Transition: Edit Process 2 (Colour Grading And Graphics)

Transition: Edit Process 2 (Colour Grading And Graphics)

The second part of my editing process for this project involved the use of colour grading for a professional looking finish as well as employing graphics to enhance the visual effect of the project.

I had actually prepared these graphics earlier on in the project so that they could be used on location during our shoot. I wanted to create a similar looking graphic to the original but adapting it slightly to give my own input/spin. 

To create the graphic I started the process in photoshop, piecing together the design using various shapes. Exporting multiple versions (some with backgrounds some without) allowing me choice in the edit. Then I moved this design in to after effects. Here I was able to duplicate the layer in order to separate the different colour filters that go into making that particular shade of white. This separation made the glitch effect more visually interesting and appear like an old VCR tape. I then added multiple distortion layers which allowed me to adjust the static effect of the glitch. Rather than keeping it on a loop I thought it would be more effective to have the video distort at different levels, speeds durations etc. at different points. So I adjusted each slider until it reached a point I was happy with. Once this was done I could export it into premier or wherever it was needed. 

This eventually led to the creation of an entire glitch sequence at the opening of the film. To polish the edit I prepared multiple versions of this sequence. It incorporated multiple distorted clips from different points of our sequence. But after showing it to George he explained that they needed to be more blown out and less recognisable. I achieved through upping the scale, increasing the speed of the clips and going one step further, lowering the exposure to create a very creepy off-putting sequence.

For the second half of my edit process, heading towards the final cut I was mostly polishing, making the few changes that Simon and George suggested. I had to borrow/copy some audio from other clips to use on clips that didn't have any sound. I found myself using a lot of minor adjustments e.g. levels/gain/constant powers,

as well as layering and fading to ensure every single clips audio, flowed gently in to the next one to maintain the immersion in the atmosphere.

I had also recorded some foley sound for a few shots and had to match up the timing if this so that it seemed natural. This also helped act on Simons recommendation of adding to the sound design. I had a ticking clock for a few shots to add to the atmos.  

As we began to polish the edit, I sat with Drey (our DOP) to work on the colour grading. I had done a lot of research in to grading and colour symbolism in thriller/Sci-Fi. I was eager to see how we could improve the look of the sequence (since Simon said grading would help it look even more professional). We went through a few different pre-sets to

experiment with the visuals. We wanted something that brought down the popping and exposure of some of the brighter colours in our sequence (e.g. the greens and reds) without it looking washed out. After some tinkering we found a good basis for the grade, however, we wanted to enhance it even further.

In order to do this in the most effective way possible, I employed the use of adjustment layers. This meant I could apply a general look for the whole film and any shots that didn't match could be adjusted individually. 

We fiddled around a lot with the midtones of each clip to help bring out some of the blues. This was also helped a lot by the temperature dial. I would move the tint bit by bit until it reached a stage I was happy with, I would then check with Drey to get her feedback, or recommendation as to what needed to be changed. Usually, i'm not a huge fan of colour correcting but having Drey there helped make the process more painless and we got more effective results. 

After showing this latest cut to both George and Simon there were only a few changes that they wanted. With a new pair of eyes on the film certain aspects were pointed out that I hadn't picked up on before.

The drone shot at the end was one George and I had a lot of trouble with. Initially, I had sped it up to try and improve its effectiveness, however, after showing it to Simon he suggested we consider lowering the speed instead. After a lot of experimenting, we all agreed that the most effective path forward was to incorporate the use of slow motion (thanks to our decision to record in 60fps this was an effective look). However it needed to be justified and not gimicy, so I used rhythmic editing to tie it in with the music. The changing pace of the music was matched by the change in visual pace. This took a very long time to perfect however and involved a lot of single frame adjustments. 

Overall though I wasn't overly happy with the pacing of the shot and the way it tied in with its previous linking shots. It had improved vastly from what it was and we simply didn't have the time to mess with it further. 

Apart from a few minor audio tweaks the only other thing we wanted to change was the colour grade. After taking a second look

we decided it looked far too Blue. While a blue filter can look nice, it has too much symbolic association with calmness. This is the exact opposite of the atmosphere we have built up. To resolve this we went in a slightly different direction and chose to incorporate more of my second choice of colour (orange). By raising the temperature in each shot we were able to build up far more angst. The risk with this was we would have a lot of blown out exterior shots, but by adjusting the exposure slider for each shot we overcame this problem. I then watched back the edit on a bigger screen to ensure the grading was consistent, especially during the transition from interior to exterior lighting. 

Once this was all tied together I had a very polished and effective final cut completed.