Screen

Project Proposal
Prepared by Zachary Mitchell
Final Major Project
Content Outline
In response to the competition brief I received from
Channel 4, I have decided to produce a short film based on
how we use media technology today. The film Im planning
is 10 minutes in length and will be in the form of a poetic
monologue (spoken by me as a talking head) and have a
series of abstract scenarios which I (as an actor in a separate
storyline to the film) will be interacting with. The dialogue
will outline my opinions about phone use, social
networking, and computer/internet use. It will also argue
the defensive claim that we are the generation of
knowledge (a common rebuttal from individuals who are
told they spend too much time on their phone) with the
overwhelming facts of what we actually use our phones for.
As of yet, few people have been confident enough in
their opinions to create a structured response to this issue in
technology and to actually stand up and say Hold on,
arent we losing the plot a bit here?
With my video, I plan to do just that.
Target Audience
Im aiming my production at 10-35 year olds. This is
because I want to speak out my thoughts to my peers and
hopefully change the way they see the world they live in,
instead of just going with the flow of a technology
dominated routine. I have strong feelings about the topics
Im focusing on so why shouldnt my peers too? I want to
speak out to these people to accomplish a change in their
opinions. Gender does not come into it I believe that all
young people, male or female, should receive the same
message.
In terms of socio-economics and demographics, Im aiming
my production at those who are in middle and lower class
environments with access to technology and internet. This is
because those who fall into those categories are the people
most likely to be avid users of the technology around them.
Competition
Until recently, my competition in this area of
discussion has been minimal; a hasty article here, a slap-
dash blog there. On April 25th 2014 (almost two weeks ago
as I write this), a new short film hit the media. Look Up, a
film by Gary Turk, went viral by the end of its first week
online. Turks film expresses several opinions I agree
wholeheartedly with, and although it was rather
inconsiderate of him to post his video before Id made mine,
Im grateful for the videos release as its given me the
chance to listen to peoples feedback for the video and
consider whole new arguments to our points. I dont like to
think of Turk as a competitor as such because, although he
has created something very similar to my own project, the
nature of the projects message makes him my peer in a
way, albeit from a different company.
Running some very simple online searches
immediately gave me a lot of other material to work with
clearly Im not the first to raise this point. From what I can
find, there arent any blogs or websites or
magazine/newspaper articles which address exactly the
points Im going to make what they do seem to be more
concerned with however is the way we, as a race (and not
just the youth, although similar to my own productions,
many entries and blogs do lean towards this too) are too
dependent on technology. Some speak of experiments that
were carried out to see just how dependent we are on
technology one article I read on The Telegraph online
stated A clear majority" of almost 1,000 university
students, interviewed at 12 campuses in 10 countries,
including Britain, America and China, were unable to
voluntarily avoid their gadgets for one full dayThey
expected the frustration. But they didn't expect to have the
psychological effects, to be lonely, to be panicked, the
anxiety, literally heart palpitations.
1
This was an incredibly
interesting article to read, as, being similar to my own idea,
I found myself comparing the experiment to my own idea
and wondering if I myself should include an experiment of
my own. (Note: in hindsight Im actually uncertain about
this idea it might change the video from being abstract to
being too much like a documentary. Although I do want
this documentary effect slightly with my video, I do want to
retain some of the abstract quality of the idea Im currently
working with, and I feel that carrying out something as
generic as an experiment like this might throw some of the
abstract qualities of the production too much.)

1
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/news/8436831/Student-
addiction-to-technology-similar-to-drug-cravings-study-
finds.html Paragraphs 3 & 11
Other articles Ive read include an article
2
on Mother
Nature Network which identifies 7 signs that the human
race is too dependent on technology; a preview of a
book
3
called Better Off [Flipping the Switch on
Technology] which asks the question what is the least we
need to achieve the most? A very interesting first few
chapters were available for preview which I highly
recommend you take a look at. The link is below. The main
other online-sourced piece of research Ive enjoyed picking
apart was a post on Tumblr. It isnt actually an article in
favour of my opinions, but rather against them. Despite
that, its become a very good piece of research for me to
utilise. Its a poem
4
not rhyming which defensively
protects the generation of knowledge and, although some
points it makes in its passionate outpouring tumble of
argument can be soaked up in the enthusiasm of the
moment, there are several points made which I can provide
a strong argument to and plan to in fact. This was the
post which first gave me inspiration to do this project Ill
be going through it with a toothcomb and retrieving every
point Emily Palermo (author) makes which can be argued
by my own opinions and discussing them at length.


2
http://www.mnn.com/green-tech/gadgets-electronics/stories/7-
signs-we-are-too-dependent-on-technology
3

http://www.harpercollins.com/browseinside/index.aspx?isbn13=97
80060570057
4
http://starredsoul.tumblr.com/post/78721736907/so-maybe-were-
the-generation-of-the-selfie
Mock Ups
I created the following image in Photoshop as a still
example of the shot I'm going to try and achieve when
filming. The shot utilises the Display Recorder app for
iPhone, which allows a user to record to video the actions
they perform on their phone. I will capture the footage from
an iPhone screen, reverse it and lower the transparency in
Premiere Pro, and underneath it layer a separate video of
the supposed iPhone user pretending to touch a phone
screen in front of the camera. The shot will aim to provide a
perspective of someone using their phone from behind the
screen. I have built an external frame for my camera which
will allow me to effectively create this shot.

Feedback

I presented my original brainstorm of ideas to some of my
peers, who gave me plenty of good constructive criticism. They
outlined several points to me:
Idea 1:
Celebrities lives are idyllic people prefer idolising them
to the reality of being imperfect
Speech and slang allow it, bear etc.
Idea 2:
How phones at the table are awful as well
Leads to no exercise which is unhealthy
Young children play games based on violence rather than
using traditional toys
Could show a kindle for opening scene
General Comments:
I picture it as a documentary. Pure narration as the footage
shows you interacting with different scenarios.
Try not to be arrogant with the wording, could almost
seem like you think youre better than others in the sense of
identity part. Word it carefully to avoid this.
People could argue that use of phones makes us the
generation of knowledge.. But, we may have the power
to learn whatever we want at our fingertips, but we dont
utilise it.
Structure it by flicking between points. Link them
together, round off a point, then start the cycle again.
The phone use and generation of knowledge sections
work well together, but the identity section is difficult to
fit in. Id base it solely on the other two.
Also, regarding identity, people can be hypocritical when
they judge each other on actions they themselves are guilty
of.
I also conducted a survey online, the results of which gave
me the following information:
1. Favourite Idea:




2. Any points you disagree with?
(Identity) Leads to no exercise, makes you unhealthy - I
agree with the unhealthy part, but disagree with the no
exercise part as I personally and others still exercise
regularly.
(Identity) The idea that we are imperfect I kind of disagree
with in one sense, that in order to create the idea that we
are imperfect does it have be constructed from a place of
perfection in the first place?
Idea Popularity
Identity 3
Generation of Knowledge Paradox 4
Excessive Phone Use 1
(Generation of Knowledge) People let life pass them by... I
disagree with this, I think people are too aware of their lives
and surroundings that they try not to pay attention to it
deliberately. No one in the world can just ignore life
3. Is there anything you wish to add to any of the arguments?
(Excessive Phone Use) Maybe you could talk more about over
use of Facebook, Instagram or twitter - everyone feels like
they have to use it now.
(Generation of Knowledge) On the other hand for people
knowing not knowing exactly how something works is that
today's people can just expand on the idea without ever
knowing the interior design. This can save time i.e. with
computers.
(Generation of Knowledge) Speak more about spiritualism
and the brain, how it subconsciously requires technology- Is
this the reason we can only access 10% of our potential
brain power because we are not testing ourselves enough,
we are leaving it down to technology
(Generation of Knowledge) The idea of 'easy parenting' -
kids are put in front of the TV, XBOX, PlayStation, IPhone
way too easily so parents can get on with their busy lives (it
can't be helped at times and I myself am to blame for this
as well). Its a way of entertaining kids without actually
having to. I know life is busy and time is precious but I
think Parents of children as young 1 should be partially
blamed for this generation of cyber kids. Children should
know how to work these objects as it is our future but they
should also realise that face to face conversation and
outdoor exercise is also very important and that is
something that needs to be taught at home.
(Identity) With the internet, it can lead to internet addiction
which adds to the unhealthy lifestyle.
4. How should the film be narrated?
Way of narrating Popularity
Narration only 2
On-camera dialogue only 0
Narration and on-camera dialogue 6

5. What are the most important factors when making abstract
films?
Factor Popularity
Topic /// 3
Frame composition //// 4
Lighting / 1
Camera Angles ///// 5
Editing techniques /// 3
Sound and Music /// 3
Narration and Dialogue // 2
Visual Effects //// 4
Post Feedback Developments
After receiving my feedback, I have several valid
points to expand on that I know members of my Target
audience are interested in. I have chosen to go with the
Generation of Knowledge Paradox and the Excessive
Phone Use topics despite a lean in favourability toward
the Identity topic. This is because the majority of my
respondents specified the Generation of Knowledge
Paradox topic and this and the Excessive Phone Use topic
work well together. I particularly like the idea of easy
parenting and will definitely expand on this as a part of my
Generation of Knowledge Paradox topic. I have also
confirmed my own thoughts about what most makes an
abstract film abstract in that I thought Topic, Camera
Angles, Frame Composition and Visual Effects were the
most important aspects of abstract films. My respondents
confirmed this and also showed popularity for the Editing
Techniques and Sound and Music choices.
Constraints
Legal Constraints and Copyright
Any quoted articles must be properly and fully
referenced, otherwise many copyright issues could arise.
Abide by Human Rights Act when dealing with cast and
crew
Video Recordings Act I think I can rate this feature
PG I will have to make sure it is appropriate for such a
rating by monitoring the type of language I use and the
visual appropriateness of the film.
Ethical Considerations
In parts of my film I plan on doing some secret
filming. Many people have moral issues with this, so I did
some research and now know the following:

The legality or illegality of recording someone boils down to
whether or not it violates the person's privacy. In general,
recording someone is only considered illegal if it violates
their privacy and that is typically determined by the
situation and who is the one doing the recording. It is legal
if there is no set expectation of privacy.
It is illegal to record anyone in a restroom, locker room,
or changing room. These are areas automatically deemed
locations where a level of privacy is expected.
Anyone can legally record anyone else outdoors in a
public area such as a street, park, or beach since there is
no expectation of privacy.
It is illegal to record someone when they are inside their
own home since there is an expectation of privacy. There
are rare exceptions for specific situations where it may be
deemed not in violation of the person's privacy and is
not illegal.
Businesses and schools can legally record anyone on
their property for security purposes except in areas such
as restrooms, locker rooms, or changing rooms.
Law enforcement can use surveillance equipment to
observe and record anyone appearing in a public place
and is treated as any other "plain sight" observations
made by an officer "in person" at the location. The only
difference in this case is that the observing officer is
doing so from a distance through the use of remote
technology.
Information quoted from:
https://uk.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20100417
182040AAhTHre
Costs
I already own the majority of the equipment I plan to use
for this production. There are however some pieces of
lighting equipment I have purchased for this project, as
lighting is the only piece of major equipment I dont yet
own. The cost of this purchase was 56. Also, I have built a
custom stabiliser frame for my camera out of PVC piping
and an old tripod! The DIY build cost me less than 10 and
works extremely efficiently. There are few other costs here
and there public transport and petrol costs, but nothing
too major. Since Im not paying my actors the budget of this
film is quite low with an estimate of 100 including
equipment, travel, props and hair and makeup. If I were to
be paying my actors, the days pay for a main actor is
around 500, while for an extra it is around 100. Luckily I
have volunteers!

Quality
Quality could have been a problem for me last year,
but recently I purchased a high quality film camera which I
now use for all of my film productions. The camera is more
than capable of high quality shooting in full HD and even
featuring slow-motion effects as slow as 480fps. The quality
of sound on the camera is not ideal I bought a set of
external microphones to combat this issue. As for quality of
camerawork, as stated before I have made an excellent
quality camera stabiliser and also own a shoulder mount
and a pistol grip so shaky footage is highly unlikely. With
the above order of a 3-point lighting set my lighting quality
will be particularly fantastic. I bought the LED Video light
rather than a 3-piece studio lighting kit as I wanted the
option of manoeuvrability in this film.
Resources
Being a student and having a low budget and only a
little experience does sadly limit my options with my
projects. I would love to be able to hire professional actors
to be in my video, and buy proper sets and even better
cameras, but Im broke. Id also love to include some 3D
animation (or even 2D!) in my production, but have not the
skill (nor really the time to learn and practice) to produce
an animation sequence in the time I have. Oh well.

Contingency Plan
What happens if my actors dont show up?
As with most of my projects, I have enlisted the help
of several willing voluntary actors from the Performing Arts
department at The Henley College to act as extras in my
film. The students have (through no fault of their own)
been unable to attend some of my recording timeslots in the
past - to avoid a repeat of this I have requested that the
students write down the dates of my production schedule
and check with whether there will be anything important
for them happening on those days. Using that information I
have planned my production schedule around what my
actors are doing; and I have plenty of willing actors from the
department so if some are unavailable, they can be replaced.
What happens if it rains?
It rains. Weather isnt a problem for me in this
production I have weatherproof gear and a lot of patience.
Also I cant see the rain doing much other than potentially
adding to the quality of the production by providing me
with material for some interesting abstract shots. If for some
reason an apocalyptically severe weather change does occur,
like a hurricane, earthquake, volcanic eruption or a blizzard,
hopefully everyone will be too occupied with not dying to
be concerned about the continuation of my project.
What happens if my camera breaks?
If my camera breaks, I have an exact duplicate. I also
have multiple high-quality memory SD cards that I can use
if one becomes full on-location or damaged.
What happens if someone notices theyre being secretly
filmed?
If someone notices that I'm filming them and requests
not to be in the video, I will firstly appeal to their better
nature. I am only making a small student production after
all, and that shot I just got of you was particularly
flattering if I do say so myself sir. If that fails, and
depending on the context of the shot, I might ask to blur
them out. If they refuse, I will politely apologise to the
citizen and delete the footage of them.
What happens if I lose all my data?
As someone who has experienced this heinous ordeal on
more than one occasion, I am now just about the most
paranoid student on the entire planet. I already have several
backups of my work, and when I begin filming I will carry a
laptop with me so that I can frequently dump/duplicate
memory card footage and potentially upload it to a cloud
server as well to further reduce risk of losing data or
footage.














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