Capstone progress

Working through Capstone this past week has been quite a heavy load as I continue to produce this documentary. I have basically been searching through font types and music in order to see what works best in the final product. I continue to look through the theories brought about in Alexander Cook's The Use and Abuse of Reenactment as it focuses on critiquing how reenactments romanticize nostalgia and help us to understand a different kind of culture. I've been able to work through the footage better with an outline in hand as my director suggested it to me. I've learned how to merge several sequences into a master sequence as many tapes had been logged in separate areas. I am not a master of Final Cut Pro, but I will say that working on this has helped me in becoming better at three point editing software.

Battle of Sunken Road (Bloody Lane) Reenacted

As I have mentioned before, video editing is a very time consuming task. I've spent hours simply trying to pick out certain shots over others. The trick is finding what is relevant to the research I have in hand. I'm learning a great deal about which kind of dissolves might work over others for particular kinds of films. A consistent use of dissolves can be what makes or breaks video through edits. I have a lot of battle footage that I'll be using. Underneath the footage will be Civil War music that I've recently discovered for free. Some of the raw sound bytes that I have from the event itself will also be used as some is in fact music while other is ambient. I cannot stress how important ambient noise does for a project such as this. It's elements such as raw sound bytes that make can bring a documentary film to life.

I'm really focused on what the viewer will think as this project is intended to be for every audience.  This upcoming week is going to be very strenuous as my presentation to the faculty is coming up very soon. I really need to have some kind of copy of this completed for them by next Monday, March 4th. I'm curious to see what they will think of it as I am expected to represent the Communication Department professionally.

Advancing forward in Capstone

As my Capstone project progresses, I find myself learning more and more each time I look at the content. Discovering how the art of reenactments romanticize nostalgia, glorify wartime, and  improve our understanding of their world has been a very interesting task in itself. So far I have some clips that I really believe fit the theme. This past week, my director Jason and I discussed creating an outline as opposed to only an AV script to aid me in my research. We also discussed what Motion Graphics could do for me in using a specific civil war themed font in order to fit the atmosphere of the film.

My director encouraged me to keep with the documentary idea instead of switching to a trailer. The film may not be as long as I originally intended it to, but I believe that I will still be able to produce something great (even if it is only 5 or 10 minutes long). Creating an outline makes the process a lot more manageable and understandable as I will have a beginning, middle, and end theme to work around. Among the raw sound bytes that I have from recording the event, I have also discovered some free Civil War music to use as background. Having an outline in mind really helps my artistic vision of where this film will go and the journey it may take the viewer on. I'm really excited about putting everything together and running through a few decent cuts of the film once I finish my editing process.

Though it has been a challenging journey so far, I am very proud of what this project is becoming. I never thought I'd be able to bring across communication theory as effective as I plan to. Even through just scrubbing through the footage that I have, I found so many ideas that I can stream off of and use in the actual video. I've been learning a lot just by fooling around with Final Cut Pro a little bit more. I feel that a consistent use of cross dissolves in between sequences will make a difference. Although it may not be a 20 minute film, I believe that this project will be very informative as well as unique in context.

Capstone progress

The whole reason why reenactment is an interesting representational form is because it is a performance that is conceived by invoking a supposedly closer simulation of past realities than other forms can offer. It ambiguously appears to be closing off the past which suggests that the representation is how it was in real life. In attending this reenactment, I found myself questioning whether the exercise of attending one can help to improve our understanding of a different world and the behavior of its inhabitants. As Alexander cook suggests, there are ways of exploiting the genre to provide something of value for both participants and audience. For the fore-seeable future, reenactment is here to stay as a form of public history.

As I have learned within my college career, time is a crucial factor in being able to produce a clearly convincing video project. I've continued researching and working on my AV script. I've broken it down to a few approaches to this documentary. I know that if I cant produce it on time, I may have to make a really good trailer for it. That being said, I'm not sure that there will be enough time to produce a full on documentary film without the appropriate amount of time to edit through a couple of cuts. As this is a learning experience, I've still been messing around with Final Cut Pro to edit through the footage that I do have. I've found that I might be better off by simply making a 5 minute trailer that will bring together all of the components that I've mentioned above. I still believe that I will be able to bring across my ideas effectively, it will just be a shorter video.

Although the video may not be as long as I intended, I still believe it will make a really nice Capstone project as good trailers still represent good student work. I plan on discussing this with my advisor during this week so that I can keep on track. I feel that I can make a trailer project work a lot more effectively as I am still brushing up on some of my editing skills. The most difficult part has been the fact that I have so much footage to go through and track which shots will work best in one sequence to the next. I'm trying to keep myself up to date on the progress schedule that I made earlier. If time allows, I'd love to incorporate some graphics from Adobe After Effects into the titles. It's surprising how quickly an idea can change from one thing to the next. Again, I believe it is more reasonable to create a really good project instead of either something that looks mediocre. This week I will be finishing up the VA script and continuing to edit through the footage.

Onward

So far, I've really enjoyed discovering shots that I may not have noticed while actually shooting this documentary footage. I've basically been running through the footage tape by tape while continuing to research various concepts and ideas relative to cultural communication. This past week, I met with my advisor, Jason McKahan to discuss my progress with the project so far. We discussed the origins of creating a VA script, and the necessary elements to how it will work with a documentary film. I'll be using a Celtx VA script template in order to complete this variable.

I recently was assigned to create a schedule that I turned in this past Tuesday. I am still trying to figure out the whole Gannt chart scheduling process, so I just went with creating a Word document that lays out a weekly schedule. This will benefit both myself and my advisor in seeing which points in time certain deliverables may be due. I will be able to complete things much easier this way as it allows me to complete tasks at certain intervals. At this point, I am just working to pull in various ideas and theories in coordinance to my research. The challenge will be selecting the correct footage to match the voice over and overall idea of the project. Jason and I also discussed the necessity of including a basic log sheet as it will guide one through time intervals and points within the fully completed video.

Reviewing Final Cut Pro has been very strenuous and time consuming so far. I'm fairly comfortable with the basics (as I've edited with it before; but this project is definitely going to need a good amount of attention between editing audio and video transitions. During the meeting, my advisor (Jason), brought up an episode of The Cleveland Show which features a comedic approach to how America (as a diverse nation) perceive cultural events such as reenactments. It was interesting to watch the episode, so I am considering including a scene from it in order to illustrate some ideas. Even so, this merely serves as a portion of the research I have constructed. I am still working to find exactly what it is that I really want my audience to see in this documentary. I think that the most difficult thing so far has been trying to get it to a point where it will relate to more than a few kinds of audiences.

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.