This week, I focused on refining Scenes 2 and 3, and began the early design of the boss fight. The main goal was to make the action more clear and efficient.

Scene 2

In Scene 2, I further reduced the number of enemies, limiting it to two kills. This helps avoid repetition and keeps the audience more engaged. It also allows each action to feel more focused and meaningful, while better supporting the camera design.

Feedback

In this shot, after the intense conflict earlier, the camera should remain still to create a moment of calm.

Scene 3

In the first phase of Scene 3, I kept the long take from the earlier version, but changed the two-hit sequence to a single strike that takes down both enemies. This makes the action cleaner and more efficient.

I also removed the enemy behind the character to avoid unnecessary complexity. To guide the character’s movement, I designed a new camera shot to replace that function.

In the second phase, I changed the reason for the character’s movement — instead of moving freely, the protagonist is now pushed back by the boss during the fight. Although the protagonist tries to strike first, they are countered.

The boss is finally defeated in a second iaido. This change makes the story feel more dynamic and dramatic, rather than flat and predictable.

Feedback

Before the character starts to charge forward, the camera can first zoom in, then follow the movement. This helps build tension of the scene.

Both the moment after the slash and the time before the boss appears are part of a new preparing phase, and both need holding more time.

After the boss appears, a small-scale conflict should be added to bridge into the next part of the story. The original shot of the protagonist being forced back feels too flat and lacks interest.