How to Use Colors in Filmmaking

https://www.filmmakersacademy.com/colors-in-filmmaking/

Explain what each of the primary colors means on screen when you use them.  How do they affect the mood and tone of your projects?

    The primary colors are red, green and blue (RGB) for additive color. Red is an intense color that often means something related to passion or extreme emotion, like love or rage. Green is has a variety of meaning on screen: nature, renewal, jealousy, money, decay, or restfulness as it combines the positivity of yellow and the calmness of blue. That being said, I have also seen green used to create discomfort with a sickly shade. Blue is a more mellow color that is associated with calmness and stability, but also with sadness. These colors can affect the mood and tone of my projects as I could use them to amplify the emotions of scenes or the overall story. It can be a visual representation of a character's emotion or help elicit emotions in the audience.

Using Color to Tell a Story in Film

How are color palettes used in film?  Why is each important?

    Color palettes are used in film in order to create a visually pleasing image by creating contrast/separation, express different emotions through the psychological associations of colors, and as a representation of a theme/idea. Each of these are important because they deepen the visual storytelling of the film. Using color to create contrast makes a greater feeling of depth in the image and also makes it more aesthetically pleasing. For instance, you can color the subject differently from the background to separate it and create depth. Color can be really effective at expressing ideas and emotions as every color has connotations and psychological effects on the audience. For example, you can use warm or cool colors to amplify the temperature of the setting or you can use specific colors to help elicit different emotions like red for love or anger. One strong way to use color in film is by using it to represent ideas and themes. This especially impacts the storytelling as it visually shows different motifs that connect to important concepts. This idea was also mentioned in a previous blog with associative uses of color.

Color in Storytelling Pt. 2

What does this video essay say about the purpose of color?  What does the narrator have to say about associative and transitional in storytelling? What is one way you could use color going forward in your filmmaking considering what you've learned this week?

    This video essay says that the purpose of color is... The narrator says that associative uses in storytelling is when single, consistent, colors in a story are used as associations. This essentially means that the film establishes a connection between that color and a specific idea or subject. This can be done with recurring hues for a color scheme, or the repetition of the specific color(s), which creates connections to the idea/subject just by being present. As for transitional uses in storytelling, he says that they are when these associative colors change. Transitions of colors are used to show a shift in a variety of thing, be that within a character, location, time, etc. These two ways of using color can also be combined to effectively tell a story by using those associations and adding a layer of transition to show the progression of the story. Considering what I've learned this week, one way that I could use color going forward in my own films is by being much more intentional about color schemes and pallets, using the ideas from color theory in order to create deeper meanings behind the colors of my film. With these new concepts in mind, I can try and plan out more of the story that can be told in color, namely character arcs.

Color in Storytelling Pt. 1

What are three things that you've learned in this video essay?  How do these relate to what you've learned so far this week about color in filmmaking?

    Three things that I've learned in this video are that different colors cause different reactions, they can be used to symbolize internal parts of a character, and to create separations. Every color has different connotations and elicit different emotional responses in audiences. For instance, a color like blue can make a scene feel more serene and peaceful as opposed to a color like red, which can put audiences on edge. There are colors which can amplify different emotions and push the audience into feeling a certain way when viewing a scene. Another thing that I learned from this video is that colors can be used to symbolize an aspect of a character internally. The example used in the video was Greed (1924), which uses more and more yellow to represent the character's greed until eventually the film is fully tinted yellow by the end. The third thing that I learned about was that color can differentiate parts of the story, either to show the difference in location, time, etc. For example, Intolerance used it to differentiate location and time, whereas a film like The Matrix used it to separate reality from the matrix. These relate to what I've learned so far this week about color filmmaking as it reinforces a lot of what I learned in previous blog entries. Color is key for emotions, story telling through symbolism and metaphor, and showing a separation between two things.

Color Theory for Video

https://www.videomaker.com/article/f06/17674-color-theory-for-video

What are complementary colors?  What are tertiary colors?  What is the difference between primary and tertiary colors? How can colors be assigned meaning in a film?

    Complementary colors are sets of colors that, when combined, can be used to make a gray. When mixing these colors, they are brought closer to grey, making the majority color appear more desaturated when mixed. These pairs of color are visually appealling and contrast one another, some important pairs include red and green, blue and orange, and yellow and purple. Tertiary colors are the in-betweens of adjacent primary and secondary colors such as red-orange, orange-yellow, yellow-green, green-blue, and blue-purple. The difference between primary and tertiary colors are that primary colors are used to create other colors and tertiary colors are the in-betweens, the product of primary and secondary colors combined. Colors can be assigned meaning in a film by representing a theme, following or subverting its connotations, and subtly adding to the story. You establish an association to a specific theme or idea by connecting that concept with the color(s). Every color and combination has a set of connotations that can amplify different feelings and reveal ideas. For instance, the color white is often associated with cleanliness and/or purity, which can be used to amplify those traits in something or create a contrast by making it oppose the true nature of the thing. Additionally, you can potentially use the relationships of colors or the established symbolism to tell the story, such as using complimentary colors to show a pair, or have characters wear more colors that tie them together.

Color in Digital Filmmaking

What are three ways that the video mentions color can enhance filmmaking? What is color sub-sampling?  What are the drawbacks or benefits of 8-bit color?  What are the drawbacks or benefits of 10-bit color?

    Three ways that color can enhance filmmaking are to differentiate settings, underline thematic concepts, and to create feelings and emotions. The first example which the video uses is The Matrix, as the film differentiates the Matrix from reality through green hue vs. natural colors. The second one is American Beauty, which heavily leans into a red, white, and blue color scheme to underline a primary theme relating to the facade of Lester's family. The last example was Améle, that follows an earthy color scheme that gives the film a warm feeling and makes blue tones contrast further. Color sub-sampling is the compression process in which the color resolution is reduced while the luminance resolution remains the same. The drawbacks of 8-bit color are that they can "break" when heavily color graded as there's not that much color data available. The benefits of it are that it generally works for many situations and requires less storage. The drawbacks of 10-bit color are the increasingly higher storage requirements for all the color data. The benefits of it are the improved flexibility and capabilities in color correcting and color grading.

The History and Science of Color Film Pt. 2

What led to technicolor taking over color filmmaking?  What films really drove the adoption of the process? How did Eastman's color affect the development of color filmmaking?  What were some of its pros?  What were some of its cons?

    Technicolor took over color filmmaking because of the major advancements which they developed, including the initial two strip process, then the subsequent three strip process which brought it back, and the monopack, which allowed it to be used in conventional cameras. The films that were the led the movement towards adopting this process were Disney's Oscar winning shorts Flowers and Trees and Three Little Pigs, Warner Bro's The Adventures of Robin Hood, and The Wizard of Oz. Eastmancolor affected the development of color filmmaking as it broke Technicolor's monopoly as it was an easier alternative and audiences were getting tired of the technicolor look. Some of its pros are that it was relatively cheap, required no special lab nor equipment to develop, and worked in conventional cameras. Some of its cons are that it was less stable, potentially fading in only five years if not stored properly, and that it was inherently less technologically advanced than technicolor.

The Forgotten History of Silent Films in Color

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1wvYH2P1Tc2kCKZ8DCIvTVIXHlE4kdZuo/view?pli=1

Why do you think modern-day people perceive early film as ONLY black and white?  What do you think has led to this perception?  How do you think color was perceived by audiences back in the dawn of cinema?

    I believe that most modern-day people perceive early film as ONLY black and white because of the loss of a lot of old footage and the memory of only major events such as the introduction of technicolor. As a lot of time has passed, old film mediums degrade and become faded; however, colored films were less stable than their black and white counterparts and were more prone to quicker decay. Additionally film was extremely flammable and many archives have burnt down in the past. Additionally, past historians viewed the color as an add-on that was integral to the film and didn't need to be preserved, leading to a lot of the colored versions being lost to time. Thus, most of the only films to survive were black and white. Additionally, it is likely that modern audiences will recall the introduction of technicolor and believe that it was the first use of color in film, thus creating a misconception that silent films were always in black and white. I believe that early audiences would have perceived colored film with similar awe and reactions to early films and eventually accepting it as part of the appeal and artistry of film.

The History and Science of Color Film Pt. 1

What is color?  What principle did James Clerk Maxwell discover? How was color used in early filmmaking?  What were the two major types of colorizing film?

    Color is our psychological reaction to a narrow band of electromagnetic radiation on the spectrum called light; the visible colors ranging from red to violet, with all colors put together creating white. The way that we perceive light is through cones in our eyes which are able to detect varying amount of red, blue, and yellow light. The principle that James Clerk Maxwell discovered was that spinning colors on a top revealed that the true primary colors were red, green, and blue. He then applied this theory to photography, using different colored films in order to create the first, permanent, color photograph. In early filmmaking, color was added in during post production through a process called "hand tinting," which involved painting each frame of the film itself. As film grew, it a technique of using stencils was developed called "Pathecolor." When films became too large for these processes, tinting and toning film became common practice. Tinting colored the entire film whereas toning recolors the dark parts. Color was used in these past films to enhance the mood or fit the location. Two major types of colorizing film are additive color and subtractive color. Additive color is the process in which primary color lights are added together, with all three being used to make white and this type is used most commonly for screens. Subtractive color is where primary colors are subtracted from white light, subtracting all of them creates black.

The History of Frame Rates Pt. 2

What were two reasons why 60Hz interlaced frames chosen for over the air broadcasting?  How did the introduction of color factor in? How do you convert a film to television?  What is 3:2 pull down?

    

The History of Frame Rates Pt. 1

What were three reasons why 24 frames per second was chosen as the modern standard frame rate for filmmaking?

    Three reasons why 24 frames per second was chosen as the modern standard frame rate for filmmaker are (1) ..., (2) ..., and (3) ...

Over and Under Cranking Your Camera

What is over-cranking the camera?  What does it do?  How is it done? What does under-cranking the camera do?  How is this done? How does this affect the image artistically?

    Over-cranking the camera is essentially increasing the amount of frames shot per second. This can create a slow motion effect once the footage is put back into a typical fps like 24p or 30p. Originally, the way that it was done with old, hand-cranked, cameras was that the filmmaker would simply just crank it faster, which is where term came from. Nowadays with digital cameras, you can do this simply by changing the frame rate in the camera's settings so that, when returned to a normal frame rate in the edit, it creates a slow motion effect. Under-cranking is the opposite, where less frames are recorded per second and thus the image appears to move faster once it's put into a normal frame rate. This is done by decreasing the frame rate in recording before putting it back into 24p or 30p (depending on the project) in the edit. These two techniques can be used for a variety of situations, having different artistic effects. Slow motion can emphasize actions more, giving them more time on screen and more weight, whereas time lapses or faster looking motion can create chaos or urgency.

Shutter Speed vs. Frame Rate

Define what shutter speed is and what frame rate is. What is frame rates relationship with shutter speed?  How do each affect the image? How could you use these principles to artistically affect your images going forward?

    Shutter speed is the duration of time each individual frame is exposed to light. Lower shutter speeds creates more motion blur and higher shutter speeds make crisper images when paused. Additionally, the different shutter speeds also affect the exposure, higher shutter speeds having lower exposure. Frame rate is how many frames are captured in a second. The standard in film is 23.98, or more commonly known as 24p, as film used to be more expensive thus making it costly and excessive to shoot at higher frame rates. We've maintained this standard as it's come to be known for having a cinematic look; additionally, higher frame rates causes a loss of motion blur, which often doesn't look right in films. That being said, you can record at higher frame rates then put it back into 24p in order to create a slow motion effect. The relationship between frame rates and shutter speed is primarily how it affect the way motion looks on the image. A good rule of thumb to capture a cinematic look is to have your shutter speed double your frame rate, i.e., 24p at 1/48 and 30p at 1/60. Having your shutter speed be slower and faster than double your frame rate can create an unnatural looking image. This can be applied artistically in order to help amplify different emotions and create different looks. For instance, if I want to unsettle the audience, I could use a different shutter speed to make something's motion look unnatural. I could also use the higher frame rates to create a smooth slow motion, or the same frame rate to create a choppier look.

Pan and Scan

What is pan and scan?  Why was it created?  How does it affect a film when it's transferred from the theatre to home video?  In your own words explain 3 examples from the video on how pan and scan changes what the filmmakers intended.

    The pan and scan is a technique to fit films on tv screen which was especially used in the past when television was still in a 4:3 aspect ratio while films were being made in wider ratios. It essentially crops the film and pans the area shown to the audience, creating a somewhat unnatural looking pan. This was created when films began to be aired on television, but the aspect ratios didn't match. The other choice would be to letterbox the image, but many general audience members though it looked odd having black bars on the top and bottom of the screen. The effect of the pan and scan is essentially redirecting the film as the person who creates the pan and scan chooses what to include, what to omit, and what they think the audience should focus on. Most often then not, there will be some detail, big or small, that will be cropped out of frame when using the pan and scan. One of the three examples included in the video was Ben-Hur (1959), which utilized action that would take place in every part of the screen: the main focus, the peripherals, etc. With the pan and scan, a lot of that action is eliminated, reducing the scope and feelings of the action scenes. Another example was Gigi (1958), which revealed how a lot of the artistry and composition of the shots are lost by the way that the pan and scan moves defensively, as though it's trying its hardest to show what's important but losing a good amount of what makes the shots. Another part of the composition which is lost from a pan and scan is the emotional impact and storytelling. This is explained through Lawrence of Arabia as many of the shots are extremely wide in order to show the vastness of the desert, but the feeling is lost once the image is cropped by the pan and scan.

Choosing Aspect Ratios

After watching it answer the following questions in an in-depth response for each question. 

1. What are the key differences between different aspect ratios?

2. How does aspect ratio impact the audience's film experience?

3. How do filmmakers utilize aspect ratios in their craft?

    The key differences between the different aspect ratios are the sizes and amount of image shown on the screen. There are two most commonly know ratios: the 4:3 academy standard and the 16:9 widescreen ratio. However, there are even more that have been used in cinema throughout history, including but not limited to the 1:1 polaroid, 2.39:1 anamorphic, and 2.75:1 ultra-panavision. These have been created over time with advancing and changing technology regarding filmmaking, such as new types of film sizes, new ways of shooting, etc.

    Aspect ratios can impact the audience's perception of different moments and elicit different emotions. For instance, you can use a 4:3 aspect ratio to make a scene feel older as the ratio has associations with older films and videos. Each and every aspect ratio has a different set of connotations which can influence the feelings that the audience has. For example, many filmmakers depict space in a wider ratio to make it feel larger. 

    Some ways that filmmakers utilize aspect ratios is to influence audience perceptions, show more or less of the image, and/or tell the story. As previously mentioned, each aspect ratio has different connotations which affect how the audience perceives a scene or moment, which can be used to amplify different emotions by the filmmaker. Filmmakers can also use the aspect ratio to differentiate concepts from one another, such as the past vs. the present, dream vs. reality, pov vs. omniscient view point, etc.

Path to Become a Cinematographer

Compare and contrast both paths to becoming a cinematographer.  What are the pros and cons of each path?  Which path appeals to you?  Write a reflection on why.

    The two paths to becoming a cinematographer are either going to film school or working on sets. The pros of going to film school is that it teaches students about filmmaking, gives access to gear, provides an environment which forces them to shoot films, and helps students cultivate relationships with other filmmakers. That fourth point is one of the most important, as building those connections with future collaborators and employers can lead to you getting work in the future as a cinematographer. Some cons about the path of film school is that it's merely a step, not a fast track, towards working as a DoP and the high prices. The second path is to start working on film sets to work up the hierarchical steps to becoming a DoP. The pros of this path are that working in the field is incredibly educational and gives you a ton of experience, which help develop your technical and soft skills through real experience. Additionally, you're able to develop connections and relationship with other crew members, forming strong professional bonds if you work hard. The cons of this path is that it often takes years to work up the ladder and it is harder to build relationships with others. The path that appeals the most to me is film school as I feel that it gives me the opportunity to ease into the work through the lower-stake student projects that I will work on. Additionally, it can allow me to try out the higher roles at these smaller scales so that I have a better understanding of what that type of work will be like before I spend years working towards it. I also feel that an education is a considerably better pathway for me as I feel that I can learn more from curriculum that is geared towards building up my skills and knowledge, rather than trying to learn from mistakes and observation.

Heros Journey Pitch Take 2

What was some of the constructive feedback that you got? What were some issues with your story and pitch?  What are your next steps in the process with it?  What are the major challenges that are preventing you from getting greenlit?  How can you solve them?

    Some of the feedback which we received for our pitch was that the concept of the kid's narration was interesting, confusion regarding the conflict, plot, and archetypes, and issues with the presentation. Some of the major issues with the story was that the characters for the archetypes which we included did not fulfill the roles they were meant to play, i.e., the mentor and herald were essentially nonexistent and the shadow's role was unclear. Additionally, some of the hero journey steps didn't effectively meet the requirements either. Some issues with the pitch was the unclear presentation; lack of defined roles, lack of transparency for how we created the idea, and the poor presentation of the conflict. Our next steps are to doctor what we have in order for it to actually be a hero's journey. The major challenges which prevented it from being greenlit were the lack of clarity in our presentation, the lack of conflict, and the lack of characters who meet the requirements of their archetypes. To solve these issues, we are adding additional characters who will fulfill the roles, we will be potentially reshooting the interview with the child in order to include our changes and/or using clever tricks to make it seem as though the kid said the new additions to the story. To solve the issues with the pitch, we spent the night working on it to fix the issues with the presentation and make our idea more clear.

Beginning Cinematographers

What are three key suggestions that this video made that you find useful that you didn't know before?  Why are these so interesting?

    Three key suggestions that this video made are (1) defining your subject, (2) exposure, and (3) the "spotlight." The video advises that, upon figuring out who/what you are shooting, ask yourself how much of them you should show for the given shot. This is interesting as it is something that seems minor but actually can drastically affect the kind of shot which you shoot and the impact it has on the audience. The next interesting piece of advice was regarding exposure and what tools you can use to have good exposure. The video gave some basic tips, but elaborated more on how to expose different skin tones. Using the spot meter tool, caucasion and pale skin tones should be +1, brown and mid skin tone should be at 0, and darker skin tones should be -1. This is interesting because it's a tool which I haven't considered previously and a helpful frame of reference. This goes into the last piece of advice, which is to create a "spotlight" on your subject by having a contrasting background, i.e., a light background for a dark subject or a dark background for a light subject. It's an idea which I haven't considered much, but is still incredibly important, tying back to the defining of the subject.