CONSTRUCTION: LOCATION RECCE

Previously to filming I completed some research into film locations in London we could use - HERE a link to the post. I therefore had a good idea on the look of the location I thought was suitable for my film trailer.

 

Whilst we were planning our final story outline of our trailer we decided that it would appropriate to start initial research of a possible location we could use for a roof top scene in London. Thinking about possible inconveniences such as lighting, wild sound and mise-en-scene that could make a negative impact on our filming, we all agreed that it would be convenient for us to plan ahead and make sure that locations were free for filming.

I therefore decided to research a potential location in London via the Internet. Demi, a member of my film trailer project group, said that she knew of a possible location we could film a roof top scene at, however due to possible inconveniences such as the location not being free when we want to request it, I thought it would be convenient if I researched for other locations in London. I found a recommendation of a roof top location called One New Exchange in the SoHo area of London that overlooks landmarks such as St Paul's Cathedral - this in turn would influence a sense of spectacle and awe into our film trailer as famous London landmarks would be used. Also the reviews on the website listed below were positive in terms of the clear view without any obstructions such as cranes (however, this could be topical due to the changing landscape of the city), One New Exchange was clean and had friendly staff that would give you permission to film.
HERE is a link to the website (Trip Advisor) that provided recommendations of roof top locations in Central London.

Prior to filming we made a trip to London in Canary Warf to  check whether filming the time lapse of London would be appropriate, fit our vision  and also make us aware of how the scene would look like visually both in the construction stages as well as what it may look like against other scenes when being edited. 

 

We agreed that prior to filming the location had to be near empty as it we didn't want any disturbances such as members of the public being in shot without permission.  However the actual shot (a birds eye-view from a building in London time-lapsed) had to be busy, crowded and energetic to create a buzz. We wanted the birds eye view shot to be a wide angle shot with bright lighting (preferably filmed in daylight), energetic atmosphere unlike the atmosphere created at the church (HERE is a link to my post on the location recce I completed previous to filming at the church and HERE is a link to my post on filming the grave yard scene at the church) and scenes filmed at the car park (HERE is a link to my post on the location recce I completed previous to filming at the car park and HERE is a link to my post on filming the car park scenes in Woking, Surrey). By having this we would have a contrast between these fast paced scenes creating suspense and jeopardy. 

Completing research before filming