Mentor Session

During my mentor session with Sharon I showed my test shoot to her and she suggested that I try testing projections of images from the Baz Luhrmann films I have chosen on to a model and see the outcome of it. This is to test out further within making my film appear more creative as I have tried to further this but so far nothing has been quite successful enough. I am hoping that this will work so that I can have some more confirmation and a clearer idea as to what my film will look like.
This session has taught me to be more open minded and think about how to come up with solutions to solve big problems such as this as the look of the film is what needs to draw my film in. What I am going to do next is organise this test shoot and put this idea into action.

Test Shoot Romeo and Juliet Design 2

In preparation for this test shoot I had planned to film and take cinemagraphs of Romeo and Juliet Design 2. The filming got cancelled and so I only tested the cinemagraphs. We tested a variety of ideas but in the end I have decided that change needs to be made for certain aspects of this look and the cinemagraphs aren't going to work out with the ideas I want to create with it. I am going to try and resolve the problem but if that doesn't work out I will just create normal images without any movement.

Projector Testing

During this test shoot I projected a variety of images from Baz Luhrmann's films onto a model. I think the best images I captured during the shoot was the Romeo and Juliet scene that had neon blue crosses as it lit up really well against my model's face. The images that didn't project as well involved green tones that resulted in making the model's skin look strange. I think this shoot helped me think more about what I can do to make my film look interesting as it has sparked an idea that additions to the film. It involves creating a colourful abstract film that is influenced by the over exaggerate theme that Baz Luhrmann has in all of his films which will then be merged with a film of these character watching the pictures. This film could be created through getting shots of my own abstract paintings with edits that make it look If I did this then I think I would still stick to the idea of these characters watching the films with different reactions, eating popcorn and sipping on a drink. I feel like I just need to think about this idea more as it would be difficult to do two films and merge them but the outcome in my head seems really diverse and individual.

Test Shoot - Great Gatsby Design 1

On Friday I tested the filming, makeup and hair for The Great Gatsby Party Girl Design. The testing had many errors to it involving hairstyling, lighting, colour filtering and direction of the scene. I also wanted to test the cinemagraphs of this character but unfortunately my photographer had to cancel so I wasn't able to do this in the end and only tested the filming. I felt that the problem with the direction is that just having my model acting that she was watching The Great Gatsby infront of the camera seemed too vague and that something more should somehow be incorporated into it. I started to discuss other ideas that could be used for this scene with the cinematographer and came to a conclusion of including elements coming into the shots from the film as if it is coming alive. We dropped petals and confetti into the shot and I felt that it improved the scene making it look more effective.
Although this test shoot didn't go very well, I felt that the process has helped me a lot and that for the next couple of test shoots I create involving filming I will be able to develop and create more ideas that will hopefully improve the outcome of my film and make it look more enhanced and upgraded.
For my next test shoot we are going to film the character using a green screen so that elements can be merged with the scene that I shoot. The lighting we use will also be more effective.

Face Charts

Strictly Ballroom Design 1

Originally tested out the right design but I instantly took a disliking to the lip shade and thought that the eye shadow could have stood out more. For the final look I have chosen to create the left design because the lip colour is a more intense red. I have also resorted to a smoky brown eye with a purple tinge to it.

Strictly Ballroom Design 2

Romeo + Juliet Design 3

Romeo + Juliet Design 4

Moulin Rouge Design 5

Moulin Rouge Design 6

Moulin Rouge Design 7

Moulin Rouge Design 8

The Great Gatsby Inspiration

Design 7

A big part of what makes The Great Gatsby stand out is because of the party scenes we see throughout the film. I want to create a 1920's party girl character inspired by the lively atmosphere. Researching into 1920's makeup their eye makeup is quite heavy and their lips are small and pouty. I want to merge these ideas, specifically the eye makeup with a contemporary theme to also portray the modern music that is used throughout the film. With styling I think I need to consider what accessories will suit this look and fit in with the 20's trends and portrays an art deco mood. For the clothing I am considering dressing my character in a fringed outfit to resemble the style of the 1920's.

To create this look I need to consider the options I have to make this look fit in with the film but still have a contemporary twist to this.

Design 8

"They were careless people, Tom and Daisy. They smashed up things and people, and then retreated back into their money and their vast carelessness." - (Nick Carraway, The Great Gatsby, 2013)

In The Great Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan stands out to me the most because of the way the character unravels throughout the film. We see the 'golden girl' eventually reveal herself to have many imperfections including her morals and selfishness. With this idea I want to recreate Daisy as her reveal by adding a dark mood to her character within the makeup, hair and styling. Daisy has a very clean look about her but I want to change this by forming a heavier makeup look to her to portray her heavy materialistic needs. With styling I am trying to think about how I can create this look without taking too many elements away from the original Daisy as the audience needs to recognise who this character is portraying. I could have her styled in darker tones instead of the clean neutral tones she wears but then this may make her less recognisable. I will need to test this out to see whether it will retract too much of her identity or not.

Moulin Rouge Inspiration

Design 5

Moulin Rouge constantly mentions the theme of love throughout the film and so I think one of the characters should revolve around this. Of course the colour red symbolises love so I will be putting this colour into the makeup and styling. I also was thinking of merging the theme with the burlesque side of the film and am thinking of styling the character in a red corset.

To create this character I need to decide how the hair should be styled within its curled look. Nicole Kidman's hairstyle was inspired by the 1940's trends rather than of 1900 so I have been thinking of taking this aspect and putting it into my hairstyle.

If I use red for the makeup aspect then I need to find a heavy pigment to make this stand out and also think about what shade I should use. I have also been thinking of possibly integrating gold in the look to because this colour appears in Satine's room as well as red.

Design 6

Moulin Rouge, in my opinion, is the most over the top film out of the 4 I have chosen of Baz Luhrmanns. Therefore I have decided that with this character I want to create a dramatic look fitting in with the final styling of the character, Satine in the last part of the film. I think an important part f creating this character is the accessories I use as Satine is heavily accessorised in this scene. I am unsure about how the hair should look whether it should be long and curly or plaited. I may try and incorporate both of these ideas into the hairstyle. If I decided to choose create plaits I also need to think about how this would be styled with any hair accessories I may add to it which is most likely. The makeup and accessories will be what makes the overall character have an exaggerate effect to match the over dramatic theme of Moulin Rouge.

Romeo + Juliet Inspiration

Design 3

Romeo + Juliet consists of a variety of symbols within the film. Religious imagery appears in almost every scene of the film and for one of my characters I have picked out one aspect of this. I have chosen the symbolism of Juliet's innocence and purity when she wears white and her angel costume. I took this idea and researched a variety of different ways I could interpret this into my character. The mood board above represents how I want to shape my character in an angel inspired look.

I am quite open to how the outcome of the character should look and will test out a couple ideas. I need to be aware of what will and will not work for this look, specifically the hair as I want to use a long white blonde wig. This could be a risk as it can be hard to find someone that suits this look or it may not look real enough. If this happens then I could resolve to just finding a model with blonde hair.

Design 4

For the 2nd character I want to create I was thinking about how water is also referenced many times throughout Romeo + Juliet and that this could be interpreted through this character. This visual theme of water represents the cleansing of Romeo and Juliet's love from the destructiveness around them, the restoration of peace that their relationship portrays and also the death that is yet to come for them (SHERWOOD. Mn.d. Pg.8). I am going to create a wet look inspired by the water theme of the film but include a dark feel to it to reference further the death symbol behind the water.

I have already done a test shoot for this within my proposal and the outcome needed some future adjustments with the hair as I had trouble sticking it to the face. I also used a red tone on the eye makeup which did not come out very clear when filming so I want to include a brighter colour as long as it relates to the water theme and the symbolism behind it.

Strictly Ballroom Inspiration

Design1 

In the film, Strictly Ballroom, I think that Fran's character is the driving force behind Scott and his talents. She is the only one that can see the positivity within his dancing and how it should be seen as an symbolism of freedom and being able to express yourself. Therefore I decided the first look is inspired by Fran in Strictly Ballroom and how she slowly transforms herself throughout the film. At the beginning she appears as a typical plain jane girl, but as she learns more within Scott's dancing techniques, her confidence grows and she looks much more tidier by the end of the film. Although the change we see is quite subtle, the film is not at all as it conveys an over dramatic world. To create Fran's look I thought it would be best to morph these two concepts together. I think the look should be a slightly more eccentric than Fran's transformation by adding a smoky brown eye and red lips. I am not sure how her hair should look but I have thought of a few ideas involving kiss curls and loose bun hairstyles. I think by using these hairstyles to match Fran's style the viewer will be able to recognise who's character this look is inspired by in the film.

Design 2

Watching Strictly Ballroom, what stood out to me the most is how exaggerated everything is! Many of the professional ballroom characters represent this part of the film. They are very over dramatic, whereas Scott and Fran are much calmer in comparison. I want to create a look that portrays the dramatic ballroom characters. To achieve this, the makeup needs to be exaggerate and accessories need to be considered. The makeup on the women appears quite heavy and I want to portray this but in a different way by adding textures such as gems and glitter rather than too much makeup. I am unsure how I should go forward with styling the character but sequins definitely come into mind. I just need to consider the budget I have when buying a dress for this character. Styling the hair, I am not really a fan of how the ballroom hairstyle looks in the film and want it to create a style more elegant. By doing this though, I need to make sure that the character still portrays the exaggerate theme and that elegant hair will not take this idea away.

Call Sheet and Planning

I have made a call sheet for future dates of the shoots and who is taking part in each role. I feel that this has helped me make a start to keeping this project organised. As I was creating the call sheet I noticed that I would need to start shooting this week as soon as possible and have been trying to plan it but it isn't going so well. To prevent this from happening in the future I will make sure all shoots are fully planned a week before they happen. I think this will make everything and everyone that I am working with on this project more committed and official. By doing this it will also improve my organisation skills.

Baz Luhrmann Concept

Baz Luhrmann's films link themselves together with a variety of themes that he uses. To create my film I want to use what I find stands out to me within these themes and understand how I these can be made relevant within my film. Danielle Prudi (2013) explains that all his films share a romantic story but these romances collide with conflict within the film. Of course these films revolve around the romantic storyline so I think this theme should set the mood of my film within how it will look and the reactions we see from the characters. For the music I also think that I should try and find romantic music as an option too to fit in with this theme.

His films also involve a comedic aesthetic so I need to include laughter and smiling within the character's reactions. What makes up the comedic side of Luhrmann's films is the over exaggeratedness of the characters. This theme of being over dramatic stands out even more within the vivid coloured costumes and the energy throughout the scenes. He also portrays this through the lively and colourful arrangement of the scenery within each film (Danielle Prudi, Prezi, 2013) explains. For my film I want to express this theme through the makeup looks I will design. I also want to pursue this idea further with how the film will look by projecting colourful images from his films onto the characters and backdrop. I think by doing this it will add the artistic aesthetic I want and create the romantic atmosphere I am looking for.
The edit of his films involve fast track movement and intense closeups within the camera techniques (Danielle Prudi, Prezi, 2013) explains Within filming each scene I don't want to completely take every aspect of Baz Luhrmann's style but I do think I could recreate one of these techniques in a subtle way. I think doing intense closeups rather than fast track movement would suit my film better because this can be done in a much more subtle tone (Danielle Prudi, Prezi, 2013) explains. Using fast movements, I don't think this would fit in with my film as I am only using one source of space and this would probably be more suited if there were scenes in different places.
Possibly the most unique style that Luhrmann includes in his films is how he re-envisions Musical Theatre and Vaudeville. I think I could take this aesthetic and put it into the use of audio for my film with genres of old silent film music.
Overall Baz Luhrmann wide range of unique themes gives me access to all sorts of ways that can make my film look creative.

Source: https://prezi.com/akkflqu92af5/auteur-study-baz-luhrmann/

Mentoring Session

My mentoring session didn't go so well this week as I felt a lot of stress as well as getting nervous speaking in front of the group during the session. I just really want this project to go well and I am going to make sure of it by keeping organised from now on. I need to make sure I practice makeup and hair before test shoots so that I can be prepared as the test shoots might go really well and can be included in the final outcome of the film. I think if I prepare myself, I won't be as stressed and will be able to address these types of group sessions much more calmly.

An Update

I have been gathering my team together for my FMP and the biggest struggle for this is finding models as I will need 8 for to address each look I have created for the film. So far I have 4 but I think if I am unable to find 4 more by the time I am testing each look my backup plan may have to be reusing the models I already have. Although I would prefer 8 altogether I think reusing the 4 I have would not intervene with the outcome of my film as the idea behind the film is about fans going to see their favourite Baz Luhrmann films so it could tell a story that these characters love to re-enact all his films more than once.

Introduction to my FMP

My project will focus on making a short film that is inspired by the Auteur style directors have in their films in a unique way. Auteur is when a director creates a film from their own individual creative perspective, marking their films with similar content but different from anyone else's. The film will consist of 8 different characters watching the director, Baz Luhrmann's films as if they are set in a theatre. The film they are watching inspires each character’s look. I have created 2 inspired looks from each film which are Strictly Ballroom, Romeo + Juliet, Moulin Rouge and The Great Gatsby. I want the film to have an artistic feel to it though with the way these characters react when they are watching these films. I will also achieve an artistic mood to my film by the way that it is seen visually as well as how each shot will move from one to the next. It also about the exploration within how people see something such as a film and react to it. It is quite intimate and personal as to how they feel about what they are seeing. 

I am hoping that through out this project my skills within film will continue to develop as I learn more techniques. I have basic skills within film production but to enhance them I feel that it would be best to have a film student help me throughout filming and editing within my project. Being organised has always been a struggle for me and I am worried that I will not be able to keep up with my time schedule but as there is so much responsibility within this project, maybe it will push me to be more organised. Another weakness I have is being indecisive and feeling like I constantly need approval with what I am doing - I feel like I just cannot do something without needing someone else's opinion. This can be seen as positive as it is smart to get other people's opinions as to what looks good and what does not to an audience but I am hoping that I can make good judgements for myself without constantly feeling like I need approval.

Positively, I have a strong idea of how I want each character to look as I have researched and discussed this within my proposal. I understand that changes will most likely need to be made and further research as well such as more face charts. I am just hoping that I will have the ability to make time for this or at least think more in depth about each character's appearance.