R+P Post 33: Reflections on my role and contribution during research and planning

We all got very involved in the the research and planning stages as a team. This meant I took a role in contributing to all aspects of this stage.

Making Backdrops
Our friend Priya helped us draw out the basic design for D4MES in a very urban, street font which is going to be one of the backdrops for our music video. We then made a stencil of it and spray painted the design onto fabric. I helped to draw out the stencil, spray paint and also paint the outlines of the design using a brush and acrylic paint.

Props
We found a nice pieces of red cloth in the media department which I said would look good as our tablecloths. So we decided to put two different typed of fabrics together to create a classy dinner table scene. I also helped my group to order our spray paint by choosing the best deals and the colours we would use.

Planning outfits
I drew up a table and asked each member what they had in their wardrobes and what they'd like to wear in order to plan everyone's outfits, make-up and hairstyles for the music video.
We also met up at my place and spent a day trying out make-up looks and outfits to see how they worked together in order to be as prepared as we could.

Creating the shoot schedule
This was a long process we divided up between ourselves but eventually got done. It involved working out who was performing in front of which backdrops with which lighting and everyone's timing according to our timetables. Gift finished a lot of the schedule as she was very fast at putting it together but we planned and decided everything as a group.

Planning shots
We all came up with many types of shots and scenes for the music video. This included beauty shots, wide shots and moving shots.

Acting
Acting for the music video was so much fun. Our shoot sessions were full of laughter and excitement. Although lighting was a pain to set-up it was worth it. We had many dance rehearsals to perfect our routine. It was like a workout every time.

Filming
As me and Monica had the same free periods we both actively shot each other's scenes. I'm proud of what we'd achieved during the test shoot despite room for improvement.

Editing the test shoot
Editing was fun as we finally had a chance to see the result of something we put so much effort and time into. It was  fun seeing the effects we could use and best worked with our music video. It also meant we could see if there were shots missing, shots we could have filmed better and also any concepts we didn't like.