AICE Media Studies

While we were filming, my partner and I realized that there were some aspects of the film that we were able to do differently, unlike what we had planned with our script, shotlist, and storyboard. For our script, most of the actors spoke along with the script's intended lines, although some improvisation occurred due to time constraints regarding the actors; some of them were more comfortable improvising which added more authenticity to the shooting. There was some variations regarding the shotlist and storyboard where there were more camera movements with zoom-ins and reverse-zooms, along with some shorter takes, to add a more intriguing and humorous element to the atmosphere.

We were finally able to shoot on Friday, December 14th. Unfortunately, we were running on a tight schedule since the majority of the actors had to participate in other activities, so we only had around three hours at the most to shoot. In reality, the shooting took around an hour and a half, and ended up with 42 takes. The shooting took a lot more quickly than I expected, but it could be understandable seeing that we were in one location. In the long run, we began to improvise on the style and the types of takes that we were going to use, but I believe that compared to the original plan, our revision was a little bit more suitable. Although we did take as many takes as I would have liked, the majority of them fit well into our final product. However, if we had more time, I would have filmed more takes and been more meticulous in the shooting. Throughout the filming, it was a little bit difficult as some of the actors were laughing, goofing off, or off task. The small window of time tha...

Fortunately, we found several options for filming our opening scene. I suggested the idea of going to New College, where my parents work, so I had access to a suitable location. The rooms are very rustic and ornate, and provided a good environment for setting up a holiday-oriented conference room. In summary, the rooms and hallways could be ideal for setting our scene. However, my partner realized that the actors were on a fairly tight schedule, and it would be more reasonable to film during school, preferably on campus instead of going to a relatively remote location on the weekend.  One option was the career center next to the AICE Media Studies room. It had a table that could be used for the board meeting, however, it was made of several tables and didn’t have that traditional long shape. The room also was very resonant so it could’ve posed an issue during dialogue. One of our final options was a conference room in the front office building found in bu...

Santa Claus: Caleb Irwin Caleb was our best candidate for Santa Claus because we wanted to look for bold, rebellious character that would represent Santa Claus in a disobedient, unruly manner that would provide a justification for him being fired. President of the Board: Brynn Partee Brynn was our best candidate for the President of the Board because she was able to resemble a character of authority and leadership with her calm but assertive tones. Elf #1: Evan Philips Evan was a suitable candidate for our elf character because he was able to pose himself as expressive and headstrong while the board addressed Santa Claus, helping create a tone of urgency, yet some humor regarding the firing incident. Elf #2: Nick Hallisey  Nick was a suitable candidate because he was able to present himself as supportive with the board and show his expression of frustration towards Santa Claus’s faults. Elf #3: Genesis Rodriguez-Rodriguez Genesis proved to be an ideal candidate f...

The first shot is an insert of Elf #1's feet as he walks down the hallway and approaches the conference room. It attempts to create a feeling of earnestness and curiosity as to where the board member is going and what will ensue. The second shot is a mid-shot of the Board of the North Pole at the end of the conference table, with the President of the Board and Elf #2 waiting for Elf #1 to sit in his empty seat. This tries to create an effect of seriousness and urgency to the situation of Santa Claus being fired. The third shot is an insert of a "Missing Rudolph" poster. This shot signifies the importance of Santa Claus's faults, as seen by losing his most important reindeer. The fourth shot listed is a wide shot of the Easter Bunny entering the conference room and slowly walking out after listening to the commotion. This shot attempts to incorporate humor by providing relief to the tension after addressing Santa Claus's wrongdoings, which could be s...

The first insert of the conference member's feet as he enters the room tries to create meaning by portraying a serious tone to the context of the situation, although the viewer is not yet aware of what will soon occur. The camera pan to show Santa at the end of the conference table creates meaning by finally revealing the subject of the conference meeting, relieving the seriousness and suspense of the previous shots. The mid-shot of the Easter Bunny entering the doorway and slowly walking away adds meaning to the situation by providing humor and randomness to the situation, with a contrast of a confused character nervously passing by while there is tension and argument within the conference room. The wide-shot of the entire room creates meaning by showing the viewer how the firing of Santa Claus is starting to sink in with all the board members as the room becomes silent. The final mid-shot attempts to create meaning by showing Santa's reaction of shock and surpr...

My partner and I finally developed the screenplay for our film. It encompasses the idea that Santa Claus has done poorly at his job for Christmas and must be fired. The opening scene includes a board member entering a conference room. They proceed to list all the faults of Mr. Claus and eventually fire him, following with Santa's reaction of shock and confusion.