Meeting with Partner #1

I met with my partner today

He showed me his completed magazine article, and I thought it looked really good. We decided to do it in a questions and answer format, with another interviewer asking Colin certain questions about the project. With Colin's experience in journalism and writing articles, we thought it would be best for him to write the article. I had a couple of critiques on the question and format of the magazine, but other than that, we both thing the magazine is finished. 

I am responsible for working on the introduction written/ typed pieces and the logo. For this, I found a new app on my computer called 3D Paint. It is the new version of the Paint app on Microsoft, that has features that we can utilize for this project. I will insert a screenshot of the interface here. 

One of the features that is helpful is the fill feature. For our logo, we plan to include the world in it. Because my drawing skills are not the best, features like mentioned allow me to trace the picture, and fill it the certain color I intend it to be. This makes creating the logo much easier, and the product looks much better. Also, the app has various 2d and 3d images, that we could add to the logo to make it more specific to our documentary. Lastly, the app also has the ability to record, and make moving pictures and different forms of animation. This would work well for our introduction, that incorporates text and writing components that are moving continuously. These features are very applicable, and will help me very much with the visual components of the project. I cannot wait to explore it!

Group Meeting #3

We had our last group meeting today

We had our last group meeting of the project today. From our last group meeting to now, we have greatly progressed on our project. Though, we still have a long way to go. In terms of our project, I explained to my group members the concept and ideas we are working with. They were all interested with the idea, and were inquisitive about the structure of the documentary. One of the group members pointed out that it is suppose to be a 5 minute excerpt, so the topic we have does not need to be covered in a detailed format. This was something important I noted, because I personally tend to over plan what Colin and I should cover in the 5 minutes. Therefore, it was something to keep in mind, in order to construct the project in the standards it needs to be. 

I am continuing to work on the social media page and my voiceovers. Colin and I are planning to meet on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, to work on the project. In other good news, our instructor offered us an extension on our projects. I am really grateful for this, as it would help Colin and I to not rush on our project. Honestly, we have fallen behind, and we are working to catch up. This long weekend will be our saving grace, in order to meet our new due date of April 18th at 11:59.

What we did today

 We regrouped, and figured out what we needed to do for the next two weeks

We have about three interviews worth of footage, that covers 3 of the major continents. We still want to interview people who originate from Europe and Africa, to keep our documentary as representative as possible. We are planning to complete this interviews by the end of Thursday, so we are able to edit on Friday. We have a day of on Friday, so we would utilize this time to continue editing. 

We also changed the structure of our script to limit it to 1-2 minutes. We decided to split our immigration history section into time periods (1850-1950 and 1950-2021). We decided to do this because picking specific dates that involved specific continents of people would create a gap in our timeline. This would make the first part of our documentary difficult to understand. Therefore, we want to split our timeline into around 100 year segments, and pick events that fit in the time we allotted. Colin and I are each going to do one part, and record our voiceovers to gauge the time it takes. 

In terms of target audience convention, restructuring the first part of our documentary in this fashion fits our Generation Z audience. Due to their shorter attention span than other audiences, keeping the history part short and concise will keep them interested for the entire 5 minutes. 

In terms of our social media, we have an idea of what our introduction( 45 second) clip and logo are going to be. We want to make our title "__________ America" in a text format, and slowly have written words of the various types of Americans that exist. It is hard to explain, but I will attach the picture here. 

We wanted it to be a moving picture, where the written words slowly appear, and increase in speed. This would be something that would be in our social media page and in the introduction to our documentary. We also thought about our logo, and we are thinking to make it in the shape of the world. Each continent would have a certain color, and all colors will converge in America. This would represent the millions of people that immigrated, and make up America today 

We will plan to meet tomorrow to review our scripts and record individually. We are confident we can finish this project on time, and do it well. 

New Schedule

There are two more weeks left, and we are behind schedule

Colin and I still have the filming of the voiceovers, finishing more interviews, and constructing the analysis part of the documentary. We also need to work on the magazine and social media page, that would take less time. Here is the intended schedule up till the due date. 

March 29th: Gather current footage and edit/ arrange based on outline

March 30th- April 2nd: Film last interviews and voiceovers for first part. Edit to a rough cut point. Also, individually work on the social media and magazine respectively, and finish by the end of the week. 

April 3rd- 4th: Evaluate footage and come up with proper analysis sequences

April 5th: Film all of analysis sequences

April 6th-April 12: Edit the project & work on CCR essay individually

April 12th 11:59: PROJECT DUE

Our Social Media Page

I was thinking about our social media page

In my opinion, our social media page should contain many blank spaces or fill- in- the- blanks. To elaborate, our design should encompass our broad target audience of Americans, that had family born and raised in a different continent. Therefore, the design of our social media page should not be too specific on one certain color or design. It should be more broad, and fit some of the topics that are being covered in our introduction and interviews. This can be represented using numerous shapes that are not sharply drawn, as the background for our social media posts. This would create a more neutral background, and reflect the tone of our piece as calm and positive. Besides the structure, the colors in the background should express the diversity and variety our piece has in its history and topics presented. Therefore, I think that all colors should be represented in our posts background. Some ways it can be represented is by making numerous shapes, where certain colors are used in those shapes. Also, we could represent one color in various different shades, that are strategically placed in a certain design. Either way, this orientation can help create a design that is engaging, but not too flashy at the same time. 

One issue with this choice can be our desire to appeal to a Generation Z audience. The likings of this audience include more flashy and bright backgrounds or colors. Therefore, my thought of using more soft- edged lines may not be the best way to construct this social media page. The idea for the design of this page was based on a more consumer oriented perspective, and not completely from an audience driven standpoint. Though, I still though I should write this idea down before I forget. I will continue to work on this idea with Colin, and finish this page by the end of the week. 

Current Spring Break Plans

This week spring break begins

I am honestly really glad for this spring break week. This past quarter has been stressful to say the least, and I definitly need some time to relax. During this week, I will be busy though, because I am going to see my prospective colleges I may commit too. It has been challenging to figure out where to go, because of my broad range of interests. From an academic perspective, I have taken multiple STEM oriented and humanities oriented courses, and have done decently in both. Therefore, it can be difficult to pick a university, based on what they specialize in. Therefore, I wanted to get a first- hand experience at the university and understand the curriculum of some of my intended majors, in order to make the best decision about my future. In terms of the media studies project, I will not be able to work on it as often as usual. I am hoping to find time to finish up our script and start recording during this time. I really hope I can do it. 

Reflection on Interview #3

 I also interviewed another person a couple of days ago

She is a good friend of mine, and has participated in one of our previous class documentary projects. I had asked her a couple of weeks ago if she wanted to do this, and she was happy to do it. After completing two interviews, I felt comfortable with our prepared questions, and knew they were constructed well. As the interview went on, some of the answers she brought up were extremely relatable to my multi- cultural experience. She brought up experiences that were relevant in my life, which made the interview so meaningful and impactful. As recommended by a peer in our group meetings, I had asked her to bring a prized possession to our Zoom call, and explain the sentiments behind it, if she felt comfortable. The object that she had brought was something special to her, and influenced her success in many standardized tests and exams. I also carry a similar object like that, that brings me confidence and strength in important events in my life. It was so interesting to see how similar the application of our cultural heritage could be, and how it has dictated our lives thus far. Overall, the interview went well, and I gained a lot of knowledge and understanding about culture in that time. 

I will be going over the footage, and picking parts that we want to include. Colin and I are working to get these interviews done, in order to start formulating and recording the other two parts of our project.