General work skills
Due to this media production we have all learned multiple transferable work skills. One vital skill, especially when working on such an in-depth project, is working as a team. Seeing as we had to work together on virtually every aspect of this project it was vital we knew how to get along. Very early on we came to the conclusion that arguing and disputing over minuscule issues is simply unproductive. Inside the classroom we forgot any prior judgments of each-other we may or may not have had, and completely focused on our product.
Another skill that a group cannot do without is setting and meeting deadlines. We assigned one person to set deadlines and check that every member of the group is keeping up their end of the work. It's common knowledge that once we miss a few deadlines, we'll be behind for weeks. Because of this we made sure that we were extremely organised.
Organisation is the next skill we developed. This was easy as there are so many aspects of this production and the type of production lent itself to assigning individual roles. Individually, this would be a mammoth sized task. However if we split the workload by 4, it boils down to a few hours a week. Facebook greatly helped us with organisation as it was the social networking site we all used extensively. Not only did we use Facebook to discuss any ideas we may have, but also to set homework.
Personal skills evaluation is a skill in itself. By getting to know our fellow group members we were able to dissect their skills and abilities. Perhaps one member was rather partial to writing and was doing well in English, while another had exceptional skills with Photoshop. The prior would work on the diary, while the latter would spend time honing their Photoshop abilities and spend time on the creative aspects of this production.
Another skill that a group cannot do without is setting and meeting deadlines. We assigned one person to set deadlines and check that every member of the group is keeping up their end of the work. It's common knowledge that once we miss a few deadlines, we'll be behind for weeks. Because of this we made sure that we were extremely organised.
Organisation is the next skill we developed. This was easy as there are so many aspects of this production and the type of production lent itself to assigning individual roles. Individually, this would be a mammoth sized task. However if we split the workload by 4, it boils down to a few hours a week. Facebook greatly helped us with organisation as it was the social networking site we all used extensively. Not only did we use Facebook to discuss any ideas we may have, but also to set homework.
Personal skills evaluation is a skill in itself. By getting to know our fellow group members we were able to dissect their skills and abilities. Perhaps one member was rather partial to writing and was doing well in English, while another had exceptional skills with Photoshop. The prior would work on the diary, while the latter would spend time honing their Photoshop abilities and spend time on the creative aspects of this production.
Production Skills
There are numerous skills media students must develop with regards to the production. Primarily is the range of technological knowledge and ability to use aforementioned technology. As we will be filming, the first piece of equipment we had to familiarize ourselves with was the cameras, in-particularly the Canon 7D. None of us had little experience with this particular camera, but frequently use other cameras, while others had pretty much never used a SLR. This problem was overcome by meetings after College where we would all practiced and help anyone who was struggling to use the camera. After a few months, we all had reasonable skills when it came to using the 7D.
Another skill that may sound ridiculously simple is the setting up of equipment. As basic as this may sound, being able to quickly set up all equipment is indefinitely a skill. The fact that we only have a few hours to film means that we have no time to waste, making the ability to quickly set up equipment very valuable. Moreover our teacher told us a few interesting anecdotes about the equipment. The stands can be slightly tricky and dangerous to set up, we heard stories about people losing entire nails and severely hurting their fingers through getting them caught in the stands.
We now have reasonable expertise when it comes to lighting, especially taking into account how poorly we used them at the start of the year. A skill no cameraman can do without is the ability to remove a shadow.
Another skill that may sound ridiculously simple is the setting up of equipment. As basic as this may sound, being able to quickly set up all equipment is indefinitely a skill. The fact that we only have a few hours to film means that we have no time to waste, making the ability to quickly set up equipment very valuable. Moreover our teacher told us a few interesting anecdotes about the equipment. The stands can be slightly tricky and dangerous to set up, we heard stories about people losing entire nails and severely hurting their fingers through getting them caught in the stands.
We now have reasonable expertise when it comes to lighting, especially taking into account how poorly we used them at the start of the year. A skill no cameraman can do without is the ability to remove a shadow.
Pre-production / Planning skills
As for pre-production the main skill is merely a synergy of all the skills we earned leading up to production. These skills can only be honed through practice, so we practiced using the 7D combined with lights tactically placed throughout the scenery. Another pre-production skill is the use of make up. We have each browsed Youtube for hours, looking for horror make up tutorials as we didn't have much time to actually practice it on a real person. Planning skills were the most difficult to attain as we couldn't simply research how to plan. At the start of our time as Psychoactive Productions we were not the most organized of groups, as a result of this disorganization at the start we became far more organized. We learned that everything could not be don't last minute, so we booked a place to film in advance. We also drafted out all the props and costumes we'll need for our production many weeks before we filmed. Every member of the group ensured to have each panel of our storyboard memorized, thus avoiding any confusing and saving time on the day we filmed, as we needed all the time we could get. A fear amid the group was that we would not be allowed to use our specified filming spot, so we sought approval early on. Finally we set ourselves specific goals that had to be achieved by a certain time. One example of this is a re-drafted version of the storyboard, that our director wanted 2 weeks before our filming date. Another example of our planning skills is that fact we all showed up on time, fully prepared with all the props, cameras, lighting and costumes we needed.
Post production skills
Obviously the most important post production skill is learning Final Cut Pro. None of us had any experience with any kind of video editing software so developing this skill was difficult. It included watching even more Youtube tutorials but the time restraint made it hard to gain a deep knowledge of the software, so a lot of our editing abilities simply came as a result of trial and error. Seeing as we had to make two pieces on Photoshop, our Photoshop skills had to be improved. Luckily enough two of our members do graphic design, in which they learned how to use Photoshop very well. As opposed to the other two members, whose only experience was due to our AS coursework. First of all we had to organize all our footage, separating the footage we intend to use from the vast amount of footage we had no use for.