Video AND Sound Production / EXERCISES

04/04/2023 - 04/07/2023 / Week 1- Week 14

Chew Zhi Ern / 0358995

Video and Sound Production / Bachelor of Design (Honours) in Creative Media / Taylor's University

Exercises

INSTRUCTIONS

LECTURES

Week 1: Introduction to the module

Pre-Production

Idea development
Story
Storyboard
Visual References
Location/ Props

Production

Lighting
Costume
Principal Shooting

Post-Production

Offline Editing
Online Editing
Audio Editing

Week 2: Storytelling

Shot Size
Extreme Wide Shot
Shows a broad view of the surroundings around the character and conveys scale, distance, and geographical location. It's used to show where the character is in his/her environment.
Wide Shot
A wide shot includes the entire subject and important objects in the immediate surroundings. If it's used at the beginning of a scene it's often called an "establishing shot”.
Medium Wide Shot
A medium-wide shot shows a character usually cut off across the legs above or below the knees. It is wide enough to show the physical setting in which the action is taking place, it permits a nice balance of figures and surrounding.
Medium Shot
A medium shot shows the subject that is important to understanding - Gesture and expression, from the person's waist up, letting hands and the lower half of his body fall outside the frame.
Medium Close-Up Shot
Medium close-up films subject character from approximately midway between the waist and shoulders to above the head.
Close-Up Shot
A close-up is used to isolate the most important part of the subject. For a speaker, this is generally the head or small object. It emphasizes facial expressions and details of an object.
Extreme Close-Up Shot
An extreme close-up singling out a portion of the face magnifies a detail. The object is to focus on important detail either to increase the drama or impact on a situation or to allow the viewer to see necessary picture information more clearly.

Week 3: Storyboarding / Visual Composition

Story: The set of all the events in a cause-effect relationship occurring in time and space, both the ones explicitly presented and those the viewer infers, constitute the story.

Plot: Everything visibly and audibly present in the film, and material that is extraneous to the story world.

Story = What happened?

Plot = Why they happened? And how?

Story Structure (3 – ACT Structure)

Beginning: Setup / Introduction of a story

Middle: Confrontation of a problem

End: Resolution of problems

The Three-Act Structure

Act 1 - BEGINNING / SETUP:

To introduce the world.
To introduce the main characters.
To establish the dramatic situation.
Leads to an incident that complicates the story (PLOT POINT 1).

Act 2 - MIDDLE / CONFRONTATION:

Known as ‘Rising Action’.
To develop obstacles / complications.
Leads to climax of the story (PLOT POINT 2).

Act 3 - END / RESOLUTION:

Ending of climax.
Answer to all obstacles / problems.
Tying the loose ends.

Week 4: Camera Techniques

Film Sound

Sound Elements

The mixing of sound elements below creates an audio setting that supports the action and engages the spectators.

Speech
Sound effects
Music

Speech

One of the most important tools for understanding the story of the film.

Dialogue

Conversation between characters in the movie.

Voice Over

The voice of an unseen narrator speaking.

Sound Effects

Ambience (backgrounds)

Audio refers to the background noise present at a given scene or a location.

Hard or "cut" effects

Almost every sound we hear at the movies that aren't dialogue or music is a sound effect.

Music

Music in a movie is to enhance the dramatic narrative and the emotional impact.

Dubbing

Or Automated Dialog Replacement (ADR), is the process of re-recording dialogue after the filming process to improve audio quality or reflect dialogue changes.

Foley

A sound effects technique for synchronous effects or live effects.

Colour Correction

Refers to the process where every individual clip of a video footage is altered to match colour temperature of multiple shots to a consistent technical standard of appearance.
To balance out the colours, making the whites actually appear white, and the blacks actually appear black, and that everything in between is nice and even.

RGB

An additive color model in which red, green, and blue light are added together in various ways to reproduce a broad array of colors.
The main purpose of the RGB color model is for the sensing, representation, and display of images in electronic systems, such as televisions and computers.

Colour Grading

Taking what you have done in color correction one step further, by altering an image for aesthetic and communicative purposes.
Once everything is looking nice and normal in the video, now empowered with the ability to further enhance the story by manipulating colors to create a new visual tone.
Objectives:

Increase contrast & saturation
Apply a new tinge of colour

1. What is colour correction?

Colour correction is the process of adjusting the colours in a digital image or video to ensure that they are accurate, consistent, and visually appealing. It is a fundamental aspect of post-production that involves modifying the brightness, contrast, saturation, hue, and other color-related parameters of an image or video to create a desired look or feel. It can be used to fix colour issues, enhance the colours, or to create a specific mood or atmosphere.

The goal is to create a final image or video that accurately represents the colors of the original scene and looks visually pleasing to the viewer.

(unifies the footage)

2. What is colour grading?

Colour grading is a process of adjusting the colours and tones of an image or video to create a desired look or style. It is often used in film, television, and video production to enhance the visual storytelling and to establish a specific mood or atmosphere. It involves modifying the colour, brightness, contrast, and saturation of an image or video to create a certain aesthetic. It can also be used to correct any color issues that may have occurred during the production process.

The goal is to enhance the visual impact of the footage and to create a cohesive look that supports the story being told.

(gives the footage an edge)

3.What is the differences between colour correction and colour grading?

Colour correction is primarily concerned with fixing color issues in an image or video to ensure that the colours are accurate and consistent. This may involve correcting white balance, exposure, and contrast issues, and adjusting the colour channels to ensure that the image or video looks natural and lifelike. The primary goal of color correction is to make the image or video look as realistic as possible.

Colour grading is the process of creatively enhancing the colours in an image or video to achieve a particular look or style. It involves adjusting the colours, brightness, contrast, and saturation to create a desired mood or atmosphere. This may involve applying colour filters, creating a colour palette and using various techniques to create a specific visual style or tone. The primary goal of colour grading is to create a visually compelling image or video that supports the storytelling or artistic vision.

In summary, color correction is a technical process that ensures that the colors in an image or video are accurate and consistent, while color grading is a creative process that enhances the colors to create a desired look or style. Both processes are important in post-production, and they often work hand in hand to create a final product that is visually compelling and engaging.

4. Are both colour correction and colour grading necessary while editing video? Or just do one of them?

Both colour correction and colour grading are important processes in video editing, and it's generally recommended to perform both of them to achieve the best possible results.

Colour correction is the process of adjusting the colours in an image or video to ensure that they are accurate, consistent and natural-looking. This involves fixing any color issues, such as correcting white balance, exposure, and contrast, to ensure that the colours match across different shots.

Colour grading is a creative process that involves manipulating the colours in an image or video to create a desired look or style. This can include adjusting the brightness, contrast, saturation and hue of the footage, as well as applying colour filters and effects to create a specific mood or atmosphere.

While colour correction is primarily concerned with ensuring that the colours are accurate and consistent; colour grading allows you to create a specific visual style or tone that supports the storytelling or artistic vision.

Both processes are important for achieving a polished, professional-looking video and skipping one or the other could result in an inconsistent or visually unappealing final product. In summary, both colour correction and colour grading are necessary processes in video editing and they work together to create a visually engaging and cohesive final product.

Week 5: Mise en Scène

Production Team

Production personnels are hired for the purpose of producing a film or motion picture.

Producer

The producer initiates, coordinates, supervises and controls matters such as raising funding, hiring key personnel, contracting and arranging for distributors.
The producer is involved throughout all phases of the process from development to completion of a project.

Screenwriter

Screenwriter shapes the sequence of events in a film so that the story will unfold logically and in an interesting way.

Director

The director is responsible for overseeing the creative aspects of a film, including controlling the content and flow of the film's plot and managing the technical aspects of visuals with the camera department and sound with the audio department.

Assistant Director

Assistant Director assists the production manager and director. They oversee day-to-day management of the cast and crew scheduling, equipment, script and the set.
Assistant Director ensures the filming comes in on schedule while maintaining a working environment in which the director, principal artists (actors) and crew can be focused on their work.

Director of Photography/ Cinematographer

DoP/DP is the head of the camera and lighting department of the film.
DoP makes decisions on the lighting and framing of scenes in conjunction with the film's director.

Gaffer

The gaffer is the head of the electrical department, responsible for the design and execution of the lighting plan for production. Sometimes the gaffer is credited as "Chief Lighting Technician".

Sound Recordist

The Sound Recordist is the head of the sound department on set, responsible for recording all sound during filming.

Production Designer

Responsible for creating the physical and visual appearance of the film - settings, costumes, props, character makeup.

Film Editor

Assembles the various shots into a coherent film, working closely with the director.

Visual Effects Artist

Visual effects artist responsible for compositing images from different sources such as video, film, computer-generated 3-D imagery, 2-D animations, matte paintings and text.

Sound Designer

In charge of the post-production sound of a movie.

Film Production

Development

The creation, writing, organizing and planning stage of a project.
A preliminary budget is made, key casts are attached, key creatives are chosen, main locations are scouted and multiple script drafts may be written.
It’s all the groundwork to show what the project will be and how much it will cost to make.
Can take months or even years to get the project green-lit and move into pre-production.
The crew involved in the development stage is quite minimal, just a small group of creatives and executives crafting the story and associated budget.

Pre-Production

The planning stage.
Elements of video production such as the script, casting, location scouting, equipment and crew, and the shot list all happen during this stage.
Having a strong concept is essential, spending the appropriate amount of time before full-scale production begins is necessary to nail down the concept.

Production

The actual filming of the film, as known as the principal shoot.
The production company brings the crew, equipment, talent (actors) and all necessary props out to the location and captures all the footage necessary.

Post-Production

During this stage, the footage is edited, the sound is mixed, visual effects are added, a soundtrack is composed, titles are created and the project is completed, and prepared for distribution.
Begins while the shoot is still going. This helps to identify problems with the footage or any gaps in the story while the shoot is still happening.

Distribution

The process of making a movie available for viewing by the audience.
The film may be exhibited directly to the public either through a movie theater or television, or streaming.

Week 6: Lighting for Video Production

Pre-Production for Production Shoot. No Class!

Week 7: Video Production

Pre-Production for Production Shoot. No Class!

Sound Shaping with EQ

Sound equalization is a process where the sound engineer increases (gains up) or decreases (gains down) signal levels of specific audio frequencies.

Frequency Range

Hertz (Hz)

Human hearing: Frequency range from 20Hz to 20,000Hz.

7 subsets of frequencies are used to help define the Ranges.

Dynamic Range

Decibels (dB)

The threshold of human hearing is measured as 0dB SPL (Sound Pressure Level) and the threshold of pain as 130dB SPL.

Space

Mono

Recorded using a single audio channel

Stereo

Recorded using two audio channels.

Week 8: Independent Learning Week.

No Class!

Week 9: Stop Motion & Animation

Stop Motion

Filmed one frame at a time.

Pre-production

Prepare storyboard.
Clock every shot.
Calculating the frames needed (8-10 FPS).
Start collecting sound clips.
Prepare materials and build the puppets and background.
Set the camera on a tripod.
Use manual exposure & focus.
Shoot during the day, but use artificial lighting.

Shooting Stop Motion

Shooting Stop motion With DSLR

Select jpeg L/Fine
Resolution: 5K-6K
Set photo aspect ratio: 16:9 (DSLR Default Setting: 3:2)

Caon DSLR

Nikon DSLR

Aspect Ratio Examples

Aspect Ratio Setting

Shooting Stop motion With Phone

Use an app to export videos for editing.

Prepare for Editing

Separate sequences in different folders.

Editing Stop Motion

Premiere Pro

How to Create Stop Motion Animation in Adobe Premiere Pro

Creating New Project
Choose the setting: 1920 x 1080 24/25 frame per second.
Before importing the images, change the setting.

Premiere Pro CC > Preferences > Timeline
Change "Still Image Default Duration": 5 Seconds to 2-5 Frames

Trial & Error, change it first to 2 frames and play it; if movement is too fast, try 3 frames, and so on.

After deciding the speed (2-5 frames per second), import all folders into Premiere Pro.
Toggle on “Insert and Overwrite Sequences as Nests or Individual Clips”

Insert and Overwrite Sequences as Nests or Individual Clips Button

If have 10 photo seq, create 10 NEW SEQUENCE for each of them.
Create a new 1920x1080 Sequence for editing and rename it.
Now start editing. Can resize the imported seq (5k-6k) to 1920 (~2k), so that can choose to use Wide Shot (W.S.) or Close Up (C.U.)

After Effects

After Effects - Stop Motion Tutorial

Before importing the footage, change the setting.

Preferences > Import > Sequence Footage: 24 frames per second.

Import footage: File > Import > Multiple Files
Check 3 Boxes:

Create Composition
Importer JPEG Sequence
Force Alphabetical Order

Adjust the Speed: Right-Click Layer in Composition > Time > Time Stretch
Remember to create ONE composition for editing (1920 x 1080, 24 frames. Duration make sure long enough to cover the whole video)

Week 10: Digital Cinema

VFX

Plan Well

Visual effects shots need well and precise planning. The similar color tones stressed out AE’s rotobrush.

Recce for VFX shots is very important!

Editing Breakdown:

Import shots into AE.
Arrange the shots in COMPOSITION following the tutorial video.
Variations: Pre-compose FLICK and JUMPING shots in different compositions, hence the two shots both need masking.

JUMPING shot: Use only a few frames of the character floating in the air.
JUMPING composition: Try time stretching to decide the appropriate duration.

To match the size/shape with the BUMPING shot, apply the Puppet tool to JUMPING’s composition, and add keyframes size/position.
Add adjustment layer to match colour for all layers.

Week 11: Final Project Consultation

Present final project proposal.
Do a trial shot with chosen scene from the storyboard, with the chosen equipment (phone/DSLR) and try it with the chosen editing app (Premiere Pro/ AE).

Week 12: Final Project Consultation

Final Project Consultation and Feedback Session.

Week 13: Final Project Presentation
Final Project Consultation and Feedback Session.

Week 14: Final Project Submission
Final Project Consultation and Feedback Session.

EXERCISES

Week 1: In-Class Editing Exercise

Download footage: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1LI54P6zPIcdXOPpzChp637Fk3NRvVdoW?usp=sharing
Create NEW Premiere Pro Project.
Import footage into Premiere Pro.
Arrange shots on the timeline in the proper order.
Export video.

Figure 1. Breakdown of the Premiere Pro Interface

Create new project > Name: Mints Project
Window > Workspaces > Assembly
Import the downloaded files by dragging in > Double Click the Imported Folders > Drag the Video Page from the Program Monitor to the Timeline Panel
Play the video to the end > Double Click on the Second Video > Click Insert
Repeat the steps until all videos are inserted
Export the Video ( File > Export > Media > Format: H264 > Change the Output Name > Export)

Figure 2.1 Process for the First Exercise - Mints

Figure 2.2 Exporting the Video - Mints

Figure 2.3 First Exercise Outcome - Mints

Week 1: Editing Exercise (Independent Learning)

Figure 3.1 Process for the Second Exercise - Doritos

Figure 3.2 Exporting the Video - Doritos

Figure 3.3 First Exercise Outcome - Doritos

Week 1: Understanding of TikTok and three favorite TikTok videos.

What is TikTok?

TikTok is a social media app that allows users to create and share short videos, which has become increasingly popular in recent years. Its main target audience is particularly among younger generations. It has been a significant factor in its success and has helped to create a new generation of social media influencers and content creators. However, the app has a wide user base and is used by people of all ages.

Three favourite TikTok videos:

Week 2: Shooting Exercise - Framing

Shoot landscape format video that is 5 seconds per shot. Then, compile them using Adobe Premier Pro and edit them with captions (Mention the shot size). Last, export the video for submission.

Clips to shoot

Caption Adding:

Switch to graphics workspace (Windows > Workspaces > Graphics)
Add text (Select the Type Tool > Click on the program monitor where want that text appear)
Adjust the position and the appearance

Adding the Caption Background:

Tick on the background box at the appearance > Change the Colour

Click and Hold the Pen Tool > Select Rectangle Tool > Create a rectangle on the program monitor > Move the shape layer underneath to the text > Arranged and Aligned

Add Effects:

Effects Library > Video Transitions > Choose the effect > Drag it to the opening or ending of the text layer

Select the text layer in the timeline panel > Shift + D (Default Transition)

Conclusion:

1. Added text with the type tool

2. Added shape using the rectangle tool

3. Modified title in the essential graphics panel

Process of editing using Adobe Premier Pro:

Importing the footage

Adding the caption

Apply Effects to the captions

Here is the outcome of the exercise:

Week 2: Premiere Pro Editing Exercise - Lalin

For this exercise, we obtained the footage from Google Drive File provided by Mr. Martin. Our task is to extract the required parts, trim them and combine them into a video. The final video length must be approximately 35 seconds.

Original Lalin Video Link

Download the Footages

How to Trim the Video?

Use Mark In Tool to mark an In Point: Drag the play head to the frame that wanted. Click the Mark In button or press the 'I' shortcut key.
Use Mark Out Tool to mark an Out Point: Drag the play head to the frame that wanted. Click the Mark Out button or press the 'O' shortcut key.
Insert the trimmed video by clicking the Insert Icon in the Source panel or hitting the shortcut key ','.

From Left to Right: Mark In, Mark Out, Insert

How to Transit Video 1 to Video 2? (Make the main character disappear)

Shorten the Video 2
Drag it down to Video 1's Timeline (so that Video 2 appears in Video 1 Timeline and replaced Video 1 Shot)
Smoothen the video: Effects > Video Transitions > Cross Dissolve > Drag & Drop it in the center of Video 1 and Video 2
Add Dip to Black Effect at the beginning as well as at the end of the video

Shorten the video

Drag it down

Here is my editing process:

Trimming the videos after importing them into Premier Pro

Add the trimmed video to the timeline

Effects applied after all clips have been added to the timeline

Checking the video before export for submission

Exporting the final cut

Final Outcome with Audio

Final Outcome without Audio

Week 3: 3 Act Structure Exercise

Video 1:
Guang is a story about two brothers. The elder brother, Wen Guang is autistic and suffers from attention deficit disorder, struggles with social interaction, and has difficulty performing day-to-day obligations. He also has a secret passion. To make ends meet, Wen Guang is coerced by his younger brother into looking for a job to share the burden of meeting their monthly expenses. But all Guang wants is to look for the final glass that will bring him a simple, pure moment of joy.

Video 2: Lalin is a Thai girl living in Japan. She is an "internet idol", who always wears a mask over her face and had a very unhappy childhood. Deciding to leave the upsetting memories behind, she ventured to Japan to start anew. There she discovered beauty apps to make her pictures appear much prettier and she eventually grew fame on Instagram. But behind that cute facade, she's fighting with her low self-esteem due to a secret.

Week 4: Premiere Pro Colour Correction Exercise

Download the Footages: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/12Q9pu76GOuOmu5-1LUIMcfMTVzwledmd?usp=sharing
Create new project > Name: Color Correction Exercise
Window > Workspaces > Color
Lumetri Scopes > Parade (RGB)
Import all the downloaded videos by dragging in > Insert all videos to the Timeline Panel
Turn On the Comparison View > Shot or Frame Comparison & Side by Side
File > New > Adjustment Layer
Start to adjust it

Process of Colour Correction

Week 6: Sound Shaping Exercise

Download the Audios: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1TIDx2XX2GebQXAH8ZrHRAO40HHazxLBc?usp=sharing
Adobe Audition > File > New > Multitrack Session > Rename the File Name
Import the Audios > View Multitrack Editor
Effect Rack > Click the Arrow on the right of the Tracks > Filter & EQ > Parametric Equalizer / Reverb > Adjust and Edit them
Turn on and off the button 'Toggles the Power State' to see the differences (Before & After)
Apply the Effects > Export to MP3

Phone Call Sound Effects

Bring down the Bass and Treble
Raise the Mid Range between 500 Hz to 2000Hz

Muffled Sound Effects

Remain the BASS
Treble to the bottom
Raise Mid Range to the top

The sound from the source is not directly delivered to the listener.
Muffle Sound usually by wrapping it with something.
Example: speak with a scarf over your mouth.

Reverb Sound Effects

Sound in space
Echo caused by the reflection of sound waves from a surface.
Using it by considering the space around (source sound)

Decay Time

Specifies how many milliseconds the reverb takes to decay 60 dB.
Longer values give longer reverb tails.

Pre‑Delay Time

Specifies how many milliseconds the reverb takes to build to its maximum amplitude.

Perception

Simulates irregularities in the environment.

To add subtle spaciousness, set the Dry percentage higher
To achieve a special effect, set the Dry percentage lower.

To add subtle spaciousness to a track, keep the Wet percentage lower than the Dry percentage.

Import the Audios

Shaping the Sounds

The outcome for the exercise:

Phone Call Sound Effects

Muffled Sound Effects

Pumping Reverb Sound Effects

Room Ambience Reverb Sound Effects

Week 9: Stop Motion Exercise

Premiere Pro

How to Create Stop Motion Animation in Adobe Premiere Pro

Creating New Project
Choose the setting: 1920 x 1080 24/25 frame per second.
Before importing the images, change the setting.

Premiere Pro CC > Preferences > Timeline
Change "Still Image Default Duration": 5 Seconds to 2-5 Frames

Trial & Error, change it first to 2 frames and play it; if movement is too fast, try 3 frames, and so on.

After deciding the speed (2-5 frames per second), import all folders into Premiere Pro.
Toggle on “Insert and Overwrite Sequences as Nests or Individual Clips”

After Effects

After Effects - Stop Motion Tutorial

Before importing the footage, change the setting.

Preferences > Import > Sequence Footage: 24 frames per second.

Import footage: File > Import > Multiple Files
Check 3 Boxes:

Create Composition
Importer JPEG Sequence
Force Alphabetical Order

Adjust the Speed: Right-Click Layer in Composition > Time > Time Stretch
Remember to create ONE composition for editing (1920 x 1080, 24 frames. Duration make sure long enough to cover the whole video)

Here is the process using After Effects and Premiere Pro to turn the images shot in DSLR into a stop motion animation.

Adobe After Effects