Drafted Script

For my final media arts project, I plan to do the work by myself, so this will not be a collaborative project. However, I have and will take my peers comments into consideration when it comes to what can be improved with each element of my project. The equipment I need for this project are my filming camera, my tripod, Movie Maker (to edit the video and do the voiceover) and the props I plan to use. My intended props are another camera to use to symbolize photography, as well as a few pieces of art I have done (a drawing, a painting, a wreath, and a piece of pottery). I plan to shoot the video in my back yard so that I don't have to face any location issues. I will also be the only "character" in my video - as it is a story about me. Here is what I have so far for my script, opinions and critiques are certainly welcome!

Scene 1 - Brooke (myself) standing in yard looking out at the trees. Voiceover Starts:

"When I was younger I always knew that when I grew up, I wanted to be an artist. I just hadn't found my artistic calling yet". 

Scene 2 - video scrolling through each artistic phase I went through. Voiceover Starts:

"I went through phases with drawing...painting...crafting...pottery" 

Scene 3 - shows myself bending to pick up a camera. Voiceover Starts:

"Then one day, I picked up a camera and started experimenting with photography". (turns to point the prop camera in the direction of the filming camera, as if I am taking a photograph).

Scene 4 - shows some of the photographs I have taken. Voiceover Starts:

"I ended up really loving photography and deciding to refocus my education on getting my Bachelor's in the Arts with a focus on photography. My favorite form is landscape photography and creative shoots where I can really let my imagination shine through." 

Scene 5 - Again shows me standing looking out at the yard, now with the camera in my hands. Voiceover Starts: 

"Now that I have realized my passion, I am working to make it my career. I have always believed in following my dreams, and am incredibly happy that I am able to do that with my photography". (scene cuts to black as the video ends).

Added notes - I think I might switch the one scene a bit where I point the prop camera towards the filming camera to be the end scene instead, I think the video would have a better ending if I did it that way. I also kind of want to have the start scene be in black and white and then have it transition to color when I am going through the phases - to show that I was at an unsteady part of my journey, and then the color started to come back in. 

The Process of Making Media Arts

I believe that the most important part of the process when creating media arts is the story idea/plot. In my opinion, if the story you have is not good - then the media you create for that story will most likely not be good either. In the text, it is mentioned that "stories with powerful themes, expressed properly, are not only more highly regarded but more popular as well" (Truby 108). Essentially, the idea behind the story, and the story itself needs to be powerful in order to draw people in. Other important parts of the process include the performance of the actors/actresses (if they are used) and how the media is created and edited. Personally, I don't really think there is anything I would add or change with the process. My one piece of main advice would be to just make sure you double and triple check your work before you submit it.
What I have done so far to create my final project -
- When I first found out we had to create a final project, I started brainstorming what I wanted to do.
- Then when I had my idea and knew I wanted to create a short film, I started thinking about what I needed to do to make this video come to life.
- I thought about if I wanted to use actors or not, and decided that I wouldn't and would just feature myself in the video - as it is a more personal video.
- Then I thought about how I wanted the video to look, and I now have a good idea about how I want each shot to look.
- Currently, I am thinking about my script and what I want to say in the video.
- After I have written my script, I plan to film out my video and then do a voiceover on it.
- Lastly, when everything is complete, I plan to share the video here for all of you to see.

Works Cited-
Truby, John. The Anatomy of Story. 1st ed., Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2007. 

Corn Maze - Script

Setting- Rural corn maze on Halloween night 2016 and then one year later (Halloween night 2017).
Characters- Beau - Tall with raven hair and icy blue eyes. Alice - short with honey hair and mossy green eyes. Jade - average height with ruby hair and bright blue eyes.
Script-
(Beau and Alice arrive at the corn maze around 10:30 pm on Halloween night 2016 no noise except that of crickets chirping in the distance).
Alice - Is this it? It seems abandoned.
Beau - This is the right place, I made sure to double check.
Alice - Maybe we should leave, I don't think we're supposed to be here.
Beau - Come on, Alice, don't be a chicken. Let's check it out.
Alice - Okay, fine. We better not get arrested for trespassing.
(They enter the maze and walk for a while before getting lost in the endless maze).
Alice - Great, now we're lost and are never going to find our way out. Maybe we should try to call for help.
Beau - You're not going anywhere Alice, and you are not calling anyone. There is no service out here.
Alice - What? (Turns towards Beau to see he has transformed into a grotesque vampire, she screams and tries to run but he advances on her).
(Scene cuts to a black screen)
(One year later - Halloween night 2017 - Beau brings a new victim to the corn maze at 10:30 pm).
Jade - Wow, this is cool. I bet we will have a lot of fun exploring this maze!
Beau - Yes, yes we will...
(Beau turns to look at the camera with a creepy smile and a close up to his mouth as his teeth turn into sharp fangs - screen cuts to black).
A little background information- I wanted to do something creepy with Halloween coming up, and this is what I thought of! I know it's only supposed to be one little scene from a video, however, I thought it would make a bit more sense to add in that end scene that is one year later. This is to show that Beau chooses a victim every year on Halloween to take into the corn maze at the same time for a little evening snack.

Sounds in my Back Yard

For my sound composition project, I decided to sit outside yesterday at 3pm and make a mental note of all the sounds I heard. The main sound I could hear was tree frogs (which is the constant foreground sound in the video). I also heard birds chirping in the foreground, however, this was in more of a pattern. Two sounds that I heard only one time while I was out there was my neighbors driving away, and then their dog barking a few seconds later. I incorporated these sounds as background noises, as they were heard in the distance. I also decided to add in a photograph I took of my backyard yesterday when I was out there, just so you guys could get a nice visual of it. The video ended up being only about 30 seconds long, as I didn't want to drag it out too much - but it definitely gives a good idea as to what I was hearing out there.

For this project, I used the free software download of MixPad - http://www.nch.com.au/mixpad/index.html. I found that this was really easy to use once I got the hang of it. The sounds I used were found with FindSounds - http://www.findsounds.com/mobile.html. After I had mixed all the sounds together with MixPad, I saved my work to my computer. Then I opened Movie Maker, inserted the picture I took, and then inserted the audio file I put together as well in order to combine sound and photograph. Lastly, I uploaded the video directly above. I am pretty pleased with the end result, and would love to hear what you all think about it! 

Tools, Teams, and Distribution

So far, the only real tools that I plan on using for my project are my camera and Movie Maker, both of which I obviously already have. However, I am open to buying/downloading other tools as needed. If I need to buy or download any other tools, I will definitely make sure to do my research beforehand in order to make sure that the tool I am choosing is acceptable.

For my final project, I will work by myself on that, so I have full control over what I produce. However, I know we will have to do a collaborative project as well. When it comes to my approach to collaboration - I always go in with a cautious mindset. I have had bad experiences with group projects in the past, so I am always wary now when I know I will have to work with a group - especially with online classes. It is hard because not a lot of us live in the same area where we can find a place to actually meet in person in order to collaborate effectively - this makes it so it is hard to set up a production location (as discussed in the Breslin text). In fall semester last year, I took digital storytelling - which was another collaborative course. My group accomplished our project by having a group email where we shared our ideas and our chunk of the work. What we did was we divided up tasks into the group leader, the script writer, and the video editor/creator. I was the leader, and was in charge of making sure everything was done by a specific day and approving of what we submitted. We did our project on how to prevent overpopulation in shelters. We each contributed a clip with a voiceover from the script and sent it to the one person who put all the clips together and then submitted it. We had to make sure that we each had the same software in order to complete the project. I am hoping that with this project, it will work much like that one and be somewhat easy to accomplish even though we can't meet in person.

There are a lot of ways to distribute a piece - whether it be film, video, or audio. My project will be a short video, and I will be distributing it via the internet. I plan to create my video using my camera, edit it in Movie Maker, and then upload it either to my YouTube account or just directly link it to my blog like I did with the photo sequence video.

Works Cited -
Roberts-Breslin, Jan. Making Media Foundations of Sound and Image Production. 3rd ed., Focal Press, 2012. 

Storyboard

Here is the storyboard for my final project. It depicts the first few shots of the video I plan on creating about how I came to realize that photography was my passion. Please excuse my sketching ability, however, I hope this accurately portrays what I am trying to do with this project. I plan to do a voiceover for a majority (if not the whole) video.

1) (voiceover) - "When I was younger I always knew that when I grew up, I wanted to be an artist. I just hadn't found my artistic calling yet." I want this shot to show me from the back/side, as if thinking back to when I was younger. I will be standing on the far right, thus using the rule of thirds. I also want this shot to be a close up.

2) (voiceover) - "I went through phases with drawing" 

3) (voiceover) - "painting"

4) (voiceover) - "crafting" 

5) (voiceover) - "pottery"

I want shots 2,3,4, and 5 to show a piece of artwork from each category I mentioned laying in the grass. I plan to make these shots interesting by panning from left to right with each of them. 

6) (voiceover) "Then one day, I picked up a camera..." I want this shot to be a long shot which shows myself bending to pick up a camera. I am also thinking about turning toward the shooting camera with the prop camera held up to my eye and making it seem like I am shooting a picture, but am unsure of this idea so far.

Then the story will progress to how I developed my passion and skill with photography, I am currently unsure how I will end the video though, so thoughts on that would be appreciated!

Ethics Statement and Other Thoughts

Ethics Statement-
The main purpose of this blog is to share work I have created for a media arts class I am taking, as well as to share any thoughts I have while we work through the modules.

When it comes to what is shown on this blog, I intend to use mainly my own work. However, if I do end up having to use someone else's work (like music, for example) I will make sure that I give the appropriate credit for it. I will also make sure to give the appropriate credit if I share ideas or quotes from our text, or other research I have done for the class. I would like to ask that no one takes my work from the site or work I have shared from someone else unless they have my permission and that of the original creator if the work is not mine, and to give credit where it is due.

Lastly, I would like to ask that if comments are made on this blog, they are done so appropriately (kindly, and in response to what is written) - or I will take the appropriate action to make sure the comments are removed.

Thoughts on my pitch, budget, timeline, and storyboard-
My thoughts on my pitch have pretty much remained the same since the beginning stages - with creating a story showcasing how I came to realize my passion for photography. I still want to keep my budget as tight as possible, if not free. I plan to use my own photographs and video that I create, and I also plan to shoot in my own yard in order to avoid any location issues. Where I might face some issues is if I decide to use music in my project, as I really have no idea how to go about that - so any tips for that would be greatly appreciated.

When it comes to my storyboard and the timeline I have allowed myself, I am realizing how difficult this class is really going to be for me. With the storyboard, I have not posted it yet because I am not entirely sure how to go about it. I am not good at sketching/drawing, so I don't think my story would be accurately portrayed in that way. I am thinking about doing something like a diagram showing how my story has progressed, but will need to think a bit more on it. The timeline I have given myself needs to be revised as well. It is definitely hard to allow myself appropriate time to complete the assignments because I have three other classes that require a lot of work as well, but I am learning to split it up a bit and to make myself to-do lists to keep on track.

Brady - 3 Months to 9 Years

For the video sequence assignment, I decided to compile photographs I have taken of my dog (Brady) from the time he was 3 months old, to this year when he turned 9. This idea came to me when I was looking at old pictures of him the other day and realized how much he has changed throughout the years. He went from being a sick puppy who had to sleep in a playpen and drink from a special bottle to being a sweet, healthy, and full of energy dog.

I added in the years that the photographs were taken in and organized them in a way that if there was more than one per year, they were in chronological order. I also added in transitions to each slide, so that the video as a whole wouldn't be too long. I used Movie Maker, which I own, for this video. I hope you all enjoy, and that I portrayed my message of how much he has changed accurately! 

Edited to add: After taking Professor Kermani's comments into consideration, I have come up with a few ways that I could change my video sequence to give it more of an artsy feel. One thing Professor Kermani mentioned was that I could make it so Brady's eyes or other body part were in constant alignment throughout the video. Meaning that his eyes or other body part (like paws or nose for example) would stay in the same place in the frame as he grew bigger. I could achieve this by rotating and cropping the pictures in order to assure that they all stayed in the same spot. I could have also used a sort of grid that I could put over the software I used in order to make sure that everything was lined up correctly. I also could have used images that were all the same size. One last thing I could have done would have been to make sure I chose between color images or black and white images. I noticed that I used a few of the black and white images I have of him. If I had chosen between color or black and white, this would have added more balance between the slides - just like if I had edited the pictures to make them all the same size.