Author: jstephens24

With the feedback I got, it seemed polish was more necessary than significant edits. These are the changes I’ve made:

-Removed a couple of unintentionally blurry shots by trimming them. One of which cuts the T.V. show to say “in these last hazy days of Summer…” almost serving as a clue to these being our SUMMERs finals days! (Summer is the protagonists name).

-Removed a couple of background noises that were not intended to be part of the sound (like talking).

-Fixed the audio when Summer gets out of the car to turn off the music as the door opens rather than fade.

-Trimmed the shot of Summer going up the stairs so that she does not look like she’s waiting for direction.

https://youtu.be/bP2OKp5bzOs 

This is my FINAL CUT of the 1-minute-film group project “CLASS CLOWN”.

Here are a list of the changes I made from the draft to the final cut:

• Clown music (sourced from the actual windup-doll used in video) is used three times as a repeated motif. First it is the alarm sound that wakes up our protagonist. Then it is briefly stitched once she kicks the doll on the floor to imply some sort of a connection. Finally it’s used as the end for the last alarm, mirroring the start and emphasizing the “loop”.
• When the clown strikes her down, we cut to black on impact rather than after impact. This was feedback given in-class, and it makes it more realistic as its a pov-shot.
• Removed the 6:66 phone reveal at the end and the red hues. Instead we use the repeated alarm music, and have the jump-scare sfx occur once the camera pans to the clown rather than when the alarm goes off. This effectively moves the jumps-care to be on the clown’s reveal rather than a random 6:66 phone.

This is the first “rough cut” of my final ready to share for class, though I think its pretty close to final already besides some more editing polish & feedback!

For this final project, I would like to make another horror short similar to my group project as I think it turned out well while also still having plenty of room for improvement. This time I want to utilize the setting of my girlfriends rooftop apartment in Portland, her acting skills, some prop zombie/monster mask/gloves we have, and make a horror short.

Right now I have a rough script of what would be the introduction, a 25 second or so build-up then jump-scare. I’m confident we could get some good visuals from multiple buildings that we have roof access to, and I think this scare is pretty effective in my mind for an opener.

**FADE IN:**

**EXT. SKYSCRAPER ROOF – NIGHT**

The vast cityscape stretches beneath the rooftop. A gentle yet unnerving tone is struck as the city-breeze sways loose debris. Only the distant hum of city life breaks the quiet.

**ANGLE ON:** *SUMMER*, her face illuminated by the faint glow of her phone. She’s staring just above the camera, seemingly speaking to someone beside her, who’s barely audible, maybe mumbling incoherently? It’s hard to make out.

**SUMMER**
*(softly, with a touch of sadness)*
I’m just happy we get to spend this time together. I know it’s not the same… but still I’m grateful for it.

**She forces a small smile.**

**CUT TO:**

**SUMMER’S PHONE – SELFIE CAMERA VIEW**

Summer holds the phone at arm’s length in a selfie position, framing herself against the nighttime skyline.

**SUMMER**
*(cheerful, with a glimmer of nervous energy)*
And up here? I dunno, I think it’s pretty cozy. Kinda romantic. Right, Jay?

**She flips the camera toward her companion—**

**JAY’S FACE** (wearing my vecna mask)

—JAY is no person. A twisted, monstrous man stares straight into her camera, unmoving. His expression is an empty, haunting *1000-yard stare*.

**CUT BACK TO:** *SUMMER AND JAY – WIDE ANGLE, 0.5 LENS*

Summer, smiling softly, oblivious to the horror beside her. Her hand reaches out, resting on Jay’s arm.

**The camera slowly pans away from the two of them, revealing they are alone on the isolated rooftop.*

**FADE OUT.**

The idea here is to do a horror short based on a couple where one of them is “undead” while the other is perfectly alive and well. Again, as of current this is likely only 25-30 seconds of a short max. First I want to flesh out the opening speech so that it is longer and perhaps make it so Summer is saying things that are ironic to the fact that her partner is a zombie-like man, building up the reveal better. But beyond that, I’m still trying to think of a couple unique set-pieces or ideas I could do with this theme (undead zombie couple living in portland), I just need to anchor in on a few core concepts to build off of.

[1-MINUTE-FILMS] “Class Clown” Rough Cut #1

Added several gameclips with subtitled context, completely re-mixed the audio in ableton, and a few more touch-ups.

In documentaries, visual evidence is crucial for building a meaningful narrative from fragmented footage. Devil’s Playground explores the Amish youth experience during Rumspringa, asking the central question: will they embrace the Amish or English life? The visual evidence supports this narrative, whether staged to enhance the storytelling, or captured authentically.

One example of in-authentic but effective storytelling occurs at 1:08:30, when for a final interview one of the boys gets into a car and drives off. This scene feels staged because the subject would likely not have abandoned the cameraman, more likely they coordinated the shot to symbolize his return to the Amish community. Regardless, it can still be effective, especially for a more novice audience not looking for these things. It should also be noted that this is part of a series of scenes that wrap-up the stories of our side characters in an almost scripted/cheesy movie-like way.

Right before the previous clip, in another of these wrap-up segments at 1:05:48, a girl arrives home to prepare for college. The opening shot of her arriving, framed from behind the car, feels deliberate. It’s unlikely they spontaneously captured this moment, as the scene likely required advance planning to position the camera perfectly. These moments are small but they demonstrate how visual evidence is used not just to record events, but to structure a compelling story. While it may be in-authentic, they now had a establishing shot rather than skipping straight to her inside.

Finally, let’s look at an opposite example, where visual evidence is authentic potentially to the detriment of the film. For example at 3:50, the interior shots in the Amish homes are dimly lit to maintain realism. On a technical level, this reduces the quality of the film or simply our abilities to see things, but I would argue bringing in a bunch of studio lights would feel noticeably off, and even disrupt the natural behaviors of our subjects by messing with their environment.

http://starwarswars.com/ 

In this video, we see compositing pushed to its limit as six Star Wars movies play at once. The digital effect used in this piece was compositing as the six films were placed in parallel video tracks. They were then “chroma-key’d” to different extents so that parts of five of the movies would remain visible, while one played in the back without any chroma-keying to serve as a background. The result is a mess purely done for experimental and comedic purposes.

When it comes to our own work, we can take influence from this positively by using compositing and chroma-key features to create visual effects (like fire or electricity) without the danger or costs of doing it practically. When it comes to the montage assignment, this type of composting so that multiple scenes or layers can play at once can be effective. Think of training montages in action movies that uses digital effects like these to show multiple scenes at once and give the viewer a sense of time moving fast.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0EDV1HGbrc&ab_channel=JustinHackney 

As for this link, we see an AI-generated video of a retro-futuristic carnival made using Runway Gen2. Reading the comments it appears many viewers enjoy the dream-like sense these artificial videos bring, perhaps effects like this can be used for surreal or unusual moments in a sci-fi or horror movie. Unlike many other digital effects, this tool is essentially producing the entire thing for you if you let it. I imagine it takes a lot of time to refine prompts, sift footage, and edit together the best parts, but you’re still limited in the sense that the entire picture is artificial.

Personally, the only benefit I see to using these in a serious project or motion-picture, would be for inspiration, or to make an artistic point/convey something “In-Human” like the idea stated earlier or using its “uncanny” sense as a tool in a horror or psychedellic sequence.

This opening from “Shameless” communicates the hectic, anxiety inducing strain that poverty can have on a family. As the Gallaghers struggle to meet the electricity bill, they also find themselves in a rush to get ready, and a mess from the night before (looking at the boy with a whole happy-meal on his shirt in-particular!). Matching the chaos of their situation, the framing and editing helps induce these emotions WITHOUT going too overboard in a “Michael Bay” sense.

Firstly, when it comes to editing this scene is fast paced. There’s lots of close-up shots of quick actions like shoving the chair into the washer, or passing the box of money around. These shots are edited so that they cut quick, giving you enough time to see what’s happening, but not too much that things seem stagnant. There’s always movement whether it be the camera or the action of the character it is focused on.

When it comes to framing, I notice a lot of close-up shots that are almost motivated POV, but not quite. Like when the camera finds itself at eye-level of the kids at the table, but not directly from the perspective of one of them. I like the framing of these shots as they do give you some of the benefits of a motivated POV shot like the immersion, but without being tooo distracting or ever taking one characters perspective entirely. This is the story of the entire family, not just one of them.

From 0:38-1:00 I noticed the milk jug as an visual anchor. We watch it begin its journey as the mom opens the fridge, then it gets passed around the table, to the sink, and back to the table. It really helped anchor our action so the viewer doesn’t get lost and can better imagine this 3D-space.

https://www.youtube.com/@jaxonswove7466