And, of course, here are my CCR productions!
Video 1:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/194JE2XdljW4M_Mg9akrDbVJlHZeW49VV/view?usp=sharing
Video 2:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1nEFdPlO-6pppWdHDviFdZNtm5MCoS2GD/view?usp=sharing
Film Opening
The day has finally arrived! Here is my film opening in all its glory. I hope you enjoy it! :)
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1h1QItEx0qZ0Qog-vwG6kOmPM_5QTal2A/view?usp=sharing
The End
The day is finally here! Everything is completed, and wow, what a journey it has been. I've learned so much from this project, like how important it is to create a schedule and work in a timely manner and how to adapt to changes. My actors being unavailable to shoot, not being able to upload my videos onto my computer, and a picture frame not detaching from the wall have all taught me how to adapt and succeed no matter what the circumstance. I was able to surpass these challenges and even challenge myself to be involved in all of the stages of creating a movie (or at least the first 2 minutes of it). I learned so much about the hardware involved in filming, what the best sound for scenes are, how to edit, and how to implement so many different ideas into an organized project.
I'm honestly really glad that I chose to do this portfolio project individually, because it was a journey that I could only have shared with myself. I have learned so much about my own working habits and my stylistic preferences. I'm also extremely happy that I was able to perfectly portray the idea that was in my mind and share it with everyone. Mental health, especially regarding teenagers, is a topic that I'm passionate about, and I'm grateful to have had this experience and to have been able to share the importance of this to others. And now if I ever need to add text onto a video with complete creative freedom, I know just the place to go. #ILoveCanva
Thank you for joining me on this journey!
Are We There Yet?
During the filming of the last CCR video, I realized it’d be difficult to recreate a whole sales pitch setting, so I opted for the next best thing! A sales pitch during quarantine! I thought it’d be both funny and convenient for myself to transform the last two questions into a sales pitch during 2020. At the very start of the video I place text that described the location and date of the “zoom meeting.” With that little tweak, filming has been 100% completed! It’s crazy to think that this is the end of what has been a long chapter. I have already edited most of it together as well, taking advantage of some free time I had during the day, so I’m almost completely finished with the entire project!
With the end of this project, sadly comes the end of high school. Now that we’re entering April, it’ll be a whirlwind of events and exams until graduation. Reflecting back on this project, it couldn’t have been a better way to close off my time at high school. It’s been a project that I’ve had to dedicate a lot of time and energy into, as well as a way I’ve been able to demonstrate everything that I’ve learned. I think I’ve modeled the character Alejandro and the goals for the target audience after what I expect to see in media myself. Just like in a coming-of-age movie, life is filled with frightening and fast changes, constantly throwing obstacles your way, and I thought it was important to be able to showcase that.
I’m so glad that I’ve been able to adapt and curate the project into a physical demonstration of my hard work. From having to find the right font and figuring out how to apply it to tweaking the storyline slightly because a soccer picture was attached too tightly to the wall, this project has been a whirlwind of emotions. Now that I went through all the stress of editing the film opening and not knowing which software was the right one for me, I feel like a professional when it comes to editing the CCRs. Luckily the editing doesn’t require as much flourish as the film opening did, but I’m becoming extremely satisfied with how they are turning out.
Close to the End...
Filming for the first videos has been completed! It went pretty smoothly, and I had to refer back to my script a lot, but I really like how the actual "acting" videos provide a break for both the viewers and for myself to add a sense of entertainment. I have to edit it now and add some pictures onto the scenes, but I want to film the second round of videos to get all the filming done before I have to sit down and edit them all. I filmed every part of my script, but I’m thinking to take the audio of some sections and use it as a voiceover over images so that it’s not just me talking the whole time. As per mise-en-scene elements, I filmed it in my home office which already had some props and set design that gave off the academia mood, and I used a notebook that looked a little bit aged. For the second set of videos, the most important mise-en-scene element will be a semi-professional outfit to portray the tone of a sales pitch.
Moving onto the last two questions, I started the Canva presentation to be able to add in images that mimic a slideshow. I know I have praised it before, but Canva truly has been my life saver this entire project. So, don’t worry - Canva will definitely be mentioned in my CCR! I found a presentation template through Canva’s template slide that was already modeled for a “pitch.” It’s by the creator Rayya Studio, and I kept the images and the style for the most part, but I added in my own information as well as changed the color scheme slightly to my own preferences.
Now it’s time to do my last filming (EVER!!) for this project. It’s definitely bittersweet but I’m so glad with how everything has been turning out and where I am now because of this project. I have learned about my own timing and hard work in a depth that I never could have imagined. It was also nice to show what I have learned and to be able to reflect on it. I’ll report back when I’m entering the editing stage! I can’t believe this is almost the end! Ahhhh!!!
CCR Progress
All four scripts for their respective questions have been completed! The first two questions are the longest scripts and will be answered through the Harry Potter idea. I also started to compile media photos in an album that I could show on the screen as well as sources that I can cite. Most of the sources are from my research process and have already been mentioned in past blogs. For the remaining questions, I have also begun to start on my Canva project, but I mainly wanted to make sure I had everything ready to begin filming the first two videos. I already know the perfect location to film the starter scenes too! The office in my house has a dark and mysterious look (due to the dark wood and academia vibes) so I’m hoping it aids in the mood that I’m going for.
For the effect of being transported inside the flashback, I think I’m going to add the silvertone filter at 50% to give the scenes a dreamy look. The reason I’m only applying 50% of the filter is because I think the full black and white look would make the scenes boring. In writing my scripts and having to reflect back on my work, I’m honestly very proud of myself. It was nice to be able to create a project that reflects on the media industry’s conventions and to use what I’ve learned in class and through research in a real-life situation. Specifically in regards to the first question, I also had to reflect back on my process and explain why I chose to challenge the tradition of the lighthearted and comedic coming-of-age genre in grouping it with the drama genre. I got to state my reasoning of wanting to show real teenage emotions and portraying the struggles that many people could relate to in a realistic manner. Mental health is a topic that I strongly advocate for and it was nice to tie in my own values and interests for a project that has become such a prominent task in my life.
So, now it’s time to film! This must be what it feels like to film the last episode of a series. However, after the filming, comes the editing, and the editing process is never over! Yes, this is my attempt at transitioning back to the editing of my film opening. After showing my film opening to my friend who had taken AICE Media Studies previously as well as to my parents, I listened to their commentary and the film opening is finally complete. I’m glad I got to get their advice on the project because it helped to have extra pairs of eyes, and for the most part, their critiques were to shorten or lengthen certain scenes by a few seconds to help with the flow. They mainly critiqued the length of a few scenes during the very start (scenes of the objects along with credits), so I managed to shorten a few of them while still following the rhythm of the sound. Everything came out so well and I’m so happy with the end results!! Now onto the CCR to finally be done with this project!
Starting my CCR...
Now that I've finished my film opening, it's time to get started on my CCR. After my teacher had explained the general instructions for the CCR and showed us a few samples, I began to wonder how I can showcase my creativity while also answering the questions. Right from the start, I knew that I wanted to implement a presentation from Canva in some way, because as I've mentioned, I love Canva. I believe that through Canva, I'd be able to make a few slides that are both visually engaging and will contribute some media and graphs/text to my CCR. Since the CCRs will be in a video format and I will most likely have to create two separate videos (2 questions per video), I wanted to think of another idea as well. Thinking about what to do as my teacher was showing us some samples, it hit me. Harry Potter! No, I won't do a quidditch theme CCR, but there's a scene in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets where Harry writes questions into a notebook and the magical notebook answers back with a flashback. I thought this could be a very cool idea and add an entertaining aspect to the project. I would most likely answer the first two questions, as they require more thought and depth, through this method.
So, knowing that I want to tackle these first two questions with the inspiration from the Harry Potter scene, I think I'm going to first film scenes of myself writing the questions into a notebook, and rather than the notebook writing back, there will be an effect to transition into the explanations of the questions. I don't want to be talking to the camera the entire time, so maybe I'll add some acting scenes of confusion as well as media examples for more of a visually engaging video. As these will be longer answers, I'll have to create a script and practice more ahead of time to have seamless answers. I'm going to also create a script for the second set of questions, but I don't have to practice as much since I'm planning to do it in a presentation format. In order to make the presentation videos more entertaining, I want to make it more like I'm pitching an important project to a company. I think this aspect of acting and embodying a character will make the video more entertaining, and it will make more sense with the formal templates that are available on Canva. I think it's also amusing that the two videos are very contrasting, one being about whimsical magic and the other being about a serious business pitch. This will show two sides to my creativity and will hopefully appeal to different aspects of viewership, seeking both logic and fun. Since I have my ideas down, the next steps are to create my scripts, create the Canva slides, and gather the materials I need. It's crazy to think that I'll soon be completely done with this project... Can't wait to see how everything turns out!
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