POST-PRODUCTION PORTFOLIO - EDITING
PROCESSING FILES
RETHINKING NARRATIVE - BUILDING FROM THE CONFLUENCE
With all the usable clips and sequences in mind, and having taken the necessary step back to reflect on our experience and on Clare herself, I began rethinking the narrative and exploring possible ways to construct and piece together the film. My goal was to create something that reflected the intimate three days we spent with Clare, capturing the essence of her character and poetically representing the everyday cycle we followed.
I considered three options: two circular narratives framed by the bus sequence—emphasizing the idea of cycles and using the editing structure as a motif—and a linear narrative that chronologically unraveled Clare's life. The linear approach felt more disconnected to me and less reflective of our lived experience, more like simply showing the collected footage, and now bring them truly to life. Selina was really on board with the circular idea, whilst Selma was a bit reticent. Thing is Selma was in Los Angeles, and never had had the chance to see the footage, and know what we were working with. I proposed that Selina and myself would work parallelly at first (one one a circular narrative, one on a linear) and then we could compare, contrast and decide. That i s what we did, we tied, and then we compared together, and the conclusion was unanimous, the circular narrative was the ones that connected us the most to Clare's world. It is more immersive, bring extraordinary in the ordinary. The linear narrative was complicated as we didnt feel as connected , and didn't inherently make as sense. It lacked a certain rhythm, a cyclical thread. Also this made sense to have the bus connect all of those beloved place by Clare, as she had mentioned to us that she loves to take the bus, and sit there and experience the travel, It symbolically tied everything together.
The editing process took us a long time to begin. We shot the film in December but didn't start editing until May, as we were all occupied with life, other projects, and submissions. I believe we needed that time to let the project settle, reflect on it, and approach it with fresh eyes. Also we were all very busy, I didn't have three days of free time since January, always being on projects, so I only successfully made time to start editing with a clear head in May.
When I finally began editing, my first step was to go through all the footage. I selected the usable shots and put away those that were grainy, shaky, or otherwise unusable. This was a very hard process to do (emotionally) as sometimes I thought some shots I really liked during the shoot were really good, but I had to discard them for some reason. My focus was on images that conveyed the atmosphere of slow cinema—shots that were long, slow-paced, and captured the tenderness and beauty in the ordinary.
A successful strategy I employed was categorizing the footage and references, and noting down the best shots. This organization made it much simpler to navigate when I started the actual editing, speeding up immensely the process, and making everything simply more practical.
NARRATIVE
Here is my research and development I wrote for my Unit 8 Essay regarding reclaiming narratives and this specific scene.
Together in the shoot, a discussion that came back a recurrently was about cycles and the perpetration of narratives, specifically in the optic of unconventional women in history and literature. A book she discussed and wanted to include in the film is "The Awakening” by Kate Chopin. She was telling us about the representation of women, and the categorizations of women throughout literature, film, and narratives, and how we should be aware of it and be able to break those cycles of narratives, as a new generation. We had a long discussion about how through history and especially in the 19th century, even authrs that were considered feminist (like Kate Chopin) couldn’t find other endings to their unconventional powerful women, then death, psychosis, or exile.
In our film, we have a scene that is a foil to “The Awakening’s” ending (where Edna, the main character walks into the sea, to drown herself). It was unintentional at first, and then Clare brought meaning to it, and this is where our discussion about reclaiming narratives and breaking cycles of imposed narratives on women started. Through film-making we explored the possibility of breaking those narrative cycles, reclaim women’s storylines and the ability of transforming those tragic endings. In the foil scene with “The Awakening”, Clare lies in a bath (often symbol of death and suicide), yet she transforms the meaning, reclaims the narrative. She brings to it a new meaning of empowerment, relief and ownership, through her acting, our capture of the scene (and later on in the construction of the edit). Thematically, there is a strong parallel between Edna’s story and Clare’s. Clare could be considered as an “unconventional” woman in the classic societal eye, she has no children, is not married, and pursued her Ph.D. independently, as a single woman in Dhaka, where everything is centered around the family, strongly, without caring what anyone is saying. I believe that for her it was important to acknowledge this and to show us and the audience, that she can dictate her narrative, and reclaim her own image through the means of the making of this film and by acting this scene out. Through this process here, we can see how the breaking of traditional narrative cycles, and the filming process it provokes, has allowed our subject Clare to reclaim her voice and find power to dictate her narrative
Ultimately, I wanted the narrative to convey Clare's journey through space and time on the 59 bus, symbolizing life's cycles. The choice of order—starting in her garden, moving to the Oli Food Center, East Street Market, the park, and then back home through her room and bathroom—was intended to create a coherent and visually connected sequence. This structure represented the growing hecticness outside contrasted with the nostalgia and calmness inside. Some sequences didn’t work together visually, so careful selection and curation was crucial to maintaining this balance. It is like constructing a puzzle, the pieces are there, but it is finding the way to make them fit together for them to come alive and make sense.
FINAL SCENE CHOICE
It was very important to me to finish in the bathroom, as it was the cathartic moment of our shoot and where we recorded the most powerful footage of Clare. This scene was a moment of discussion, relaxation, and revelation. All the stress, anxiety, and discomfort seemed to escape during that scene. It was the first time Clare acknowledged the camera, took control of her narrative, and reclaimed it. This moment revealed her strength, power, and soul.
During this scene, Clare talked to us about why "The Awakening" by Kate Chopin was so important to her and why this scene was a foil to Edna's ending in the book. Clare, who is often seen as a woman who doesn't fit the traditional norms of society, takes control of her narrative and shows us that there is an alternative to the endings of death, psychosis, or exile that society often dictates for women who refuse to be molded by its standards. This scene was pivotal in showcasing Clare's strength, resilience and uniqueness, making it the perfect conclusion for our film.
Also it was important for me that the first scenes echoes the last scene. The first scene is an intimate on Clare's face, we feel her emotions, yet we don't have a direct contact to her, and then in this final scene, it is this final epitomic, getting this final attach to Clare's power.
NARRATIVE RE-BUILDING
EDITING
Last Scene - bathroom
First Scene
DEVELOPMENT AND SOUND
From the precise document I had prepared, I categorized my files by location and then imported them into Premiere Pro. I faced some issues with my hard drive, I had to buy one way faster, to be able to continue editing. I also couldn't editing anywhere other than the editing room due to the large file sizes. Once all my categorized files were in Premiere, I began working through them location by location. I created a sequence for each location, selected the best shots, and built a bank of footage. This organization made the editing process much easier, practical, and faster. It allowed me to experiment with different combinations and orders, seeing what connected and what visually conveyed the emotions I wanted to showcase. This was a very successful process, because it allowed me to really experiment and explore all the possibilities, storylines, combination and explore different meanings, connections, and realize the vast possibilities that editing can bring to a film narrative. It allowed for me to play with color combinations, symbols, movement and composition (intimacy vs. wide landscapes etc)
After creating my first very first rough draft, the circular storyline, I started working with Selina. I showed her my initial cut, and she brought in her favorite shots. Her extensive experience in editing, along with her keen eye for rhythm, made our collaboration highly complementary. She corrected small details I hadn't noticed, and together we made significant progress. From there we continued the process together.
We faced several issues during editing. We tried using Warp Stabilizer for handheld shots, but sometimes it made the footage look unnatural and unusable. It was challenging because we had some great shots that were too short, shaky, or grainy. We had to accept the imperfections and work with what we had. Some bus scenes ended up shorter and more abrupt than we wanted, but we focused on maintaining a coherent visual storyline that matched our conceptual narrative. This approach received positive feedback from my tutors.
We also had to embrace some of the footage's limitations. For example, some bus scenes were short and unstable, making the edit feel more abrupt and the rhythm a bit too upbeat. Despite our efforts to slow down and stabilize the footage, we couldn't achieve the desired effect. This is something to watch for in future projects.
The editing process was intense. During the day, I edited all day, and in the evenings, I worked as a producer on a three-week film. The past few months were extremely demanding in terms of workload and stress, and I was constantly working without a break. However, this intense period taught me valuable lessons about time management, collaboration, and the importance of meticulous preparation.
COLOR GRADING
IMAGE
I started with touch-ups on Premiere Pro. The original clips needed a lot of work due to the challenging shooting conditions and lighting issues. Despite my limited experience, I found it fun and interesting to learn how to use the curves and the Lumetri Scopes for color correction.
Color was a crucial element in our film, so I aimed to create a vibrant look without making it too saturated. I also had to be mindful of exposure, as some shots were unfortunately overexposed. While I began learning DaVinci Resolve, it was too late to apply it to this film. However, it was fascinating to explore how color could create a new identity and atmosphere through DaVinci. I am eager to delve deeper into this software for future projects.
Working with saturation, luminosity, and exposure allowed us to convey different emotions depending on the scene. Our goal was to maintain a uniform look throughout the film while highlighting multiple storylines within the larger narrative. This process was crucial in ensuring the film's visual cohesion and emotional impact.
Our final steps before submission involved fine-tuning our sound design and ensuring our intentions and choices were clearly articulated. We aimed to play with silence and build up diegetic sounds to convey what the images alone couldn't express, creating a parallel, merging world that provoked emotions and added a layer of meaning. Drawing inspiration from "Roma" by Alfonso Cuarón, "The Zone of Interest" by Jonathan Glazer, the works of Chantal Akerman, and "Two Years at Sea" by Ben Rivers. A tutorial with Chuck reinforced our decision to avoid music and instead compose with sound, going deep to express the unexpressed and create an atmospheric world supporting the scenic imagery. Selina and I categorized sound files, starting by creating one constant atmospheric soundtrack for each sequence. Then we started building the sounds of actions and environments, additions. We ensured the sound of actions and atmospheric sounds started slightly before and ended slightly after the corresponding visuals, using crossfades to emphasize Clare’s world as a constant cycle.
SOUND EDITING
TUTORIALS AND TEAM MEETING - RETHINKING
We encountered some difficulties with Selma, who wasn’t convinced by our vision. Without the sound, she couldn't fully grasp our concept and had a different idea in mind for narrative buidling, wanting to insert random clips throughout the narrative. I envisioned the film as meditative and slow, and inserting random footage from different locations would disrupt this slow buildup. Also this meeting came two weeks before submission, leaving us no time to rework an edit.
Selma was also in LA, which made it difficult for her to see the footage we were working with. I convinced her to find a compromise: when I see her in Belgium, I'll give her the footage, and we can rework a second version. This way, she can experiment and review the usable footage.
My group tutorials went well. Presenting the work in front of the class, I received valuable advice on sound, including how to research, present ideas, and collaborate with sound editors. At that point, we realized we no longer had a sound editor (ours dropped out because of travelling), meaning Selina and I had less than a week to handle it before submission. This was very stressful and intense, and it was partly our fault for not following our original timelines, and pushing the editing so far down the year. We all had so many projects this year, and we were all a bit overwhelmed.
In the PDF above, you can find our intentions for sound. We aimed to create a composition of diegetic sound, playing with silence and atmospheric sound to build up the narrative.
A tutorial with Chuck reassured me about the sound editing process and our decision to focus on diegetic sound. She gave us advice that helped a lot whilst editing which was creating first one atmospheric soundtrack for each scene or location and then building on it. She suggested to make the sound starts before and continue after the image, making everything more interconnected. She recommended researching the sound work in "The Zone of Interest," which I had already seen but went to re-listen to for this sound work, suggesting scenes and unraveling of events through sound rather then through image.
It was important to stay away from music and compose with natural sound, which aligned with our film's meditative and slow aesthetic.
Our next step was to edit out unwanted noises, matching sound waves for seamless audio, creating loops and repetitions, and layering additional sounds at key moments. Our final step was to start creating build ups and silence, working with layering and experimenting with sound building. This is where we had the most fun, but was the most lengthy, as despite the short time frame, we still experimented a lot to come to a final product that felt natural, yet would build up intelligently. This is also where we experimented by using sounds that weren't from the specific shot, and creating a synergic sound track that was connecting everything together. Example - using sounds of water and the bathroom throughout, voices of the market to build up tension - barking and sirens. When sounds like door noises were unusable, we sourced them elsewhere. For white noise, we recorded from the editing computer and played the sound on a speaker since we couldn’t download a10-hour-long video. Ensuring the sound matched the visuals diegetically was crucial in reinforcing the narrative and emotional impact of each scene. This intense process was essential in creating a cohesive and emotionally resonant film, enhancing the narrative and bringing out the depth of Clare's story.
SOUND EDITING
CONCLUSION
Reflecting on this project, I am very happy with the final edit. We have worked hard on this project, developed it strong, faced many challenges and yet always found a way to continue and create something meaningful and beautiful to us. Although I wish certain scenes were longer and steadier, I have learned to work with what I have and embrace it or find alternative solutions. The edit successfully reflects Clare’s world and essence, as perceived and captured by us, and her reclamation of her own narrative. I feel like it portrays this slowness, this meditative state, this cycle of life. It shows with lots of tenderness Clare and her world surrounding her. This project was both a great learning experience and a profound human experience.
Successes:
One of our significant successes was in sound editing. Despite having no prior experience, we managed to produce really good sound work in less than a week. I am proud of what we achieved in such a short timeframe, learning to use new tools and techniques to create an atmospheric and emotionally resonant soundscape, especially as neither of us had experience in sound editing. Another successful action was our meticulous organization of files and footage, which made the editing process more efficient and allowed for creative experimentation. Keeping those records of file categorization really helped us both in image and sound to find the right footage and sound in short times, and allowed us to explore and experiment way more.
Challenges:
We faced several challenges throughout the project. One major challenge was getting on the same page as Selma, who had a different vision for the film. This required compromise and collaboration to align our ideas and create a cohesive final product. Additionally, time management and procrastination were significant challenges. The intense workload and tight deadlines of all of our lives and other projects from final year, often led to stress and a very last minute finishing of our editing process. We also struggled with some footage - eg. The bus footage, which was sometimes too short and shaky, also presented a challenge, but we made the best of the footage we had.
Next Steps:
Looking ahead, I plan to revisit the footage with Selma and experiment with creating a second film from the same material. This will allow us to explore new possibilities and perhaps achieve another version of Clare that Selma perceived and it will be interesting to see how much we can experiment with footage. . Additionally, I aim to further develop my skills in sound editing and color correction, exploring tools like DaVinci Resolve to enhance the visual and sound design of future projects. I find a realy joy in those actions, and perfecting sound and color (the overall editing process actually)
In conclusion, this project has been a journey of embracing limitations, learning new skills, and capturing the essence of Clare’s world. The experience has been invaluable, and I am excited to continue experimenting and refining my craft in future projects. The lessons learned in collaboration, time management, and creative problem-solving will undoubtedly shape my approach to future experiences in film .
