Today was our last day at Villila and it was the day to wrap up all projects. James and Laura finished up making last minute adjustments to their edits of the music video while Jon was participating in a music video shoot for a Finnish hard rock band, Black Dreams. He was an actor in the music video and got to spend half the day in an authentic Finnish cottage. In the meantime, Emily, Cathal and myself were working on the edit of my film. We finished syncing up all the sounds and arranged the clips in the right order. Once that was done, we were able to get into the creative side of editing, such as where to cut our shots and how to match them together into a seamless flow of imagery. During this time Eve was working on paperwork for Ireland. When we were finished with our edit, we exported the video in the right format and put it on my hard drive. As we were leaving the school we said goodbye to the teachers that were there. Later, we met Taru and Frej for dinner at a Spanish restaurant. We had a wonderful time and said our goodbyes to our wonderful teachers. In the evening we are going to meet some of the Finnish students for a nice get together and will say our last goodbyes to them. We will stay in contact with them and won't forget the wonderful people we've met on this trip. Tomorrow is the day of packing up and getting ready to go back to Ireland so today we are enjoying the last evening in Pori. -Lukasz
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Today was our second last day so we were all a mix of . James and Laura were finishing up their edits on the death design music video and Emily was staring with the edit of Lukasz's film. There was a lot of footage for her to go through and sink up so this took almost all day. Laura's was finish up on her music video edit by colour grading the footage. Taru and Frey came up with the idea to shoot a small joke interview of us to put on Facebook. The premise of the video is that the Irish students hated the trip but the finish translator says that they loved everything about it.John was filming it using the Ursa camera and Eve and Lukasz were the interviewees. It was nice to use the Ursa before we left. The quality of the camera is amazing but because it is so big and heavy it meant it was very hard to move. It was a nice challenge to encounter because it meant we had to come up with new compositions. As the day came to a close Lukasz wanted to interview some of the people we met and friends we have made over here for his documentary. As this was one of the last times we would be seeing them for a while we all got a bit emotional. Day seventeen... Today was a busy enough day for the majority of us, as we started to wrap up all of our projects that we took part in over the past three weeks. For us editors, that's me James and Emily, our goal for today was to complete editing the music video for the song called 'Death Design', which me and James began editing on Monday and finished today at 12. We have definitely gotten the hang of using the basics of Premiere Pro now, and we have started to teach ourselves how to use the more advanced effects on it as well. James and I started editing at eight today in our editing room whilst Lukasz, Cathal, John, Eve and Emily went upstairs to the studio to work on Lukasz's short film project that he had to shoot all day today. At the beginning of the day James and I weren't sure if we would be able to complete our individual edits today but in the end we ended up getting them done two hours before they were needed. The rest of the group went upstairs to set up equipment and to organise until we all met up after 11 for lunch. After lunch was over at 12 the group went back upstairs to begin filming and Emily, James and I went to our editing room to finish our project. Lukasz and Cathal came down every now and then to watch our edits and give us advice. Emily worked on her Imagine Dragons music video project and taught herself some fun effects using Youtube and Premiere Pro. Once our college day was over James and I got the bus back to our hostel and after a little while we went exploring the town a bit more, whilst the rest of the group that was working on the film in the studio stayed at the school until after seven in order to get the project done, which hopefully James, Emily and I will all make individual edits of tomorrow. Once the rest of the group got back to the hostel some of us went to go get pizza which we all ate up in our room where we listened to music, watched movie trailers and had a laugh. It's time for me to sign off now for the last time, thanks for reading! Laura Dirrane. So the big day finally arrived, today was International Day at Villila Studios. The whole timing of this trip was based on us being here for this day, so I was very curious as to what it entailed for us. Two people from high up in the Saetedu school Administration were there for the day, and they described this day as a 'camp' to prepare students for international exchanges. There were students from Finland, Ireland, Belgium, Hungary, Estonia, Germany, Spain and France. We were all divided up into teams, all of us Irish were on seperate teams, but we were with some of the Villila students we already knew so it wasn't too nerve wracking. My team (Team 5 for the win) consisted of Eveliina (Villila student), Myself (obviously Irish), a electrician student (Finnish), a Finnish teacher, an Estonian teacher, and a Belgian student. Our goal for today was to make a short video around the theme 'Don't Panic, Be Prepared' that was given to your team. We had to learn about all the aspects of making a video, as well as planning it, shooting it and editing it in a very scheduled amount of time. The theme my crew got was about our ceiling collapsing in, which in retrospect was a lot easier to do than the majority of the other teams', thankfully. James' crew had to deal with sexual harassment for example, which is not an easy topic to deal with, but I think they did it really well. Meanwhile, our very own Lukasz was actually one of the people running the station, he was in charge of scriptwriting (and he did a very good job!). It felt very strange to be taught by my peer, but he knew what he was talking about and all the other teams to have gotten a lot from his talk. So our day was broken into half an hour sections, where we went to stations to be given talks and workshops on different aspects from film. We started in the sound workshop and ended up in the lighting workshop. Other workshop stations included mask, which we had no clue what that was, eventually turned out to be makeup, the actors in our video was meant to get their makeup done, but the two teachers in out group got a bit excited when they walked into the room and ran to sit in the chairs, we learnt afterwards one was leaving before we even filmed, and the other didn't want to do it at all, so I was the designated actor because my first language was English, which I didn't mind. The stations went on from 9-3, where we had to completely plan and prep for shooting. We also squeezed in time to play a quiz with the Spanish and french students who had prepared a quiz for us where we had to guess if the photos they showed us were Spanish or French, which was actually very entertaining! All of our workshops went really well, so we headed straight to filming at 3. We each got assigned a role, I was acting/ editing, the electrician student was the camera man, the remaining teacher was lighting, the Belgian student was on sound, and Eveliina was directing. It went very smoothly, we did just 3 takes because just to be safe, then we headed out and about and filmed some cut away shots, again, all very quickly and smoothly within the first half an hour, which gave me plenty of time to edit. Very happy Emily. So I sat down to do the edit, and I had a rough version done within 20 minutes, which I showed to my group, and we decided we had enough time to do more cut away shots so we went out and did that, which ended up making a big difference to the final product. We used Premiere Pro, which I am now very comfortable with, I did titles for the first time as well, which I was very happy with! It's mad to think that I didn't even know where to begin with the programme just 2 weeks ago. So I finished up the edit, rendered it and gave it to Usi, and then we all headed upstairs for the presentation! Each group handed up their video, and went up to speak a little about it before it was played for everyone. All the videos were very unique, some very funny (whether intentional or not), and considering the amount of time we had to make them all, they were very impressive. The two Saetedu representatives seemed very impressed with our work too, and said that they would be using the videos in the future, so that's great. After the presentations were done, you could have dinner or head home at this point it was going onto 8pm, so we were tired considering the early rise we had a 6 am so we opted for home, very tired, hungry, but very proud of our days work. I think this day in particular will stay with me because I felt like it was the most intense of all the days, I was working on a brand new project I couldn't prep for before hand, with a group of people I didn't know, who didn't speak much english.
The communication skills I worked on in the last 2 weeks really came into to play, and were improved on ever more over the course of just a few hours. It was also very satisfying to see my new editing skills come into play, and so quickly. I feel like I got to use all of the new skills I learnt up to then, as well as skills I picked up in the workshops. It's crazy to think that this is my last blog, and this is our last week. It's been such an incredible experience in every aspect. I had such high expectations for this trip and they were all exceeded. The work, the place and especially the people, those I came with and those I met along the way, have been amazing. This exchange will stand to me for the rest of my life, I am more confident and comfortable in a working environment with new people, and I know that I can learn things quickly and by my own initiative. I also now know I am not one to get homesick weirdly enough, that being said, I have a feeling i'll have the opposite once I go home, I'm really going to miss these three weeks. I am incredibly fortunate to have gotten this once in a lifetime opportunity. Thanks so much to GTI and Leargas for giving me this chance, I am so grateful. It's been a pleasure blogging for you. - Emily The weekend we had spent in Finland was one well awaited. We had worked hard all week and to finally be able to take a rest and in our time explore the foreign city of Pori was something we well awaited. This weekend however I had other plans.
Saturday had been like the last, nice and relaxed. But as the film industry keeps proving to us, the production doesn't sleep until it's on the clients table. So on my fourteenth day in Finland, I helped out on the shoot for a Finnish rock music video. The locations that we used were around an old shed located near our work placement, and they were perfect for the image that the band were going for. It really made for some interesting looking shots, and I found that I was really motivated to get the best shots that I could get. I was actually really happy with how they turned out. The only difficulty that I had during the day was that the band didn't speak very much english, and so there was a lot of talk between the band and the director of the video that I didn't understand, but I was very grateful that the director would always take his time afterwards to explain to me what was happening and what I should do. Overall, it made for a very interesting day, and I'm happy with the work I've been making. -John In some ways I can't believe we've been here two weeks, in others I can't believe it's only been two. It feels as though we've been living here for a solid month. Some of us are getting loads from the experience and I can see them maturing and changing with each day; others like myself are struggling being away from home for so long which is a real challenge. I missed my uncle's wedding to be here, so that night was a painful one to be left out of, but other than that I think we're all doing great. I think what I've received most of from this experience is the knowledge that I can definitely take care of myself, that I can travel on my own and that I love Ireland way more than I realised. We started off the day just like all the rest- A semi-early rise followed by a beautiful bus journey while we bop to our favourite tunes and stare out the windows in our own private music videos; then we walk the hill to the college. Once there, there was a quick production meeting as ever in which Eve, Cathal, John and Lukasz were sent upstairs to the studio to learn all about green screen and the light set-up for it. During this, Laura, Emily and myself returned to the editing room. Our home away from home (hostel away from hostel if you will...). Frej needed Emily's Mac for some green-screen stuff soon after so she was allowed to head on up with him and participate in their class for the day. Meanwhile, Laura and I attempted our individual edits of a music video for Death Design (a heavy metal band the guys filmed late last week.) When we ran into some trouble with how it was shot and what was present/absent from shots, we called Lukasz down for his advice (being the director and all). He was a great help, and he's actually a pretty good team leader too! Then it was time for lunch which has always been one of the most interesting parts of the day. Apparently it was meatballs made from pork and beef. There was no word for it in English which justified my calling it "Pow" (Pig and Cow). It was a little weird but I think those who dared to try some enjoyed it. Then it was time for us all to return to what we'd been doing before lunch, which in our case was get incredibly frustrated with how our edits were coming along. We don't know if it was the song choice, or the band, the edits or just the fact that it's not something we'd listen to ourselves in our spare time, but we worked around it and pushed through regardless. I think it's really starting to come together. At 16:00 Taru called us to the Auditorium for a quick meeting about tomorrow. Tuesday is International Day where groups of all sorts from many different countries around Europe come together to make films in the school. We were told where we were meant to be and at what time and what the general day would entail. Told that we'd all be split up and forced to talk to strangers sent chills down many a back... After the meeting it was time to head back to the hostel for a quick bite to eat . Though, Laura and I got sidetracked by a bookshop we'd never seen before. But a postcard-buy later we were out of there. Tomorrow will be a long day according to Taru, so I think it's about time I sign off for the last time and make my way to the land of jimmy jams. It's been nice knowing you, Mister Blog. (The blog has actually been one of my favourite parts of this experience!) Your friend, James. We all took advantage of it being the weekend and slept in this morning which is always a lovely treat. Unfortunately, Cathal, Laura and John were under the weather so we decided we all decided we would all take it easy.
We still wanted to do something with our day, so we decided to venture out to the island which has a massive park on it. A lot of the big attractions were closed or put away for the winter so there wasn't much to do, but it is still a nice area to go for a wander. Today was the day of the music video shoot so as soon as we came into the college at 8 am, Cathal, John, Eve and I went upstairs along with some of the students from the college to set up the studio. We set up the equipment and lights as we have practiced yesterday, which took us about and hour. The band arrived shortly after 9 and went on to sign a contract with the college regarding copyright. They then went upstairs were we met them and I explained how we planned out to film the video. After the band set up their instruments we made a few adjustments to the lights and were ready to film. The band's song was playing through the speakers in the studio while they performed for the video. It was quite loud but we all got used to it after the first few takes. We did two takes of each setup, one where the cameras were on their tripods and another one in which the camera operators held the camera in their hands during the entire performance, allowing them to get closer to the musicians and get some very interesting shots. We started off with lighting the back of each band member with a single light and then bouncing some of the light on their face or side to give it more detail. After that it was lunch time so we went for lunch and came back 15 minutes before the band so we could change the light setup. The second setup consisted of two lights shining on the performers at opposing angles with a concentrated beam of light, giving us high contrast in the images. Once we were finished with that setup we did several slow motion shots of each band member, because only two of the four cameras could shoot slow motion. Cathal and John were both filming one band member at the same time to get different angles of each performance. We asked the band if there was anything specific they wanted to do in slow motion and they gave us a few requests that we filmed along what we had already planned. After the slow motion shots we did a final take using the college's smoke machine. When the smoke alarms in the studio were turned off we got the band in their original positions and filled each set with smoke. Those shots worked out really well, with the smoke adding more depth and atmosphere to the picture. With the smoke machine shots done it was time to wrap up the shoot. Eve and I thanked the band members for coming and performing, then we all started to tidy up the set and put everything away. After 20 minutes the set was completely clear and there were no signs that a music video shoot just took place there. Before they left, the band members said they were very happy with how the shoot went and were impressed by our work. In the meantime, while we were shooting the video, James, Emily and Laura were doing an editing project for a competition. The competition, Make the Cut, challenges people to edit a music video for Imagine Dragons song "Believer" using the supplied raw footage. The winner of the competition will receive a cash prize of $25,000 so the editors are putting in a lot of time and effort into the project. We are all looking forward to the weekend to rest up from a very busy week and to hopefully have some more cultural experiences in Pori. -Lukasz Today was very busy. The two lighting alumni helped us come up with lighting setups for the music video tomorrow. Lukasz, John and I were all coming up with ways to frame the camera and light the band members in different crews. Coming up with a layout for the shoot tomorrow was difficult because we are shooting 4 different band members with 4 different lighting setups in one small stage. As we changed from different lighting setups the alumni would come around and give us some invaluable advice that they have learned from their experience on music videos and other productions. At the end of the day after we had tested all the lighting setups and camera shots. I got to take some pictures on a film camera that the alumni had brought in. It was my first time ever shooting with film so I felt a bit out of my depth considering that you only get a couple of shots on a film roll and you aren't able to check what the image look's like until you develop it. Laura, James and Emily were continuing with their scratch video editing today and some of them started working on Eve is the producer on the music video so she was contacting the band and setting out a schedule for tomorrow with them This was a little tricky as there are certain gaps in the day where we have to changing lighting set ups and we wont need the band so she was figuring that out as well. The international day is coming up next week and Eve was helping with the set up for and production of that. Wednesday. Our tenth day in Finland. Today was one of our least busy days here yet. We started the morning off with some of the group editing in our editing room, and the rest of the group working up in the studio. Us editors (that's James, Emily and I) continued to work on the editing project that we were assigned yesterday, which was to gather some clips from films online and edit them in either a graphic, quick, spacial or rhythmic way in order to get us to figure out which editing style is our favourite. The videos have to last about a minute and a half long and we are all almost done. At 9:30 James and Emily were called up to the studio to film an interview for the first years about a fake bus crash. I continued to edit in the editing room and Cathal, John, Eve and Lukasz were in the studio learning more about the Red Camera. The three of us are definitely starting to get the hang of the software Premiere Pro now. At 10:30am we were all called up to the studio for a talk and workshop on Lighting. Here we learnt about angles, flags, diffusers and lighting set ups. We also learnt about the speakers film backgrounds and experiences. We went for lunch from 11:30 till 12:30. After the break James, Emily and I went back to our editing room until 2:00 to continue working on our projects. We also worked on our scratch videos that are due this week. We got the bus at 2:00pm and once we got back to the hostel we had some lunch and got prepared to go exploring the city a bit more. We ended up heading to the local shopping centre called Isokarhu and we all bought stuff there before coming back to the hostel at seven o' clock to cook dinner and watch movies. Till next Wednesday, Laura Dirrane. |
Media 2016/17Cathal Kilbane Map of Finland |