SWOT Analysis
S - Strengths
W - Weaknesses
O - Opportunities
T - Threats
I've never felt that comfortable with evaluating myself as I never know whether to be too harsh or to lenient. But here goes,
Strengths
I think doing my SWOT now is a much easier task than doing it at the beginning of the year as my film related skills have improved a lot since then. I feel like i'm most improved in the area of editing and getting to grips with editing software as a general medium. I first started on Final Cut Pro X, this piece of software confused me as it was a slimmed down, user friendly, and just not the same of Final Cut Pro 10.0.0 which I learnt in first year. Despite Final Cut X being vastly less superior than its predecessor it did give me a good basic understanding of editing software before moving on and up to Premiere Pro.
Premiere Pro is a vastly more intricate and better laid out than Final Cut X. The software is far more detailed and more simple in a lot of ways. It flows much better and the drop downs and location of tools are much easier. Premieres simplicity enabled me too get to grips with editing much better and I think this has helped me improve as a director as a result. Because after learning how something will be edited together enables you to vision your own films more easily
I think i've got a good eye for comedy and know what is and isn't funny, as well as knowing what is and isn't scary. Which will help me with writing stories for films which i'm not very good at currently. I also have now purchased a camera which has massively helped my drive and will to go and film things no matter what it may be. A bonus is that i'm using my camera and always learning about it and the things it does and how to improve the quality of the shots I make.
I'm pretty handy with a computer in general as well and this is definitely a sought after talent, in this day and age. Even though thousands of people know how to operate one they don't know how to solve a problem should it arise and I can.
Weaknesses
I believe my weaknesses lie in areas like networking. In the sense that I need to do far more of it so I can help advertise myself as a director/filmmaker more easily. To help combat this I've set up a facebook page called 'The Film Files' which gives people an idea of what to watch and what to not and this constant exposure too films and how they are put together is helping my internet presence and my knowledge of what a good and what a bad film is. I also have a flickr and youtube accounts to upload screenshots and videos respectively.
Despite making leaps and bounds in my editing skills I still think I am fairly weak in this area and I have been editing all sorts of random things purely to improve my skills. Premiere Pro is an extensive program which will need a lot more
I've also had a lot a of problems with organisation and time management, for next year I need to apply certain rules to myself in order to make sure that I hit deadlines and I am on time for studio sessions. I've started to combat this by getting started on my dissertation now so i'm far more prepared for the coming year.
Opportunities
I've had a fair few opportunities recently which will be a big help too my development as a filmmaker/director. Recently I have been asked to do some shooting at a local clothing company, no details have been disclosed yet but I think this is a great opportunity to get my first professional video done. I have also received some emails with production news for the next few years. This document has provided me with many places where I could potentially get work experience, like harbour studios and the Imaginarium. These are opportunities which I can't afford too miss as the film set experience would be invaluable, it would also give me a lot of good connections in the film world which would probably lead to my next job and so on. Imaginarium have said to me that it doesn't start shooting until next year but they've put my name down so i'm in their minds early on. I also have heard that Leeds council are looking to sell abandoned warehouses cheap to make film studios, as this is a better use of the space. If I could accomplish getting something like that it might be very profitable in the long run, but its just a pipe dream at the moment.
Threats
The only threats I can potentially see are from competitors in my own field as well as people competing for the same jobs i'm looking to work at. I also see money as a threat because It will be needed to help fund my own aspirations with equipment and I hope one day have money for a studio. Getting into the industry will be really difficult so I intent to arm myself with an armada of knowledge about video editing and film construction. I will learn new software like SpeedGrade and Dreamweaver so I make myself more employable across a wider range of jobs and so I can put myself ahead of my rivals, by knowing things that other filmmakers don't necessarily.
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