Memo From CRaM Creatives

We received a memo this morning from our sponsors with a short list of things that need to be fulfilled in order to satisfy them, these things include:

Bad language needs to be scrapped.

Meet deadlines.

We have been instructed to organize rehearsals to address the acting issue.

A full storyboard and script for each episode must be provided prior to shoot.

Neither programme is to exceed 90 seconds in length.

Some of these things will be harder to overcome than others for instance, the scripts that we have written already exceed the length limit. So we are going to have to cut out what we can in order to provide the correct length for each episode.

Up To Date?

I am pretty much on schedule for the unit, i just need to make sure that i blog everything that we do so i don't lose any further marks. Upload all loose paperwork that marks can be gained by and from now on, i wont be behind.

Scripting, Planning and Shooting

The scripting has been good, i first read the script for the first episode last week and it had me laughing the whole way through. Hoping that this is what were going for, we are doing well so far.

Planning i feel needs to be stepped up a notch. We need to make sure that we have everything sorted out before we go so we don't have any problems like last time, and any other possible problems that could go wrong we have covered.

How Well Has Marketing Gone So Far?

Although that marketing isn't my area within the group, from what i have seen from the Facebook page it seems to be going well. Rounding up around 100 fans. If we keep the viral stuff going we are hoping to get involved at least another couple hundred.

How Well Have I Kept Up With Work, Especially Blogging?

I feel there is work that can be caught up on, but there is nothing an hour of blogging won't solve. I tend to get involved with everything we do, but it's blogging where i lose the marks. If i make sure to blog everything that we do, catch up on paperwork that can be photographed and uploaded to the blog, then i should be back on track.

Any Problems?

We did have a slight problem whilst coming to shoot, we booked a room to shoot in and were told we wouldn't be bothered. But yet we still had teachers coming in interrupting us forcing us to cut and re-shoot several times, including a head tutor. Hopefully we will not have anything like this happen again!

Letter From CRaM

We have just received a letter from CRaM Creatives, as they are sponsoring us, they had a few points which they wanted to mention and things they wanted to change. They are interested in showing our episodes at the Junction and on their own professional web TV channel. Therefore, they will want the episodes to not include any offensive language. We will need to bleep them out of the episode we have already shot and then make sure that any other episodes that we make, that they don't have offensive language in.

They also wanted us to mention them in the credits and animated there logo for it to appear at the end. We have been working on all of this and it is coming along well.

These memo's/ letters will be frequent so that what they want is taken into consideration.

We have just received a letter from CRaM Creatives, as they are sponsoring us, they had a few points which they wanted to mention and things they wanted to change. They are interested in showing our episodes at the Junction and on their own professional web TV channel. Therefore, they will want the episodes to not include any offensive language. We will need to bleep them out of the episode we have already shot and then make sure that any other episodes that we make, that they don't have offensive language in.

They also wanted us to mention them in the credits and animated there logo for it to appear at the end. We have been working on all of this and it is coming along well.

These memo's/ letters will be frequent so that what they want is taken into consideration.

Todays Lesson Reflection

Today we did most of the paperwork for the project, we made a group folder to keep it all in. We all got it done so we could concentrate on editing the episode and move onto the next set of issues. The teacher didn't want us trailing behind. We made sure that the footage was uploaded okay and i also made sure everyone knew what they were doing over the weekend. After checking on the footage i did a shot log as well so we could confirm footage we had and such. After looking over the footage i realised that some of our footage was in peep show format. It was in first person and it looked really great. James and Hayden talked about the use of it but it struck me as an overcomplicated idea. The use of first person and the rest of the footage mixed together looks really good and hopefully will add something to our final product.

Thursday Shoot

Today is the day where we shoot the first episode of the web-series.

We got some decent footage from the day, including a terrible accident that provided comical yet amazing footage. On monday we will be starting editing and I'm looking forward to seeing the footage.

Keith Costume Design

Kieth is a caffeine addict. And quite preppy.

These are three ideas for his costume. These costumes will be slightly hard to get hold of and are also too outlandish so these will be toned down.

Costume Design Vince

This is a basic outline for a costume for Vince.

His character is generally quite plain so i have decided to give him all black clothes.

We are going to try and find a t shirt with a weird logo, or better something to do with aliens or outer space.

Plain black jeans.

Retro trainers. For an old school american feel, for example new mexico and the UFO conspiracies.

Vince also wears chains and necklaces, all tell a story of a time he was abducted.

Lesson Plan Thursday 14th January

Shooting.

In this lesson we will be actually recording the footage for our first full episode of Detention Deficit! Myself being the cameraman and our auditioned characters taking on their role.

Location. It will be shot in a classroom with a sense of that dreary detention room which everybody dreaded. But for these guys its their regular spot, same time, everyday.

I am hoping to nail the lighting to get it looking as professional as possible, abandoning that amateur looking footage.

Will keep the blog posted with updates.

Today's Lesson Plan

Today our group has several tasks that we are hoping to get complete by the end of the day.

Most of all we are hoping to get our teaser trailer complete.

But first off, we need to finish editing it, which is currently in progress and is nearly finished.

Record a sound track to put over the top, and get it uploaded to Facebook and other social networks.

Describing Links Between The Micro-Series

The Guild.

Watching the first episode of The Guild, i notice a fair amount of humour. It reminds me of the TV show Scrubs. It establishes the characters straight away and you basically notice who is who due to the accurate creation of the animated characters. It inherites a sort of diary around one person, in this case Codex. It keeps me wanting to watch more, i've already watched 3 episodes and like it a lot. The website is very useful aswell. If you want to follow them on whatever social network your on, there is a link for you to just click and then it will subscribe you to the network.

Living With The Infidels.

Haha this series seems to involve a lot of humour aswell. The group are a set of muslim suicide bombers who live in a terraced house somewhere in Bradford. The episodes are quite short in comparison to The Guild. Only a couple of minutes, as apposed to 6/7. Abdul in this series reminds me of one of the characters out of Shameless, he's got that bad boy look about him but hes a real softy. The actors in this really caught the sense of alienated people who dont get out much! Comparing to The Guild, it captures humour very welll between the characters. The website doesnt offer much to look at, it doesn't even have a follow link. This is probably why they dont have as many fans as The Guild on facebook for instance.

Chad Vader.

This is more a childish comedy. I don't fancy this one to gather as much support as the other series i have watched.

Show Unit

This project involves creating an online micro-series. We have been researching, and coming up with our own ideas for the our series. Zombie Apocalypse, Detention Deficit and Lines were original ideas but our group decided to choose, Detention Deficit.

Detention Deficit is all about a group or teens who are always getting detention and we follow their antics. Here is a list of the 5 regular characters and their input to the series.

Keith:
caffiene addict, drinks coffee when ever he can
stressed, quite jumpy
occasionally has anxiety attacks with cause him to rash out
talks to much and talks very quickly, hard to make out at times
doesn't have a main character they talk to or disscuss, talks to everyone
sonny doesn't like Keith

Sonny:
each episode contains a flashback of how Sonny got the detention
the detention in the flashback is riciculous
can get agressive at times. very agressive
each episode has a rumour about him. each rumour will be ludicrous
each rumour will have it's own nickname which Sonny will react to
Sonny doesn't get on will anyone really, but doesn't get on with Valerie at all


Pier:
known as the great escape guy
draws up crazy schemes to escape detention, he'll always think his idea is better than going through the door
quotes prison films: the great escape,
quotes a line from shawshank redemption each episode that bugs Keith

Valerie:
rotten punk character, trouble maker
doesn't respond well to others being around her
she doesn't enjoy sonny's company very much
likes getting people in trouble

Vince:
Vince is a paranoid pesemistic
he talks mostly to pier, he responds badly to Pier's escape plans
dismissing them as dangerous
wears a strainer on his head with tin foil to protect himself
very calm with his approach
believes spies are after him