Before I started on story plot or ideation, I made myself shortlist the genre I’d like to work on first. Next, I tried to figure out what type of storyline (in general) fits best and that I can convey the plot clearly.
I really love to watch comedy, but I know it’d be really tough to achieve – I must understand my audiences’ level of humour and also many other factors like smart captions, venue, etc. Thus, I began exploring the genre that gives me chills, but also entices me to keep watching; thriller movies with unpredictable plot twists.
Some references I got was Black Swan and Gone Girl. I wanted to inject some form of killing, and hallucinating, and then the protagonist not knowing what is happening. I thought that could be a little flat and could turn out as horror or gore, thus, I added some romance (dating + cheating) and also my favourite part of any storyline – a plot twist (hallucination).
After a few unsuccessful plotting, I managed to settle down on my final story and named it Aftermath – the consequence of cheating and dating some one who could be psychotic since she’s always paranoid (as seen in first image’s caption).
After finalising the plot, I had to text a few group of friends and cast them according. Luckily, most of my friends are in the dance and theatre scene, which really helped boost the emotions I need them to portray easily. I also had to plan the props for each scene, as well as the location to finalise the plan before shooting.
I have a habit of storyboarding each frame before shooting (significant frames/scene-change for video), so as to smoothen the flow of shoot and the direction I can give to the actors on set.
However, some shots could not be achieved due to the restriction of space at the venue as well as inadequate equipment for mounting and support.
Thus, I had to utilize photoshop to complete the frames that I planned to show:
- I combined the image with the other mirror’s reflection
- I added myself in the frame
- I added Xavier and myself in the frame
- I cloned the door away to create a look of all white walls.
Learning Points
Through this assignment, I’ve learnt that it really does take time to figure out the storyline and other necessary planning. I understand that I have to love my own work in order to convince people to like my work, thus, I made sure I edit and re-think and kept brainstorming until I get the story right in my head. I also referred to the 3 Act structure after I’ve finalised what I intend to shoot in order to ensure that I’m still on the right track and at the same time exploring some thing that may not be very easy to achieve. I was pretty worried at first, because if it doesn’t show the effect that I planned, this photo essay could be a confusing and misunderstood piece. So I hope I managed to bring across the plot that I planned and please enjoy!