Erin's Blog

           The first project I did this semester was a PSA. My group decided to make our PSA over depression and the importance of showing your true emotions, because many people going through depression don't convey it. In the video, we asked kids around school to laugh without smiling. The project took a couple days to film and probably about a week to edit. Some challenges I faced during it was actually going up to random kids and asking to film them. As you can imagine, it was usually pretty awkward. Some other challenges came from the editing process. I had some difficulty finding a fitting tone and pacing to the video. But, besides that, it was a relatively easy video to make. Along the way, I learned how to make a typing effect and how to add black bars on the top and bottom of the screen. Compared to older videos I've made, I think this one actually looks kind of professional. I was given positive feedback for the majority, though I didn't actu...

MX4D is marketed as being a step up from 3D. It attempts to provide a true immersive experience by making your seat move with the film's movements, emitting smells that correspond with what's on screen, and other cool effects like strobe lighting, snow, and fog. I was really excited when I went to see Justice League with my classmates for an e-Comm field trip (despite not knowing much about the DC universe, admittedly). I really enjoyed certain aspects of the 4D, like the seat moving during the fight scenes. However, I felt like some of the other effects were just distractions from the movie and seemed kind of  unnecessary, like the water spraying in our faces (it was loud and kind of jarring), and the smells which honestly just seemed "off."  My favorite part of the whole field-trip actually wasn't the 4D at all, but getting to tour the theatre and see all of the cool technology B&B had renovated. ...

For this menu item, I watched a variety of short horror films. I did so in order to get inspiration for my own short horror movie that's currently in the making, Black-Eyed Children. I enjoyed watching the shorts and was impressed by the professional look of them. Two of the shorts were by CryptTV, The Birch and Itsy Bitsy Spiders. The third,  The Moonlight Man, was by Danny Donahue.  Of the three I watched, my favorite would have to be Itsy Bitsy Spiders . It wasn't the scariest film I've ever seen, but I enjoyed thoroughly enjoyed the story and concept. It was about a little boy with a strange obsession of drawing spiders. In the end, you learn the reason behind why he developed his weird obsession.  After watching the short horror films, it helped me make changes to the script I'm currently working on with my friend for our own short movie. I want to make sure our movie has a good mix of character development and story as well as scares, as some of...

Wes Anderson is one of my all-time favorite directors. I enjoy his unique visual style, stories, and the way he writes dialogue. My favorite movies of his are The Grand Budapest Hotel and The Royal Tenenbaums. Most of his movies are immediately recognizable as being by him, because of his very distinct style.  One of the most noticeable aspects of Anderson's directing is that the shots in his films are usually perfectly symmetrical, with beautiful unique color palettes. His films center around unique and realistic characters, most of which have a memorable costume design that distinguishes them and emphasizes their personality. For Margot from the Royal Tenenbaums, this would be her big fur coat or the cigarettes she is often seen with. For Zero from the Grand Budapest Hotel, it would be his bell boy uniform. Another recurring trait in Anderson's movies that I especially enjoy is the often deadpan way his characters address and speak t...

In this tutorial by DSLRGuide, I learned how to properly color grade a film without defaulting to the common orange and teal color scheme most 'blockbusters' use. Color grading is a very important part of the editing process and can give a plain looking clip a visually appealing cinematic appearance that is fun to look at. He emphasized the importance of matching skin tones so they do not appear too red or cool looking. He showed how you can take two visually similar shots and give them completely different tones or emotions just by altering the colors of the clip. He also specified that 'there are no rules in filmmaking.' A film's colors do not  necessarily have to be realistic. For example, the Matrix used unrealistic green tints in scenes depicting simulations, and other movies use unrealistic blue tints to signify sad parts in films. 

One thing in common with many student films is that they lack the 'cinematic' look. This video by MATHIEU STERN showed me how to film and edit in a professional, cinematic-looking way without spending all of the money people spend while filming Hollywood movies. The ten steps included: 1. Framing shots with the rule of thirds 2. Create a shallow depth of field with a lens between F3.5 and F1.2Z 3. Stabilize moving footage 4. Use warp stabilizer in premiere 5. Add 'cine bars' 6. Color grade footage with the lemur color panel 7. When you slow down, shoot at 60fps 8. Use a histogram on camera 9. Use a slider to create depth 10. Use cinematic fonts like Roboto, Didot, and Adam Pro With all of these tips in mind, you are more likely to produce a visually appealing video.

We used Skai's script for our film. The script was originally about a little boy with an abusive father, and how the mother endures his abuse. We had to make several changes to the script because of what we had available actor-wise. We changed it to a little girl and her big sister, and how they dealt with an abusive and alcoholic mother. The storyline was still overall the same, however.  Our pre-production went well. We had a few script changes, but that was the only real road bump we ran into. Location scouting and actors were decided fairly early on. We finished all filming in a single day at Skai's house. It went very smoothly except for a camera dying, resulting in a few lost shots. Post-production went well and I really enjoyed editing it. I had to stay after school a few times to make sure it got done on time, but all things considered it went smoothly.  I was the editor for our film,...

What was the concept that your group came up with for the assignment?  For the assignment, my group took inspiration from a youtube video we had watched in which people were asked to laugh without smiling. We noticed how them trying to laugh without smiling always lead to them actually smiling. We also thought that the idea of having to laugh without looking happy could maybe tie into how people feel who have depression. We decided that we would go around the school asking various students and teachers to laugh without smiling, and record their reactions.  What was your process? First, we talked about what our ideas were and what equipment we would be using. Then, we began the pre-production process. I was in charge of making the storyboard while Mallory wrote the script and the others organized our schedule. We collaborated on editing the script and decided what roles each group member would have while filming.  What was your role in the process an...

This semester in video class was when I realized that video is something I would be happy doing for the rest of my life. I love the processes that go on behind making entertainment videos: storyboarding, filming, and editing. As we started working on more ‘creative’ videos like music videos and short films, this quickly became one of my favorite classes. I looked forward to coming in every day and working on my projects, more so than with other e-Comm classes in the past. I learned a lot and I believe that this class has opened up many opportunities for me. Technology This year in video class, I learned how to use real cameras and tripods instead of Ipads, and that was very interesting and important to how I succeeded in the class. We also were taught how to edit in Premiere instead of Final Cut, which I am grateful for because Premiere is an editing program commonly used by professionals in the real world. These things were very important to learn because a good grasp on technol...

Graphic Design Final Technolog y             Technology was one of the main things we focused on in Graphic Design. I learned how to use programs such as Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop, and nearly all of our work as a classroom was created on the computer. This was a valuable skill for me to learn because technology is a key factor in nearly all jobs these days, and especially in the careers I'm interested in. I've noticed that e-Comm's focus on technology has helped me outside of the classroom as well, and my knowledge in it has become a big advantage for me in my daily life; for example, my father's workplace uses the same programs I have learned to use, so I am able to help him with certain projects and understand what he and his co-workers are doing. I had some issues memorizing certain tools or keys, but besides that, I had minimal problems with the programs we used. Collaboration             Collaboration is a ...

Logos are usually in a high demand for graphic designers. A good logo can make a huge difference in the success of a company. In logos, there are Marks and Symbols. Some traits of a good symbol are easy identification, having one or limited colors, negative spaces, "flow," and a positive or upwards direction. Marks refer to the different types of logos created by symbols. They include letter-marks, pictographs, combination marks, and more. A symbol is an image or shape. A logo is the word or words in type. When they are used together, it is called combination marks. Some examples of combination marks are Nike and The North Face. Three key facts to know about Marks and Symbols are that they should create positive association for their logo, they must be easy to understand and identify, and they should be used in limited colors or economic reasons. These three facts are all key to having a successful logo. The favorite thing that I learned were the different names for the...

I was assigned to make a music video. We were put into groups of four, and then worked together to come up with a song and video concept. We decided on the song "Come and Get It" by Selena Gomez. After that, we came up with a video about two girls who break into houses and rob them, but one of the girls betrays the other. My job was to film mostly, while Franchesca and Paige acted. It was really fun to get to stretch our creativity making this video. I enjoyed how we had the freedom to make it about whatever we wanted. If I could change anything, I would fix my unfocused shots and use a tripod more. I would also maybe not use so many guns (even if they're fake). However, there are also a lot of things I like about this video. I like how there is a wide variety of shots, from extreme close-ups to extreme wides. I also liked color-correcting and editing it.

Part I: The Character and Function of a Poster Posters have many purposes. Many are used for political purposes, whether it be for propaganda or publicity. They are manipulative in nature, and are designed to affect and warp the opinions of their many viewers. They are also a way to communicate with their viewers. A political figure may attempt to contact their supporters through posters and the messages they convey. Posters should be able to "stimulate, activate, mobilize, expound", etc. Posters are spreading in our environment and can be seen almost anywhere, so it is interesting to break down and study all of the thought put behind them. Part II: The Laws of Poster Designing General Demands Posters need to be striking and attractive. Otherwise, they - and their message - will be overlooked. They need to catch the eye of busy people walking by, to have the ability to interrupt those people's preoccupied lives and hold their attention. Posters can help achieve...