Jeremy Sarka\’s Media Work

Here’s the final mix of the theme song:

californiasunset_final

Here’s the drum track and the (very rough) temp vocal track:

californiasunset6_tempvox

I’m working on the new mix of the theme song for my film.  I’m basically starting from the ground up.  First I recorded a temp drum track, and then converted that into a midi drum track in Digital Performer.  Here is the midi drum track (it doesn’t sound like much, but there’s more to come):

californiasunset_drums

Next I’m going to record a new vocal temp track, then a synth-bass track, then a synth-organ track, and then (at last) the final vocal track, and if I have time, a synth-guitar track and a second drum track.

For those who would like to see it:

http://www.estimatedprophet.org/mediaworks/letters_rough_edit5.mov

Just a little something to give you an idea of what it’s going to be like.  The titles are there to indicate what narration will go with which images.  First partial rough edit of Letters in the Sand (about 4 min, 5.3 MB): letters_rough_edit1

These last two weeks haven’t gone too well for me.  Between the looming deadlines, struggling to bring my project together, and anxiety about what to do next year, the stress has really been starting to get to me.  Nevertheless, I’ve managed to get a good bit of work done.  I’ve learned a lot about my limitations these last two weeks.

For any readers who care about the gritty details, I have finished:
Fliming: ~95%
I just have one small scene left, which I might decide to drop anyway.
Writing: ~90%
I have a very satisfactory first draft which should require only minor revision.
Transferring: ~90%
I’ve transferred everything I might use—much more than I need—except for the stuff I’ve filmed since I got back to Olympia.
Editing: ~15%
I haven’t gotten that far with the editing yet.  I’ve finished the opening sequence and have rough ideas of several other scenes.  However, now that the writing is just about finished, I’ll be able to really start editing in earnest.  I hope to have a rough working edit finished early next week.
Soundtrack: ~5%
I’ve just started to look at my ambient sounds to figure out what I’ll be able to use.  I’ve finished the sound for the opening sequence—probably the most sonically complex of the whole project.  I haven’t recorded any of the music or narration yet.

Overall, I would say that my project is about 60%-70% completed, which isn’t actually that bad for Week 7.  In recognition of all the progress I have made, I’ve decided to take a well-deserved (and probably ill-advised) break this weekend.

See you next week!

P.S. Here is the opening title sequence I mentioned, updated from last week: it’s now complete with sound (and in the correct aspect ratio)—and about 2MB: letters_title_small

I’ve finished transferring all of my video, so here’s a quick sample of what I’ve been working on…  This is the opening title sequence (well, a first attempt at it anyway).

P.S. I apologize for the aspect ratio being wrong… I haven’t gotten that to work in Compressor yet…

Letters in the Sand, Opening Title Sequence: lits_title

I don’t have that much to report this week: I had to focus on preparing for my return to Olympia, so my production work sort of fell to the sidelines. However, I was able to spend a few days shooting around the city, which happened to yield some of my best footage yet. This week I “logged” all of my video (that is, I made a paper log of all the clips I have, with notes on quality and content); this will, hopefully, make the editing process much shorter.

On the other side of my project, I have finished most, if not all, of my research. I just want to look at a few books about Washington for contrast, even though I have decided to forgo the “compare and contrast” approach. I have completed a strong draft of my essay, and have I good, solid start on the narration itself. I plan to meet with my narrator on Tuesday to discuss the material. Finally, I have begun planning my recording schedule. I have only just realized that I neglected to record ambient sound at most of my locations; I’m still working on substitutes, but expect that I will have only minor difficulties.