Account of Shoot Day

On the morning of the shoot we were faced with very overcast weather. By the time we arrived at the location it was raining. Although i initially intended for bright sunlight I was very pleased with this outcome as it would create pathetic fallacy. It also looked very cinematic as my two actors Harry and Gabe wrestled on the wet ground, with waters splashing and dripping down their faces. The weather created some exciting moments for example after the first hit to the head, delivered by harry, the rain suddenly increased, rain was pouring down as harry stood still looking down at gabe, realising the severity of what he has just done.

We searched the woods looking for a clearing where we could film the flashback scene. We eventually found a nice spot where nothing could be seen except trees in the background. There was also a variety of sharp, leafless trees surrounding the two creating a menacing image, giving subtle implications of the dangerous forthcoming events.
For the shoot we brought along a semi professional camera (sony NX-5) which has great stabilisation meaning I was able to film almost everything in handheld. We brought along a tripod however I wanted to create a sense of disorder and chaos therefore I didn't use it.
Before we began I briefed my actors, informing them of what i wanted them to say and do in the scene. I didn't think it was necessary to write a script because the dialogue would not be heard in the final film, it will be masked by music. I also knew that my actors were very good at improvising therefore I told them the situation they were in, and what they needed to do in each shot, and they created a dialogue based on that; which worked perfectly.
The first challenge we faced was the issue of trying to make a hit look realistic on camera. I envisioned a shot where Gabe walked away from harry in close up, shouting and mocking him, then out of nowhere harry would strike gabe across the back of the head, knocking gabe to the floor, out of the frame and revealing harry holding the rock. We rehearsed this movement a few times, until it became fluent and safe. We then captured it on camera about 3 times, until we thought we had it perfect. I then shot the same thing from a different angle just incase we needed something to cut to in the edit. I captured the flashback in sections, this made it easier to film and easier for the actors. I filmed almost everything from further away with a slight zoom. The effect of this creates a increased sense of action and chaos, it also looks better in my opinion.