My Science School

Have you ever created a picture collage for your friends or family member’s birthday? If yes, you know how it works - you take different photos of the person including some amusing ones from their childhood or with different sets of people-and paste them on a single piece of paper. The result is astounding– you have managed to capture the memorable moments of a person’s life on a sheet of paper.

Did you know that filmmakers to use this technique to tell long stories over a short span of time? Enter the world of montages, one of the most crucial tools of a film maker.

What is a montage?

Like a picture collage, a montage is a series of moving or still images that are edited together to create a scene. It is an artistic technique used in filmmaking to communicate a large amount of information in just a few seconds. It is done using various techniques such as juxtaposition of shots, quick cuts and voice overs.

The word “montage” has been derived from the French language. It is a term used to describe the connection of individual pieces into a cohesive whole.

Montages can create some of the most memorable scenes in a film. Here are some reasons why and how montages are used:

Time lapse

Unlike a book, films don’t have the luxury of time. They need to tell stories quick. This means condensing the plot, back stories of characters and character development into just a couple of hours. So how do filmmakers manage to do all that in such a short span of time? Well, the speed up time, literally!

Remember the opening sequence of Pixar’s heart-wrenching film “Up”? The entire love story – from their first meeting to their marriage and old-age – of the two main characters is brilliantly summed up in the sequence. Sequences created this can condense weeks, months, or even years into less than a minute on screen.

Training montage

Often the transformation of a character can be the most important part of a film. Sports films use something called ‘training montages’ to show a character preparing for a major event in the story. Sylvester Stallone‘s training montages from the “Rocky” films are classic examples. Scenes of Rocky exercising and climbing a flight of stairs capture his long stretches of training in just few seconds. You can find similar training montages in films such as “Chak De” and “Dangal”.

Combining multiple storylines

Montage can be used to drive home the central theme or plot point of the film through just one scene. It is done by combining different scenes of featuring multiple events or places into one using musical score or a narrative voice-over in the background. This increases the intensity of the film and also builds up pace. Shots are arranged next to each other.

For example, the famous scene in “The Godfather”, which shows the shots of assassinations of different mafia leaders with the baptism of Michael Corleone’s nephew. It conveys that Michael is the new don. If the scenes were separate, it would not have been this impactful.

Picture Credit : Google

Why do you need a project report?

A project report is a road-map and an assessment document. It compiles information on the nature of the project (what are we supposed to do), the purpose of the project, the materials and inputs that need to be collected, how many will take part, who will do what (someone had to make those paper bags), number of days needed, and what should be the outcome of the project. It also includes the assessment and feedback given.

Did it achieve its objectives? What went wrong? How could what went wrong have been prevented? If it is a success, what made that possible?

Not one way, but many

There is no single correct way to write a report. You can use a standard format and fill it in with the information sought. You can make one, highlighting your own purpose and outcomes. Whichever method you choose, keep this in mind: no one has the patience to read long paragraphs of prose about a project. A project report is meant to give information about an activity with crisp remarks in the end. Keep it simple and to the point. See that the right information is put across clearly and effectively.

Here’s how to go about it

To write a good project report, you just need follow these basic principles:

Write to the reader

This is true of anything you write, even if the reader is you, as in diary writing. Your project report generally goes to the professor, company boss or to government officials, who will be the readers. This means your writing should be clear, concise and highly readable. Ask yourself are they familiar with the concept you have chosen?

Explain the concept briefly. Do you use terminology that is unfamiliar to your reader? If that is the case, include footnotes or make a list of unfamiliar terms and their meanings to be placed in the front pages. You can also try to use simple vocabulary, unless the technical term you choose is absolutely essential. If you are using abbreviations, include their expansion at least once.

Structure tour report

All reports need to have a form or structure. So organize the information into different segments so that your reader can identify relevant sections and quickly refer back to them later on. Also, begin with an abstract or the background. This points to the project’s purpose and a summary of the document’s contents.

Provide data

A good project report should have data backing it up, whether it is defending the team’s performance or breaking down a successful project.

Use charts, spreadsheets and statistics to add credibility to your suggestions and claims. If you say “The beach will be clean if a machine is employed to sweep it twice a day,” then check: do you have proof? Present the data in the form of graphs, photographs and tables.

Separate facts from opinion

Be absolutely sure about the difference between a fact and an opinion. Opinions should occupy minimum space under the heading of “Remarks.” You can make general suggestions, but remove any sentence that carries phrases like, “I think”, “I feel”, “In my opinion/view”, “If I were to do it”, etc.

Add personal views and preferences only when they are unavoidable. When you add them, identify them as: “This is my personal view.” It is a good idea to put these thoughts in a separate section.

Presentation

Type out the report neatly, add data/pictures, proofread thoroughly, make copies and submit it in a folder. Get all the participants of the project to sign it.

Picture Credit : Google