ATAR Notes: Forum

Uni Stuff => General University Discussion and Queries => The University Journey Journal => Topic started by: beatroot on January 30, 2018, 05:40:24 pm

Title: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on January 30, 2018, 05:40:24 pm
Hi! My name is Bea and I’m a HSC 2017 graduate. You’ve probably seen me around the forums ;)

I will be attending the Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS) in Sydney from 2018-2020. I will be studying a Bachelor of Arts Screen: Production. I submitted a personal statement, a short story, a review of a web series and a letter of recommendation for my portfolio (no ATAR required). Though, sometimes I like to tell people I’m attending UNSW or UTS to fulfill my dream of being a fake UNSW/UTS student.

Why film?
It all started when I edited a short film back in Year 8 English called ‘The Ghost in the Hallway’. It got voted best edited and best overall film in my class and was shown in front of the entire school during assembly. Ever since, I’ve enjoyed editing films because it was really fun. I remember reading an article that said you should do your hobby as a job because it wouldn’t feel like you’re working. Plus the media arts holds so much power to start trends, educate people and influence movements. So I knew film was the career path I had to go into. Also, I was a HUGE Visual Arts nerd during primary and secondary school and can’t bear a life where I couldn’t express myself artistically.

Why AFTRS?
After doing a film course in October 2016, I fell in love with its facilities and equipment. They have a really cool theatre, around 3-4 studios, a lot of cameras on site, a massive props room, beautiful editing suites and did I mention they have a foosball table in the reception ;)? AFTRS is the #1 film school in Australia, it’s fairly close to my area and is a film school that actually offers a bachelor degree not a diploma. I think the main reason I wasn’t too stressed during my HSC year because I knew my entry into tertiary education was based on my passion and my portfolio, not my ATAR.

After AFTRS?
Either get an internship here in Australia (reality TV is a huge demand right now) or go back to the Philippines (work at a major film network) and get some work experience and (hopefully) some connections too. After a few years, I hope to work at the BBC in the UK and edit their documentaries. Hopefully, I can make it into Hollywood and hopefully win an Academy Award for Best Film Editing ;). I also hope to get my masters in editing either at AFTRS or at UCLA (the top film school in the world). I also (so badly) want to study law so I would like to have a law degree sometime in the future.

What subjects? These subjects will be covered over the next three years: Story, Character & Performance, Image, Sound, Juxtaposition & Rhythm, Screen Business and Production.

Hopefully when I've got my films up and running, I'll post them in my other thread 'Bea's Films'

Orientation week should happen in February 19 and classes start the week of February 26.
I just can’t wait to have routine back in my life and start learning again ;D
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: fantasticbeasts3 on January 30, 2018, 06:21:11 pm
yeeeeessssss so excited to read your journal and your uni journey :-)
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: Potatohater on January 30, 2018, 06:30:25 pm
Omg this sounds awesome! Can't wait to hear about your next few years and witness the development of some surely amazing films!!
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: blasonduo on January 30, 2018, 06:55:51 pm
Oooh! looking forward to this! Love to see how you go!

Free Films you say? Totally looking forward to this! grabs popcorn
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on January 30, 2018, 07:26:44 pm
yeeeeessssss so excited to read your journal and your uni journey :-)

Omg this sounds awesome! Can't wait to hear about your next few years and witness the development of some surely amazing films!!

Thanks guys! Excited to read your updates too ;D

Oooh! looking forward to this! Love to see how you go!

Free Films you say? Totally looking forward to this! grabs popcorn

(https://i.imgur.com/JNhU5Tt.gif)

Me @ everyone on AN: You get a film! You get a film! You get a film!
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: katie,rinos on January 30, 2018, 10:19:39 pm
Really looking forward to your journal Bea! Sounds so interesting!  :D
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: jamonwindeyer on January 30, 2018, 11:14:23 pm
I feel like this is the "Behind the Scenes" extra for the "Bea's Films" DVD ;)

So keen to read your updates Bea! ;D
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on January 31, 2018, 05:15:51 pm
Really looking forward to your journal Bea! Sounds so interesting!  :D

Thanks Katie! I'm excited to read your updates too!!

I feel like this is the "Behind the Scenes" extra for the "Bea's Films" DVD ;)

So keen to read your updates Bea! ;D

(https://i.imgur.com/JNhU5Tt.gif)

You get a DVD! You get a DVD! You get a DVD!
I'm in an Oprah mood atm tbh
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on January 31, 2018, 08:04:21 pm
January 31, 2018

So today I accidentally bumped into an old friend who I did a film course with at NIDA back in April 2016. Took me about 3 seconds to realise that it was actually her and we just started squealing and hugging each other in the middle of the city. I think the people that we were with looked really confused.

Reason why I wrote this anecdote from today is because it's nice to reflect back on the times where I was trying to figure out if film was really the direction I wanted to head in. I knew film was a possible path I could take but I just needed that reassurance that film is a great path to go in.

In the film course, our tutor taught us how to do assembly cuts on Final Cut Pro and made me really appreciate what goes behind the scenes in films. I took about four hours just to edit a one minute scene. Our tutor (who was male) kept telling us 'we need more female editors in the industry because they tend to be more delicate with their editing and focus more on the emotions'. I really thought that was really interesting.

So I would like to say thank you to my good friend 'fate' for bringing me and my old friend/fellow film course classmate together in this brief moment. It's so cool to see how much we've developed since then. She got into another film school as well. I'm so proud of us!
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on February 03, 2018, 09:16:34 pm
February 3, 2018

Yesterday I had my school's high achiever's assembly, officially marking the end of my high school forever. It was nice seeing girls from my year group again and was so cool hearing about their courses in uni. Some are doing law, criminology, secondary teaching, creative and performing arts, business, exercise physiology and archaeology. It just hits me that I would never step foot in my high school ever again. Sure I'll come in when I do film talks or whenever I'm in the area, but being a visitor it's not just the same as being a student. I say this time and time again, but it's true.

That's all :)
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on February 12, 2018, 10:11:35 pm
February 12, 2018

Finally got the dates for the AFTRS orientation week and my timetable woohoo!

AFTRS orientation week is from February 20-23. I can get my welcome pack, my student ID and there will be orientation sessions and activities. I will be attending the UNSW orientation week as well for the AN meetup, but I want to attend the UNSW orientation activities because why not?

As for my timetable, some weeks will be:
- Tuesday / Wednesday / Friday (most common combination)
- Monday / Tuesday / Friday
- Monday / Tuesday / Thursday

WITH the exception of October 15-November 2 where we have to attend AFTRS Monday-Friday to work on our end of year projects :)

The structure for each day is:
10:30am-11:30am: Lecture
11:30am-5:30pm: Workshop
1:30pm-2:30pm: Lunch
(7 hours in total)

The subject varies each week

As of right now, I'm just trying to sort out my unavailabilities at my work so that I don't get into trouble with my boss.

I just hope I can make friends :)

Edit: Found out there's a O Week Party on February 23 (Friday). Think I'll attend that.
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on February 16, 2018, 06:49:02 pm
February 16, 2018

Good news: Got a new laptop. It's a MacBook Pro, 15 inch and 512 GB in Space Grey. I'm ready to edit films in the future.
Bad news: Tried deleting all my data on my old MacBook Air and ended up deleting the startup disk. Can't log in or anything. I have a genius bar reservation this Thursday. I'm not ready to pay the repair bill.
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: jamonwindeyer on February 16, 2018, 06:50:52 pm
February 16, 2018

Good news: Got a new laptop. It's a MacBook Pro, 15 inch and 512 GB in Space Grey. I'm ready to edit films in the future.

Oh yay! Was so close to forking for the 15inch, the 13inch is amazeballs ;D

Quote
Bad news: Tried deleting all my data on my old MacBook Air and ended up deleting the startup disk. Can't log in or anything. I have a genius bar reservation this Thursday. I'm not ready to pay the repair bill.

Oh no!! If you've got your data make sure you don't spend more repairing it than you'll get selling it! ;D

You shouldn't need to pay anything, they'll just boot from an external drive and fix everything that way, or similar :)
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on February 16, 2018, 06:55:41 pm
Oh no!! If you've got your data make sure you don't spend more repairing it than you'll get selling it! ;D

You shouldn't need to pay anything, they'll just boot from an external drive and fix everything that way, or similar :)

I've got all my data backed up on my USB so my data is completely fine. The main reason why I wanted to delete my data in my old MacBook Air in the first place is because my mum wants to use the laptop to study for her masters degree. Just hoping things go well during my genius bar appointment because I'm really not ready to pay for the repairs. I keep getting the 'no enter' symbol everytime I turn on my MacBook Air :(
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on February 16, 2018, 10:44:42 pm
Update: About 3 hours later, my old laptop has now been fixed. Just had to convert the new startup disk. Thank you to EEEEEEP and Rui for helping me ;D
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on February 19, 2018, 08:42:15 pm
February 19, 2018

Things I've learnt from UNSW O-Week:
- There are a lot of societies
- Campus is bloody huge
- So many buildings
- A lot of people from my school are attending UNSW
- UNSW students didn't mind that I was from a different uni which was nice

If I enjoyed the UNSW O-Week, then I'm definitely stoked for the AFTRS O-Week.
It starts tomorrow.
((I'm so excited))

PS: Was good seeing the NSW AN crew again ;D +thanks to Rui for tour guiding us around campus
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: fantasticbeasts3 on February 19, 2018, 08:52:34 pm
it was good to see you too!!! hope you have loads of fun at your o-week. :-)
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: Potatohater on February 19, 2018, 09:24:48 pm
100% agree with all of this, I'm so glad they didn't kick us out haha!
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on February 20, 2018, 09:13:47 pm
February 20, 2018

[AFTRS O-Week Day 1]

- Arrived on campus around 8:30am to collect my ID and the orientation booklet. We had to get our cards activated so that we can have access to the lecture rooms and studios (there's a swipey thing near all the doors and you need to scan your card to enter)
- Hugest relief when I discovered a guy from my first AFTRS course was here. Here's the film that we made together > 'Donut Envy'
- From 8:30-9:30, all the BA students were in the library. I talked to a couple of people. We were then called by the staff to move to the main theatre for the introduction and information session.
- "We must take down the cats!" - the AFTRS CEO. Cat videos are apparently the enemy of the Australian entertainment industry.
- The heads of each departments introduced themselves to us
- Around 1/4 of the cohort (there's 95 of us) have moved interstate which I find reallllly interesting

I honestly expected to get freebies, join clubs and get a tour around campus today, but none of that happened. Rather we broke into groups of 19 and went into small lecture rooms for ice breakers. After that, (I really didn't expect this) but we went straight into filmmaking. I know right?! Filmmaking on the first day?! Even as a film student, I honestly wasn't prepared to get straight into production. Surprisingly, production is my least favourite part of filmmaking (I'm a post prod kind of gal. I love being alone in the editing suite)

Film: [Unnamed film] Name: TBC

At the start of the ice breaker session with my group, we took a quiz to find out what type of learner we were. We were asked by our group lecturer to make a film to teach people about the different learners there are (visual, aural, read/writer, kinaesthetic). Within the group of 19, I got into a group of 7 and we decided to do a crime, mockumentary film. The different witnesses/suspects are different type of learners. But the irony is, their ability to learn is taken away from them. For example, the read/write learner had her glasses removed off her. The visual learner tried to draw the suspect from memory but their drawing ends up being ripped up by the bad cop. The kinaesthetic learner has her arms strapped to the chair so she couldn't identify the murder weapon. Lastly, the aural learner kept getting interrupted by the bad cop. I'm really bad at explaining plots but I'm hoping once I have this film up and running, you guys will understand what my group is trying to get here. It took about 1.5 hours to film this ~90 second film. Literally no one wanted to be in front of the camera because all our excuses were 'I'm studying film not acting'. But in the end, everyone ended being an actor anyways, which I find really ironic and hilarious.

What now?
So we're going to do an editing workshop tomorrow to edit what we filmed today. This is going to be my second attempt at Adobe Premiere Pro which I hate so much because I don't understand it. Though if I use iMovie, I'm gonna get judged so hard... There will be more inductions, tours and whatnot tomorrow. There's also a drinks and diversity mixer tomorrow night which will be interesting.


Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: Potatohater on February 20, 2018, 09:39:31 pm
I used to edit in iMovie and tell people it was premier but once you confront the fear and play with it enough it's actually so awesome! It's so much more powerful and easier to use than iMovie once you get the hang of it, and it makes it easier for doing special effects in after effects (don't know if you've used that yet) due to adobe's dynamic link. Honestly..... I'm really starting to think why didn't I go to film school too?.....
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on February 20, 2018, 09:59:41 pm
I used to edit in iMovie and tell people it was premier but once you confront the fear and play with it enough it's actually so awesome! It's so much more powerful and easier to use than iMovie once you get the hang of it, and it makes it easier for doing special effects in after effects (don't know if you've used that yet) due to adobe's dynamic link. Honestly..... I'm really starting to think why didn't I go to film school too?.....

I'm hoping as the weeks go past, the more confident I am with premiere pro. After all, it is the industry standard and I want to become a film editor eventually. I don't mind doing assembly cuts but adding effects is a just a whole new world to me. We haven't started playing with after effects (yet) but I've personally haven't used it in my life (again, I'm clueless when it comes to adobe programmes. The best I could do is making gifs in photoshop). It really is ironic how editing is my speciality but I actually haven't used adobe premiere pro and after effects that much. Things will definitely change in the future.

Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on February 21, 2018, 10:06:02 pm
February 21, 2018

[AFTRS O-Week Day 2]

- We started the day with a lecture from a guest speaker. Topics included diversity in film, the new code of conduct and ethics.
- Most of the day was spent editing the film we recorded yesterday. I got over my fear of using Adobe Premiere Pro and made a decent assembly cut today. Just need to add texts and background music in time for the screening this Friday afternoon.
- We got a tour of the AFTRS Library and there are so many DVD's and books! Think I might binge watch Game of Thrones soon ;)
- We were also given a tour of the entire campus and what I mean by campus, is that we were given a tour of a three story building. It's really small. The foley recording space was my favourite part but as well as the editing suites.
- Got myself a locker! It's just straight across the studios.

I think the main reason why I love editing so much is because I have complete control of what the film looks like in the end. But also, it's one of the few parts of filmmaking that doesn't require working in a team ;) It's just you and your computer alone in the editing suite. Sucks that we won't actually start our editing lectures until the second semester.

I discovered that all the assessment tasks for Screen Business are group tasks and I'm sitting here like :)

PS: I would be lying if I said I'm settling in well. Sure I do enjoy the fact that I don't have to write essays anymore or sit exams, but I still miss the comfort of my high school. I'm so used to being in class with girls the same age as me. Now I have classes with the opposite sex, people of different age groups and who live in different areas of Sydney and even Australia itself. I just need to build up the courage to start up a conversation with someone. I just feel that I'm not much as a 'film geek' as the other people in my degree, therefore making it harder to form friendships. I really do hope things change in the future.

Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: jamonwindeyer on February 21, 2018, 10:13:59 pm
PS: I would be lying if I said I'm settling in well. Sure I do enjoy the fact that I don't have to write essays anymore or sit exams, but I still miss the comfort of my high school. I'm so used to being in class with girls the same age as me. Now I have classes with the opposite sex, people of different age groups and who live in different areas of Sydney and even Australia itself. I just need to build up the courage to start up a conversation with someone. I just feel that I'm not much as a 'film geek' as the other people in my degree, therefore making it harder to form friendships. I really do hope things change in the future.

Say you're an AN mod, best way to make friends ;)

Nah but seriously, I struggled with this as well. University is a shock to the system for lots of people for the exact same reasons. Trust me, it will absolutely get better, and you'll realise just how cool friendships at uni are because they are often founded more on shared interests than high school relationships, which can sometimes be more of a circumstantial thing ;D
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: sweetiepi on February 21, 2018, 10:17:59 pm
- Got myself a locker! It's just straight across the studios.

PS: I would be lying if I said I'm settling in well. Sure I do enjoy the fact that I don't have to write essays anymore or sit exams, but I still miss the comfort of my high school. I'm so used to being in class with girls the same age as me. Now I have classes with the opposite sex, people of different age groups and who live in different areas of Sydney and even Australia itself. I just need to build up the courage to start up a conversation with someone. I just feel that I'm not much as a 'film geek' as the other people in my degree, therefore making it harder to form friendships. I really do hope things change in the future.
You'll find your locker will be so handy! I got one pre-allocated to me a few weeks ago, and it's in the most convenient spot for me (like right below my lab and tute rooms)! ;D

I know how you feel with the settling in well part, it took me forever to start conversations with people/not stick with my orientation group, as I found that most of them were often quite different to me/I knew noone there, but I (eventually) got used to it! I hope you get used to it too, I'm here to chat whenever you need! ^_^

Say you're an AN mod, best way to make friends ;)

Nah but seriously, I struggled with this as well. University is a shock to the system for lots of people for the exact same reasons. Trust me, it will absolutely get better, and you'll realise just how cool friendships at uni are because they are often founded more on shared interests than high school relationships, which can sometimes be more of a circumstantial thing ;D
Funny you mention that- helping out with oweek events at my own uni, I discovered that some other people there (another mentor and 2 of my mentees) knew some other ANers. Made for interesting conversation! :)
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: K888 on February 21, 2018, 11:01:49 pm
Quote from: beatroot
PS: I would be lying if I said I'm settling in well. Sure I do enjoy the fact that I don't have to write essays anymore or sit exams, but I still miss the comfort of my high school. I'm so used to being in class with girls the same age as me. Now I have classes with the opposite sex, people of different age groups and who live in different areas of Sydney and even Australia itself. I just need to build up the courage to start up a conversation with someone. I just feel that I'm not much as a 'film geek' as the other people in my degree, therefore making it harder to form friendships. I really do hope things change in the future.
I think everyone feels like they stick out like a sore thumb when they first start uni! Honestly the only way around feeling awkward about other people is swalling your pride and striking up conversations with people. Some might end awkwardly, but some might go great! You've just got to stick at it, and remember that everyone else is in the same position :)

I always found a great common ground for talking to someone (particularly during semester) was complaining about assignments or how much you don't understand something haha. Wanna back up what Jamon said - it's really cool to be able to say you've formed friendships with people because you've really committed to making the friendship. It's easy at high school, when you see people 5 days a week and are in all the same classes as them to be their friend. In uni, it's harder!

A few weeks ago, I went to a birthday party for a girl I've become friends with at uni. Reflecting on it, I was like "it's pretty cool that I'm here celebrating the birthday of a friend I made through putting effort into forming a friendship as an adult, rather than just finding someone similarly weird like I did as a 13 year old and clinging to them" ;)

P.S. you can always strike up a convo with an international student by telling them about drop bears ;)
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on February 25, 2018, 07:07:28 pm
February 25, 2018

I think it’s safe to say, after listening to all the lovely advice written above, I have made friends- or at least have made some acquaintances. We had our last day of O-Week on February 23 (Friday) and we had a lecture first thing in the morning. We learnt about the structure of our workshops and the main objectives of this degree. Afterwards, we watched the film ‘Ten Canoes’. Does this film sound a bit familiar to you? You might have studied this film in Advanced English for Module C. The film was created by an AFTRS alumni and is an interesting portrayal of the Indigenous culture in Australia. During the break inbetween the lecture and the film, I started talking to the girl who was sitting next to me. I decided to swallow all my pride and invite her to have lunch with me later on. That’s when I made my first official friend.

After lunch, we went back into our orientation groups and learnt about different learning environments- one that can stimulate creativity and productivity. We also had an activity where we had to read an excerpt and reflect on it. Afterwards, we watched each others films and I found it really interesting that we all had different editing styles. Everyone laughed at my film- but that’s because my character got bullied in the film and people found it funny (follow @editedbybea on instagram to watch a preview of it).

This film is called ‘VARK’ and I will forever treasure it in my heart. Even though the angles were a bit meh and lighting was horrible- it will be the first ever film I have edited as a BA student at AFTRS. I’m going to look back on this film in 2020 and will reflect on how much I’ve grown since then. *The film will be posted on Tuesday on my other thread “Bea’s Films”.

Our orientation teacher made us write a letter to our future self. We can’t open it until end of semester one (June).

This is where the fun bit begins- we had our O-Week Party down at the foyer and the disco was set up at one of the studios. These were the highlights:
- Talking to more people and stepping out of my comfort zone
- Listening to the 3rd years’ advice to us. Every third year I talked to said that my interest in editing is good because usually people HATE editing plus there’s a huge demand for it right now in the Australian entertainment industry (particularly reality tv- would love to edit for ‘Married at First Sight’). It gives me reassurance that I could find a job in the future with my film degree
- I learnt how to do the ‘nut bush’ dance
- Taking pictures in the photobooth (+got featured on AFTRS’ instagram story)
- I talked to the guy who I was in a holiday course with in the past (October 2016) and is now studying the same degree as me. We watched the film that we made together and laughed at how bad it was. Time flies so quick.
- Got into a debate with two guys about Steven Moffat and Doctor Who

At the start of O-Week, I regretted my decision of going to film school instead of a normal university because I felt that I didn’t fit in. I felt that I only got accepted because I was Asian and they needed to make the school more culturally diverse. I haven’t watched all the classic films and don’t know that many directors off by heart. But fast forward to now, I’m really proud of myself for getting into AFTRS. I realised that you don’t have to be a total film geek to go to film school. Half the people I spoke to haven’t made a film yet. Others haven’t written a script. Some don’t even know how to edit. I’ve learnt that, we’re all different and that’s extraordinary and so beautiful. We all have different backgrounds, different interests in the film industry and different experiences. The only similar thing we’ve got amongst the 95 of us, is that we’re all just individuals interested in the art of filmmaking and studying this degree to reach our goals and dreams.

Here’s to the next three years ;D
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on March 04, 2018, 10:26:09 pm
March 4, 2018

*Today marks the one year anniversary for when I signed up for AN :)

Subject of the week: Screen Business 1
February 28, 2018 to March 2, 2018

It felt good going back to uni on the 27th knowing that I knew a lot more people in my degree. The degree I'm doing is the ONLY bachelor degree at my film school, so there's a good chance of bumping into someone I know in my workshops.

[Tuesday]
Our Screen Business lecturer made us do an activity where we had to write our dream film/TV idea on a sheet paper. She collected our papers back and placed them in a plastic bag that was placed on a chair. I thought she was going to pick random ones and read them out loud. She grabbed the plastic bag from the chair and all the slips of papers just fell out! At first I was just like wtf. Turns out it was a metaphor that having a great idea will not get you into the industry. Without having screen business knowledge, your ideas will 'fall out'. I thought that was clever. At the end of the lecture, she gave us a dollar each. It's her way of investing in us and our idea. Whatever idea we wrote on the slip of paper, she wants us to use the dollar when we get it pitched in the future. I thought that was really nice of her.

Afterwards I had workshop and my tutor is a producer from an independent film company which is really cool! We immediately got our first uni assignment of the year and it's a group task. We have to pitch a short film concept in two minutes and also submit a 1000 word group portfolio. The concept is based on one of the stimuli given to us. My chosen stimuli was Logan Paul's apology video... Hope things go well with this group task.

I'm not too keen on Screen Business as a subject so far just because it has a lot of emphasis on pre-production stuff and it's definitely a subject that appeals to those who wants to become a producer or a director in the future. As someone who desperately wants to become a TV editor, I don't learn editing (Rhythm and Juxtaposition) until semester two. Though I need to get over my dislike for Screen Business because in order to enter the industry, you need to learn it. It's probably the most important subject in my degree.

[Wednesday]
Pretty much for the rest of the week, we had the same old Screen Business lecture for 1.5 hours followed by a workshop that went on for WAY TOO LONG (4 hours). I learnt each parts of pre-production and the significance of the producer. Fun fact: soap operas are called soap operas because tv shows back in the past were sponsored by soap companies.

[Thursday]
Every Thursdays, we have a thing called SDL Day (Student Directed Learning Day) where you have to study independently and attendance on campus isn't compulsory. However, I still did end up going because my group members were really keen to get the task started. (Spoiler alert: we only got the short film idea done ahaha. Budgeting, casting and all the other components are yet to be done.)

[Friday]
We had our 'Visual Storytelling' check in where the course leader gave us our end of semester project. He said that we can pick whatever role we wanted and we'll get assessed on it. I was determined to get assessed on editing because I felt that was my strongest area within film. However, this was the brief given to us:

- 90 to 120 seconds film (including 5 second end credits)
- Only pan and tilt, fixed tripod position, camera can't be hand held
- Film has to be recorded all in one shot,
- No editing allowed, no dialogue, no music
(*Since editing is banned from this production, I'll try to get assessed on being production designer)

The whole point of the Visual Storytelling project is to create a film that focuses on the visuals to present a story. For my film (so far), I'm thinking of having death trying to seduce life into his world by giving her gifts. I will take most of my inspiration from 'Memento Mori'/'Vanitas Still Life' paintings for my props. I would love to have a dance scene in the film BUT we're not allowed to hire actors outside the school. So it's either I find two people in my degree who can dance or drop the dance scene altogether.

I've got a lookbook/moodboard on what I want the film look like in the attachment below:

At the end of Friday's workshop, some of us headed to a local bar to celebrate surviving the first week of AFTRS.

Upcoming subject for this week: Story 1
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on March 11, 2018, 07:36:09 pm
March 11, 2018

Subject of the week: Story 1

I really liked this week than last just because the in-class activities for Story 1 were definitely a lot more engaging and creative compared to the ones from Screen Business the week before. Story is just basically script writing and coming up with story ideas.

- Watched A LOT of short films this week (watched around 15 of them during a 3 hour lecture)
- Practically analysed the structure for each short film
- Learnt that directorial auteurship was a thing within the industry, which was actually interesting
- Found out that my Story 1 tutor wrote episodes for half of my favourite childhood shows. I have yet to figure out a way to thank her without making her think I looked up her IMDB page ;)
- For our end of week seminars, we reunite with our Screen Business class (which actually makes sense because if you're going to debate about issues prominent in the industry, you might as well debate with people that you are familiar with)
- Got a new assessment task this week and we have to submit a 4-5 page script. I'm so excited to get this script started because we get to use the industry standard scriptwriting programme (Final Draft). I've written out a scene by scene draft of my script already :)

I decided to join the AFTRS Debating club and had our first meeting on Tuesday. I decided to volunteer to debate in the first round because I wanted to impress the debating club tutor (who was also my Story 1 tutor). We had no clue what the topic was going to be on and we didn't get any preparation time. My nerves got to me and lost the debate :-[. I also joined the running club as well to motivate myself to get fit (I have not exercised since my HSC trial exams).

Hope everyone is going well with university!
(I also can't believe that UTS hasn't started uni yet and here I am already drowning in three HUGE assessments)

Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on March 18, 2018, 09:29:18 pm
March 18, 2018

Subject of the week: Image 1

If I were to summarise what happened this week, it'll just be 'HSC Visual Arts: the extended version'. Essentially, Image is just cinematography and we did a lot of activities this week to help our creative juices flowing.
Think I'll copy potatohater's use of the spoilers because it does seem a bit neater ;)

Tuesday
rotation and activities
We rotated in five different classrooms today to do different activities:
#1: VR Reality- this was my first time using a VR machine so it really did feel like I was actually in a different world. I remember standing up whilst watching the 'White House' tour one and I couldn't sit back down on my seat so my classmate had to drag me to my seat. There's a Stranger Things VR and holy shit it was so terrifying. The demogorgon came up behind me and that's was the moment I started swearing and crying during my workshop and my tutor wouldn't stop laughing at me. That's how he learnt my name.
#2: Circle drawing thingo- I don't know how to describe this activity but you can check out what we did in my instagram account @editedbybea
#3: We had to draw the person next to us and do blind drawing. By looking at my drawing, my tutor told me that I was the type of student who was very harsh to themselves during the creative process and I've never heard anything more accurate in my life.
#4: Taking photo in low light
#5: Pinhole photography- honestly the most confusing type of photography ever! I personally don't like the style.
Wednesday
lights and stuff
In our lecture, we learnt about the elements and principles of photography and composition which was interesting. Then for our workshop, our tutor gave us an induction on lights. We then had to do two lighting exercises; a) do three point lighting and b) create a photo with mood lighting. After uni, we had running club again.

Thursday
sdl day
Today was a SDL day (student directed learning day) where we basically have to do the task that our subject leader ask us to do and present during reflection the following day. The task was to research a work at any art gallery in Sydney and use it as inspiration for our upcoming short film for Image 1. I decided to choose Richard Long's 'Southern Gravity' work at the AGNSW just because I have a lot of memories of learning it during art class so I felt that I had this emotional connection with this work. I headed back to AFTRS just for a few hours to work on my group task for Screen Business.
Friday
silent films and reflection
We had a three hour screening analysis where we learnt about German Expressionism movement (does the film Metropolis (1927) sound familiar to you ;)) and watched a German silent horror film called 'Des Cabinet du Dr. Caligari'. I've never watched a silent film in my life so this was a completely new experience. Then we had an Image seminar where the question was 'Do you need to know film history in order to make a film?'. I was a bit 50/50 on this question. Then we had our reflection where our tutor checked up on where we got up to during SDL day. Not 100% sure if my tutor was happy with my analysis for Long's installation work (that was the moment I realised that Image was a much more intense version of HSC Visual Arts and that I need to step up my game a bit more)
I Have Friends?
pls click on the hyperlink above
YAY! I'm so glad I finally found a proper group of friends that I can sit with during breaks and hang out after uni hours. Around twenty four people from my degree went laser tagging after uni on Friday and it was fun just being in a completely different environment and just shooting people with lasers. Though in one round, there were a bunch of eight year old boys and it's actually shocking how the eight of them beat the fourteen of us? After laser tagging, I just chilled with my group and they wouldn't let me leave ahahah. It really feels great being settled in at uni. I wish the same for everyone else. I really do believe it takes time.

Just need to catch up on my assignments now after a very busy week and weekend :)





Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: Potatohater on March 18, 2018, 10:12:20 pm
Haha I'm very flattered you've adopted my style, especially since I was a bit unsure of it. I also love that inclusion of the friends video haha.
Yay for friends! I certainly hope what you say about it taking time is true cause idk if I made it obvious or not in my journal but I'm kinda struggling to hang out with people I didn't already know pre uni/ are actually in my course, but it makes me super happy you seem to have worked that out  :)
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on March 18, 2018, 10:52:24 pm
Yay for friends! I certainly hope what you say about it taking time is true cause idk if I made it obvious or not in my journal but I'm kinda struggling to hang out with people I didn't already know pre uni/ are actually in my course, but it makes me super happy you seem to have worked that out  :)

I tell this to all my friends and everyone out there but since there's only one bachelor degree at AFTRS, we're all in the same lectures and do all the same subjects and workshops. There are only 95 of us in the year and there are 19 people per class. There is a very good chance of me bumping into someone I knew in one of my subjects. For instance, in Screen Business I know two people (one of them is from my friend group!), in Story I know at least four people (one is from my group) and in Image I know three people (again one of them is from my group). I think my advice for you or for anyone really is to, find consistencies within your lectures, workshops, tutorials etc and stick to them until you feel comfortable with talking to other people. I met most of my group back in the AFTRS O-Week party (which was on February 23). At first, it was only the two of them. When I walked past them in the corridors, I would say hi and they would say hi back and we would have a short conversation. Like how was screen business or what did you submit for your portfolio or which tutor do you have for story etc. Since there was always one person from my group in my subjects, this made it easier when heading off to lunch cos I could be like "oh hey wait up! Would it be alright if I sat with you guys" and they'll be like "sure" because they know everyone is in the same boat. Until eventually the group expanded into the six of us and I've sat with them consistently last week during breaks and lectures and we would have inside jokes and that was pretty cool. But also you just need to swallow your pride and shyness and JUST DO IT. Just ask if you can sit with them during lunch. Or even just say straight up "we're sitting together during lunch time" (this is what I told a girl back in the first week of uni and we talk to each other now during lectures and during my story class). Just remember that everyone is in the same boat as you. Everyone is terrified. In order to ease the pain, you just gotta take the first step and the other party will be so glad that you went up to them first. Worse case scenario- just talk about the HSC. This gets people into debates and this could lead into funny stories; ie the one time I told my group why I decided to do 3U maths in Year 11 and dropped it two terms later (they think it's hilarious)

Good luck with making friends at uni and it really does take time. It took me nearly a month to settle in and find a friend group. You can do it :)
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: dancing phalanges on March 18, 2018, 10:56:31 pm
I don't know whether to believe any of this that you have written in your journal this week because it seems you are very good at lying ;)
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on March 18, 2018, 11:23:57 pm
I don't know whether to believe any of this that you have written in your journal this week because it seems you are very good at lying ;)

I have photo evidence from all four of my uni days, transactions proving I got lunch near AFTRS and all the trips on my concession opal card online ;) Would you like to check them out?

Just need to catch up on my assignments now after a very busy week and weekend :)

My Saturday, on the other hand, I do not have any traces on what happened on that day whatsoever.
Can you help me recall the events from yesterday? ;)
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: dancing phalanges on March 18, 2018, 11:31:51 pm
I have photo evidence from all four of my uni days, transactions proving I got lunch near AFTRS and all the trips on my concession opal card online ;) Would you like to check them out?

My Saturday, on the other hand, I do not have any traces on what happened on that day whatsoever.
Can you help me recall the events from yesterday? ;)

No I can't? I do remember that I experienced some new but scary things. How about you? Did you experience something new? Was it scary too?
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on March 18, 2018, 11:42:08 pm
No I can't? I do remember that I experienced some new but scary things. How about you? Did you experience something new? Was it scary too?

Yeah I kinda remember experiencing new things for the first time so that was pretty cool. Though I did experience other stuff and it was quite scary. But I did it anyways and I can't believe it. I feel that I can conquer anything now. Like driving around the roundabout at the Arc de Triomphe ;)

What a crazy coincidence we've both experienced new and scary things yesterday?!?!!? I feel like a new person now. Do you feel the same way after experiencing all the scary stuff that you did yesterday?
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: Potatohater on March 19, 2018, 12:25:52 am
Yeah I kinda remember experiencing new things for the first time so that was pretty cool. Though I did experience other stuff and it was quite scary. But I did it anyways and I can't believe it. I feel that I can conquer anything now. Like driving around the roundabout at the Arc de Triomphe ;)

What a crazy coincidence we've both experienced new and scary things yesterday?!?!!? I feel like a new person now. Do you feel the same way after experiencing all the scary stuff that you did yesterday?
I feel like I'm missing out on something here, what happened yesterday? What is this scarily new experience you've both had?
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on March 19, 2018, 10:09:49 am
I feel like I'm missing out on something here, what happened yesterday? What is this scarily new experience you've both had?

I’m afraid, only Visual Arts students can understand the scary experience that is life x
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: Poet on March 19, 2018, 10:11:19 am
I’m afraid, only Visual Arts students can understand the scary experience that is life x

Preach it, sister. Nobody knows fear until they do VA.
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on March 21, 2018, 09:49:36 pm
March 21, 2018

Subject of the week: Screen Business 1

Think its best to make an update now rather at the end of the week but we just had our group presentation today and I thought that was a complete S U C C E S S (minus the part where I cannot pronounce the word 'controversial' properly) but think my tutor liked our short film pitch. This entire time I was literally having doubts cos I thought my part was the EASIEST part compared to my group members. It was only yesterday when I realised that my part (creating the logline and the synopsis) was the MOST important part of the pitch. I'm super glad that my tutor liked my logline which definitely gives me a lot more confidence. Now I just gotta write the 1000 word pitch and video reflection for submission this Monday :)

We've also had two lectures this week; one about communication yesterday which made me realise that I need to be a more active listener and be more open about myself. Whilst today we had a lecture about leadership styles.

I've been working non stop on my Story (scriptwriting) assessment because I reallly like my idea and I'm so excited to see my idea turn out into a 4-5 minute screenplay. Our first draft of our script for the Visual Storytelling task (end of semester production) is due next Thursday, which is so freaking close!! I honestly have no clue on how to make a script that doesn't involve dialogue.

I've been working on other personal projects as well (a script and a short film) so I'm keen to see how they will work out. I am currently researching DSLR cameras online because I just need to get out there and make stuff.

That's all from me this week. Don't think anything interesting will happen this Friday :)
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: Potatohater on March 21, 2018, 09:55:48 pm
I've been working on other personal projects as well (a script and a short film) so I'm keen to see how they will work out. I am currently researching DSLR cameras online because I just need to get out there and make stuff.

Ooh yes!! I am keen to see what you've created when you do eventually finish them!
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on March 27, 2018, 08:06:44 pm
March 27, 2018

Subject of the week: Story 1


Since the Easter Weekend is coming up, my schedule for this week has been shifted to Monday-Tuesday-Thursday.

GOOD NEWS

I'm super happy to see that my actor and my actress for my Visual Storytelling film 'Memento Mori' (more details of it can be found here) are SUPER KEEN to get started even though production isn't until May 28. When I hired them, I actually didn't tell them who the other actor/actress was because I wanted it to be a surprise. Anyways they found out through the online production sheet where I put down their names under my production. It was during lunch time today when I overheard their conversation and I heard the word 'dance'. I approached them and said "are you guys talking about my film?" and they were like "of course we are". The height difference is perfect for the film and my actors look really good together. They even said that they were going to practice dancing from this point on for my film which really made my day. It's so sweet of them. They even briefly ballroom danced at lunch today to show me their dancing skills. I'm super keen to get this film done too because it will be the first film I will write and direct.

MORE GOOD NEWS

Today in our workshop, we had to tell our tutor our logline and our protagonist's description for our script that we're working on. The thing is, I pitched a different idea three weeks ago and I wasn't 100% sure if she was going to like my new story idea. Anyways, I told her the logline and my protagonist's backstory and she really liked it!! People in my class liked it as well and I'm just super glad. I thought it was going to be cheesy.

Today has been good :)
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on April 09, 2018, 07:03:03 pm
03/04/18 - 06/04/18

Subject of the week: Image 1

At first, I really wasn’t looking forward to this week because I started to dislike cinematography after its first week. I felt intimidated by everyone in the class and I was scared that I wouldn’t be good enough. Things changed this second week of Image 1.

Tuesday:
the tale of the six cinematographers
So the topic for our lecture was called ‘The Frame: The Window on our World’ where we learnt about composition, depth cue, focal element and more. I thought this lecture was really interesting because you never really think about what’s in a frame until you realise the intentions of the cinematographer and you go ‘ah, so that’s the effect they were going for’. Our lecturer mentioned that there’s a huge demand for female cinematographers in the industry which ties in perfectly with our workshop. My tutor is also the lecturer so we definitely get more out of the workshops compared to the other classes (and he’s also the head of cinematography at AFTRS so that’s a MASSIVE bonus). In the class of 19, there were only 6 girls and we were put in charged of doing the cinematography work for the rest of the day. For some reason, I felt a sense of power and dominance for once as this little group of females managed to create beautiful compositions. Plus it was funny seeing all the boys sitting on their seats, dying to work with the camera. And every time they would try and interrupt us, our tutor would tell them to stop. Our tutor asked who wanted to edit the rushes and I immediately volunteered because I love editing and we don’t learn Rhythm and Juxtaposition until Sem 2. My tutor was impressed that I was able to edit a scene in a matter of 10 minutes and that’s when my reputation started to build within my Image class. I was now known as ‘Bea the editor’; something I had always identified as and will always will. It felt good.

Wednesday:
i am not throwing away my shot!
For our lecture this time, we learnt about different lenses and perspective. Whilst in our workshop, we filmed yet again another scene. But this time, it was the same scene but one using a wide shot and one shot that is zoomed in. Afterwards we learnt about storyboarding and presented our storyboards in front of our class. I also invited a couple of my high school friends from UNSW to visit me at lunch. It was weird seeing my high school and university lives intermingling. It was something I didn't think would even remotely happen.

Thursday:
sdl day
For SDL day, I decided to head off to Cockatoo island to check out the 21st Biennale of Sydney but as well to get an original photo for my assessment task. I got some decent shots and I realised there was a common object in all my photos- STAIRS. This original photo is meant to be a reference for my film for Image.

Friday:
i really don't like riverdale :(
We started the day off with a lecture about animation and anime (yes I said anime). Then we had a screening analysis of the film ‘Grave of the Fireflies’ which was a beautiful film yet heart wrenching story about two siblings trying to survive WWII in Japan. We had a seminar about ‘high culture vs popular culture’, giving me the perfect opportunity to bag out Riverdale and making people in my class laugh :) We finished the day off with reflection.

So I finally got around to submitting part one of my Image assessment just a couple of hours ago. Now I just need to work on pre-production documents for all the films I’m involved in at the end of semester production block. I’m getting assessed on being writer/director for my own film but I also have to fill out documents for other films as its mandatory to partake in different roles such as cinematographer, first AD, producer and production designer.
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: owidjaja on April 09, 2018, 07:25:42 pm
We had a seminar about ‘high culture vs popular culture’, giving me the perfect opportunity to bag out Riverdale and making people in my class laugh :)

Omg same! I hate Riverdale as well! Season 1 was ok but then it went downhill from there. Like, the plot got really messy and they just announced they're making SEASON THREE. I feel like I just hate any teen dramas because they're always using the same plot line of having a love triangle to extend the conflict, kinda like what they did in Riverdale between Veronica, Betty and Archie- to me, that's just lazy writing.

Anyways, it's really interesting to look at the 'behind-the-scenes' in what film students do. I love looking at the details in what film directors do and how it contributes to their story telling- Oscar season is when I usually get to fangirl more over Best Picture films lol.

Can't wait for your next update :)
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on April 09, 2018, 08:08:06 pm
Omg same! I hate Riverdale as well! Season 1 was ok but then it went downhill from there. Like, the plot got really messy and they just announced they're making SEASON THREE. I feel like I just hate any teen dramas because they're always using the same plot line of having a love triangle to extend the conflict, kinda like what they did in Riverdale between Veronica, Betty and Archie- to me, that's just lazy writing.

Anyways, it's really interesting to look at the 'behind-the-scenes' in what film students do. I love looking at the details in what film directors do and how it contributes to their story telling- Oscar season is when I usually get to fangirl more over Best Picture films lol.

Can't wait for your next update :)

MY RANT ABOUT RIVERDALE BECAUSE THIS SHOW ANNOYS ME so don't read if you're a huge riverdale fan thx
To be fair on Riverdale, they have beautiful cinematography and the lighting is nice but that's just about it. Main reason why I only watched Season 1 because I wanted to know who killed Jason (really pissed me off when I found out who did). Riverdale has all the elements to a teen drama show and it's too overwhelming. You've got your girl next door. The rich bad girl turned good turned bad turned good (... this goes on forever). The Troy Bolton wannabe who's head is in the game but his heart's actually in the song. The angsty kid who doesn't want to fit in. The whole "murder plot in a seemingly perfect small town that's actually really dark". The unnecessary musical numbers (what the hell was that Milkshake cover on the rooftop of the diner???) The really disgusting student-teacher relationship. I can literally go on. I feel that Riverdale is trying too hard with the show. Would the show be as popular if the CW didn't cast stereotypically hot actors? Who knows. Rant over. (I just remembered Dark Betty but I'm not even gonna go into that because I think that's enough for tonight)

It's actually amazing how much time and effort is done behind the scenes for films. I have a lot of respect for all the filmmakers out there. Even though most of the attention goes to the actors, they're still really proud of their work and that's the only thing that matters :)

The next month won't be as interesting (in my opinion anyways) because I don't have any assignments due til May 7. By the time May 16 strolls by, I would already have a 1000 Screen Business pitch, a 4-5 minute screenplay and a one minute film done. And of course, that doesn't include the end of semester production at the end of May ;) I'll definitely be ranting about the pre prod docs and production for the next two months aha
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: owidjaja on April 09, 2018, 08:26:17 pm
MY RANT ABOUT RIVERDALE BECAUSE THIS SHOW ANNOYS ME so don't read if you're a huge riverdale fan thx
To be fair on Riverdale, they have beautiful cinematography and the lighting is nice but that's just about it. Main reason why I only watched Season 1 because I wanted to know who killed Jason (really pissed me off when I found out who did). Riverdale has all the elements to a teen drama show and it's too overwhelming. You've got your girl next door. The rich bad girl turned good turned bad turned good (... this goes on forever). The Troy Bolton wannabe who's head is in the game but his heart's actually in the song. The angsty kid who doesn't want to fit in. The whole "murder plot in a seemingly perfect small town that's actually really dark". The unnecessary musical numbers (what the hell was that Milkshake cover on the rooftop of the diner???) The really disgusting student-teacher relationship. I can literally go on. I feel that Riverdale is trying too hard with the show. Would the show be as popular if the CW didn't cast stereotypically hot actors? Who knows. Rant over. (I just remembered Dark Betty but I'm not even gonna go into that because I think that's enough for tonight)

RIVERDALE RANT IN RESPONSE TO YOUR RIVERDALE RANT LOL
Tbh, the characters aren't likeable. Like, how is Archie okay with having an affair with a teacher? From my basic knowledge of the US legal system, it's considered pedophilia if someone over the age of 21 is dating with someone under 18. Archie is 16 for god sakes! And he's cool with that?? And it's not really showing a positive light on relationships either, like Miss Grundy is essentially manipulating him and then he partially lies about what happened on July 4th. And then what happens to Miss Grundy? She gets killed off in the end. Why would they introduce Miss Grundy if they're not gonna do anything with her? Like, she had a massive impact on Archie's life but then she gets killed off.

Don't get me started with Jughead. He tried so hard to be all 'emo' but THAT'S NOT WHAT BEING EMO IS. Being emo (as someone who's a casual listener of the emo sub-culture) is expressing your feelings, usually out of anger. You want people to know that you're angry, not get moody and bottle up everything. Oh, and don't get me started on his speech to Betty: "I don't know if you noticed this, but I'm weird." EVERY TEEN GOES THROUGH THIS! Just because you feel that way, doesn't mean other teens aren't self-conscious either. I feel like the screenwriters should have a really good look at how teens are in reality. All teens are self-conscious- that notion of that one kid being a special one because he's 'weird' is basically an old-fashioned stereotypical view on what teen life is about.

Oh, and Cheryl? She's so useless after Season 1. She was supposed to be bad rich girl turned good but then she continues to talk crap to the group. Like, wtf?? They literally helped her find out who killed Jason and even saved her from drowning, and she responds by treating them like crap again? And then she suddenly shows up in that racing scene? She wasn't even involved in that Southside Serpents stuff- why did she suddenly appear there?

And then there's Veronica- I feel like the writers tried to make her be all 'relatable' and 'likeable' but tbh, it just seems like she tries too much to be sassy. Being savage is lightly insulting someone in an almost-joking situation, not saying stuff like 'Be the Jay to my Bey?' That's basically the writers being like 'Oh look, these kids love Beyonce so let's include some pop-culture references.' Just no.

I can go on forever about this lol.
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on April 12, 2018, 06:43:17 pm
I honestly want to go back in time and go slap my past self for not starting ANY of the pre production documents early besides my own script.

For the end of semester production block, it's also expected to do the pre prod docs for the other films that you're involved in.

ie; As producer, I have to do a risk assessment, a budget and crew lists. As first AD, I have to create a shooting schedule, safety notes and tech recce report (I have no idea what the hell that is). As cinematographer, I need to do a visual treatment summary and an equipment list. And lastly, as production designer, I have to do an art department breakdown and a visual reference and concept art report.

Like I'm not even getting assessed on these other roles (because I want to get assessed on my own film as writer/director) and I'm stressing so much because all the docs and templates on Moodle are messed up and I've got four days left to do all the pre prod stuff (HUGE reason why I very much prefer post production)

I'll see how I go ...
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on April 16, 2018, 10:09:07 pm
10/04/18 - 13/04/18

Subject of the week: Screen Business 1

It would seem very appropriate to do an update now after I just submitted my pre production documents a few hours ago and I can now relax until the next flood of assessment due dates comes in three weeks.

tuesday, wednesday, friday
I'm not gonna update yall on what happened specifically on each day as all my three uni days felt so similar. This was the first week at uni I felt that I actually learnt something for once. It's gotten to the point where my brain started throbbing during class and I had excuse myself from class to go on a stroll around AFTRS just to clear my head. This week put a lot of emphasis on what producers do, the pre production process and all the goddamn paperwork that goes behind the scenes. I've learnt about shooting schedules, budgeting (I haven't done maths since my HSC exam so this part confused the hell out of me quite a lot) and risk assessments. A lot of the stuff we did in our workshops involved a shit ton of paper work. I literally haven't written this much since my paper two exam. Think I might stray away from pre production for the rest of my life thanks

play it, sam
It's actually quite interesting how the emphasis on censorship in the Hollywood studio system and the events of the Second World War had affected the ending for the film 'Casablanca'. During our screening analysis on Friday, we watched the film. The first hour confused me and I really wanted to drift to sleep (there hasn't been one screening analysis where I was fully awake. The seats in the main theatre are so comfy!) But then stuff got interesting in the second half and I sat right up in my seat the entire time. The ideal ending for Casablanca (spoilers ahead!) would've been Rick and Ilsa ending up together but since the Hollywood studio system did not tolerate adultery, they did not let that happen. The film could not keep Victor and Ilsa in Casablanca because that had meant the Nazis won and I highly doubt during the midst of WWII, America would let that happen. Therefore the most appropriate ending for the film, in order to satisfy the censorship rules and the American spirit during the war, was to simply let Ilsa and Victor escape on the plane. Fun fact: Kissing scenes during the Hollywood studio system could not go for longer than three seconds- it was considered immoral

the tale of bea and her pre production docs
So after starting my pre prod docs late, I surprisingly finished a day early. Once I got over the confusing doc templates on Moodle, I was ready to go. I did my risk assessment, budget and crew list as a producer. I did a shooting schedule, safety notes and tech recce report (discovered that this was just a fancy term for location survey report) as first AD. I did a visual treatment and an equipment list as cinematographer. I did an art department breakdown and a visual reference and concept art report as production designer. Last but not the least, I did a script and director's vision statement as writer/director (this is the role I want to be assessed on which is very fitting as it is my own film). I seriously cannot wait for the production block to see everyone's films come alive on the screen.

my acting debut
Very clickbait-y spoiler title but I got picked to play in someone's else film. I will play the girlfriend and I got one of my friends to play my boyfriend. I cannot tell you the plot of the film here as I do not want to disrespect the writer/director of the film. The shoot should happen on a day between May 31 to June 4. I haven't acted since I had a speaking role in a Year 6 production but this should be fun because I'll definitely be stepping out of my comfort zone. I hate being infront of the camera (hence why I'm studying film production) but it should be interesting...

fit hot guys have problems too
I decided to attend debating club this week because I felt bad for not attending the last one. Anyways, I was just expecting to watch people debate. But because there was so little of us compared to the very first meet up, everyone was forced to debate. My topics were 'Black and white films are boring' [negative] and 'good films and shows only have hot people in them' [affirmative]. I seriously did not have a proper argument for both topics (-even admitted it in my second debate), I just sassy strutted around the room and hoped my charm won the hearts of the judges. I kept ranting about 'A Streetcar Named Desire' and 'Riverdale' and surprisingly I won both debates. #blessed

We've got one more week of Screen Business left and I'm so excited because this subject is so content heavy ahhhhh and it hurts my brain and I just want it out. I still have to study it in my second and third years tho (it's mandatory for all years I'm afraid)
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on April 29, 2018, 08:49:21 pm
17/04/18 - 20/04/18

Subject of the Week: Story 1


During this entire week, there was a HUGE emphasis on character, controlling ideas, the world and whatnot.

thanks for spoiling the sixth sense aftrs
Tuesday and Wednesday:
We began the first workshop of the week by eating fortune cookies and trying to apply the fortune to our character for our script. Then we had to create to write our own fortune that applies to our character so I wrote “You must accept the present in order to move on from the past”. After our workshop, we had a three hour screening of the film ‘The Turning’ which is basically a series of short films based on Tim Winton’s book of the same name. We got assigned a short film each and had to present our findings the next day. I shit you not, I had the second most confusing short film and practically had to bs my presentation and analysis. I really love how chill the culture is at AFTRS because even though I openly admitted that I had no idea what the hell just happened in the short film, my tutor was completely fine with it. I even included this screenshot in my presentation where I tried to ask for help in my cohort’s facebook group.

Thursday:
So I booked a mentoring session with the Head of Character & Performance (directing) and she helped me how to direct people for my upcoming film ‘Memento Mori’. She was heaps helpful and challenged my views on what directing actually was. “It’s not about bossing people around. It’s about putting your actors within the present time”.

Friday:
We had a lecture about Indigenous people within Australian cinema. For our screening analysis we watched Warwick Thorton’s ‘Samson and Delilah’ which was I thought was a refreshing film to watch because it was nice to see another culture being portrayed on the screen. We then had a seminar about how the audience’s background can influence how they interpret a film. Lastly for our reflection, our class we were given a scenario and we were assigned different parts of the scenario to write a script on.

It was a bit disheartening when I got my mark for my Story Development Portfolio because I was really hoping for a HD or at least a D. I spent so much time working on it and really thought I had it in the bag. Probably more than my other assessments combined. But I ended up getting a C and I was like NOOOOOOO!!! Anyways, I got my shit together and ended up writing a decent first draft in the following week which I’m really proud of. Still currently awating feedback from my tutor.

23/04/18 - 27/04/18

Subject of the Week: Image 1


This week was a bit weird because my days got shifted because of Anzac Day. So I had Monday and Tuesday on, Wednesday and Thursday off (Anzac Day and SDL Day) and had Friday on.

really busy week
Monday:
Our lecture was basically about a character and their world, so there’s was a lot of talk on production design. We even got a guest speaker who’s a costume designer herself from Hollywood and has worked in films like ‘The Dressmaker’, ‘Lawless’ and ‘The Road’. For our workshop, we just made mood boards based on descriptive extracts that we were given.

Tuesday:
Today we messed around the green screen and lights today. We were expected to do a double exposure ‘portrait’ of us and do VFX to make it super artsy and stuff. I ended up doing the ‘You’re Watching Disney Channel’ which took WAYYY TOO LONG to edit. Adobe Premiere Pro was completely fine but it was just Adobe After Effects that was being a little bitch to me. I could not for the life of me export the damn file. Took me about 45 minutes to render and export the damn edit. I didn’t know whether or not my tutor was impressed by it because I didn’t follow the criteria but o well.

Wednesday and Thursday:
On Wednesday, I headed off to Cockatoo Island to film my one minute short for my Image 1 artefact. Filming took longer because there were so many freaking people on the island (as it was a public holiday) so we timed it so there weren’t any people in the shot. I finally figured out the meaning I wanted to do with my film and it’s basically about internal conflict. Whilst on Thursday, I finished my parts for my Screen Business pitch, my script for Story and edited all the possible angles for my Image one minute short. It’s scary how fast I’m progressing with my assessments. I’m genuinely concerned. I also got my mark for my Image Contextual Analysis report and got a D yyeeeeee! It was essentially a report about any artist and an analysis of one of their artworks which was exactly just like HSC Visual Arts.

Friday:
We had our production check in instead of our usual screening analysis. We literally spent three hours on everybody’s risk assessments for their film which was a bit of a drag ngl. My tutor told me that my risk assessment lacked detail and was terrible ahah so I have to redo it before the shoot starts. I had my first brief with my actors in regards to my upcoming short film which went terrible than expected :( For our seminar, the topic was ‘Should we separate the art from the artist’ which is SO relevant in today’s film industry especially with the #MeToo movement. Our edits from Tuesday got screened in the main theatre in front of the entire cohort and people laughed at my Disney Channel edit ahahaha. Lastly, for our reflection I did a quick presentation on Billy Elliot’s costume in the film. Afterwards, it was my friend’s birthday celebrations and it was perfect because it was a great way to end two hectic weeks.
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on May 14, 2018, 08:23:55 pm
01/05/18 - 04/05/18
Subject of the week: Screen Business 1
cultural competency and whatnot
Pretty much for the entire week, there was so much emphasis on cultural competency and diversity which I LOVE! This has been my favourite week of Screen Business so far because I can relate so much and it bring me hope that the industry will be inclusive and diverse in the future and that’s a workplace I would love to be in. We had to do an informal presentation in groups and we were assigned the Ghost in the Shell whitewashing controversy. It felt so good knowing that my opinion, as an Asian female living in a Western country, mattered the most. My voice was being recognised for once and it was so fucking refreshing. We watched the Australian film ‘My Brilliant Career’ which everyone ended up hating and our lecturer was so disappointed aha. We had a seminar on ‘gender matters’ and learn that Screen Australia (main funding body for film projects in Australia) will only fund films if at least 50% of the key creative team are females. Bonus points if they come from a minority background. It was nice learning this because at least I know there’s a good chance I will get funding in the future. We ended the week meditating on the front lawn.

08/05/18-11/05/18
Subject of the week: Story 1
goodbye story </3
I was so sad coming into the last week of Story because I love love love this subject so much and I admire my tutor and I will miss her. This week we focused on adding more depth to our five minute screenplay. We got paired up with another person in the class because we need to do a peer script report as apart of our assessment. This week has been a creatively draining week for me because I hate receiving feedback from other people but of course I’ve learnt that people will criticise my work and that’s ok. From this, I was able to create my screenplay much more dramatic. My script even had a table read in my class and hearing my script come alive felt so cool! I've also come to realise that I have this emotional attachment to my script which is bad. I've also learnt last week that I need to separate my emotions to my art in order to progress.
click me!
INT. BEA'S BEDROOM - NIGHT

FADE IN.

BEA, a film student, is typing her new entry for her university journey journal on atarnotes. She's got her headphones in. Her phone next to her. BEA is reminiscing the past.

BEA (CONT'D)
So it’s been about two and a half hours since I submitted my script and I’m starting to miss it.

She looks at her script. A melancholic look clouds her face.

BEA (CONT'D)
But I need to learn to let go. Goodbye script. I don’t know when I’m ever gonna see you again.

A tear falls down her cheek.

BEA (CONT'D)
(is lowkey sad)
But wherever you are, hope you are doing well.

FADE TO BLACK.

My short film: an update
memento mori progress!!!
So I had my first blocking meeting with my two actors and I seriously could not stop laughing. I think it was because I was uncomfortable with directing them not because their dancing was funny. They’re picking up what I want really quickly which is good. But I’m still worried about timing and all that. AHHH. Production is so close. My film shoot is on May 26 and I’m both nervous and excited all at the same time.
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on May 29, 2018, 09:18:33 pm
Visual Storytelling - Production Block: A Review

We had our production block from May 26 to May 29. We have been asked to write/direct our own 1.5-2 minute films but as well as to work on your group members’ films in roles such as cinematographer, production designer, first assistant director and producer (rotated each round). There has been a lot of sweat and tears put into pre-production and I just can’t believe production just flew so quickly.

May 26:
the sugar plum fairy and ed sheeran on loop
Production Designer:

Was in charge of creating a Christmas-Office space for a lovely Christmas film. There was tinsel everywhere, fake snowflakes hung up on the wall and a Christmas tree in the corner. There’s a part in the film where one of the elves had to knock over the Christmas tree but in some takes, the tree either went off the opposite direction or just disconnects completely aha. It was fun resetting the set every time. I was also in charge of handing over the milk and cookies to one of the actors. Overall, it was a super fun film to work on.

Director: (my own film: Memento Mori)
Honestly biggest regret of saying I wanted to get assessed on this role because I was just too shy as a director. We had a slight problem with my actress’ dress ten minutes before the shoot and ended up spending $20 on the day to get it fixed. This cut time into my shoot. We also had problems with my location as well so this cut more time. Though my actor and actress were heaps chill and flexible which was nice. My crew could tell that I was so nervous and shy so they gave my actors suggestions and I just went along with it. I’m a very flexible director. Once my actors got the timing right, the shoot was smooth from that point on. We were super ahead of schedule so we decided to play random songs to get the actors into a different mood. Surprisingly the take where we played ‘Can You Feel the Love Tonight’ from Lion King, was actually my favourite take. Lessons learned from this: 1) make sure you do a dress rehearsal before the shoot. 2) don’t direct anything ever again.

May 27:
8:30 crew call :(
Actress:
Was technically supposed to be my break from the shoot but my group mate approached me weeks ago if I could act in his film and I was like why not. All I had to do was sit in his car and look at the figure outside the window. Heaps easy. It was also the shoot where one of the tutors visited us and observed our crew. He said that we were super professional and even better than the second years if he says so himself ;)

May 28:
the time i was a glorified runner *not clickbait* ;)
Producer:
Technically in the real world, producers don’t go on set just because they’re more focused on pre production stuff rather than production. But we had to go anyways for the sake of the task. Since the shoot was in a small bathroom, there was no space at all for all crew members. They could only fit the director, two actors, cinematographer and first AD in the bathroom. The entire shoot I was just chilling with the production designer outside aha. Though I did go on a coffee run so that my cast and crew were alive during the shoot.

Cinematographer:
As it is a very small production, camera operator and cinematographer essentially became the same thing. Since the director just wanted a static, symmetrical shot of his film (dining scene between a couple) all I had to do was press the record button ahaha.

May 29:
so much love in the air
First Assistant Director:

Probably my second favourite role (just below production designer) because I was able to boss people around on set ahahah. I was in charge of everyone’s safety on set (got myself a first aid kit the other day) and had to do a safety induction as well. As it was a small production, the role of first assistant director and second assistant camera (aka the clapper loader/slate person), was amalgamated. It was so fun doing the slate for every take. This film was so cute to watch as well as it was very bubbly, so joyful, so pure and had so much love in it (it was a proposal scene) and I’m not ashamed to admit that I nearly cried during the first take.

Overall thoughts:
read if you want lol
- Production block went better than I expected. Shoots go by so quick it’s ridiculous!
- I’m considering being a first assistant director at some point in my (hopefully) film career. Creating the call sheets and shooting schedule made me oddly happy for some reason?
- I really shouldn’t be harsh on myself about the whole directing thing. But hopefully once we learn directing next semester, I should get better.
- Production design is also another area that I would like to be in as well.
- This production block was just so fun!!!

I still technically have other shoots to work on (ie; acting in two more films. Just acted in one after the shoot where I was first AD.) Will be working as first assistant director on a third year shoot next Tuesday and Wednesday which should be super exciting!! (we will be in the studios). Will also work in the post production team for a second year film.

Until our next production block which will be in mid October :)
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on June 17, 2018, 07:00:22 pm
Semester One reflection:

So we finally reached the end of semester woohoo! Still can’t believe I made it through my first semester of university. It’s funny looking back on my earlier entries and seeing how much I was worrying about not being able to make friends and not thinking I was as good as the other people in my cohort. After going through my grades, I think it’s safe to say that, yes, I do truly belong at AFTRS and I deserve a spot and I shouldn’t put myself down too much (wow Bea you’re getting too cheesy stop ahaha).

June 15, 2018 (last day of semester)
93 short films!!!
So we started the day with watching everyone’s 2 minute films in the main theatre. We had to vote either HD, D, C, P or F for the films. There were heaps of fantastic films and I gave out a lot of HD’s and D’s. The voting process took forever so we had to continue watching the rest after lunch.

We watched the rest of the films in the lecture hall. Though there was a problem with the screening because the film sizes were too big so they had to render and compress the files. Whilst they were doing this, the course leader gave us a rundown for production for next semester. I’m SO glad we get to pick who we want to work with and there are more assessable roles this time round (editing here I come!!!).

We broke off into our reflection groups afterwards. Our tutor could not get anything out of anyone in the class so he started picking random people ahaha. About an hour later, we headed back to the lecture hall to watch the rest of the films. My film was finally screened and at first I could not look at it. Then I heard people going ‘oohhh’ and ‘ahhh’ and that’s when I started watching my film. I’m super glad that I got an audience reaction for ‘Memento Mori’. If you haven’t seen my film yet, feel free to watch it here.

When all the films were finally done (93 short films later holy shit), everyone headed off to the end of semester party.

Grades
!!!!!!
I think in terms of my grades, I’m pretty satisfied with them. My grade averages for Screen Business, Story and Image are within the Distinction range which is super cool and I’m so happy!! Not quite sure with Visual Storytelling/Production just yet but am hoping for a distinction too. I’m surprised that my university assignments have been less stressful than my high school assignments and exams. It’s probably because I enjoy doing them so much that it doesn’t feel like I'm doing a uni assignment.

Lil rant
bea gets super cheesy here lol
But in seriousness, I have to say that I LOVE university so much. I did enjoy high school too but there’s just so much freedom at university. I’m studying film and I love seeing my creativity grow as an artist. It’s AMAZING!! I love pushing my boundaries and seeing how far I could go with my art. Seriously cannot wait for next semester where we learn Character & Performance (directing), Rhythm & Juxtaposition (editing) and Sound. I also read my letter to my future self that I wrote back in O-Week and past Me was so optimistic. Bless her.

What now?
time to rest i guess
To make this one month semester break as productive as much as possible, I’m planning on purchasing the Canon EOS 80D camera and try and make some shorts/docs. I’m also going to work heaps at my job to earn back the money I’m going to spend for the camera. And of course, catching up with high school and university friends and family.
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: EEEEEEP on June 17, 2018, 07:20:36 pm
Semester One reflection:

So we finally reached the end of semester woohoo! Still can’t believe I made it through my first semester of university. It’s funny looking back on my earlier entries and seeing how much I was worrying about not being able to make friends and not thinking I was as good as the other people in my cohort. After going through my grades, I think it’s safe to say that, yes, I do truly belong at AFTRS and I deserve a spot and I shouldn’t put myself down too much (wow Bea you’re getting too cheesy stop ahaha).

June 15, 2018 (last day of semester)
93 short films!!!
So we started the day with watching everyone’s 2 minute films in the main theatre. We had to vote either HD, D, C, P or F for the films. There were heaps of fantastic films and I gave out a lot of HD’s and D’s. The voting process took forever so we had to continue watching the rest after lunch.

We watched the rest of the films in the lecture hall. Though there was a problem with the screening because the film sizes were too big so they had to render and compress the files. Whilst they were doing this, the course leader gave us a rundown for production for next semester. I’m SO glad we get to pick who we want to work with and there are more assessable roles this time round (editing here I come!!!).

We broke off into our reflection groups afterwards. Our tutor could not get anything out of anyone in the class so he started picking random people ahaha. About an hour later, we headed back to the lecture hall to watch the rest of the films. My film was finally screened and at first I could not look at it. Then I heard people going ‘oohhh’ and ‘ahhh’ and that’s when I started watching my film. I’m super glad that I got an audience reaction for ‘Memento Mori’. If you haven’t seen my film yet, feel free to watch it here.

When all the films were finally done (93 short films later holy shit), everyone headed off to the end of semester party.

Grades
!!!!!!
I think in terms of my grades, I’m pretty satisfied with them. My grade averages for Screen Business, Story and Image are within the Distinction range which is super cool and I’m so happy!! Not quite sure with Visual Storytelling/Production just yet but am hoping for a distinction too. I’m surprised that my university assignments have been less stressful than my high school assignments and exams. It’s probably because I enjoy doing them so much that it doesn’t feel like I'm doing a uni assignment.

Lil rant
bea gets super cheesy here lol
But in seriousness, I have to say that I LOVE university so much. I did enjoy high school too but there’s just so much freedom at university. I’m studying film and I love seeing my creativity grow as an artist. It’s AMAZING!! I love pushing my boundaries and seeing how far I could go with my art. Seriously cannot wait for next semester where we learn Character & Performance (directing), Rhythm & Juxtaposition (editing) and Sound. I also read my letter to my future self that I wrote back in O-Week and past Me was so optimistic. Bless her.

What now?
time to rest i guess
To make this one month semester break as productive as much as possible, I’m planning on purchasing the Canon EOS 80D camera and try and make some shorts/docs. I’m also going to work heaps at my job to earn back the money I’m going to spend for the camera. And of course, catching up with high school and university friends and family.

Bea bea bea =)

Glad to hear that you're loving film school =).

Now... are you gonna get any good glass with that? Kit lenses suck! By good glass, I mean something that reduces chromatic aberration, disortion and lense flare.. .hehe. 

Sidenote: Are you gonna get any LED, external lighting, lighting stands etc :P? YOu need good lighting for videos!
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on June 17, 2018, 08:07:23 pm
Bea bea bea =)

Glad to hear that you're loving film school =).

Now... are you gonna get any good glass with that? Kit lenses suck! By good glass, I mean something that reduces chromatic aberration, disortion and lense flare.. .hehe. 

Sidenote: Are you gonna get any LED, external lighting, lighting stands etc :P? YOu need good lighting for videos!

Wellll I'm not 100% entire familiar with cameras yet so for now I'll just stick with the camera itself. The more I experiment and make more stuff, I'll start upgrading my lens and getting the /said/ good glass. I don't really plan on getting lights just yet because as much as possible, I like to film in natural lighting anyways. I don't plan on making proper films yet but I'll just make recap videos and/or documentaries for now. I'll start doing proper films during my summer break. My friend wants to direct my six minute script that I wrote so we're will gather a cast and crew sometime soon.  I can always rent out lights from school if I need to and find someone in my degree who has lights (in that case- that's a lot of people I can refer to)
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on July 23, 2018, 08:19:38 pm
16/07/18-20/07/18

Subject of the week: Character & Performance

I really enjoyed this week because it was nice seeing everyone again after our one month semester break, but also I filmed and took photos of the AN NSW trial lecture series as well.

Character & Performance is just directing. In order to become a director, you must become an actor first. Because how can you direct an actor if you aren’t familiar with their acting process in the first place? We learnt about acting history in our lectures and played a lot of games during our workshops. I feel super bad that I’m not as interested in Character & Performance because directing is my least favourite part of film aha. Fingers crossed I’ll end up liking it in the future.

We also had our end of semester production check in. We could pick any roles we want to do (thank god!) and work with whoever we wanted to. There is a huge demand for roles that aren’t writer and director- so I shall be working as: producer, first assistant director and editor (the role I want to get assessed on!). The films I’m working on are (surprisingly) comedies- a little out of my comfort zone but I love a good creative challenge.

Besides from that, it was super rad just seeing the AN lectures once again. It’s weird because I was at the trial lectures this time last year and a year later, I was documenting the lectures themselves. It’s also comes to show how much I’ve grown since mid 2017.

Nice.
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on July 31, 2018, 08:50:05 pm
Lil rant

It's scaring me how much I'm not liking this semester so far. Directing class scares me. Editing class, I thought would be fantastic because I LOVE editing, but I can't seem to edit at uni. Especially infront of other people. I cannot seem to edit on the spot. After having a talk to my tutor about my editing style (she doesn't seem to keen about), I've been questioning myself as an artist lately. And as for this week, sound class has been a drag. I've only had one lecture and workshop so far and it is draining the life out of me! I'm not an aural learner so I'm not seeing eye to eye with sound. I've been avoiding my assessments like the plague.

On the bright side, I am so excited to work on the three films at the end of semester. I'm thinking of taking producer as a career now. It's somewhat fun filling out the paperwork and being in charge of something ok.

Hope the rest of the semester flies by smoothly :)
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: jamonwindeyer on July 31, 2018, 08:58:40 pm
Lil rant

It's scaring me how much I'm not liking this semester so far...

I think everyone has good semesters and bad semesters. You can't study something for years and love every second of it. Hang in there! ;D
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on August 07, 2018, 08:45:53 pm
Two things from today!

1. So the tutor I had for my first ever short film course (at NIDA) back in 2016 was our guest lecturer today for directing! It was so cool seeing him again after two years. He was the main reason why I really got into film. I talked to him after the lecture today and showed him the picture of us from the course. He said congrats on getting into AFTRS and it's crazy to think how much of an impact one person could make!

i'm gonna spoiler this just cos-
And 2. We were asked to read this one page script in our workshop today and one by one we had to give a two minute director's pitch of how we wanted to block the actors scene, the mood and the coverage and all that jazz. I disliked the script so much which made it harder for me to do this two minute pitch on the spot! I could not envision this script whatsoever. I bullshitted my way through and my tutor thought that my vision was very clear (despite having no preparation beforehand). Although for the feedback part, I kid you not, she gave me the same exact advice as my screenwriting and cinematography tutors gave me back in semester one which was basically 'Bea you need to believe in yourself more and own it! You need more confidence' and that my friends- I discovered my character flaw that I need to overcome during my degree. My tutor asked the class if anyone else had feedback for me and literally three people repeated the exact same words she said.

I just need to be more confident with my craft and myself goddamit!!!! Why is it so hard :/ This is the industry I chose. Being shy will get me nowhere.

That's all :)

Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on August 30, 2018, 07:20:56 pm
It's been a while since I've updated my journal, hasn't it?

Nothing has happened much in the past three weeks... well- maybe these parts might be significant idk?

- Screened my edit of an action scene infront of my class and the substitute teacher (who was the Head of Editing and teaches the editing masters students at AFTRS) said that it was a 'sophisticated edit'. Simple but it was enough. I just needed to hear a sign of approval from the head of editing that's all.
- Realised that my little arms are too weak to carry a boom mic so I really don't see myself doing Sound in the future.
- Two actors came in for a directing/acting demonstration for our lecture this week and one of them was actually my co-worker from work! What a small world.
- Pre-production documents are yet again doing my head in; especially having to do a three day shooting schedule of this really confusing script smh. Although doing my producer duties is very fun to do !!!
- Got a credit for my video essay which was better than expected.

What now?
- I've got a film shoot for my three minute film next Thursday which is exciting!
- Gotta get all my pre-prod docs done for submission this Monday.
- Gotta do a Mood Reel and a Director's Vision statement for any script we want. So I've decided to revisit my script from last semester.

PS: Has anyone read/watched 'To All the Boys I've Loved Before'. I love it so much. I love representation of Asians in the media. Everyone's literally frothing over Peter Kavinsky but I honestly think Lara Jean Covey is the real MVP of the series tbh. I also watched Crazy Rich Asians last Friday (skipped a screening of Gravity in our lecture oops) and everyone needs to see this damn film goddamn it!

Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: fantasticbeasts3 on August 30, 2018, 07:51:43 pm

PS: Has anyone read/watched 'To All the Boys I've Loved Before'. I love it so much. I love representation of Asians in the media. Everyone's literally frothing over Peter Kavinsky but I honestly think Lara Jean Covey is the real MVP of the series tbh. I also watched Crazy Rich Asians last Friday (skipped a screening of Gravity in our lecture oops) and everyone needs to see this damn film goddamn it!



Yes, yes and yes!!! Loved it, I thought it was great and proceeded to read all the books from Saturday to Tuesday after I watched the movie last week. So awesome to see Asian representation lately -- makes me so happy!
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on September 09, 2018, 09:05:51 pm
Hey everyone!

So last week we had Rhythm & Juxtaposition (editing) class again! I am starting to like R&J more as we have moved on from editing action scenes to dramatic scenes. In our lecture, we were taught the three main steps to planning a dramatic cut- information, timing and context. I honestly never really took this into account before because I kinda wing my editing and just let my instincts determine which clip to use and when to cut it. I genuinely thought that was interesting. Though when it came to our workshops, all of that kind of flew out the window and I reverted back to my winging methods.

We spent most of Tuesday and all of Wednesday cutting our dramatic scenes for our assignment. We were given the rushes/clips from an Australian film called Balibo (2009). Honestly have no clue how my uni managed to grab the raw footage from the film but I guess they have connections with the production company. As of today, I currently have 5 minutes for my dramatic cut which is way beyond the time limit for the assignment. I'm still halfway through the script and I honestly have no clue to cut it down to 4 minutes. I screened my edit in front of my class on Friday and asked which parts I should cut out. Neither my tutor or my classmates said anything because they like the pace of my dramatic cut.

Besides from my dramatic cut assignment dilemma, I managed to film my short film with a fantastic cast and crew last Thursday and I cannot wait to show everyone! I booked a room at uni this Tuesday at lunch where I'm gonna screen it to people in my degree. I'll share a link on my other thread once it gets uploaded on the Youtube channel that I do freelance work for. Should be sometime this week.

We have Sound this week which is such a huge drop from Rhythm & Juxtaposition. I just can't seem to connect to it like I do with my other subjects. Fingers crossed we do something decent this week please. If I have to hear another lecture and workshop about frequencies and microphones, I will leave ahaha (jks I won't do that maybe)

I'm gonna make it a goal of mine to watch at least once a week (minus the screenings during our Friday lecture). Last week, I managed to watch 'Heathers' (1988) which is a cult classic starring the one and only Winona Ryder. I thought it was quite an unconventional teen film which I liked, though parts of it shocked me. I also watched 'Sierra Burgess is a Loser' (2018) which is the new Netflix film with Shannon Purser and Noah Centineo. Cute lil rom com that melted my heart <3

Hope everyone is going well! ;D



Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on September 23, 2018, 10:40:06 pm
18/09/18 - 21/09/18

This week has been very interesting. It was our last week of Character & Performance (directing) for the year! Kinda sad because despite not liking directing at first, I really love my tutor (she's my favourite tutor for this semester). I realise that directing isn't too bad after all and it's a discipline I would like to try out one day in the future.

We had the best lecture this week. It was called 'auditions and casting away stereotypes' which was absolutely AMAZING. Not once did I lose attention, it was just that brilliant. It was about diversity when casting actors and doing colour blind casting.

For our workshops this week, we worked with acting students from an acting school (which I will not mention here for the sake of their privacy). In our Tuesday workshop, we did mock auditions where each acting student had to audition and we took turns doing different roles (casting director, log, director, camera operator and casting assistant). In our Wednesday workshop, we split into groups of three and worked with an assigned actor. The actor that we had, had the same exact vision for the script that we were all working on so that made it easier. We had rehearsals and experimented the script with different genres ranging from drama to comedy to surrealism. Then we filmed the scene with our actor. At the end of the day, we gathered in our class again and watched all the tapes.

It was definitely more interesting working with an actor when filming a scene rather than grabbing a random person in your class to act infront of the camera for the sake of capturing something on tape. The actors put in so much insight and ideas, in addition to our vision, and it's obvious that they have a passion for it- making it easier for the cast and crew to work harmoniously on set.

On Friday, I am glad that I attended the screening because my god I haven’t laughed at a film in a very long time. We watched a Danish rom com film called ‘Italian for Beginners’ (2000) and it was made during the Dogme 95 movement. This movement was a vow of chastity for filmmakers as they strip away all the fancy camera work and props and whatnot and instead focus on the characters and story. The handheld camera and jump cuts made me giggle so much in the lecture hall. So everyone please when you have time please watch Italian for Beginners and immerse yourself in its amazingness.

My mood reel and director’s vision statement is due tomorrow!! I’m hoping this actually encourages me to get my bloody script produced into a film during the summer holidays.

Nearly forgot to mention but I'm holding auditions this Thursday for a film I'm producing which is both exciting and nerve wracking at the same time!!

Spoiler
PS: I find it absolutely hilarious and annoying at the same time that the assignments I put more effort into only got credits and the one I literally did at the last minute [most half assed assignment I've done in my life] got a bloody distinction. I don't deserve this distinction I got my sound assessment. I don't pay attention in my workshops. I don't understand. I thought my tutor didn't like me aha. And I really hate the fact that I got a credit for my editing assignment because that makes me question if I'm still capable of becoming an editor in the future smh.
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: Bri MT on September 27, 2018, 11:32:07 am
Relateable with effort not being proportional to results. My bio quiz results have been roughly inversely proportional to the effort I've put in.

I'd try not to read into it too much,  there's too many different things can can impact your grade and aptitude is only one of them :)

Hope your mood reel and vision statement went well!
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on October 15, 2018, 07:48:39 pm
Hi all! I'm typing this now before I head off to sleep and wake up at 5am tomorrow to get onto set by 7am.

So the past few weeks have been quite stressful since we had more waves of assessments come through.

We're finally heading off into production again since it is nearing the end of semester and I'm both excited and scared at the same time. Excited in the sense that we get to be back on set. I feel that I learn more on set than I do in my lectures aha. But also scared in the sense that- what if something goes wrong. What if my vision isn't matching up with the director's? Will I be able to get to location on time? It really doesn't help that I'm still on my L's and have to take public transport (my mother is working same time I have production so she can't supervise me)

The shoot I have tomorrow and Wednesday is a good 1 hour away from my place (via train and bus) and the crew call time is at 7am! While the estimated wrap time is around 5:45pm which adds up to a 10 hour shoot + 45 minutes lunch. I get to be script supervisor on set because this is meant to help with logging my favourite takes since I'm also editor for this film (and I'm getting assessed as editor so there's a lot of pressure !!!) Once this film is done shooting, I would still have to carry on this project during post production period which there will only be me, myself and I supporting myself- and hoping my vision matches with the director's.

My second shoot will take place this weekend where I will be acting as producer and cinematographer. The location isn't too bad- I get to take my favourite train line because it passes many nice houses and areas!!

Lastly, my third shoot goes from next Wednesday til next Friday where I will be first assistant director on set mwahaha. I get to be in charge of time, all the crew members and everyone's safety.

I'll see how I go in the next two weeks and I'm hoping I don't get sick like I did last production period. The end of Year 1 is so close...
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on October 22, 2018, 10:06:32 pm
Hey all! I've gotten 2/3 film shoots done, the last one being this Wednesday to Friday. I was script supervisor for one film and cinematographer for the other. I'm still in the post production process for the film I'm editing for the end of semester screening and I'm meeting up with the director tomorrow for the picture lock.

Also I got my marks for my editing assignments and I'm just gonna rant because I'm so disappointed.
warning: dramatic bea rants !!
I got a mark of 54/100 for the dramatic dialogue and a 74/100 for the peer review. Like I am genuinely so disappointed in myself. I've always thought editing was my thing. It's my trademark logo ffs (@editedbybea hmu). But the fact that I got a pass and a credit for my editing assignments puts me in a place of doubt because I went into film school this year with the goal of becoming a TV editor in the future. Then my marks hit me like this and that really pulls my self esteem down. I'm known as the editor at uni and my marks don't reflect my reputation.

I know it's not the end of the world and I know that first year doesn't count towards my final GPA/WAM at the end of my degree and I know my marks don't define me. But I just really set myself high for editing class and this shit happens. I must learn to move on. I'm gonna practice heaps more during the holidays and I'll try to talk to the head of editing (even tho she's been lowkey avoiding my emails lol). Hopefully, second year editing class will be much better.

If you're still reading this- thank you for listening me rant and being dramatic and I owe you a subway cookie if I ever see you in the future!
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on October 29, 2018, 10:36:13 pm
Hey what's up you guys, yes.

The end of my first year at AFTRS is so so so close (this Friday!!). I have the next days off since production has finished and I finished all my post-production stuff today so I am free! The last two weeks have been the busiest and most stressful weeks of my life. Though, they've also become super valuable because I was able to learn things on set/post- that I didn't learn during my lectures and workshops.

script supervisor
I realise now the significance of a script supervisor. They're in charge in continuity in between takes and listing them down in a continuity sheet. This sheet also contains the matching take and their sound file (as audio and visuals are recorded separately, who knew!). A script sup is an editor's best friend since their continuity log sheets are what help the editor during the post production process.
cinematography stuff
Being cinematographer scared me the most since I had zero knowledge when it came to manual settings so I heavily relied on the production designer to help me out with this role. I've learnt that setting up the camera and lights are what eat most of production time.
producing stuff
As producer, it was important for me to ensure that my cast and crew were taken care of. I am extremely proud as a producer that my crew were able to communicate with one another during all pre/prod/post production. Giving my crew members tasks ensured for an efficient shoot as well as a united vision. I noticed that other films- the producers who weren't putting effort into their own film, there was beef and tension. I'm glad that didn't happen with my film.
editing stuff
As editor (my nominated assessable role)- I've learnt that I should probably stick to what I edit best (drama films). Even though I'm proud of myself of managing to edit a stylistic, comedy film- I don't think I'll ever edit a comedy film again (well in film school anyways- I would like to edit a mockumentary in the future). I've learnt that there needs to be direct communication between the director and editor- I can't just assume what their vision is and the director can't just assume what my editing style will be like either. I'm still yet to get picture lock for the film- but the director has taken over my editing duties so I guess I'm done then.
the life of a first assistant director
Definition of first assistant director (from Wikipedia): The role of an assistant director on a film includes tracking daily progress against the filming production schedule, arranging logistics, preparing daily call sheets, checking cast and crew, and maintaining order on the set. They also have to take care of the health and safety of the crew.

Lastly, my role as first assistant director has taught me the most about on set protocols and communication. It's known that first day will always go to shit because everyone's still getting used to being on set together for the first time. I was expecting that we would be one hour behind max- ended up being three hours behind. I grabbed someone else to help out and they managed to put us back onto schedule. Second day of the shoot went by so smoothly, despite it being the one with the most scenes and costume changes.

Comparing day one to day two- I've learnt I need to be more assertive with my crew members. It's my set- not theirs. I'm the first fucking assistant director. It will always be my set.

Some general things I've learnt during production period:
* probably don't work with your super close friends next time- things that you/they may do on set maybe taken personally and I don't want to ruin any good friendships
* have better communication with other key departments to ensure a smooth production
* don't rush when trying to set up the tripod because I did end up rushing and somewhat ended up cutting my finger on the least risky film ever (hilarious)
* be confident and that will set the overall mood of the set and crew
* it's okay to make mistakes because it's only first year
* just stick to roles you are super confident with and don't overcommit (in that case- i'm possibly going to stick to producing for sure. not sure about editing and first AD- despite them being my favourite roles, I am forever traumatised from this semester's production block)
* safety is so important !! people keep forgetting that and i don't know why

I'll be back soon during the weekend to discuss the screenings of everyone's films on Friday and just my general review of my first year at uni !!

Hope everyone is going well with their exams ;D
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on December 21, 2018, 11:31:54 pm
As Christmas slowly approaches us, I realised that I have not done a first year film school reflection post. Here’s one now. This also happens to be my 1,000th post (totally didn't plan that on purpose ;) )

This year has got to be the best year of my life. Why? It was the year I broke out of my comfort zone, took on many responsibilities, tackled challenges and learnt more about myself. It’s so funny looking back on my earlier entries in my journal because I really was doubting pursuing a film degree. Would I be able to fit in? Would other people like me? Will my art be good enough? And to that- after a rollercoaster of a year, I’m glad to say that I survived everything. I survived all the confusing assignments, powering through production block and rising up from my problems.

Here’s an overview of my subjects:

Screen Business:
Spoiler
I found an interest in Screen Business class. I hadn’t thought about becoming a producer before going to film school. Fast forward to now, I would love to be one in the future. Wished that I paid a bit more attention in lectures and workshop as important producer related matters such paper agreements, festivals and copyrights are significant. It would’ve helped with production as well since I wasn’t too sure about Chain of Title documents and distribution forms. I look forward to Year 2 Screen Business and what else is in store.

Final mark: 76 (Distinction)

Story (Screenwriting):
Spoiler
I found my passion in Story class. Screenwriting is an art and allows me to express stories. This had to be my favourite subject of all since each lecture and workshop was engaging. It helps that my tutor was absolutely brilliant and had superb connections and just knew her shit. I was inspired by her to really push myself and write the best script that I could. And I did. My first ever fully written script got me my first high distinction (and only HD hehe) and really helped boost my confidence. I learned how to pitch my ideas to a group of people, how to improve my creative writing and how to make good creative decisions.

Final mark: 79 (Distinction)

Image (Cinematography):
Spoiler
I found home in Image. This was a class that felt like I was back in Visual Arts class and I found a sense of familiarity. In this class, we observe all the different planes of cinematography (ie; symmetry, rule of thirds, production design etc.) I enjoyed learning all the theoretical aspects of this class though I really wished I had paid attention to the technical parts of it (ie; aperture, lighting, noise, etc.) At first I was a bit intimidated by the people in my class because there were so little females (it was like a 3:1 male to female ratio I swear). However, I could never forget the workshop when our tutor (who also happened to be the head of Image) only let the females direct and operate the camera. I owe it all to my tutor who is so encouraging and so helpful and so kind and inspired me to really build upon my ideas in this class.

Final mark: 78 (Distinction)

Character & Performance (Directing):
Spoiler
I found clarification in Character & Performance. It was the subject that I was worried about the most because I knew directing was never my thing and I thought that directing was just bossing people around on set. I could never forget what our lecturer said- and that was ‘directing is a discipline that places actors within a space and a time’. It made so much sense. The whole point of the director was to bridge the gap between the actor and your vision of their character on screen. You have to give them a goal and a motivation in order to reach that vision. My tutor for this subject was an absolute gem and was so precious- bless her beautiful soul. She started every workshop with a warm up game and she would always take time to listen to our class rant and answer every single one of our burning questions. I really wished I had worked a bit harder on my assignments for this subject though.

Final mark: 72 (Credit)

Rhythm & Juxtaposition (Editing):
Spoiler
I found disappointment in Rhythm & Juxtaposition. I still remember the last day of Orientation Week where I had told my orientation tutor (who also happened to be the head of Rhythm & Juxtaposition and also ended up becoming my tutor for the subject) ‘I’m so excited for Rhythm & Juxtaposition!’. Though I found myself a bit disappointed with it when we finally got taught the subject in Semester two. All we did was edit in class (wow what a surprise) and that was it. I expected more. I expected how to colour grade. I expected to learn more about the theoretical side of editing. I really expected big things. The class felt very basic- to me anyways. I have to keep remembering that everyone has different experience levels when it came to editing. I already knew how to cut stuff and how to pick the right shots- so I’m hoping that Year 2 R&J would be a lot more interesting and challenging. Because of this, this really put me off the subject and it bit me in the ass because Rhythm & Juxtaposition became my poorest performing subject ever. It really didn’t help much since I came into film school with the intentions of wanting to become an editor in the future. I had let my ego and my reputation get in the way. I need to learn to really get into the grit of things rather than putting things off. I need to make goals for myself beyond the classroom context.

Final mark: 66 (Credit)

Sound:
Spoiler
I found … honestly not sure if I really found anything in Sound. It was such a boring class that it put me off big time and I started to skip out on lectures, workshops and screenings because of it. It got too technical at times (sound frequencies, waves and whatnot) and I was like helll to the nooo. Though I must say that I do regret not going to some of my lectures and workshops because I realise that sound is so important in film. Like my close friend had once said ‘so I’m basically 50% of your film?’. That’s what he said after I had hired him to be in a film I’m directing soon (will discuss more about this below). And I was like ‘what do you mean 50% of my film? You’re just sound’. He then said ‘sound makes up for 50% of the film. Without me, your story will not look good on the screen’. And he was right. I remember watching our end of semester two films during our screenings and some of the films had terrible sound quality and it really draws you out of the film. The plot, the production design, the cinematography etc. can be good, but if the sound is shit- you’ll just be brought back into the real world. Sound allows you to immerse within the world of the content you’re watching. Despite not attending most of my Sound lectures and workshops, I am honestly so gobsmacked to say that Sound ended up being my best performing subject for Semester 2 (what in tarnation). I’m gonna try and add in more effort next year since Sound correlates with Editing so much.

Final mark: 78 (Distinction) (I still think that I don’t deserve this mark)

Production:
Spoiler
I found valuable life lessons and experiences on set during production. I have seriously learnt more in the month of production combined than I have in my six months of lectures and workshops altogether. Makes sense though because we’re actually putting what we’ve learnt in class into practice. Production blocks are reflective of what’s the industry is like and what’s to come in the future. Being on set allows you to grow as a filmmaker. Semester 1’s production allowed us to experience all significant crew roles. While semester 2 production gave us the freedom to pick whatever role we wanted. I’ve learnt not to over commit to a lot of film projects or else I will suffer. For example, I had signed myself up to work and act in films in semester one that I got so so so physically sick that I couldn’t leave my house for a week. While in semester two, I worked on a lot of films and spread myself too thin that the quality of my work for each work that I had worked on wasn’t up to par. Friendships were tested and my work ethic was questioned by many. I had lost motivation in semester two’s production due to bad experiences with certain people in all pre, production and post. I really wished I hadn’t overcommitted because that burnt me out and I feel bad that I had done a shit job on all the films I worked on- especially the one I was editing. I’ve learnt not to work on films for the sake of helping out your friends. Yes I do want to help my friends but I also have to make sure that I’m genuinely interested in the project. My friends’ approval shouldn’t be my motivation- rather the project itself needs to be my main motivation. I’ll stick to only two films max next production. Also I really need to learn how to be confident on set because that will set the mood

Final marks:
Visual Storytelling (Sem 1): 76 (Distinction)
Short Form (Sem 2): 72 (Credit)

So here’s a ranking of my subjects:
Spoiler
Story: 79 (D)
Image: 78 (D)
Sound: 78 (D)
Screen Business: 76 (D)
Visual Storytelling: 76 (D)
Short Form: 72 (C)
Character & Performance: 72 (C)
Rhythm & Juxtaposition: 66 (C)

Technically first year does not count towards our WAM/GPA (woohoo!) I know all our assessments had different weightings and whatnot- but I calculated that my WAM/GPA is 75 (technically it’s 74.6 but I wanted to round it up to the nearest number *coughs* to get a distinction). I know grades don’t really matter in the film industry but I still would like to improve on my marks and really challenge myself to be a better student.

Besides my subjects- I’m still proud to say that I’ve managed to step out of my shell a bit and believe in myself (cheesy I know but it’s true). I had so much fun learning about film this year and I really really can’t wait for Year 2. However, I don’t start until 2nd week of March which is so far away oh my god. But I do have plans for myself in the upcoming months that will keep me busy- such as...

* Directing a short film (see my updates in my other thread ‘Bea’s Films’)
* Editing my friend’s short film (which I got picture lock for! Just waiting for the sound edit and the screen music to be sent in before final submission)
* Volunteering at a film festival
* Some AN related things
* Working my butt off at Priceline aha
* Figuring out a documentary topic to direct for production in semester one.

Not only have I learnt to step out of my shell at film school, I’ve learnt to step out of my shell in the real world. I’ve made new friends and unfortunately had lost some as well. I’ve learnt to get in touch with my emotions and let my heart be vulnerable. I’ve made mistakes. I’ve had the time of my life. I’ve tried new things. And I’ve created and embarked on opportunities that will help me grow. If there really is one thing I would like to do in the new year- that would be to simply, just be confident. I can’t even tell you how many times I have been told to be confident by a certain amount of people- all ranging from my tutors to my friends to my co-workers to my parents and even myself. I’m still working on it but I can’t wait to meet this confident version of myself soon. She’ll be fantastic.

I guess that's 1/3 of my degree done. Still figuring out where I would like to pursue my master's degree. I was originally leaning towards University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) due to their immense connections within the American screen industry. But they don't have a masters in editing. I'm trying to look for a British institution that offers a Masters in Editing since I would like work in the British screen industry in the future. I probably won't pursue my master's degree until I'm ~25 years old as I would like to gain some experience in the industry first before doing my master's.

See you guys in the new year :)
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on January 17, 2019, 10:21:12 pm
So my countdown timer tells me I have 52 more days til I go back to film school. I am honestly and genuinely so keen to get back to film school. I miss learning, I miss the environment and I miss the people.

If you know me irl, you know that I've been keeping myself crazy busy this month to the point I don't have a proper day off til February 3. In my list of plenty commitments, one of them is volunteering at a film festival. It's actually my first time volunteering at one and it's super chill. The transportation takes ages imo, but once I'm there- I'm just so amazed.

Watching short films in a two hour session rather than watching one big feature length film is somewhat refreshing and different. I reckon people should at least attend a film festival or watch one short film- they're really different to mainstream films !! And also- I hope to submit my film to a festival one day and would love to get selected for one ;D
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on February 17, 2019, 06:29:32 pm
Lowkey jealous of all the unsw students going back to uni tomorrow!! My timer tells me i have 22 days left til i go back!! I am so BORED despite committing to so many projects.

I've mentioned in a previous entry that I wanted to figure out a documentary topic for production block in year two. The thing is, yes I do have a topic, but it's like I've lost the drive to direct a film ever since I directed my short film nearly a month ago! I truly do not have the passion to become a director. It's exhausting. Plus I don't see the rush to direct a film for production when I can easily do it during the holidays on my own terms, you know?

I've decided to undertake two roles for sem one's production block: producer and editor. I love being producer because I get to be in charge of all the logistics of a film. I also want to edit because I want to redeem myself from my poorly edited film last year. Plus it makes sense for me to edit for sem one because we have to make documentaries and it is a dream of mine to edit documentaries at the BBC.

There's just something about the BBC (or the British screen industry in general) that screams sophistication in my opinion.
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: smamsmo22 on February 18, 2019, 01:02:07 am
22 days? Wow! How come such a late start?
I skimmed through your past entries and they were really interesting; I'm excited to hear how you go this year - I wish you all the best :D I don't know if you've covered this in past posts (oops and sorry if so :P) but I had a couple of random, general questions... keep in mind I know nothing about film school(s).
Are there any major differences between your film school and a 'standard' university? This could be in terms of anything.. timetables, cohort age/size, class/course structure.. I'm genuinely just curious as I've had such little exposure to film school etc (but have already been quite interested in editing as a hobby (:
Sorry if these questions are super basic and uninformed  ::)
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on February 18, 2019, 11:17:17 am
22 days? Wow! How come such a late start?
I skimmed through your past entries and they were really interesting; I'm excited to hear how you go this year - I wish you all the best :D I don't know if you've covered this in past posts (oops and sorry if so :P) but I had a couple of random, general questions... keep in mind I know nothing about film school(s).
Are there any major differences between your film school and a 'standard' university? This could be in terms of anything.. timetables, cohort age/size, class/course structure.. I'm genuinely just curious as I've had such little exposure to film school etc (but have already been quite interested in editing as a hobby (:
Sorry if these questions are super basic and uninformed  ::)

Hello! Reason for late start is because I'm heading into my second year of film school this year and second years start late compared to first and third years. I think it's because we want to give first years time to settle in before 2nd and 3rd years start. 3rd years usually start a week after 1st year (still pretty early than 2nd year) because its the final year so they need more time to work on their graduation projects and whatnot. Even though we start late, we still finish the year pretty early around the second week of November!

Thank you for your lovely words <3

I will try my best to compare and contrast film school and university. I have only heard about university structures through my friends and AN of course and I really have no idea 100% what happens in an actual university.

timetables/subjects/class structure
I can only speak for my film school because I'm sure that other film schools operate differently. In my film school, we only offer one bachelor degree (Bachelor of Arts Screen: Production) so we don't need to worry about making timetables. It's just made for us. We don't have to worry about choosing subjects. We do the same subjects each year which are Screen Business, Story (Screenwriting), Image (Cinematography, Lighting and Production Design), Character & Performance (Directing), Rhythm & Juxtaposition (Editing), Sound and Production (production blocks occur at the end of each semester and go on for 3-4 weeks) However, the focus of each subject depends on the theme of each semester. For example for this year, in semester one we'll be focusing on documentaries and all things non-fiction, while we do things related to web series and episodic forms in semester two.

As for class/course structure, it is a three year bachelor degree. We are still in semesters (thank god!) with four months per semester. Three months dedicated to in class lectures and workshops and one month dedicated to production at the end of each semester. We go to film school three times a week. We start off the week with a 1-1.5 hour lecture on the first day. We do one subject per week and do them in cycles until we hit production block. Last year in Year 1, we did Screen Business, Story and Image in Semester 1 (four times) and Character & Performance, Rhythm & Juxtaposition and Sound in Semester 2 (four times). However, things are different in Year 2 where we have all six subjects in one semester but we only do them twice as opposed to the four we did in Year 1, if that makes sense? After our lecture, we go into a 1.5 hour workshop then 1 hour lunch then another 3 hour workshop, continuing from our previous workshop. The activities differ in each workshop and subject. I find Story to be the most engaging subject that's when we get the freedom to write our own stories.

On the second day we either do the same thing we did on the first day or just go straight into our workshop, skipping the lecture altogether. This depends on the subject. Usually Story, Character & Performance, Rhythm & Juxtaposition and Sound like to skip out on the lecture on the second day.

On the third day, we have a 1 hour lecture for our screen studies and learn about film history and whatnot. We then proceed into a 1.5-2.5 hr screening and watch a film related to our lecture. At the end if we have time, we have a discussion about the film. We break into our 1 hr lunch then head into a 1 hr seminar. In this we get given a question about the film industry (sometimes these questions are controversial) and we have a debate. One time two guys were arguing about Blackface in Hollywood and even continued their argument after the seminar ended and it was super intense! People get so passionate about seminars. Lastly, we have our 1.5 hr reflection where we reflect back on the week.

We have something called SDL day (Student Directed Learning day). It occurs in between the 2nd and 3rd day of uni. So we usually get given a task to do on the second day and we have to complete it on SDL day. We could do SDL at home or on campus, we have a choice! Or we get asked to complete our assessment task that's due soon.

cohort
In terms of cohort age/size, it's a bit of mixed between all years. In my year, there's a huge batch of fresh out of high school graduates. But the range for my year is pretty much 17-25. We do have one outlier who's 33 years old I think. However, other years have a much older range of students. There are a lot more males than females in each year group. I would say there's a 2:1 male to female ratio. Predominantly Caucasian students though there are quite a couple of Asian and Indigenous students as well! I would say there's a 5:1 Caucasian to POC ratio. Our cohort size is currently sitting aorund ~80. Our selection process is based on portfolio not ATAR and only 1/3 of applicants get accepted each year. There are around 15-20 people per class

the part where i actually talk about universities
I realised I kept rambling on about my film school and didn't really discuss the difference between it and university. I suppose the major difference is definitely the environment and the culture. I definitely feel more 'artsy' when I'm at film school. I think it's because of the facilities are clearly targeted towards film. The classrooms aren't just classrooms. They are film classrooms. We have mini sets with production design and all in each classroom in case we want to film something there. With university, since every degree study there, all the classrooms are kinda generic? Also you do have the university atmosphere and culture so I suppose it's much more prominent than the atmosphere I experience at film school. We don't get societies or clubs at film school which is something I would love if we had them!

University definitely does feel like an institution where you really don't know people. There are so many people at uni so it is impossible to make friends at first (from what I've heard from my friends anyways). My friend describes my film school 'Youth Group' because there's so little of us and we are forced to be with each other and therefore we end up being friends or at least acquaintances with everyone.

Film school really feels like a safe space to do your hobby as a degree without getting judged for it.

Obviously we can't pick up a second degree and do a double degree since we are the only degree at film school. We don't have to worry about making timetables and getting the best times because they're done for us. We don't even have to worry about getting lost on campus because we only have one building and you can't even access half of the rooms because they're for staff, radio, masters and third years only. I get so lost when I'm at UTS or UNSW because it's so big!

Sorry for rambling but I hope my answers makes sense ;D
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: RuiAce on February 18, 2019, 11:21:39 am
Lowkey jealous of all the unsw students going back to uni tomorrow!! My timer tells me i have 22 days left til i go back!! I am so BORED despite committing to so many projects.
You're making me cry Bea.
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: smamsmo22 on February 19, 2019, 09:01:40 pm
Thanks for your answers, they were really insightful and I'm really glad you're liking your school :)
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on February 20, 2019, 05:00:12 pm
So I went back to film school briefly today to attend the Peer Support lunch.

I should mention that I am a Peer Support leader for 2019 ✨ I was a(n) (unofficial) peer support buddy back in high school and I missed it so that’s why I decided to be one this year.

I got assigned to two first years but one didn’t show up today. My peer support buddy is super nice! I’m hoping she sees me the same way too aha.

We played a game today with all the other peer support leader and their first years where a random number would be shouted and we had to get into groups of whatever the number was said. I didn’t expect to last until the last round.

There was only three of us left: me, my peer support kid and another first year. They said get into a group of two and my kid and I got together and we ended up winning the game ahahhaha.

I haven’t felt that much adrenaline in a long time.

I have 18 days left of my holidays...
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: sweetiepi on February 20, 2019, 07:56:32 pm
So I went back to film school briefly today to attend the Peer Support lunch.

I should mention that I am a Peer Support leader for 2019 ✨ I was a(n) (unofficial) peer support buddy back in high school and I missed it so that’s why I decided to be one this year.

I got assigned to two first years but one didn’t show up today. My peer support buddy is super nice! I’m hoping she sees me the same way too aha.

We played a game today with all the other peer support leader and their first years where a random number would be shouted and we had to get into groups of whatever the number was said. I didn’t expect to last until the last round.

There was only three of us left: me, my peer support kid and another first year. They said get into a group of two and my kid and I got together and we ended up winning the game ahahhaha.

I haven’t felt that much adrenaline in a long time.

I have 18 days left of my holidays...
Being a Peer Support leader/mentor is definitely really rewarding in the long run, which is why I'm doing it again this year! (Also because I like feeling old haha!)
That game sure did sound really fun! :)

Hopefully your buddy sees you as the lovely and supportive person that you are! <3
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on March 17, 2019, 08:08:17 pm
what's up everybody, welcome back to my channel. hi, how are ya?

After a very long and eventful four month break, I am now finally back at film school for my second year woohoo! This semester we are now focusing on non-fiction content which I think is personally more interesting than fiction content. Non fiction includes all things documentary, lifestyle, current affairs, reality tv and more! We had Screen Business this week which I've been looking forward to ever since I decided producing is a path I would like to take in the future.

We started off the week with a lecture with non-fiction stuff and all the tutors talked about their specialities in non-fiction. Our lecturer was a producer for Better Homes & Garden so was cool to hear her experiences working on a lifestyle show. One tutor discussed documentary. My favourite talk from a tutor was the one who specialised in reality tv and actually used to be a producer for MARRIED AT FIRST SIGHT!!! This is my favourite reality tv show ever so it was so cool hearing her talking about the behind the scenes stuff as well as confirming the rumours that have been spreading in the media lately.

We spent the rest of the week focusing on marketing, audience for non-fiction and our end of sem projects.

lil rant
Is it weird that I prefer female tutors? Because 4 out of 5 of the Screen Business tutors are female and I'm lowkey annoyed that I got the male tutor. This sounds so bad but I just have a preference for female tutors, especially at film school. The film industry is filled with so many males so having a female tutor just gives me hope that I do have a place somewhere in the industry in the future. It also doesn't help that my Screen Business class is 70% male. It's quite intimidating.

It be like that sometimes...
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on March 24, 2019, 10:08:15 pm
18/03/19 - 21/03/19
Story 2A

I really shouldn't be surprised that there's a huge difference between non-fiction storytelling compared to fiction storytelling but I'm still so surprised. There was a lot of emphasis on research methodologies this week as we expand on our assessment from Screen Business. Our assessment is about creating a hypothetical documentary. In Screen Business, we focus on the marketing and feasibility side of things. As we continue this assessment in Story, we talk more about the story we want to tell and its treatment.

I was gonna do an exposé documentary about the producers behind MAFS and how the show has affected the contestants post-show. But after a week filled with social issues and which ones you were passionate about, I've decided to make my hypothetical documentary about 'the fault in the private school education in regards to sex education' and how this affects young boys and whatnot. I have an interview with the head of PDHPE from an all boys high school in my area this week so am pretty keen to get on that. I've interviewed some guys in my year about the issue as well and it's genuinely surprising to see a lack of sex education at boy high schools.

I seem to be more confident with answering questions in class which is pretty good. Though I only feel like I only speak up because I feel bad for the tutor- they ask a question to a class of 20 but no one replies back.

End of sem projects (update):
- So I'm producing a dating show where we'll send off a two people in our cohort on a date but there's a twist!
- Not sure if I'm gonna edit a film because the director doesn't have a full crew and I'm scared that the film will be dropped because I would like to edit it since the topic is so relevant to me and also all the good films have been taken and I don't want to edit some crappy film about some boring social issue lol.
- Technically I can work in three films but decided to only commit to two so I don't burn myself out. People keep asking me to do production design, sound and first ad work but I keep saying no and I feel bad !! But like why force myself to do roles I'm not good at lol.

Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on April 02, 2019, 08:53:16 pm
25/03/19-28/03/19
Image 2A

New year, new camera. We got introduced to the Sony FS5 which is a HUGE step up from the Sony NX70. The FS5 can shoot 4K and has a detachable lens which is pretty cool. Got introduced to new set of lights as well. The theme of the week was 'the unrepeatable image'. We did an activity where we head down to a dance school near us and filmed the classes. It was pretty cool because you really had to be mindful that once a move was done, it was done. You also had to be super selective of which shots you wanted to take as well.

We also did an activity where we had to recreate a top tips/interview video. We got into groups had to take turns of a role- in this case I was cinematographer so I was able to practice my cine skills. I would like to know how to light up a set because lighting is actually pretty hard.

End of sem projects (update):
- So we did end up getting a full crew so I am now officially editing a film.
- I am also assistant editor for another film as well.
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on April 14, 2019, 08:10:17 pm
01/04/19-04/04/19
Screen Business 2A

This was the last week for Screen Business for this semester woohoo! We had some pretty cool guest speakers come in and talk about audience, marketing strategies and cross promotion which helped a lot with my assessment. Then we learnt about the zeitgeist which was interesting at first but got very repetitive towards the end of the week.

08/04/19-11/04/19
Story 2A

So we learnt about different cinematic modes and non-fiction models which was super interesting. I never really thought documentaries had different genres and modes until the first lecture of the week. We spent the rest of the week really developing our ideas for our assignment. We had to make an outline for a documentary about an issue we're super passionate about. I really enjoyed writing non-fiction because it's surprisingly lot more flexible than fiction writing in a script mode. We also had our feasibility meetings for our end of sem projects. So far, so good! Everythings under control- even got sucked in to co-produce a new film (that means I'm working on four films now which is a lot).

Curious to see how Image goes this week before we head into a new cycle next week for our three other subjects!
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on May 03, 2019, 05:56:27 pm
Keep forgetting to log in this journal every week ah

15/04/19-17/04/19
Image 2A

Bit of a weird week since everything's been pushed together for the upcoming Easter weekend. We pretty much did activities in class where we had to film footage for assigned audio filed (if that makes sense?). Our group ended up making quite a sensual piece about two lovers with an overlay of a poem being said over the top. The next day we spent playing the green screen and what was intended to be a serious activity ended up being a shitstorm. Protip: don't give film students green screens without a solid brief! We were given equipment the day afterwards for our Image assignment where we had to interview someone. Let's just say this someone is a familiar face to the AN community. My edit of this interview will be up and running soon!

23/04/19-26/04/19
Character & Performance 2A

We are BACK again with directing class and directing non-fiction is so so so much better than fiction. We had this AMAZING activity in one of our workshops. We had to deal with interviewing difficult subjects (there's four types) and there are four ways to get around them and make sure they stay on track. We had acting students come in and each had a persona and difficult subject archetype and we had to figure out what the archetype was and use the methods to get what we wanted. The first person I interviewed was a costume designer for Nicole Kidman. The goal for this was to get info about Nicole for an upcoming documentary. But everytime I would ask questions about Nicole, there was a sense of grudge towards the actress (this acting student was brilliant). I was able to unlock her by telling her that she was in a safe space and the cameras weren't rolling and that's when she opened up. I interviewed someone else who's pet ferret died in an incident and the goal was to get her to talk about the details of the incident. But the acting student kept derailing the conversation and talking about how alone she was. I didn't know what to do and got so frustrated that I broke out of my interviewer character ahaha. Although the acting student told me that I was so close to unlocking her. She kept saying that she was alone and that the couch was big. Turns out all I had to do was to sit next to her and talk to her as a friend rather than an interviewer and that's when she told me all about the details of the incident. My mind was blown.

It was such a brilliant workshop activity. It's probably the best activity I've done at film school. I learnt so much.

29/04/19-02/05/19
Rhythm & Juxtaposition 2A

This week has been an eye opener for me and has brought me back to my love for editing once again. This is certainly a good thing cos I lost my passion for it last year rip but it's back now! We learnt something called the Paper Edit where we had to transcribe interviews, print them, cut the interviewee's answers and assemble them into a new sequence that flows really well. The order of the interview question will certainly not be the same order in the final cut. This entire week has been creatively challenging and exhausting for me- which is definitely a good thing.

Other stuff
* I've been talking to the students in the year below me, not just in the hopes of networking, but also in the hopes of making some new friends as well!
* Pre-production documents for production blocks have been slowly making progress which is great.
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on June 09, 2019, 06:44:32 pm
Hello! Long time, no see. We wrapped up on official classes about one and a half weeks ago. I learnt about the idea of fiction storytelling within the non-fiction genre in directing class. Colour grading in editing class (this entire week was super intense) and all things sound design and podcasting in sound.

We had our final production meetings last Monday and we are currently in production block. Most of the documentaries I'm working on shot well before the production block so I've only been doing mostly post-production. I did direct a film a few weeks ago and up to this day, I don't understand the hype around directing. I suppose it's a confidence issue but also have a strong enough vision for the film.

I'll be on set this week as producer/glorified runner. It'll be interesting to see how this film goes as I've decided not to take any on set roles this semester. It'll definitely be weird being back on set again.

I CANNOT wait for our screenings at the end of this semester. Can't wait to see all the docco's come to life- after seeing so many behind the scenes photos and people's stories. I also cannot wait for my mid year break because I've been wanting to do a whole re-discovering my love for the arts type of thing. Just really create stuff that I care about and finding my roots in the fine arts again because I miss it. Although it's crazy to think once this semester ends, I'll literally be halfway through my degree. Time flies so quick. It was just like yesterday when I got my acceptance email.

See you guys soon !
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on July 14, 2019, 08:20:21 pm
Experimenting with a video entry since I didn't want to type out my reflection for Year 2 Semester 1 ahaha.
Please enjoy my voice and my snazzy 50MM camera lens.


Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: Joseph41 on July 15, 2019, 07:42:38 am
Experimenting with a video entry since I didn't want to type out my reflection for Year 2 Semester 1 ahaha.
Please enjoy my voice and my snazzy 50MM camera lens.




Amazing! Awesome quality.
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on July 18, 2019, 08:49:15 pm
Experimenting with a video entry since I didn't want to type out my reflection for Year 2 Semester 1 ahaha.
Please enjoy my voice and my snazzy 50MM camera lens.

Woohoo! Finally got my marks back for Production and I got two HD's and I am over the moon <3 I worked my butt off for my edit so I'm glad that it was worth it in the end.

Okay back to enjoying my sem break ;)
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: katie,rinos on July 18, 2019, 08:57:55 pm
Woohoo! Finally got my marks back for Production and I got two HD's and I am over the moon <3 I worked my butt off for my edit so I'm glad that it was worth it in the end.

Okay back to enjoying my sem break ;)

Thats amazing!! Congrats!!  ;D
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on July 27, 2019, 08:46:02 pm
Time to do a quick life reflection type of thing before I begin Semester 2 this Monday.

Very recently, one of my old friends from primary school has passed away. A few months prior to that, another acquaintance from primary school passed away too. Primary school is such a distance memory for me. It's so weird that I remember these two guys so very vividly (especially one of them being my primary school crush!). It's crazy to think so much has happened ever since we all graduated primary school in 2011. We all went to the same high school together in Year 7 until I eventually moved to Australia afterwards. I haven't talked to them ever since or anyone from my primary school for that matter, since we are many countries away from each other and it's hard to keep up with the huge time differences.

I'm still trying to process that my old friend and old crush have passed away so recently because the last time I saw them they seemed so cheerful and so full of life. It's not everyday that someone my age passes away. It is a timely reminder that life is short and that I should really hold onto the friends and family that I've got right now because who knows what can happen? It's time for me to stop holding grudges, to make the most of the life I currently got and create lifelong memories.

Rest in Peace to H and L. Thank you for being apart of my primary school life.
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on August 04, 2019, 07:28:36 pm
29/07/19 -01/08/19
Screen Business 2B

We're back for semester two and we're focusing on EPISODIC content this semester which is very exciting and refreshing as I am getting lowkey sick of film and short form content aha.

We learnt about what exactly episodic content is and how multiplatform campaign works to maintain audience interest outside a show or any screen content for that matter. It was super interesting to see that even merch counted as multiplatform content because I was an avid merch collector back in high school and didn't realise that it was all a business tactic until now. We have a group assignment on creating a multiplatform campaign for a selected web series and it's very exciting because it's super creative for a Screen Business assignment. I also love love love my tutor because she's so enthusiastic about everything !!

This semester production is completely different because we have been given two specific web series brief and we have to get interviewed on what role and brief we want to work for. I'm quite nervous because I only want one specific role for one of the briefs and there's quite a few who want the same role as well! Just need to prep myself and sell myself + my idea to the interviewers in a few weeks time.

It's lovely to see everyone back from semester break.
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: Joseph41 on August 06, 2019, 04:56:38 pm
Sorry to hear about your primary school friends, beatroot. Hope you're doing okay.

Woohoo! Finally got my marks back for Production and I got two HD's and I am over the moon <3 I worked my butt off for my edit so I'm glad that it was worth it in the end.

Okay back to enjoying my sem break ;)

Congrataulations. :)
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on October 08, 2019, 11:43:34 pm
It's been two months since I've last written an entry ahh. It's about time that I do... This semester has been crazy busy hence my lack of updates.

- The rest of Screen Business proved to be interesting as we were taught more things about different marketing strategies, multiplatform ideas. We also presented our group presentation infront of our class. Despite going wayyyy above the time limit, my group still managed to snag a distinction.
- Screenwriting class disappointed me big time this semester. Story has always been my favourite subject since Year 1. However, I was majorly disappointed with how poorly structured the lessons were this semester.
- I really enjoyed cinematography class this semester. I thank my tutor for being so engaging and so passionate about everything he teaches! It's wonderful to see a tutor who encourages females to join male dominated fields in film. We had this one particular activity where the lecturer set up 'The Amazing Race'-esque activities and we all had to pretend to be on the show. We took turns in being participants and filming what was happening.
- Directing class was super meh. I can clearly tell my tutor had a passion for directing but ever since directing a short film, I've been put off directing ever since. I just don't understand the appeal of directing. I just don't.

We still have another week of editing and sound classes left before we go into production. So far editing and sound class have been great. We've been given out information about our Year 3 Electives and we have to submit our preferences by the end of sem. At the moment, I have my eyes set on editing. I might potentially do motion design (VFX). Not sure what to do for my third elective. Choosing between sound, cinematography, screenwriting and production design. Trying to decide which out of the four is a good balance between an elective I'll enjoy and one that can give me the skills to get me a job in the future.

The lead up for this semester's production has been so busy, emotionally draining and exciting. I have been lucky enough to have been given my first role preference (series producing). I'm producing a web series with two other people. It's super exciting because we actually get to release our series to the public very soon. But it has been so emotionally draining because the workload for it has been so constant. I have about 2-3 meetings a week just for the web series. I even had 7 meetings in the span of 3 days. I'm just hoping all my hard work is worth it in the end.

On another note, I have been very lucky to lecture Visual Arts in the very recent HSC lecture series.
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on December 20, 2019, 06:17:22 pm
I thought Year 1 was a great year. I was so wrong. Year 2 is so much better. Semester One was pretty amazing but Semester 2 was by far the greatest semester at film school. I really enjoyed Semester Two because I pushed myself to do the impossible and managed to achieve it.

Here’s an overview of Semester Two. We focused on episodic content which is my favourite type of content in the screen industry.

Screen Business 2B:
Spoiler
I really enjoyed this semester for Screen Business. We kinda moved away from the typical business side of things and moved towards social media stuff. It was interesting learning about multiplatform content and how that can help build an audience. The group presentation was quite food as well as I was with a good group (which is very rare). We also had a workshop where the tutors rotated in between classes and talked about their areas of expertise in screen business (ie budgeting, pitching, marketing etc.) which I thought was very useful and interesting. Also wanted to mention all the tutors for Screen Business were female which was super cool and badass (warms my heart that there’s female representation in the field)

Final mark: 78 (Distinction)

Story 2B:
Spoiler
Probably one of the few subjects that I didn’t enjoy this semester. I do enjoy story in general since writing stories and planning out stuff is something I enjoy. The lectures were great since we learnt about returnable elements in popular television content. It was just the workshops that ruined the subject for me (which sucks big time)

Final mark: 79 (Distinction)

Image 2B:
Spoiler
I think what made Image so interesting this semester was two things: 1) learning about rules and guidelines you need to consider when doing episodic content and 2) actually learning about production design (finally). My tutor was AMAZING and was so passionate about production design. It was interesting to hear how production designers work with cinematographers and vice versa. We had an activity in our final week of Image where our lecturer assigned us to re-create ‘The Amazing Race’.  We were given activities to do in our groups of four. Two people would do the challenges while the other two would film them. We just had to make sure the camera didn’t stop rolling and predict what people would do next. I hope I make sense ahahah.I really enjoyed the assignment as well.

Final mark: 81 (Distinction)

Character & Performance 2B:
Spoiler
I really despise directing. Even though I said Semester two was great, this was honestly the worst subject I have studied. I didn’t see how my lectures and workshops correlated with directing within the episodic landscape. Our workshops consisted of reading long scripts and trying to figure out the character’s motivations and stuff. We literally did this stuff in first year so I was disappointed that we were just doing the same thing in Year 2. The assignment was terribly confusing and my marks clearly reflect that.

Final mark: 66 (Credit)

Rhythm & Juxtaposition 2B:
Spoiler
Fun fact: My original tutor for this must’ve been on industry leave or something because he didn’t turn up once! But that’s ok because we had recent graduates teach us how to edit. We pretty much spent all our workshops doing our assignment. We were given 3 scenes from ‘Rake’ and had to edit them into a 5 minute sequence. We were also introduced to VFX this semester which is so bloody interesting (not sarcastic). This lecture was run by my editing tutor from last semester (he’s the best tutor I’ve met at film school so I was super excited to see him run the VFX lecture)

Final mark: 76 (Distinction)

Sound 2B:
Spoiler
Sound 2B was a literal carbon copy of Year 1 sound so I don’t really feel like I learnt anything at all in this subject. Learning to record sound on site was alright. Very disappointed with how post-sound was approached and I hope that part of the Sound curriculum improves for the next year.

Final mark: 76 (Distinction)

Episodic Production:
Spoiler
This was the subject that really made the semester and made it the best one. Episodic production was very different to other productions I’ve had so far. Other productions = some writer/director pitches their short film idea and they get a crew of 8 ish people to make it happen. Since we’re doing episodic content, the school gave us two briefs to work on and we had to make the new season for the shows. Since we had to make five episodes, there had to be at least 30 crew members on board. We had to get interviewed for the role that we wanted which was super intense.

I applied for the role of ‘Series Producer’ for the reality TV dating show brief (called What’s Your Flava?- feel free to watch Season 1 on Youtube), which is basically the biggest role on the show. What’s your Flava? is a reality dating and cooking show for bisexual people and we had to make the second season this year. The role of the Series Producer (on a dating show) besides producing the show also included figuring out how to twist the original brief, getting cast, doing the paperwork, writing the challenges etc. I said ‘why not. I enjoy producing. I want to get assessed on producing. If I don’t get the role then it’s not meant to be’. I was up against 10 other applicants which was hectic. I was so terribly nervous during my interview and my glasses kept fogging up ahahaha. I pitched my idea on how to mix up the new season, why I would be a great producer and referenced successful dating shows in Australia (I believe our show can go viral) I waited a day to see if my interview was successful and it was. I was hired with two other Series Producers and thus began this amazing production for the rest of the semester.

It was crazy trying to handle a crew of 30+ people. I was so used to handling a crew of 6 people. Communication was key as a Series Producer so we had to hire heads of departments to keep the communication alive. It was sort of like a pyramid. Series Producers at the top. Directors, cinematographers, sound, prod design underneath and assistants of those said departments.

I spent so many days, nights, weekends, before and after school hours, in class hours even, trying to get cast, sorting out transportation, revising the budget, keeping crew together, holding meetings, attending meetings, doing mentoring sessions, doing risk assessments constantly and so much more. There were so many times where my brain felt so damn numb. It was to the point where my co-producers saw how I loopy I was becoming at meetings and have told me to leave ahahha.

But this whole experience is so so so worth it. It was worth the lack of sleep. Worth the stress. Worth the highs and lows. Worth all the paperwork. We shot the show in four days back in October, went through two weeks of post production and delivered our product in mid November. We got so many positive feedback for the show and I just can’t believe I helped create the product. What I’ve said about production is just the tip of the iceberg and I have so many more stories to share about it.

I would like to thank Episodic production for teaching me everything I needed to know. I have created stronger bonds with my crew members and have learnt to improve my problem solving skills and communication. I am so so grateful that I have experienced being a Series Producer-  as well as working within the reality TV landscape whilst still at film school- because it is such a rewarding experience. I hope that we get approval from my film school’s selection committee for official release on Youtube next year.

Final mark: 86 (High Distinction)

Now what?
Spoiler
Year 2 was great and I want to keep working. Though I know I must take a break, which is why I’m going on a holiday with my parents very soon. However, this is what I’ve got planned when I come back from my holiday before Year 3 starts. I would like to re-edit What’s Your Flava? With the post team and start creating social media content for the show as part of the lead up to its official release (if it does happen but I hope it does!)

Year 3:
Spoiler
Year 3 is my final year of my degree and I am so nervous and excited at the same time. We get to work on long form projects this time. Honestly, not a huge fan of short film production BUT I am excited to hear people’s ideas for their graduation projects. Since it is my final year, we get to do our electives next year. I will be doing editing, motion graphics (VFX) and production design. On top of that include mandatory courses such as Screen Business, Creative Development and of course production.  It’s crazy to think that I’ll be done with my degree in a year’s time ah!

See you guys soon!
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on March 03, 2020, 09:50:09 pm
I start my last year of my degree tomorrow! Crazy to think that I'm in my graduating year. Time flies so so quick. It was just like yesterday when I was getting my ID and student handbook on the first day of O-Week. I've written myself a list of things I would like to achieve this year. Not sure if I'm being realistic with my goals (lols) but hopefully I am able to achieve most of them by November.

- Work on films and projects that speak truth to me and have a personal connection with the director.
- Produce a great film with an amazing director.
- Edit a docco (if someone does end up directing one); if not, I'll edit a drama film
- Production design a cool film
- Kickstart my website
- Build my brand name @editedbybea
- Do more mentoring sessions (1 on 1 with my tutors)
- Apply for an internship or at least apply for something in preparation for next year
- Work with different directors
- Attend the after school film club more
- Attend more networking events
- Attend masterclasses when possible
- Learn how to properly cook so I stop spending all my money at my film school's cafe
- Make the most out of my electives and actually ask for help when you need it (rather than sitting back and doing nothing in class)
- Don't go on social media during lectures and workshops ahaha

... and most of all

- Really make the most of my last year at AFTRS and build strong connections with people
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: Bri MT on March 04, 2020, 06:45:05 pm
I start my last year of my degree tomorrow! Crazy to think that I'm in my graduating year. Time flies so so quick. It was just like yesterday when I was getting my ID and student handbook on the first day of O-Week. I've written myself a list of things I would like to achieve this year. Not sure if I'm being realistic with my goals (lols) but hopefully I am able to achieve most of them by November.

- Work on films and projects that speak truth to me and have a personal connection with the director.
- Produce a great film with an amazing director.
- Edit a docco (if someone does end up directing one); if not, I'll edit a drama film
- Production design a cool film
- Kickstart my website
- Build my brand name @editedbybea
- Do more mentoring sessions (1 on 1 with my tutors)
- Apply for an internship or at least apply for something in preparation for next year
- Work with different directors
- Attend the after school film club more
- Attend more networking events
- Attend masterclasses when possible
- Learn how to properly cook so I stop spending all my money at my film school's cafe
- Make the most out of my electives and actually ask for help when you need it (rather than sitting back and doing nothing in class)
- Don't go on social media during lectures and workshops ahaha

... and most of all

- Really make the most of my last year at AFTRS and build strong connections with people

Out of these goals, which one is most important to you?


It doesn't feel odd to me that it's already 3rd year but maybe that's also because I've still got another year of uni? I feel like so much has happened in the past 2 years compared to high school that if anything it should've been more time passed between getting my student id & now.
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on March 04, 2020, 08:31:32 pm
Out of these goals, which one is most important to you?

Think out of all goals, the "Work on films and projects that speak truth to me and have a personal connection with the director" has to the most important one for me. I've spent my first year and half of second year working on projects that really didn't connect to me personally and I struggled creatively and mentally. In Sem 2 of my second year, I worked an amazing project that I really loved and was super passionate about. I put so much effort into it because I loved it so much and the hard work paid off because we managed to get our project distributed and released to the public.

Now that I'm in my final year, I will put my effort into projects that I am passionate about, those that speak truth and have a personal connection with the director. I don't want to work in projects that have stories that have no connection to the director because that doesn't feel real. I want to work on projects where I can see a part of the director in the story because I care about telling raw and authentic stories and stories that are worth telling in this oversaturated market.

Today I signed up to produce my friend's short film. I've been pitched ideas by 6 other people (producers are really rare at my film school!) and I didn't really like their ideas as much (they're good ideas but I just didn't connect to their ideas personally). I'm very glad that my friend trusts me to produce their film. It's going to be really great!

Edit: Realised that it's been 3 years since I signed up for AN!
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on March 25, 2020, 08:23:54 pm
So I started my final year of film school three weeks ago and ... we're starting our online classes next week yikes. Before I discuss my thoughts on the online classes, I'll discuss all the face to face teaching that happened before my film school has shut down.

It was really lovely to see everyone again. It's weird because I spent a whole month before the academic year re-edtiting and making social media content for the release of What's Your Flava? 2020 and film school was empty during that time (as it was obviously the holidays). But it was so nice to see the foyer filled with people from my year again and basically just film school getting back to action.

Our focus for Screen Business is very practical as we're being taught about the long form industry but most importantly, we're also being taught how to create our personal brands and how to get a job in the industry. Our assignment is quite overwhelming because we have to write about our career plan and it's just crazy to think that we'll be done by November and actually have to try and get a job in the industry next year. My tutor for the subject was my tutor for production back in Year 1 so I was super happy to see her again. She's so lovely, so inspiring and so insightful- I couldn't have asked for a better tutor to have for Screen Business.

Since we're in our final year, we get to choose our electives. My first elective choice was 'Editing'. We learnt about movie trailers and its history in our very first lecture of the year. It's actually crazy to think that there's a whole industry dedicated to just movie trailer editing. In our workshops, we've been slowly taught Avid- which is the industry standard programme for editing. It is so different to Premiere Pro. Avid is so intimidating and so confusing all at once. I lost my timeline in one workshop and that really stressed me out, b don't worry I found my timeline in the next workshop. Our first assignment for editing is actually pretty cool- we got assigned different films to edit into a trailer- I got given Pitch Perfect. We also have to use the opposite genre for the film for our edit. Since Pitch Perfect is a musical rom-com, I thought a mystery thriller would be the opposite genre for the film. I actually finished my second draft for my edit yesterday and I am very pleased with it.

I was really looking forward to my second elective 'Motion Design'. Before we even started the week, my film school had announced that they were going to stop face-to-face teaching and move to online classes. We came back to school for one day last week to be debriefed on online classes and had our last ever face-to-face class. We basically had this super heavy 2.5 hour lecture since my tutor tried to squeeze all the lectures for the week into one day. It was actually a very insightful lecture. Motion Design isn't just graphics. Motion Design is the utilisation of graphics to add more meaning to a work and adding purpose to a purpose. We got taught some basic stuff on After Effects including rotoscoping and adding animation to text. The assignment is lowkey confusing but I just need to find some inspiration to really get started. My classes for the week got cancelled since my subject is too practical- other classes trialled their online classes. Since my class got cancelled, this got added on at the end of semester to make up for the lost time.

For Production this semester, we're focusing on Long Form production. We have to create a trailer for a long form idea- this can either continue onto grad next sem or just be a crowdfunding video to use outside of film school. I've signed myself up to work on three different trailers- I'm producing, editing and production designing this sem (how exciting). I was gonna stick with producing and editing initially but I realised it was my last ever chance to expand onto production design before grad so I said "why not?". We also had to pitch ourselves infront of the entire cohort and the production tutors. So many people were planning on writing and directing so I knew I had to pitch myself as an editor and find the perfect director to work with. I decided to make my presentation very meme-y and laidback so that it would stand out from the others... and it did ahahhaa. I got a lot of offers to edit people's films- I wanted to be super picky because I have been burnt by some directors in the past before.

Now here are my thoughts on the online classes...
Obviously there's nothing I can do about it. But I am very upset about it. This is my final year at AFTRS. My final year to have unlimited access to the best equipment, labs and studios at the school and I don't have access to that anymore. It really really sucks. But again, there is nothing I can do about it. I'm just really concerned that I'm not gonna make the most out of my final year and that I'm not gonna get the experience and material for my portfolio for me to get a job next year. We haven't been told if production has been moved or cancelled this semester but I have a feeling it'll be cancelled because there's so much at stake if we had cast and crew on set in June (who knows what's gonna happen in June??) It would really suck if we can't even have production because that means next time we're in production mode will be for our grad projects and I don't think I'm ready for that without any recent on-set experience. We also had a quick orientation for Zoom today and it was just such a weird experience.

My course is such a practical course and it's just gonna be so weird having my practical course being moved online. The only thing I'm technically losing is some expensive programmes (ie Avid and Pro Tools) and the editing labs. It also sucks not being able to be in a classroom environment- I'm very scared that I won't be as productive at home since my home is where I just relax, therefore not really making the most of my degree. Again, nothing I can do about it but just needed to vent my thoughts out. People are even planning on deferring til next year which is fair. The idea of deferring and graduating in 2021 sounds like a good idea but I really want to graduate with the people I started this degree with. I can't imagine having to start fresh with a new cohort. Plus I really need to get started my career in the industry at a young age so that I am able to get to my end goal quicker.

We're on a break this week and we're starting our online classes next Wednesday. These online classes are going to be really interesting... I'll let you know my thoughts and my experience with the online classes.

PS: Hope everyone's staying safe during this hectic time! Remember to wash your hands!! The only time I can leave the house is when I go to work. My work is considered an essential service so I still have to go to my casual job twice a week. Although, not gonna lie I do feel anxious everytime I go to work now because I'm interacting with so many customers each shift and they don't know how to practice social distancing my gosh (and please stop using cash when paying for something)
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on April 28, 2020, 09:55:53 pm
Hello so I haven’t done a journey journal update in a while but here it is. (PS: I tried doing speech to text for this entry and the editing process took longer than I expected. So if I come off very casual in this entry, this is why)

Online classes were a bit weird definitely in the first week cos like when I had my very first online class it was for editing and my goodness that was absolutely horrendous. It was fine for the lecture but for our workshops, we kind of got sent to do everything on our own. I thought that was a bit lonely because I was in my room editing like cos if we were back in the labs we would actually be next to each other. Our tutor would be floating in between people looking over their edits but since we have workshops online we have to log off. Personally I have to log off Zoom because my computer keeps heating up when I've got Premiere Pro and Zoom running at the same time. I just get so lonely in editing class.

This is basically the same for motion design class which is just another branch of editing which involves stuff like visual effects and animation. With our class initially it started with live tutorials and then our tutor realised it wasn't as feasible because you know people have different laptops, people have different paces, etc. So he just posted video tutorials online on Moodle and we had to follow those. It was a bit lonely just having to edit stuff the entire day in my bedroom and it didn’t feel like a class because it wasn't collaborative at all. But then again can post production really really be collaborative?

But when it comes to screen business- it’s a compulsory subject for everyone so basically everyone in the year has to do it. It was just nice to see people again just in one space even if half the people didn't have their camera on. Personally, for me I did have my camera on so I am more engaged in class cos if I don't have my camera on that basically gives me the opportunity to not take any notes and not pay attention in the lecture. But at the same time I end up just looking at myself in my zoom box thing and that's not good. Our screen business lecturer is so lovely- she’s always trying to cheer us up. Then we go into our workshops and the lovely thing about our workshops is our tutor really encourages in-class discussions. I really hate breakout rooms because it's so awkward- it’s just you and two or three other people and then your tutor randomly pops in and out. Seeing everyone in the entire class makes it feel like a classroom environment and it makes sense- because screen business to be a subject that has heaps of class discussions.

For long form for production obviously we can't go and set anymore because of the new rules which makes sense. But it sucks because next time I'm going to be on set it will be for my grad project and that scares me. By that time I go on set in September/August this year it would have been 9 months since I've been on set.

Is it just me or online classes are going a bit quicker than I expected? I wake up at like 9, go to class at 9:30 and then I finish at 4:30. I really do think they go quicker than I expected, maybe that's because obviously I don't have to wake up early- you know to eat and to travel to campus. Like I can literally eat while I'm in a lecture and they don't mind us eating. In fact, I always get asked what are you eating for breakfast and I'm like yeah I'm just eating dumplings cos I'm craving for dumplings in the morning.
One thing, I would like to comment is the fact that s zoom backgrounds are getting very old nowadays. Like when we were in the first 3 weeks of online classes, people had funny zoom backgrounds. Even I managed to distract myself in every single class by just picking the best doom background. People message me privately on Zoom like ‘funny background... where did you get that from’. Or I would message other people asking ‘hey where’s your zoom background from’

Good news apparently we might be going back on campus next semester. I really hope. I really don’t want to spend the final year of my bachelor’s degree attending online classes.
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on June 12, 2020, 10:02:29 pm
Here's a quick update from me!

I've definitely gotten used to the online classes ever since my last entry. Putting Zoom on gallery mode made the lectures and workshops a little less lonely since I was able to see everyone in the class not just my tutor.

I've finished most of my subjects for the semester besides production which is happening right now. Screen Business went pretty well and was probably one of my top subjects in my degree in my opinion. Really loved how practical the assignments were because they're helping us build our brand and find potential collaborators. For instance, we had to make a website (essentially an online portfolio) I'm pretty proud of it. We also had to do faux job interviews over zoom and I think that went pretty well.

Motion Design class was definitely in my top five subjects in my studies because I've learnt so much, not just about animation, but also the industry and life in general. It was refreshing to have a tutor who didn't insist too much on finding our creative voice. Rather he said just work on projects that are realistic and can pay the rent for the week which was really refreshing to hear. I'm super glad that I'm more confident with After Effects now yay! I'll post the animation I did for my assignment over on my other thread very soon.

Editing class was somewhat a disappointment. It's sad because I want to be a picture editor sometime in the future. But this class was just so disappointing. Made me hate the process of editing a lot more which is bad. My tutor was lovely don't get me wrong. I think I was just frustrated because we were doing storyboarding instead of actual editing. I understand there's some benefit to it but the class wasn't what I had expected.

Soooo we're in production now. Well. Not exactly production since Covid's a bitch and decided to turn up and shut down my film school. We can't go on set obviously. Not even sure if we can go back on set next semester for our graduation projects. Although, at the same time- the new brief for production isn't too bad. We have to create a pitch deck for the projects that we're on. There's so much emphasis on development which is a more realistic reflection of the industry. You don't just whip out a short film in a matter of months in the industry. Development takes years before production can even begin. I'm being assessed as a producer and my goodness- out of all the roles for production- this is the hardest. We have to write about our target audiences, how we plan on distributing our films, the timeline for development, a risk assessment. It is so hard but honestly kinda rewarding at the same time. I'm really getting into the nitty gritty of the industry with my research and all.

The semester ends in two weeks which is exciting. I just can't wait for the break where I will try to catch up with as many as possible (while socially distancing of course) before our graduation semester begins in August. Hopefully we're back on campus by then.

My 3rd year goals- an update
- Work on films and projects that speak truth to me and have a personal connection with the director.
- Produce a great film with an amazing director.
- Edit a docco (if someone does end up directing one); if not, I'll edit a drama film
- Production design a cool film
- Kickstart my website
- Build my brand name @editedbybea
- Do more mentoring sessions (1 on 1 with my tutors)

- Apply for an internship or at least apply for something in preparation for next year
- Work with different directors
- Attend the after school film club more
- Attend more networking events
- Attend masterclasses when possible
- Learn how to properly cook so I stop spending all my money at my film school's cafe
- Make the most out of my electives and actually ask for help when you need it (rather than sitting back and doing nothing in class)
- Don't go on social media during lectures and workshops ahaha (this has been an absolute fail)

... and most of all

- Really make the most of my last year at AFTRS and build strong connections with people
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on July 02, 2020, 09:58:40 pm
The semester ended just nearly a week ago for me and I'm still processing it. Still can't believe that the semester's done and that I only have 1 semester left before graduation. I shall reflect on this semester now.

Even though COVID kinda ruined the semester, it weirdly enough made it good as well? Yes it sucks that I wasn't able to go on campus but my sleep schedule has been so good. The best sleep schedule so far in my degree. I also liked how people were alot more flexible (since no one can leave their house) and I was able to have heaps of production meetings- whether that'd be with my tutors or my peers. There was just so much emphasis on development this semester that it made me realise that you have to remember to build a great foundation before making a product. Without a good foundation, the product won't be as good?

Anyways onto my subjects- I've already mentioned before but Screen Business is great, Editing not so much and yes yes yes to Motion Design. However, Long Form production was probably the most fulfilling subject out of them all because it was such a wonderful experience. I was able to work with a director (as a producer) who really valued my input, my efforts and my advice which I have never experienced at film school before. We made an amazing film and I'm so proud of the work we did (especially with the circumstances that we were in) I also undertook editing and production design which were also interesting to do under these restrictions. (*these restrictions included not being able to go on set due to social distancing guidelines)

I'm one of the few lucky ones to return on campus next semester as my third elective is a practical one (practical electives get priority) I shall be doing production design which I hope to be a delightful experience.

My plans pretty much for this semester break includes pretty much continuing development for the short film I'm producing for next semester. A wise man once told me "a producer's job is never done". I know I should be taking a break during this semester break but working is just so fun!! Especially when it is for a project that you're so passionate about.

This reflection is actually super trash so I might make another one during the break. Maybe a video one so I can actually express what I want to express?

See y'all soon!
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: beatroot on April 20, 2021, 06:33:33 pm
Last time I wrote in this journal, I just finished the first semester of my graduating year. Now- I've finished my degree. I won't do a super long ramble how my final semester went but I remember it being quite stressful and also eventful at the same time. I had learnt so many things about myself, my chosen industry and my future during my last semester.

I was fortunate enough to attend classes on campus- although wearing a mask in the building was a bit of a pain (especially when you're running late for lecture ahah) My subjects for my last semester were Creative Development, Production Design and Graduation Production. I learnt about career stuff in Creative Development (how to write a resume, a cover letter and a portfolio) This subject also taught me how to find my own brand and voice which is beneficial to your career journey. Production Design was such a cool subject to do! Our final assessment included designing a set and filming a short film in our designed set. We did an old mouldy bathroom and it was really fun finding old bathroom furniture around Sydney and ageing them with using an array of materials.

I also applied for some internships. I applied for three but only got an interview for two of them. Unfortunately, I did not get any of the internships but it was a good experience to practice my interview skills.

As for my Graduation Production, I worked on two projects as a producer and as an editor. I produced a short drama film which took up so much of my time but was so worth it at the end! I also was the production designer for the film too. I also edited a short documentary for graduation as well which was super fun to do! Due to covid restrictions at the time, we couldn’t screen our films at our film school. Instead, our tutors rented out a cinema where everyone in my year, tutors and significant staff members could all fit (whilst being 1.5m apart from each other of course). Our screening was meant to start at 9:30am but it was delayed until 11am due to really bad traffic in the area (there was a police parade- I don’t know why but there just was one) It took about 6 hours to screen all our films, pilot episodes and all. And just like that our degree was over. Everyone headed to the nearest bar for pre-drinks before heading over to someone’s house for the final party of the degree.

I guess it hadn’t hit me at that moment that my degree was completely done because our graduation ceremony isn’t until May. But I did get a bit sad knowing that I’ll never see the same people in the same room ever again.

I did return two weeks later to complete an extra course (it was rescheduled due to COVID) It was a three day course on AVID (industry standard editing programme) and it was HECTIC. I could not comprehend what was going on because it was all so confusing so this definitely steered me away from pursuing editing as a career. But it was nice being back on campus for that extra three days. A week later, I went away on holiday up north NSW and it was a nice break from how hectic my last year of my degree was.

Came the new year and I only still had five months until my graduation ceremony (which is in person thank god) I’ve been keeping myself busy with finding jobs in my industry. It’s kinda funny because I’ve been offered jobs but the employer never followed up or hired someone else instead (I was close to working with a famous director which I’m still sad about) :( I did get offered a full time office job but I declined it because I believe I was too much of an early career individual to be pursuing a high ranking job such as this. I lectured for AN for the January lecture block and also did some teaching back at my high school.

I was fortunate enough to have been offered a contract job at a major television broadcaster (can’t say the exact broadcasting centre unless you stalk my LinkedIn) to work on a Docuseries. I worked on the Docuseries for three months where we shot interviews, wrangled paperwork and did some editing at home. I’m very grateful for this experience and lucky enough to have been able to work with this well known television broadcaster. Now that my contract has ended, I’m now just focusing on writing, doing some online courses, moving out and working on a secret project. I have also updated my website wooo which is beatricetekiko.com (shameless self promo lol)

I look back on my studies at AFTRS and think to myself how lucky I am to have been able to study at the national film school. 16 year old me fell in love with its facilities when she took a short holiday course back in 2016. She swore that she would get into AFTRS and nowhere else. Just AFTRS. I still remember the exact day when I got my offer. I still remember O-week, all the parties, all the lectures (and me skipping lectures woops), all the Zoom classes and the productions I work on. But more importantly, I am so grateful for all the lessons that I have learnt, for all the connections I have made and all the people I have met.

I’m really proud of all the things I’ve done during my time at AFTRS. I think the thing I’m really proud of is getting my projects distributed by the school- it’s very rare that they pick up Bachelor projects (they prioritise the Masters students) so I’m quite happy about that. I graduated with a Distinction average- this doesn’t really matter in my industry but I’m still happy with my final grade.

I also have AN to thank for allowing me to share my tertiary studies journey on the forums. It’s great that I am able to look back on my experience at film school for years to come.

That’s Bea buzzing off. Thanks for reading :)

My 3rd year goals- an update
- Work on films and projects that speak truth to me and have a personal connection with the director.
- Produce a great film with an amazing director.
- Edit a docco (if someone does end up directing one); if not, I'll edit a drama film
- Production design a cool film
- Kickstart my website
- Build my brand name @editedbybea
- Do more mentoring sessions (1 on 1 with my tutors)
- Apply for an internship or at least apply for something in preparation for next year

- Work with different directors
- Attend the after school film club more (covid ruined this so no)
- Attend more networking events (again covid ruined this so no)
- Attend masterclasses when possible (do I even need to mentioned who ruined this??)
- Learn how to properly cook so I stop spending all my money at my film school's cafe
- Make the most out of my electives and actually ask for help when you need it (rather than sitting back and doing nothing in class)
- Don't go on social media during lectures and workshops ahaha (this has been an absolute fail)

... and most of all

- Really make the most of my last year at AFTRS and build strong connections with people
Title: Re: Bee(a) buzzing through film school
Post by: Bri MT on April 21, 2021, 10:15:16 am
Massive congratulations!!

Woo!!!! Really happy for you!

Love the minimalism of your website btw