Figure 1 Own Photo (Welch, 2018)

Level 3 Extended Diploma in Creative Media Production & Technology

FILM AND TELEVISION

UNIT 12January 9 – February 15

Week 1. January 9 th -11 th

The story of how I wanted to become a filmmaker isn’t a long one. At the age of 8 I received a camcorder for my birthday and was inspired to make Indiana Jones-based stunt films in my garden. My naïve frustration that they weren’t the same quality as major blockbusters led me to want to seek out the practices that would make them look professional. This is what led me to developing my love of movie making, with me visiting many different movie studios and talks on film in the ensuing years.

In 2015 I joined the Media department of Canterbury College to learn more about the industry, study film and then make films with the equipment that the department had available. 4 years later, I’m still here and all the more wiser and experienced for it. Now I’m in my final year, I’m putting my best foot forward and plan to make whatever work comes out of the next few months the best I’ve ever created.

WHAT ARE MY PASSIONS?

To figure out what theme or concept would inspire this Unit, as well as potentially my Final Major Project, I decided to make a mind map and plot out the things that interest me the most, and further distil that to a concept both fitting my usual style and personality, but also highly unique and unlike anything I’ve tackled.

The starting point I chose to decide were my biggest media interests – sans Stephen King as I had produced a film based on his work in a previous year. From there, I would let my imagination run with the choices, leading me to the idea.

Figure 2 Mind Map of Interests (Welch, 2019)

The path that I was most interested in was clear, that being Disney. Or more specifically, Disney Theme Parks and the stories the attractions in them tell. To take a further look into this process, I created a second mind map involved purely around Disney Parks and the individual elements that I love and am inspired by.

Figure 3 Disney Mindmap (Welch, 2019)

WHAT IS MY FOCUSED SKILL?

Throughout my years of film study, I’ve gained so many abilities and knowledge about the creative process of filmmaking and this has led to projects with increasing production values over time. The skills I have I think really bring out my own distinctive style within whatever project I’m working on.

For choosing one singular skill to focus on, I considered my strong suits in filmmaking and narrowed it down to 3 finalists: Cinematography, Editing and sound design, all of which I’ve had a lot of experience with during all the major and minor projects I have undertaken over the past few years.

Out of the three choices, i chose Editing as my focused skill, firstly because I feel it’s my strongest attribute and secondly because I’ve had years of practice with editing, beginning even before I joined any film course – which makes me very comfortable with it at any time.

Being at college however, has taught me both professional techniques, and how to use industry-grade editing software, such as AVID. I always enjoy editing, but I love the challenge of taking large amounts of raw footage and then turning that into something fluid and professional looking that would really capture the attention of whoever is watching.

Below is an example showreel of my editing work in various projects.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_R2c2jJIt8&feature=youtu.be

The footage in the showreel comes from three projects:

“Graduation Afternoon” (King, 2008) “Based on a True Story” “Winter Dance Ball”

What I find interesting about these 3 examples is that apart from Graduation Afternoon which was a final major project, the following two were projects with a shorter turn around, however I think come out as far stronger pieces. This makes me consider whether working under increased pressure and time actually improves the end result. That’s something for me to at least muse upon.

Something I take a lot of personal pride in, with regards to editing is how I time music to it. I wouldn’t consider this soundscaping as I base the edit around the audio, not vice versa. Elements of these are visible within my showreel, especially during “Based on a True Story” and “Winter Dance Ball.”

Editing has always been an interest, so it just seems natural for it to now be my focus.

WHAT ARE MY INFLUENCES? WHAT IS MY CONTEXTUALITY?

In my initial Mindmap, i included 3 different ideas about what route I would want to go down in terms of project concept or basis. Discounting my chosen subject for the moment, Marvel and Wes Anderson are examples of two things: Old Favourites and New Interests.

Figure 4 Thor by Jack Kirby (Marvel, 1966)

(Kirby, 1967)

Marvel Entertainment, best known for its superhero comics and movies has been a staple in my life since at least 2002 when the first Spider-Man film directed by Sam Raimi was released. Not only is it my earliest memory of a Marvel comics property, but also to the character of Spider-Man, who has remained one of my favourite fictional characters (and who’s recent animated outing, “Into the Spider-Verse” became my favourite film of 2018).

It wasn’t until 2008 that I began truly getting into the comics aspect, X-Men and Fantastic Four being a favourites of mine. As the success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe has flourished, I’ve always been there as an excited fan with ticket in hand ready to see whatever the next film is. I love Marvel’s universe over any other comics’ because of how pulpy-retro it is, how much fun it can have, but how also it has very genuine looks into social issues (e.g. X-Men is an analogy for the civil rights movement) and hard hitting themes, told through the lens of fantastical characters. In the end, this path didn’t seem quite as concrete of a concept to base a Unit around, and maybe making a film directly based on a Marvel property wouldn’t be the best idea for me, as I’m now just finding my feet in regards to my own stories.

Figure 5 Moonrise Kingdom (Focus Features, 2012)

(Anderson, 2012)

The first film by American director Wes Anderson I became aware of was 2009’s Fantastic Mr. Fox, a stylish stop motion based on the Roald Dahl novel. The novel was my entryway to becoming interested in the film, and after viewing it, the entire atmosphere of the film stuck with me in a way I couldn’t quite understand. Maybe it was the music, maybe the cinematography, but it did. It wouldn’t be until several years later when I watched The Grand Budapest Hotel when it finally clicked that it was the style of the director that stuck with me.

Anderson’s quirky, off-reality brand of auteur-isms is popular for a reason and has inspired many of my classmates over the years. Yet for some strange reason, after Budapest I didn’t proceed to watch more of his work. Not until 2018, when after watching Isle of Dogs, his second stop motion feature, I fell in love with that style all over again and watched his entire

library within a matter of days. As someone who loves retro influences and stylings, his work just speaks to me. But I suppose in the end that’s why that path didn’t interest me as much, while yes I find him influencing me to a great degree, if I were to base an entire project around him, it would become almost derivative and at this point within my college Career, I want to find my own voice. The time for copying the work of others is over.

Figure 6 Disneyland Paris Castle (Welch, 2018)

I think it’s a safe assumption that most people were raised with Disney, even if they don’t consider themselves fans. Personally, my first ever bedroom after being brought home as a baby was themed to Disney’s Winnie the Pooh. Disney has been there very much from the beginning and it is by far, the one media franchise I love the most.

It’s all very well to talk about my favourite Disney movies or characters (although they may play a key role down the road), but inspiration instead comes from Disney Parks. Beginning with the first Disneyland in 1955, the Walt Disney Company and its team of “Imagineers” (creative storytellers) have made several around-the-world resorts for guests to experience whatever magical worlds the company brings into some space of reality.

For me personally, my first experience was at 3 years old when my parents first took me to Disneyland Paris. From then, to my current age of 20, I’ve visited the resort at least 25+ times, and the Parks in America 3 times. To make things clear, I have no siblings who long to go, my going is purely out of my and my parent’s love of the place. I’ve grown up with it, to the point where it is truly a second home. I know the routes and paths of the resort inside out, know all the hints about what rides to go on first and which rides are worth queueing long amounts of time for, I know it all and revel in the fact I’ve never tired of it.

Clearly I would be inspired by this place regardless of any separate takeaways from it other than “I like going to this theme park”, but as early as I can remember my trips to Disneyland Paris, one thing always stood out to me. Something that I would and still think of on a day to day basis: The Storytelling.

Disney attraction storytelling is a beast quite unlike anything else, because the task of the creatives involved is to tell a live story, running continuously throughout the days and years through either just words, or generally, just with visuals alone. Certain storylines have never left my mind and others have crept in and become full blown obsessions.

So my research question is this: How Does Disney Craft Effective Visual Storytelling in Attractions?

Week 2. January 16 th -18 th

BIBLIOGRAPHY.

King, S. (2008). Graduation Afternoon. Bangor, Maine: Scribner.

Anderson, W. (Director). (2012). Moonrise Kingdom [Motion Picture].

Kirby, J. (1967). "Thor" by Jack Kirby. Marvel Comics.

TABLE OF FIGURES

Figure 1 Own Photo (Welch, 2018)........................................................................................................1Figure 2 Mind Map of Interests (Welch, 2019)......................................................................................2Figure 3 Disney Mindmap (Welch, 2019)...............................................................................................3Figure 4 Thor by Jack Kirby (Marvel, 1966)............................................................................................4Figure 5 Moonrise Kingdom (Focus Features, 2012).............................................................................5Figure 6 Disneyland Paris Castle (Welch, 2018).....................................................................................6