The Last Group Meeting :’)

This group meeting was definitely less lengthy than the other ones, since I think most of us now are confident with our overall ideas for the project. This time I was paired with people doing short film and music video packages, so I found myself giving more advice this time. Half of my classmates in this meeting had also barely filmed much yet, so they did not have any issues or questions regarding editing. My main concerns were regarding the other areas of the project such as the social media page and magazine article. Gianna or Ryan told they were planning to use Instagram, which is likely what I will do as well due to it’s popularity and direct reach to my target audience. We all agreed that the social media aspect of the project was relatively simple and that we all just had to make sure it compliments the filmed portion of the project and additionally contribute to the branding. I also had questions regarding what I should do for the magazine article, and Sara advised me to do a Q&A type thing with the director of the docuseries aka me which is a great idea! I had thought of it before but now I am sure that that’s what I’ll do for the article. I’ll come up with the questions ASAP and find a nice template on Canva to put it all together :))))

CCR Planning :D

I decided to outline some talking points for my CCR so I can have a better idea of what to write when the time comes... which will be very soon lol.

How do your products represent social groups or issues?

• Represents BLM Movement
• Represents younger generations such Gen Z and how they are pushing for change
• Discussion of local racism and prejudice

How do the elements of your production work together to create a sense of ‘branding’?

• Use of same font in docuseries, instagram, and article
• Similar color scheme of brown and neutral colors across all products

How do your products engage with the audience?

• Use of instagram to connect with target audience who is most active on that platform
• Simple, clean-cut aesthetic to make it easy for audience to read/view products
• Docuseries encourages audience to use their voice and make a difference
• Article will also do the same thing^^

Color Correction is my passion❤️

No seriously I do love it. I think it adds so much to your film and gives it that cinematic look that I strive for. I also think it can contribute a lot to the look and feel of your film... for example I feel my shots are a bit too sunny and bright for the serious nature of my docuseries, so I opted to make them more cooler toned. Or maybe I just did this because I really like the color blue lol. The world may never know. I might keep playing around with it more once I have the final product but here are some before and afters of what I’ve done so far:

Filming Fun: Part 2!

Ladies and gentlemen, I have finished filming!!!

Spring break has gone by pretty quick as it usually does but I’m glad I finally was able to finish the production process. I was able to schedule with Anya to film today just before the sunset at library park. *Golden hour*, as they call it. There was much less people at the library this time, which made it easier to deal with some background noise. I did still have to deal with the flying planes again though... I don’t even live that close to the airport I’m not sure why they have to be so loud and frequent and try to be the star of my video like that🙄 Besides that, the filming process went very smoothly again, after we finished all questions in order I refilmed the first few questions again because I didn’t like how the light was hitting my interviewees face. I’ll show you how drastically the lighting changed in 20 mins below with these very cool very fresh stills:

Ok it’s not that MUCH of a difference but I do prefer the shots we got afterwards... but anyways I’m very happy with the progression of this project :) I can’t wait for all of BLMWeston to see the finished product! Now comes the stressful part that is editing... if I’m being honest my meticulous self dislikes editing since it just takes me so so so long... especially since this is a 5 minute piece. But we’re gonna roll with the punches and finish this baby up... can’t believe we’re reaching the end of this journey soon.

Editing.... well kinda sorta

Using Adobe Premiere Pro on my Mac computer, I began to compile some clips together of the two interviewees I got until I realized it would probably be best to wait until I have the third and last interview. At least for the way I do my editing process, I tend to have sparks of inspiration for how the footage should be organized randomly while I edit, and I am fully capable of making the full documentary with only Lexi and Olivia’s interviews since I have enough good footage, but I figure if I go any further it will be more difficult for me to insert the last interview clips in a cohesive way. Therefore, I am currently texting Anya to see if next week is a possibility for her, and if not, she is already referring me to ask another member in case she is not available. Since Anya is one of the founders and seems to be the most passionate about the documentary, I feel she has the most to add to the excerpt, so I really wanna try to get her to do the interview. But of course, health comes first and her being sick with a contagious virus is out of my control.

Anyways - after replaying all the footage I got, the audio of the clips is mostly good but I noticed there are some small background noises of leaves rustling at some moments, but it’s very minimal that I could possibly fix it in post production if I need to use those clips. That’s all I got for today folks :P I’m planning that by the end of next week I have most of the documentary edited so this blog should be very productive in the coming days.

Finally Filming

I met up with my two interviewees at the library park and got the interviews done in less than 2 hours :0 

Olivia and Lexi were the only members who were able to show up, since Anya is still sick unfortunately :( They suggested I reach out to another prominent member of BLMWeston, but I never got a reply after I texted her individually. So at this point, I think my best bet is to wait until next week where Anya will hopefully be well again. Because after filming Lexi and Olivia’s interviews, I realized that I definitely do need at least one other person/perspective to make the documentary complete. 

Besides that, we filmed in the gazebo and got awesome natural light! The process went very smoothly and we just tackled the questions in order. It was a bit annoying to attempt to control all the background noise, as we had to wait for planes and loud cars to pass so they wouldn’t be heard in the shot. There was also these large, dry leaves where I had the interviewees sitting which kept being blown by the wind, so I ending up moving all of them to a grassy area where they wouldn’t bother us. The shots look super good, and the interviewees did an excellent job answering each question. Even though I feel I’m missing one more interview, I definitely still have a lot to work with which is great! 

Last Moments of Planning Before Filming heheh

Sooooooo I finalized the questions I’ll be asking my interviewees tomorrow: 

1. How did the plan to hold a protest in Weston start?


2. What difficulties did you face during the planning process? What was the hardest part?


3. How did the actual day of the protest go? What were some highlights?


4. What were some overall positive outcomes of the event?


5. How did BLMWeston and its members deal with the negative backlash received afterwards from the community?


6. What is in store for the future of BLMWeston? Are there any future events you guys plan to hold? If so, how did you think your experience in planning the protest will influence your planning of the next event?


7. What is the biggest goal you hope to see BLMWeston achieve?


I sent them in our very special BLMWeston doc groupchat so the interviewees could have an idea of what they could say tomorrow. I figured these 7 questions were all “loaded questions” as one would say, which means I could definitely gather more than enough footage as the interviewees will likely have a lot to say. I’m so happy that my vision is coming together completely now :)))))))) Now all we have left is production and post-production... oh and the social media page and magazine of course lol I will get on that soon...

Group meeting numero dos

Today in virtual class we had our second group meeting! We got the chance to speak with different people this time and I spoke with Daniel, Sara, Annika, and Colin. This time, I had much more of my project figured out so I asked less questions. I told them I was struggling to find shot ideas of what I could do for my b-roll. Many of them suggested I could include shots of the library where the protest was held, which would be convenient since I’m filming the interviews there. They also reminded me that I have a lot of options regarding showing screen recordings of the BLMWeston social media page while the interviewees are speaking. Most of the other footage I show in my documentary will likely be videos and photos that were taken by people during the protest, so after I film tomorrow I’m going to tell the interviewees that I need them to find as much footage for me from that day as possible. Otherwise, I feel more secure in my project once again and I am super excited to start feeling tomorrow!

T-5 days until filming day

We officially have a day planned out to film the interviews: this Friday, March 19th!

I contacted my two interviewees via the groupchat we made, and they all agreed. Lucky for us its an early release day with no school the next day which gives us ample time to film during the day, since I am relying entirely on the sun for my lighting of the doc. Daylight savings actually started today too so I should not have any issues with the sun setting early. I checked the weather since I live in the unpredictable climate of Florida and we seem to be in the clear! Apart from Anya and Olivia, I also invited my friend Lexi, since she is in charge of all the PR and social media of the organization so I thought her perspective would be very interesting. I also want that extra footage/interview just in case...!

Fonts and Possible Title?

When thinking of the layout of my magazine page, I decided to choose the font first because I think it helps fuel my creative process lol. This font will also be used for the title screen of my docuseries, so you already know I was on DaFont for at least an hour. Also..... I think we may have a title? A working title at least. "Fighting For Change" seemed to fit with BLMWeston very well, and I like how it looks so we're gonna go with it.

I took inspiration for the font from a graphic designer duo on instagram @sacree_frangine who have made several posts for the BLM movement that have circulated on various websites and instagram pages. I included one of their most reposted pictures below - the color scheme and simple aesthetic is definitely something I want to emulate for my project. 

One question remains: where?

Interviewees? Check. Outline? Check. Location? ummmmm

Choosing a location where I could meet with my small group of interviewees to film was not too difficult, considering the small city I inhabit does not give much choices. I decided a public place or park would allow us to maintain COVID guidelines the best, and would be more convenient for everyone to meet up at. In my Zoom meeting last week, my interviewees proposed either Weston Town Center or Library Park. I'm leaning more towards Library Park since there are generally less people and more benches to sit on, and it is also the place where the actual protest took place so it would be a great opportunity to get some B-roll shots. There is a large fountain at Library Park though, so I need to be wary of this and all the other background noise that can come with shooting in an outside environment. Despite this, I think all the green landscapes present there will make for a nice background for the interviews :) 

It's Coming Together

After narrowing the topic of my docuseries and deciding I want the episode I film to focus on the protest, I have finally been able to devise an outline for the excerpt. Woooooooo!

After I film the interviews, I will adjust the final plan to fit the story and details they tell me, but this is the general structure I will follow:

• Introduction to how the plan to hold a protest in Weston started
• Interviews of BLMWeston members describing their experiences
• Display pictures of BLMWeston social media page and news articles relating to the protest
• Description of the challenges faced by the organization in planning the protest
• Interviews explaining the setbacks and stress felt by the members during this process
• Description of how the protest went
• Interviews describing the events and what happened the day of the protest
• Display videos that protestors took of the event
• Description of the negative backlash BLMWeston received from the community
• Interviews detailing how the members reacted to the negative remarks
• Display pictures of more news articles 
• Final reflection on positive outcomes of the protest, and future plans for BLMWeston regarding events

I want the excerpt to end on a positive note, while still spreading awareness of the racism present in our community,

The structure of the total docuseries will look something like dis:

• Episode 1: How BLMWeston was started, and how the events of the summer influenced this
• Episode 2: The events that occurred before and after the Weston protest
• Episode 3: The Weston City Commission Meeting, and a discussion of the opponents of BLMWeston
• Episode 4: A deep dive into every member on the officer board of the club and their specific roles, and how they keep the organization running
• Episode 5: A discussion of future events the organization has in mind and how they hope to continue to spread awareness

Zooooooooming

I just got out of my Zoom meeting with Anya and Olivia, the founders/leaders of the BLMWeston organization. I told them the basic concept of my docuseries, and they informed they were comfortable sharing really anything about their personal experiences relating to the organization. After some discussion, instead of having the portion of the doc I'm filming center on one person and their specific story, we decided to make the doc focus on the student-led protest they held in June and the stress and backlash that ensued after. A reason we came to this decision is because the protest is definitely the most important and impactful event that their organization held, and there is just so much to discuss leading up to it, along with the effects it had on our overall community.

One of the founders is unfortunately sick with COVID and has to be quarantined for about another week, which will slightly delay my schedule by a week. I don't think this will be much of a detriment to me, since I feel like next week would be a great time to devise the final outline and location scout for appropriate interviewing places. Besides this, the meeting went extremely well and I look forward to see this all come together.

My treasured equipment

Since I hope to start filming by the end of next week, I figured I would enlighten you all about what I will be using to shoot this piece. Spoiler alert: it's the same camera and tripod from last year because if ain't broke don't fix it. 😎

The low aperture setting of my Canon Rebel T6i will allow me to place a distinct focus on the interviewee as they're speaking to the camera. Additionally, I will be using my trusty Manfrotto Compact Action tripod to keep my camera set in place. If I want to get multiple angles of the interviewees while they're speaking, I will consider using my iPhone 12 Pro Max since I do not own another DSLR camera :( wow iPhone 12 Pro Max is such an obnoxious name for a phone lol.

Last year I was very close to renting extra equipment such as a stabilizer since it was integral for the shot I wanted to produce, but this year I feel this will be unnecessary and I have everything I need to tell my story :)

Meeting with teacher!

Today in class I got the chance to speak individually with Mrs. Stoklosa to discuss my project. She seems to be really like my idea so far which makes me happy :D

I asked her a similar question that I asked in my previous group meeting, regarding the structure of the docuseries and any suggestions on how I should go about it. She reminded me that I have to make a detailed plan for at least five episodes of this docuseries, which is definitely the part that is giving me the most trouble. I brought up my plan to focus on one person per episode, since the people that make up the organization all have different stories and viewpoints to share regarding the founding of BLMWeston and their first-hand experiences with racism in our community. Mrs. Stoklosa told me this idea could work, and that I would just have to make the episodes of my docuseries short, like under 20 minutes. She also reminded me that I have to take into account whether I'll be able to film these interviews in person if they will have to be virtual. 

These are definitely things I will discuss in my Zoom meeting with the members which I have scheduled for this Sunday... I'll keep you posted on how that goes!

Target Audience

Since my docuseries will be focused on a social-issue, the target audience will likely be males and females of a more left-leaning political ideology since the majority of people who support the Black Lives Matters movement are registered Democrats. In terms of race, I will likely have more of a focus on members of the Black community, but I still want my documentary to appeal to all races regardless since there are a large amount of BLM supporters from different races as the chart below depicts. Additionally, the age demographic will be 18-49 because the older generations tend to lean more conservative which means they are more likely to oppose any information related to the BLM movement. There is also the factor that young people spend more time on social media, which was used heavily during the Summer of 2020 to spread awareness through the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter. All socioeconomic statuses will be included in the target audience, since my goal is for people of different backgrounds to learn more about the movement and how it impacted communities during the Summer.