FILM FESTIVAL VIDEO PROJECT

SELF REFLECTION PAPER

My hectic journey with my film project was overwhelming to say the least but I
definitely stayed truthful with my initial concept. The main idea for this project was a student
struggling to figure out an idea for his school film that was assigned to him. He encounters
various obstacles as he tries to resolve his problem and almost gives up, but he looks back at
those mistakes and finds a great idea in all the chaos. Creating this pitch was hard for me as well,
but I turned my struggle into my solution. Essentially, I wanted to depict someone overcoming
their obstacle by using the downfalls they faced during the journey to meet their goal as their
way to resolve the problem. I’m glad to say that I stayed truthful to my pitch and project idea
because this message can resonate with various people.
The first phase of film production is the Pre-Production phase which consists of script
writing, storyboards, and creating shot sheets. I wrote my script first, containing the plot and
story arc, to lay out the foundation to create the shot sheets. The shot sheets were difficult to
complete but they helped me visualize my film clearer, so I filled out the storyboards with the
vision in my head afterward. Nearing the end of all the Pre-Production work, I realized I was
infact rushing myself to get all the work finished before the closing due dates but thankfully, I
completed all of the work and was proud of it all at the end. Time management is definitely an
issue I try to overcome before it’s too late but sometimes it gets out of hand. I have been told to
combat this by sticking to a production calendar but that proved not to be the most effective way,
so I will try to go with the flow and find a moment in my week that seems probable for ample
work time.
Next is the Production Phase, and the most important part of this phase is filming your
scenes. As well as capturing your shots for the next phase. The location must also be ready for
filming and, if there are actors, then their schedule should be aligned with your film schedule. In
my case, I was the only person acting due to the fact that I did not want to work with members of
my family for this project. This proved to be difficult because some scenes were harder to shoot
than others and the limited filming equipment that I had did not help my situation, but I made
due with what I had. Of course, some of the shots I filmed weren’t perfect so I either tweaked the
script or I replaced certain parts in the shot sheet document. A reason for these obstacles
occuring would be due to me not thinking of the minor components that I would need to make it
clearer for the viewer and not to make the film appear choppy.
Lastly, the Post-Production Phase involves editing, exporting, and paperwork. The
paperwork would be considered the release forms for each person in the film. The editing
process is not my cup of tea and I was dreading it for the longest. Now that I am actually editing,
I found it easier than expected since my Production Phase covered most of my worries. There
were some technical issues during the edit but in these rough times, I can’t complain that I at
least have a platform to edit on, which is Wothit. As I worked, I edited through glitches,
computer crashes, and screen freezes all at once. The only way I could have avoided any of these
complications would have been to edit on some other editing platform like Adobe Spark but it
was too late to go back on my decision and too late to teach myself a new editing process on
another platform.
Out of all three parts of the production process, I have to say Pre-Production was by far
my favorite part. Creating a story and writing it into words makes me feel very creative.
Although the shot sheets were a bit tedious for me, I appreciate the help it was offering. The
script writing part is calming in my opinion and it gives me time to release my creative energy
onto a written document. My least favorite part has to be the Production phase because there
were multiple factors that played into my slow pace. Since I was going to be filming around my
house, everyone in my family was either making noise or were occupying the filming space. I
had to make due with what I could film but that did create multiple bumps in the road. Overall,
the Pre-Production phase was my favorite part because it gave me time to create a piece that has
a helpful meaning and was arguably the most easiest phase to go through.
Since the beginning until wrapping up this project, I have noticed a few personal
strengths and weaknesses of mine. A clear weakness of mine is my time management skills, but
also in editing. I’m not the best editor but I am good at aligning shots that cut to another shot,
creating an overall consistent flow. I can also see how my perfectionism can make me go
overboard at certain times as I review the shots that I filmed. On the other hand, one of my
biggest strengths is by far my quick problem solving. I can definitely say that because it shows
through my film concept which is a result of my indecisive decision making, but with my quick
thinking, I dug myself out of my own hole. Improving my editing skills would be very helpful
and I could do this by practicing with simple shots that I record in my free time. My problem
solving could also be shared or used in projects involving teamwork with others.
Honestly, I believe that my program objective was set higher than I should have made it
but, nonetheless, I nearly hit the bullseye. The genre I was going for was comedy but I feel that
it’s not the most comedic, or lackluster for lack of a better term, in that department. On the other
hand, I sense that the target audience was reached because I am in the target audience and I
placed myself in their mindset. The target audience was specifically for Video Production
students but for indecisive teenagers in highschool in general. My biggest priority for this film
was to put my train of thought into a video format that I know others can relate to. This was how
I planned to express it and how I initially envisioned it. In other words, speaking from personal
experience can truly help create a better video and can translate clearer towards a big audience
that can relate to your situation. In my opinion, I feel like my film expressed the thought process
of a teenage student finding obstacles after creating indecisive choices very well towards those
who can relate to that character and those characteristics.

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