Below you will find a short film I made for a cinema production class I'm currently taking for funskees. The assignment was to show a character moving from one location to another using the editing/shooting methods of visual continuity we learned in class. In other words, don't disorient your audience. Have the character walk into frame and then walk out. If he/she is walking from left to right in one shot don't have him/her walking from right to left in the next shot. Cutting on action was stressed as well. If a character goes to pick up, say, a plate of nachos make the cut as he/she is moving then have the next shot (of a different angle and/or zoom) begin where the action left off, in this case picking up the nachos. It all sounds pretty obvious but it can be a big headache if you don't plan for it before a shoot. For my film I not only had a lack of preconceived shot selection but I had no idea what it would be about. I am not the most creative person and staring at a blank canvas paralyzes me. For weeks I was racking my brain as to what my film would be about. I knew I had the help of my film nerd, Niraj, and once my brother-in-law Tal and his girlfriend Sarira, volunteered to help I thought I could use some sort of a love triangle dynamic. Beautiful Dolores Park was a great location to shoot with its hills and greens and people. I was racking my brain as to what the film should be about when Sarira stated she was starving and bought some nachos at the Mexican food truck. Once I saw the mammoth plate of nachos I knew what my film would be about. That sort of serendipitous luck was the genesis to what you are about to view. I like the little film but would've shot it differently had I time to think out the shots. Being prepared in filmmaking is a must. I wasn't. As a result, some shots don't particularly work that well but oh well. The whole point of this is to learn and to learn cinema you must practice. Enjoy.
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