Click on this link to watch the final product of our short film, "Out of Hand"
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Q0vfMcsRCteolq2vE042Dhxl4iND1VCT?usp=share_link
Coming to the end
After a long, two year journey of taking my favorite class in all of high school, Aice Media, it's finally time to submit my very final project. This is one of the one's I have been proudest of so far, because the idea feels so true to me and the type of productions I enjoy the most. Working with my friends Zain and Martina has been one of the most enjoyable experiences, and they are both so incredibly talented and really have a vision for filmmaking and everything that comes with it. Thank you, Aice media, and until next time blog!
Reflection essay
In the process of creating our short film titled “Out of Hand”, my group and I aimed to follow the idea of “unspoken rules” in society, and how a person’s story can be different to what you expect. We wanted to portray this in a humorous way, following the typical conventions of a comedic film. Although the story may seem silly on the surface, the overarching theme is breaking the small, unspoken rules of society and the effects it can have.
The story follows a protagonist by the name of Tom, who has a hatred for the typical social rule of shaking people's hands at his office. He decides to take a stand against this and begins to awkwardly wave his hand or make weird remarks when his coworkers attempt to shake his hand. Tom’s perceivably “odd” behavior leads his colleagues in the office in a frenzy, and it seems to unsettle the entire office dynamic. The main social issue targeted within this short film is one of social conformity and hidden personal struggles. “Out of hand” shows the very rigid social norms, particularly seen in the workplace, that are considered “polite”, such as shaking everyone’s hand. Tom rejecting this tradition, and his colleagues' reactions, goes to show how expected certain gestures are in our society. The plot twist at the end (Tom having a fake hand) is used to show that not everything is as it seems. In the final scene, the colleagues' overdramatic reactions, and Tom’s mortified scream, deliver an important message on how he felt the need to hide a part of himself from the office.
The supporting characters of the film are used to portray some of the different types of people that are often found within a workplace. Alice, the receptionist, although portrayed as a funny, flirty character, shows subtle signs of manipulation that align with her disbelief of Tom breaking a typical societal rule. Her excessive planning in order to force Tom outside of his boundaries shows a lack of care and understanding for his possible situation.
Greg, the boss who is seen making fun of Alice’s flirtatious personality, shows how women can often be sexualized in the workplace, specifically in one dominated with men. He tends to assume that her motivations are purely to pursue Tom, rather than get him to shake hands.
The branding behind our film followed one with typical conventions scene in comedy TV shows, such as the office. The quick camera movements, seen in the opening shot when introducing Tom, and the close ups on face and hands are used to show a comedic emphasis and make a dramatic story out of something silly like shaking hands. The montages that showed odd, unrealistic scenarios out of Alice’s “evil plan” are used to add even further to the comedic, over the top effect. Our promotional material, such as the posters we made for the film on our Instagram, have a color scheme that is typically aligned with comedy, including bright yellows and reds. We also included multiple interviews of each actor in the film, showing the process behind building a comedic character and adding to the brand. The specific identity we wanted our film to have was quirky, dramatic, and character driven. The film is very much focused on the bright personalities of each character, giving each of them their own persona and highlighted moments.
We aimed to engage with our audience by building tension throughout the film. The main question throughout, “Why won’t Tom shake anyone’s hand?”, creates curiosity and engages the viewer into the rest of the film. We also used humor and exaggerated personalities to make the story more entertaining and suitable for those looking for a funny watch. Most viewers, especially those who have worked at a typical office before, have likely encountered characters similar to Alice and Greg, which makes the film more relatable to them. While most of the film probably has people questioning Tom’s motives and why he is so odd about something as normal as shaking hands, the dramatic plot twist of his prosthetic hand at the end forces the audience to readjust their expectations and understand Tom’s unusual behavior in the beginning. We wanted viewers to feel a moment of surprise, followed by a deeper understanding of Tom’s character.
During our research phase, we spent a lot of time looking into the marketing and conventions behind comedy shows such as “The office” and “scrubs”.
These shows are known for their ridiculous storytelling, and how character driven they are. This research helped us narrow down conventions we wanted to include in not only the film itself, but the marketing behind it. For example, we embraced the weird montages and filming styles typically seen in these shows, as well as the awkward moments that make them funnier. We also spent much of our early days of developing the film researching and talking about the concept of unspoken rules in our society. We realized that, especially in professional settings, doing things like asking how someone is or shaking their hand have become almost a requirement, and one can be seen as unusual for not following the tradition. This inspired our decision to focus on something as seemingly insignificant as a handshake and show the gossip and confusion it can cause. As far as the more technical elements, our research about editing and videos on the typical cinematography style behind comedy films helped us to understand how to pace and frame our shots in order to create the most dramatic and comedic effect possible. This went along with our efforts to create awkward, tension-filled scenes, such as between Tom and Greg or Tom and Alice.
This short film was such an amazing experience because it allowed us to explore themes of perception, judgement, and unspoken rules in society. By centering the story around a silly and small social norm in the workplace, we were able to show 3 different characters’ personalities and drives. The message was simple, and the story wasn’t something complicated, but when looked into more deeply, it was meaningful.
Starting filming process
Hi blog! I have very exciting news to share.. we finally started the filming process today, and also finished it in the same day.
Something so special to me about the filming process was having my dad as one of the background actors. Since we wanted the film to be more realistic to an office setting, we were looking for "middle aged" actors, rather than a bunch of high schoolers, and he agreed!
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My dad
Although we originally planned to shoot from 11:00-1:30, we ended up reshooting a lot of scenes and even adding in some extra scenes that came to mind as we went, so the filming day ended up lasting until about 4.
We started by filming the receptionist opening scene, which arguably was one of the hardest ones to do, since it was the establishing shot of the film. .jpeg)
This particular scene of Tom walking down the hall took about (and I'm probably underestimating here) 30 tries. We made sure of every detail being perfect, down to the timing of his footsteps walking down the hall and the tracking shot from the receptionist to his face. We really wanted to establish the film in a way that had a similar shooting style to comedic shows like "The office", which was done by using immediate tracking shots and close up. We also had multiple lights set up around each scene, which we had to adjust for each shot.
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Opening shot
"EVERYONE IS GATHERED ROUND THE TABLE, AND THEY'RE DOING SOME SILLY CHOREOGRAPHY THAT IS CULT LIKE"
"Oh Tom, you've gotta shake hands to really be part of the family" For this you have ALICE voiceover, and GREG verbalizing the line.
SHOT: They show TOM giving them a handshake in the vision
Overall, the filming process was a super fun experience, and I'm so glad we were able to knock it out in one day while still managing to get the shots exactly how we envisioned them. Now, we have to finish editing some reels for our Instagram and a few special videos, as well as finishing editing the actual short film.
Shot list
In preparation for us filming on Saturday, here is our finalized shot list to serve as a checklist item for every scene we need from the script. Last year, when filming the project for AS level, I remember our shot list aiding us in completing the filming process within one day, since we used it as a checklist and crossed off as we got things done.
So excited to say that we will be filming our short tomorrow!!!!
MS of the Receptionist: (Hearing the knock) and looking over *whip pan*
CLOSE UP: Feet approaching desk
CLOSE UP: ALICE looking up at TOM (she says her line)
MS: TOM smiles (line cont'd diff angle)
MEDIUM CLOSE UP: Such a pleasure to meet you, is it Alice?
CLOSE UP: ALICE looking up at TOM (she says her line) "yes!"
CLOSE UP: ALICE hand coming out to shake Tom's
CLOSE UP: TOM stressing
MEDIUM CLOSE UP: I... just peed. And I'm not a good hand shaker after a good pee.
CLOSE UP OF ALICE: (capture Alice's reaction)
OTS FROM TOM TO ALICE: (Tom walking away and still capturing Alice's reaction)
SCENE IN THE OFFICE HALLWAY CONT'D
TRACKING SHOT: facing TOM'S back as he's walking...
MEDIUM TRACKING SHOT: Now it's facing Tom, as he bumps into Greg
MEDIUM CLOSE UP: Greg says Line
CLOSE UP OF DANIEL OFFERING HAND:
LOW ANGLE OF TOM AND HAND:
LOW ANGLE SWITCHES TO GREG:
HIGH ANGLE: OF THEM TWO SHOWING SPACE IN BETWEEN
CLOSE UP: GREG: "Uh... Okay... sure...
ALICE TO GREG: "do you have a minute?"
CUT TO THIS
SHOT 1: Closing door
Two person shot: ALICE AND GREG
Greg says: "He did the exact same thing to me..."
Close up shot of ALICE: "I just dont understand why he was so uncomfortable"
CLOSE UP SHOT OF GREG: A plan?
SHOT 2: clicking pen
SHOT 3: Hands slam desk
SHOT 4: Rolling chair moving in
CLOSE UP ALICE: "whaaaat? ..."
CLOSE UP GREG: "It's all about Tom... this week. What's next? Are we swooning over Tom..." (Greg slowly opens the door to reveal Bob from Accounting)
"Bob from accounting makes eye contact then quickly looks away"
Two person shot: GREG: *starts ad libbing*
Two person shot: ALICE "looking side conscious of whether bob is listening" *tries to shush him* that's enough. You're impossible Greg"
ALICE: "Be serious... etc." "Tom is the first guy to walk through that door and refuse a handshake."
EXTREME CLOSE UP GREG: "Oh I know exactly what you mean, Alice"
MEDIUM CLOSE UP: ALICE
SHOT 2: clicking pen
SHOT 3: Hands slam desk
SHOT 4: Rolling chair moving in
(ALT. SHOTS THAT ACTUALLY ARE RELEVANT TO WHAT IS SAID)
"EVERYONE IS GATHERED ROUND THE TABLE, AND THEY'RE DOING SOME SILLY CHOREOGRAPHY THAT IS CULT LIKE"
"Oh Tom, you've gotta shake hands to really be part of the family" For this you have ALICE voiceover, and GREG verbalizing the line.
SHOT: They show TOM giving them a handshake in the vision
NOW THEY'RE IN FRONT OF THE DESKS WITH EXTRAS
GREG: "who wouldn't want to be part of the family?"
(beat).
SHOT OF AYAMI WATCHING THEM: Giving them a look of slight disgust, as if to speak and say "I wouldn't I'm just an intern"
GREG: "even if hes a little paranoid, we've got him"
ALICE: "Slow move in of the camera" "Oh Totally."
TWO PERSON SHOT: "It's Perfect! He won't be able to get out of it. "EVERYONE is doing it..."
VISION: Weird handshake ritual "Oh you don't want to be the odd one out, Tom, do you?" AGAIN, in Alice's voice but verbalized by GREG.
CLOSE UP SHOT: ALICE says "trust me greg it'll work
CLOSE UP SHOT: GREG: "yeah, yeah," WHIP-PAN TO IMAGINATION "What if he refuses to be sucked into the whole team handshake thing?
(as this is being said, include various shots of him refusing)
NOW, they're at the receptionist desk
ALICE: "Oh, I've thought of THAT, honey"
QUICK SHOTS FOR PHASE 2
SHOT 2: clicking pen
SHOT 3: Hands slam desk
SHOT 4: Rolling chair moving in
(ALT. SHOTS THAT ACTUALLY ARE RELEVANT TO WHAT IS SAID)
Brand prism
During our last class, my group member Martina and I decided it would be a good idea to put some of what our teacher has taught us to use and create a "brand prism" for our short film. If you are unfamiliar with what a brand prism is, it is essentially a marketing visual that uses six key elements to make up a brand identity (physique, personality, culture, relationship, reflection, and self image).
We decided that developing this would be useful in keeping a coherent theme in our social media, logos, marketing, and the overall vibe of our short film. Here is what we came up with:
Physique: Yellows, blues, reds. Big, bubbly font.
Personality: Over the top, ridiculous comedy. The whole plot is something so ridiculous, made funny by how serious it becomes.
Relationship: Interacts with the audience by being heavily edited to make the comedic effect more prominent (Ex: slow mo’s, extreme close ups, stings, etc.)
Culture: Values understanding of people’s situations. Tom was heavily judged and plotted against due to him refusing to shake other’s hands because they chose to take it personally, ending of the film may show a different perspective, that not everything is what it seems.
Reflection: Reflected to the audience as ridiculous and silly, but with a touch of meaningfulness in the final message.
Self-image: The brand of this short film would perceive its ideal self as something iconically funny, such as the show The Office, or previously directed Edgar Wright films.
Social media planning
We have some particular goals for our social media, and we want to set aside a list in order to include all of the fun promotional ideas we have.
Brand Promotion ideas:
Similar promotional styles to comedy shows like The Office or Scrubs or Scott Pilgrim (overdone, over the top comedy)
Promotional video ideas:
-Interview poeple asking them to do their "weirdest handshake"
-Bloopers reel
-"Get to know" the cast video
Posters that show the main character has a secret
Inspo:
Our character should have his "hand" behind his back or in his pocket
Additionally, we want to release at least one poster that prepares for the release of the film
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Final product
Click on this link to watch the final product of our short film, "Out of Hand" https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Q0vfMcsRCt...
