No group meeting :((

 Absences are the death of me... 

So this week, as I said previously, I have been crazy busy. I mean I just counted, and after today, I have missed the past 11 days of school. And unfortunately, missing so much class means I also missed our group reflection where we get to talk about our projects and get feedback. 

That being said, I knew I was going to miss this, so I talked to some of my peers within aice media in order to at least partially get some understanding and feedback on my documentary. Some of the discussions we had were just little things like ways to get my interviewees to feel comfortable and a bit on my graphics, and in the future, ways to make sure within the post production stage I am able to have enough b-roll. 

In talking to Mateo, a classmate, I realized that b-roll can be as simple as me going to memorials where I can find pictures (in front of the Stoneman Douglas sign) and really just use what is there for me to use. Also, in case of pictures, I realized I can stage shots with printed out photos or for example, someone looking at pictures on a computer screen. 

So far from talking to classmates, the reception on my documentary has been mostly positive. People really like the focus on grief and healing, and all agree that is the main purpose of this documentary, rather than just sharing what was lost that day. 

Also, I will share something really cool that happened to me tonight at Elon University. So tonight we had a meet and greet at the communications school and I got into a long discussion with a professor in charge of a program called elondocs. 

His name is Colin Donohue and he gave me some really insightful tips on this documentary, having worked on some in the past. I told him about my documentary and he shared with me some tips, such as once I complete my interview, to put it into a Word document and work on the structure outside of Premiere to create a script of sorts. He also advised me to make sure that I really allow breathing room for the audience to take in what is being told to them in a slower, more emotional manner. 

Also, it was really cool to see how an older person really resonated with something I am currently working on and was impressed with the progression of the documentary. 

As I get back to school this upcoming Monday, I am also excited to discuss with my peers the progression of my documentary, especially with my interviews coming up. I wish I had more to update you on, but I am excited to hit the ground running in the beginning production and eventually the post production of this documentary

But until next time 

- Emma <3