Entertainment Video Senior Capstone End of Year Reflection

Technical Skills

One of the main areas I really grew in throughout e-Comm is technical skills. These technical skills range from having a larger understanding of editing in Premiere Pro to being comfortable behind camera on a DSLR. The majority of the skills I learned were from just trying new things and experimenting. For example, almost everything I learned about DSLRs was from watching Youtube tutorials, going on photoshoots with my sister, or being on the robotics team in the media sub-team. I have always been really passionate about cameras and e-Comm has really helped me develop as a stronger cinematographer and become more comfortable behind camera. Learning technical skills is important because having a larger understanding of using media software sets you apart in the film industry and makes you more prepared for a future career. The main challenges I've faced along the way are just learning and overcoming problems. I have films that are super grainy or really shaky but I have learned from my mistakes and have developed as a stronger cinematographer because of it.

Communication

I've learned a lot of communication skills throughout e-Comm and especially in this past year. As director, I've really had to step up my communication skills to effectively lead my class as well as tell actors about filming days and what they need to know for filming. I've learned communication skills throughout every project and I've learned how to communicate better through projects that don't always work out well. For example, some of the main challenges I've had to face with communication has been with students not knowing call times or not knowing when we were intending to film. Being able to communicate effectively is really important because without good communication skills nothing can get done or nothing gets done on time.

Collaboration

Collaboration has mainly taught me how to work with a diverse group of people and to not always work with the same group of people. During my sophomore year of e-Comm I mainly worked with the same group of people and all of my projects looked the same because of it. However, during my junior and senior year I began working with students in different grade levels which has really helped me grow as a creative person and as a more talented filmmaker. Working with people who have different ideas is really important because it makes your projects more diverse and intricate. If you always work with your best friend you don't learn how to lead better because you just do things the same way you have always done it before. I have faced a variety of challenges with collaboration just because of certain groups I've worked with have had very opinionated people and its hard to collaborate when conflicts arise. However, I've learned that the best way to make it through arguments is just to take a step away for a while and talk about it when you aren't as frustrated.

Leadership

I have learned so much as a leader throughout e-Comm. As an underclassmen I was very shy and uncomfortable leading and managing projects. However, as an upperclassmen the feature film really forced me out of my comfort zone and by being DP I really grew as a leader by working with Brady. I mainly learned how to lead by having to tell actors what to do so that it fit the shot that I was working on. Being DP forced me to communicate more which made me a stronger leader as I moved into my senior year. In senior year especially I became a stronger leader by directing The Ebony Codex. I specifically learned how leadership shouldn't be me bossing people around all day but facilitating the growth of the class as a whole and not micromanaging individual tasks constantly. Having strong leadership skills is really important because without a leader everything falls apart and no one focuses. I've faced a lot of challenges as a leader mainly because it's hard to have respect sometimes. People don't always want to listen and I've learned how important being patient as a leader is.

Project Management

One of the last skills I've really learned is project management. Project management plays an important part in every single video I have worked on in the past 4 years and I have become a lot better at planning and organizing films. This past year, I spent the majority of my time creating call sheets and production schedules that were really important in making sure that the feature film gets done. With this however, I  have had a lot of challenges. Scheduling conflicts always come up and people aren't always willing to commit to a film or a location falls through. In order to be effective at project management I've really had to learn to be a fast problem solver and patient when things go wrong.

Overall I believe my biggest strength has definitely been in technical skills. When I look back on my projects from sophomore year, all of the shots lack depth and aesthetic appeal. But now, I have become a lot stronger behind camera and I understand all of the technical skills that go behind every single shot.  My biggest weakness would definitely be in collaboration. I would say I am very good at working with people, but I have had a lot of conflicts working with people and I'm still learning how to be more calm when issues arise.

As I move onto college next year, I will definitely be taking all of the skills i've learned in e-Comm with me. All of the skills i've learned are important life skills that I will need in a future career and in any film I work on next year. Having these skills will also definitely set me apart as a leader because I've already spent 4 years learning them compared to other students who didn't have the opportunities e-Comm provides available to them.

I don't think there is anything I would change in the ways i've learned the 5 guarantees and i'm so thankful for everything e-Comm has taught me. If it wasn't for all the projects i've worked on I never would've learned how to use a DSLR or collaborate in a diverse amount of settings.


Projects

The Ebony Codex Short Film



One of my favorite projects I got to work on this past year was The Ebony Codex short film. This video was probably my favorite just because it established the style of film I wanted to work on for the feature film and I was able to be DP for it. This project took around a month to complete because we spent around 2 weeks writing the script, a week filming, and another week editing. My group faced a lot of challenges in the production of this film just because of actor availability. We had a different cast for this film but after they had to leave early on set we had to recast and reshoot on a different day. Because of this, we were super crammed on editing and had to do it the day before the project was due. This video really made me a stronger cinematographer and helped me figure out the aesthetic of the feature film. This was one of the main projects I got to DP this past year and I got to experiment with lighting and camera movement which I enjoyed a lot. The feedback my group received for this video was mainly that the cinematography looked good but that we could have worked harder to make the film more spooky or show more shadows. We didn't really change anything after feedback, but if I were to do this project again, I would definitely spend more time on lighting and adding different colors to establish the mood more. Overall, I really love this film and although it is kind of slow I think the shots look lovely and that my sister did a really good job acting in it.


Music and Making of a Song Mini Documentary



My second favorite project I got to work on was the mini documentary. I mainly liked this project just because of the group of people I got to work with. Jack, Dom, Mario, and Mason are such talented filmmakers and musicians and making this documentary was really enjoyable and always fun. This video took around a month to create and we had around 5 filming days. One of the main challenges we faced was mainly in just finding time to film and actually getting the song done. My group was always really busy and we were having to fight for time between editing the feature film and filming our documentary. The documentary also relied on Rosehill finishing their song in order for us to finish the doc. Because of that, the band was having to focus on finding time to film and find time to finish the song. Throughout this film I really learned how to make a documentary in general. I haven't filmed a documentary before and it was really fun to make a video of a different style. The main feedback we received was that the iPhone footage really just didn't fit the video. However, my group couldn't really do much to change that now, but if we were less busy we would have definitely spent more time getting professional footage. Overall, even though some of the shots weren't as pretty, this documentary was easily the most fun i've had on set in a while and I loved having the opportunity to work with the juniors in my class one last time.


Cinematography Film Reel



My third favorite project was the film reel. I really enjoyed getting to edit together a bunch of cinematic clips to music and I found it quite enjoyable. I'm not usually an editor but his project gave me the opportunity to actually work in Premiere. This project took around a week to complete because it took a while to find shots that I liked as well as music that fit the overall mood. One of the main challenges I faced was just in figuring out what shots I wanted to use. I have a lot of shots i'm proud of but I didn't want my film reel to be really long. Because of that, I spent a lot of time narrowing down the shots that I liked and choosing only the ones that reflected my style of cinematography. Along the process of this project, I learned that I really enjoy editing upbeat videos. I don't usually get the opportunity to edit my class projects just because i'm usually DP and this project gave me the chance to actually do something different. The feedback I received was in the way the shots from the glide floss commercial doesn't fit the overall dark mood of the video. I haven't had the opportunity to remove them yet, but I intend to replace them with different shots either from The Hidden or my documentary. Making my film reel was really enjoyable and i'm proud of the final video I was able to produce and I feel like it showcases my artistic style really well.


In Class Time
I used my time in e-Comm mainly as an opportunity to collaborate with people in their production roles and prepare for on set time. Classes were normally spent working with the DP getting shot lists ready or with my assistant directors making sure all call sheets and schedules were correct for filming. Outside of class I spend a lot of time working on individual projects. I've learned a lot of technical skills by being a part of the robotics media team as well as going on a variety of photoshoots and working on client work. All of the projects I've worked on outside of class have allowed me to learn different skills such as photography which e-Comm doesn't specifically teach me, but is something in a media career that i'm still interested in.

Strengths/Weaknesses
I think one of my strengths as a video student is my creativity and ability to problem solve. I have worked on a diverse amount of projects and I haven't limited my creativity to only working on documentaries or only music videos. I am able to do anything from weddings to senior portraits to feature films and I think that really sets me ahead as a potential employee. Similarly, I'm also really good at problem solving and by being on sets where everything has fallen apart has really taught me how to fix issues quickly and efficiently. Being able to work fast is really important in the film industry and its a skill i've become a lot more comfortable at the past years.

I think I can still work to improve making my work look as professional as it can be. In some of my projects, the lighting is too dark or the shot is really shaky. I need to spend more time learning how to shoot better in lowlight and use stabilizing equipment to make my work the best quality it can be.


Feature Film

For the feature film I was the director. As the director, I did a wide variety of things to make sure the film got done. At the end of 1st semester, I was mainly facilitating the script writing process and making sure all ideas made sense and that our script would be strong and well developed. After we had a script, I played an important role in the casting process. I ran the casting call and selecting actors with my assistant directors to use in our film. As second semester began, I spent a lot of time teaching everyone how to do their production role. Whether that be making sure Lauryn knew the correct camera settings or that the editors had a plan for labeling files. I then organized the table read and began creating schedules and call sheets for filming. Before every filming day, I made a detailed schedule that would guarantee every scene would get done in the time we had available to us. On set, I worked with actors and the crew to film everything. I told actors how to read certain lines, helped the camera department get the best shots possible, and made sure the entire crew was focused and serious. After filming ended, I facilitated the editing process and provided feedback along the way. I had to approve of every scenes edit and make sure it looked the way I wanted it to. I think I contributed to the films success by my ability to take my past skills into other departments and help other people learn what I had learned last year. Specifically, I was able to teach Lauryn and Sophia how to be better cinematographers. I made sure they understood all the camera settings, helped them with framing shots, and helped them with lighting on set. Everyday in class I had to use my production role just by being able to facilitate the classes progress in finishing the feature film and i'm so happy I was able to be director this past year.

Summary

Overall, I absolutely loved entertainment video because of the people I got to work with. The majority of the class was juniors and they continually went above and beyond my expectations on set every single day. They were all so talented at the beginning of the year and I think they have all learned a lot at the end of the feature film as well. I think the only thing I would change about this year would be encouraging people to engage in their production role more. A lot of students just didn't come to set or try to do their production role and I feel like I could have done a better job at encouraging everyone to participate. One of my biggest learning experiences of this year would simply be in just being the director of a feature film. I am usually behind camera and I was kind of nervous to take on the role of director. However, both Sarah and Darby were so helpful and encouraging throughout the process and I'm so grateful I got to learn how to direct a lot better this year. As I move onto film school, my main goal is to not doubt myself and to not limit myself to certain production roles. Being confident next year is really going to help me get the most out of film school and I want to be somebody people enjoy working with. I also don't want to limit myself to just being a DP. Being director this year made me realize how much I truly enjoyed trying something different and I want to continue to do that into the future. Overall, this year has probably been one of my favorites in e-Comm and i'm going to miss this program so much next year and I can't wait to take the skills and experiences i've gained into my future film career.