Planning and Production Timetable
Planning
Software - Photoshop
For my electronic press kit I will be conveying my film concept 'Hippocampus'. In the beginning of my research I crafted a rough draft of my press kit using InDesign and I have since developed my ideas for the visual presentation of the film. I will be continuing to use InDesign to craft my EPK on. To create my poster designs and edit my promo shots I will utilise Photoshop as throughout my research this software type offered effects I felt confident in using and and gave me the chance to expand my graphic design skills further for this project. I have decided to not continue to utilise Illustrator for my designs as I believe all the effects and fonts I want to use I am able to do so on Photoshop and solely editing on this software will save me time in the long run as I won't need to constantly be exporting and changing files over when editing.
Character changes - Film concept
After reflecting upon the characters in Hippocampus, I have decided to make my side character Lili West (who is the carer to the protagonist Nic Alcott) into a man called Allen West. My reasoning for changing the character's gender is due to the fact that I was unable to find a female actor to model the promo shots/poster images for Lili West and instead was able to use one of my male friends for the project. I was also unable to have access to an actor to play the younger version of Nic Alcott and I have decided to prioritised the appearance of the nurse over the younger version of the protagonist, as I feel it is vital to include more than one character in EPK. To summarise, I will be using my friend Dutch Loveridge as the model for Allen West and will not be including a young version of Nic Alcott in my press kit.
Narrative Development
The narrative of my film concept, Hippocampus has not changed much since I wrote the synopsis in my research. The narrative will continue to follow the later life of the character Nic Alcott and his journey to complete his memoir before his Alzheimer's deteriorates. Allen West will act as the supportive side character to Nic. Allen is also Nic's nurse and overtime they both form a platonic bond with one another. I have decided to change the ending of my film concept and have Nic suffer from his Alzheimer's but not die from it, as after doing some research I learnt most people who have the disease die from other health complications, although it does shorten their life span. I have also decided to leave the film concept on a cliff-hanger where the audience are unsure if Nic ever completes his memoir. I have chosen to do this because I feel it will allow me to create more suspense through the symbolism and imagery of my posters and promo shots which will be featured in my EPK. One of the ways in which I will create suspense when photographing for my visual designs is experimenting with low aperture on the camera, as for me this will visually reference Nic's mental suffering and struggle as he tried to recollect his blurred memories but also symbolise his fate that due to his illness his life will be shortened, and the daunting fear that knowledge brings. For my press kit, I will be writing a synopsis of the narrative to act as a preview for audiences, which will cover the general scope of the storyline.
Source, Article - https://www.filminquiry.com/power-colour-storytelling/
In my EPK I am going to state drama as the main genre of my film. I will represent this genre visually through the colouring/details in my promo shots and posters designs. In order for me to do this I have researched into colour theory within filmmaking to further develop the style/colour palette I will utilise. The article I read linked above stated how "less is more" and that approaching this "style of palette works under the notion that being consistent with minimal, selective colour creates deeper significance". The author continued to say how "Some filmmakers take this approach and only use one colour within a frame, with the rest of the shot in black and white or even sepia tone." For my poster designs I will be approaching a similar technique as for my promo shots/posters I have decided to use a sepia tone. In my research I already tested using sepia colour grades on Photoshop and found it to be the most effective stylistic choice in my testing as it portrayed the drama genre of Hippocampus very well, this is due to its old-fashioned light orange low saturated effect that created a melancholic and clinical feel to the images, which perfectly reflects my film's narrative.
Costume
Character: Nic Alcott
For my poster designs and promo shots, I have decided to have my protagonist wear dark blue clothing. I chose this colour palette after researching into colour theory, as I learnt blue has connotations to the feelings of sadness, despair and wisdom. By having Nic Alcott wear blue it symbolises to the audience his mental struggle and vulnerability through his costume, as the character picks the clothing that represents their feelings.
Character: Allen West
For my poster designs and promo shots, I have decided to have the supporting character wear a dark green sweater and black trousers. I wanted to add green into the costume because I feel using a natural colour creates a soft and welcoming look which reflects to the audience Allen West's passive and empathetic personality. I also felt black complimented the green well and subtly symbolises the consistent theme of darkness that runs throughout e.g the lingering fear for the protgaonist's health.
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Casting
Actor: Paul Putwain
Character: Nic Alcott
My father, Paul Putwain was casted as the protagonist Nic Alcott due to his age, as in my mind I envisioned the character to be an elder man (roughly late 50s). After asking if my father was able to model as the character for my EPK visual designs, he accepted. Although he has little to no acting experience I felt his appearance fitted the role and believed that with emotional direction from me he would be able to pull off the role. Another benefit to having my father act as the protagonist is his accessibility as I am able to photograph him both on week days and weekends.
Actor: Dutch Loveridge
Character: Allen West
My friend, Dutch Loveridge was casted as the supporting character Allen West for this project, this was due to his accessibility and experience in acting. Dutch has worked on college film projects as an actor before and was available during to be photographed both during the week and weekends. For this character I was not set on a specific gender or look but wanted an actor who could challenge Allen West's empathetic and sensitive personality, which I felt Dutch could emulate well due to his similar personality type.
Prop
The main prop which will be featured in the visuals of my electronic press kit is a typewriter. The typewriter is purposeful to the narrative of the film because it represents not only the protagonist's career as a writer but also symbolises the plot's constant direction, as the audience will follow the character through his journey in trying to complete his memoir before his Alzheimer's progresses.
The typewriter I will be using is in the image on the right. The typewriter is my friend's who has allowed me to use it for this project. The style of this typewriter is 1960s, this works well in terms of the setting of the film, as the protagonist's continues to use a typewriter from an older period, due to his elderly state, as he prefers to write on paper and not digitally.
Equipment
In order for me to decide on the type of camera I want to use for my promo shots and poster images, I loaned and tested out two cameras from my college. The cameras I used were a Canon EOS 300D and a Sony A7. Firstly I tested the Canon, I had used this camera before and had experience in understanding the settings and quality of the lens etc. which made the process of photographing with it easy as I was able to adjust the outcome of the image to my liking. After taking a few test shots with the Canon I tested the Sony, this camera was very different in terms of the settings layout, as the white balance had to be adjusted using the small circular reel by the screen and to zoom I had to use the magnifying button, whereas with the Canon the zoom in is adjusted using the lens. The Sony A7 had a more stylised and stronger aperture than the Canon, I felt this was effective in giving the images a cinematic look. However, I felt the Canon was easier to use in terms of its settings and it also had a better white balance range then the Sony.
To conclude, I have decided to use both cameras for my project as I liked the high quality lens of the Canon and its simple settings and I liked that the Sony offered a warmer white balance which gave the images a softer more professional look, overall both cameras were very successful in their testing as I will be using them to photograph with for the visuals in my EPK.
Test shot using Sony A7
Test shot using Canon EOS 300D
Production documents
Risk Assessment
Legal and Ethical
Model Release Forms
Location Recces
Timetable Progression
In terms of my time management progression of this project, I have successfully completed my pre-production documents and costume/prop write ups within my deadline, which means I am on target. This week went smoothly as I had no issues with completing the legal documents, gathering signatures and location scouting.
Storyboard - Visual Designs for EPK
These first three images are my promo shot visuals, I have broken them down into layout, framing, details and have also added arrows to discuss lighting and production design notes.
Promo shot one: The promo shot shown above is a close up of the protagonist's typewriter. The words typed on the paper state 'memoir', this is reference to the narrative as the main character, Nic Alcott, throughout the film recollects his memories through writing his memoir. The warm practical lighting for the visual will be created using a lamp source (borrowed from my friend's room which I have been allowed to utilise for photographing in). Lastly, the black ink is purposeful as that colour represents the heavy and dark reality of which the words carry for the protagonist, as the mor ehe writes, the more he starts to forget.
Promo shot two: The promo shot shown above is a mid shot of the supporting character, Allen West, preparing a new sheet of paper on the typewriter. This shot sets up the scene where Allen is helping Nic prepare his writing set up, therefore symbolising his role as a carer and friend. The light in the shot will be created using a yellow colour lamp illuminating the typewriter and hands of Allen softly, creating a cosy/warm atmosphere, which is reflective of Allen's calming presence.
Promo shot three: The promo shot shown above is a mid shot of the supporting character Allen West looking worrisome. For this shot I want a soft lighting to shine on the left side of the character's face, this one sided warm yellow lighting will be symbolic of the characters divided emotions, as he suppresses his true feelings of anxiety for Nic's health only when he's alone and the more isolated and repressed he becomes, the less light shines on him (literally and symbolically).
Promo design one: For this poster design, I decided to include images as initially I wanted a 'typography' poster, but felt that would limit my chances of developing my cinematography skills and I also feel that incorporating shots into the central title poster will make it more professional looking and would allow me to incorporate more of the plot and symbolism into the design. I want the title of the film to lay between the two shots because I envision it to act like a bridge, reflecting how in the film the audience would be crossing over into the protagonist's mental state and see everything through his perspective. The naturalism style of the film will be reflected through the natural lighting and rawness as I want the images to be high quality with a low aperture to focus on the character.
Poster design two: For this poster design, I want to merge two different close up shots, one of Nic Alcott and the other of Allen West. I like the idea of merging to seperate images as a visual concept because I feel not having the characters in one shot gives it a sense of distance and disconnection. I want this effect to come across as the distance between them both is symbolic of how in the film their platonic bond gradually erodes due to Nic Alcott's deteriorating memory. I want the log-line to be the main text in this visual and have decided to change it to 'if only he could remember', as in this poster the audience are being shown Allen West's perspective, revealing Allen's want for Nic's health to improve, but deep down knowing there's no cure and it will progressively get worse. For this poster I will also use a an intense sepia colouring which will be symbolic of the 'cloud' that weighs upon both characters, as the one shade will overpower the images, creating a dramatic effect. Overall, I feel this poster will capture the drama genre of the film well, as I will use convections from that genre, e.g thoughtful expressions of characters, simple but bold title font, harsh colour grade etc.
Poster design three: For this poster design, I want to focus on symbolising the supporting character Allen West and show his part in helping Nic Alcott complete writing his memoir, to reflect this I want an image of Allen's hands on the typewriter and mask this image behind the him to show his connection to the film's plot and by positioning the typewriter above his head it shows how much control it has over him, how his life becomes consumed by helping Nic not only as his carer but also as his friend. I also want the images to somewhat contrast with the meaning, as the soft warm lighting will symbolise Allen West's calming presence and 'yellow' aura which shows his passive personality, in contrast to the pressure he feels of caring for Nic Alcott brings him.
Production & Post-production:
Promo shots and Posters for EPK
Production
The production of photographing the shots for my posters and promo shots went somewhat smoothly. I first began by taking shots for my posters, this took roughly four days to cover as I had to work around my actors schedules (I have elaborated on my time management with my actors on my problem solving page). For the poster shots I photographed using the Canon camera and captured the storyboarded shots then spontaneously took other shots in the moment and directed my actors throughout the process. For the poster shots I utilised the natural light and mainly shot outside my house (as shown in the first location recce).
For the promo shots, I photographed using the Sony camera and used practical lighting from a yellow tinged lightbulb on a lamp stool. The process of taking these images took two days, as I captured my storyboarded shots then took other spontaneous ones in the moment. The two images below show the practical lighting source I used for the promo shots and also features a photo of me photographing the typewriter.
Organising footage
After I captured all my images, I organised them into folders, one for my poster footage and the other for my promo shots. To decided what footage I wanted to utilise for my designs I created two folders, one 'usable' and one 'unusable' folder which helped me separate the ones I wanted to keep and scrap. Lastly, before I began post-production I create a 'footage' folder and a 'EPK visual designs' folder as I felt this would help me organise my editing process by separating the production images from the edited versions on Photoshop.
Timetable Progression
In terms of my time management progression of this project, I have competed my storyboard sketches for my visual designs which will be featured in my final EPK product. The process of organising the different shots (footage) was quite laborious, as I had to go through each one and decide whether certain shots would fit into my conceptual sketched ideas, whilst also keeping spontaneous ones for my experimental poster designs (shown below under 'unsuccessful poster designs). Overall, I was successfully able to complete these tasks within my set time frame.
Unsuccessful Visual Designs for EPK
For the post-production of my visual designs I drew from my storyboard whilst also experimenting with font styles and colour grades on Photoshop in editing, this is because I wanted to not limit myself to my initial ideas and spontaneously explore new elements as I edit. To record my creation of my designs I screen recorded parts of the editing to evidence my process.
As I began to create my designs I found myself disliking certain outcomes, such as the poster design shown in the video on the left. I thought it would be progressive to show my failings and successes throughout this project to fully scope my development. In the poster design shown in the left video. I first liked the image but it did not work well with the sepia grade. Once I explored two different fonts I found myself disliking the visual all together, even after experimenting with masking another shot into the design and adding it as an overlay. In the end I decided to scrap this design but thought it was helpful in allowing me to develop my project and learn through failure.
For this poster design I experimented using my extra promo shots and had not initially sketched or planned this design. The shot in the poster frames the protagonist looking into the distance through a window. When I took this photographed I felt it symbolised the character's imprisonment due to his Alzheimer's and the glass acted like a cage, cutting him off from his freedom and sanity.
In post-production, I simply added a sepia grade and some basic text. I also experimented with masking a promo shot of the protagonist's medication into the background too. Overall, as I added to the poster I started to dislike its outcome as I felt it was quite bland and did not reflect enough of the narrative to truly be effective as a poster. In the end, I have decided to not use it as a final design but believe experimenting with this using my promo shots and spontaneously show development of my ideas is vital in helping me progress this project and my graphic design skills.
Details behind process:
Equipment - Canon camera
Software - Photoshop
For this poster design I intially planned for it to be a promo shot but as I edited the image I felt it would work better as a poster design. To create this visual I had the protagonist, Nic Alcott walk down stairs, this action is symbolic of his fate as he is aware because of his illness, his life will be shortened. The bars from the staircase also act like a prison/cage bars, referencing the entrapment his Alzheimer's puts upon him.
The post-production process of this design was quite laborious in terms of effects and colours. For example, I experimented with overlay settings using the paper log-line shots. I used the 'difference' merging overlay to give the images a blue neon look over the sepia background layer. I also used the shot of the protagonist to centre the poster which linked the log-line to the character it is directly referring to. I also turned this shot into an overlay to merge into the blue paper backdrop and I then copied the shot of the protagonist to create a double exposure effect. This effect was not planned and as I edited the visual I thought this detail would give the poster more meaning by reflecting the character's divided and detached mental state from reality (as his Alzheimer's worsens) to the audience. I initially wanted to use a sepia grade but felt the grade did not work well with the paper log-line shot, and instead it became more effective as background layer to merge the text with, therefore creating the harsh blue effect as I used the 'difference' overlay setting. The blue and pink shades through the overlay edits I felt gave the visual a psychedelic look which reflects the character's divided emotions of wanting innocence and health (shown through the pink) in contrast to the harsh overpowering blue, which represents his melancholy and despair. Overall, I found this visual design to be unsuccessful, although it incorporated a lot of symbolism of the film and making the poster gave me the chance to develop my graphic design skills (e.g masking layers, blending images, grading etc.) I felt it did not capture the tone or style that I envision for the visuals in my EPK and believe it would look out of place compared to my other designs.
Details behind process:
Equipment - Canon camera
Software - Photoshop
Successful Final Visual Designs for EPK
For this poster design I focused on the protagonist's mental viewpoint, as the film puts the audience in his perspective. The first image features Nic Alcott with natural light shining on his face, almost like a spotlight telling the audience he is the main character. The distanced tunnel in the background is symbolic of his enclosing and distanced connection to his memories, past self and present, as his Alzheimer's gradually deteriorates his mind. The second image is also reflective of his fate, being death, as he goes deeper into his memories through writing his memoir, and finds himself progressively getting worse mentally.
The post-production of this poster design was quite simple, I layered the shots onto one another, added the sepia grade and chose the 'big caslon' text for the title and credits. Overall, I was happy withe outcome of this poster design and felt it effectively portrayed the protagonist's mental struggle to the audience. I also feel it captured the dramatic tone of the film with the contrast of the hard natural light and worrisome/lost expression of the protagonist.
Details behind process:
Equipment - Canon camera
Software - Photoshop
For this poster design I developed my initial design concept of just having the log-line in the centre frame of the first image and instead added the second image at the bottom. The first image at the top is a merge/mask of two different shots of the characters Allen West and Nic Alcott, the design of this merged image was originally reflective of the character's disconnection with one another, however, as I edited the shots I felt the meaning changed towards the themes of fate and future. This is because Allen in the image is looking off to the distance, almost at his future, whereas Nic is looking downwards, knowing his life will be cut short due to his illness, but both are worrying about their future and fate. The bottom visual of Nic walking off into the distance I felt complimented the previous poster design, reiterating the theme of fate and how he gradually loses himself due to his fragile health (Alzheimers), I thought creating a mirror effect was symbolic of the character's struggle to live in the present and reflect on his past, as his memory deteriorates. All the images used in the visual design are only lit with natural lighting, I felt this lighting type worked successfully as the poster incorporates natural environments e.g trees, branches etc. which I believe made the film more reflective of the film's organic and naturalistic style.
The post-production of creating this poster went quite well as the masking of the two images for the top visual I felt came out successfully as the two shots when merged framed nicely together. I added the white borders because I wanted to break up the two visuals as together they did not blend well. To create the bottom visual I experimented with using the flip horizontal effect and played around with the layout of the image as I believe creating the mirror design was effective in showing the character's internal reflection of himself. I also feel it gave the poster a balance with the top visual, as the protagonist is resting underneath both characters, which is representative of how Nic Alcott is the main worry in his own mind and Allen West's. One of the biggest challenges I faced when editing this poster was having a 'full scratch disk'. This issue limited me from editing my poster at all due to lack of storage on my scratch disk. To solve this issue I googled how to clear my scratch disk which helped temporarily fix this issue, however I had to clear it more than once whilst editing. Overall, I was happy with the outcome of this poster design and I feel it depicts the storyline and characters in Hippocampus well, whilst also capturing the dramatic tone and genre through the colour grade, log-line etc.
Details behind process:
Equipment - Canon camera
Software - Photoshop
For this poster I kept very closely to my initial storyboard design. The main thing I changed was the body language of the character, Allen West. My reasoning for doing this is because I felt having him look towards the ground, with lowered shoulders and a thoughtful expression instead of looking straight at the camera was more reflective of the character's timid and passive personality. The practical lighting (lamp) for this visual I felt was most effective as it gave the image a soft and warm toned yellow light on the left side of his face and the right side fades into the shadow, this was the desired lighting setup I wanted as the shadow that lingers on Allen is symbolic of his suppressed anxieties for the future and Nic's health as his carer. For the typewriter shots I simply photographed them in the same practical lighting setup and merged them in post-production, I felt these images turned out well as they complimented each other well in terms of their framing and lighting.
The post production of making this visual it was very straightforward. I simply imported my main image, added a hue and saturation layer then lastly imported my typewriter shots and masked them behind the shot of the character. For the merged double exposure effect using the typewriter shots, I used the 'lighten' overlay to fade them into each other and the background of the main image. Overall, I am very happy with the outcome of this poster design and believe it is the best out of my other design so far, this is because I feel it looks the most professional as the framing, positioning and layout of the text give the poster a very formal and dramatic tone which reflects the film's style very effectively.
Details behind process:
Equipment - Canon and Sony camera
Software - Photoshop
Supervisor feedback on my 'Successful' Poster designs for EPK
To improve upon my poster designs for my press kit I asked my supervisor for feedback, after reflecting upon my designs he said I should add the following:
- Add credits to the each poster
- Change the layout of the third poster
- Blend the two images together in the first poster
- Include other images of words typed on the typewriter into the poster designs
After hearing this feedback I feel it is very fair and that my supervisor's advice will help me develop the standard of my poster designs and give them more a more professional looking outcome.
Promo shots for EPK
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For the production of these three promo shots I photographed using the Sony Camera, this is because it had a low aperture setting which allowed me to intensely focus on the typewriter and my character whilst blurring the background. Whereas compared to the Canon camera which didn't have as a strong aperture setting and would have prevented me from capturing the stylised look I wanted for the images. Taking these photos was quite a short process, it took me roughly two hours to capture these images as I had to type up the words on the typewriter, then set up the practical lighting using the lamp, and lastly direct my actor. The post-production process of editing these images was very simple, I imported them onto Photoshop and added a 'hue and saturation' layer (as shown in the image above), I then adjusted the settings until I was satisfied with their outcome. I copied the same process for each shot when editing on Photoshop.
Details behind process:
Equipment - Canon and Sony camera
Software - Photoshop
Supervisor feedback on Promo shots for EPK
To improve upon my promo shots for my press kit I asked my supervisor for feedback, after reflecting upon my designs he said I should add the following:
- Change the sepia colour grade by making it less intense, try using the 'curves' layer on Photoshop
- Have the 'memoir' promo shot be changed to the log line, makes the image more enticing to audiences
After hearing this feedback I believe it is very fair. I liked my supervisor's idea to change the 'memoir' text to the log-line as I feel it will be more effective in giving the promo shot more relevancy to the film's plot whilst also making it mysterious to the audience, pulling them into the narrative without explicitly giving too much of the story away.
Visual Design Redrafts
To improve upon my poster designs for my EPK, I will take on my supervisor's feedback and redraft the designs of my posters and promo shots for my final press kit. Once I have completed these redrafts I will begin my press kit and edit the visual designs into the presentation of the EPK. To document and evidence my redrafting of these designs I have created a collage of screenshots from my editing process and have included descriptions alongside the images. In order to read the full description just click directly onto the image and it will slideshow through each step.
Redraft - Poster one
The process of redrafting this poster went quite smoothly, the only issue I faced was not having the 'clone stamp tool' work well, however, this issue gave me the chance to use my design initiative and try out the mask tool instead, which turned out to be very effective. I liked the process of redrafting this poster and am happier with its outcome than my original design, this is because I believe taking my supervisor's feedback on board and blending the images together gave the visual a smoother and sophisticated look, as before the images were too rigid alongside one another and would have distracted the audience from reflecting upon the poster as a whole, looking at it's scope. I also believe my decision to change the font from 'big caslon' to 'athelas' worked successfully as it looked more dramatic due to it's formality and boldness, which helps emphasise the drama genre of the film.
Original
Redraft
Redraft - Poster two
As part of my feedback I was told to incorporate more photographs of the typewriter and experiment with changing the text typed on the typewriter. To act on this feedback I thought of three titles/sentences I could type on the typewriter and photograph to add to the poster, which were the following:
'Hippocampus' - title of the film.
'I don't know how long I have left' - echoed thought of protagonist, written in his memoir.
'A memoir by Nic Alcott' - references character's name and film's plot focus, being the memoir.
In the end, I decided to type out each of the three titles/sentences onto the typewriter, photograph them and compare which ones I like visually before I edit them into the poster redraft. The three images below are the ones I took and I decided on the 'I don't know how long I have left' shot as I felt it looked the most enticing and dramatic which represents perfectly the film's dark emotional tone.
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The process of redrafting this poster design in editing went well, I initially was unsure as to how I wanted to redraft the layout of this design (besides taking on my supervisor's feedback of adding typewriter text). I began by simply stripping the text, borders and trying to look at the layout and think about how I could sculpt more of the narrative into the design. I felt after reflecting upon the two layered shots in the poster that it was best for me to use the first shot, as I felt this frame was more enticing because it introduces the characters and captures the dramatic tone of the film through the weighted expression upon their faces. Once I cropped the poster, making the characters the soul focus of the visual, I decided to add the typewriter shot. Adding this shot I felt was very successful as it worked effectively in representing the narrative through the dramatic line typed on the paper across the two characters faces, and it also subtly conveyed to the audience the protagonist's thoughts (him questioning when his illness will deteriorate completely). Once I finished editing the typewriter shot by scaling and blending it into the main image, I added the credits which shows that the design is a film poster. Overall, I am happy with the outcome of this redraft and feel following my feedback and editing the layout of this poster made it look more professional and visually enticing through focusing on the character's expressions and overlaying the typewriter image.
Original
Redraft
Redraft - Poster three
The process of redrafting this poster was incredibly simple as I only added a credit on the bottom of the design. I added this small detail as my supervisor believed it was vital for me to include some credit to evidence that my posters were representing a film. Overall, I feel this advice helped me develop my design as the credits prove the design is a film poster and also give it a professional and authentic look.
Original
Redraft
Redraft - Promo Shots
The process of redrafting these promo shots was quite simple, I mainly changed the colour grade using the 'curves' layer, as it allowed me to adjust the brightness and shadows within in the colour grade. The only other change I made was reshooting the 'memoir' promo shot and replacing the typed text with the log-line, 'If only I could remember'. The changes I made were all advised by my supervisor after my feedback, I made no additional changes besides the ones he recommended.
Original
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 Curve graph: Shot one |  Curve graph: Shot two |  Curve graph: Shot three |
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Redraft
 Redraft changes: - New shot of the logline instead of saying 'memoir' - Colour grade adjusted |  Redraft changes: - Colour grade adjusted |  Redraft changes: - Colour grade adjusted |
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Electronic Press Kit
After I completed all of my visual designs I was prepared to create my final product, being an electronic press kit of my film concept, Hippocampus. I made the press kit on InDesign and found the program effective and simple to use as it gave me the chance to layout my visuals and text in a formal, simple and professional layout. I chose to use the font 'big caslon' for the information included in the press kit, as I used it in my poster designs and thought it would keep a consistency and style by being included throughout. My initial plan layout for the press kit is shown below in sketch form, I already knew what I wanted for the design of my press kit as in my research I had drawn influence from other EPKs and made my own rough version to present my ideas in terms of the layout structure. I included the poster designs and promo shots throughout the EPK as I felt it would be help conclude my project and show how I have crafted a body of work, instead of having separate pages for the writing and visual designs.
Sketch
Electronic Press Kit Draft
Gibbs Reflective Cycle:
Gibbs Reflective Cycle - Creating the EPK
Describe: I created my Electronic Press kit of my film concept Hippocampus using the software InDesign. The press kit included all of my final posters and promos shots designs as well as information such as the log-line, synopsis and cast/crew information.
Feelings: I feel the process of making my EPK went quite well, I was able to create a consist style by having a black background on each slide to compliment the sepia colour grade of the visuals. I contrasted the background with white text using the 'big caslon' font. I had used this font in my visual designs too and thought incorporating it into the written parts of my EPK would give the press kit a more professional and satisfying layout. I also ensured the spacing between the words was equal and easy to read. I feel the simple design of the EPK will help the audience focus more on the promo shots and poster designs more and will allow the observer to take in the press kit as a collective representation of the film, instead of having certain parts stand out and be different in style, they compliment each other.
Evaluation: The main part of making the press kit which did not follow as planned was my idea to have the 'cast and crew' information on the same slide. As I created the cast page I struggled to fit the crew information onto the same slide and instead solved this issue by making a separate page for the 'crew', although I do feel it looks slightly empty having the crew part be on its own, it looks better than having it be crammed next to the cast information. The best part of making this EPK was adding the posters, as I enjoyed laying them out, I particularly liked how the 'I don't know how long I have left' poster hovers over the film information, as it is not too distracting and merges into the black background of the slide.
Analysis: I believe using InDesign to craft the layout of my press kit was a successful decision as I was able to not only learn new skills in understanding how to use InDesign (evidenced in my research page), but I was also able to create slides for my press kit which were proportionate, as the software gave guide lines to show the accuracy points of text, images etc. which was very useful in helping me position my visuals and text.
Conclusion: Overall, crafting this electronic press kit went smoothly, I faced little issues and feel the outcome of the press kit was quite successful when comparing it to my sketches, as the digital version of the EPK looks very similar to my envisioned ideas.
Action plan: As I have now completed my electronic press kit, I will gather feedback from my supervisor and see if there is any final additional improvements I can make to ensure I achieve the desired professional look I want it to have and also increase my chances of getting a high grade for this project.
Timetable Progression
In terms of my time management progression of this project, I have completed my EPK, however I wasn't able to finish it within my deadline and am two days behind schedule. This is due to the fact that I did not plan my redraft process on my timetable, this was my own mistake as I should have added it to my timetable, as I knew I would be continuing to edit my visual designs after receiving feedback. I have now since completed my EPK on the 5th May 2021 and will be requesting feedback from my supervisor to add any improvements, then I will spend the weekend (7th-9th May 2021) making any changes to finish the post-production section of my final major project. Overall, the editing process of my visual designs, redrafts and EPK was quite successful, I was able to depict the ideas I had on paper accurately through using Photoshop to edit the posters/promo shots on and using InDesign to combine all of my designs and craft my EPK.
Supervisor Feedback
Colour grade feedback:
- Have only the sepia grade for the film posters
- Have the same sepia colour grade for the poster designs
- Give the promo shots a different colour grade, as the film would not have the be graded in sepia, possibly change to black and white colouring
- Have no colour grade for the crew and cast images
Poster Design/Promo shots Feedback:
- Change the background 'memoir' shot in the Allen West poster and replace it with logline typewriter shot
- Replace the 'Paul Putwain as Nic Alcott' text in the poster design and replace it with 'introducing...' as he is an amateur actor
- Add the logline to the Nic Alcott poster.
- Add production company logos, age certification and quotes to each poster
- Have the credits be more visible on all poster designs
- Keep the font same font throughout the poster designs and EPK descriptions
- Edit posters onto billboards (Cambridge locations)
- Add film title 'Hippocampus' to landscape joint character poster.
EPK Layout Feedback:
- Add more people onto the crew slide.
- Make the promo shots have their own slide
- Have the synopsis be one slide
- Add reward page for film festival/production logos
- Add funding page, to evidence film funding e.g National Lottery, BFI, Film4 etc.
Final Redrafts - Visual Designs and EPK
To begin the redraft of my poster designs I downloaded images of film awards from the BFI Future Festival, Cambridge Film Festival and Watersprite Film Festival. I chose festivals because they are local to where I live and if this was as an official film I made I would have submitted it to these festivals. I also added an A24 production logo and BFI logo to my poster designs to make it look as though the film was produced by A24 and 'funded' by the National Lottery funding award as this gives the posters a more authentic and professional look. Lastly, I added an age certification to show which age audience category the film would be suitable for. I chose PG as the film deals with the heavy subjects of illness and old age, I believe those who are older than 13 would be able to deal with these themes shown in the film. The logos I have used in my poster designs are evidences below:
Allen West poster improvements
Using the feedback from my supervisor, I began to make improvements to my poster designs. I started by editing my 'Allen West' portrait poster. To evidence my editing process I have screenshotted step by step the changes I made, I have also stated how I made them and published the final outcome (these stages are shown below). Overall, I feel the improvements I made have vastly benefitted my design, the decision to replace the 'memoir' shot with the log-line image in the background I feel gives my design more context to the narrative whilst adding a sense of mystery. The added logos I also feel make the design look more like an authentic poster design.
 Allen West poster, before I made any editing changes. |  To begin I removed the background image of the 'memoir' typewriter shot. |  I then began by importing my typewriter log-line image and positioned it in place. |
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 To then blend the image behind the character and into the background I used the masking tool. |  I then blended the typewriter log-line shot using the 'luminosity' overlay tool. |  Lastly, I imported and positioned the award, production company, age certification and funding logos. I used the 'divide' overlay effect to make the logos white. |
 Final outcome |
Nic Alcott poster improvements
Alike my Allen West poster design, I have evidenced my editing process of my Nic Alcott poster by screenshotting each step, I have also stated how I changed the font and colour grade and published the final outcome (these stages are shown below). Overall, I feel the developments I made using my feedback have improved my design dramatically. I much prefer the outcome of using the same font and sepia colour grade I used in my Allen West poster on this design, as I know that side by side they will look more like a collective rather than contrasting designs. I feel the 'Athleas' font suits this poster design more because it compliments the melancholic and dramatic tone of the shots. I also believe adding the log-line, logos and changing the wording of 'starring' to 'introducing ' gives the poster an authenticity and professionalism that the original design lacked.
 Before I made any editing changes. |  I began by copying the 'hue and saturation' sepia colour grade from my Allen West design to this poster. |  I then changed the actor credit from 'starring' to 'introducing' as he is an amateur actor. |
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 I then changed the font of the title and actor credit from 'Big Caslon' to 'Athelas'. |  I then imported and positioned the production, age certification awards and funding logos. |  I then highlighted my logo/credits layers and used the 'divide' overlay setting to make the logos white. |
 Lastly, I typed up the log-line text using the typewriter font and positioned it by the credits. |  Final outcome |
Joint character poster improvements
For the redraft of this poster design, I evidenced my editing process by screenshotting and noting each improvement I made following my feedback. Overall, I felt the developments I made using my feedback improved my design lots as the sepia colour grade I copied from my other poster designs intensified the lighting and saturation of the image, which gave the poster a more dramatic look. I also know that using this specific colour grade on all my poster designs will showcase them as a collective rather than singular designs, which is more effective when looking at the scope of my EPK as it has to present Hippocampus to a specific target audience. Lastly, I am pleased with the outcome of the added film title and logos, as I feel they gave the design a more authentic and 'realistic' design.
 Redraft: Add the sepia grade used in the other two poster designs and add white logos/credits. |  To begin I copied the colour grade (hue and saturation layer) from my other poster designs. |  I then imported and positioned the production, film award, age. certification and funding logos. To make the credits/logos white I used the 'lighten' overlay setting. |
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 Lastly, I added the 'Hippocampus' title text using the Athleas font. I also increased the width of the text using the 'VA' text settings (I set this to 260). |  Final outcome |
Creating the poster billboards for EPK
One of the ways in which I have developed my EPK is not only through the improved poster designs, but also presenting them on billboards. Using my feedback from my supervisor, I found images online of billboards around Cambridge and then edited my final poster outcomes onto the billboards using the mask tool. I have evidenced my editing process below using screenshots and notes. Overall, I quite like the outcome of these billboard edits, I feel they look somewhat realistic, although I do believe the landscape billboard design was the most successful because it looked the most authentic out of the other two. I feel this is due to the fact that the 'joint character poster' fits being presented in a night time setting where pathetic fallacy plays in as the mysterious central quote and harsh saturation gives the visual a dramatic mood that works well in an evening/gloomy setting (as seen in the landscape billboard image). Lastly, I feel having the posters be presented on billboards as a slide in my EPK shows how the film could be marketed to the public, making them accessible to not only my target audience but also people of all ages, as they are not explicit in their content.
 Billboard layout - Portrait |  To begin, I imported the image of my final Allen West poster design. To scale the poster into the billboard frame I used the scale tool. |  Final billboard outcome |
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 For the billboard of my Nic Alcott poster I repeated the same steps. I imported the image of the poster design then scaled it to frame using the scale tool. |  Final billboard outcome |  Billboard layout - Landscape |
 For this billboard I imported my landscape poster, then scaled it into the frame of the billboard using the scale tool. |  Final billboard outcome |
Promo shot improvements
To continue adding to my visual designs using my feedback, I edited the colour grade of my promo shots. To evidence my creation of making the new colour grade, I took screenshots and have presented them below. My supervisor recommended I try using a black and white colour grade for my promo shots to make a clearer distinction between the 'shots from the film' and the poster designs. After reflecting upon his advice, I realised the black and white grade would be very effective in terms of capturing the 'arthouse' style I envision the film to have, as I can relate the black and white contrasted colouring to the film's theme of life and death. As the audience are put into Nic Alcott's perspective, and become exposed to the worry and mental anguish which he feels for his future.
I'm also happy I could incorporate the promo shot of Nic Alcott which I previously disregarded in the beginning of production during my poster design stage, as before I felt it did not work as a film poster cover. However, I now believe it fits the style of my visual designs with the added black and white filter and by including this shot into my promo shot page, it fills out my EPK with more visual content to represent the film/narrative. I also prefer my final cover for my EPK, as this promo shot was originally going to be scrapped, but because I wanted to use the typewriter shot (which previously was the cover) in my promo shot page, I decided to use the 'Hippocampus' typewriter image as the cover instead. I like this cover more because I feel it's a clever and stylised way of stating the film's title whilst also introducing the typewriter prop which will continuously be shown throughout the EPK.
Overall, I am quite happy with the outcome of the colour grade and am glad I took on my supervisor's feedback and chose to change the sepia to a black and white grade instead, as it reflects the more dramatic tone of the film and show the difference between the poster designs and promo shots. I am also satisfied with the changes I made to my promo shots and EPK cover.
Final Electronic Press Kit
 Promo Shot one - before edit |  Promo Shot two - before edit |  Promo Shot three - before edit |
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 Added promo shot of Nic Alcott - For this promo shot, I have decided to actually include it into my EPK as a promo shot because I need three shots for my 'promo shot' page and am already using the 'If only could remember' image for the log-line page. By including this shot I am expanding the visual content in my EPK. I have edited it in a black and white colour grade (the same as the other promo designs). |  To create the new black and white colour grade for my promo shots I removed the 'hue and saturation' layer (sepia grade) replaced it with a 'black and white' layer. |  I then adjusted the settings of the black and white layer until I was satisfied with the outcome of the colour grade. I then applied this black and white layer to each of my promo shots. |
 Promo shot one - new colour grade complete. |  Promo shot two - new colour grade complete. |  Promo shot three - new colour grade complete. |
 Promo shot Nic Alcott - colour grade complete. |  As I have to make a new promo shot page which includes three shots. I decided to put the previous typewriter shot onto my promo shot page and use this shot of the film title as the cover of my EPK. |  To make this cover I copied and pasted the same colour grade from my promo shots on Photoshop then exported the image, uploaded it onto InDesign and added the 'Electronic Press Kit' text. |
EPK Improvements
After I completed all of my character poster improvements, billboards and promo shot improvements. I began by adding to my EPK. I have evidenced below in screenshot form the main changes I made to the EPK, such as changing the font, making singular pages for my synopsis, logline and promo shots and lastly, adding a funding page, a billboard page, an award page and more detail to my crew page. Overall, I feel my supervisor's feedback was very beneficial in allowing me to develop my press kit and I feel these added elements to both my visual designs and the content in my EPK have given it more depth in terms of context to the film, particularly on the marketing and promotional with added funding page/billboards. I also believe these extra elements have given my EPK as a whole more authenticity and professionalism as the layout of the press kit is consistent with me using the same 'Altheas' font, and the film's production (if it were actually made) gradually unfolds as the viewer works through the pages, because they initially get a taster of the storyline and visuals, then are shown the behind the scenes with the crew/cast and eventually explained the marketing/finances side of the 'film'.
 To complete my additional improvements to my EPK. I took on my supervisor's advice and changed the original font, Big Caslon to Athleas. |  I used the Athleas font type because it is the same one I used in my poster designs. Adding this small change improved the presentation of my EPK as now the text matches making it visually and aesthetically pleasing to the eye. |  To develop my EPK using my feedback, I made my synopsis page singular as it allows me to break-up the log-line from the synopsis. |
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 To develop my EPK using my feedback, I made my log-line have a singular as it allows me to break-up the synopsis from the log-line. |  To execute my promo shots I put them on a singular page. I also included my promo shot of Nic Alcott too. |  I then moved onto adding to my crew page. I stated Liam Manning as the producer and Vee Neil as the composer. As Hippocampus is not an actual film, I just added these crew members to fill out this page and to make my EPK look more professional. |
 I then moved onto updating my EPK with a billboard page, which simply presents my poster designs on billboards in Cambridge. |  I then added a funding page, this evidences how Hippocampus would have been funded if it was a real film. The funding page also concludes the EPK with professionalism by nicely disclosing the funding of the 'film'. |  Lastly, I added an award page, this showcases the 'awards' Hippocampus won. Again, alike the funding page, this page is for marketing design purposes and executes awards for a fictionalised film concept, not a real film. By adding this page it gives the EPK more professionalism and authenticity. Also, all of these festivals hold their events in Cambridge, therefore referencing the location of where the film was celebrated. |
Final Touch ups
Before I complete my EPK, I wanted to get the final feedback and add any improvements I could before my deadline. The feedback I received from my supervisor is stated below:
Feedback:
- Move the 'Electronic press kit title to the corner and make the text font white
- Make PG logo on Nic Alcott film poster transparent
Overall, I am pleased with my feedback as there was not a lot I needed to add and feel it improved my designs as the PG logo on the poster now looks more professional being fully transparent and the repositioning/colour of the text in the opening slide of my press kit I feel adds to the presentation of my EPK because it now matches the rest of my text.
 One of the final touch ups I had to make was making the PG logo on my Nic Alcott poster fully transparent, as before you could still see the chequered background. To make it fully transparent I changed the overlay setting from 'normal' to 'divide'. |  As the overlay setting faded the chequered background but did not fully erase it, I asked for help from my supervisor who explained that I needed to do the following steps: select image, then levels and drag the last toggle to the left until the background is fully erase. Once I completed this step it removed all visibility of the chequered background. |  Final outcome of the effect |
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 After completing the effect, I added my final Nic Alcott poster design onto my billboards and poster page of my EPK. |  The last thing I needed to complete for my EPK was reposition the title text on the first slide and make it white. The image above shows the final outcome. |
Final Electronic Press Kit
[Select images to enlarge]
