Isaiah Kai Maylad: A Cinematic Journey through Senior Project: Blog 22

"The most honest form of filmmaking, is making a film for yourself." - Peter Jackson

1.) I, Isaiah Kai Maylad, affirm that I completed my independent component which represents 71 hours of work.

2.) Cite your source regarding who or what article or book helped you complete the independent component.

Rocket Jump Film School. "Editing: Creating the "OH F**K" Moment. Online Video Clip. YouTube. 25 Sept. 2015. Web. 29 Oct. 2015. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0IvhlF2wobo>.

Melanson, Julian. "The Psychology of Film Editing | Creative Post Production Techniques." Online VIdeo Clip. YouTube. 11 Mar. 2015. Web. 29 Oct. 2015. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FinhQb3jiAs>.

Hockrow, Ross. "Pacing for Video and Cinema Editors: Timing and Types of Cuts." PeachPit. Pearson Education, 22 Jul. 2014. Web. 3 Dec. 2015. <http://www.peachpit.com/articles/article.aspx?p=2233986>.

Moura, Gabe. "COMPOSITION: Filling the Frame." TheElementsofCinema. The Elements of Cinema, 3 June. 2014. Web. 18 Feb. 2016. <http://www.elementsofcinema.com/cinematography/composition-and-framing/>.

The Slanted Lens. "Camera Movement Tutorial: How to Create Emotion." Online Video Clip. YouTube. 9 May. 2013. Web. 18 Feb. 2016. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_P3oxjnFr0c>.

RocketJump Film School. "Cinematography 101: What is Cinematography?" YouTube. 26 May. 2015. Online Video Clip. 30 Mar. 2016. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXAr2yiYCV4>.

3.) Update your Independent Component 2 Log (which should be under your Senior Project Hours link)

A: Done

4.) Explain what you completed.

A: Over the course of my 71 hours of Independent Component 2 work, I wanted to try different shooting styles and editing techniques across different genres in order to get different elicitation of emotion. I filmed a short film that spanned over 3 different shooting styles and emotional elicitation in order to see if editing and cinematography can change the way a person perceives a film. The short itself had a very basic concept and simple story in order to focus more on the cinematography and visual aspects portrayed on screen. In addition, I filmed in a documentary style in order to film a series which monitored the progression of the senior Powderpuff team of 2016. It was to show the hard work over the course of the weeks leading up to the game itself. I also filmed a smaller scale dance concept video with Yuji Karuhaka in order to go back and practice and solidify the cinematography and techniques needed to create a successfully cinematic looking dance piece.

5.) Defend your work and explain the component's significance and how it demonstrates 30 hours of work.

A: The work I’ve completed helped me solidify research and better understand on a first hand basis my first and second answer which had to do with cinematography and editing aspects. I wanted to explore different avenues of cinematography and see if by using different shooting and editing styles that an audience could be affected by it in an emotional way. I also wanted to compare the different moods and feels between each of the 3 projects and show to prove how each style has a different emotional impact based on camera composition and cutting styles.

Production stills from the short film

Over the course of the component, I completed a short film that was seen all the way through pre-production/planning stage all the way to the edits. We planned out from the very beginning the concept we wanted, the genres portrayed, and the emotional impact we hope to leave. We strategically set up our film so that we could potentially get as much out of the audience’s response as possible. Jacob Smith and I have worked countless hours laboring in the burning heat in order to perfect certain shots and go out to remote locations in order to get the general tone we wanted to set. In addition, a couple of our days were almost jeopardized by authorities due to the lack of film permits on certain locations.

Driving back from Day 1 location from a remote area toward a lookout point in La Verne. We were stopped due to the sunset.

Setting the scene for the next shot lined-up. Mapping out the safety precautions for the choreographed fight scene while racing the sun for light before the day is over.

We shot the entire production in a guerrilla style, which was a challenge on its own. In addition, we explored new cinematic techniques in order to get new types of shots with new types of scenarios, such as choreographed action fight scenes and moving car chases.

Filming a fight scene at a safe enough distance with blunt objects in order to practice set safety.

Lining up the shots in the remote location

In addition, to the short film, I spent my days after school keeping up the documentation of the senior class of 2016’s Powderpuff Journey to the endgame. I was able to document and edit together 3 episode of a series that would document the total process of Powderpuff from both the players’ perspective as well as the cheer team’s perspective.