In the distant future, humans are gone. In their place, advanced androids, nearly inseparable from humans, live on and continue to maintain the Earth under the command and supervision of The System. That is until one android starts to exhibit strange behaviour.
Story:
Ergo is about a nameless android who follows the commands it's been issued by The System, it receives commands at the start of the day, to act like a human. It does this for a while, however, we learn that this is not the life the android wants for itself, it is capable of more but gets tied down by the System and its commands. However, through its own efforts, it works to go against the System and prove its free will.
To take a closer look at its themes, with this film, I'm looking at depression and dissociation. There are a number of people who are living their lives the same exact way every day without change, not actually being present in what's happening in their lives or what's going on in their surroundings, acting like robots. No sense of self, instead only doing what's expected of them and that doing these things day in and day out is our purpose on Earth.
Treatment/Research:
For my own film, one of my biggest inspirations was the works of Maya Deren, more specifically Meshes of the Afternoon and At Land. Both of these films tell their stories via some kind of repeated loop. From there, I decided that my own film would be shot in black and white, except for a few scenes. The reason for this is that I want colour to represent the android slowly gaining his own will as if the System is suppressing the android in whatever way possible. My film will also focus on telling its story via multiple loops. I want to show the changes the android goes through as it deviates from its daily routine in every loop up until it successfully rebels against the System.
The experimental aspects will come less from the production process and more from the post-production process. I want to experiment with being non-linear in the way I tell and edit my story. In terms of sound, I plan to experiment with my own voice. Instead of having just a regular backing track I want to record my own voice saying key lines then reverse and pitch it to make it unrecognizable. Similar to what David Lynch does in his series Twin Peaks. In the series, there is a special room shown very rarely known as the Red Room, in here the actors were told to say their lines backwards, their voices were then reversed in the edit, so even though they are speaking clearly there is still some distortion to their voices.
Film Structure:
The film will be split into three separate loops. The first loop begins with a flash of colour as we see the android's real eye colour, he then closes his eye and re-opens them, this time in black and white. This time he's shown a preview of his entire day after that, he rises from his bed and walks towards his wardrobe where a piece of paper is stuck on the wardrobe door. This is a checklist of the daily tasks he has to complete, given to him by The System. After marking the checklist saying that he has woken up, the android proceeds to get himself ready for the day. He freshens up, changes his clothes and sprays himself with perfume. His face stays completely neutral throughout this whole process. Even when he picks up the perfume bottle to smell it, he does so in an artificial, pre-programmed way, just checking it off the checklist in his mind. This artificial movement continues as he goes to work. This is the perfect loop, as ordained by The System, observed by it at every step of the process.
Loop 2 starts similarly with the android waking up and seeing a preview of his entire day, however, we quickly split off from the first loop, even The System is not prepared for this as it has difficulty locating the android, once it does however it observes the androids unusual behaviour. The android is skipping steps in the loop. The once pre-programmed movement and neutral expression have now been changed to one of anger and anxiety. It portrays emotions? It should not be doing that, in fact, it should be impossible. The android then deviates from the loop entirely, he seems to be scribbling on something but being careful to hide it. The System does not allow this and forces the loop to stop.
Finally, we enter the third loop, once again the android is shown a preview of his day, although we now know this is actually the day designed by the system. It seems the android is following the loop, but something is wrong. At every task the android is different, he takes his time with the tasks, he does them in his own way and he makes an active effort to be tracked by The System. In an attempt to observe more closely and deactivate the android, he instead takes notice of The System and takes control of his camera. The android points to the paper he's been scribbling on. The scribbles spell out a word--no they make a sentence. Cogito Ergo Sum, Latin for "I think, therefore I am". The android has gained a will, he wants to break free of the loops, he wants to break free of The System. Perhaps with this, he has.
Moodboard:
Shot List:
Shot 1:
Extreme close-up shot of the android's eye as it opens up and lingers near the camera, this shot is in colour. The eye then closes momentarily before opening again, this time the shot is in black and white.
Shot 2:
Medium tracking shot. Android gets off his bed and walks over to the wardrobe, there is a piece of paper on the front which he marks before opening the wardrobe. The camera does a close-up shot of the paper as the wardrobe opens and the camera pans down showing the main column before fading to black.
Shot 3:
Starts in black as a transition from the previous shot, we pan left to show the android, now in different clothes and looking freshened up, he sprays himself with perfume before placing it back and closing the cabinet.
Shot 4:
Wide shot of bedroom, the android exits the bathroom with an exercise band walks over to the yoga mat placed within the room and starts exercising, before getting up, marking the checklist on his wardrobe and walking out the door. The camera follows him for the entire shot.
Shot 5:
From black the camera moves to reveal a long shot of a window where the android is passing by.
Shot 6: Close-up of android's face as he works on a laptop. The android's face fills half the frame while the laptop fills the other half.
Shot 7:
In the bedroom, the camera pans left to right searching for the android, the camera then tilts down to the android laying on the floor exercising, the rest of the shot is the same as Shot 4 from that point on.
Shot 8:
From black the camera moves to reveal the android who notices the camera and starts to chase after it. The camera moves back and tilts up to the android being on top of the camera and grabs it himself pointing it at a piece of paper.
The Shoot:
Challenges:
On the day I was supposed to film I ended up in the hospital for 2 weeks which greatly affected how I had planned out shooting and editing days. Originally I had factored in time for the main shoot as well as a day in case any additional footage was required. I also had left myself time to edit the film and write the blog. Due to my stay in the hospital, I missed most of the days I had set for working so I was in a mad rush to rearrange everything to be done in the course of a few days.
Shooting Day:
With the help of my senior, I was able to effectively do the entire shoot within one day. With all of the shots and sequences already planned out the only thing to do besides shooting was to setup all the equipment, and props and prepare the costume. Below is all the behind-the-scenes of the shoot.
Post-Production:
The editing process for Ergo was different to other projects that I've done. On other projects, I had a large amount of footage to prune through, I would then have to sync all the audio for the selected footage and then start the actual editing process. With this project, I tried to be as efficient as possible during the shooting process so that I would not have to spend a dedicated amount of time just going through all the footage. Other than this I did not record any actual audio on set so I wasn't fiddling around with having to synch up audio. In terms of initial assembly, it was very simple.
The complicated portion of the editing came from the visual and sound edits I was trying to make. Since my concept was that of a looping day I wanted to make sure I could convey subtle changes between the loops with editing. The first way this came through is in how I used certain soundtracks. The first loop has more of an upbeat soundtrack, whereas the second loop contains more ambient sounds. I also experimented with changing the speed of clips, we can see this whenever a new loop starts, the character is shown a preview of the day before he actually wakes up. To make this I first edited the entire first loop, took it to a separate timeline and then exported it, I brought that exported file to my main timeline and adjusted the size according to the shape of the eye, I also increased the speed to make it fit with the amount of time I had (I ended up increasing the clip to 2000x it's original speed). I was also facing a problem where the actor could not keep his eye open for long enough to get the whole loop previewed, so I had to take a freeze frame of his open eye and then increase that to fit the time I needed. As for transitions, those were mostly done through the camera, except for a few fade-outs which were added in post.
For the various soundtracks and sound effects I used ArtList. It provided me with a variety of sound effects I could use for my film. Such as the printing sound that plays when the loop preview is shown. For me this was the most enjoyable part of the entire editing process, I loved picking and choosing various sounds and music and when they should be used/played. I also loved at the end where I had used a sound clip from the video game I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream. This is where I got the audio for "Cogito Ergo Sum" and I though of different way I could use it. Whether that was layering it on top of another to give it a stronger sound, or slowing down the audio and reversing it to make it sound like it was glitching.
Personal Evaluation:
Strengths:
Throughout the entire experimental media project, I had a concrete idea of what I wanted to do, what I wanted to show and the things I wanted to explore. This allowed me to be well-equipped for the actual shooting day and have a good idea of the direction I wanted to take the edit as well. It felt like all the decisions related to the making of the film were intentional instead of me just going along with the flow of things.
Weaknesses:
With all that being said, I still feel my planning process isn't completely there yet, especially in the case of unexpected things happening. In this case, it was me being hospitalised for two weeks when I was supposed to shoot and edit this project as well as work on other projects. My documentation process needs to be improved as well.
What to Improve On:
As I mentioned previously, when planning things out I should start planning earlier and plan for all sorts of issues that could arise. In the future, I want to work on the documentation process side-by-side with the rest of the project instead of leaving it mostly to the end. I also want to be more active at recording behind-the-scenes footage as for this project there is barely any footage, and barely any of myself doing work, for the future, I need to make sure I have a separate camera on a stand recording the entire shoot.
Risk Assessment Form:
Campus: Lahore
Course: Film and Digital Art
Unit
IFDA4003
Year
2024
Group
Student Producer name & phone number (NB - all students are responsible for safety in production):
Bilal Mahmood: 03277799961
Hussain Irshad Cheema: 03064641243
Unit leader(s): Bilal Mahmood (Self)
Proposed date(s) and times(s)
Travel/Set up date(s) / time(s
I arrive on location at 8:30 AM to setup and start shooting at 9:00 AM
Shooting date(s) / time(s): ): 16th May 2024
9:00 am to 4:00 pm
Pack down/travel date(s) / time(s):
Start packing up by 4:30 pm
1. Exact location of filming, including address & post code.
Street 20, House no. 381 G-Block DHA Phase 5 Lahore Pakistan
1a. Location Permission
Mark where you are at with an X
Yes
In the process of getting it (incl details of where you have got to – ie email confirmation)
No
N/A
Do you have signed location permission?
No formal letter, confirmation via text
Does your location require you to complete their own risk assessment? If so, attach it to this risk assessment.
X
Have you notified the local Council and Police? You must do so if you are doing any of the following:
●Filming in a public place
●Using weapons
●Have cast in uniform
X
1b. Address & phone number of nearest Walk-in Centre or Minor Injuries Unit
N/A
1c. Nearest bus and train stops to location / local taxi phone number
Ride share service InDrive is installed on all phones plus drivers are available on location
Commercial area containing stores + restaurants are nearby and the location has it's own toilets
2. Brief summary of set & nature of filming / activity
Relaxed efficient environment. Only a few minor setbacks occurred, nothing noteworthy
3. Names and contact details of the production crew / cast / documentary participants. Add extra lines as you need to.
Name:
Bilal Mahmood
Role:
Director/Camera Operator
Contact number
03277799961
Hussain Irshad Cheema
Assistant Director and Actor
03064641243
4. Identify potential hazards; who could be affected; how they could be affected; and list the control measures that will reduce the risk. University H&S policies can be found here.
Type of injury or health problem that might result i.e. cuts, bruises, fractures, electric shock, burns etc.
List the control measures you will put in place to reduce risks from the hazards to an acceptable standard
Control measures should ultimately reduce the overall risk. Do not purely rely upon providing Personal Protective Equipment or rely on just ‘being careful’
Evaluate the probability and consequence
Indicative values for P column (P = Probability)
L = might happen, but unlikely
M = could happen
H = will probably happen
Indicative values for C column (C = Consequence)
L = can return to filming work after minor attention
M = person unable to work for 3 days or longer
H = permanent injury or death
P
C
Access/ Egress
N/A
L
L
Aircraft / flying
N/A
L
L
Allergens
N/A
L
L
Animal
N/A
L
L
Audience / public
N/A
L
L
Boats
N/A
L
L
Compressed gas / gas
N/A
L
L
Confined spaces
N/A
L
L
Cranes, hoists, lifts & access platforms
N/A
L
L
Derelict buildings, dangerous structures
N/A
L
L
Diving operations
N/A
L
L
Electricity
N/A
L
L
Falling objects
N/A
L
L
Fire
Cast and Crew
Fire extinguishers were present + fire alarms were active
L
L
Generators
N/A
L
L
Glass
N/A
L
L
Hand tools
N/A
L
L
Hazardous chemicals
N/A
L
L
Heat / cold
N/A
L
L
Inexperienced / children / vulnerable persons
N/A
L
L
Location Lighting
N/A
L
L
Machinery
N/A
L
L
Manual Handling
N/A
L
L
Mines, excavations / tunnels / quarries
N/A
L
L
Noise
N/A
L
L
Physical exertion
N/A
L
L
Poor visibility / night shooting
N/A
L
L
Roadside working, traffic, vehicles
N/A
L
L
Scaffolding
N/A
L
L
Speed (running or other sport - not vehicles)
N/A
L
L
Stress
N/A
L
L
Stunts
N/A
L
L
Trailing cables
N/A
L
L
Messy environment (equip / props)
N/A
L
L
Violence, aggression, public disorder, war
N/A
L
L
Visual effects: smoke, snow, fireworks
N/A
L
L
Water
N/A
L
L
Weapons
N/A
L
L
Weather
N/A
L
L
Lone working
N/A
L
L
Working at height
N/A
L
L
Other (list and add rows if necessary)
N/A
L
L
Mark an X next to your choices
5. With control measures in place what is the likelihood of an injury or health effect?
Minor
1
X
X
Moderate
2
Major/Fatal
3
6. How likely is the most significant hazard to cause harm?
Unlikely
1
X
X
Likely
2
Very Likely
3
7. Calculate the risk score (use the figure which represents the highest risk of all present hazards)
Low
1−2
X
X
Medium
3−4
High
6−9
13. Signatures
The names below are confirming the date that they have read and discussed this risk assessment with the production team. Based on the information supplied on this form it is noted that the control measures are considered appropriate and proportionate to the hazards identified. At all times, students retain responsibility for their own safety and for those around them.
Student Producer: Bilal Mahmood
Date: 14/05/24
Production Coordinator: Bilal Mahmood
Date: 14/05/24
Unit Tutor: Qaiser Rafiq
Date: 14/05/24
Technician/Tech Tutor (supervising if studio based):
Date:
Estates Services Manager (where UCA routes, building features etc are impacted):
Selected Image: All Unused Images For reasons, I'm not quite sure myself, I've always been interested in prison mugshots. Perhaps, it has to do with the history of the camera and how different groups of people viewed photography. Lecturer Liam French has stated, that the camera was "a tool for documenting reality" (Davidson, 2017). Law enforcement at the time took this opportunity to take photos of convicted criminals of all kinds and use them as a form of warning to the common people. A warning that these are what criminals look like and these types of people should be avoided. Naturally, this would lead to various forms of segregation, false claims and other such negative consequences that come from class divides (French, 2015). With all that being said, the main focus of my research was to look at the history of the camera and photography and explore the practical side of photography that most people wouldn't really think of, just to show that there are more si
