Friday 20 June 2008
Within a Room Somewhere...
This is the final entry written from my college room as I move out tomorrow because I have finally come to the end of my year at James Watt College. That means, for all you obsessive and manic fans out there in TV land, I have completed 6 Days a Stranger. The epic short horror of low budget proportions is done and dusted and handed in to the good folks at the SQA for grading. This is just a short and simple message to let everyone know that. I will post excerpts from my graded unit in the coming days/weeks (but not the entire thing, as its 19 pages altogether). Then, to top the entire project off, I will post the film itself up here for your viewing pleasure. After that I’m pretty sure you’ll never read another update on this site, because what I set out to do has been done and nothing more needs to be written. But before we reach that point, you can look forward to the few final entries and 6 Days a Stranger itself. Keep on doing what you do.
Friday 30 May 2008
Gratitude to the Earl
I don’t believe that here at Hangman.blogspot.com I have clued you loyal (albeit sparse) nation of fans about the shooting progress of 6 Days a Stranger. Well ladies, gentlemen and lost porn surfers allow me now to spread the cream cheese of intelligence and information onto your crusty bread of life. Like a butter-knife through…butter, I slice through all the BS and slam the facts upside your oversized melon. Dig the following like your life depends on it:
October 2007: Filmed all indoor scenes of 6 Days a Stranger and completed them in the glorious and picturesque seaside town of Stranraer.
April 2008: The lead actor of 6 Days a Stranger dropped out on the day that final shooting was to commence. However, superhero director Hangman managed to save the day and get a replacement no problem. Major props to our man who saved the project and stood in as lead actor. All previous filming had to be re-shot with the new actor and all outdoor scenes were filmed in various locations throughout southwest Scotland.
And so now you know, the blood rushes to your head like a mountain river full of spawning salmon and you pass out due to the sheer joy experienced in this most euphoric of mind states. When you come to after your butler/crackhead/Elvis impersonator applies the smelling salts you read this post where you left off prior to said passing out to read even MORE news regarding 6 Days a Stranger:
The Earl of Stair deserves my sincere thanks for allowing me to film portions of this film on the Castle Kennedy Estate. The Earl was a pleasant man to talk to about the project and allowed us to get our required shots done on his land. So thank you very much for your co-operation, it was very much appreciated.
Currently, I am knee deep in the editing process of the film, which will soon be completed. Alongside the main feature I am also currently editing together a trailer for the film which should make its spleen shattering debut in the near future. As usual, stay tuned the fxck in to this blog for all the latest, greatest and bile-barf inducing updates on 6 Days a Stranger.
October 2007: Filmed all indoor scenes of 6 Days a Stranger and completed them in the glorious and picturesque seaside town of Stranraer.
April 2008: The lead actor of 6 Days a Stranger dropped out on the day that final shooting was to commence. However, superhero director Hangman managed to save the day and get a replacement no problem. Major props to our man who saved the project and stood in as lead actor. All previous filming had to be re-shot with the new actor and all outdoor scenes were filmed in various locations throughout southwest Scotland.
And so now you know, the blood rushes to your head like a mountain river full of spawning salmon and you pass out due to the sheer joy experienced in this most euphoric of mind states. When you come to after your butler/crackhead/Elvis impersonator applies the smelling salts you read this post where you left off prior to said passing out to read even MORE news regarding 6 Days a Stranger:
The Earl of Stair deserves my sincere thanks for allowing me to film portions of this film on the Castle Kennedy Estate. The Earl was a pleasant man to talk to about the project and allowed us to get our required shots done on his land. So thank you very much for your co-operation, it was very much appreciated.
Currently, I am knee deep in the editing process of the film, which will soon be completed. Alongside the main feature I am also currently editing together a trailer for the film which should make its spleen shattering debut in the near future. As usual, stay tuned the fxck in to this blog for all the latest, greatest and bile-barf inducing updates on 6 Days a Stranger.
Thursday 15 May 2008
Shy Gypsy, Slyly Spryly Tryst By My Crypt
What a great title that is, and no I didn't come up with it all by myself I jacked it from the 7th Guest. None the less, I have an update so there is more here than an excuse to post an awesome (in the literal sense of the word) title. Update:
I have decided to change the name of my film to '6 Days a Stranger'
That’s right, no longer to be called "Here Today...Gone To Hell" you will refer to this project as 6 Days a Stranger or risk getting shot in the back.
In other news, it has been several months since I actually did it but I filmed around half of the movie already. This Monday and Tuesday should mark the last days of shooting and after that it's simply some editing left to do and I am done here. Kind of, I still have to evaluate the entire process.
In even otherer other news (yeah, it’s a word, I’m serial too) I have undertaken a side-project related to 6 Days a Stranger. For my Video Production class I will be making a trailer for the film. Perhaps if it’s good enough (and it will be) I may include it in the DVD with 6 Days a Stranger itself.
Alright well that is enough from me here today, your Swiss cheeseesque mind has waited since February for this information, I hope it didn’t live up to the expectation. Bye bye.
I have decided to change the name of my film to '6 Days a Stranger'
That’s right, no longer to be called "Here Today...Gone To Hell" you will refer to this project as 6 Days a Stranger or risk getting shot in the back.
In other news, it has been several months since I actually did it but I filmed around half of the movie already. This Monday and Tuesday should mark the last days of shooting and after that it's simply some editing left to do and I am done here. Kind of, I still have to evaluate the entire process.
In even otherer other news (yeah, it’s a word, I’m serial too) I have undertaken a side-project related to 6 Days a Stranger. For my Video Production class I will be making a trailer for the film. Perhaps if it’s good enough (and it will be) I may include it in the DVD with 6 Days a Stranger itself.
Alright well that is enough from me here today, your Swiss cheeseesque mind has waited since February for this information, I hope it didn’t live up to the expectation. Bye bye.
Wednesday 27 February 2008
Investigative Report (outcome)
HNC Communication with Media
Graded Unit
Learning Outcome 1
Neil Dinsmore
Here Today…Gone To Hell - Investigative Report
The project I am undertaking for my graded unit for this Communication with media course is a short film entitled “Here Today…Gone To Hell”. The purpose of this project is to bring to fruition my idea for a short horror film which tells the tale of one man and his experiences in what could be his own personal afterlife. This project will involve three main stages; planning, developing and evaluating. For the initial planning stage I have drawn out and perfected a storyline, obtained the required equipment, acquired the people who shall play the roles of the film’s characters, scouted for locations to shoot at and acquired editing facilities. I have already written a treatment for this film and have had it posted on my project’s blog but have since taken it down and will not post it online again because I do not want to run the risk of anyone stealing my ideas.
The audience this film is aimed at is people who hold an interest in short films, horror films but in particular older style horror films from the first half of the twentieth century. Hopefully this will be achieved through the style of both story and the way the film is shot and edited together upon its completion. The reason for undertaking this particular project and aiming it at this particular audience is simply because it is a topic I am interested in and makes sense to work on something I have greater interest in than other things.
My objectives regarding this project are to plan, film and edit “Here Today…Gone To Hell” and then to evaluate both the finished product and the process of bringing it from an idea to a completed short film. The deadline for completing all of this is the end of the term for this HNC Communication with Media course.
Resources:
Film
I shall be shooting this film in black and white for around 90% of the film and colour for the remainder, the film in its entirety will be in a widescreen format, the reason for this is that in my own opinion I personally think short horrors, specifically ones made on a low budget (and this is below that, this is budget non-existent) look better on screen in this style. I feel that black and white masks much of the cheapness which may come across if it were in colour throughout. Also the storyline of this film goes perfectly with the majority being in black and white and the opening scene and end scene being shot in colour. The camera I shall be using is a Sony DCR-HC37 with Carl Zeiss lens. I also have a tripod for use in stationary shots and was planning on using a simple step ladder for whenever I require an otherwise unobtainable shot.
Audio
This film will feature minimal sound effects and virtually no active dialogue (by that I mean characters speaking as their lips are moving). Instead for the most part I plan on having the main character narrate at points throughout the film. This is relevant for two reasons; the first being it will work better for the reality/surrealism of the plot. And secondly it will eliminate any need for boom microphones etc during filming which would have been quite a problem to acquire, especially where I have planned on filming.
Location
For this film I will be shooting in three specific locations; a forest, an isolated shore and a town/city centre. I shall be filming these in locations within the rhins of Galloway.
Soundtrack
The opening scene of this film will be present the viewer with a harsh prolonged guitar chord held in the same key. It is not ‘music’ so much as it’s a sound effect, I’m undecided with what to use exactly for this scene, my current choices are between Fleshpaint’s Empty Rooms and Eyes Adrift’s Pasted. Without uploading sound clips I cannot accurately describe exactly what it is that I mean, but it does fit in perfectly for the scene (or how I am hopeful it will turn out at least). I have also been looking for some public domain ambiance to use at specific scenes throughout this film and have already obtained some scores from the online public domain website Archive.org. These include the Blackshift Mode Project led by Mikoli Weaver from the music group Sonoprint.
Cast
I will not give the names of the people who will portray the character in this film just yet as there could still be a risk of people backing out. Hopefully that will not happen but just to be safe I will leave it until filming is complete before I give details of the cast. The characters in the film however I will mention. The main character is the main that has just passed away and is experiencing what he perceives to be hell. Other characters include friends and relatives of this man, the assassin, police officers, members of the press, a car or bus driver and many onlookers for a crowd scene at the end.
Editing
For this project I plan on editing this film myself as I have a background in video editing already myself, I also feel I will be better able to achieve my desired outcome if I edit this myself as opposed to giving instructions to someone else to do the editing for me. I will be using Sony Vegas studio 8 and Nero Vision 4 for editing facilities. Once this is all done it will be burned onto DVD disc and I plan on designing a unique menu and DVD covers for this film as well, even if it is not required of me. I want this project to be absolutely complete once it is done.
Graded Unit
Learning Outcome 1
Neil Dinsmore
Here Today…Gone To Hell - Investigative Report
The project I am undertaking for my graded unit for this Communication with media course is a short film entitled “Here Today…Gone To Hell”. The purpose of this project is to bring to fruition my idea for a short horror film which tells the tale of one man and his experiences in what could be his own personal afterlife. This project will involve three main stages; planning, developing and evaluating. For the initial planning stage I have drawn out and perfected a storyline, obtained the required equipment, acquired the people who shall play the roles of the film’s characters, scouted for locations to shoot at and acquired editing facilities. I have already written a treatment for this film and have had it posted on my project’s blog but have since taken it down and will not post it online again because I do not want to run the risk of anyone stealing my ideas.
The audience this film is aimed at is people who hold an interest in short films, horror films but in particular older style horror films from the first half of the twentieth century. Hopefully this will be achieved through the style of both story and the way the film is shot and edited together upon its completion. The reason for undertaking this particular project and aiming it at this particular audience is simply because it is a topic I am interested in and makes sense to work on something I have greater interest in than other things.
My objectives regarding this project are to plan, film and edit “Here Today…Gone To Hell” and then to evaluate both the finished product and the process of bringing it from an idea to a completed short film. The deadline for completing all of this is the end of the term for this HNC Communication with Media course.
Resources:
Film
I shall be shooting this film in black and white for around 90% of the film and colour for the remainder, the film in its entirety will be in a widescreen format, the reason for this is that in my own opinion I personally think short horrors, specifically ones made on a low budget (and this is below that, this is budget non-existent) look better on screen in this style. I feel that black and white masks much of the cheapness which may come across if it were in colour throughout. Also the storyline of this film goes perfectly with the majority being in black and white and the opening scene and end scene being shot in colour. The camera I shall be using is a Sony DCR-HC37 with Carl Zeiss lens. I also have a tripod for use in stationary shots and was planning on using a simple step ladder for whenever I require an otherwise unobtainable shot.
Audio
This film will feature minimal sound effects and virtually no active dialogue (by that I mean characters speaking as their lips are moving). Instead for the most part I plan on having the main character narrate at points throughout the film. This is relevant for two reasons; the first being it will work better for the reality/surrealism of the plot. And secondly it will eliminate any need for boom microphones etc during filming which would have been quite a problem to acquire, especially where I have planned on filming.
Location
For this film I will be shooting in three specific locations; a forest, an isolated shore and a town/city centre. I shall be filming these in locations within the rhins of Galloway.
Soundtrack
The opening scene of this film will be present the viewer with a harsh prolonged guitar chord held in the same key. It is not ‘music’ so much as it’s a sound effect, I’m undecided with what to use exactly for this scene, my current choices are between Fleshpaint’s Empty Rooms and Eyes Adrift’s Pasted. Without uploading sound clips I cannot accurately describe exactly what it is that I mean, but it does fit in perfectly for the scene (or how I am hopeful it will turn out at least). I have also been looking for some public domain ambiance to use at specific scenes throughout this film and have already obtained some scores from the online public domain website Archive.org. These include the Blackshift Mode Project led by Mikoli Weaver from the music group Sonoprint.
Cast
I will not give the names of the people who will portray the character in this film just yet as there could still be a risk of people backing out. Hopefully that will not happen but just to be safe I will leave it until filming is complete before I give details of the cast. The characters in the film however I will mention. The main character is the main that has just passed away and is experiencing what he perceives to be hell. Other characters include friends and relatives of this man, the assassin, police officers, members of the press, a car or bus driver and many onlookers for a crowd scene at the end.
Editing
For this project I plan on editing this film myself as I have a background in video editing already myself, I also feel I will be better able to achieve my desired outcome if I edit this myself as opposed to giving instructions to someone else to do the editing for me. I will be using Sony Vegas studio 8 and Nero Vision 4 for editing facilities. Once this is all done it will be burned onto DVD disc and I plan on designing a unique menu and DVD covers for this film as well, even if it is not required of me. I want this project to be absolutely complete once it is done.
Monday 18 February 2008
Sans Lithium?
Wellity wellity wellity, can you feel it? Can you taste it? No you can’t because what I refer to is untastable, it’s unfeelable (physically anyway) so you must be a lying son of a bitch dog stain…for shame. What I speak of is the approaching storm, the tempest in the distance, the hellfire for all your asses to toast themselves to; the one and only Here Today…Gone To Hell. The epic that will grace your screen this summer and subsequently cause your eyeballs to melt and pour onto the pavement beneath your gimpy feet. The movie that will have 60 year old men stroking out and running in circles because the left side of their body is all spazed out. The film that will cause tidal waves in your mind and leave you twitching in a pool of your own vomit and froth. Here Today…Gone To Hell is almost going into ‘make me and bake me’ mode. I mean I’m going to film that SOB soon. And when it does I can type up way more bizarre and ruthless comments that make little to no sense. Oh yes. So as for the moment, and the moment being now, as in RIGHT now, your reading it, your living it, I feel for your dedication you deserve a prize and that prize is a status update. “Another one?” I hear you moan in ecstasy, yes in-f’n-deed another one. Your right side will stroke out and gimp you up now, prepare for that by placing a pillow on the ground to catch your feeble body as it slams with all the grace of a manatee whose bungee cord just snapped. I really am going off on a tangent a lot aren’t I? Here is that promised update: the script has been prepared. Prepared like a fine turkey at the hands of an expert turkey preparer. Oh yes sir it’s on like Donkey Kong. Alrighty so I have rambled like no other tonight, so with thoughts of semi-retarded manatees bungee jumping onto stroke victims embedded in your minds tonight, I say goodnight and farewell…till next time.
Sunday 10 February 2008
Filmological, Musicological, Localogical and Rockalogical Studies
Here’s an update for the masses; a list of what I have considered so far regarding this project.
Film: Shot in black and white for around 90% of the film and colour for the remainder in widescreen format, and I’ll tell you why…I personally think short horrors, specifically ones make on low budget (and this is below that, this is budget non-existent) look better on screen in this style. Black and white will mask much of the ultra-cheapness I feel which may come across if it were in colour throughout. Also the storyline goes perfectly with the majority being in black and white with the opening scene and end scene being shown in mind melting colour. The camera I shall be using is a Sony DCR-HC37 with Carl Zeiss lens. Ooh, fancy.
Audio: Now here comes the science part. This brilliant movie of epic proportions will feature minimal sound effects and virtually no active dialogue (there’s probably a word for what I mean but I don’t claim to know it) save for the narration at points throughout by the main character. This is good for two reasons; the first being it’ll work better for the reality/surrealism of the plot. And secondly it will eliminate any need for boom mics etc during filming which would have been a massive problem to acquire, especially where I’ll be filming. See? I really put thought into this thing!
Location: Since I don’t know the local area of Greenock that well, particularly areas I’m looking for to use in this film, I shall be filming in the rhins of Galloway. I will be shooting in a forest, an isolated shore and a town centre. The three specific areas I have chosen and will give details on later.
Soundtrack: The opening scene of this movie is presented with a harsh prolonged guitar chord held in the same key. It’s not ‘music’ so much as it’s a sound effect, I’m undecided with what to use between Fleshpaint’s Empty Rooms or Eyes Adrift’s Pasted. Without uploading sound clips I can’t really describe what I mean, but it does fit in perfectly for the scene (how I imagine it will turn out at least). I’m also looking for some public domain ambiance to use throughout; sources I’ve been searching through include Archive.org. Check it out! (the cheap plug).
That’s your lot for right now, if you don’t like it you can moonsault into a pit of rabid AIDs infected ducks and/or swans. See you next time, same Hangman place, same Hangman channel.
Film: Shot in black and white for around 90% of the film and colour for the remainder in widescreen format, and I’ll tell you why…I personally think short horrors, specifically ones make on low budget (and this is below that, this is budget non-existent) look better on screen in this style. Black and white will mask much of the ultra-cheapness I feel which may come across if it were in colour throughout. Also the storyline goes perfectly with the majority being in black and white with the opening scene and end scene being shown in mind melting colour. The camera I shall be using is a Sony DCR-HC37 with Carl Zeiss lens. Ooh, fancy.
Audio: Now here comes the science part. This brilliant movie of epic proportions will feature minimal sound effects and virtually no active dialogue (there’s probably a word for what I mean but I don’t claim to know it) save for the narration at points throughout by the main character. This is good for two reasons; the first being it’ll work better for the reality/surrealism of the plot. And secondly it will eliminate any need for boom mics etc during filming which would have been a massive problem to acquire, especially where I’ll be filming. See? I really put thought into this thing!
Location: Since I don’t know the local area of Greenock that well, particularly areas I’m looking for to use in this film, I shall be filming in the rhins of Galloway. I will be shooting in a forest, an isolated shore and a town centre. The three specific areas I have chosen and will give details on later.
Soundtrack: The opening scene of this movie is presented with a harsh prolonged guitar chord held in the same key. It’s not ‘music’ so much as it’s a sound effect, I’m undecided with what to use between Fleshpaint’s Empty Rooms or Eyes Adrift’s Pasted. Without uploading sound clips I can’t really describe what I mean, but it does fit in perfectly for the scene (how I imagine it will turn out at least). I’m also looking for some public domain ambiance to use throughout; sources I’ve been searching through include Archive.org. Check it out! (the cheap plug).
That’s your lot for right now, if you don’t like it you can moonsault into a pit of rabid AIDs infected ducks and/or swans. See you next time, same Hangman place, same Hangman channel.
Wednesday 23 January 2008
Here Today...Gone To Hell
Here Today...Gone To Hell is the final decision on what my graded unit project will be. I went through 3 other ideas already before I decided that this is the best one and this will be my project. I have written a treatment already for the short film, but the following is the basic story of the movie:
{This section has been deleted because I belive its too dam awesome to post online because it's so sexual people may try to steal my brilliant idea. Is that self centred? Like I care...}
This is just a basic idea of the story, I plan on shooting it mainly in black and white, widescreen and plan for it to be around 30 - 40 mins long. I have access to equipment, I will be doing camerawork and editing myself along with perhaps some editing help. I also know of the main locations to shoot scenes at. I should be able to obtain all props without too much trouble. The only issue Im not certain on so far is exactly who to cast at the main character. I want this person to be in their mid 20's at least as they are to have lived an evil life so far, so must be old enough to hav lived enough to do that.
{This section has been deleted because I belive its too dam awesome to post online because it's so sexual people may try to steal my brilliant idea. Is that self centred? Like I care...}
This is just a basic idea of the story, I plan on shooting it mainly in black and white, widescreen and plan for it to be around 30 - 40 mins long. I have access to equipment, I will be doing camerawork and editing myself along with perhaps some editing help. I also know of the main locations to shoot scenes at. I should be able to obtain all props without too much trouble. The only issue Im not certain on so far is exactly who to cast at the main character. I want this person to be in their mid 20's at least as they are to have lived an evil life so far, so must be old enough to hav lived enough to do that.
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