The music video was our first big project in entertainment. We used the technical skills that we had learned in convergence to make a music video worth watching. The vast majority of our time was spent in preproduction. Filming only took a couple of days, and the editing process was even faster. Some of the major challenges that we faced involved scheduling. One person couldn't do this one day, and another person couldn't fit any time this day. It was a mess, but we got it done. The most important lesson we learned is that if you don't plan ahead, you're not going to finish. Prep work is the key to success. Once we were done, our feedback was mostly positive. It was a good video, consisting of a one-shot to the tune of Sweet Dreams.
The second project of entertainment was the high school trailer. We had to take a trailer of a movie based in high school and replicate it shot for shot. My group decided to do The Breakfast Club. I had never seen it before and was a little slow on figuring everything out, but that isn't what killed us. Our biggest challenge again was scheduling. Due to jobs, after school activities, parents, and actors simply not showing up, the video was not completed. It was frustrating, annoying, stupid, and overall it made me want to punch something. All we could do was sit and come up with ideas. Ideas that were never to be used.
The final and most successful project was our short film. This time, I was placed in a different group. The prep work took up most of the allotted time, and the filming and editing was relatively simple comparatively. Our biggest challenge, just like the last two times, was scheduling. The person who was supposed to be scheduling everything told us the wrong places, so for the first few days nothing got done. But eventually it was finished.
Overall, I enjoyed entertainment much more than convergence. Despite the constant frustrations and issues, it was just a better environment for me. Call me crazy, but I just didn't enjoy journalism as much as I enjoyed slamming my head on a wall. During class, I would double check my project to make sure it was as good as it could be. Once I had done that, I would usually watch movies on my tablet, taking mental notes on the shots and strategies used to make the film. I also do this outside of class, and I keep a journal of any cool plot ideas that I might come up with. I am very good at actually doing the work, I just have a hard time finding the time and desire to do it. I often have other things to do, and a school project is often at the bottom of the list.
I don't know what I enjoyed most about this semester. Nothing seemed to go right, everything and everyone annoyed me, yet I just loved it. I don't even know how to explain it. If I could change anything, it would be my schedule. I need to plan ahead better so that I can get stuff done. Overall, my big takeaway from this semester is that prep work and planning are the most important aspects to video production. Next year, I hope to keep learning and improving on my skills. I have no specific final thoughts. Nothing that needs to be said, nothing that needs to be done. I'll move on to next year with a renewed purpose, one which I hope will lead me to a long and successful life.
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