Filming Process

On the day of the filming, I invited my grandparents over and decorated the house into a look-a-like party room. We made party hats, had cards around the house, even wrapped up 'presents' and had a banner to create the birthday atmosphere.

Mise en Scene & Shooting.
We recorded Pip doing everyday things in close ups, but tried not to show her eyes to give some curiousity and to show her behaviour e.g applying lipgloss and straightening her hair and clothes. This implies she cares about her appearance. She is wearing a dark top to contrast with the cake and her sister. Which indicates that her life is dull and plain. Whereas her sister is wearing a green dress, fairy wings and a feather boa to show she's a fun and creative character. The cake has pink and yellow fondant fancy cakes around it and the party hats make it look like a childs party and the contrast of the childish bright colours and Pips dark clothes indicates the way her family treat and see her to how she sees herself.On the shot where Pip unwraps the diary, she is sat away from her family, designed to look like the isolation of her from her family.

Problems.
There were a few problems with the cake. The candles melted far too quickly, luckily we got a good shot of the candles lit that said HAPPY BIRTHDAY, for the rest of the shooting we had to use ordinary candles however i don't think the audience will notice. Also, my nan party popped all over the cake in a shot - but that makes the family look imperfect and the footage unrehearsed to give it a much more realistic birthday feel.

Overall.
I think it was a productive day and we got a lot of good shots from different angles and ranges. The fact that I used my own family also made the atmosphere more realistic as they knew how to laugh and work together. Also, the family all look similar and 'related' to create a real family feel.