Visual Look
For a film with quite a small budget, this movie had a good visual look. There were some interesting camera shots - such as a high-angle shot of Kristin and Andrew at a park. There was also no camera or light reflection in the shot of Andrew looking in the mirror. A close-up shot of a computer screen was also very well done, it managed to avoid any glare or reflection, as well as making the on-screen text clearly visible.
There were a few visual issues, however. Some of the handheld shots were a bit shaky, but the bigger problems were in the area of lighting. The interiors were fairly well lit; I did not notice anything that appeared to be too dark, and the filmmakers were able to avoid washout from nearby windows.
When it came to the outdoors, however, there were a few issues. First, some shots had a slight washout to them. It wasn’t overly noticeable, but enough that the appearances did not match. Washout can be avoided on the day, by making sure the camera’s iris isn’t opened too wide, (small f-stop number), and letting in too much light. If the iris setting cannot be changed, there are always ND (neutral density) filters that significantly reduce the amount of sunlight allowed into the camera.
In addition, several shots had very heavy shadows. Since this didn’t seem to be a deliberate choice for the sake of setting a mood, and they didn’t match some of the other shots, I’m assuming this wasn’t done on purpose. While this type of issue can’t be corrected in post-production, it is quite easy to avoid in the future – all that’s needed is some sort of fill light. For outdoor shoots, the easiest way to accomplish this is with some sort of reflective device – there are professional reflective discs manufactured for this purpose, but something as simple as white foam core board or the reflectors placed in car windshields. When held opposite to the main light source (i.e. the sun) they reflect this light onto the shadowed sides of the actors’ faces, given a much more realistic look.
Use of Audio
Girl From Yesterday had a nice soundtrack – both good songs and instrumental music helped set the mood. There were a few instances where the dialogue volume dipped a bit and it was hard to hear, but it wasn’t very noticeable. The music’s volume was also higher than the dialogue, so I found myself having to adjust the volume a few times as well.
My only question is in reference to a bit of dialogue that seemed out of place. At one point, Kristin gives Andrew a piece of candy and when he puts it in his pocket, instead of eating it, she asks him why. Though he makes the excuse about saving it until he gets hungry, there is a brief bit of narration in which he says that he will treasure it forever. While this certainly is a funny moment, it seems odd, since there really isn’t much voiceover narration in the movie. I have to wonder if there wasn’t more planned and later cut, but since Andrew is quite a comical character, I would’ve really liked to hear more of his inner thoughts.
While on the one hand, this comment may seem a bit more suited to the Content section, the way the narration audio was mixed in, it sounded the same as the dialogue, and for a second or two I didn’t realize it was a voice-over. Dialogue audio will have room tone and echo to it, but narration audio should sound different enough that an audience can easily recognize that it’s a voice-over. It generally ought to be recorded in a soundproof room, so an audio engineer can tweak it if needed. My personal opinion is that a voice-over ought to sound as though the person speaking is sitting right next to you, talking you through the movie.
