Fiction Adaptation- The Cenotaph

This is my fiction adaptation film. I believe it has turned out very well from the original idea, I think I managed to create something that matches my script. I think the parade footage is well shot for most of it as it was live.


Although I like the piece there are small things that I could of done to make it better, the character Robert does not seem to have a story arc which is a fault of my own for not creating a story. I think that on the shoot I should have tired to make it less hand held and more try-pod based as this would have helped when it went shaky.

Fiction Adaptation- Final Essay

For this essay I tried to do as much research as possible but I think there was still more to be done, this would have required a larger word count though as to have more theories I would have needed more examples. 

Fiction Adaptation

Fiction Adaptation- Editing

While editing it was hard to keep the continuity for the first two shots. I needed the first shot as it was the establishing shot, the second is a longer shot in which David gets up. But between the first and the second David moved, this made it hard to edit. Lex gave me a good idea to put the credits between the two shots just long enough to make it seem like a natural transition, and that he moved while the titles were on screen. I added the fade in and out to make the cuts less harsh. 

Fiction Adaptation- Sound Editing

During the editing process I found a few problems with my buzz track and some of the sound attached to the clips. 

The clip where David shuts the gate had some sound issues as there is a builder shouting in the back ground of the clip. To fix this I decided to use a audio from a different clip that had the gate shutting but no talking in the background. I had to time it correctly for when he shuts the gate. 

I also had to change the sound for the last post as it came in to loud during the talking of David. I turned it down for that section the back up with key frames, it continues onto the credits. 

During the buzz track of the parade I found I had a couple of conversations that could be clearly heard in the background so I had to chop up the background to make sure that the audience could not hear the conversations and be distracted by them. 

Fiction Adaptation- Essay

While writing the essay I needed to look at different types of film theory and make sure that the book and television program were easily described.

Agatha Christies Poirot, The Mysterious Affair At Styles was adapted by Clive Exton. Although the book was written in 1920 it was adapted for television in 1990. Clive Exton adapted the first stories in the beginning of the series, he was brought back to direct this episode as it was in the third series but the novel was the first that Agatha Christie had written about Poirot.

To talk about the adaptation I will use the following books;

• Adaptation in Contemporary Culture 
• Media Audiences: Television, Meaning and Emotion 
• Adaptation Revisited: Television and the Classic Novel 
• Adapting Detective Fiction: Crime, Englishness and the TV Detectives 
• Principles of Adaptation for Film and Television 
• Textual Revisions: Reading Literature and Film 
• From Page to Screen: Adaptation of the Classic Novel 
• From Film Adaptation to Post-Celluloid Adaptation 
• Television and Cultural Crisis 
• Sherlock Holmes for the 21st Century 
• A Theory of Adaptation
• Audiences 
• The Television Genre Book 

Fiction Adaptation- Feedback

I came into the studios for some editing and while I was here I decided to show Simon my fine cut if my film. The feedback was mainly related to my sound design and how I could be a bit more creative with it. So this has lead me to do more with the sound such as adding the sound of the parade, I have not yet added the sound of the last post but that may also help.

Fiction Adaptation- Workshop

During the workshop with Alex we did a short about loss/confusion, involving losing signal on the persons phone when they need to call someone. I worked in a group with Lex, Andy, Mark and Sophie.

Fiction Adaptation- Feedback from Alex

Alex Boorman was running workshops with us for our fiction adaptation so I decided to show him a rough edit; in which he told me that it was good for a rough but I needed to have a look at the footage and edit it more correctly. I had a gap of 17 seconds at the end which is of silence in which I have a chance to do a small sound scape. Alex suggested using the last post.

Fiction Adaptation- David

After filming with David he asked me what the best way to advertise him self though the university would be, this lead me to have a conversation with Laura Taylor, Laura is able to advertise David though the course for him.

I had given Laura Davids email and he soon told me that she would help. 

This is what Laura was able to do for David; 

This was posted though out my course and all students can see this and therefore he can get more work within the UCA. 

Fiction Adaptation- Test Shots

This short piece is of the shots that went wrong and some test shots of inside the house. The first few shots that went wrong are those that were when the camera was not configured correctly. They are very pixilated but after we realised Andrei fixed it.

Fiction Adaptation- Shorts

As part of our Workshop with Alex Boorman we need to make a few basic shorts, Happy, sad and Angry. I was in a group of three with Sophie and Aimee. We all came up with ideas and then shot them. Angry was of road rage in which Aimee was acting and Sophie was on camera. Happy was the one I was director and camera man, Sophie was my actor. Aimee did the shots for sad. Aimee edited the pieces together.

I think if we had worked together on the edit it would have been smoother and the over-all working together was a good experience as we all added something to the ideas.

Fiction Adaptation- Essay Feedback

We recently received feedback from the essay draft that we have produced. After receiving the feed back I decided to improve my work by trying to look into more research and improve all the points that Kath has given me.

Fiction Adaptation- Script Feedback

After handing in the script last week today we received our feedback today in which we were able to see what we can improve in the script.
The feedback goes along the lines that;

• A well presented and carefully thought out script with some nice shot and action description. 
• Character is well established at the top and the memorial service is nicely paced. 
• My only issue is that the ending feels a bit of an anti-climax - the narrative of the old man's story doesn't seem to go anywhere - this is a shame.
• Would like to see some sort of development and arc to his story - otherwise he is not really adding anything - go back to basics - what does he represent? Make sure this comes through in his story and character. 
•  Otherwise it is tightly scripted piece with a lot of potential - simple but effective. 

My character in the film represents some one who is morning through the years but is not doing so in an open and dramatic way he is playing it down as he is a military man and has been trained for this. I feel like his story is going somewhere but is better seen in the film in the way he changes his clothes in respect and puts the poppy on proudly. 

Fiction Adaptation- Call Sheet House

For the scenes at the house I had toy dress the living room and kitchen, so I had to be there to set up before Mike and David. I had Mike turn up before David as to discuss location, shots and what I needed in the day, Mike was able to provide ideas on how to light and what shots would work. David arrived with a selection of costumes making it easy to change and to make the story. 

Call Sheet 17.11.14

Fiction Adaptation- Shoot 2

The house shoot was in my own house that is rented with three other people. I had asked Andrei Allen to be camera operator but the day before he informed me he was not able to help, this lead me to contact Mike Hoad who was more then happy to help.

The shoot time was 12:00, but as I live there I decided to dress the set and have some test shots before Mike and the actor (David) arrived. I was able to do a few test shots that were able to establish that I needed much light in the living room as well as a cover for the window. With the extra time I gave myself I was able to set up the first room, the kitchen and have a test shot. Mike arrived at 12 in which I went through the script and the shot list of what we needed, Mike was able to give me the shots I needed as he was easily directed and was able to help me if he did not think the shot would work. David arrived at 12:30, soon after he arrived we were able to start filming, most shots were more then one take but I believe the coverage was good. Filming finished around 2:30 but all shots were achieved.

Coverage could have been better in the living room but I did not realise this until I came to the edit but a good idea off Lex helped me to make it look natural.

Fiction Adaptation- Workshop

In this workshop we were allowed to experiment with the cameras (Canon 5D), we were looking at slow motion. I worked with Mike, Lex and Sophie.

Fiction Adaptation- Set

For the final shoot I decided to make the set look like my idea as much as possible, I added books, letters, tablets, vases and a light to the living room to make it into my characters living room. 

In the kitchen I removed all personal items and only left the appliances that I thought my character would use. I cleaned the kitchen to make it seem unused and empty. 

I left the television in the living room but removed the Wii and dvd's from around it. 

I also grabbed some junk mail and put it next to the chair of our main character. I put a letter addressed to him on the top, this is in hand writing as it was a letter from his brother for his birthday which was the 10.11.14. 

I believe that I have made some really good decisions in the way of my set, it portrays an older persons home, including the isolation of Robert.

Fiction Adaptation- Actor

While recording the voice over for my fiction adaptation film, the actor that is being in the film and being the voice over wanted to read the poem and make notes. He made many notes on my poem that I had a look after and it made me think that he was definitely the right person as he was very passionate about the work and about the subject matter.

I should have copied the work on to the blank document so that he would have more room to make notes and so that during filming he would not need to turn the page. 

Fiction Adaptation- Final Script

This is the final script that I used for the filming. 

The Cenotaph

Fiction Adaptation- Script

While trying to do my script I needed to remind myself of certain formatting as I need pauses in my scripts to help with the flow, I feel I may be adding to many pauses, but I would like it to be slow and carefully said.

These pauses will help me get a feel of when I would like the pause to come, but without having a reading I feel like I can not know what they will sound like. I have added description to the script but they are not flowing, therefore they lack something. The  other issue is that I have made the script but not added (V/O) in the correct places which is all  of the poem except the title. 

I had many issues writing the script as I had forgotten the basic lay out of the script and even after handing it in did I realise I didn't put if it was an INT. or a EXT. I left it all under the same INT.Home even though the script goes outside many times. 

The Cenotaph 0.3