Preliminary Task Evaluation Report

Hanan Mohamed

What Went Well

My honest evaluation- what was done well and what was not of good standard? Try to cite specific example and moments from your video. Strategies put forward to make sure a high quality is maintained.

Quality of Summary Future Improvements

The opening shots of the student knocking on the door, door opening and walking across the room all taken from a one hundred and eighty degree angle were all fairly stead. But the reverse shots over the shoulder were shaky – this could have been fixed by more careful, steady holding of the camera or the use of a tripod.

Quality of holding a shot steady

The opening of the film has the student centre frame

In the second reverse shot where the teacher is speaking back to the student, the student’s shoulder has been cut out of the frame which defeats the purpose of it being an over the shoulder shot.

Quality of the framing shots

The preliminary task was to have three main things in it; a shot of the door from the outside opening, a continuity shot of the door opening, the one hundred and eighty degree angle used as the person walks across the room and reverse shots of a conversation between at least two people. The material shot was entirely suitable to the task set, as the student knocked on the door, was shot opening the door from both sides, walking across the room and sitting to have a talk with her teacher in detention.

Quality of shooting material appropriate to the task set

The setting selected was appropriate as in the script it was written that a student was having a detention with her teacher. A classroom was used within a real school, and the sound apart from the conversation was quiet so as to be believable that the detention was taking place after school. Natural lighting was used, daylight from the windows brightening the room. Props were sheets of paper being shuffled on the teacher’s desk that he appeared to be marking, the desk itself, the chair opposite in which the student. The teacher also wore glasses to emphasize the air of intelligence and wisdom.

Quality of selecting mise-en-scène including colour, figure, lighting, objects and setting;

Every effort was taken in editing to make the meaning of the storyline in the video clear to the watcher.

A continuity shot was taken of the door being opened from both sides, as the student opened the door and then the door seen opening from within the classroom. This made it clear that she was opening and entering the classroom.

A tilting shot was taken of the student walking across the room slowly looking downhearted; the pacing showed that she had come unwillingly.

Instead of focusing purely on one person which wouldn’t make any sense, reverse cuts were made from student to teacher and back again showing the person only as they spoke, but including the over the shoulder shots so it was clear that they were talking to each other and having a one on one conversation.

Quality of editing so that meaning is apparent to the viewer

No music was used to heighten the effect of it being a real-life situation and so make the everyday feel even more dramatic when the audience is only focusing on the conversation intensely, particularly on the student when she suddenly snaps at the teacher.

The actors were made sure to speak clearly, but the video could have been improved by reshooting and having them speak louder or increasing confidence in their lines by either having memorized it completely without the script or improvising. Another option was having the sound dubbed in, but this would have taken out the background noise of computer machines whirring and so the decision was made to leave it in.

Quality of using sound with images and editing appropriately for the task set;

The student was positioned on the outside of the door, knocking and waiting for the teacher’s permission instead of moving straight in – this shows that she is secondary to the teacher and has little power especially in comparison to him.

The teacher was positioned at his desk throughout – she is in his room, on his turf. Therefore you expect that she is going to have to play by his rules but she defies this expectation and plays up to being the troublemaking student that she is by her outburst: “You callin’ me a liar?!”

The students movements are slow, and she takes her time walking across and slumps a little in her seat – she is clearly very reluctant to be here, although she did come.

The teacher’s movements are careful, measured and you can see that he is trying to keep patient and being

Quality of positioning and movements of actors

Different tasks were assigned to different people, and everyone took responsibility for themselves in getting their jobs done although finishing touches were a group effort. We all checked our free periods and worked out times where we could all meet up, and used that time effectively. We all also managed to meet the targets of the preliminary task, of a continuity shot of the door opening and closing as well as well as the reverse shots with the teacher and student characters talking to one another.

Quality of group planning, meeting targets, organization

Everybody was very co-operative and worked well together, and were professional as they put in extra time of their own into helping get this task done e.g. spending lunch time and free periods filming and editing, not just in media class.

Group dynamics i.e. how did your group work together

Other points of evaluation ( e.g. equipment related etc)