about this at a later date. I also worked as on a music video with Dean Cammack (Robbie from 'Damp Patch') and Joe Woolf which should hopefully surface soon. These outside opportunities have been great fun, practice and above all, a great way to meet great contacts and friends.
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| Christmas came early. |
The final order of business in this lengthy catch up is the unveiling of my new 27' iMac and newly installed Final Cut X. This is by far the most powerful computer, best editing software and largest investment I have ever made, but I confident that with this new tool at my disposal my filmmaking especially post production work, will improve even more. I will be posting more of my thoughts on Final Cut X at a later date although the short time I have spent with it has been nothing but amazing. It's fast, easy to use and intuitive. Which is exactly what I have been looking for in an editing software. To test the software I created an edit of my trip around Europe which can be viewed below (no shark tooth necklaces unfortunately).
Thanks for reading this post, I'm going to try and keep on top of the blogging in the new year (one of the resolutions i'm more likely to keep, unlike 'look like Bane by August'). I have a few more projects in the to back catalogue to finish up before the next semester and I'm still waiting on feedback from a few essays, but its been a great year in all. I'm looking forward to a great year in 2013 with my friends, the crews I work with and my new drive for filmmaking.
From here on out, its: 'Make awesome things, and be awesome too'.
Thanks guys.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Joe C.
