Post ProductionBy: Marija Djikic

Introduction to Post Production

Post Production is work done on a film or recording after filming or recording has taken place.

Post Production for any kind of film or video project is a usually linear process, if the whole crew did all the job in pre-production and pure production process. As the term suggests, “Post” happens after the main photography is finished. Generally, it involves:1.Picture editing2.Sound effects editing3.Music composition4.Visual effects5.Sound mixing6.Color correction That’s also the order things happen, although there’s the occasional change.

Editing Evaluation

This is the insert from two of many shots from the short film ‘Redemption Dinner’.This was the biggest problem while editing, as I was supposed to cut both shots at the same second so it looks realistic. After the10th trial it end up being successful and Final Cut Pro is definitely the best possible option for editing as it creates the real vision of how the film will look once it is played. On the other hand, I wasn’t able to put rough videos in my preferred order, thus I had to spent some time finding the right shot.

This shot was the longest one, reaching 27sec length. The idea to follow David’s action from Emma’s point of view in one shot was overrated, ending up being almost impossible. However, the shot was filmed as planned but in Final Cut Pro I broke down that shot into few segments. It looks more realistic and it should leave bigger impression on audience. There were problems with cutting at the right moment, as it would look unprofessional, but once the video was exported to Quick Time Movie, everything looked absolutely fine.

Next to the previous two issues when editing, this was the last one. Different thing this time is that there wasn’t usual problem with ‘cutting at the right time’. The main problem was the coordination of length between these two shots. Sometimes, the first shot with David’s face seems too long-but the acting is on extremely high level so it would be pity to cut it before the end. On the other hand it is important to play the second shot with glasses for longer period of time-so the point is understood- but than two od them in the combination are too long, not logical and boring.

Music/Sound Evaluation

Sound program that was used- Pro Tools allowed me to implement ambient sound that was recorded by a sound recording device. Even though the whole movie’s sound was recorded by recorder, Cannon 5D produced extremely clear tone, thus some of the material was used for the final version. In addition to ambient sound, answering machine was introduced (two small blue recorded areas at the bottom of the picture) giving the whole scene more realistic view. This was tricky to implement as, again, I had to position it at the right time. Precision was the key.Music was also introduced from the site named UPPM Global Universal Site. It is free of charge to download various kind of music for filming purposes and the choice is huge. There is two type of music used-one for the first part and one for the second. Music used for the first part is cheeky, happy, funny creating happy and kind atmosphere, whereas the second song used is more dramatic, with deeper tones. This contrast gives the film the depth creating inner motivation which gives ‘Redemption Dinner’ a meaning.

The only non-diegetic sounds used in the film are the answering machine and the radio speaker. Male answering machine voice- Bojan ZirovicFemale answering machine voice-Marija DjikicRadio speaker voice- Nikola Vidakovic

Colour Correction Evaluation

Program used for increasing the quality of picture- colour correction was Final Cut Pro. Even though I consider Da Vinci Resolve as much better and reliable choice, there were no means to work on that luxurious program. However, Video Filters allowed by Final Cut- Image control were of a great use, as they allowed picture to be more natural, without that yellowish effect (which can be seen on the picture) That was created by the home lighting. Colour Balance was definitely of the best help, as it allowed me to sharpen the picture as much as I want and balance it to the highest possible level. The main drawback of this program was the speed. After each effect is implemented, Final Cut Pro demands for rendering. If shots are long, or if few of them are done at the same time, rendering can take up to half an hour. This resulted of few days colour correcting, which if some other program was used, would have been done much faster.