Introduction
The Narrative 2 Unit is a continuation from our first narrative unit in Film class. In this unit, we took the skills we learned in our Junior Narrative Films (plotting out the story, basic film rules, such as the 180 degree rule, use of natural lighting, editing in Premiere, etc.) and built upon it with the Senior Narrative. This film is the most ambitious project I have worked on at Freestyle. We went deeper into “Film Mode” and learned the different ways shots can be composed to add to a film’s meaning. We wrote our own screenplays, found actors, created detailed production schedules, learned how to use professional lighting and sound, and more. Ultimately, this unit helped me learn more about the film industry than I ever thought was possible in just a few months. Below, you’ll get to see the different aspects of the process of filming my senior narrative, as well as the finished product!
Narrative Synopsis
This was the first semi-detailed written description of the plot of our film. Me and my partner were to each write one separately, to make sure our ideal versions for the film both matched up and build from there. Many of the details in my synopsis were at least slightly altered, if not changed completely (the most blatant change being the title of the film). This is because the synopsis preceded our screenplay, and we made many changes as we were writing the full script in order to better suit the plot and characters of our film.
You can read my synopsis below:
Screenplay
Our screenplay was one of the most intensive aspects of the pre-production, as we had to learn a whole new writing format. We began to figure out the best direction for the story to take as we were writing it, which meant many, many re-writes and drafts.
You can check out two pages of an early draft below:
Shot List
Our shot list was one of the biggest parts of the pre-production phase of the film, as we had to plan out every single shot we intended to get. This allowed us to stay on top of everything while doing our shoots, and make sure we didn’t lose any necessary coverage.
See part of our shotlist below:
