Maltese Falcon Remake

Yasmin Burhan (Cast & Editor)
Lucy Cullingworth (Cast & Camera)
Stevie-Lee Ingham (Cast & Camera)
Chantelle Norman-Golding (Cast & Camera)


Filming Schedule:
Monday 8th October - 5th Period (Everyone)
Tuesday 9th October - Lunch time (Everyone)
Wednesday 10th October - 3rd Period (Everyone)
Thursday 11th October - 1st Period (Everyone)
Friday 12th October - 3rd Period (Everyone)

 Editing Schedule:
Monday 15th October - Periods 2,3, Lunch and 4th (Lucy and Yasmin)


Final Product:




Bloopers:




Evaluation:We were set the task of remaking the opening scene from 'Maltese Falcon' in groups of four, this was so that we could gain a vital insight into what goes into the making of a film. It was very useful in learning about the importance of lighting, cinematography and performance.
Unfortunately due to an English Literature trip and a illness from a key member of the group we started off the task two lessons later than originally planned and this had a great impact on our work meaning we were very behind with our planning. Once we started our planning we cast the characters, fortunately there are four characters and four members. therefore we each had a role to play. None of our group are actresses and I feel this made our final product look a lot less professional than we initially planned. Our group had difficulty learning scripts, this shows in the final piece. My hand can be seen holding a script as Lucy reads from it. Both the errors of time keeping and bad acting has encouraged me to be a lot better prepared in my own film. I know that time management is key and making sure that all cast are available at the same time. Lucy and I had the main acting parts, as a result Stevie and Chantelle took it in turns to film. This was decided in the planning as both of them said they wanted to get use to using the cameras in preparation for their own films.
In the planning process we planned to use one location in our college's media department, however due unforeseen circumstances including lessons and revision classes we were unable to always use this room. We changed locations 3 times and this is clearly seen in the final product. Another disadvantage of changing locations was the lighting, the windows were placed in different places in each room, meaning that lighting was terrible. We really struggled to keep the lighting consistent with opening and closing blinds, however we weren't successful. From this I have learnt that good and consistent lighting is really key to the making of a film.
Stevie made a storyboard in the planning stages which was a huge help in the making of the video, we referred to it for angles, duration and props/costume. This has urged me to make a good and understandable storyboard for my own film.
We tried to be true to the costumes in the original Maltese Falcon, therefore Lucy wore a large coat with a faux fur collar and Stevie and I wore suit jackets so we would be easily identifiable as men.
In conclusion I think the remake was somewhat of a success however I found that planning was essential and we should of spent more time with regards to locations and learning of scripts. I think we put in a lot of effort as we dedicated a few lunch times to trying to finish off the reconstruction.