Final Film Opening "Flight For Your Life"

 Ready for Departure!

Week of 4/2 -4/4

    Today is the day! We are finally cleared for departure. I am so happy to say that I am done with this long-haul project. As our wheels lift off the ground and we take to the sky, I am happy to say we have grown so much over the course of this project through our skills and within ourselves.

See You In the Sky.

        Your Pilot, Ryan Lutwin.

Here is the link to my Film opening: "Flight For Your Life"

Make sure to adjust the quality to full HD 1080P Before Starting.

Aice Media Portfolio Project - Creative Critical Reflection

 Creative Critical Reflection

Week of 4/2 -4/4

    Here it is...The long-awaited Creative Critical Reflection. In this video, I talk about my inspiration, how I created the project, the struggles that came along with making this project, and a thorough reflection on my project as a whole. Here I talk directly to the camera to show you guys behind the scenes of my production process. Instead of just seeing me through the eyes of my character, you can see me as an actual person. Think of it as an interview,(Not in a weird way) 2,000 feet in the air cruising at 103 knots.

You can see my Creative Critical Reflection: Here

Make sure to adjust the quality to full HD 1080P Before Starting.

Aice Media Portfolio Project - Blog Post #25

 It all comes together...!

Week of 4/2 - 4/4

    Welp, it's been a wild ride, and we have definitely been through a lot. I remember back to the beginning of this project when we were given all the information and I thought about how I am going to make this my best film yet. I observed my classmates and what their ideas were and I realized that I took a drastic turn going in a direction different than the others. Most people decided to take a more simplistic and idealistic approach but I thought about my passion and decided to go in the direction of my favorite genre, Action/Thriller. As a pilot, the ideas came flooding into my head in all different directions but in the end, I decided to settle with a plane crash similar to the ones I've seen in some blockbuster movies. As a pilot, this is my worst fear so I knew I could put those feelings into my film opening to make it have a more realistic feel. As I started production and the story started to take shape, I realized what my project would turn out to be. This made me excited to show my film off to my peers.

What YouTube Look like when I upload my Videos.

    Upon the completion of editing both my CCR and my Film opening, I uploaded them both to YouTube, thinking this would be the most efficient and clear way to show my videos. After they both finished uploading, I noticed after viewing them that the quality that I was aiming for was gone. The film looked grainy and I was not satisfied, especially with all the hard work I had put in to make the film look professional. For a moment, I was dejected and worried that this was my only option. Then I realized another way I can publish my work. I decided to use google drive as the main publishing software. This website made it very easy to upload my videos without losing the professional quality. After the video was ready to be viewed, I showed my parents my film. They loved it and thought it was great. 

(Maybe too realistic) 

What Google Drive Looks like when I upload. 

Aice Media Portfolio Project - Blog Post #24

 Creating my CCR

Week of 3/28 - 4/1 (#3 of 3)

    At the conclusion of this project, we have to create a Creative Critical Reflection. I decided that I wanted it to relate to my film so I thought it would be a great idea to record on my plane mid-flight. My first step was to make sure that the plane was available. This being said I put off my CCR for a while and I only had a couple of days left to complete it. I finalized my script and printed it all out so it was easy to read. I do not want small lettering when I'm literally flying a plane and explaining my project. When the day finally came I drove to the airport, did my preflight checks, set up my GoPro, and took to the sky. My mom sat in the co-pilot seat and helped me by holding up the script so I could easily read it. 

Basically What my CCR will look like.

    I recorded two different takes to ensure that I would have all the footage I need. After watching multiple examples of other people's CCR I realized that instead of plainly talking to the camera I can include different videos and pictures that go along with the content I am explaining. This can help keep the audience engaged with the information I am explaining. Due to there not being a ton of time left, I have to edit the 6-minute CCR in under 48 hours. Yes, I know I should have started earlier and not procrastinated till the last minute but between shooting in different locations and weather delays this project has definitely put me through the wringer. Now that I have completed the CCR I am very proud of the final product.

Aice Media Portfolio Project - Blog Post #23

 Editing Takes Time...

Week of 3/28 - 4/1 (#2 of 3)

    After many days of filming on location, we have finally acquired all the shots we need to start the editing process. Before I start the Adobe Premiere program I opened all the shots to make sure they all looked good and the view was in focus. I noticed that some of the shots were very blurry which meant that I had to scrap them. This mostly included the shots from the island which makes sense because my cameraman was my friend who is not 100% familiar with the camera and how to focus it. Also before I rented the camera I was notified that the autofocus on the camera is slow and not completely accurate. It is now that I understand why this information was so important. Now it was time, I opened the program and started dragging my clips into the timeline. I was seeing my story come to life in front of my very eyes. It was very rewarding to see my hard work come to life.

Adobe Premiere Editing Timeline

    After all my clips were laid out for me I kept getting the idea in my head that something was missing. I then researched ways to make my film look more cinematic. I was really going for that professional movie look. I came across a method called LUTs. LUT stands for “look-up table.” A LUT is a tool that lets filmmakers, editors, and colorists save particular color grades as a template. Think of a LUT as a color preset that a filmmaker can readily turn to when working on a project. I didn't know a lot about LUTs before this project but I am glad that my eyes could be opened up to a new world of cinematic filmmaking. Now adding these LUTs is a simple as dragging and dropping into the editing timeline. I am satisfied and grateful to say that because of this new discovery, my film opening will look more cinematic and professional. 

Aice Media Portfolio Project - Blog Post #22

 Final Shots!

Week of 3/28 - 4/3 (#1 of 3)

    On-Location! The big day has arrived, and I made sure that I know that I am well prepared for the long drive ahead. After waking up at 8:30 and getting all my gear packed into the car I knew that there was one thing that I was missing, a "Red Bull," Believe me this is a vital part of the process because I had no energy. I hopped into the car and took off to make a short pitstop before making the drive toward the island. My friend was generous enough to make me fake blood the night before so that I could use it for my film opening. After picking up the container of fake blood, I started heading for the water taxi parking lot. The 40 min drive seemed long and this made me worried because I arrived at the lot at around Noon. 

The "Fake Blood" that was used.

    After waiting to board the ferry we finally stepped foot on the sandy beaches of the island. I immediately launched my drone to try to find the best location to shoot. We decided on this small portion of the beach that seemed uninhabited. This location is perfect because I want it to seem uninhabitable and desolate. After setting up the camera and seeing which angles fit the best I ran into one problem, the camera can not show the actor lying in the sand and the water. To overcome this problem, I moved the tripod into the actual water which allowed me to get the angle I was looking for. After obtaining all the shots, I packed up all my gear and went into the ocean to wash off all the fake blood. We then walked back to the dock to be picked up by the ferry which brought us to the car. We packed the gear into the car and started our long drive home. The sunset drive home felt like a good way to end a long day of shooting in the sun.  

How the Filming process looked.

Aice Media Portfolio Project - Blog Post #21

 Inner Struggles...

Week of 3/21 - 3/27 (#3 of 3)

    Despite being an outgoing individual, I find it hard to act in front of the camera and to successfully play a role. Being the lead actor in a video is very stressful. The success of a project mostly relies on the main character. In everyday life, I feel like I am a very outgoing, and confident person but when it comes to being behind the camera I get butterflies in my stomach and my palms get sweaty. I know I have to overcome my inner fears because it is my job to portray my story and display my story to the viewers. 

    Going into my last day of filming I started thinking of all the things that can go wrong. I may get embarrassed because of other people around me, or even lost because I lose my train of thought. I always tend to care too much about how people see me when my focus should really be on the project and how It is efficiently filmed. In the end, I know that I must take a deep breath and do my best so that I can tell the story that I work tirelessly to create. I feel proud of the film that I am creating and the many challenges that I overcame will help me create a better-looking film in the end. I also believe that my project will show that look.