Almost there...

I'm almost there and then disaster strikes - my hard drive craps out on me, I lose all my work so far.

I've lost my script, but fortunately I've emailed it around so I have backups of it - I've just lost my project file. That's annoying.


So where am I so far?

I have 5/7 actors.

All the locations but three, and hopefully by the end of today I'll have two more.

Nearly all my props.

I went to RSC and looked at all their costumes, they have some good stuff, which gave me quite a confidence boost in this project. Unfortunately a rough estimate on what I need has given me a price-tag of £420 on the costumes - yikes!


I have also just bought some extra props, a couple tankards and a reindeer-skin rug. Very nice.

3. 14th February - Steady Progress

Well, I have some nice progress.


I've been in contact with:

Custom flag makers to make some tapestries to use as props

Taxidermists to get some bull horns to use as candles, for props.

Lots of different Abbey's / Chapels / Cathedrals to film in their Undercrofts.


And I finally have a finished story, just got my first draft of a script last week and have asked my writer Sam Kearns to make a few changes here and there, he's very understanding of what I want and is totally great at taking criticism, thank God, I would hate to have a stroppy writer. This guy is pure freakin' gold.


Here's a sample:

INT. THIEVES GUILD - NIGHT                                       

          A dagger rams into a map of Skyrim. Vex, master thief of the     

          guild scowls at one of her subordinates.                         

                              VEX                                          

                    The count of Bruma has a lot to                        

                    lose. Firstly, his Son. The idiot                      

                    has sent his own blood to carry the                    

                    package. Secondly, his prize. What                     

                    we know about the amulet tells us                      

                    not only of its considerable value                     

                    but the depraved history behind it.                    

                    Finally, his city. Its invaluable                      

                    to him that the amulet reach                           

                    Riften.                                                

          She traces her hand from the border of Skyrim to Riften.         

                              VEX                                          

                    He knows full well that if the                         

                    rebellion bleeds over to Cyrodil it                    

                    will come from this province.                          

                    Brumas population is 40 percent                        

                    Nord. If the inserrectuion reaches                     

                    his borders then his grip on his                       

                    own lands will fail. This amulet is                    

                    such a peace offering that our Jarl                    

                    would be against any strikes into                      

                    the heart of the empire.                               

                    Considering all of this, there is                      

                    only one conclusion. The Count has                     

                    much to lose. However, we would                        

                    lose much, much more.                                  

                              THIEF                                        

                    What will we lose?                                     

                              VEX                                          

                    Our reputation. A cataclysm of that                    

                    size would disrupt the country for                     

                    leauges around. The time of the                        

                    Thieves Guild will come. Now you                       

                    understand the magnitude of your                       

                    task. Steal the amulet and return                      

                    here. Do I need to explain what you                    

                    will lose if you fail?                                 

This is by far my favourite scene of the script, and Sam is working diligently to get the rest up to scratch.


Oh, and Eastnor Castle very graciously waived their £2,700 per day fee to let me film there, provided I only film OUTSIDE of the actual castle, but I can use their landscape for filming on, which is exactly what I want, bloody fantastic. Here's a picture.

Looks fantastic, right?


Now my challenge is Actors and Clothing. I need three main actors, two actresses (though these are short roles) and two secondary male actors.



Next update I should have lots to tell.

2. 3rd February - Changes

So it's been nearly a month since my last post, and my project has crawled forward since then.

It doesn't look like having my character in armour is feasible, so I've decided to take a change in direction on my project.

After speaking with Sam, we've decided the best course of action to pursue is to have the film take on a different element, one of Dovahkiin being a more 'Thief' character, instead of 'Warrior' this means I have a great opportunity to introduce The Dark Brotherhood and Thieves Guild into the story.

So that means I don't have to spend hundreds of pounds on bits of metal, phew, but I still want some badass costumes.


As for a filming location, I'm in contact with English Heritage to use my main location as "Longtown Castle" in Hereford, which is just a stones throw away from Worcester, yay.

I still also want to do some filming on the Malvern Hills, which can be my go-between location, I guess.

I now also need to find some good interior locations to film at. Should be tricky. Ah, there's so much to organise when it comes to making your own film!

1. 14th Jan - Beginnings.

It's my final year at University of Worcester and I want to make it count. I also want to have a great video that is so much more than a piece to chuck on a show-reel and leave it for interviews.


When I leave Uni I want to work in a post-production facility, and I wouldn't mind being part of the production process too. I want to work with VFX, and I don't mind what I do. So for my dissertation project I decided to create an ambitious short film based on a little video game called "The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim"

Right now I'm at the bare-bones of Pre-production. I'm trying to assemble a crack team together, and at the moment I have a writer on board and an artist for Storyboarding, and also a Blacksmith for the intial costume design.


So what do I want? I'm aiming to create a 5-10 minute short film, with Dovahkiin being my main character. Because of this, I want to create a costume that mimics the costume Dovahkiin wears in Bethesda's game trailers, and in Logan's Live Action trailer.
But my film also needs to include some great Visual Effects to smooth the whole thing. Nobody wants to see a man in a suit of armour with a sword running around in a 21st century environment. I'm planning on doing lots of Visual Effects work to bring Skyrim to Worcester.

I'm currently talking to my writer Sam about the whole thing. Trying to decide a good plot. He's a fantastic writer and you should check out his work, I'll ask him for a link to provide.

Once I get my plot, I'll start drawing up some crude, childish storyboards, and send them over to my Artist Dragomir. I asked him to do me a quick drawing of Dovahkiin and he provided me with this fantastic piece, which he drew in a day.

http://bashel1k.deviantart.com/#/d4lgs6u

Now go check out his work.


As it stands, I have a long way to go. Wish me luck!