Capstone research and development.

As my research quest for the "Reenacting Antietam" documentary continues, I am awaiting some responses from a few of the people who ran the event. I emailed and called Barbara Mowery once again as she was the media coordinator for this event. I have not heard any sort of response from her quite yet. I was thinking that maybe I could get some more interview footage with a few of the staff members. If not, I'm sure that I can still work with the elaborate amount of footage that I already have. The content that I have is a variety of shots including leisure, speeches in a few of the tents, activities, and of course, battle scenes. I am still working to prepare an actual script to the voice over I plan to produce for this project.

As I scrub through the footage that I have fully logged and captured in Final Cut Pro, I'm noticing some audio issues that I will eventually need to edit as there are some pops and scratches. Obviously, reenactment events are not the quietest of the sort. When I shot the footage, it was a bit windy outside and that affected the ultimate turnout of the audio. Hopefully what I do plan to include with voice over can overshadow the damage. I've also been researching various cultural communication theories throughout the resources I have been provided with. I have discovered various theories in my research thus far. There is much to be said as I continue the process.

As Vanessa Agnew suggests,

" Reenactment’s central narrative is thus one of conversion from ignorance to knowledge, individualism to sociability, resistance to compliance, and present to past. These conversion experiences take the form of testimonials: reenactors attest to profound experiences that are markers on the hard road to knowledge. They begin as novices, undergo trials, acquire skills and experience, and are finally inducted into a community of dedicated reenactors." (What is Reenactment?)

Here, Agnew is describing the process in which one may take the form of a reenactor. To become part of a reenactment community such as the community I practiced filming; one must accumulate knowledge in  "becoming" a part of who they portray. They must also gain a decent amount of experience mastering what they do in order to be a part of such a dedicated community.

As Alexander Cook states, there are oppositions in the art of reenactment. Hence, no matter how long and hard one may study to "become" for example, a Yankee soldier; it will never transform them into that exact figure.

"It is fairly obvious that it would be folly to expect any direct equivalence between the psychological experience of modern lab rats and that of the original historical actors whose situations are being mimicked. We can never be Them. Even the crudest kinds of behavioral psychology or material determinism acknowledge the importance of cumulative personal history in determining behavior." -Alexander Cook (The Use and Abuse of Historical Reenactment)

There is no doubt that reenactments have a powerful affect on American culture as it is used among so many memorialization resources. As Vanessa Agnew suggests, reenactment is almost everywhere we turn in living art forms.

"Reenactment thus spans diverse history-themed genres—from theatrical and “living history” performances to museum exhibits, television, film, travelogues, and historiography. While there are important differences between these genres and their respective practitioners, they are linked by common methodologies, modes of representation, and choice of subject matter."-Vanessa Agnew

As I continue to research these theories among many more, I have started brainstorming more ideas for my voice over. I'm working to decide which theory to focus on as there are many directions I could go with this film.  Although the process has been difficult so far, it has been very interesting. There are so many options I have with so much footage and information. This upcoming week I will be working to create an official working schedule for this project. I plan to set up due dates for myself in order to keep up with time needed to complete the film.

 My production notebook has been underway ever since I shot the footage back in September. I happened to dig up some of my notes that I used as well as a map of the farm that I shot the footage on. I continue to look forward to completing the final product of this film. So far, it has already taken a big chunk of time and dedication. There is still a decent amount of research that needs to go into it before I develop a final script for voice over. I aspire to do well and make sure this project brings forth the life of the event and people of the reenactment community altogether.

Cultural Event #2: "Give A Damn?"

Last night, I attended my second Cultural Event for Capstone. I went to the Shepherdstown Opera House on German Street where Program Board showed a documentary film entitled "Give A Damn?" The film featured three guys who take on the challenge of living in poverty across three continents, on only $1.25 per day. The journey takes a traumatic turn when two survive a deadly plane crash in Africa. Following the plane crash, the guys fight to complete what they began. 

Dan began the idea in 2005 when he travelled to one of the largest slums in Africa. He came back inspired to make the film and in 2007; invited David and Rob. In Kibera, Kenya; the average person lives on $1.25 a day; there are no paved roads, no indoor plumbing or sewage control, and the houses are made out of mud, sticks, and scrap metal. Each of these men got to experience this first hand as they travelled across the continents. After the crash in Africa, Dan and Rob were in too serious of condition to return which left David and his brother to continue the journey. The film continues all three of the guys' journeys as Dan struggles with his health and Rob struggles through post traumatic depression. 



The film was beautiful. It was funny to watch activists Dan and David stay positive while Rob, the skeptic kind of just went along for the ride. I recall having to catch myself crying during the devastating plane crash scenes. There were also some pretty stomach turning scenes when the guys would basically live off of food from trash cans and, even eat dirt when they were in Africa. They interviewed various Dan, Rob, and David risked their lives trying to make a difference in the world and learned that even though people in Africa are in poverty; they can still live happily. It really got me thinking. Maybe it doesn't take much to make one happy. I have always been inspired to go to Africa for myself and experience life there. In a way, this film did exactly that. I was able to see what it would be like to live in that culture through the beauty of documentary film.

"Give A Damn?" event poster

The goal was to make an adventurous, yet funny and compelling film that would focus on the ability of young people to make a difference in the extreme poverty and unfairness of the world we live in. The documentary film takes sincere, candid approach to  indigence that reveals itself to both the activist and the unconcerned. Their overall aim is “to connect those who need something to live for with those who just need something to live.” The great thing about this film is that it challenges the viewer to ask themselves two questions, 'What Breaks your Heart?' and 'What Makes you come alive' and brainstorm ideas to conjoin the two. At the end of the film, there was a sequence that interacted with the audience when it projected both of these questions onto the screen. 

Me with the Give A Damn guys: Dan, David, Me, and Rob

Following the film, the three came to the front of the Operahouse and were loudly applauded by myself and the rest of the audience. We were all able to talk to them and ask them questions about their journey and the miracle that they stayed alive after the plane crash, but each continued on in their own way. I found myself inspired by their bravery and compassion for those in need. I gave each a hug and even got my picture taken with them after the event. Documentary films such as these can really empower both youth and adults. Viewing this film allowed me to become a part of their journey and think about what really matters.

Cultural Event #1: Lessons from Little Rock

Last night, I attended my first Cultural Event of the semester.  "Lessons from Little Rock" was a lecture featuring Terrance Roberts. Roberts was one of the Little Rock Nine, a group of African American students who were the first, in 1957; to attend classes at Little Rock Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas.  He and the other eight of the Little Rock Nine were awarded with The Congressional Gold Medal by President Bill Clinton in 1999. 

The presentation delivered by Roberts told a chilling story of the nine teenagers who fought back against forces of discrimination in 1957. Roberts talked about the intriguing events of that frightful time inside Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. On Sept. 25th, 1957, the nine black students, including Roberts, risked their lives by integrating into Central High School in Little Rock, which officially desegregated its public school system. Their bravery that day would live on forever. They were admitted based on exceptional grades and attendance after the U.S. Supreme Court declared a ruling that would make all segregated schools unconstitutional. On the first day, the nine were met by a hostile group of segregationists that physically blocked the students from entering the school. 

Dr. Roberts was a sophomore at Horace Mann High School when he volunteered to integrate Central High. He then moved to Los Angeles, during “The Lost Year," and graduated from Los Angeles High School in 1959. Roberts then attended California State University, Los Angeles and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology in 1967. In 1970 he then obtained master’s degree. 

Later, Roberts earned a Ph.D. in psychology from Southern Illinois University in Carbondale. He served as a  professor at Antioch College in Los Angeles and as co-chair of the department of Master of Arts in Psychology Program. During Dr. Roberts' lecture, he discussed his experiences of Little Rock Central High and his his journey to figuring out how to overcome segregation. He explained to the audience that blacks basically had to survive by forming "the village." 

Me and Dr. Terrence Roberts after the lecture.

The experience gave him a solid grounding as he was told to get an education. When Roberts was young and before was able to attend school, he would constantly read books in the library so that he could learn independently. He mentioned that by fourth grade, he was a prepared executive learner. He also discussed our importance not only as students, but as people of the United States. Roberts warmly told the audience that what we do matters. Some people don't realize that for 335 years, it was constitutional to discriminate by law. The Supreme Court ruled in the Brown decision of Brown vs. The Board of Education. This favored that it was no longer constitutional to discriminate against blacks.

The event flyer.

Although the law changed, people would still discriminate. Dr. Roberts discussed that during this time, he was often kicked, thrown down stairs, and beaten badly. During that time, blacks weren't even allowed to participate in extracurricular activities. Roberts mentioned the importance of reaching out and making connections because it may take you further than you think. It didn't seem to be as uncomfortable for him to talk about these times as most expected. He mentioned that after his experience, he came to a point of understanding the historical context of these times. Sadly, 335 years of lawful discrimination was something that people got used to. He explained that accepting it to be unlawful was difficult for non-blacks to adapt to. He then brought up his theory that race is nothing but an artificial construct. Hence, there is no such thing as race after all. 

“In Little Rock, every possible decision had a racial component: where you could live, where you could to go to school, whether you could work or not, whether you could get a bank loan… who you could marry. This made no sense to me, especially as I discovered there is no such thing as race.”- Dr. Terrence Roberts

As he spoke to the audience, we were encouraged to ask multiple questions. Many asked advice on how to "be the change" and make their cultural environment a more open minded atmosphere. He discussed how one may attempt potentially getting rid of the idea which we refer to as "race." Hence, if everyone thought that there was no such thing; maybe there wouldn't be such thing as racism. I had the privilege of shaking this honorable man's hand last night. I am so grateful to have been part of his inspiring lecture and hope that Shepherd University welcomes him back in the future. I learned a great amount from this event and would love to attend more just like it. It was great to go to an event so close to Black History and Martin Luther King Jr. day. 

Capstone Advancement

As I progress in the production stages of my documentary, "Reenacting Antietam," I have come across a few extra deliverables that I may need to include. In my proposal, I already included a list of deliverables which included the schedule, supporting research, location notes, credits for materials used, the final authored DVD, the final version in .mov format, and a VO script if I decide to do a voice over.  I recently met with my Capstone director where we sat and discussed a few options that may make this project a lot more professional.

 In order to make this documentary clear and convincing, I will need to make sure that I research my subject matter elaborately. My director and I sought out over five academic sources that I will use to document my findings. After a decent amount of research is conducted, I will then move onto writing up some kind of a script so that I can include voice over. I discussed using voice over with my director, and he thought it would be a great idea. He also suggested that I try to get back in contact with the advisor of this event and possibly back in touch with a few other re-enactors. I've contacted a few of them, but they have not responded to my messages. I will continue to try and get a hold of them as I progress.

Currently I am working on thoroughly researching through the sources I have been provided with. I have officially completed logging and capturing the six tapes full of raw footage from the event. It was quite a time consuming process as Final Cut Pro captures in real time. With the amount of footage I have, one can imagine the amount of hours I spent reviewing the correct ways to go about logging. It took me a good 8 hours to get it all digitized so that I may now cut and edit. The good thing is that I no longer need to worry about all of my footage being trapped on mini DV tapes.

My next plan is to continue researching cultural communication theories and weave them into my video through voice. I need to begin the actual editing process by scrubbing through my sequences and finding the exact shots that I want to use. I really need to obtain a vision in that sense. I already have the footage. It seems simple, right? But where do I begin? To some, it really doesn't matter. For example, it might be a good idea to start logging my credits and making sure I have each and every single name that I used. I could then move onto creating the actual credits sequence if I wanted to. Sometimes starting in the middle is the best way to go about editing. The middle could then be followed by creating the beginning and ending titles. To me, there really is no wrong way to go about completing the edits. I will say that throughout my career as a Communication and New Media student, I find it easiest to go about editing a video without a set plan. Some of my best work has been composed by simply playing with the material I have and then taking it from there.

In order to produce this project, I will need to master a variety of skills and technologies. Not only will I need to continuously re-familiarize myself with video/ audio editing software (Final Cut Pro, Soundtrack Pro, Garage Band, After Effects, Photoshop), but I will need to make sure that I efficiently communicate my theories through. The goal is to ultimately make this project interesting to a wide variety of audiences.By documenting my experience, teachers, students, and community members young and old will be able to view this project as if they were experiencing the nature and art of reenactment.

 Digging through my location notes, I recently discovered a few still images that I snapped at the event with my digital camera. Although they may not be the clearest images, I believe that they still may be of use in my documentary. For now, I will  continue my strenuous research while editing the actual footage in Final Cut Pro. The labor of editing will be tough as I really need to refresh myself on the software. I have found that search engines such as Google and CreativeCow are the most helpful.The editing will definitely be difficult as there are so many shots that I would like to use. I realize that I may not need to use all of them as captivating as the experience was to me. As for research materials, my director suggested quite a few legitimate sources that discuss the realism of Historical Reenactments and how they affect culture. The reading has been quite interesting so far and I look forward to what Capstone has to bring me further into the semester.

Capstone Origins

In Shepherd University's Communication and New Media Department, there comes a defining moment for every "comm. kid" to embrace what they have learned in span of their studies. This moment all comes together in a class commonly known as Capstone. Throughout my student career at Shepherd University, I have produced many projects. Whether they be music videos, political campaign advertisements, websites, or motion graphics projects; they have all required me to sacrifice quite a bit of time and effort.

As we all know, many softwares take an extended amount of time and commitment for one to consider themselves proficient. That being said, I am willing to do anything and everything it takes to show the University and Department of Communication that I can be professional by meeting deadlines while producing a completely original project that will not only leave a lasting impression, but keep my audience wanting more.

photo by: Christine Walters

In Capstone, I will embrace the resources that are available and take on the challenge of creating a clear, well produced, and professional project. Not only do I want to show everything I have learned in Communication and New Media; I want to project that I am indeed someone who is dedicated to becoming an employable candidate for a potential job.

Luckily, I had already been streaming through
 various ideas as to what I would like to produce as a Capstone project. I thought it through in previous semesters. As I took the trail to discovering what I really enjoyed throughout my career here at Shepherd, I found that there really wasn't anything in the Communication and New Media that I wouldn't enjoy doing. I truly enjoy each and every kind of project that I have been assigned to do. That being said, I enjoy each project in its own unique way. But then one day, it hit me. Even as a teenager, I always wanted to produce some type of documentary film that would explore a particular area of study.

Early last semester, I rooted through events that took interest to me in the daily newspaper. A few of them were cheesy, while the others were just plain boring. One day, I was driving to school past the Antietam Battlefield and stopped for a coffee. In the shop, I found a local paper for Sharpsburg, Maryland that featured previous pictures for this reenactment event that occurred a few years back. I grazed through and found an advertisement stating that there was an upcoming Reenactment of The Battle of Antietam which would occur on a local farm field minutes away from where I live. That's when it hit me. I have always found not only the people, but the culture of reenactments to be very interesting.

For the next few days, I worked on contacting Barbara Mowery, the Media Coordinator of the 150th Battle of Antietam Reenactment which was to take place in September. She was very sweet, but also strict as she originally intended to charge me $760 just to document the event as a spectator. I nearly gave up, but then remembered that there was always my good friend and teacher, Todd Cotgreave from WSHC (the campus radio station). He and I worked with Barb through email and negotiated getting me a press pass as he offered advertising the Reenactment through the station. To my surprise, Barb agreed to make my presence as a videographer free of charge with one stipulation. All I had to do was write her a two page proposal stating how and why I wanted to document this event. She was truly impressed and embraced the idea that I wanted to study the Reenactment and make a film about it.

On the days of the event, I went alone to Manor Church Farm. The farm was literally only a few minutes from where I live. For those days, I documented footage on my experience. The event was literally like being in a completely different world. Not everyone in this world gets that close to re-living a realistic, historical event. I feel very privileged to have experienced what I did those two days. I have over 6 tapes (hours) full of footage that I will be using to document my research. I want it to focus on the semiotics of reenactments and how these semiotics generate meaning. It will basically be a project involding reenactments as memorializing or cultural communication theory.

Not only will this project appeal to history majors or civil war buffs, but also to those of you who do not know what it is like to experience a Reenactment, yet alone talk to a reenactor. The culture is truly captivating and so far I have learned quite a bit. The challenge for me will be going through all of this footage, logging and capturing, and figuring out exactly which clips I would like to put to use. I also want to include some type of voice over.