CCR

Hey Guys

Here is my CCR, enjoy!


https://drive.google.com/file/d/1EaXcWKR4mu_tyO9h_byZyy2gAt4X3Mgg/view?usp=sharing




I Will See You Later ;)

FINALE

Hey Guys,

     MY PROJECT IS FINALLY DONE, here it is:

                    WEBSITE

                     DOC
     
                      POSTER:

Reflection is Key

Hey Everyone,
My portfolio project reflection:

This project has been an interesting ride. When this project first began, I was very excited to begin, I was ambitious in terms of what I am doing. I had this vision of creation that I wanted to do. The topic I chose is something that I am passionate about, so I obviously didn't want this opportunity to fail, But life happened, and we got quarantined.

In terms of my idea, it remained the same. But when it came to filming my idea had to get manipulated. I was no longer in charge of my interviewees, and I feared that they would film wrong. Sadly, I was right, but I worked with what I got. I couldn’t really ask them to change, they both have a workload to deal with, and I didn't want to add onto their plate.

When I was looking at ideas on how to film this now, I stumbled upon this one doc in the sundance film website, and I saw that he incorporated screen recording in his doc, and i think it was a neat idea. So, I established something similar in my documentary. 

My biggest struggle still remains that I am an indecisive person, and I always change my mind while editing. I went from animation, to john oliver, to screen recording, to somehow fitting all of those ideas into one. I would like to work on this issue i have, but it has been beneficial in terms of coming up with creative ideas on what to work with.
I thought my time management would be my biggest problem, but luckily it wasn't. I’ll be forever thankful I began working on my poster in the first week. It literally saved my life. I finished it off just in time to work on my excerpt in peace. As for my website, it has been quite the hassle. I kept changing the layouts for that as well, but with the help of my sister, I was able to figure out where my mind was at. 

In conclusion, this portfolio project has made me realize quite a few things. Animation takes time, but i am not too bad at it. Working alone is fun, until you have edit everything yourself. Time management and concrete ideas are key.

Hello Everyone,

           This is the last week to work on our blogs, and since I've changed a few things, let me tell you about my excerpt.
           My DocSeries consists of 6-45 minutes episodes. Each episode is led by a different person, around my age, discussing issues they've seen in terms of their races representation. So for the middle eastern episode, I hosted ended becoming the host. The excerpt was pulled out half through the episode while transitioning from the news to the film segment. Due to the fact that it's in the middle, non of the interviewees where properly introduced, because in the beginning of each segment, subjects introduce themselves.
            towards the end I realized I have something missing, so I decided to do an animated bit. It turned out alright, not my proudest accomplishment. What i struggled with the most was the watermark at the end. I couldn't find any free applications that didn't do that, so I had no other option but to keep it.

        I Will See You Later ;)

Editing Finale

Hellllooo Guys,
       This is it, I have all my footage done, and I am currently editing. It is taking me longer than expected because I am working with double screens that are changing, so obtaining those graphics haven't been that easy. Also, my sister filmed herself with using a portrait shot, but I didn't think she needed the reminder since she was a film major, but it wasn't too hard to fix since she gave herself quite some headroom.
      So I turned this:

     Into this:

       

     This works out for me because its just around the same parameters as my second screen. The rest of the editing is just good old boring stuff, so I don't want to bore you out. I am just glad that I am seeing the final edits to my project, but for now

     

      I Will See You Later ;)

Excerpt Insight

Good Morning People,
       I've realized as I was going over my blogs, that I didn't really discuss much about the actual making of the excerpt, like I never shared any story boards or anything like that. But quite frankly, I am a more spontaneous person, I don't like fully laying out a concept because I feel as if that is top restrictive, instead I just have a general plot idea, and I flourish from there. Because of the quarantine situation, my film options aren't that crazy either, I mentioned I am going to arrange in it in a talk host concept.

          This is what the shot set up I wanted to do (Sorry for the lighting, I just took this picture to show you guys) I was going to just simply edit the mini screen next to me and call it a day. But I was on a zoom call the other day, and I found out you could insert a green screen from behind, so I got an idea:

         This may look cheesy, but with the proper background picture, I think I can pull it off. I think this truly shows my spontaneous side of filming, I couldn't even write a proper script because I just couldn't put my mind to it unless I began filming. So I jotted down some key points, and I began speaking about my topics.  Anyway, I hope this has been helpful, 

         I Will See You Later ;)

Titles and Details

Welcome Back Everyone,
          As we are approaching the end of this project, it is time I start focusing on the details. The part with the most details is the website, so here I am. The structure of the website is the set, the information is there, but I still need to figure out the details, such as the Episode titles, the thumbnails and all that good stuff.
         I feel like I am going back to step one, research, because I could be generic about the titles, but it doesn't suit the marketing I am going for. So I read few articles:

Article #1
Article #2

         I came up with this:


(insert pictures here)

     

       I have yet to decide the name of my series, I don't know why I am struggling with it as much. I have a few options, but I have a feeling the title is going to be my absolute last piece. The final touch.

Facebook Watch

Good Morning Everyone, 

          A few blogs ago, I discussed how my sister and I were talking about where I should distribute this doc series just based on my target audience and status. For those who don’t know, Facebook watch is a new feature that facebook released not too long ago. It is free for anyone who has a Facebook account, so the access to the content would be relatively easy. My sisters main argument to have the series on here is that my target audience are minorities and not all of them are going to be living in the states, so instead of having it on Netflix, Facebook is the best way to reach everyone, and it is affordable for all too.

             When it comes to the advertisement and marketing portion of things, having the content on Facebook makes it automatically easier to spread the word for the doc series because Facebook would want more people to visit the Facebook watch site. And since Facebook also owns Instagram a  greater push there is also expected. So in those terms, this would also be quite helpful. I will be going into further detail about this in my CCR, this is just an overview of the points we discussed, so for now; 

        I Will See You Later ;) 

POSTER Stuffs

Hello Everyone and Welcome Back,
           Today’s blog post is just a little update on how the poster is going. I haven’t spoken about it an a while, so here I am. The background is relatively done, the only thing I need to work on are the people. This has been difficult because I am showing how the media represents them, so I’m going to appear stereotypical but that’s the point.  It’s going to take me some time, but I plan on finishing it by the end of the week.
             I’m not sure if i showed you guys how I imagined the characters to look like, so here you go:

        As you can see up top, both these pictures have faces with no features, mine are going to appear more like the picture in the bottom. The woman’s face has an impression of features, which is exactly what I am going for. I chose to do that mainly because I don’t have to actually draw people’s faces (and I can’t photograph anyone) and it just looks neater because it resembles many people instead of just one.

        I Will See You Later ;)

Interviews Pt1

Good Day Mates,
          Welcome back to my blog. Today's posting is about my first interview with my lovely older sister. Not only did we discuss media representation, we also discussed marketing and distribution for the doc series, because my sister majored in that field, so she is aware of realistic approaches on how one would market and distribute new content. I will be going into detail in my next blogpost. I am glad that I had this conversations, because it has led me to begin working on the CCR. Which time wise, fits about right.
           Unfortunately we couldn't talk to my brother in law at the same time, because he has turned himself into a night owl, so his interview is just going to be a clip of him answering a list of questions I have sent him. Although, I wanted a conversation, this is the best I could get.
          Overall it has been productive, I have completely figure out things, and I am almost done with the poster, just working on details. The website is in the works, I have to change a few things because of my shift in how I am doing the docs. My goal is to finish the poster by the end of the week. I am just glad that with this situation going on, I am still able to work with my original idea, because it is something that I am passionate about.
      I Will See You Later ;)

Putting the Word Out

Hello Everyone and Welcome Back,
          Today I decided it would be a good day to talk about the social media essence of the company. Even though it is not a required section, it is needed for the marketing strategy I am approaching for this project. In my website, there is going to be the company's instagram linked below, mainly so people could check out the information posted through there. But, a while back when we had out marketing presentations, one of my peers explained that a constantly updating website brings it higher up in the searches for google. When linking an active Instagram account that is constantly being updated, that will help the website do generally better.
     

         In terms of what the set up would look like, here is an example of what I am picturing. I would include it the home page right at the bottom, where the rest of the social media would be linked. I am going to add a Twitter, Facebook and gmail links as well. These are the only social media presences I am planning on including. I apologize for the simplistic blogs, it has been a hectic week and I am finally starting to get everything together,  with that being said,

         I Will See You Later ;)

Interviews... Yay

Good Day,
          In my last blog, I revealed where my brain is at, as of right now. In this blog, I am going to be talking about the steps I am taking following my decision. As I said, I am going to be interviewing some of my family members, the catch is only my mother lives with me. I have yet to interview my mother, because I am still debating on having her be my narration, but with my updated idea, I chose to be my own narrator. As for my sister and her fiancé they both are very busy keeping up with their jobs, but I have managed to schedule FaceTime interviews with the both of them.
          My only concern about myself is, I chose not to write concrete questions, because I want to have more of a conversation than an interview. I have some simplistic questions in mind, but I would like to see where the conversation leads, and go from there. This way, I believe I can prevent myself from appearing biased through my questions. With a flowing conversation, opinions are more subject to individual more so than myself forcing out specified answers.
         They both agreed to talk with me this weekend, so Im a little excited. I look forward to see where this topic leads us, and I am sure I am going to be getting some insight or different perspectives by consulting others. But for today,
        I Will See You Later ;)

Making things clear for myself

Good Morning ladies and gents,
          This post serves to set everything clear in terms of what my doc series is going to look like now. After short discussion and ridiculous circumstances, I have come to slightly change what my documentary is going to look like.  Originally my doc was supposed be a simple expository doc, just simply talking about media representation. But sadly, due to out current circumstances, I am unable to film just exactly the way I wanted to. But fear not, I have found a solution. Basically, my documentary is going to look something like an episode of either Patriot act, or skit from John Oliver.
          Just to clarify, no I don't intend on following the same biased approach, I am looking more at the stylistic approach of the series. The excerpt is going to be a small bit of me talking about media representation, while including samples and interviews throughout. I explained in a previous post who my interviews are, its going to be my brother-in-law, my mother, and my sister. I chose them, Frankly because they are all very well spoken people, and can put across the right point. I would like to add some comedic sense to the topic, but thats my brother-in-law's job.

           I have an idea for what my set up is going to look like, but I'm not sure. Both examples, always have the updated screens of what they are talking about in the background, that might be my greatest challenge to create. I am going to ask my sister how to do that, because right now I am unsure. But here is just a little update on where my mind is, thank you,
          I Will See You Later ;)

Distribution Works

Hi Everyone,

             Today I shall be talking about the distribution processes of my documentary series. As of recent, I noticed that the more popular documentary series are starting to become streamed. Usually doc series are either found on TV or on streaming services, but when I take a look at my target audience, I am more likely to appeal to them through streaming services rather than anything.
             The Explained series, is a doc series on Netflix, based on what I have seen it is doing rather well. On Netflix in specific I have seen quite a few good ones like, Abstract series, Ted Bundy tapes, Making a Murderer and much more. So, in my best interest I would like to put my doc series on either Netflix or Amazon Prime. 

      I Will See You Later ;)

      

Good News about News?

Good Morning!
         As my latest blog explained our pandemic situation, this one, I would like to say, has some lighter news. As I mentioned in an earlier blog, I began researching into the copy rights and fair uses of news, and here is what I found out:

Under the "fair use" defense, another author may make limited use of the original author's work without asking permission. Pursuant to 17 U.S. Code § 107, certain uses of copyrighted material "for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright."


The entire article talks about how it is allowed to use outside sources if it is for use of commentary or criticism. I would like to say, my doc series is going to be a commentary on media representation, therefore I should be fine in order of using these clips, but I have to consult my teacher to make sure I can use these clips. As of right now, that is good news, because I would be able to create a montage of them. But yea, that is it for today,
I Will See You Later ;)

Pandemic Ruined My Plans

Good Day Mates,
         As you guys already know, we're are currently in a middle of a pandemic, and were all obviously quarantined. So, my plans to shooting this week have all been you know destroyed, but I have to work my way around it. As you guys already know, my mother is going to be my main subject, but I was planning on filing with her somewhere else, but I'm pretty sure I can film my mom somewhere in my house. My actual problem is that I was going to film my mom's best friend, who wears a hijab, but I can't see her anymore. I chose her because her outskirts  automatically give away her ethnicity, and I wanted to portray how that can lead to automatic first impressions from strangers.
          My mother doesn't wear the hijab, and she looks relatively European according to some, so with my mom I wanted to illustrate how people shift attitudes after they find out my mom is Arab. The solution to my problem is I am going to send my moms friend the questions, and maybe get her son to film her for me. The framing might not coming great, but some things are just beyond are control. I'll try my best to help them with the set up, but whatever works best for their connivence is what matters.
         With my two subjects, who are relatively the same age, I need a wider range of audience, someone younger, to appeal to my target audience a little more. So, I'm going to ask my brother in law to film himself for me. I believe in him for setting up the shot well, but I'm not going to get ahead of myself. My brother in law is a good subject, but he is very well spoken, and he somewhat reminds me of Hasan Minhaj, who was the inspiration for the styling of this doc series. I still think I need someone a little younger, but I can't think of anyone at the moment. My cousin might be able to help, but I don't know.
         If I find anyone I will keep you guys updated. But for now,
        I Will See You Later ;)

Excerpt pt2: News Media

Good Evening,
      The news media is going to be the first half of my production. This is the part in which I am going to be interviewing my mother, and asking her questions in regards to how the news has affected  our people the way we are looked at. The answer in a sense is obvious, but the wise words of my mother might make someone look at it differently. She is my first subject for the interview, and I might just make her the star of the episode. I wanted to interview others but with this while pandemic situation, I don’t know if I’ll be able to meet with these people.
      Other than my interview subject, the way I’ll be approaching this topic will be using some news articles, I was looking into copyrights in regards to film, and you’re allowed up to like 10 seconds maximum, but I couldn’t find anything in terms of news. I’m not sure how the news copyright works, and based on the restrictions I will follow along. It would really be in my benefit if I was all lower of use short clips from interviews, because that will lead me into creating a fast paced montage with a clips about the Arab/ Muslims community. Worst case, well let’s hope there isn’t, because I don’t think a good way to approach it. I also want to incorporate podcasts, interviews anything I can without  being copyrighted. My goal for the next few days is to find enough clips and footage to put my point across. Here’s my thought process about this, and well yeah,

     I Will See You Later ;)

Website Setup and Features

Good Morning,
     This blog's sole purpose is to show you the set up for my website. The research component for this has been hard, and I haven't been able to find many websites, but after I looked at a few student examples I think I have gotten an idea for what the proper set up of the website is going to look like.

        Up here is my front page, which is going to have a big picture of my "logo" on it or an advertisement for the latest production, the doc series. This ad, is going to replace the grey background of the productions. Right under I am going to be putting the thumbnails for all the episodes of the news production. When you scroll further, you'll be able to see a few pictures from the instagram page that is meant to promote the doc series.

        This page is meant to show who the cast is, and underneath I am going to place a quote or a statement  made by each of them. 

        This last page is going to be the episode breakdown page, each box is about a different culture and it's going to have every persons face on it. Right under I'm going to insert a small blurb explaining what each of the episodes is about. This is basically the skeletal look of the website, I have already started to work on it, I am on schedule with it, my only issue would be going out and filming, with this entire pandemic thing going around. But other than that, the progress is going pretty well, and with that being said,

I Will See You Later ;)

Animation Progress

Hello lovely People,

       As I have mentioned earlier, I am going to be animating the transitions between my different representation topics. I believe I mentioned an app that has made the idea of an animation just a little easier for me, because it offers just enough for me to work with in this project. So just today I was playing around with the features that it offers, and just see what I can do in a short period of time. 

       I played around with two clips that were a second each, and the first one took a little under ten minutes, so in terms of time it's going to be lengthy, but it should be fine after I get the hang of it. I just need a little more practice. Today I just wanted to show you guys the samples, I have pulled off and also give you a little insight of what I'm going to be doing for my project.

         

     This video above was my first ever animation piece. Even though its a little childish, it was my trial piece, and quite frankly it took some time for something so simple. The only problem with the end result, there’s watermark at the bottom left corner. I was thinking I could maybe work smaller and then crop the clip enough to get rid of it. If not, I might need to pay or something to get rid the watermark that it’s going to produce. This blog is meant to be more fun, and just a little progress update, and with that,

     I Will See You Later ;)

        

Poster Progress

Good Morning Followers,
      I am glad to say that my poster has been going relatively great. I am slowly working on it, because I just want to make sure everything goes right the first time. As of right now I only have the bottom part of it done, and it's going to take some time to finish, but now that school is out, I have much more time to work on it. I would like to finish it off by the end of this week, but I'm not sure how that is going to happen, since I was planning on using reference photos of random people, and I haven't been able to see tup with just random people yet. So, I am thinking I am just going to end up just pulling off an impressionistic look to the figures without even using any references photos, that is going to be a little harder but if I want to keep up with my schedule, I am just going to work with what I got.

Here is a picture of my poster looks right now, in the bottom where it's black I am going to be putting the title, and the streaming services that I want to realise my production on. Sorry this blog is short, this has been a hectic week for me in terms of exams and mocks. I am almost done though, and should be back on track soon. And for now,

   I Will See You Later ;)