Group meeting

 Hello blog! We had yet another successful group meeting this last Wednsday, and I wanted to share some of the feedback my group gave me. I really appreciated the commentary that was made, because it pertained to our script.

• Make the lines more realistic 
• Change the reasoning for Tom not wanting to shake people's hands
• Make the ending more subtle

Originally, our plan was to make Tom's fear of shaking people's hands stem from something like social anxiety or just plain sensitivity to physical touch. However, my group and I agreed that this reason wouldn't really have a comedic effect to it, and can actually be a serious topic for some people. Therefore, we changed the reason to something a lot more silly and typical to a comedy movie or show. I don't want to give away this change just yet, but I will be posting the finalized script soon that will have it. Stay tuned...

Location

     Hi blog! I have exciting news:

    We officially secured the perfect location for filming. At first, we were concerned that it would be hard to find an office that is willing to let us take a day to film, since they are typically busy during the week and empty or locked on weekends. I asked my dad to send me pictures from his office, and we all agreed that the subtle yellow colors from the chairs and the cubicles in the office matched our mood board pretty well. 

Mood board of the setting/ Tom character

Pictures of my dad's office

My lovely dad confirmed that he can let us in to film on the weekend of the 29th, so we're planning on getting an early start and filming from 9- undetermined. We will likely meet with the actors to do a read through of the script before we film, so I'll make sure to document how that goes. See you soon!

Social media/ color scheme

 Last class, Zain and I decided to start thinking about how we want our social media to be presented, so we started brainstorming on ideas for the "logo", which would be the profile picture of the Instagram for "Out of hand"

Our initial design looked like this:

And we thought it was great enough, but Martina brought us back to reality and told us to make a few changes that made a significant difference. 

The colors are less abrasive and tacky looking, and the font is spaced out much better now. We took inspiration from the simple, typical sitcom logos, such as from "The office", but decided to include the color scheme of the office location we are shooting at (yellows, blues, red). 

    Following this same color scheme, we also made a mood board for how we want our main character to dress/the vibe we want him to give off. We want our main character to give off that nerdy, kind of odd guy that you see in sitcoms, such as Dwight from The Office or Micheal Cera's characters. 

We haven't finalized the rest of the character's yet, but we're thinking that in order to contrast from Tom, we want them to have more "strict" colors that show their strictness and authority, such as blues or purples. 

Group meeting

 Hi blog! On Wednesday, we had another successful group meeting. This was honestly some of the most useful feedback I've received yet, because most of it pertained to our script. The main conscensus that my group came to is that a lot of the script is "unrealistic". How they explained it is that in order for something to be entertaining, the audience has to feel like the line can be somewhat what a real person would say, even if it's comedic. So, for example, lines such as "we need to get sneakier" can be improved on to something like a shot of them whispering ideas, which would be more realistic. 

We also ended up changing Tom's reason for not being able to shake hands to something else. We agreed that him having a "phobia" that makes him sensitive to touch wouldn't be a funny topic that would match why he refuses to shake people's hands so strongly. However, I don't want to give away the ending just yet, because I believe it really is what makes or breaks the film. Stay tuned...

Tom: Phobia is triggered by just direct physical contact with people gives him anxiety. Sensitive touch receptors that trigger strong emotions in him.

ACT 1 

Scene: Walking into work from elevator, opening the door, establish the character as a confident, cool guy. He walks up to meet the receptionist at the front desk, who is making a call. 

Receptionist: Yes? We have an opening at 2'o clock for a showing in the lower east side of Manhattan. 

She notices Tom and gives him a smile 

Receptionist: First day? 

Tom: Yes, such a pleasure to meet you is it, Alice? 

Receptionist: Yes, indeed!

She extends her hand. He looks down at it, and is reluctant and avoids the hand completely. Back and forth between receptionist and Tom, where he says

Tom: 'I just peed.' (he says it so confidently, that the receptionist is just like ah okay and then turn to her expression being weirded out). To avoid the handshake.

Shot of receptionist watching him sinister

Tom gets in his head about the situation and is very oddly confused, and stressed. (voiceover: nailed it.)

SCENE 2: 

Walking over to his desk, a co-worker is walking in opposite direction and they bump into each other. 

Greg: Oh my apologies, really, I did not mean to startle you, I'm Greg!

Tom: Yeah he seems nice but you can never be so sure...

hand extends in a frame, 

(Instead of handshake maybe he slaps his hand and gives a cringe smirk like just)

Greg: Reaction like what is happening...

Tom: Low five! (instead of high-five)

SCENE 3:

So... what do you think of the new employee?

Receptionist: He seems... normal, but when I offered my hand I tell you the weirdest thing happened. He refused to shake my hand.

Greg: "shock" gasp sound. No... it can't be...

Receptionist: 

Receptionist: We need a plan 

CUT TO ACT 2.

Phase One The "Super Secret Handshake" Setup: We introduce the idea of handshakes in a way that makes it feel exclusive, like it’s a big deal. We’ll gather the team and act like there’s this mystical, office-wide tradition of "Super Secret Handshakes." We’ll make it sound like it’s some rite of passage, even though it’s just a normal handshake. This creates the illusion that handshakes are a must and something he’s missing out on.

GREG: what if that doesn't work...?

Phase Two The Casual Coffee/pen Move: If he’s still avoiding handshakes, it’s time for a more subtle approach. We wait for a moment when we’re holding something like a coffee cup, pen, or binder. Then, when we “accidentally” walk past him, we’ll lean in and offer our hand for the handshake—without even thinking about it, like it's the most natural thing in the world. He’ll feel the subtle pressure to reciprocate, especially when he realizes everyone else is doing it.

Phase Three  The "Accidental" Handshake Escalation: If all else fails, we start getting sneakier. We’ll create situations where it's impossible to avoid shaking hands—like when handing him something across the desk or during a meeting. Slowly, we set him up to the point where the only thing left is to just shake our hand without a second thought.

Slo-motion sequence of greg going into hand shake, Tom in his head 

Cut to introspective feeling and him getting in his head,

Tom

Casting!

 Hi blog! As you guys may or may not know, my group member Martina is a great actress and is part of the Inside out theatre company. Thankfully, this means she has many great connections for our short film that are adults, which makes it more realistic since our film is in an office setting. Although I do not personally know the people she hired, I was told about them and how they fit the different characters we plan to include in our film, such as the awkward protagonist Tom, and how the adults from the theatre company would fit this. 

I'm so happy that we are finally making some progress with this film, and we are planning to finally begin the filming process over spring break. 

Group meeting

Hi blog! Today, we had our first group meeting in class, where all of us who are working in different groups were able to hear each other's ideas and give our own insight to everything. Here is some of the feedback I receieved:

Nadia 

• Comedy Short Film 

• Find what you want to say with what you are making, what you want your purpose to be 

• Nathaniel suggests that the handshake guy is shunned but then everyone starts copying him and it becomes a trend. 

• Find humor in the discomfort 

• Blog could be improved 

As for the social media, I was given the advice to follow sitcom social media pages, for instance The Office. The biggest piece of advice that stuck with me was from Nathaniel, where he told me to not be afraid to "get weird" with the interactions between Tom (the main character) and the people in his office, for example make a really weird gesture instead of a handshake, in order to add to the comedic effect. Overall, this meeting was very insightful and I really appreciate the feedback we were all able to give each other.

Finalized idea

 I have very exciting news, and it is that we finally finalized the idea for our short film. 

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 do weird gestures when his coworkers attempt to shake his hand. As time goes on, his refusal to shake people's hand becomes a topic of conversation in the office, and people get increasingly uncomfortable with his awkward high fives or quick blurt outs like "Sorry I need to pee". Soon, everyone in the office is treating him weirdly and offering him bizarre gestures, like elbowing him or pointing and winking. Tom gets called into the office by his boss, where he is worried he will finally be confronted for his weird behavior.  

This story follows our initial idea of following an "unspoken rule" in society, and we decided this would be the best way to portray it. Although it seems like a silly idea without much of a message, the overarching theme is breaking the small, unspoken rules of society and the effects it can have.