The first thing they liked about the video was the use of various techniques and symbols to show the audience that the video was shot in 1st person, and to immerse them as deeply as possible into this concept. The use of the glasses on/off action helped with this, and was also said to be a nice shot transition. it was mentioned that a lack of variety in shots was present (I know of this) however I did try to make up for it with close-ups, long shots, low and high angle shots of sorts and notably jump cuts, as a 1st person POV video is going to lack shot diversity, but this was the intended idea, and so to break that 'code' would ruin the integrity of the video, as well as the emotion and confusion I wanted to convey (it may be disorientating to suddenly switch between the two, even with transitions, and would also render the whole concept and the effort of maintaining the same feel if I were to simply just change half way through the video with no reason).
The use of bike shots was also admired, and there was no criticism of this, as it provided an interesting way to not only pass time but to simply watch; attaching the camera to a bike was a pleasurable scene to those who have not experienced that kind of view before, the POV also adding to the positive effect of the shot.
The poster was only mentioned briefly in the video, and was regarded as a passing prop with no comment, and so I can safely tick this off as aesthetically legitimate and believable as a prop. Furthermore the bow and arrow shown at the beginning was not talked on much, as I think the main discomfort was the plot/narrative, as well as it being an opening with little context or goal other than to present a regular day in a woodland area. These will not be changed or altered, and the arrow idea fit the video (both quality and quantity) better than the previous opening (slow motion raindrops of poor quality). Regarding the plot again, it is apparent that people are still quite confused on the narrative structure and form, as they can't seem to tie lose ends or come to a concrete conclusion; although I want people to have free interpretation I also want to see them enjoy the video itself, which might be hard if there is little to understand. I will be a amending a few segments of the video in order to bring some more ideas into he video that people will have an easier time to pair with other events to establish a more concrete plot.
Another issue raised during the focus group was the scene with the quick rest transition, though I didn't see the problem here, as it's in time with the music, he rests and then wakes. Someone pointed out that the lighting does not change, and his trousers are still on, though the disorientation and delusion he is experiencing, as it might with anyone else, may be the thing leading him to sleeping ridiculous hours, as well as a loss of time present with the short (and seemingly too fast transitions of time) also adding to the idea of extreme mental difficulties at the trauma he has experienced, but simply showing the secret behind his delusion straight away would take away some of the intended strain on the viewer as they try to work out what's happening (adding an explanation at the end seems a likely action now, and should clarify the events unfolding, which may give the viewer intense satisfaction to finally tie up every loose end at the finale of the video and finally understand it all).
To conclude, the focus group saw the video as generally good, the POV having it's flaws (i.e. shot variation, quality, disorientation, lack of clarity), though also bringing about an emotional connection, a new way of seeing a story and ultimately a biased story where our ideas and conclusions are all drawn from the one character we see them from, as well as allowing for that emotional connection due to experiencing what he experiences ('he' being the actor/ camera man).
The quality I can't improve on tremendously due to lighting, notice, workload and camera capabilities during movement and lighting changes. The narrative however, I can improve upon and plan to do so; I will start with tweaking the ending (which was fairly empty anyway) with some symbol of signifier of the other character's fate. I will also add in a few more visual transitions of time, perhaps slowing some clips, flicking through a calender, a clocks hands (forward or reverse, depending on how far into delusion he is). The editing though (as in style of editing) I will keep the same, as there were no complaints and it pleased the group to watch it in time with the music.
Essentially, my narrative is a confusing one, and although I have the intentions of a narrative video, I also touch on the qualities of conceptual (no performance, however), and so am expecting an amount of questioning. The plot itself is a strange one, and the filming was not precisely as I envisioned, which was to be expected because developments are made which either excel or hinder production and filming, however I believe that the main augmentation I must apply is to that of the plot, and a change of ending as well as a reminder of time passing may resolve this confusion.
Overall, I am happy with the feedback the focus group gave me on my video and ancillary products, and I will tweak the products to a few of their comments, though largely keeping them as they are, mainly due to time and personal belief that the products are finished, and if I were to make too many changes and please too many people there is the definite idea that someone else may find it needs changing or that it becomes over complicated which would alter the idea of the products fitting the Indie genre's conventions of simplicity.
No comments:
Post a Comment