Foundation Production Group 5: Group. Location Reccie & Wilderness Woods Review

Location Reccie

When and where did we go?

On the 5th of December 2013 the class visited Wilderness Woods in East Sussex. This location we visited was extremely ideal for the work that was set as it was a location that you would typically find in a horror movie. Therefore we were able to work with this location, generating some good footage which we were to develop into our second preliminary task.

What was the purpose?

The purpose of this trip was to develop our location reccie skills, as well as assessing the risks and potential health hazards the crew were to face whilst filming within that certain environment. This would also include what to do in certain situations, such as what to do with the equipment if there is a dramatic change ion the weather.In addition to this we were also given a second preliminary task where two characters were to be followed by the 'unknown', (protagonist). This task was put in order to develop our overall knowledge of filming as a group in order for when we shot the final piece are knowledge and understanding of how to complete certain film related tasks will be at a higher a standard, than it was at previously.

What did we do?

In this trip we particularly focused on working on our camera work as in our previous task we identified that this was open of our weaknesses. In this development of our camera work we used new equipment such as a track & dolly in addition to a handicam, which would both be used in order to improve the final outcome of our footage. Another area we focused on was the actual camera angles and sizes, which (if shot and constructed in the right way) would improve our overall end result.

Firstly in this trip we sat down and discussed what genre and style of horror opening we were going to construct in later filming. The outcome of this was a supernatural/psychological horror involving a young female antagonist. The two styles of films that we were discussing our work to be based upon and around was Paranormal Activity and The Woman in Black, both in which fulfill these sub-genres of horror that we were to focus on.
For the next thirty minutes we walked around the woods searching for a suitable location to film at whilst all thinking about possible story lines upon which we could base our clip around. In this time we also took several pictures which were to evaluate the different locations that we were to film in.
Once this was completed we then spent around 45 minutes completing a risk assessment sheet and a call sheet/shot list sheet in order for our preparation to shoot. the main purpose of doing this was to keep the equipment and crew safe, in addition to using the equipment efficiently in the time in which we were given to shoot this clip.
The next stage (after lunch) was to start filming. In this time we used equipment such as a track & dolly and a handicam. Through the shooting we decided that for editing reasons we would shoot in a chronological order, to stop complications.

What worked well?

As a group we believe that our camera work has improved dramatically since the first preliminary task we shot. The main shot that our group was particularly

pleased about was the tracking shot we constructed using the track and dolly. Therefore in future through establishing that using the track and dolly is one of our strong points, using tracking shots in our final piece would be a good idea to undertake.

What didn't work so well?

As a group we believe that possibly due to story-boarding issues, that we have lack of footage to work with. In addition to this our original sound (dialogue in-particular) was too quiet to hear, meaning that in the editing process of the film producing we would have to record another layer of dialogue to go with the footage. This would take alot of time and effort to do which could affect our overall piece of work. Therefore this is an important learning curve for our group.

Location Reccie Images: