Editing Blog

We have now finished everything that we needed to film. We were not too pleased with everything that we had shot during our first session, so we had to shoot again. We talked over our plans on Tuesday and what our schedule should be like. Then, after school, we got together and decided to film absolutely everything that we would need. We started by going to the mall and filming there. We filmed at the food court for three or four shots that we needed. We then went to the entrance of a store and filmed there as well. And we filmed the outside of the mall as well. After, we went to my house and filmed here for the rest of the scenes we needed. We filmed in the common area downstairs, as well as in my apartment. The day was very efficient, and we took multiple takes of almost every shots to make sure we always got the best one. All that was left now was to gather the footage and edit it.

Today we finally started to edit the music video. We were worried as we didn't want to rush it and for it to not come out the best. We did not have any computers with an editing program at home, so we had to work only at school. Our group mate Victoria was looking for free editing programs, as the others are very expensive and she maybe found one that could be useful to us. She said it was quite similar to the one we have at school, but a little trickier to figure out. The good news is that we have made good progress on the video on the school computer. Our shots are all selected, and ready to be organized in the order that we desire. We made sure to closely follow the storyboard, but we did make some changes. We successfully found and downloaded our song and have put it into the video. We have about twenty percent of the video done, and Victoria says she can do even more at home, now that she has a program. 

All that is left to be done is finish the edit. We have to finish and sync the last of the mall scenes first. After, we will do the ones of us at the common area. And finally, the ones of us at my house. I trust that Victoria will get that done quickly and greatly, and we will be there to help her if she needs. I really enjoyed the filming process and thought it was fun. The editing was fun as well, for what I did at least. I am sure that our finished product will be great. I had a great experience doing this project and would do it again gladly.

Filming Blog Finally

During the week of our thanksgiving break, we did get to film. We were supposed to film after school on Tuesday, at around 4:00 pm. Most of our group members did not go to school on Tuesday, so Jeffrey was the one who had to go and pick up the camera, SD card and tripod. While we had plans, to film at my house we were not able to do it due to scheduling conflicts. The next, day however, we did film. We decided to film some scenes at my house first. Victoria and Jeffrey came over at around 2 or 3 pm. We had scheduled to shoot about 4 scenes. One in which Victoria looks at her phone and sees our location. Another where we catch her snooping at us. And then a scene where we open the door to find that she is at our house. We had only those shots planned as they were the ones we could do this at this location.

Unfortunately, we had technical difficulties with the camera, that made filming a little harder. The camera's battery was dead, and it would not turn on. This meant that for every shot that we had to find an outlet nearby, or we wouldn't be able to get it. This was quite annoying, as now we couldn't get as many shots done as we wanted. So in the end we were only able to get around two of the original shots that we had planned out. However, we did get them to the best of our ability and made sure they were the best shots possible. After that, we reviewed the footage, and confirmed that we were satisfied with each shot we took. Shortly after everyone went home. The next day was thanksgiving, and we made sure to enjoy it to the fullest so we did not shoot. And we did not film either during black Friday.

I think that we were supposed to film during Saturday or Sunday, but there was a bit of miscommunication form  the group so we did not. It was a little annoying that that happened, but we learned from that mistake. We are planning when and where we are going to shoot this week. I hope that we will have filmed it all before Thursday so that we have at least two days to edit it. We have a very specific plan of what it is that we want to do, and how we want to edit it. We just need to make sure that everyone's schedules align. I hope we will get this project done without any problems. I know that we can do it, and that all we need is to actually shoot it. I have faith that it will be way better than my past project. That's basically all that we have done thus far for the project.

Filming Blog

We have now turned in all of our preparation for the music video. We have created a detailed plan of our schedule and what we are going to be doing every day. We have also completed a Storyboard, and have the main outline and idea of exactly how the video is going to look. They were turned in on Friday of last week, and all that is left is to actually begin filming. We did not have the opportunity to film on the weekend so we will be doing it this week. Most of my group mates were busy with other responsibilities that made them unavailable to shoot. I took this opportunity to further research music videos, and get a good idea of exactly what I wanted our music video to look like. I watched mainly Rap and Hip Hop videos, and made sure to study them closely. I especially studied videos from the early 2000's as that was the era that our song was released. My research was very useful and gave me a great idea of what we should do once we film.

The first places where we are going to shoot are my house and a park nearby my house. Due to this, I had to make sure that I had my parents permission. They quickly agreed, although they were a bit surprised since I usually don't invite people over. They were leaving town for the week, so it is even better, as we will not be disturbing them while we filmed. I was quite relieved that they were leaving, as that would allow us to take as long as we wanted while filming. I am quite excited to see how we will actually do this, a its my first time doing something like this. I fill like it will be easier and more challenging than the commercial at the same time. This is because I was alone for the last project, but now I am in a group. However, this project is more complex, and will require more editing and work on all of our parts. I am very excited to see our final product.

For our other locations, we are going to be shooting at a mall. However, to do this, we are going to need permission from said mall to film. One of my team members made sure to do that over the weekend though so we should have that covered. Other than that, we did not do much else over the weekend, and will complete must of our work during this week. Even though we did not film this weekend, I was quite busy. I was informed on Friday that I would have to take three tests on Monday, and I was quite stressed about that. So I studied a lot during the weekend. That took a lot of my free time, but I also hung out with my sister for quite a while as well. We had to do grocery shopping since our parents were leaving, and we decided to shop around as well to have some fun. That was basically what I did during the weekend, and what we have planned for this week.

Storyboard Blog Music Video

Today our group worked on the storyboard for the music video that we will be filming. After countless deliberation, brainstorming, and replaying, we managed to finish our storyboard, laying down the framework for the filming process. For our music video, we decided that we will be doing the song “Kiss Me Through The Phone” by Soulja Boy Tell’Em featuring Sammie. This song was a perfect choice as it lacked profanity and would be easy to recreate with the resources we each have access to. We would detach all audio and let the song tell a story itself. Since we were given a minimum of a minute and five seconds and a maximum of a minute and 15 seconds, our plan was to cut various parts of the song given that it is a total of three minutes long. We chose to use the introduction, a phrase towards the middle of the song, and the ending. From there, we divided the song by increments of five seconds, establishing what exactly would be taking place within the said time frame. We knew that it was essential that the audio not only fell between the specified range but also still flowed together. This would help us avoid any inconveniences that could potentially offset our productivity during the filming and editing processes. Since the goal of this project was not to create an imitation of the original music, the creative juices had no choice, but to be activated. Our vision for the project took a sharp detour in regards to the general direction of the original music video. The overall plot of our music video goes as follows: A young teen’s love at first sight quickly evolves into a mesmeric obsession, resulting in the pursuit of a connection to an oblivious boy by all means necessary. Initially, one of the ideas presented was a love story in which the guy pursued the girl with good intentions and romantic interests. We ultimately decided to stray from the norm and go with a more “stalker story” as it was more original. 

Within our storyboard, we divided the music video amongst 15 boxes. The first six take place in the mall. During these scenes, we anticipate there to be bright, white lights as it is a shopping center. There are four actors, all which are members of the group, Autumn, Emilio, Victoria, and Jeffrey. The actors will all be dressed in casual clothing and will be carrying shopping bags. The next 4 take place at a park. Lighting will depend on how the weather is looking that day, though, we intend to film on a sunny day. Emilio and Jeffrey will be dressed in sports apparel, playing basketball, while Victoria and Autumn will be in casual clothing. The final 5 take place in an apartment. During these scenes, Jeffrey and Emilio will be dressed in light clothing such as pajamas. Victoria will once again be dressed in casual clothing. We will likely use dark lighting in order to build the suspense of being stalked. We intend to use jump cuts, inserts, establishing shots, point of view, and various other cinematographic elements in order to not only transition between the scenes (boxes) but also effectively portray our vision. For example, the first box, marked the 0:03 seconds to 0:8 seconds of the actual song, displays a wide shot in which Victoria and Autumn find Jeffrey and Emilio at the mall and Victoria becomes infatuated with Jeffrey. This will jump to the second box, marked 0:8 to 0:13, a close up in which Victoria and Autumn look at each other and notice that Emilio and Jeffrey are gone.

If everything goes as planned, we intend to stick to our story board and end the music video with a minute and fifteen seconds. 

Planning Blog Music Video

The first day of our planning process was November 18th. The teacher gave us instructions on what to do and we began. The first thing we discussed is what we wanted to do for the music video. We know we didn’t want to follow the normal convention of the music video. The original video shows a couple who is dating and even though they can’t see each other they call and text each other. We decided to change the theme and now instead of it being a couple, a girl has a crush on a guy and she’s delusional thinking that they are together. For this project, things were a little harder because the concept was more complicated than the commercial. The biggest problem for us was figuring out when we were actually going to be able to film. We wanted to start filming this week, but we couldn’t figure out a day when we were all free. Some of us had to work and others had after school activities that conflicted with each other. We talked about our schedule for about 20 minutes before I suggested a solution.  Since not everyone was going to be in all of the scenes, the people who were free a specific day could go filming and film the scenes that they can get, then another day the other people in the group could go filming. 

By the time we figured out our individual schedules and the plan it, the class had ended so we got on group call at night to discuss the video in more detail. We discussed the health and safety issues, the props we were going to use, the costumes and the schedule we were going to be following. 

Location

To create our vision, we figured that the best place to film would be the mall because the mall is a crowded area where people can easily be followed without being spotted. So when the female is stalking the male interest, he wouldn’t be able to spot her in a crowd. The next location that we chose was someone’s house. In one of our scenes, we have the female looking into the window of the male interest’s house trying to see if he’s home while calling him. A one-story house or an apartment with windows on the first floor would be the perfect place to film the scene. The last location that we chose was the park. The male interest is going to be hanging out with his friend playing basketball and the female and her friend are watching him. Once again when stalking someone, the person stalking normally does it in a crowded area. In the scene, you would see the female fawning over the male interest while he is up and active. An important task we had to do was make sure that we were allowed to film in all of the locations that we chose. Autumn was in charge of getting the approval of the people in charge. At first, she called the Galleria Mall, the mall we wanted to filmstrip.  and the manager stated that it was fine as long as we gained permission to film the people in the mall. The next part was getting the house. Our new member of the group offered to use his house so he asked his mom and she said yes. We figured that since the park was a public area as long as we had permission from the people playing on the court, filming shouldn’t be a problem there.

Health & safety 

Because we are filming outside of school campus, we have to make sure that our group, the equipment and everyone around us isn’t put in harm's way. We will have to drive to the locations so everyone in the car will use the seatbelts. Another safety issue is the weather. The weather forecast says there will be days of thunderstorms. To protect ourselves we will stay inside and shoot all of our inside scenes. If we happen to get caught in the rain, we will bring umbrellas to protect the equipment and raincoats to protect us from the rain. 

Props

The props we will be using 

Phones

1. 
   

Basketball

2. 
   

Shopping bags

3. 
   

The room in the house

4. 
   

Costumes

Basketball shorts with a t-shirt

1. 
   

Jeans and a hoodie

2. 
   

Pajamas

3. 
   

Schedule 11/18-12/9

11/18- Discussed the theme of the music video 

11/20- Plan the props, location, and costumes

11/22- We are going to storyboard, our video, write the script and figure out the kinks with our individual schedule. 

11/26- We begin filming. We will start off at the mall, then make our way to the house to shoot our opening scenes.

11/30- Film the scenes at the park and go back to the mall because we need a shot with all of the actors/actresses in it. 

12/2- Begin the editing process, figure out the scenes and takes we want to keep and what we want to get rid of, adding the music, and doing the voiceovers needed

 12/4- Double check to make sure that the music video looks put together, add any last-minute details that we might have missed and play it back. 

12/06- Turn in the final music video 

Music Video Conventions

I have finally finished and am moving on from the commercial that I had to do before. My commercial was one to promote the school, and everything good about it. Everything went relatively smooth for me last time except for the editing. The story boarding and filming was easy and there were no problems. For the editing, however, I had multiple technical difficulties, and was delayed severely by them. This time we are going to be making a music video. I am working in a group and I learned much about the editing program from the last time I worked on it, so I feel there will be no problems this time around. I am looking forward to working on this project, and I feel it will be a great improvement from the commercial.
For our music video we are doing “Kiss Me Thru The Phone” by Soulja Boy Tell’em ft. Sammie. The song we are doing is clean, and contains nothing inappropriate for a school project. We came to this song after thinking of some options, like “Let Me Love You”, and “Because of You”.We decided it would be the best one to do putting our schedules into consideration. Whilst videos of this genre are very well done, they are not excessively complicated, and will allow us to create a great video. Everybody agreed that this was the best option, and it was an unanimous decision.
“Kiss Me Thru The Phone” by Soulja Boy Tell’em falla under the genre of Hip-Hop and rap, therefore it has the same conventions as videos of the same genre.

The original music video has the typical mis en scene that a Hip-Hop/Rap music video would have. The different camera angles, sound, and editing techniques. In a traditional music video for Hip-Hop/Rap, the camera angles are usually low-angled close up shots in order for the main artist of the music video can seem like the most important focal point of the video. Shots that are taken in a Hip-Hop/Rap music video include many two shots, typically with the main artist and a love interest to indicate that they are desirable. It also includes shots like club/party scenes where it gives the artist credibility because it shows how large groups of people are enjoying their song. Depending on the song itself, there can be a range of sounds that are not including the song. There can be sounds of engines revving to depict the luxury the artist or people yelling their name so it shows their importance. The editing, like the sound, also depends on the song and how the director and the artist want the song to be interpreted. 

Within the Hip Hop/Rap genre, artists tend to wear a variety of apparel. This may range from designer clothing such as Gucci, Louis Vuitton, and Ferragamo complimented by expensive chains, watches, and other forms of jewelry. This aims to emphasize the wealth that the artist has accumulated and is often a reflection and even a product of the rags to riches story they likely experienced.

In a music video there isn’t a lot of acting involved unless there is a background story to the music video. In the original music video you see spots in the video where the person is looking to be having a conversation on a cell phone. They did this to signify them calling the other person through the phone.

The makeup is also an important part of Hip-Hop videos. Back in 2008, the girls wore vivid makeup that popped on screen. For example bright eyeshadow colors, or and big eyeliner. Some videos would showcase the girl in a scene where she would just need normal makeup. The guys however, didn't really a lot of makeup due to the fact that makeup was more fememine. 

Props that are heavily featured in many of the videos of the hip-hop genre would include phones, jewelry, clothing, and stacks of money. They serve to captivate the audience’s attention, and portray the characters in the video as wealthy and well off in terms of power and status. 

Setting is very important for these types of videos, as they help to demonstrate where the video is taking place. Most often in the Hip-Hop genre, the setting is usually on the street, or a neighborhood, parties, and social gatherings. 

Editing

It has been a week ever since I finished filming the commercial. I was satisfied with the shots that i took and was prepared to edit. Unfortunately due to circumstances out of my control, I was unable to do so. The computers in the room we used for class ceased to function and our project was delayed due to this. We were forced to wait for a week in order to receive temporary laptops with editing software. Whilst we waited, we continued with lessons in cinematography. Our lectures focused on how to identify angles and editing techniques as well as why they are important. This week, on Tuesday, is when we finally got the temporary laptops. However there were only a limited amount that did not allow the whole class to work on their commercial at the same time. To remedy our problem, our teachers made us take shifts of 40 minutes each on the computers so that everyone would get a chance to edit our project.

We were randomly selected to go either first or second on the computers. I was selected to go second and told to wait my turn to get the computer. I waited and planned what editing I would do. After the first group was finished, we were called up and told to get a laptop. I collected the computer, and sat down to edit, however, there was something wrong with the computer. After successfully signing into the computer, I tried to look for the editing software but I could not find it. I informed my teachers, and they told me that there was a couple of computers like that and that I had to put it back. I was frustrated, as there was no additional computers, but I put the computer back as instructed. I did not manage to edit at all on Tuesday due to this. Therefore, I planned my edit in more detail and thought about what I wanted to do it. I headed out of class frustrated, and even more stressed than before.

Finally, on Thursday, I could now actually edit my commercial. I headed into class, and got  a laptop that I hoped actually worked and turned it on. To my surprise, it actually did, and I could, after a week, finally start my editing. I took my files that I had on my google drive and put into the actual computer. After, I took said files and put them into pinnacle studios. Then, I arranged the shots in order and made sure that it was like I planned it on the storyboard. I then make sure the cuts were timed well, and that any one shot dragged on too long. I then removed the sound from the shots themselves. Unfortunately for me, Thursday was a short day, and classes were less than half as long as they usually are, so my edit was not complete. The good news is that I only have to smooth out the transition between shots, and add background music. I hope to have this finished quickly by next class.

Editing

Today we were supposed to edit our footage. Last class I dumped the files into a computer and was prepared to edit. However, once I arrived to class today somebody else was using the computer I had dumped in. I politely asked to get my footage out of that computer and they agreed to let me. I uploaded my files into my google drive and tried to look for another computer to edit. I found an unused computer and attempted to use it. After multiple tries the computer wouldn’t turn on. I looked for another computer. I saw a group of four sitting around three computers, they were in the same group so I thought they didn’t need all three computers. I asked to use one of said computers and they obliged to my request. The computer was on and I was relieved and ready to edit. However, once I put my information in and the computer tried to sign into my account, the screen went dark and the computer wasn’t working. I called my teacher and she told me to just write a blog, as most of the computers weren’t working and most groups couldn’t edit either.

Today we didn’t get to edit at all. Most of the computers in the classroom either do not have connection to the internet or they don’t work at all. Most if not all the groups, except for those using their own computers, were not able to edit. This was very irritating as today was supposed to be the day we’re we completed most of the editing for the video. However, we were told that we will get additional time so that is relieving to hear. Our teachers were accommodating to us and were helpful in informing us that this mishap would not negatively affect our grades for the class. Due to this problem, we were instructed to put our files into Google Drive as the computers may be wiped. Thankfully though, I have already done that. They told us that we are potentially going to receive temporary laptops with editing software to finish our commercials. This would be only until we get permanent replacement for these faulty monitors, which, in all honesty have been nothing but faulty the whole year.

This day has allowed me to think about how I want my comercial to be edited so that’s good. I have a plan to stick to my storyboard as much as I can in terms of the order of the shots. I am going to cut the audio of the shots out and add music. Then I am going to add text on top of the shots to highlight the main points of the school. I will then most likely shorten the shots or speed them up slightly, as I believe that they are too long as they are now. Today was a little frustrating, but it was helpful in a way. I was quite stressed to edit, as I haven’t done it before, and this allowed me to think clearly about what I want to do and how. I believe that my edit will turn out great and have faith that I will do a good job. I do, however, hope that I manage to finish on time.

Filming

Today we finally went out to film our commercial. I was alone and had no other people in the group so I quite literally did all of the work myself. I quickly got my SD card, camera and tripod, properly signed out as instructed, and then headed out. Once outside, I inserted the SD card into the camera itself. After that I had just had to make sure everything was set, and I began filming.

 My commercial was about Fort Lauderdale High School, so I went around and shot different things. The first shot was supposed to be of the electronic sign outside of the school, but since I couldn't leave the school campus, I wasn't able to get a good shot of it. So I decided to make it a shot of a campus map and then panning out into the actual school itself. I had about two takes of this as the first one wasn't that clear, and I wanted a clearer shot. After that I moved onto the shot of the cafeteria. This shot is supposed to take place later in the commercial itself, but it was closer and more convenient to shoot it first. It was a low shot that panned up to show the cafeteria. I took about three takes, as the camera movement on some of the shots was not great. After I finished that shot I moved onto the one that was closer as well. The shot, or rather, three shots that I took were of the murals that are around the school. These shots demonstrate the murals in quick succession. These will, combined, last as long as one regular shot. I only took one take of each one, except for the last mural which was larger, and more complex than the other ones. I then moved on to the shots of the fields. First I took a shot of the baseball field, It was a wide shot, and I got it done very quickly. I only took one take of this. I then got a shot from the bleachers of the football field and track. It was wide shot and showcased the whole field. I took two takes of this as the first one was not that great. My last shot was of the stairs that lead to the library. I originally wanted to shoot the take closer, but I ended up taking it farther away as I thought It looked better. I took three takes, as I wanted to get a really great shot of it.

I then returned to the classroom to dump the shots into the computer. I entered the classroom and then took an SD card reader for the SD card. I tried to do it on two computers, but none of them worked, but I managed to make it work on one. I dumped the footage and put into a folder as instructed. I then took out the SD card from the reader and returned it properly.

Storyboard

Storyboard for Fort Lauderdale High School Commercial

Today, we finished our storyboards for our commercials. I started by writing out the type of shots and angles that I wanted to use, as well as their order. After that, I tried to draw what i wanted it to look like to the best of my ability, so that it could be understandable even if it is not the greatest piece of artwork. The first shot is going to be of the main entrance of the school and what you see once you enter. I plan on showing the electronic sign at the front of the school, and then panning towards the car loop and the actual entrance to the school. For the second shot I plan to show the stair that are located next to the bus loop. I plan for this to be a long shot as to show all of the stairs, as well as the upstairs if possible. The next shot will be of the cafeteria. It will be a low shot, as the cafeteria is quite tall, and I want to highlight that with the shot. Up next I'll show the football field and the track. I want to use a wide shot for this as the field is quite large, and I want to be reflected in the commercial. After, I will show the baseball field, showing it behind the gate, as I believe that would be a cool shot. It will be a wide shot. Lastly, I will do multiple close up shots of the murals that are around the school.

Editing Lesson Blog

Today during class we learned about the editing process, and what we should do once we get the camera. Our first step is to ensure that the SD card is properly put into the camera, then to shoot all shots necessary for our commercial. Afterwards, once we have finished the filming process, we are to remove the SD card from the camera and put it into an SD card reader. The reader will be inserted into the computer, where the files of all the shots will be available. Before doing anything with said files, we are to go into the desktop and create a title which we can name to our liking. Once we have our named folder we will move the files from the camera, which will most likely be in the DCIM folder of the SD card, into our folder in the desktop. This process is known as "Dumping" the footage. Once we have finished this step we will close the SD files, and remove the SD card from the computer. It is important to make sure to have removed and saved all the necessary files before removing the reader as to make sure that another group does not accidentally delete it.

Afterwards, we were taught how to import the footage onto the actual editing software that we are to use in this project. On pinnacle studios, our program of choice for this commercial, we are to click on the import button, whilst making sure that we click the plus sign symbol and select our folder. We are to select all the files in said folder and then click on start import.

Once all of our footage is in the program, we are now ready to start editing. To do so we must first click on Edit, and move the raw footage on to an Av track. In this case, we were instructed to move it onto track two. Once the footage is on track two, we are to wait until the yellow bar that appears turns completely green, and only then can we start to edit it as we so desire. In order to cut the footage. we have to, hit the razor blade icon, and then select a highlighted portion of the footage which we want to delete and then simply hit the delete button. If we want to add transitions, we can do this by right clicking a highlighted portion and opening effects director, where we can choose from a variety of effects. If we wish to cut out sound, we have to select the sound waves that appear right below the footage and move them into the the third track and delete it, or if we want to add sound, we are to get said sound in an mp3 format and move it into the third track as well. Finally, if we want to add text, we are to select the T icon and write what we need and then once that is done, move it into the first track so it is visible-we can also add transitions to text if we so desire.

Once we have finished our edits, we are to save the file. Once the file is saved somewhere on the desktop, we are to export it directly from the editing software. To do this we go to settings, click mpeg4 and then choose best quality. Once we have finished that, we are to check that the export properly worked and that the file is saved, and then we are to close out of the editing software.

Planning

Today, I will be planning the way in which I plan to approach and film this commercial. This plan will outline multiople things that I will be doing during the filming, including locations, costumes, props, and a back up plan. Since I will be making a commercial for the school itself, I will plan on which specific points and location of the school I will show, and why I belive them to be significant to the overall culture and ideology of the school. I will describe my schedule as well and the order in which I plan to go about this commercial so that I get the best result with the time that I've got, so that I can create a great commercial for Fort Lauderdale High School.

• Props: I will need only what is already available in the school itself,such as school supplies, backpacks, cafeteria food etc. This is because the commercial is about the school itself, and bringing outside props would not create the most accurate image of the thing I am trying to advertise. 
• Costumes: Much like the props, I only require the clothing that the students and staff are already wearing, doing this shows what the people of the school wear, and in many cases, what their personality is like. Adding or making costumes other than those would not be helpful to the commercial and would entail unecessary work that would waste time and effort. 
• Schedule: 
• 10/10- I will be planning the commercial and its locations, schedule, etc.
• 10/14- I will be storyboarding the project to the best of my ability as to create the best mental image of what I want the commercila to look like.
• 10/21- I will be filming the commercial
• 10/23- I will be editing the commercial
• Location List: 
• Front of the school (To show entrance and establish the location)
• Main Campus (To show what inside of the school looks like) 
• Cafeteria/Senior Patio (Show place where students eat)
• Track/Baseball field ( To outline and demonstrate athletcis area of the school)
• Murals(Show artistic nature of the school)
• Back Up Plan: if by some reason I am not able to film in these locations due to weather or other reassons, I will film in areas that are not affected by rain or otherwise, so that even if it does rain, I still be able to film. Just as long as I display the school, I should be fine.

Changin Topic of Commercial

The first day that we were assigned this project I chose to make a Gatorade commercial. I thought that I would not have to work alone, but I did. Because of this, I believe that I will not be able to complete a Gatorade commercial by myself, as it requires a lot of moving parts and more work than other commercials, work that I have to do alone, and am afraid I wont be able to finish by myself in time to do it to the best of my ability and in time to turn it in before the deadline. Therefore I have decided to switch my topic to something that I am more confident that I could complete in time and to the best of my ability. For this project I will be making a Fort Lauderdale High School "commercial", which will highlight the schools' strengths and tempt to persuade future students to attend this school.

Commercials of this genre or type tend to show the scenery of the school, meaning the overall layout, and important and significant buildings or landmarks. They tend to show students whilst they participate in activities or walk about the school. Typical Mise en Scene of this type of commercials is just usually the students themselves, and things that one would usually find in a school, such as school supplies, backpacks, food, etc. These commercials usually focus on showcasing the school to others to persuade them to attend, therefore it tends to highlight its accomplishments and values, this is shown either through text or through some sort of narrator that speaks of the greatness of the place that is being advertised.

Common camera angles in these typically tend to be very wide angles that help the audience clearly see the location, and see as much of them as possible. Most of the shots in said commercials are almost all establishing shots, as the main idea of them is to actually showcase the place where they hope that people will come to in the future. The lighting is usually almost exclusively natural lighting, as it tends to not really focus on people as the main subjects, but instead focuses on buildings, meaning that the lighting could not be altered, as the buildings are outside, and they are very large. They are edited in order to showcase as much of the place as possible, meaning that there's jump cuts and fast transitions that allows the commercial to do this.

Research Conventions and Codes

    For this project I have decided to shoot a Gatorade commercial. Gatorade is a energy drink company that mainly focuses on marketing towards athletes or those that are highly athletic.There fore most of their commercials heavily feature famous athletes and athletic gear and equipment, as well as very activities that these athletes would take part in, for example, they usually show a runner in a track doing laps, or a football player in the middle of the game, perhaps during a timeout while he refreshes with a Gatorade. The scenes heavily show the athletes sweating and releasing energy, what the brand tries to do is sell that the product helps to get that energy back, therefore they tend to show a lot text and statistics about the nutrients and electrolytes in the drink and how they help athletes.

    The camera movements and shots in these commercials mostly involve a lot of movement meaning that the camera and subject are almost constantly in motion, as to demonstrate exercise and what the product does, so there are usually a lot of tracking shots.  There are many shots that are used are low shots, used to show the athletes' legs moving or them doing a certain activity, high shots to show them kneeling or sitting whilst they are tired and need to re hydrate, wide shots to show the activity they are doing in better detail, they often also use POV angles that show the perspective of the athlete as they are moving, and close ups to demonstrate the athlete drinking the Gatorade.

  Common uses of lighting on these commercials usually make it so that mainly the athlete and the product are truly visible, as that is most commonly what they are trying to sell to their consumers. The editing usually consists of jump cuts and edits that give the sensation of speed or that the subject truly is in fast motion.
 

Introductory

Welcome to my blog.
My name is Emilio De Hoyos, I am in the class of 2020 and have spent all of my high school years here in Fort Lauderdale High. I was born on May 28, 2002 in Bogota, Colombia. I later moved to Medellin, Colombia when I was a year old. I lived there until I was 10 and then we moved here to Florida in October 2012. It was hard moving to the United States, but some of my family already lived here and we visited a lot, especially during the summer, so I was familiar with the place and people here, and that made it easier to adapt.
   
 I went to Bayview Elementary in my first year here which was fifth grade, it was a great change compared to schooling in Colombia, and it took me some time to fully adapt and become fully comfortable in a school environment here in the US. Once I graduated Elementary school I went to Sunrise Middle School. Sunrise was a good school, but the friends I made there are what make it more special to me. My sister came to Fort Lauderdale before me so it made the most sense to come here and take advantage of the school’s  Cambridge program which could lead to incredible benefits for my future. I really like this school and it has taught me a lot about myself. That’s pretty much all there is to my story for now and I hope that I’ll be able to add many more accomplishments to it throughout the years to come.