Creative Task 1 - Reverse Shot, 180 Rule

This is our first attempt at a short film, with the focus primarily being on the 'shot reverse shot' and '180 degree rule'. We created a small scenario within a school break time situation, and quickly made up a realistic conversation between two characters.

Pros

Considering we had no previous experience of camera-shot techniques, I think we have done a good job putting these techniques into practice. Most of the camera shots are almost from identical positions, which improves the overall consistency of the video. We also did not break the 180 degree rule. Our editing skills were quite good too, for our first time, as we cut out the outtakes and any other mistakes.

What Could Improve

For our video, we were using an iPhone camera to record, rather than an actual camera. As a result, our first mistake was filming in portrait mode (films should be in landscape only, to have a wide-angle shot). The overall sound quality wasn't very good either, as the phone struggled to pick up some words, resulting in inconsistent volume - this could be improved by speaking loudly and clearly. Also as there was no filter on the phone, the wind was interfering in some scenes. There was also a continuity issue nearing the end, which could be improved next time by simply filming a retake.

Learning Comments

When filming our creative task 1, I learned how important it is for the camera operator  to communicate with the actors to avoid confusion, and help with the overall flow. I also learned several rule and techniques when filming, such as the 180 degree rule and the shot-reverse-shot technique. Lastly, we realised halfway through our filming that we shouldn't be shooting in portrait but landscape instead.