PERSONAL SKILLS AUDIT

Digital Technology
To produce my short film I had to gain valuable skills in several digital software programmes including Photoshop CS5.1, Final Cut Pro, Slideshare and GarageBand. I also used equipment that I was previously inexperienced with, such as Apple Macs and Sony HD video cameras. The use of this software and equipment allowed me to further develop my production; we adhered to conventions of noir by using Final Cut Pro to change the colour scheme of the sequence to greyscale rather than full-colour. There are several specific features of the software programme that directly contributed to the success of the product, such as the Razor tool, which is used to shorten or cut shots. I will heighten the quality of my work by using a more extensive range of tools and effects throughout A2.

Post Production
Final Cut Pro or a similar software package is definitely a necessity when creating a piece of work such as this. The range of tools, features and effects will greatly enhance any short piece of film. The ability to add text, change the colour scheme, add shot transitions and similar graphic options along with the possible integration of a soundtrack are just a few examples.

Research and Planning
While planning our film sequence we completed several small tasks which eventually allowed our filming/editing processes to run more smoothly. We viewed similar media texts, such as trailers for other noir films, which inspired us to adapt several aspects of our original sequence draft. Some changes included a softer more orchestral soundtrack, and the addition of a third character within the scene. We researched classic conventions of Film Noir both via the internet and through other media such as 1960s crime novels. You can view our genre research here. We also explored Neo-Noir, which is a more contemporary genre, which we aimed to emulate. To accompany our sequence we also researched jazz artists from the Noir era to help us to plan and create our soundtrack. Analysing nine frames from the opening sequence of Joel Coen's 'The Man Who Wasnt There' gave us an idea of what the audience would be expecting from a Neo-Noir; we took inspiration from this film and hoped to produce a similar effect in our product. This analysis can be found here.