Final Movie Opener

 Hello! Here is my groups final product of our movie opener “Do No Harm”. 

https://youtu.be/BL_doOTn1rk

Creative Critical Reflection

Hello! Here is the link to my video answering my creative critical reflection questions. 

https://youtu.be/4kWqq7Ng7BI?si=zJsdF-C0chJSu4mt

Representation

Hello! Today we were asked to talk about the representation of our characters in our movie opener. 

In our movie opener, we represented our main character, who is a female, different than the usual stereotypes you see in films or in every day life. Most of the time, men are the ones shown in big medical jobs like surgeons or doctors, and women don’t get represented as much in those roles even though a lot of them work in the medical field today. However the roles differ in our film as you can see how Dr. Elena, is a woman and also a cardiac surgeon. Since STEM jobs are usually seen as male‑dominated, having her in that role challenges the stereotype that only men can have those kinds of careers. Although her role challenges stereotypes, I feel like her character could’ve been written better to make the story feel more realistic. In the script, she comes across as an emotionless woman who is evil for no reason, which could possibly give the audience the impression that she is just a bad person or that something is wrong with her mentally. It would’ve made more sense if we showed her struggling with the decision or feeling guilty for wanting to do that to Claire. Adding that struggle would’ve made her character feel more realistic and given the story more emotional weight. But since we didn't add this conflict upon her, the audience could conclude that she had this behavior for a long time and this wasn't new to her.

Final Storyboard

 Hello! Today we were asked to make our new storyboard and describe the events happening in each scene, and then explain the differences made from our original storyboard.

At first, the movie opener was planned differently because in our original idea for scene 1, we didn't plan for Dr. Elena to talk to the nurse. At first she was going to cry during the entire scene, but we added the nurse as a time filler and to ensure our film had enough dialogue between characters so it wouldn't be boring. In scene 3, we were going to have Dr. Elena greet Claire at the receptionist desk and and walk her to the room where she will be evaluated, but instead, Dr. Elena does not appear at all during these scenes, and the environment is kept as if it were a normal checkup. In scene 4, we kept it the same where Claire is suffocated by Dr. Elena who charges behind her quietly with a cloth over her mouth. However, when making our initial draft, we didn't have a clear idea of what came next. In the end, we chose to add series of unfortunate and chilling events in between straight cuts and fade outs to leave tension and suspense since out film is a thriller. We ended the film with the title appearing with chilling music, and it leaves the audience off on a cliffhanger.

Title Sequence

Hello! Today we were asked to talk about our title sequence by showing the different fonts and coloring we used in the film. 

Title: Do No Harm

Distribution Company: reDot Studios
Production Company: VKSN Productions
Starring Cast: Veronica Madrid (Dr. Elena), Kamryn May (Claire the patient), Suri Nguyen (receptionist)
Music Provided By: CapCuts
Written By: Suri Nguyen
Produced By: Veronica Madrid, Suri Nguyen, Niliem Valdes and Kamryn May
Directed By: Kamryn May
Edited By: Niliem Valdes and Suri Nguyen
Story By: Veronica Madrid 

For our movie title that will be revealed at the end of the film, we used the font called "Chiller" in a red color because it associates with danger or blood, which is related to our movie opener. In our credits page, we used the font called "Battery Pack" because it has a bold look to it, and gives the film a more chilling vibe. For the intro we the font called "Westsac" because of its different letter sizes. In reDot studios, the D is purposely capitalized in red to make the logo more unique and attention grabbing. Lastly, to list the people and the company that helped with the movie, we used the font "Josefin Sans (Light)" so that the audience is able to read it easier. 

Editing 2

Hello! Today in class we asked to continue discussing the process of our movie opener by talking about  what we will include in the scenes, what text styles, and what everyone in the group did to help.

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For our project, "Do No Harm" we are sticking with the font, "Chiller", as previously mentioned in editing 1. Compared to last time, we haven't faced any new challenges while filming. We are still working cleaning up the audio by using voiceovers to layer over the background noise and turn up the volume on the dialogue. We already filmed the clips we need for the opener, including the scene where Doctor Elena is dragging the patients body, and the scene where the patient answers her phone before the appointment. Veronica and I have been helping to select the eerie music and foley sounds that will be used throughout the film, such as the realistic beep noise when dialing a phone number. To keep the tension high, we are using straight cuts and match cuts for the transitions, along with visual effects like light flickers and a slow-blinking effect for the unconscious patient. 

Editing 1

 Hello! Today we were assigned to upload photos of our process in editing and discuss the problems we encountered during it. We must also include a discussion of transitions, video and audio effects we used. 

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Our horror film, called "Do No Harm", is currently being edited by Niliem Valdes and Suri Nguyen while Veronica and I are helping by providing our input on the process of it. To ensure our project sets the atmosphere and vibe we want our audience to feel, we selected chilling fonts like Creepster, Chiller, and Nosifer. We have already started using J-cuts and match-cuts in our editing, while layering in a haunting sound, heavy breathing, and eerie background music. One challenge we faced was distracting background noise from the shoot, which we plan to fix later by recording a clean voiceover to overlay the original audio. We spent about only an hour on editing because of our busy filming schedule, and multiple retakes on our scenes which was time consuming. However, we will shift our focus more on editing the film opener once we have recorded majority of our scenes.

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Peer Reviews of Initial Draft

Hello, today we are doing peer reviews on another group's initial draft for their movie opener. We will be discussing the reviews and criticisms that we received for our initial draft and how we can improve on the critique that were mentioned. 

First Review: 

- The group talked about how difficult it is to hear the conversations between the two actors due to the heavy and congested background. 

- The dialogue for the second clip lasted too long 

- There should have been more camera shots during the second clip in order to keep the viewer's attention

- They were confused at the clip given, especially when another patient appears at the end, where the doctor, Elena, is giving the patient an examination. It does make sense they said that because we only had a beginning and an ending clip and put those two together in order to be able to have something for the draft

Second Review: 

- The second group also critiqued about the sound, needing more improvement on it because it lacked volume

- They suggested that adding more diegetic sounds in order to make the clip feel natural and less quiet

- The clip at the very end where the doctor examines the patient

- When it comes to the dialogue where the doctor gives out the bad news and the person receiving that news, there should have been more emotional appeal

Our overall complaint was our sound, therefore, to improve it we can record the audios separately and overlay the clips with it so the background noise will be covered. This will help the audience hear the dialogue between the actors better. As for the second clip, our dialogue lasted too long, and to fix this we have to shorten it and make a few cuts and edits to it. We could also include more variety of camera shots such as the over-the-shoulder shot when the characters are talking, to show different perspectives instead of just one, and long shots to keep the viewers attention. We are also need to work on the clips we are missing so that it's less confusing and improvement on editing.

Initial Draft

 

Challenges in Film

 Hello, today in class we were asked to discuss what challenges we faced while filming and what we did to solve them as a group. 

What are the challenges involved in filming? 
While filming we struggled to decide on what props to use, and determining which ones were appropriate for our movie opener. We also struggled with our acting, causing us to redo our clips multiple times until we perfected the emotion the character should be feeling. During this, we have to remember our lines and actions in which Veronica struggled with. Overall, it was hard to make our scenes perfect while keeping it realistic. For example, Niliem had laughed at Veronica for her acting, we were constantly forgetting our lines, and Suri kept moving while lying down, which kept ruining our scene.
To solve these problems, we began practicing our lines repetitively before filming. This helped although we still slightly struggled with our confidence in my opinion. We only filmed a few seconds but I can sense everyone worrying about whether it will turn out well. We didn't have a problem with lighting, however, we struggled with the sounds at first, trying to reach the perfect pitch. 

Preparing to Film

Hello today we were assigned to talk about our challenges and easy parts of preparing for our film, as well as explain what each group member is doing to help, what we'll use as our props, and our times and dates for working on the project. 

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My group plans on using the school clinic for our hospital scenes, and begin filming on January 28th. We will continue working on the film every Wednesday after school. (February 4th, 11th, 18th, 25th, March 4th, and so on from 3pm-6pm)

Scripts 

Scene 2

Dr. Elena: "Alright Claire, I will call you once I get your labs back. Have a good day."

Claire: "You too, bye."

Scene 3

Dr. Elena: "Hello, am I speaking to Claire?"

Claire: "Yes, this is Clare" 

Dr. Elena: "Hi Claire, this is Dr. Elena, calling from the clinic. I'm calling you regarding the results that we received from your recent labs a few days ago. I'm afraid we have found complications regarding your heart." 

Claire: "What is it?"

Dr. Elena: "On our charts, your blood has shown very elevated troponin. Have you felt any symptoms recently?" 

Claire: "I haven't felt anything, what does that mean?"

Dr. Elena: "Feeling no symptoms while having high levels of troponin could indicate asymptomatic heart failure, early stages of heart failure. If possible, I would like to schedule an appointment with you at another clinic to talk about possible solutions, in 2 days at 6pm. Are you able to that?"

Claire: Yes, that would be fine." 

Scene 4

Receptionist: "Welcome miss, do you have an appointment here?"

Claire: "Yes, it's under Claire, for 6 pm."

Receptionist: "Alright, just sign your name on this check-in sheet and you may enter her office now."

Claire: "Thank you." 

Scene 5

Doctor Elena: "Hi Claire, sorry for the short notice. I wanted to make sure you get treated as soon as possible."

Claire: No worries. What are my treatment options?"

Doctor Elena: A safe and efficient option that I would highly recommend is a CABG surgery, which can help improve your cardiac functions. May I proceed with it?"

Claire: Yes. When can I start?

Doctor Elena: "Now."

Claire: "Wha-" 

 

Film Equipment: The equipment that we will be using is our personal devices like phones, and a microphone to capture sounds throughout the film.

Initial Storyboard

 Hello, today in class, our groups were assigned to make a storyboard so that we have an idea of what our movie opener will look like. My group members Veronica, Niliem, and Suri all helped decide on what scenes to use and agreed on which members should play as who for our movie opener. 

 

Scene 1

The first scene starts off with Dr. Elena in the hospital room with her ill husband as he suffers from a sudden heart disease. During this scene, there will be a two-shot to show the story tone when Elena is going through an emotional time. Then a straight cut will be used to transition to the next scene. 

Scene 2

Dr Elena returns to work and goes through her patients, until one catches her attention. Her patient, Claire who contains the same blood type as her husband, which will give her a selfish idea to help him. There is an over the shoulder shot when Dr. Elena is talking to Claire, simply to show how normal she looks on the outside despite her evil thoughts. 

Scene 3

Dr. Elena decides to call her patient Claire, claiming there is something wrong with her heart and she must come to a private clinic for a check up. This is when a close up shot is used on Dr. Elena's face while she is making this phone call. Non-diegetic sounds like the dialogue between the doctor and patient is used. Then a fade out is used to transition into the next scene.

Scene 4

Claire arrives at the private clinic and checks in at the receptionist desk where she is greeted by Dr. Elena before they head into the room. A wide shot is used during this to reveal the environment and setting that they're in. There will also be faint sounds of the tv in the background while the two characters are talking. Then a match cut is used to transition from the patient opening the door to the next scene of them entering the office.

Scene 5

Dr. Elena and Claire are in the office as they go over what's wrong with her heart. A mid shot is used to show their body language throughout the conversation. Diegetic sounds are used when Elena is flipping through her papers, going through information. Then a J-cut is used to show the patient closely as Dr. Elena walks towards Claire, with her footsteps audible. 

Scene 6

Dr. Elena goes up to Claire, behind her, covering her mouth with a cloth, soaked in sedatives. While she is walking towards her, the tracking shot will follow her movements. Claire then gets dragged, and the incidental sounds are used during this to create the suspense. As she is dragged, the door closes from behind to to automatically transition to the title page. 

Scene 7 (Title Page)

This last scene displays the title of the movie, along with the credits, info, etc.

Mood Board for Movie Opener

Hello! Today in class we were assigned to create a mood board for our movie opener. 

This is my mood board: 

In my mood board I used black, red and grey colors to represent blood and the hospital setting while also making it obvious that the movie opener has a dark and intense aesthetic. The images of hearts shows that the story has to do with a heart surgery, and the hospital photos add onto the setting. I included surgical tools and an image that represents a crime investigation to show how the procedure is being performed illegally. I also added a photo of the surgeon to show the costume of the character, giving visual reference to how they will look during the movie opener.

Final Idea for Movie opener

Hello, today in class we had to come up with our final idea for our movie opener project. 

Final storyline: 

Dr.​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌ Elena Marquez is a cardiologist in her area. She has been instrumental in keeping alive patients who were about to run out of time. Until the tragedy, of course, comes to her own family. Daniel, her husband, suffers a sudden and severe organ failure. The doctors gave him only a few weeks.
Elena puts him on the national transplant list right away; nevertheless, his situation is not severe enough to get the priority ranking he needs. The odds of a transplant happening in time are next to nothing.
Elena, overwhelmed by terror and sorrow, sees helplessness as the only option. She exhausts all legal routes, clinical trials, remote donor programs, and luxury hospitals, but the pace remains unchanged. She sees her husband fading away while she, a doctor who has been saving lives, feels utterly powerless.
The tension escalates, and Elena starts to do things that she had never thought she was capable of. She begins to illegally look for possible matches in hospital records. At the beginning, she convinces herself that she is only looking, not doing anything. But as Daniel continues to deteriorate, her desperation becomes an obsession.
The moment Elena discovers someone who could be the perfect donor, a healthy, anonymous person with no family ties, she is at a crossroads. She is aware of what the law requires, and she understands her moral pledge. However, she also knows that this organ could be the one to save her husband.
Elena picks ​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌Daniel.

What I'm excited about: I'm mostly excited for using camera shots and angles that we learned during previous classes.

What I'm worried about: I'm mostly worried that we won't have the right equipment for our move opener, and It won't look realistic enough. I'm also iffy about my acting and how the final outcome will be.