This blog post was originally published on 26/07/2014.

It was posted as part of my master’s degree crowdfunding project, The Miracle of Crowdfunding. 

This blog post was originally posted on its own development blog, but I later re-posted it on my film-centric blog, Something to do with Film.

Now I’m reposting it here on ibuiltmyown.education to provide further context to The Miracle of Crowdfunding which is a component of my Being a Creative Producer final project.

The posts were aimed at George Oram, my collaborator and Director of Photography, as I used the posts as the primary means of keeping him up-to-date with my thinking for The Miracle of Crowdfunding.

But the posts also chronicle the development of the project.

 

UPDATE 8 – I’ve made some changes to the video package

 

Okay, while I have had a few new ideas that will alter what I wrote in the last update, the filming next week will be largely unaltered.

 First off

SOUND

 I think I know what is wrong with the sound, because we’re still getting a slight disturbance.

 It’s nothing that I can’t shift, but it’ll be easier if I do not have to to deal with it in future.

 The problem is either:

 the sound recording box itself

 or 

 the little wire that connects the box to the SLR

 Next time we’re in Uni, we’ll have a play around.

Monday. University of Bath – The Dream of the Miracle of Crowdfunding

 I have found the music I am going to use and this should really give an idea for the tone of the whole thing…

At some point, we need to get an establishing shot of the sham Castle from over the other side of the city, because I am going to start the video with me saying:

 “On a hill overlooking the city of Bath, there is a Sham castle…”

 Establishing shot of the castle with a gentle zoom.

 Fade to:

 Me walking up hill towards sham castle.

 Fade to:

 Me looking up at sham castle.

 Cut to:

 Me sat down on bench telling the rest of the story. 
Filming list for Monday

  • Shot of the University of Bath sign by bus stop.
  • Me sat on bench telling the full story.
  • Cutaways of immediate area surrounding bench.
  • Field inbetween Uni and Sham castle – capture shouting audio for the money shot in the main film and some other outside audio I need as voiceover.
  • Footage of sham castle.
  • Footage of me looking up at Sham Castle
  • Shot of me walking up hill towards sham castle
  • Establishing shot of sham castle
  • Buying the pint with £5 note.
  • Maybe grabs some of the spontaneous inbetween points I mentioned in the last post, we’ll see.
WE NEED TO GRAB SOME PHOTOS AS WELL.



I will aim to get up between 12 and 1 and then I will come to yours like I did last time.

Thursday. Bristol, my house and University of Bristol

 Come over early and we’ll blitz our way through everything I need for:

  • the teaser
  • the main film
  • Grab some of the material for A Day in the Life of the Box, I have been re-thinking this video, see below.
  • Grab voice-over material in my room as well, as it sounds REALLY good when done in here. 


Then we’ll head over to Park Street/University of Bath and grab:

  • shot of me sat down and talking into camera
  • cutaways of the surrounding area.


I am going to head up there either Tuesday or Wednesday and figure it out in advance; in fact, I will probably pop up there tomorrow before work. 

 I really want to get The Research of the Miracle of Crowdfunding knocked on the head next week. I also want to get all of the teaser and main film stuff done. 
The Teaser of the Miracle of Crowdfunding

 If I have everything I need for the teaser, then I can finish it and use it to launch the website, which I can use to build anticipation and interest for the launch of the main campaign.

Re-thinking the video marketing package, slightly

 Okay, so I have slightly re-thought the thematic focus of each video and this is reflected within how I have retitled some of the videos…

  • MiracleMasters.Me – The Teaser of the Miracle of Crowdfunding
  • The Miracle of Crowdfunding – A Masters Campaign Film
  • Crowdfunding Potential – The Example of the Miracle of Crowdfunding
  • Crowdfunding outside the Box – The Research of the Miracle of Crowdfunding
  • Crowdfunding Success – The Masterplan of the Miracle of Crowdfunding
  • Crowdfunding Failure – The Longevity of the Miracle of Crowdfunding
  • Crowdfunding inside the Box – The Reality of the Miracle of Crowdfunding (previously, A Day in the Life of the Box)
  • Crowdfunding Journey – The Dream of the Miracle of Crowdfunding
  • Making a Masters Campaign Package – The Making of the Miracle of Crowdfunding, Part 1
  • I’ve made some changes – The Metamorphosis of the Miracle of Crowdfunding
  • Let’s do it again – The Bloopers of the Miracle of Crowdfunding
  • Re-making a Masters Campaign Film – The Making of the Miracle of Crowdfunding, Part 2
  • The Miracle Realised! The Conclusion of the Miracle of Crowdfunding
The two major changes occur within: 

 Crowdfunding Failure: The Longevity of the Miracle of Crowdfunding

 and 

 Crowdfunding inside the Box: The Reality of the Miracle of Crowdfunding

Crowdfunding Failure: The Longevity of the Miracle of Crowdfudning

 How is your bike?

 Alternatively, do you have a bike you can borrow?

 This video I was originally going to film in my room…

 … and then I figured out a way to visualise it.

 Every video deals with its own theme, therefore while, Crowdfunding Revealed: The Research of the Miracle of Crwodfunding is about the research I did to understand what crowdfunding is and how it can be utilised, it is equally about stepping out of your comfort zone – like how I moved to Bristol to step out of my comfort zone.

 Therefore, we film it in an iconic and central location of Bristol that also happens to house the University of Bristol – an institution renowned for it’s research. 

 The problem with filming Crowdfunding Failure: The Longevity of the Miracle of Crowdfunding in my room is it does not really properly visualise the theme and message of the video, which in this case is to not allow a failure to stop you – to see the negative in the positive – a failure is just a reminder, a point where you stop and review your situation, but the journey goes on after that.

 Therefore, we film on a location that I occupy on a regualr basis and that perfectly visualizes the theme.

 On the Bristol to Bath cycle, there is a pit stop not far outside Bath.

 Therefore, we film:

  • Me sat down talking my thing
  • footage of me fixing the chain on my bike
  • various cutaways
  • shot of me cycling away down the path back to the Bristol
You see where I am going with this, the journey goes on, so to speak…
 
 
 
Crowdfunding in the Box: The Reality of the Miracle of Crowdfunding
 
Previously, The Day in the Life of the Box
 
We are missing a trick with this one and you are right, this one needs to have a comedic tone to it, it makes sense when you look at the tone of the other videos, the 4 videos preceding this one are all quite serious, so this one needs to have a lighter tone. 
What I’ve already shot.
I have not fully figured how to do this one yet, which is why I am not worrying too much about filming too much material for it.
 
In addition to each video revealing more information about my masters and the overall project, they also reveal a bit more about myself and my philosophy. 
 
With this video, we have a real opportunity to demonstrate my habit of making my mind up about something… and then completely changing my mind 2 minutes later.
 
Therefore, present my daily routine as I have already laid it down and juxtapose that with the absolute chaotic routine of assembling this campaign package that pretty contradicts my established routine.
 
The one that I laid down in what I have already recorded was my daily routine before I started this project, since starting this project it has been much more about improvising from day-to-day, so the video can be a presentation of my daily routine constantly contradicting itself.
 
Through the course of doing so the video will visually present something that I have been saying for over a year now…
 
It’s about becoming comfortable with being uncomfortable.
 
Therefore, 
 
if Crowdfunding outside the Box – The Research of the Miracle of Crowdfunding is about pushing yourself outside of your comfort zone, 
 
then 
 
Crowdfunding inside the Box – The Reality of the Miracle of Crowdfunding is about staying outside of that comfort zone and becoming proficient at working on the fly – becoming comfortable at being uncomfortable. It’s about finding a new uncomforatble comfort zone.
 
Chaotically comedic while still presently the fact of my situation is what this video needs to be.
 
One idea I just came up with is to do it back-to-front and side-to-side and by this I mean present my classic daily routine alongside the routine of building this crowdfunding campaign, I am currently working through the night to reset my sleeping pattern for the weekend, so when I do it again next friday film myself getting up in the afternoon working through the evening, early hours editing, working on website, talking to camera, cut in footage from when we were shooting the other stuff and corss-cut all of this with footage of my classic routine, but have night me point out how all of that has gone to shit because of this project, but how I am not fighting that and have just embraced it and getting the absolute best from it. 

 I don’t really fancy doing it tonight, as I am currently feeling a little under the weather – it’s this constant heat exhaustion, it has fucked my immune system.
 
However, I will have a think about it while I am folding t-shirts.
 
I will also pop over to Park Street tomorrow and do a bit of figuring out for The Research video, maybe see if there is a way to make that one slightly comedic too, seeing how it is the twin of The Reality video.