I have chosen "24/7 News" as a name of my news and information channel. The idea that came to mind when I thought about producing a news bulletin is to report fact full news regarding current events around the clock. I decided to present a live broadcasting of a two-way news report in which a reporter provides analysis regarding the story from a relevant location.
The process began from a rough script in which I outlined plans to report London Underground tube stations' current condition. The Northern Line service is particularly more affected because tube stations from Chalk Farm to Edgware are closed on weekends due to maintenance and construction work. This creates problems for people traveling via the Northern Line and chaos can be experienced at night-time when the rush hour is at its peak. I wanted to present this story as a conversation between the news presenter in news room and Transport for London's (TFL) spokesperson at a relevant location. Therefore, the intention was to film the package at Hendon Central tube station during rush hour to capture the intensity of the story. However, station staff refused permission for public privacy and safety reasons and demanded an authentic letter from the university. This documentation process would have taken considerable time; consequently I switched to an alternative solution to present the interviewee on a video call.
The most vital asset of any production is the script, as it contains blue prints of visual stream, audio parameter and dialogue exchange. It particularly helped me setting a guide line to key frame time constrain. For instance, the maximum time duration allotted for bulletin was 60 second and it was challenging to convey the story in such a brief moment. Furthermore, I divided the main task in achievable goals by breaking the script into four segments, an animating channel identity, opening, dialogue and ending sequence. After finalising the script, I proceeded by sketching my ideas in order to create storyboard and defining visual composition. Subsequently, I realized that by developing a storyboard I specified what and where information will be given as video, audio, graphic and text. Thus, I grasped the importance that a strong script and storyboard can lead to a quality work and it helped me to do the job within available resources and time.
Following the script, it was important to incorporate a unique and strong visual signature as a channel identity to grab viewer's attention from the very first shot and further build interest in the story. To accomplish this I intended to create two very complex motion graphics shots that demanded various skills from modeling, lighting and rendering a 3D globe in Autodesk 3ds Max 2013 to animate, composite and colour correct inside Adobe After Effect CS6 (a digital motion graphics, editing and compositing software). A 3D animation sequence built within 3ds Max could have been a waste of time because if a certain change is required the whole procedure needs to be repeated accordingly. Therefore, to avoid subsequent repetition I modeled a 3D globe using 3ds Max and imported it as a 3D Object inside After Effect with the help of a plug-in called Element 3D. It changed my mindset regarding using a complex 3D pipeline and opened new avenues of possibilities, because with the help of this plug-in, now I can light, manipulate and animate 3D objects within After Effect in real-time.
Besides Element 3D, I utilized two major plug-ins inside After Effects; Plexus to create linked particles and Optical Flair to cast realistic lens flares. Though I painted backgrounds, light overlays, colour and several other plates for compositing inside Adobe Photoshop CS6 (image editor software), the major part of the job was done within After Effects by exploiting numerous tools, effects and plug-ins. From manipulating and animating 3D globe to color correct, create lighting effects, added high contrast, depth of field, and various other techniques in order to accomplish the desired effect.
From the beginning I was convinced that good editing and post-production process can enhance the quality and to complete the project in time I highly relied on available resources and mix numerous technique to obtain require camera angle and shots. For instance, the footage was captured using Canon 500D camera equipped with 18-55mm lens, mounted on a tripod attached to a flat table with wheals that delivered smooth dolly shots and later I planned to extend camera movements in post-production. As soon as I started editing studio shots, I realized that the green screen was not properly lit and the audio contained substantial background noise. Though, I was able to remove the green screen noise gradation by experimenting with numerous effects in After Effects and eventually discovered that Keylight is the best plug-in for chroma key composting, a pre-production method to replacing green screen with animating background, video or image. However, the variable background noise such as rumble, hiss, power-line hum, and wind, in audio gave me more trouble than I anticipated. To fix this I carried out series of treatments in Adobe Audition CS6 (audio editor software) and ultimately found that the most effected method was to use the adaptive noise reduction effect because it identifies and remove noise based on the noise sample obtained from the first few seconds of the audio.
Another important aspect was selecting the typeface, color palette and defining a theme for the news channel. Throughout the bulletin I used a modern typeface, "Titanium" that looks simple, thin, and sharp for a modernistic look so as not to overwhelm the visuals. Furthermore, I wanted to create a burning energetic, yet majestic feel for the channel to associate with my vision for a global approach. To illustrate this idea I used golden yellow and black as the main colours to evoke a feeling of revitalisation with triangles thoroughly and deliberately layered in the background to symbolize relation and relaying underlying meaning. Moreover, I spent an adequate amount of time searched on free internet libraries of music and sound effects because I wanted to add an upbeat news jingle that was a blend of futuristic and modern tones to enhance the overall visual result. Finally, I comprehend that by using appropriate typeface, colours, theme, music and sound effects in harmony I achieved a spectacular production before deadline utilizing available resources and time.
During the entire production of the news bulletin, I was struggling to keep up with script and storyboard but there were several changes implemented considering situations and time, such as the script was intended to be a seamless conversation. However, the video shots filmed earlier with actors were obtainable in several cuts and the video quality would have been more appealing if I could have used a professional broadcasting camera. That is why I even considered re-shooting various scenes to achieve high-quality work. Consequently, I regretted not using a move-board or animatics, a video storyboard created using images and sketches, in addition to a storyboard during pre-production to help pre-define shots and lock the edit before production.
Ultimately, the hardest sequence of production was the channel identity because to maintain the visual appeal I extended my knowledge of 3D software, which added a professional level of work quality. Throughout production I was more concerned about video quality and put tremendous effort scrutinizing every effect, every detail, every glint and flair and never thought about quality audio production. On the other hand, if I had more information about the necessity of sound recording before shooting, I would have strived to know the pros and cons of high-quality audio production and might have used a quality audio recorder as an external microphone. Also, I researched and edited the music after finalizing the visuals and forced the audio to mesh with visuals. Although the music final pass did synchronize flawlessly with the visuals, if I had the track from very beginning it could have helped me set the mood and tempo, as it could have been influential in the assortment of visual edit. Nevertheless, the visual experience satisfied my vision that I had for the news bulletin in my mind at the early stage of this coursework.
By the end, the result of this production exceeds my expectations and throughout I learned a lot. The entire experience of this news bulletin production brought to me lessons of progression. I pushed the limits of my technical skill set and capabilities; now I am content that I can handle any problem in my next production.
