Shopping List!

What I think is one of the most important things to do in projects like these is to stay organized. That is easier said than done. But I know, in order to film we must get all our supplies and props, and before we do that we must make a list of all our supplies and props.

The first thing I did when we finished the script, was go through and highlight the props, costumes, and specific set pieces in different colors. Essentially, anything Alexa and I needed to purchase or find.

Over the next two weeks I think these are all the things Alexa and I need to get:

Props:

• Like a billion Girl Scout cookie boxes ✔
• A wagon ✔(almost, post coming soon)
• A stick of metal that looks like it could have come from the wagon
• Clipboard
• Pencil ✔
• Chairs/furniture to block door with
• Ripped up curtains

Costumes:

• Patchy big robe with a hood
• Another patchy big robe with a hood
• Old fashioned girl scout uniform ✔
• Troupe number patch
• Liquid Latex
• bald cap
• sponges

Misc:

• Fake blood gel

Music!

One thing that really gets me excited about this project is the opportunity to try my hand at film scoring! I've been playing instruments for a long time, and within the last year, I've been trying my hand at music composition in Garageband! Plus, I decided this year to take Music Theory Honors, which has helped me learn more about the theory behind composition.

I chose to use synths and electronic distortion because I found that it was common in the science fiction genres, and this is apparent in the most iconic of science fiction scores. Alexa and I also wanted to use synths because we wanted to pull inspiration from the scores of the Netflix show Stranger Things, the FX show Legion, and the film Ex Machina.

My first draft, made back in early December, I feel would work great as an underlying theme or motif. I think it would work well in the opening, as the opening text appears.




My second version, I created because I wanted something more punchy to use at the climax of the film. I hope that the punchier synth with add to the suspense of the final act, and the intention of the end of this version is that it will tie into the visuals of the falling action.



I hope that the music will just be one element of many that tie this piece together. Along with the cinematography and story, the music is meant to contribute to the emotion of the film. I hope when all the elements come together, Alexa and I create something that leaves the audience wowed.

Production Company & Logo:

Our production company and logo developed in an odd way. First, without a production company name, I workshopped a logo. I took the M from my last name, and by turning one point of the M I created a symbol that resembled the Z (from my first name). Also, the logo resembled the A and the V from Alexa's first and last name.

The crazy part was, without seeing my logo, Alexa suggested a name "Lunar Lava Productions", and it surprised me how much the two parts of the M from the logo I made also closely resembled two Ls. Alexa came up with the name "Lunar Lava" after a day in her astronomy class, where she learned how the moon once had volcanic activity. This concept fascinated her, and created out of it was our catchy name!

Schedule Time!

• Week One (2/26-3/4)
• Finalize Script ✔
• Storyboard
• Figure out location ✔
• Figure out lighting and stuff
• Week Two (3/5-3/11)
• Order everything
• Assemble costumes
• Makeup and all that
• Week Three (3/12-3/18)
• Film & Photoshoot! (16th 17th and 18th)
• Week Four (3/19-3/25)
• Edit Film
• Work on website and postcard
• Week Five (3/26-4/1)
• (Spring break)
• Edit Film
• Work on website and postcard
• Work on CCR
• Week Six (4/2-4/8)
• Finish Editing
• Finish website and postcard
• Finish CCR
• Week Seven
• (Final posts by 4/14)
• Post CCR, Film, and other elements

Finalizing the Script

9.2.18

The initial idea

We started working in August, coming up with little ideas of stories, but none that really stuck. Not until September 2nd, when I sent my initial idea:

Since then the idea has changed and evolved (as it should have because this initial idea was pretty rough) and in the next couple of weeks we worked out more of the details... so it became time to write... 

9.16.17

INT. DUNKIN DONUTS

The First Draft

I remember this wonderful morning (Alexa bought me hash browns : ) ), and with laptops connected to the Dunkin Donut wifi, we got to work. What seemed like minutes, but were actually hours, passed, and we had put together a semi-completed script. It had a beginning middle and end, plenty of blocking and lines, but it was nowhere near done. But, this session really helped me and Alexa work out the kinks in our story, clean up the edges, and get ourselves on the same page!

2.27.17
The Final Draft

Excited to get back into the groove of things, Alexa and I finally finalized the script. But honestly, after the number of edits we had each done on our own in the months between our last meeting, it only needed minor changes. 

Loop 1 Script

Here We Go Again

Alexa and I have been excited about our final, so excited that we've been secretly planning it since August 2017.

It all began with an idea: 

This was the beginning idea, we both wanted to pull inspiration from The Twilight Zone. Alexa even convinced me to keep it in black and white, adding a neo-noir side to this final piece.



Alexa also mentioned pulling modern elements into this not-modern-looking film, but I initially pushed against this. And once we decided on a plot (which I'll mention in a later post), we decided that the time period the short film is set in should stay ambiguous.

Another media we decided to pull inspiration from is Black Mirror because, like The Twilight Zone, it is a science fiction anthology.



Although we are not creating an anthology, we want it to feel like our film could fit right into one of these shows, taking inspiration from their conventions. The conventions associated with the episodes of these dark science fiction anthologies is that each story often has an existential ending filled with a sense of despair or hopelessness, which ultimately teaches a lesson or gives a warning about the human experience. Science fiction itself as a genre typically deals with imaginative concepts such as space travel, time travel, and parallel universes. Our project will follow many of these conventions but also branch off a little into conventions of the horror and fantasy genres, as it will make use of a narrative enigma and also show slight elements of the supernatural.

Because Netflix refuses to release statistics about the watch patterns of their shows, and because the original The Twilight Zone was created in a time when not many people owned televisions, it is hard to accurately pick a demographic we want to be our target audience. However, based on the content of these shows, and the similar content of our short film, we want to target mostly young adults, ages 18-30.

Our story is prompted by a "what if?" as most science fiction stories are: What if... well... you'll see...

(to be continued...)