A Coat's Spirit

 

I was fortunate enough to attend the screening of the Short Film is created by the Level - 5 film students.

I picked this film because I naturally incline towards female lead films and also gravitated towards it because a lot of my own work has been inspired by horror or dark comedy. The plot of the film seemed concise and clear and easy to understand compared to the other movies I had screened. For the music of the film when the credits show I played a creepy sound only for a few seconds, almost warning the audience about the unsettling feeling the movie was about to bring. But very quickly I change the music to this clubby synth music which the actress is jamming to and getting ready to . There are parts I left silent because I wanted the focus to be on the actress and the severity of the plot. Then there was a scene transition where she throws the coat to the bed and the scene cuts to her crying with a coat on the street; for that I used a solemn track conveying her initial disappointment and then grief in the next scene. Then we see the actress make a return to the room and there I used a very dark, unsettling track that suggests an impending doom. When she comes back to the room. The music that I used is suspenseful and indicates that the damage has already been done.

I had invited the actress to the studio twice to re record the dialogues but unfortunately she was unable to deliver an accurate or better performance than she had already given. It was due to them going off the script whilst filming as well as her not being able to recreate the pauses and dub her dialogues, my lecturer and I had invited her a third time but due to her other commitments she couldn’t dedicate anymore time to the project. However I did try to level out some of her vocals. 

For the foley sounds :

I had recorded and ambiance track of my room as we live in the same accommodation. I also recorded hair brushing sound, mascara hitting the table sound, iPhone ring tone, her falling to the bed sound, coat thrown on the bed sound, I recreated the foots steps on my kitchen floor watching the video as well. I used most of it but not all of it in the movie.

The technicality of my production process alone side with score sheets and logic screen shots are shown below .

• For the intro I wanted set the tone by using Barague theme ( like Bach).

• I used the synthesiser sound scape named burning pad.

• Then using the midi Key board recorded the openning theme using E minor harmonies and diminished chords.

• I boosted the existing audio by 6 decibals

•   I was inspired by shows like Scooby doo creating a mystery, creepy, gothic vibex

• When the film starts I used a fader to fade out the music.

• I adjusted the disco beat for the dancing scene and put loop club dance beat.

• Using anthemic synth lead I played a funky melody in E minor blues.

• I also added iPhone ring tone as a foley sound.

• For the coat banging used on the bed part I used studio violin A minor harmonic melody to show her melancholy and her deranged ness.

• Lastly when she's being cheeky I used music that suggests a type of victory 

• I used a synth breathy vox.

• I used parallel chromatic scale marking her deranged character.

• When she returns, in the final theme I brought it back to E minor.

• Then I synced the footsteps with the movie.