26th day at ACMI

I Switched on all the computers, after dave gave a short introduction to the participants, we gathered together as a story circle.

Everybody read their stories out loud.....and I have to say that there are a lot of emotional content in their stories, some of the cried and I almost did .... it's really touching. It is at that moment that I know that I really like this job! Working in an multimedia environment is really lonely sometimes........but by injecting such emotional and human contents into it.....multimedia technology became a tool to bring that story to a wider audience level!! It's really great!!

After hearing a few stories, i am feeling so inspired~ that I decided to focus on a couple of title sequences design~

I am basically working with Patricia Duncan most of the time, as there is no point for her to learn all those technical stuffs, all she wants to do is to tell the story of her passed away husband, and that's what I am going help her to do! " Neil's Story

Apart from that I 've decided to create an animated title sequence for Helen's friend - Kate and Daphane....its a story about how she came in to Australia and it happens throughout the times of world war, I am going to create 30 seconds of world war scene with stills.......its going to be a very exciting project for me!! and its going to look good in my showreel as well!!

I am so tired at the end of the day, i went home and go straight to bed.

25th day at ACMI

Editing Tour for a Cure, as Helen told me that the cancer council has an expo and its going to be tomorrow, so that would be excellent if a rough cut could be done by 3:00pm...its the shortest deadline that I've got since I am working here.........and I like that!

Craig is leaving on Tuesday, so there is going to be a handover thing on monday, 9:00-10:00, by then, we have to know where all the materials are and making sure that i know how to make all the dvds for the remasters.

cutting tour for a cure in such a long time is so exciting, u want to do something nice, but time is avoiding you to do so:

here is a piece of tech not for creating a dvd from premiere:
- exporting the video in quicktime dv-pal format.
- remember to play it once, to chk if there are any errors, because once we've past that, its done!
- open the quicktime in quicktime player.
- export in with "movie to mpeg2" mode
- set the sound to 8-bit

in DVD studio pro, making a dvd is just to ask the program to jump back to the video at the end...

Helen Simondson offered me a lift home again........and that's not it for the week .... I am working tomorrow on another digital storytelling group.

24th day at ACMI

Deliver 4 dvds to Helen right at 9:30am.

Working at the digital Diaries program from 9:30 till 2:30

they didn't bring any photos for scanning, I just handled all the protools recording session together with ROB, it was fun!! I really enjoyed it. Especially, now I really know how to use Imovie....~its all in my control.

Helen asked me to track down the folder for Tour for a cure....it might be an ergent project and that the cancer council really wants to have it as soon as possible.

Helped DAVE to finish a spread sheet in excel for the screen adventures feedback forms.
finally, my maths skills could be used in something constructive

Then had a meeting with Helen Stuckey as she is leaving for New Zealand tomorrow and that I wanted to know what sort of research that she wants me to perform on the new games lab.
here are the summary points:
streamline
montreal chair
getting a catalogue from SPACE
should check out other design exhibitions/galleries
computer games exhibition/siggraph/.....

checking out exhibition design/desks is the most important.

its like a more designed classroom.

research Furniture design houses in melbourne

-end-

23rd day in ACMI

Helen Simondson need to have 4 DVDs by tomorrow morning, this is a big job and it was brought to me at 5:30pm........i worked until 9:30pm for that.

Attending the eureka opening, boring as hell....attending the briefing with the students.

Had a meeting with Vincent as I am going to help him out with the Digital Diaries which is with the high school students tomorrow, he taught me how to use ProTools and imovie....so that I could help them out with their project properly tomorrow...

I helped out with DAVO with the digital storytelling briefing. from 6-8pm....I might be working myself too hard.

After work, DAVE asked me to go out to have dinner with the others.......Helen Simondson, Kim Montogomery, Natasha Dwyer, Melanie Duncan and Dave of course!! Its fun to see how they act so differently then they were at work!!........They are more cute when they were drunk. They were eating like crazy...especially TASH~~

Helen Simondson drove me home ........ we finally had a chance to chat in the car.

22nd day at ACMI

Working with Deaf People.

Stephanie came in at 9:30 sharp, after a brief chat with her (writing on paper), her interpretor - Cindy came in. An interpretor is required as she can't do lip reading.

I basically understands everything that she wants and it so easy to be achieved in after effects. I did all of them upon her request and that she is very happy about it. These tasks includes lengthen 2 shots and additional subtitles for sound effects description. Also, since there is a different between sign language and spoken english, there is an audio gap, where the voice over finishes and that the sign language is still going on. That's why I propose to her that we add some sound effects to the overall soundtrack. They like the idea and that the end result looks fantastic.

working with stef till 12:30pm.

then I go back to the post production for the art day south group!!

21st day at ACMI

intense Post Production for the art day south group~

preparing the after effects project for Stephanie tomorrow!!

20th Day at ACMI

Working with Tasman, wonderful time, we talk and he is happy for me to drive the machine and that our progress is very good, we are at the stage of fine cutting already. His film got a very strong soundscape as we did spent a lot of time choosing sound effects and fine tuning the mix.
Reading his story gives me a very strong feeling personally. After going through such a big trauma, I don't know how am I going to handle it either....good work TASMAN!

I've designed John B's title "a visit to the tulip farm"

Had a chat with Lisetta about working in the film industry...seemed that everyone that I know who worked in the film industry quit as they couldn't stand the pressure and the stress. What about me, what is my fate going to be?

Dave asked me out for dinner........finally got something to do on a Friday Night!! WOWOWO!!!
we had an interesting chat about a range of topics from girls to work, films to food, tarvelling to life.

19th Day at ACMI

John B 's cut is seriiously running under schedule....

I dont know why, the whole film is just Draaaagggggg.........

Tomorrow, I know that i am going to work with Tasman, from what I heard, he dont like people to touch his edit, and that he would like to do it....I am a bit nervous~

18th day at ACMI

A new group with Art Access in the digital storytelling program.
I am working with John B.

I feel like I am working a bit slow, it might be because I am thinking too much about the new job at Complete Post, this is not healthy for me....my brain is going to overload soon!!

17th day at ACMI

I continue to scan all the images.

I had a meeting with DAVE, Helen Simondson and Helen Stuckey at 12:14pm.

There are a few projects coming in for Digital Storytelling:
- Bonegella group.
- Iraqi woman.
- foundation for victim of torture.

This week's workshop: 3 stories & Tasman's Story.

Need to remaster the Last Digital Storytelling project as there are some spelling mistakes in the credits sequence. That's going to be my job~

Next week, Raeleen who is a Legend in Commonwealth Games will come and that we are going to do a pilot with her for TV station to broadcast. It would be good for the showreel if I could edit this shortfilm.

16th day at ACMI

I have got some more images from Helen on a CD for "Tour for a Cure"

Preparing photos for the stockimage libray, brought around 1500 photos of mine and arranging them in the stock image library.

Scanning photos for Helen~

At around 12:00, I received a call from Michael Warden at Complete Post.
He was saying that he has a new job for me in Hollywood Film Production called
"Charlotte's Web". They were offering me a 100 day internship, on the set at the film studio. THe job is to basically working with the visual effects supervisors and the director of photography to record all the camera information on set, these information and data will then be used by the 3d animators to create a scene with CG characters add-on. This is a film with a similar style with "BABE" but instead of using animatronic puppets, live action actors/actresses will be interacting with cg characters. If this really happens, Complete Post will be paying me and that I will be representing completepost to be on set in this Big Hollywood production.

It sounds like a really good offer....it would be a pity to turn it down. But because I have to undertake my honours program next year, I went straight to school to ask permission from my multimedia design supervisor Jill Holt and Steven Huxley. They showed great support and that they have agreed that we could work something out in order for me to work in this project as I will have to be 100% involved in the production till the end of March.

My mind is now overloading with images and excitement, .......... I am afraid that its's just a dream. But should I go home or should I work? I havent go back home for 2 years.

15th Day at ACMI

I have created a tech note for the Final Cut Pro manual that I am working on as there are a lot of different things in terms of creating a story in premiere than in FCP say for example, in final cut pro, there is no need to put an image in a canvas and we can still do a nice image panning, and also, in FCP, its not called an image pan, more technially, it is zooming and repositioning an image. These are the sort of things that I have to think of while drafting the final cut pro manual.

I was asking to work in the digital diaries program, which is like a digital storytelling program with high school kids. But I guess the problem that I have is that I don't know how to use Imovie at all.... I have to learn on the spot.

14th day at ACMI

I am starting to rewrite the digital storytelling program's Premiere manual into PC and MAC compatible. Thus, updating it with pc shortcuts.

After that, Helen has decided to let me draft the Final Cut Pro manual as well.

Copying a DVD for Helen Stuckey, while working in ACMI, i guess the most mechanical work that I 've received is copying DVDs.

Today, I've done my first screencapture in mac:

control + command + shift + 3 /

apple + shift + 4 ( then an marquee will comes up and allowing us to select the area that we want on screen.

Today, I am especially happy as I have got my first two bookings
1) working with a deaf person Stephanie with her short film in after effects
2) attending the opening ceremony of EUREKA digital storytelling program

I love the feeling that I know what I am going to do for the next few weeks!!

13th Day at ACMI

Today, spent most of the time at Helen's Desk,
Did an A4 print design at photoshop for a profile of this series of Vic Health Digital Storytelling program..

Then....re- edited the manual of premiere for PC and MAC as well...luckily, brough my premiere book....so that I can learn the shortcuts of PC. Two more shortcuts needs to be confirmed at HOME.

Got an email from Belinda Barnet, saying that I could continue my work experience there......need to tell Helen about this.

Yesterday, burnt all the dvds for Helen. Quiet Courage that I just edited would be used in a presentation meeting for the cancer foundation...i am excited for it.

After working on Letters To Ali....i just lost my confident....comparing with ACMI, where people really appreciate all the tiny things that I accomplish....I should start recognizing that to myself...I should stop saying that ....." haha..what I did was nothing...."....i should probably stop that.

After finish rewriting the premiere manual, Helen proposed to me that she wants me to write one for Final Cut Pro as well~....I said I will try....but I should said..........YES SURE!! NO problem....but if I need help, I will let you know!!

Although I dont know much about final cut pro yet...but this is exactly the thing that I need, I think after I finish writing this manual, I should be able to understand more about the editing side of final cut pro!! This is a wonderful opportunity for me.

Now, I guess that I have to confirm my future plans at acmi since I got permission from school, i really wanted to know whether Karen Woods would let me do that or not...but I guess from now on, I will let Helen to deal with that, although I know that she is a very busy person.

I just love the way that I tell her that I 've done some work and she has to spend a lot of energy thinking of what work to give me...I just love the feeling of " finishing " some works~~

I guess that right now, I got two requests....able to use my computer and online....and to have my own rubbish bin~

Really looking forward for tomorrow's work!!

12th day at ACMI

Had my first staff meeting

continue "Quiet Courage"'s Sound effects editing / music mix and final mix.

Extra days confirmed for digital storytelling. 23, 30, 31.

IN the meeting, Helen told me that once I worked there longer, I could become an occasional staff there and start getting paid. Also, I told her that I wanted to learn Pro Tools from one of the sound engineers there and hopefully, I could.

Later the day, I asked Helen whether I could continue my work at ACMI after 18 OCT, she said I can, as long as I got permission from school. I really hope that I could continue working there as I am starting to enjoy my work there!! From the beginning, that I have no work at all and I have to literally "beg" for work till today, having so much work and getting praised at the works that I've done.....its good!

11th day in ACMI

Premiere keep crashing 10:16am

Show rough cut to Helen, approved.....comment, beautiful...i think its because of my timing of the shots and the title sequence that I carefully designed.

Shown final cut to Helen Simondson and Helen Stuckey. They loved it!!

Sound effects editing / music mix and final mix

10th day in ACMI

moved the project to G4.hopefully...I can finish the rough cut!!