325 Productions UK

My cousin Russell set up a filming business a few years ago called '325 Productions UK' (www.325productionsuk.co.uk). His company is based in Sussex but I have seen him record a video on the Isle of Wight in which he used many different bits of equipment as well as using multiple camera angles. His company has been very successful so far and so I thought I would contact him for any advice for us when filming.

I read his advice and showed the rest of the team and we found it very helpful. He gave advice mainly for the editing stages which is really helpful as we are hoping to make it seem as professional as possible. We will remember his advice and it is very good to know that should we have any queries I can message him at any time. His website is shown below:

The Cyber Security Division

The antagonist in our film in many ways is also the protagonist, he is his own enemy. The story if in full, would largely focus on his struggles and dilemma as to whether his hack was the right thing to do. However, the Cyber-Security Division will be featured in the trailer and is a secretive government organisation which aims to tackle hacks and is in the process of investigating Liam in the trailer. Below I have created a logo for the CSD which we may be able to use in the trailer as a symbol to show that it is an official organisation by the government as the logo on it is very recognisable as an authoritative symbol in the UK.

Liam's Computer - Hacking Screen

When we think of hackers and their computers, I think its fair to say we think of small green letters and black screens with a lot of text and no images. We wanted to create a screen that looked like this so it was obvious to viewers of the trailer that he is a hacker and what he is doing in that time. Below shows the picture I made that will be seen on the character of Liam's laptop which shows that he is hacking someone's phone in Sandown on the Isle of Wight. This screen will be seen in the finished trailer.

Location - Finding a Cafe

We decided in the location stages that we wanted a scene in a cafe with the characters of Maisie and Liam. Cafes are common locations for young people to chill out and is a perfect location for our planned scene. We decided that we would go around cafes in the local area in before the filming stages to see if they would be suitable and see if it would be permitted. As Joe and Maria have limited time to film due to work and other commitments, we made sure that we arranged locations and themes through thoroughly to be as efficient as possible in the time we have with them. The first cafe we went to was called 'Muzzas' in Sandown (Bottom Left). It seemed like a nice filming location but also a very busy cafe and small and so filming in there without filming customers could be awkward. We then asked 'Fresh Cafe' (Bottom Right) if we could film in their cafe but they said they would not be willing for us to do it as they felt it could affect their customers. Lastly, we went to 'Daisy's Bakery' (Top Left and Right) which seemed perfect as it was nice and big and a typical cafe. It's spaciousness also meant that we would be able to experiment with many different camera angles and we wouldn't have difficulty fitting in. After a long chat, they said yes (as long as we bought coffees!) and so we've now secured this filming location.

Costumes and Props

We have now chosen our characters to be in our film trailer. It was now important that we decide how our characters will be presented through their clothing. Within a trailer, it can be hard to understand the personality of a character as you have not known them long enough. Dress wear and props can help the audience to understand how the characters behave without the need to see them for more than a couple of minutes, this is why clothing is hugely important. We have also picked out the props that will be used. Props are generally great in film and media to emphasise what is happening in a scene, some may be more obvious than others but all help to create a realistic landscape. It is important that a trailer creates a sense of 'wanting to know more', however it must be clear what the story is, and props can be important to reinforce this. We have again used Google Slides which is a great presentation software as any edits made after embedding update automatically which is a feature I really like as if changes are needed, it is easy and quick to do.

Characters and Casting - Part Four

Now that we have our male protagonist, we needed to find a female lead that would fit into the role well as well as having on-screen chemistry with Joe. Maria had shown an interest in the project since the start and was very keen to play the character of Maisie in our production. A leading characteristic of our female character will be determination and enthusiasm and so, when Maria came to us so enthusiastically, it made sense to give her an audition as well as a on-screen test with Joe. I then have made a video below similar to before which shows Maria playing the part.