Our Inspirations
We have decided as a team we would like to film a TV Show Pilot, within which we focus on three siblings who experienced different upbringings and are now reuniting when they are older and are in different walks of life.
We decided we wanted to make a film about siblings as siblings have a very unique dynamic relationship with each other, this was reflected in our personal lives as we all had siblings of our own and when looking into the theories of Lines of Closeness we found that the one between siblings would be the most interesting one to explore.
Welcome to my production blog!
For this module I have chosen to work with a group of three other filmmakers, Barbara, Tom and Klaudia.
For this creative film project we are opting for Option A, a 12-20 minute narrative film working in a group of four.
Our Roles
Director: Tom
Producer: Barbara
Cinematographer: Maria
Editor: Klaudia
Inspiration for Family Dynamics
We all brought a reference of a piece of media that we had watched which we thought had effectively conveyed family dynamics, which we could draw inspiration from for our own narrative TV show Pilot. Here are some examples below.
2020 – Present
2018 – Present
Crafting the Story
Question we asked ourselves: What does it mean to be a sibling?
Three siblings meet up to celebrate the youngest art exhibition, during which they end up opening up about their upbringing and how different it was despite the fact that they were raised by the same parents.
We thought it could be interesting to add dynamics of emigration, financial crisis and isolation.
We each chose a character and Barbara chose the setting which we then were to go away and reflect on before coming together to write the synopsis.
Oldest – Need for attention, She needs to fix situations she’s pragmatic doesn’t talk about her pain without finding a solution – Klaudia
Middle – Lives in his own troubled reality and avoids facing the truth – Tom
Youngest- Need to separate themselves from the family to separate themselves from their art, to immortalise themselves – Maria
Environment – Cluttered, yet barren, artistic and troubled – Barbara
Our Synopsis
Three distant siblings arrive at the middle child’s studio to discuss the youngest’s current artistic endeavours.
Upon revealing a family portrait, criticisms erupt, the atmosphere sours, and their dynamics devolve into a sensitive territory.
Through A FLUCTUATION OF ARGUMENTS AND DISCUSSIONS, their differing upbringings become apparent and what was once left unsaid between them now starts to BE OPENLY TALKED ABOUT.
Their stubbornness and lack empathy leaves them in a questionable state, each of them leaving the studio PONDERING.
Location Scouting and Props
Our Pilot was set to be filmed in an art studio, as our producer and the president of film society Barbara volunteered that we use the film soc studio to film our pilot. This location has many benefits..
- Easily accessible to the production crew, as well as our actors, due to it being located closely to Euston Station.
- It has the right appearance and feel for the space we want to use in the film as it is already a studio setting.
- No need to sign permits or have problems with scheduling or site supervision, the location is fully bookable.
- Has a surplus of equipment we can use such as tripods, mics and cameras.
- Comes complete with many props, specifically vintage cameras which we can use to help convey Adam’s occupation as a photographer.
- Gives us privacy and has no outdoor light, allowing us and our actors to immerse ourselves in the world of the characters.
Script Writing & Stress
Prior to putting out our casting call we are working on finishing an Act of the script, in order to ensure that those who audition can do so after reading the story and their character.
Click on the Phases below to see how we develop the script and story.
Casting Call
After posting a casting call in numerous forums, group chats and sharing it with friends and acquaintances we received an underwhelming number of responses. After extending our deadline we had received three responses, at which point we contacted actors which we had worked with before personally. Thus we moved forwards with two privately found actors and one from the casting call.
Phase 1 – the fix
We encountered a problem. At least in my opinion, I think that while we have all gone away and conducted in depth research, soul searching and creatively come up with three characters and a setting, each character is different and exists as of themselves. In order to solve this we are holding group script writing sessions to reign in our story and make a cohesive narrative.
Phase 2 – the setup
After working together, in between and after classes and numerous online meeting which we are taking between our various commitments and employment, we have come up with the first Act. Primarily exploring the relationship between the siblings and themselves, how they uniquely present themselves and how they manifest in their environment. Barbara and Klaudia have worked extensively on developing the initial narrative, and how the conflict and tensions rise as the siblings are exposed to the painting that Cleo has made. Meanwhile me and Tom have focused on the climax, the brutal explosions of aggression and Adam’s battle with addiction.
Phase 3 – the clash
We had some conversations and conflict ourselves, as the instances and scenes that me and Tom wrote came under scrutiny and subjective change due to their graphic nature and settings. Post discussion we have added these bits back in, and worked on ensuring that the group was satisfied with their existence. I think it’s important for a film to be raw and expletive, especially if that is part of the characters personalisation.
Phase 4 – the polish
After multiple drafts and notes from multiple teachers we are working towards the final version of the script, a slightly shorter, less wordy narrative which is more coherent and flows better. We have focused more on the artefacts within the film, such as the painting and how the characters will interact with each other and decorate the setting.
The Cast
Klaudia had previously worked with Elisa, and gave us very promising reviews of her and her reliability. I had previously worked on a project with Luke, and was certain he could portray perfectly the character of Adam. Both of them were experienced. Ari we had scouted through her tape which was good, and she seemed eager, and also perfectly matched the profile we had set out for Cleo.
The Props and The Painting.
The damn painting. This aspect of our story had created issues due to it being improbable for us to make our own, or to buy/find one that would not take away from the tv show pilot and it’s narrative. After a failed zoom call with a Slade School graduate we began to seek alternative solutions. We settled decidedly on not actually showing the painting on screen but rather letting the audience interpret it from the reaction of the characters within the scene.
We created prop lists and split the roles up, dividing who was to bring/buy or provide what.
Table Read
Preparing for the Shoot
We set aside a week and a half for the shoot itself, ensuring we all had days of work and our actors were available. We established that if we had conflicting days due to actors availabilities we would shoot with at least a skeleton crew.
Cameras?
After consideration we decided that I would be using the Red Komodo to shoot as we were shooting in one space, not outside and in a closed environment. Furthermore the Film Soc Studio had locked cupboards which permitted us to leave equipment there, overnight safely.
I had picked up the Red Komodo early so I could get some hands on practice with the camera, prior to me being on the shoot.
The Shoot
Below is a shot list which I sketched out for day one of the shoot, this was a day when only Elisa was available so we shot her scene in the upstairs office of the film soc.
Day 1
Day 1 was successful, we managed to shoot all of the required scenes that we had planned to film with Elisa, she was quite successful and efficient at portraying her character and we were very satisfied with her performance.
Day 2
On this day we realised that not all of our actors were familiar with film sets, so we had to do some impromptu training. As you can see in the documenting images and shot lists we had a lot of scenes that needed to be filmed hand-held. The Red Komodo was difficult and bulky for this job, even with the addition of the film soc shoulder-rig.
Day 3
Tom went to UCL east to pick up a black magic in order to give us some familiarity with an easy to hold camera. As a result we ended up filming on both rigs.
Day 4
Today we wrapped shooting, we had filmed the bulk of our pilot and were under time constraints and a VERY skeletal crew, due to clashing schedules. It seemingly worked in our benefit that we had two camera rigs as we were able to split up and have part of the crew work with some of the actors while someone else could focus on individual scenes, such as Adams.
Gallery
Here is a collection of photos that I took during our shoot.
Shot on 35MM FP4, with an Olympus OM10
Reviewing the Footage
Upon reviewing the footage we realised we were likely to struggle piecing together our footage in a coherent manner. We are debating alternative outcomes, such as shooting additional scenery footage or adapting our narrative to something that fits what we have filmed. Furthermore we have ended up with two different styles of footage as we utilised both the Red Komodo and the Black Magic.
After partaking in a teams call with our teachers and supervisors we have decided to head into the experimental genre by adding found footage into our film, and recording a voiceover.
Maria Mujib 