Visions Film Festival Write-up

My experience at the Visions Film Festival was a very fun one. I came into the festival with no knowledge of what a film festival would be like and an extra pass Luqi gave me around my neck. The first block I attended was the video race screening. Since I didn't participate in the actual race, it was really a shock to dive in to the video race results. I was left with the inescapable feeling that I still don't understand "film student humor" and am not sure I ever want to. The whole theme of the race and the resulting videos were a bit too abstract for me, and I ended up feeling like I was watching the film version of someone else's inside joke. The laughter in the audience was a constant reminder that I wasn't a part of this group of competitors. That said, I was also impressed with some of the results knowing that the groups had a limited amount of time and only one take to shoot their entries.

The second block I attended was one that I clicked much more with - the short film block. My absolute favorite was the intense middle-school action drama about trading Pokémon cards. I'm not usually a fan of child actors, so I was really surprised when I was so into the film. It was just so nostalgic and the production value was so good that it really sold the narrative. I wasn't as enthralled with the film about the slave getting a scholarship to college by being forced to fight by his master. I think the reason this film fell short for me was that I just didn't buy it's narrative because of the actors. I'm sure this may have been unintentional, but the boy's acting style changed the direction of the film and made me really confused. I heard from someone else who watched this block with me that the film was based on an excerpt from a book, and that it was much different than they had pictured it.

Blog 11: Crew position in the Wild Card Assignment

My crew position in the Wild Card assignment is that of the producer. The main thing I want to accomplish in this assignment is to keep us on schedule and to make sure that this project is completed in a timely manner, especially in the midst of a slew of final papers, projects, and exams. The specific goals I have for this project are for our group to get any locations we may choose to pursue, to compile my group's availability until the due date in a single document, to audition and select actors as soon as possible by creating a casting call, an audition schedule, and reserving a space in Leutze Hall to hold auditions, to have a productive Easter break, and complete filming with plenty of time to spare for editing and recording our foley sounds which I will reserve time in the studio to record. This is one of the most difficult times for me to have the role of producer, but I believe that if I do an effective job in my role, I will make the final project easier on my group and leave us with enough time to have a quality film.

Blog 10: Editing Assignment 3b

Editing assignment 3b was one of the most fun editing processes I've been a part of. I got to do a lot of the editing in close collaboration with Luqi and Anthony, and Luqi did a lot of the editing as well. First,  we created soundscape #1 using the sounds our and other groups recorded. After this, we imported the soundtrack into Premier and started matching up the clips where we wanted them. The experimental nature of this project made this process much more free flowing and natural. We didn't have to obsess over how things lined up and the chronology of the footage we had taken, instead making decisions about how we felt about the aesthetic of what we were viewing. After we had made the first cut, Anthony, Luqi, and I worked on a second soundscape to go along with the finished visual track. This was a lot more difficult because it was getting late and we were all running out of ideas.

Blog 9: Sound Recording Experience

My experience sound recording was much more interesting than I anticipated. First, we drafted a list of all the sounds we wanted. Throughout the week, Anthony and Luqi met and went to different locations to record. Then, Anthony, Luqi and I met by Einsteins in Fisher and set up our equipment. As the director I wanted our sound to be stereo, so Anthony reserved two shotgun mics and brought his splitter so we could both hear the sound we were recording. We roamed Fisher with headphones on and gear in hand, scoping out potentially interesting sounds. I really liked the fountain sound, so we recorded it in three different places. We recorded the exact spot the water crashed, the top of the "water fall" which was more of a rushing sound, and the back of the fountain, which was an electrical hum with the sound of water drops. We also recorded typing, footsteps, conversation, pool table noises, the different hums of the coolers in Einstein's, my car unlocking, the engine running, and the hood opening and closing. Unfortunately out of those clips that I recorded, we could only find a few on the SD card, so I must have made some mistake, though I don't know what it was.

Blog 8: Master Shot Editing Experience

Editing the master shot project was something I was not very involved with. Initially, Paige and I were the first to open the project and begin editing together. I used Victoria's marked shot list to pull certain clips into the timeline, and I matched up my sound clip with each video clip. But I was only able to do a few of these clips before we began editing with Mike. We met in the library and Mike wanted to use his laptop to edit. Our group sat in a study room and watched on the TV as Mike made changes we agreed on. I offered to help many times but he wanted to do it, which makes sense as he is the DP. I also offered to edit the sound, as I had ideas for sound effects and wanted to edit my sound clips, but he checked to see if the project could be opened on the school computers and let me know that it couldn't. He wanted to do all of that editing as well and I didn't have the project, so I wasn't very involved with the editing process.

Blog 7: Pre-visualization Experience

For this assignment, I collaborated with my group to create the marked script, while Mike created the storyboards. This was my first experience making a marked script, so it was challenging at first. Before I jumped into the script, I brainstormed blocking and action with a friend. I printed out the Bran and Park script and wrote the ideas we had on it. Then, I typed those stage directions in celtx and printed out the new document. I talked with my group about these actions and, as the DP, Mike used them to inform his storyboard. Paige used the storyboard to create her shot schedule, so all I had to do was use the shot schedule to mark the set ups on the script. Our revisualization materials really helped eliminate confusion and expedite the shooting process, but they were also an added challenge because we made so many changes to what we originally planned on.

Production Schedule, Blog 4

Production Schedule:

2/20 all day - awaiting response from Ebony as far as when she's free for expert interview
        at 9:00 pm - Call Ibiza again to find out if the owner is available/willing to sign permission
2/21 at 2:00pm - Pick up the equipment
        before 9pm - Get stamped at the club for free entry
        at 9pm - Shoot B roll of downtown wilmington
        at 10:00pm - begin filming Pop Vox outside the door
        12am - Begin Filming the drag show (if permission)
2/26 at 10:00am - Equipment DUE back

My Documentary Interview Plan, Blog 3

Our Expert Interview is Ebony Valentino. We will shoot in a professional setting or outdoors. We want to set a comfortable, relaxed, and intimate tone in our expert interview.

Our ten questions:

What's your name?
How did you come up with the name Ebony Valentino?
How did you become interested in being a female illusionist?
Did any mentors help get you started?
How would you describe your relationship with your Drag personna?
How much time do you spend preparing for your role as Ebony Valentino in your personal life?
How would you describe your sexuality?
What do you think people think about female illusionists?
Is there anything you want people to know about female illusionists that you feel is important?
What're your favorite and least favorite aspects about performing in shows?

We will do our Vox Pops either right outside Ibiza or in another location depending on availability.

Vox Pops Questions:
1. What's your name?
2. How has your experience watching drag shows been?
3. How do you feel about drag queens?
4. What are some stereotypes you have heard about drag queens?

Thoughts About Light, Blog 2

For my inside space I'm observing the inside of Randall Library. I'm sitting at a table in the middle right by the entrance and the main iPrint station. Ahead of me, rows of fluorescent ceiling lights illuminate a sea of desks and chairs with bright, even light. The lights closest to an office on the left cast billowing vertical streaks on a wall. The streaks are defined by hard shadows near the ceiling that fade into diffused, consistent lighting halfway down the wall. The consistent spacing of rows of the same lights lends Club Randall an energizing, vibrant glow. It also allows for a high dynamic range of shades with very little contrast.

For my outdoor space I decided to observe the front of Randall looking out towards the clock tower. As I write this it’s 11:20pm and the sky is pitch black. Streetlights around the dark pathways ahead offer a meek, pale glow that is easily swallowed up by the night. They cast dim, diffused circles on the ground below that leave the landscape looking mottled and spotty. The outlines of treetops are barely distinguishable against a deep purple sky that I doubt anything but a long exposure shot would reveal. A beautiful feature of this scene is the bright circular clock tower. If its light reflects from any surface I can’t tell, but it shines directly into my eyes reminding me that it’s time to submit this already extended assignment.

Filmmaker's Statement, Blog 1

Hello, my name is Alex Lepkowski and I have almost no film related experience. The only "experience" I have is when I was about 13 I wrote, directed, shot, and edited a film about Furbys killing people. Below is the Furby I had, and the main villain in my film, aptly titled Attack of the Evil Furby. There were only 6 characters; 4 friends, a parent, and myself, all killed off before there was any character development. It was a masterpiece complete with ketchup for blood, a stellar soundtrack (The Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy was the first song), and a terrifying Furby Shrine. I haven't seen it in over 5 years but I guarantee it's better than most films with Nicholas Cage.

After this, I didn't really do anything with film. I have made a ton of films for class projects though, whenever film was a choice I would choose it. Besides that and heavy involvement in photography, which is similar to film in some ways, my experience is very limited.

Because of my limited experience, I hope to learn a lot from this course. I want to learn how to turn a concept into a finished piece. I think learning how to use Premier Pro will really help with this since I've never had the opportunity to use it.

In ten years, I don't know where I hope to be. The least vague answer I have for that question is somewhere close to the ocean, making enough money to be doing something I love, and working on a project or projects that mean something to me and to other people. Ultimately I want to have the resources to realize my artistic inspirations and the connections to make an impact with them. I want to be successful. But I also think it's important to stay humble and grounded, as I've noticed a lot of successful people in related professions become completely full of themselves and I find that unbearable.

Something unique about me is that I love playing guitar, ukulele, piano, mandolin, and singing. I write a lot of my own music and leave myself with unfinished projects all the time. I love listening to and performing at open mic nights downtown and I've also been involved in an acappella group on campus. Here's a song I worked on recently - Thinkin' Bout You

Thanks for reading!