Helped Shoot a Short Zombie Film

During the weekend I assisted some friends with shooting their own zombie film, I played the role of news reporter. The experience was beneficial in highlighting potential issues when shooting, for example:

• Background noise proved especially hard to record against, additionally the background in general was an issue as we found many were passing through areas where we were shooting. Which is problematic if the film aims to depict a zombie outbreak.
• It was raining at one point which put the camera at risk, luckily someone improvised and used a plastic bag in order to shield the camera.
• Some actors didn't know their lines - this was an organisational issue - given the time constraint, the scripts were only given out on the day resulting in a lack of quality acting.
• Gathering the shots seemed to also be an issue as the group didn't have a storyboard properly made, which meant rerecording scenes for potential use when editing.

Some of these issues can be avoided though. Firstly, in regards to sound and background interference, it is probably a good idea to keep on-set lines to a minimum or to add dialogue in post; I could even just do a voice over or not include dialogue altogether.
Secondly, in regards to location, sound can be an issue as well as interruptions from the public (i.e. passers-by), for this I would aim to shoot in relatively secluded areas. Alternatively I could either keep dialogue to a minimum or just add it in post; it could certainly be effective if the main protagonist/protagonists don't necessarily speak, instead focusing on the outbreak/downfall of society like in Dawn of the Dead (2004).
Lastly, organisation in terms of writing the script and planning a storyboard appear to be key. By completing a script I would be able to hand it out sooner to the actors and have them rehearse, additionally a storyboard would make organising shots easier - making it easier to focus on continuity and whether or not I have all of the shots needed. This will ensure that my work is very efficient and to a high enough standard.

 

Above are the people I worked with during the shoot and it seems to be a good decision to work with them in order to shoot my own video. We both have the same focus of genre and I am then working with a previously established group - putting me in contact with a make-up artist and even actors or an additional camera worker. I will work on asking them to work with me and hopefully get organised soon.

 

It has been beneficial for me to work on this project as it has put me in contact with Lauren who has kindly offered to do make-up for my video. Furthermore, I have been able to discover new locations for filming, some were quite public and therefore not what I would wish to use, however it was still useful to get an overall idea of potential areas; evidently a full day of scouting for locations to shoot would be required as some shots of mine might disrupt the public - if I attempt to use weapons and even through the use of zombie make-up which might appear too realistic.

 

Overall, it appears that working on a zombie film would be more efficient - I've already helped shoot one previously, I am a fan of the genre and culture, it is an affordable genre and so one Furthermore, zombies are iconic and thus are entertaining, if I am able to grab people's attention with a typically trope-filled genre then perhaps my development into the representations enabled by zombie films will stand out more.