Campus Story - Under 3 Menu

This is another group project, which I filmed with two members of my class. Each group member had the same footage but we had to edit it into a story individually. The assignment was to create a story that was on campus, so my team and I decided to focus on one thing that all students have an opinion on: food. The price of food, quality, options, and nutritional value are always areas of contention between school food service providers and students. However, the addition of a new menu sparked interest, and we decided to cover the Under 3 menu for our story. Some challenges included remembering filming someone in front of windows is typically NOT a good idea. Although we had some tripod struggles, filming went well. Editing was easy, but after my story was critiqued I noticed all of the little mistakes that I made- namely not writing to my pictures well enough. I need to simplify and allow for sound up- basically let the story tell itself with minimal explanation on my part. Also, I see now that this piece sounds more like an advertisement then a story- I needed a student's voice in there to ask what they really thought about the new menu. It looks like there are many mistakes in it to me, but I guess that's how you figure out how to do it better next time around.

Consumed By Food - A Radio Documentary

This is a radio doc I made in collaboration with Anita Sthankiya. We chose to focus on body image problems, and our subject Amanda was perfect for the documentary. She was very relaxed and willing to open up about some very personal and sometimes painful aspects of her life as a recovering bulimic. We interviewed her in her home, with her mother and her twin sons as a part of the conversation. I am very proud of this documentary because I think our hard work really shows. We put in many hours and contemplated each clip before we had our final product. Everything worked out really well with this project because we started early and took the time to ensure our doc was exactly how we wanted it. I've entered it for the CBC's Mowatt Award for Student Radio Documentaries. Fingers crossed!

Sequencing

This project was all about putting shots together using cut aways and plenty of sound up. I spent several hours at the location with my group trying to get all the shots we thought we'd need, but in editing I found we needed more in-and-out of frame and much more concentration on sound up. We used the built-in mic on our camera since our shotgun mic wasn't working very well...I really missed it and regret we didn't have it. I know from previous experience the shotgun is the way to go for crisp sound, but we made do with what we had. We also didn't capture a lot of sound which would have made the pictures better- for example, when Matthew is skipping rope. This assignment taught me to let the pictures speak for themselves. I thought my voice over was a bit excessive, should have let Matthew and sounds he made take up more of the piece. Fun to shoot, once again another good learning experience. Slowly but surely, all of the aspects of making a good piece are coming together. It's starting to stick!

Streeters!

My first professional attempt at harassing people on the street. I learned SO MUCH from this project.

1. Always double check the framing when you have someone else behind the camera. It's my image and only I know what to look for to be satisfied with the shot.
2. Take the time to get a good angle of the person. Move them around, make sure they look their best. It doesn't take long and gets a much better piece of footage.
3. Make sure there is something relevant in the background. I had a shot of me stepping up to a gross cigarette on the wet ground but didn't use it because it wasn't very good. I wish I had practiced the cigarette stand up and got it down pat. Would have been much more interesting to look at.
4. Alternate the direction each streeter is looking, just to make the piece more dynamic.

Finally, I learned that I need to be more confident in myself. It really shows when I feel unsure because I look unsure. Also, I stop blinking and it gets weird.

Sound Scene

This assignment involved creating an identifiable scene through sounds I captured with my trusty Zoom H2 recorder. I must have looked like a crazy person in my swimsuit with headphones on, waving around my recorder. I was impressed by the amount of splash-back the H2 can take. This project reminded me of the importance of sound in storytelling, especially ambient sound. Important lesson learned: ALWAYS capture several minutes of background sounds. And the H2 is my friend, even though after this assignment, my local pool will never look at me the same way.

Radio Wraparound

Click above for my prize winning radio wraparound (3rd place!) from a model train exhibition I attended. I really enjoy speaking to people about their hobbies, they can be so animated and passionate. I couldn't help but get into model trains too. I took several photographs because some of the exhibits were so detailed.  

Fun Feature!

Here is my fun feature project! Lots of hard work, excellent team work, and dedication led to this production. Everyone worked on each aspect of the project with the team leader of the task. I was the leader for editing and I'm very pleased with how well my group worked to make this project turn out the way it did. I learned a lot more about Final Cut Pro and I learned the importance of audio in any video project. Sound quality can make or break a video; the pictures can be manipulated but if the sound is bad, you cannot easily fix it.
I also learned the importance of teamwork- this project could never have been as good as it is without a cohesive team effort. We worked well together and found ways to push the project forward even when we didn't all agree. A lot of clever ideas emerged that no one person could have thought up alone and everyone was able to teach another group member something new. I am very proud of this short film. After watching the film clips countless times, it still makes me laugh.