2025 POWERPLAY

Project Overview

"POWERPLAY" is our school's annual English drama extravaganza, entirely student-led. From scriptwriting and casting to stage design, every aspect was handled by the eleventh-grade students. This year's theme was "LOVE." Our class blended the technical prowess of science-track students with unique insights into love, exploring its diversity and complexity through three interconnected stories.

Synopsis

Theme: To explore the complexities of "friendship," "trust," and "white lies" in love through three independent yet interconnected stories.
Structure: The stories are linked by a train conductor, with the train stopping at three stations: "Friendship First," "Trust Me," and "Lie for Love." At each stop, a short play about a romantic dilemma unfolds.

Act I: Friendship First

Plot: Ethan confesses his feelings to his best friend, Allie, only to be rejected; she says she only sees him as a friend. Torn between his inner angel and devil, Ethan feels his world is collapsing. Ultimately, through the guidance of his friends and self-reflection, he realizes the value of their bond and chooses to mend his relationship with Allie, putting their friendship first.

Act II: Trust Me

Plot: Tom and Phoebe are in a long-distance relationship. Tom receives an anonymous photo suggesting Phoebe is cheating on him. Fueled by his inner angel and devil, Tom's suspicion grows, leading to a heated argument with Phoebe over the phone. It's not until they meet in person and Phoebe provides evidence to clear up the misunderstanding that Tom realizes his lack of trust. They eventually reconcile, promising to resolve future issues with communication.

Act III: Lie for Love

Plot: Angie's grandmother strongly disapproves of her relationship with her boyfriend, Chaney, who works at a convenience store. To gain her grandmother's acceptance, and egged on by her inner devil, Angie lies about being pregnant. This lie ignites intense family conflict but also forces the grandmother to confront her excessive need for control. In the end, the grandmother realizes her mistake and chooses to let go, while Angie confesses her lie. The family reconciles, understanding that happiness is more important than any condition.

Ending

The train arrives at its final destination. The conductor concludes that love is a deep connection built on friendship, trust, and honesty. It's about values, care, and companionship, leading the passengers toward "Hope."

Credits Video Production

Building on the success of my last project, "Classics Reimagined," I once again took on the role of shooting and editing the one-minute credits video. This time, I also tried to assist a classmate who was passionate about editing, and he independently completed an eight-minute behind-the-scenes featurette.

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Google Drive Video

Final Video

Production Equipment

Camera: FUJIFILM X-T5
Lens: SIGMA 18-50mmm f/2.8
Stabilizer: DJI RS3 Mini
Editing Software: DaVinci Resolve Studio 19
Design Software: Affinity Designer
Music Source: Epidemic Sound & Motion Array

Pre-production and Filming

With previous experience, the workflow was much smoother this time. The process was broken down into four main steps:

Music Analysis and Structure Planning: Imported the chosen music into DaVinci Resolve, analyzed its rhythm and structure, and kept the video length to about one minute to establish the narrative framework.
Shot Planning: Planned the shots for each section on the timeline according to the musical beats, marking edit points at rhythmic cues. Camera movements focused on push-ins, pull-outs, and orbits to create a fluid visual dynamic.
Opening and Closing Design: The opening, closing, and several "floating Polaroid" scenes in the middle were specially choreographed.
On-site Filming: Shot according to the plan, reshooting each take multiple times (usually five or more) to ensure smooth camera movement and stable footage, laying a solid foundation for post-production.

Post-production

The editing process was similar to the previous project, but I focused more on refining several key sections:

Opening Screen Pull-out Transition

The opening featured a pull-out transition from a screen. While the technique was similar to the last project, the camera movement was more complex and challenging.

During filming, ensured the screen displayed a positioning guide.
Used the Planar Tracker to track the screen's edges and map the desired footage onto it.
Added a 3D Camera and adjusted the perspective at the beginning so the footage filled the entire screen.
Added keyframes, color correction, and motion blur.

Mid-section Floating Polaroids

I took this opportunity to experiment with combining the Camera Tracker to create a floating Polaroid effect in 3D space. This practice gave me a profound appreciation for the power of Fusion.

First, designed the Polaroid's appearance in Affinity Designer and exported them as PNG files.
In DaVinci Resolve's Fusion page, used the Camera Tracker to track the camera's movement and solve the 3D space.
Manually cleaned up noise from the tracking points, flattened the 3D scene, and inserted the Polaroid images.
Carefully timed the appearance of each Polaroid to perfectly match the rhythm of the music.

Ending Sequence

In the final stages of the video, I focused on the following details to enhance the overall quality:

Transition Optimization: One or two frames before each Speed Ramp transition, I used Magic Mask to isolate the main subject, allowing it to appear first during the transition for greater visual impact. This was paired with detailed sound design.
Spatial Depth: In the auditorium scene, I added masks of chairs and microphones over the floating Polaroids to create a richer sense of spatial depth.
Ending Design: The ending used a horizontal move that retracted back into the screen. The technique was similar to the opening pull-out effect, just in reverse.

Node Tree for the Floating Polaroids in the Auditorium

Using Magic Mask to isolate the chair element for the final horizontal transition

Adding masks of chairs and microphones to the floating Polaroids in the auditorium to enhance spatial depth

Production Stills

Reflection

Compared to the last project, we had more preparation time for POWERPLAY, which allowed us to realize more ambitious creative ideas. Besides the actors' excellent performances, the biggest highlight from our class was undoubtedly the motorized train prop and the dynamic backdrops created by Raymond using After Effects. Every time the electric train made its entrance, it instantly became the center of attention. The work on the dynamic backdrops was even more massive, and I have immense respect for Raymond's perseverance. He managed to quickly make revisions despite frequent changes to the script and visuals, which was incredibly impressive.

For me personally, this video production was a valuable learning experience. By implementing Camera Tracker and 3D space integration in Fusion, I gained a deeper understanding of DaVinci Resolve's powerful capabilities. This project not only honed my editing skills but also gave me a more profound appreciation for the possibilities of visual storytelling.

Acknowledgements

Thank you to all the students who participated in this performance. From scriptwriting and directing to acting, everyone poured countless efforts into this production. Special thanks to Raymond, Allie, and others for their hard work, making our train prop and dynamic backdrops the highlights of the show. A heartfelt thanks also to Henry & Kai for filming and producing the behind-the-scenes featurette, allowing us to comprehensively document this remarkable performance. This experience will forever remain in my heart and inspire me to continue exploring the endless possibilities of video production in the future.