Assignment/Activity Title — C-SPAN StudentCam Documentary

Year — 10

Portfolio Competency — Media and Communications

Skill(s) — Film, Editing, Researching and prompt comprehension.

The objective of the C-SPAN studentcam project was to make a 6 minute documentary about a topic in response to the
prompt, ​"Explore the issue you most want the president and new Congress to address in 2021.​" ​We worked on our
documentaries over the span of about 3-4 months, my group’s specific topic was Gentrification in DC. One goal included was
to accurately represent the struggle that native DC residents, majority minorities, are forced to face as a result of Gentrification
and displacement. We also aimed to spread awareness using a medium that we aren’t familiar with, a documentary, which
forced us to work out of our comfort zone and try something new, which inevitably taught us about documentary making during
the process. These goals required us to interview many people and analyze all the interviews, to finally write a script and
film/find b-roll to include in the final documentary, which took over 4 days straight to edit.
The skills required to successfully complete C-SPAN StudentCam included film, editing, research and prompt
comprehension. These are all crucial components in Media and Communications. These skills are difficult as is, but they were
significantly harder because we had never had the chance to explore documentary-making and the process and work that goes
into it prior to the documentary, so we were required to learn and adapt as we progressed in the project. For my groups
documentary, we filmed mostly all of our own b-roll, since the topic of gentrification that we addressed in our project was local,
occurring in the DC area. This required us to explore our skills in filming and embracing our creativity in order to make each
shot interesting and not redundant, while helping to push the objective of the film along. Filming and editing goes hand in
hand, and I was the designated main editor for this project. Since our freshman year film class was cut short due to covid, I was
not comfortable or at all familiar with editing, or maneuvering around the editing softwares. I used FinalCut Pro, as I had access
to it through my sister, a film major, and essentially taught myself how to edit. Editing was a long and tedious process that
required many different aspects to make sure the film was sufficient, the hardest one to overcome being the time limit. Editing
is similar to filming in the way that you aim to not be redundant and to push the narrative forward while being concise, so you
can grab and maintain the attention of the audience. Editing and filming were very crucial to the development of the film, but
we couldn’t have even begun without researching and prompt comprehension. The prompt was easy to understand, and my
team is very passionate about gentrification, so it wasn’t hard to find an issue that addressed the prompt. However, we wanted
to make sure that we dove into the different depths of the subject, as opposed to just scratching the surface. This required
hardcore research and over 4 interviews with experts, displaced and current residents of DC, and analyzation of how
gentrification as a whole manifested into DC over time. We split our research into three parts, history, current effects, and a
possible solution. This made the end goal more accessible to us and the process easier.
I chose to answer the question, “​How is your understanding of the topic influenced by the way it was communicated to
you?” I’ve always been interested in gentrification and its impact on local communities, as I was born in the District and grew
up very close to it. The only information I knew about it though was the general definition, and that it was a negative thing. The
C-SPAN StudentCam documentary was an outlet for me to truly explore all depths of gentrification, through the perspective of
experts and people personally affected, which expanded my understanding of the topic colassaly. Through intense research and
interviews, I gained a deeper understanding of the specific history and policies enacted that inevitably lead to gentrification,
which I wouldn’t have ever known if I hadn’t talked to these people.
Rosie Orzulak
Student Signature (Print here:Rosie Orzulak ) Date 3/22/21

Mr. Mayo 3/22/21 

Teacher Signature Date