My Work
Screen Production 1 Final 5 minutes Short Film
Day Dreamer
2023
Producer: Claire Cheng & Ruilin Shao & Rui Li
Actor: Raina Liu
This was my first experience in the film industry, where I wrote a script, shot with professional equipment, and did post-production editing. After the course, I participated in the Screen Production 1 film festival and learned a lot from student works. Subsequent courses on screenwriting and sound production also deepened my understanding. Looking back a year later, I see the naivety in my work and recognize many areas for improvement. However, I’m grateful for this experience, which opened the door to cinema and fueled my passion for further exploration in screen production.
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A well-crafted script is the fundamental requirement for telling a good story, and it requires systematic, professional training. Sometimes, it's important to remember that less is more. A great story isn't measured by its length but by the control over details, such as subtle and nuanced dialogue.
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During shooting, consider post-production flexibility to avoid irreparable mistakes. For adjacent shots, ensure smooth visual flow by planning camera movements. Using multiple angles instead of a single one prevents the film from feeling dull and allows, as well as for more creative options in editing.
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Pre-production is crucial as it can save a lot of time and effort during filming. The storyboard should be as detailed as possible, utilizing arrows and notes effectively. The shooting location must be confirmed to avoid mistakes during the shoot. Equipment should be 100% checked to ensure everything is functional, especially batteries, which should be prepared in advance. Effective and positive communication with actors during filming is also important, communicate with the intention of cooperation rather than conflict.
Friends
Week 1 Short Film
Akshanth & Jay & Viki & Claire
12 shots
Contain a flashback
Music: https://uppbeat.io/track/matt-stewart-evans/funny-chase
I planed to edit the film as a comedy one. I used Charlie Chaplin style as reference, made it black-and-white, no human voice but subtitlies on it. Then added on comedy music and made sure each shot fits in to the music. During this week’s practice, I reacquainted myself with editing and experimented with using editing techniques to create a more complex narrative.
Writing Task:
In October 2018, I was in the high school near Gordon, while she was studying in the city, with a distance of dozens of kilometres between us. It seemed like a long time since we last saw each other. After school, I went to the train station, looking forward to her arrival, and felt a bit guilty that I might not be able to recognize her immediately in the crowd. The first thing to catch my eyes was a large bunch of red roses. She ran over, embraced me, and wished me a happy birthday. As always, she had a big smile on her face, jumping around, chatting loudly with me as we walked slowly down the street.
Me: “What do you wanna eat for dinner?”
Friend: “Don”t know. Wait, I’m losing weight. Don’t trying to take me eating anything tonight”
Me: “Let’s go and eat. We can start losing weight tomorrow.”
Again, as usual, a happy dinner night.
Stumbling Down
Week 2 Short Film
Akshanth & Jay & Viki & Claire
10-12 shots, up to 5 can be still
Use a painting as inspiration
Contain a transformation
Music: https://uppbeat.io/track/brock-hewitt-stories-in-sound/living-waters
I attempted to present the phone segment through a black screen and subtitles, transitioning into the music with a greeting. At the end, I added a brief segment after the black screen to express the sadness more deeply. The issue this time was that there were too many black screens. In future shoots, I should aim to capture more detailed elements to have additional material on hand for editing.
Writing Task:
An apartment with only 60 square metres, small, but enough for me to feel safe and warm. After school or work, I take ice cream from my fridge filled with my favourite foods, then lie back on the sofa and watch a movie without a care in the world. If I get hungry during the film, I try to make some not-so-tasty dishes from recipes, and it all makes me feel happy. The sound of the boiling water of the kettle, the hum of the vacuum cleaner, the familiar vanilla scent of the air freshener, the cosy feel of the blankets and pillows, and the view outside my window every day are all parts of my life now. I don’t pay much attention to what happens in daily life, but looking back, these small moments transform my anxiety into a sense of comfort and happiness.
Hunting
Week 3 Short Film
Akshanth & Jay & Silver & Morrie & Claire
Stalking
Hide the stalker
Music: https://uppbeat.io/track/kevin-macleod/anxiety
This time, we had an intresting script where the audience initially believes the stalker is the boyfriend, and he reveals himself at the end. However, there's a sudden turningpoint, as the perspective of the couple being watched shows that there’s actually another real hidden stalker. We used black magic but obviously there was a huge lighting issue of the device. Will double check and avoid of this kind of situation next time.
Writing Task:
My aunt has been my spiritual role model in recent years. She is 50 years old and started a new career last year. I worked part-time at her company for a year, and although it was very busy and I find it hard to remember all the little moments we shared, I learned a lot from her, which inspires me to become a woman like her. She never complains about others' mistakes, focusing instead on her own career and personal development. She is forgiving towards others but strict with herself. She doesn't care what others think of her or the negative things they say behind her back; it seems that no amount of negativity can affect her. She isn't tall, or particularly slim, but she walks with a vibrant energy and does her tasks with efficiency. Her dynamic presence draws people to her, making them want to be near her and spend time communicating with her. She always advised me to focus on myself and the present, staying away from people or things with negative energy. She suggested that I can reflect on ten things I’m grateful for each night before I go to sleep. Oh, by the way, there's a small thing: every time when we struggle to find a parking place, and there is suddenly a space available, she always says, "We're so lucky; We are the luckiest people in the world today."
Dialogue
Week 4 Short Film
Akshanth & Eason & Viki & Claire
Shot reverse shot
2 different environments
This was my first time doing long shot reverse shot and I got some experiences from it. When shooting, the two actors need to make sure that they leave enough space for others to finish their words. Start speaking after the other one finished. Otherwise the editing will be very difficult. Other thing is that when doing the 2 shooting, it's important to remember the dialogue and try to speak always the same text, so that will be helpful for matching parts when editing.
Three Days
Assessment 1 Photo Essay
Claire Cheng
Music: https://uppbeat.io/track/cory-alstad/wait-until-dark
When crafting the text, I want to focus on my seven-year journey of studying and living alone in Australia. Throughout this process, I transitioned from feeling insecure and lacking a sense of belonging to meeting many friends, and now I’m focusing on my true life. In structure, I plan to use the words "Yesterday," "Today," and "Tomorrow" as symbols to represent the three phases of my experience, aiming to make the story more engaging and meaningful. When choosing photos, I decided to use old photos for the second part and third part. Since the first segment describes my past feelings of sadness, anxiety, and uncertainty, I decided to take some symbolism photos to convey those emotions, then edited the colours of these photos to be quite dark to create a contrast with the later sections.
Lighting
Week 5 Short Film
Thomas & Jay & Lisa & Claire
Lighting exercise
I studied lighting in Screen Production 1, and after this lighting exercise, I feel more confident in my understanding of lighting. In addition to the common lighting setups like the three-point lighting, we also conducted experimental lighting tests, such as using lights at unconventional angles or experimenting with flickering lights, etc. This exercise made me deeply realize the importance of lighting in film production; it is truly a form of film language on its own that telling its own story.
Week 6
Pre-Producation
During this study week, we had two group meetings where we clarified some basic matters, such as everyone's responsibilities, the scene we need to remake, all the pre-production documents that need to be done, and so on. Version 1 prop list and costume design had been done.
We began looking for actors and locations, confirming the script and making notes, as well as starting to create the storyboard and shot list. Throughout this process, we gradually clarified the equipment we would need. The prop list and costume design were updated with additional details.
Week 7
Pre-Production
Week 8
Pre-Production
This week, we finalized the shooting location and cast, signed the necessary documents, created the call sheet, and prepared the required coffee table. We purchased all the props and costumes we needed, finalized the dinner menu, and prepared the meals. Everything is ready, and we’re set to start shooting on Monday.
We began the post-production process for the film. I was responsible for editing, and once the edit was complete, I shared it with the group and listened to their feedback. The group unanimously agreed that, instead of trying to make each reshot perfectly match the original film and risking a loss of the smooth flow, it was better to maintain the unique qua of our remake while striving for similarity to the original. Our main goal was to preserve the highest quality for our film. After completing the edit, we moved on to color grading, where we continuously made adjustments and communicated with the group to achieve the best possible result.
Week 9
Post-Production
Week 10
Parasite Remake
During the pre-production process, I believe we reached the highest level of what we could achieve. Minh rented a highly professional camera and successfully invited two experienced gaffer guys. Thomas impressed everyone with his cooking skills, which won over both the crews and the actors. Lucia’s props and costumes were a perfect match for the original film. Despite facing some challenges, I successfully found an ideal location and managed to cast relatively professional actors. Although we went over budget for a bit, fortunately, everyone was open to communication and willing to share the responsibility for the additional costs.
In post-production, we faced some issues. Firstly, we couldn't properly maintain the property, which led to damage to the wall paint and furniture. During the process of resolving the issue, there was crossed communication between departments, causing confusion and resulting in everyone spending a significant amount of time and energy. We are deeply grateful to Gregory and Natalie for their full support, without which we wouldn’t have been able to confidently continue with the project. Another issue was with the audio equipment we rented from the school, as several shots had very low sound quality. In this area, Minh and Thomas made huge contributions—they used their professional skills to restore the audio as much as possible. The lighting on set also added some challenges to editing, but Thomas did his best to make adjustments, and I believe the final result looks great. At the beginning of editing, I focused too much on matching the remake shot-by-shot to the original film, including maintaining the exact timing and speed. This led to a lot of wasted time adjusting, but the results weren’t satisfactory, especially when adjusting speed, which caused some audio distortion. Minh provided help here, offering his professional editing support. I believe we all embraced the challenges and, rather than panicking, we saw them as opportunities for individual development. We faced these obstacles together with a positive and optimistic attitude, and I’m feeling so proud of everyone.
The shooting process was both enjoyable and smooth, and I feel very fortunate and grateful to have been part of this team. Minh put a lot of effort into studying the script and taking notes, which allowed him to fully understand each character's performance and the overall staging of the scene. He managed the entire shoot flawlessly, including communication with both the actors and the crew. I was amazed at how quickly Thomas mastered the use of the camera and, throughout the shoot, played an essential role, shouldering one of the most important tasks. Lucia was in charge of sound, which, I must say, is a very tiring job. She held the heavy microphone without a single complaint and coordinated seamlessly with everyone. My role on set was to record the continuity log sheet to assist with post-production editing. I also took on the responsibility of overseeing the similarity between the shoot and the original film, making sure to communicate and make adjustments with the departments as needed. One thing I think I did well was preparing all the original shot clips in advance, so everyone could easily refer to the original film for guidance. It’s also worth mentioning that, since I came down with a cold right before the shoot and wasn’t feeling well, Minh thoughtfully brought in a friend who is also studying screen production to help. On set, Chelsea took on the role of clapperboard and assisted with showing the actors the original movie reference. I amincredibly appriciate for her help. In the future, I’ll definitely take on this responsibility myself. We spent about 3 hours setting up, 7 hours shooting, and had dinner during the break. I would consider it a perfect and efficient shooting process.