It's been too long...

A lot has happened in the month since I last blogged; filming for Project Y and Under the Same Sky, both for YDance, designing the website for the masters show, finishing Anne Whitaker's website, fine tuning the details for As the sparks fly upwards... and getting back to work on itch.

Project Y

I was approached by YDance, the national youth dance agency for Scotland for whom I have worked as a freelance dance tutor for many years, to produce documentation and a short introductory documentary to promote their performance project, Project Y. I spent a few afternoons filming rehearsals and getting short interviews with the choreographers and some of the dancers, which I chose to conduct as group interviews rather than one on one to ensure a more relaxed feel to the footage. I then got a team of 2 camera operators and a boom mic operator together for the multi-camera performance shoot. So far, looking through the footage as it's captured, it's looking good. I may need to crop in on the wide angle camera slightly but I had a feeling that would happen as it was difficult to set up in advance due to different lighting states in the theatre.

Under the Same Sky

Also for YDance, this is a short promotional video aimed at young people and those who work with them to promoto YDance's new project, Free to Dance. Free to Dance targets young girls who may be school refusers, exercise refusers or excluded from regular activities for some other reason. For this reason, it was important to YDance to film girls dancing who have not had years of experience and to chat to them about their developments so far. Again I chose to shoot the interview with both girls at the same time to relax them get better material.

Masters Show Website

I decided to use a similar format to my own website for FireBox as it makes use of an iframe thus minimising the amount of parts which need to load for each page, keeping the design a simple grey on white allows the work to speak for itself. The main problem has been getting all the information I needed from people in a short amount of time. It seems that deadlines often fall on deaf ears, even when they are reasonable and take dissertation deadlines into account. Eventually I got it altogether but am now waiting on the server details so I can upload it. Typical.


Anne Whitaker

www.anne-whitaker.com is now up and running. The website was fairly simple to put together as Anne was keen to use a blog template that she could add to gradually. We decided that the best way forward would be for me to meet with her on a weekly(ish) basis and teach her the basics of blogging. She started with almost no knowledge but proved to be a quick learner and within 10 sessions is now happy to go it alone.

As the sparks fly upwards...

The film clips have been finalised and I'm constantly adding to a music playlist so that the room is filled with a full range of tracks that will be shuffled and on a loop. I'm still in the process of making the hanging screen but part of this needs to be done at the installation so that the size is perfect for the projection. I'm keen to get the screen as accurately sized as possible to give the piece a feel of things floating in space visually.


itch

It's been a long slog for itch, one that seems to go on the back burner as soon as another project raises its head so I'm determined to get this finished within the next week. I think the problem is that I'm so clear on what I want the finished project to look like I've convinced myself it'll be a five minute job that can be done at any point. In reality I know it'll take a little longer than that.

What Goes Up...

FireBox dancers and friends, Gillian and Suzi, have been going to pole dancing classes recently and have really got into the whole thing. As well as being the source of endless anecdotes about clammy palms and upside down spins they have also decided that pole dancing, combined with contemporary, would be a good subject for a dance film.

The idea came to them a while ago and they asked me to get involved in the filming/editing part of it which is scheduled for Monday (26th May). I plan to work with high end and low end cameras to create an interesting quality to the film which will reflect the perceived differences in the dance forms.

Project Y

YDance has asked to produce a DVD of their performance project, Project Y, this summer. The DVD is to include an intro section featuring interviews with dancers and clips from rehearsals and classes as well as documentation of the live performance itself.

It's a relief to get some work for the summer as well as the opportunity to make contact with the choreographers working on Project Y and, of course, all that young talent.

Hey GI!

I've been working on Glasgow International festival's viral video team this week going to exhibition launches and parties to capture the atmosphere in short video clips. They specifically asked us to use basic equipment and make our clips quite candid, guerilla style.

It's been a good way to get around the festival and has meant that I've seen a lot of exhibitions that wouldn't have necessarily interested me otherwise - some of them still don't!

The high profile works, Jim Lambie, Catherine Yass, Wilhelm Sasnal, etc, were the ones which have grabbed all the press attention but I really wasn't convinced by Sasnal's piece. The idea was good and very provocative but it just didn't really seem like an interesting final piece.

Ceryth Wym Evans piece at The Local, however, really got me going. It's a film projected onto 3 mirror balls positioned so that every now and then there's an 'eclipse' and people are suddenly aware of the darkness which then draws them into the piece more. The Local isn't set up like a gallery space, it's a bar with art. The art isn't obvious so when Evans piece draws you in you then start to notice the other works around it and to me that's much more interesting.

No One by Preshur

I finished a first version of the piece last Thursday and in my excitement I burnt off 6 copies and posted it to Right Track without first checking with Rowan that she was happy with it. Of course, there were a few little things that she asked me to alter so I'd wasted 6 DVDs but luckily she was understanding and laughed off my eagerness.

It's a lesson learned for next time though. With the exception of DOG, all my previous work has been for myself so I haven't had to check it with anyone else before finalising the project. I'm glad I made the mistake with Rowan as I've known her for years and not someone else who would maybe see it in a different way.

The Preshur's On

I realise that I didn't explain the title of the last blog... Preshur is the name the girls have given their band and they've recorded the Alicia Keyes track, No One.

When I arrived at the studio this afternoon I have to be honest and sdmit that I was pleased to see that they were all young and attractive so I didn't have to worry too much about them being shy in front of the camera. There was a bit of that but after a few shots they soon relaxed.

I decided to shoot some of the material against the red stage curtain with the girls around an old-fashioned mike and the rest of the material using the black curtain as background. The stage area was really shabby so I was limited in terms of direction and angles but I'm pretty sure I got the best out of it by using the front curtain and reversing the stage rather than the back which I couldn't have disguised.

After one long take of all the movement, which wasn't great, Rowan led the girls through short sections while I moved around to get the best shots.

I've had a quick look through the footage and while some of it looks a bit naff, lots of fidgeting and looking around, there are some real gems in amongst it all.

No Preshur

I was approached by Right Track this week to produce a dance film/music video for some young people they've been working with. The four girls are all school refusers so have been offered this project as an incentive to improve their behaviour. They've recorded a track for it, choreographed a routine with Rowan's help and agreed on costumes and location. All I have to worry about is getting the best out of them on the day.

I only have 2 hours to film them and have to be quite careful about how I approach them as they seem quite unpredictable. They've booked out the theatre space at St Andrew's high which I've worked in before and although it's a bit shabby it's a decent size so should be alright.

These Things Happen

These Things Happen when three dancers and one dancer/film maker follow instructions given by choreographer, Angus Balbernie at a Dance House research lab. Spontaneous, textured and very low-tech.



Following another failed attempt to hire any equipment I ended up using my own Mini DV and mobile to film improvisations at Angus' research lab. Angus had agreed to let me use the footage anyway I decided but I wasn't sure how to put it all together with it being on different formats and still make it look like one cohesive piece. After a lightbulb moment last weekend I decided to embrace the low-tech aspect and only use the footage from my mobile. The only editing I chose to use was to rotate some of the sections which had been captured in portrait to give the feeling of the camera rotating but the dancers remain standing.

I'm quite pleased with the results and am now thinking of ways this can be combined with my final project.

It's a DOG's Life!

After the excitement of the multi-camera filming of Scottish Dance Theatre's performance and Interactive it was down to the serious business of editing it all. We decided that I would do DOG and Rosie would do the Interactive with Vilte doing Tenderhook although she seems to have been asking for DOG footage all this week so I'm not entirely sure what she's doing.

The deadline for DOG is tomorrow and the multi-cam editing workshop was last Thursday which left me eight days to learn it, do it and burn it all to a quality that SDT can show at an event in Athens. Although it wasn't really eight days, it was three because of other commitments then two because of bad weather. All this was made worse by the fact that I've been feeling ill all week and struggling through a urine infection. On top of all that when it actually came down to editing I was pretty much left to my own devices which was fine until I needed help and I ended up relying on Derricks Linton and Blackie for assistance.

Particular learning curves have been...
double check that the edit suite is actually booked for the time it's required
if you start in Edit 1-5 you can't move to Edit 6-10 to continue your work
if someone looks at your work in Edit 1-5 you then can't use the multi-camera viewing function in Edit 6-10 even if they haven't changed anything
burning takes longer than editing especially when you've never been shown the software and you're struggling to make the film small enough to put onto DVD.

It's all done now but it hasn't been an easy week and to top it all off I was really interested in doing the After Effects workshop at the start of the week but obviously couldn't because of this work. Thankfully I can get back to my own stuff next week and am looking forward to the Interactive workshop with Jaygo.

These Things Happen

A few weeks ago I worked with choreographer, Angus Balbernie, as a dancer/film maker on his current research. As a dancer, I was involved in improvisational tasks set by Angus to look into how different instructions affect movement quality. As a film maker, I filmed these improvisations whilst being involved in them. I finished the week with around about an hour of footage on my Mini DV and my mobile not really knowing what I was going to do with them. This morning, after looking at all the footage again, I remembered a piece of music that seems to tie all the footage together and make it something complete. I am now busily and happily editing away and reckon I'll be finished quite soon.

After weeks of being 'stuck' and having no ideas I've impressed myself this weekend with a few good ones. Long may it continue.

Lightbulb Moment

I decided a while ago that I was going to re-shoot 'itch', the film I made following a task as part of the Masterclass at The Space last term. I felt it had enough potential to do again and wanted to make the whole thing again with the dancers in costumes. I spent a while finding costumes I was happy with but was still considering ways I could develop the sound and lighting to improve them.

Last night I had it; the lightbulb moment.

Rather than using the strip lighting which is in place or proper studio lighting I've decided to use torches to light the space and the dancers. Each dancer will have 2 torches which they will shine into dark spots and onto each other. This way, as well as the film being a development of itself, it's also linking in with my other explorations into using light and photographing it. I now have clear images in my mind as to how the finished product will look which is the way I normally work so I'm pleased at the moment and ready to get going.

Dog Walker Cafe

I was approached by James at Jarprocess a few weeks ago to film a short dance piece for a dream sequence in his latest film, Dog Walker Cafe. Bitterly cold and wearing far too few layers we all met up in a car park in Clydebank to dance around by car headlight on Tuesday evening. Me plus 5 other FireBox dancers were involved in the shoot using material I choreographed specifically for this. The plan was to involve some still images of us working with lights but James felt it wasn't necessary and that he had enough without it. The benefit of this is that I can develop this more and work on it properly for a new piece.

The Corrie Fee Fugues

I was invited to participate in Angus Balbernie's Dance House Creative Lab this week focusing on the meaning of movement in performance. My role was to split my time between being a dancer and filmer so I could experience and compare both. I spent a lot of time during the week filming while dancing on both my Mini DV and mobile phone. The footage below is unedited and was taken on my mobile on the last day. I intend to edit the rest of the footage of the improvisations into a short dance film piece.

The Space Masterclass

Yesterday was spent working on tasks set by Katrina to get us used to working with the camera and gaining confidence in holding it and moving with it. It's something I've never done before as I've never had the equipment to deal with that. it felt good to get involved with moving the camera around the dancers, more like a duet than dancer/viewer.

One of the tasks yesterday was to film approximately one minute of continuous footage to create a short film clip. We had to use a location outwith the dance studios and we weren't allowed to edit at all. Bored by all the clean lines and shiny metal I asked the dancers to show me the grimiest place in the building. This turned out to be the boiler room underneath the theatre space, it was dirty, dark and had the constant drone of the boilers in the background. The dancers were positioned in the darkest part of the space and the camera moved from there outwards into the light passing more dancers on the way. The end result was slightly Blair Witch, slightly Girl Interrupted and very different from anything I've filmed before.

Today I went back to develop the idea with new dancers. I gave them a short sequence of movement to give the piece a theme and instead of being restricted to one shot I filmed a range of shots around the space using the dancers in all areas. I'm looking forward to editing this material over the next few days particularly as it will be my first time using Final Cut Pro.

Where I've Been Going Wrong

One session with Katrina is all it's taken to realise how amateur my film work is. The ideas are there but I need to be braver in what I choose to include and leave out. I need to be braver with angles and shots and move the camera around more. I haven't been able to do these things with my little camcorder before, the slightest movement and the thing is struggling to focus for the next 10 minutes.

Now that I have the opportunity to work with equipment that can handle movement I need to take advantage of it.

* More angles
* More shots
* Move the camera