Finale

In our final "story-circle," I stated the biggest thing I would take from this course was the skill (beginner) of FinalCut.  Which is what I asked for.  When, on the first day, Dr. Raimist handed us our syllabus and introduction (bio) sheet,  I put down my skills as "N/A" (not applicable,) which was true.  Now I feel like I can edit things.  I am sure it will take lots of practice and practice, and practice to get to a certain point of being labeled "decent" at it, but I am joyed to have learned the skill.  I feel like a kid bringing home a coloring from school and presenting it to their parents. I am glad I have taken this class.  I am glad my faith was restored in U.A.  I am glad to have gotten the chance to create a work that helped me close a small "chapter" of my life.  Thank you fellow class-attendees, thank you Dr. R...

My Final Thoughts on Digital Storytelling

As I think about the last 3 weeks I have gained a better understanding of not only the importance of telling stories but the usefulness of digital storytelling in our everyday lives. While stories have been around for years, they have been passed on in many different ways (orally, visually, written, etc.). I didn't know much about digital storytelling before this class but now that I have finished with everything I can see the important they can be when used within education, health, etc. While I didn't deal with a particularly personal or life changing topic I did find that the process was transformative in the sense that it really helped me to really process my feelings about my appreciation of and frustration with hip-hop...considering this I have really begun to see how instrumental the use of digital stories can be with identity development, etc. I am really excited about the new possibilities that digital stories offer and am looking forward to exploring how they can be used within my personal research and in other areas....

As for my reflection:

As someone who loves stories, this class definitely opened my mind to the endless possibilities to every story. The process if you make it an enjoyable one, is enjoyable. At the end of the day, stories may be for the people, but it is a reflection of the author. I learned that because of the varying styles I saw on Thursday. Every story was uniquely told and presented, and reflected the personalities I had the privileged to get to know. If you continue to be a genuine as you showed yourselves to be, you will continue to tell the great stories you have already produced. I hope all of you go on to produce many more stories. I know I will.
Thank all you for putting up with my late start to Final Cut, and my off beat humor. Take care. I wish all of you the best, and hope to see you in the future soon!

-Matthew Copeland

Final Reflection

Digital Storytelling


I really enjoyed my experience in the class and I will take a lot of new ideas and values away with me. I loved seeing everyone's different personalities come through in their films and I can't wait to see what the future has in store for all of us. I will definitely use this in the future and I am going to share this process with others. I really enjoyed seeing how personal each film was and I feel like a lot can be learned about someone through this project. I will take away more confidence and more culture from this process. I was unaware how powerful digital storytelling could be and I hope to use it in the future with others. Thanks for everything! 


-Leigh

Final Post

After taking this class, digital storytelling has definitely taken on a whole new meaning.  I always thought of this as just an easy way to tell stories or give information through powerpoint or by just showing pictures.  It is so much more than that. Digital storytelling allows us to open up and share things that might be hard for us to just come out and say.  It is a way for us to show our feelings instead of just talking about them.  It is so much easier to connect with someone by watching and seeing their story, and hearing their voices connect with the visuals. Editing allowed us to convey different emotions, and I enjoyed getting everyone's feedback on what they would do if it were there story. I enjoyed getting to know and see all of your stories throughout these last few weeks. I hope we all continue to make stories, and share them. 

CLICK HERE to see my digital story from this class.  

The Gift of Stories

Digital Storytelling taught me that every story can hold a deep and emotional impact especially when told with the voice of the storyteller. Somewhere in every story there are things that only a voice can express the true meaning of that experience, then add in images, music, and maybe sound effects and just about anyone can bring a valuable story to life. In some instances it may not even be the storyteller whom put the digital story together, but because it is still their voice and story the impact is just as great. This makes Digital Storytelling a great tool for storing memories, providing therapy, or just getting a valuable piece of someone’s life recorded for others to see.

During the process of making my own digital story I gained confidence in my new craft as a film maker. I learned to trust my instincts when telling a story and when making decisions on how to best develop my story. I found that in making stories I cannot be afraid to add a bit of myself in them and to be sure to remain true to myself when I do, as this gives the story more of an emotional impact. This, I believe, will become an immensely valuable skill in journey to becoming a storyteller.

Digital Stories are something I see myself using in the future as way of developing my writing and finding an emotional impact in every one. I think this is a great tool to use when developing a documentary or when wanting to find an honest view of some topic. Using digital stories to shed light on causes close to one’s heart can be an effective method to get others, even those who oppose your point of view, to see why it is you believe in the cause.

Changes

I learned a great deal during this class. I had never written a script. I had never really though about how to organize thoughts to create drama. Just that first step out into a creative world really changed me. I found myself wanting to delve deeper and deeper while in the editing process. Before I didn't appreciate everything that film makers did to go from a concept to a finished product, that will not be true in the future.

I am very glad that I took the digital storytelling class because of those changes but also because of the film I made. I have made something that I could share with friends and family. That movie is on the web which means it has been backed up and perhaps will be available for generations after I am gone. Showing the movie to my father was very emotional but I know I will be happy that I did years from now.

I will continue to make movies now that I know how much fun it is. I also will work to help others do the same because helping people tell their stories must be just as rewarding as telling your own.

Final Blog Post

Stories are valuable because they are a way to share your experiences with others. By sharing your story, you feel like you have brought a part of yourself into the world. Others can begin to understand who you are by listening to one of your stories. When you listen to other people’s stories you may learn intimate details about someone. When personal stories are told, you immediately feel for that person and see them as someone you can relate to, rather than just some random person in the world. Before we shared our stories in the story circle, I was nervous about telling my personal story to a group of strangers. However, once people started reading their stories out loud, I didn’t mind reading my story at all. The fact that everyone else was saying personal narratives aloud made me feel comfortable. After that, everyone seemed like less of a stranger. All of the stories seemed relatable in one way or another. I learned that I am extremely concerned with where I go after college. I chose my story because I am beginning to feel the pressure of becoming a senior. After next year, I start the rest of my life. I also learned that I really enjoy telling stories. Storytelling is much more important to me than I thought. I learned a lot about my peers. I really enjoyed all of the videos. I found out about the people who influenced them in their lives, the unique way in which they live their lives, or the things they find wrong with who or what influences them. I got to know Angela the most because we edited together. She watched my digital story and gave me helpful critique. She also complimented my video which was much appreciated. From this journey I will take multiple skills. I hope to make more digital stories now that I have the necessary skills. I know more about photography, editing, and audio. I need to know about all of these film aspects for my career. I want to be a producer, yet I need to know if the photographers, editors, and sound mixers are good enough for my movie.

I wanted to show the differences between the country and city. Hopefully, I end up in a big city after college. I made this movie to show my parents why I want to move to the city. They don't understand why someone would want to live in the city.

Here's my digital story about my love/hate relationship with hip-hop. I chose this topic because I wanted to find a way to pay homage to and express my frustration with hip-hop.

Digital Story

This is a digital story for me, by me, to me.
I was lucky to have two mothers in my life.
One was my grandmother, the other, my mother.
This is not meant to be perfect, just meant to help.
I can some up what I want to say, by quoting a famous song "It is so hard, to say goodbye to yesterday" - Young Men transcending to Gentlemen (a capella cover)

A Nomad's Nightmare

This is my Digital Story of the journey I have been on to stay both employed and on the road. Enjoy!

The Addiction

I made this video to tell a very personal story that has hurt and frustrated me for years. And I wanted to make this to reveal things to my parents that they just haven't understood all these years. So here it is, hope you guys enjoy!

My Digital Story

It's been real fun y'all! Hope you enjoy! ROLL TIDE!!!

-Matthew

Fatherhood...

This movie is about my father and how he helped me grow into the father that I am today.

My Digital Story

By: Leigh Rusevlyan

Digital Story Analysis

Digital Stories From the Field - Brondalyn

This short digital story was made by a twenty two year old college student who grew up in foster care and wanted to share her story. Brondalyn wanted to make a video about the positivity of foster care since it is usually shown in a negative light. In this short digital story she talks about her good experiences.
She made her short story with the National Resource Center For Permanency and Family Connections. Brondalyn grew up in the foster care system from the time she was six to the time she turned eighteen years old. She is a positive human being and sends a positive message about foster care and how she is thankful for everything she has been through.
The "gift" of the story would be Brondalyn conveying a message of positivity, love, and accomplishment. She felt loved when she got adopted by her foster parents. She is the president of the SGA where she attends college.
There was background music in the video along with a recorded voice over. There were no sound effects. The whole video was made up of photographs form different periods in her life. There were older photos of Brondalyn, as well as newer photos of Brondalyn with friends and family and there were also photos of her working events at her school and serving on the SGA.
This video was about two minutes long. I never lost interest in the story. I tried to put myself in her shoes and think about what it would be like to grow up in foster care. I just loved how the whole time she was sharing about the positive side of the system, instead of focusing on the negative and complaining, like what is usually done when it comes to the subject of foster care.

The Secret-Glenda Bonin

 
 This story was made by Glenda Bonin. This video exposes a family secret that Glenda felt like sharing. In this video Glenda shares that she had a very close family growing up until about the time she turned seven. When Glenda was a child her dad found out that he was born out of wed-lock and that he was adopted. He did not take the news very well. Glenda's father was determined to find his birth mother. He finds her, and in the process of building a relationship with his birth mother, he loses the relationship with his adoptive family. Her father was asked by his mother to keep the fact that he was her son a secret.
I think this is a powerful story and I admire the courage that Glenda had to share it. I think the most powerful and meaningful quote I got from this short story was something that Glenda said about her father. "Keeping the secret is one thing. Being the secret is something else all together."  
The majority of the sound in the video was a voice-over by Glenda. The only piece of music was in the end of the video; the last few seconds.
There were different photographs throughout the film of Glenda and her father. The film started off with a photograph of the big family that she grew up with. This was her father's adopted family. Later in the video it showed a picture of Glenda's father's birth mother. This photo was shown twice when she was referenced. Another key photo was one where the family was smiling and laughing with a man holding a bottle of alcohol. Since alcohol was a big part of her father's life, this was a very significant photo.
I just liked this digital story from the very beginning. Her voice was perfect with the photos and the tone with the story. I thought the lack of sounds and no music would bother me when I first started watching it, but instead I was drawn in more and paid closer attention to the photos and the emotion in Glenda's voice. It worked really well with just her voice over.

Favorite Digital Stories

"The Ballad of Joe and Nina" was created by Tim Roessler. Tim is Joe's father. The story was recently created in 2012 for the Center for Digital Storytelling. The dad created the story to tell about young love. Joe and Nina began to like each other when they were almost 2 years old. Their relationship at such a young age is a rarity. He talks about Nina constantly, and she writes him love letters. They are almost 5 and they are still together. Whether soul mates or not, they have a sweet, simple love that will always stay in their hearts. Like the message, the video is sweet and simple. The speaker has a smooth voice that is easy to listen to.  The creator does a great job showing pictures that match the content.  First, he shows multiple pictures of his son to make you familiar with Joe.  While talking about the teachers, he places a photograph of the whole class together.  When he talks about Nina, he shows pictures of her.  He displays a few of her love notes in order to show the cute reality matches what he is saying.  He has a video of them hugging.  Then they are playing board games together.  The sequence of shots is very enjoyable.  You watch them play the board game through a series of photographs.  A video of Nina brushing Joe’s hair back is the last scene we see before it fades out.  This leaves us with an adorable memory sticking in our heads.  The video is out of focus, but the whole story is quite lovely.  I thought the idea of showing them apart at first and together in the end was a great idea.  There is music in the background, however the speaker’s voice and the soft, woman’s voice that is singing is very different.  The complete difference in the voices makes it easy to distinguish which voice belongs to whom.





“Pete’s” was created by Kyle Halle-Erby in 2008 at a Faculty Workshop at UMBC.  The story tells about how a place like Pete’s is reliable and will always be there for you through the good times and the bad.  The first scene is a collage of pictures that form the outside of Pete’s.  It’s a creative way to piece together a picture in order to show the building and its surroundings.  Rather than having a boring picture of the outside of a diner, the photograph becomes like a puzzle.  A person serving coffee is shown when the speaker talks about the waitresses.  I do not like the disconnection of the picture where the waitress is making coffee.  I don’t understand why the photograph has lines through it.  The inside of Pete’s is shown through multiple pictures. The pictures stop being scrambled when the speaker talks about his parents getting divorced.  I believe this is to show that the diner pulls him back together when everything else in his life seems like chaos.  The next picture is scrambled once again to show that the speaker himself is just another piece in the puzzle; In other words, he is just another person in this messed up world.  The last photograph is the outside of Pete’s with silence.  I like the fact that he begins and ends with a picture of the building.  However, the last picture is not scrambled like the first one is.  We get a sense of resolution when the diner is finally shown like it really is.  Pete’s will always remain standing.  There is no music, special effects, or video.  The pictures being in their original state or scrambled are all that is needed to tell the story of Pete’s.  The images are clear, except for the image where the woman is making coffee.  He should have had the woman stand still in order to make the image not blurry.  If she had frozen for a second, it would have been easier to tell what she is doing in the picture.

"Our Deal"

Wow! This clip was called "Our Deal" which was surprisingly directed by Drew Barrymore and was a MTV production. This short movie told a story through a number of different scenes. There was maybe one or two spoken lines. The images told the story without having to use words. There was two gangs and as all gangs do they have conflict which causes them to fight. Ironically a girl and a boy from the different gangs fall in love and are torn between their friends. When it comes time to fight each other the girl is angry with the boy so she begins to fight him and he falls from the balcony. She rushes to her lover's side and is sorry and begins to weep when she realizes there was nothing but a miscommunication between the two. But now the blood is on her hands and she must live with the regret of being angry with him.
I usually don't like silent films but this was shockingly intriguing. This video I think was made to inspire kids to make peace with one another, and that there is no need for violence. This should be played more to spread the word. It was very inspiring, and the music was perfect for this piece.

Get More: Best Coast, 'Our Deal' (Extended Version) - Directed By Drew Barrymore, Music, More Music Videos

http://www.shortoftheweek.com/2011/08/05/our-deal/

"A Story for Momma"

A Story for Momma was about a young boy who lost his mother to cancer and he narrates how it affected him. He explains how he used to stay in trouble and be completely rebellious against everyone. His actions didn't begin affecting him until he learned of his mother's cancer. At first he talks about how it didn't affect him, until the reality of her physical illness began to hit him. He made a change for the good, but then soon went back to old habits which forced him to leave home and not be able to see his mother. Finally after four months he made a point to see his mother, but then it was too late to change for good. In remembrance of his mother he changed his F's to A's.
The images of this piece were pretty creative, and the song in the background worked the best at the end with the picture of his mother.However, some of the same images were repeated, that could be eliminated in order to get the point across quicker. It would have worked better if it was only instrumental until the ending. This story is a great narrative to show to young students in high school because it was very relatable. To view this clip click on the link below.











<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Gn3es2ORHsk" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

My Digital Story Top Picks

This Digital Story was made by a collaboration between Alzheimer's Australia and the Australian Center for the Moving Image, the latter of which provided all the technical expertise for the participants Alzheimer's Australia brought in. Max and Noel Oliver's Story was a retelling of their lives to their grandchildren. The story is told primarily by Max, who has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's and quickly losing his lucidity, and his wife Noel with the hope that once their grandchildren are old enough to understand the story they can hear it directly from Max and Noel. The back and forth of Max and Noel's narration of their life together, along with the deeply personal addresses to their granddaughters, really made the piece feel as if they were having a conversation with their audience. While at times the audio had volume issues the overall technical quality did not diminish the story Max and Noel told and the use of text to bridge the gaps in time allowed for a fluid movement of the story. The use of the fading in and out of the still images added to the emotion of the narration. The background music fit the story and provided an emotional atmosphere that spoke of both loss and love. I think it was a really good choice to leave in the laughter of Noel when Max cracked the joke about never getting lost showing the humor they both seem to have about their situation and adding to the story. I think this use of digital storytelling is a brilliant and deeply personal way for those who struggle with Alzheimer's and Dementia to document their lives for their loved ones.

This Digital Story was made by an Australian lesbian mother who was inspired to do so by one of her friends whom was a Digital Storyteller. The story was made in order to show her and her family's side of a gay marriage protest where a group of anti-homosexual Christians began to yell out homophobic slurs and urges for repentance. During this protest the mother's two children had to witness the hatred the group of Christians had towards their family and the story shows the oldest daughter's reaction to the conflict. The story does a very good job of striking an emotional chord through the daughter's speech and textual emphasis of key wordings. All of the still images match the narration giving the story a fluid motion and the video clips are linked into the narration very smoothly. While the quality of the daughter's speech is not very good, most likely due to the fact that this was done by the mother with help from a friend and not a professional group or workshop, the importance of the speech was very clear thanks to the textual representations. I think the choice of providing a motivating backing soundtrack during the still images and then fading it out during the video clips made the overall quality of the piece seem more professional and allowed for the clips to be viewed with no distraction. The inclusion of the full news clip of the altercation with the anti-homosexual Christian group was a good choice as it shows the different take the media had on the same story she was sharing.

my favorite digital stories

"Queen of Hearts" is a digital story by Andy Levy.  This story was created during Andy's attendance at a 3 day workshop with Stories for Change.  I like this story in particular because Andy maintains his theme throughout the story--love.  His love for his work, his love for his mother, their love for conversation hearts--all things that others can easily identify with, maybe  not specifically but each of us has memories that are similar to this.  Aside from the background information Andy gives about himself, I don't know anything about him but I can gather from the dates he discusses that he is not extremely young.  This brings me to another message I found in this story.  Even though Andy is older when he loses his mother to cancer, he describes realizing that he was not happy in his career and wanted a change, so he made one...without making the normal excuses we all make for ourselves--now isn't a good time, I don't have the financial freedom, I'm too busy, etc...I also really appreciated the way Andy used his own voice while showing photographs of he and his mother and the rest of their family.  That made it much easier for me to connect with his story.  I loved that to begin the story, Andy didn't come right out and make it clear why he chose the title he did, but through the development of the story, it became clear.  Clear but not overt. 

Patrick Castrenze talks about the death of his father in the digital story "Every Step of the Way" in a way that I think many children with troubled parents may.  The story begins with photographs of Patrick's childhood home and he and his father when he is very young but this is contrasted by Patrick's discussion of how his father died and what killed him--the brutality of his father being almost dead in the living room floor and Patrick, at 17, having to make the adult decision whether or not to keep his father on life support.  I feel that this contrast shows a very authentic side to someone who seems to have had a strained relationship with a parent, but loved that parent nonetheless.  The image of Patrick grasping a handfull of his father ashes and letting a portion of that blow out of his hand as the sun glints off the trees and birds chirp is another stark contrast.  Throughout the story, there is a sort of an internal dialogue that shows Patrick's anger with his father but also good memories he has of his father, which seems to be why he has not yet spread his father's ashes in the Gulf of Mexico like he wanted but hasn't thrown them in the garbage like Patrick sometimes wants to do.  I really enjoy the silence of the video.  Background music would have been too generic--just Patrick's voice and the sounds of outside make the story much more powerful and real. 



Analyzing Digital Stories: Tia

John Hunter is an elementary school teacher. I recently saw a TedTalk he gave, discussing his approach to pedagogy.  Here he talks with two former students about their relationship to his pedagogical style, specifically a game he invented called “The World Peace Game.” When I was scrolling through the StoryCorps website, I immediately recognized Hunter’s image, and being vaguely familiar with his work, was curious to hear what the interaction.  The brief interview began, not with Hunter’s voice as I had expected, but with a child student of his.  The interview is structured such that the young student has space to introduce both the concept of the game as well as her own personal experiences of playing the game.  She asks a catalytic questions “,What do you hope we learn from the ‘World Peace Game?’” that allows Hunter to have a mutual moment of reflection about what the game intended to do and what the game actually does.  The conversation is them picked up by another former student of Hunter’s now studying Peace, War, and Defense at the University of North Carolina. The interaction is structured in such a way as to allow students to ask questions of their teacher, an reversal of power dynamics that allows those asking the questions to step outside of the, usually subjugated, role of pupil.  Also, given that this is an audio only story, I thought having the clear progression from the adolescent voiced interviewer to the adult voiced interviewer was a seamless way to keep the speaking organized.

The story, “Almost Paradise: A Multicultural Story About A Mother Trying to Find Paradise for Her Children,” was created by Soo Kim, University of Houston student. The story is presented as daughter’s retelling of her mother’s narrative of migration.  Kim uses voice over narration, still images, music and image effects tell the story of a young woman who because of politically repression, had to leave her mother country Korea in 1975.  The sounds, images, and texts Kim are broad in their selection.  The images are sometimes personal, sometimes generic.  The same is true of the soundtrack, there is opera, 1980s pop, and a dramatic orchestral score that are used throughout the video to narrate the images.  The overall story is one that is somewhat familiar, the story of migration, immigration.  What is potentially interesting here is the specifics of how a first-generation child straddles two sets of desires, her mother’s and her own.  However there is something choppy about the arch of the story.  The story seems really to be about the interrelated nature of this mother-daughter relationship, but at a little of six minutes, the story never fully arrives at this inseparability. It is structured on sequences of comparisons and contrasts between the two women. The story’s title, leads us to think that this will be more about Kim’s mom, who’s voice enters at two intervals in the narrative, however the telling of the story ends up being more about the ways Kim’s self is only realized in dialogue with mother. 

           Sierra's Digital Stories

Created as part of the North Carolina State University’s Campus Movie Fest in 2010, the digital story “Bones of Iraq” deals with ideas related to heritage, identity, and difference. The narrator starts off by explaining how the bones, unlike other body parts, cannot be seen but at the same time are the things that hold us together. She relates this to memories and discusses how even after the people that “hold” these memories are gone they (memories) remain, just like the bones in our body. In the digital story she discusses her personal struggles with reconciling a part of her family’s history and how it has impacted her identity. In the story she tells how her grandmother, who was born in Iraq but was sent to live in the States by her father, made the decision to pass on the Jewish traditions that she “inherited” by marriage and not her Iraqi heritage. The narrator also discusses how even though she was aware of Iraqi heritage it only “showed up” occasionally. For example, she talks about how it showed up in their clothing, etc but more importantly in her physical appearance. She is a dark-skinned, dark-haired young woman born into a family with blonde siblings and in her digital story she discusses how this was initially confusing for her as she tried to figure out who she is but now she has come to not only accept it but embrace it. As for the style of the digital story, I found that it was aesthetically pleasing. She used a variety of media (photos, artwork, etc.) It wasn’t busy and her choice in music didn’t take away from the story. She kept her story right under 5 minutes and even though it was longer than some of the other stories I have viewed tonight I still found it engaging/interesting up until the last second.



The digital story “Footbinding” begins with a discussion about beauty and the “extremes” that people go through to “achieve” it. It questions the lengths that people go through and also asks about the pain related to beauty. As the digital story progresses it uses different images that effectively illustrate the things we do to ourselves in order to “achieve” some ideal of beauty. After this initial “discussion” surrounding beauty in general the digital story begins to focus on the Chinese method of footbinding. Practiced by young girls and women for thousands of years in China, footbinding began at an early age and continued into adulthood. Within Chinese culture, footbinding is considered to be beautiful, submissive, and erotic. By crushing the bones in the feet and binding them tightly everyday with bandages, the feet were bound in order to give the appearance of smaller feet. According to Chinese culture, smaller feet were necessary in order to make a woman’s movements more feminine and dainty. The story ends by showing a variety of images related to current beauty practices and asks the audience how far they would go… While I viewed a lot of videos as part of this homework assignment and found many of them to be interesting and/or moving, I chose to post on this one because it was the only one that didn’t include narration. As the video began I initially thought that the “power” that could come from “discussing” this topic would be lost because of the lack of words but I quickly found out that silence can be just as powerful….

10 Things About Me

1.  I just bought my first motorcycle!  It looks like this!

2.  I played college rugby when I attended the Air Force Academy during my freshman and sophomore years of college.


3.  I constantly get mistaken for a server or a hairdresser---black pants and black top is my go to style.

4.  When I have free time, I love taking my dog for a run on the trails near my house or in Oak Mountain park.  I'm somewhat obsessed with my pup...This is Rufus...my Labradane

5.  I spent the past weekend at the Beale Street Music Festival--I've been going for several years and this is quite literally the first year that I've been when it hasn't POURED.  The locals call it "Memphis in Mud" rather than the real name, Memphis in May.  Here is a video of one of my favorite bands which played Sunday night--it was AMAZING!


6.  As a child, my family had foster children--at one point my parents were raising me, my sister, and 5 other children!  My little brother (who isn't so little--15 years old, 6' tall, and wears a size 14.5 shoe!!!)  was our foster child for a couple of years and we adopted him when he was 3.

7.  I love all things Irish--especially going ALL OUT on St. Patrick's Day

8.  I've  been pierced over 500 times.  I only have two tattoos.  And yes, that's really me :)

9.  I have been a vegetarian for 16 years.

10.  I'm a HORRIBLE decision-maker.  I HATE being forced to decide on ANYTHING!



DigStory

A cat story by Joy Terese Vital


In the Fall of 2009, during a small seminar in Manila, Philippines , a young girl tells the "tail" of how she came to own the best cat, ever.  "The Entertainer" song is playing during the entire 2 minute piece, which is something when normally heard ice cream comes to mind, or over I think of how the song has been over used. Here, it works, it incites the sensation of knowing a good treat is on its way. Just listening to Joy speak is joyous.  She is able to narrate pauses, commas, and exclamation.  She tells the origin of her cat, which is obviously cute, but she tells a funny story of her cats abilitiies. The digital story appears to be made on Windows Movie Maker and is a collection of home photos and stock (google) photos.  The photos chosen represent some humorous scenarios or just an image of her said cat.  Is there a craft at hand? I think it shows a young story teller using different effects that appeal to her.  There are dissolves that transition one cat picture to the next. Are they just selected to get from one image to another?  No.  Simply flashing pictures one after another would be heartless, which is not what comes off here. It feels like she, Joy, has made something that represents her artistry at her young age.  We do not expect pre-schoolers to paint master pieces, we expect finger paintings.  This is her "finger painting."  It is worthy of being on a fridge.  




People Like me by Roy Hayes.


The title alone is why I clicked on the video.  It can be read many different ways. People Like Me! - maybe its a story on popularity?  People, like me - maybe its a story that winds up saying "we" are all the same.  No. Those two don't work.  People like me - a story on finding ones people, rather ones voice.  Roy is the "people," in the title. He created his story at the AIDS Library workshop in the Summer of 2010.  There is no music, there is no score, there is nothing, but Roy and his voice.  His voice to tell his story.  Roy opens with a photo of a doctor (maybe) or surgeon.  I thought it was an astroman. I paused the clip and noticed, there is a skull under the mask. Not good. There is 3 images in the first minute of this 3 minute story.  They range emotions of death, despair, and hopefulness. After watching the video a few times, the second image Roy chose sticks out.  Roy zooms in on a black male whose hands are tied by a red rope, red being the Aids ribbon color.  A man fresh out of jail is now sentenced to "jail" again. Roy ends on a bright color of peace (blue), before that an image of a unbound man fist in the air expressing himself, and his freedoms...the image is of Roy.

My Favorite Digital Stories

These 2 digital stories jumped out at me the most.

39 Hoops

John Hulme is a 39-year-old basketball fanatic. The story is immediately engaging because the audience can clearly see his true love for the sport. Stephen D Beeson created the digital story in 2009 for the Rutgers School of Arts and Sciences. The message of the story is clear; he wants to continue living out his passion but lives in constant fear of injury. He also wants to see his children grow and fall in love with basketball as well. The film is very well shot and put together. It is like a mini documentary following a short period of Hulme’s life and struggles. Video of Hulme playing is prevalent and the audience can see his pain as he suffers an injury to his Achilles tendon. The repetition of excitement in his voice and the passion in his eyes relay how truly important it is too feel this strongly about something. This story can be an inspiration to anyone who feels lost, down, or is thinking about giving up. His energy compels the audience to be involved and love something as much as Hulme loves basketball. There are clips from the movie “White Men Can’t Jump,” these express his yearning to be accepted into the basketball community. He gets no greater enjoyment than to be respected as a player on the court and to impress others with not only his skill but also his sportsmanship

Let’s Call Her Michelle

Victoria Erikson created this digital story in 2007 she is an Associate Professor at the University of Colorado School of Nursing. Her inspiration comes from a special case she had when she was just starting out as a nurse. The responsibility of flying to a rural hospital in central Florida from Miami to pick a pre-mature newborn was put on Erikson and two other nurses. The doctor on call at the hospital in Miami did not want to risk the plane crashing and refused to go. Erikson cared for the child and for privacy reasons calls her Michelle on the video. The bond between the two grew as the child improved in strength and health. Michelle was discharged and Erikson thought her journey with the infant was over. Sadly, Michelle died after her father threw her against a headboard in their home. She was only six months old. The message Erikson wants to relay is that all patients have a story and should be treated as human beings not cases. There is soft music in the background with Erikson narrating the story in a voice over. The music competes with the voice over but ultimately the message of the story over powers all other sounds. Photos are used to show the story progress and the length is perfect for holding a viewers attention. Erikson now prepares nursing students for major exams and life after college. The gift of this story is that each patient is unique and should be remembered as a person not just by his or her symptoms. 

Ben's Movies

Erzen’s Story

Erzen made this movie in 2007 after a three day workshop in San Francisco. This is his story of what it means to be a young person with cancer. It has a nice instrumental in the background and it has several images of his life without cancer. He stated that he had no photos of his time with cancer and I think it is good as it keeps the focus on his life and not a disease. I don’t know if he was looking for certain imagery by walking left to right but that meant to me it was a journey to a place he had not been before. It reminded me of the Lord of the Rings and how the Fellowship, and later Frodo and Sam, were always filmed going from left to right or west to east. The opening and closing verse did a good job of setting the tone and then concluding the story. I think I would have not read the verse and instead let the viewer read it, perhaps with some sound in the back. The change of using a negative version of the video during the discussion of cancer and combined with slowing the video gave a great effect and made me think of the shadow world or the line between life and death. The length of the video (3 minutes) was good because it told the story but allowed you to also stay engaged the entire time.

 

My First Time… Being me

Nancy Lajeunesse made this video for a Northern Ontario film festival in 2010. The story begins with a discussion of her first flight in January 2006. Her physical and emotional changes led to her being sent to a hospital and led to her meeting her first love, who was also a patient. She had not considered herself a lesbian but once she had learned to accept that she learned that she was very happy. She concluded by including both happy and sad firsts that occurred that year but it was a very happy story in the end. With the transitions from photo to photo and the addition of video helped tell the story in a seamless fashion. I noticed that at first the video was dark and a bit confused but once she began to accept the new person in her life the film was brighter and clear. There were no sounds except for the voice over until the end song and it was fitting since it was so happy. This movie was shorter at just over 2 minutes but it was very effective. I know it caused me to really consider what sort of life struggle she was experiencing that led to her parents sending her to the hospital and how long it must have taken to get the courage to tell her parents that she was a lesbian.

Hobbies, Likes, and Interests.

1.) My name is Sarah Elizabeth Cook. My dad will deny it to this day that he did NOT name me after the SEC, but he did. Roll Tide Roll!!

2.) My absolute favorite/signature color is Pink!

3.) I consider myself a country kind of girl because I love to fish, hunt, camp, kayak, tan and to be outside!

4.) In reference to #3, you might notice that I wear/buy ALOT of camouflage that always seems to have a splash of pink somewhere.

5.) Also, I dream and long to have my own BIG truck very soon and have high hopes of it looking a little something like this!

     6). Favorite holiday? 
















7.) Which brings me to my next point, HORROR movies are the greatest!!!

                                                                             

      8.)I'm a huge dog lover, but I'd like to own a pug!!

9.) If it hadn't been for this guy right here I wouldn't be here today! Tanner Corley!


















10.) And last, but NOT least, I LOVE everything there is about MOVIES. I want a career directing, writing, producing, whatever I can do as long as it is in the filming industry!

Ten Things About Me

1) I represent South side Montgomery, AL (334).

2) I have been doing radio at 90.7 since my Freshman year. My show is the Soul Rotation.

3) I interned at SEC Media Days.
SEC Official Website

4) When I was 15, I was given a 1995 Toyota Camry. I named her Betsy after the Beach Boys song "Ballad of Ole Betsy." I wrote a follow up poem for her.

5) After making 258,000 miles and over half a decade with me, Betsy's battery exploded, which caused a fire. I was not hurt, but the fuel line was loose, which, had it ignited, would have cause the entire car to blow up...with me in it.

6) My dream is to one day become a sports broadcaster after years of encouragement from my Dad. Sadly for my Mom, I was too honest for law or politics, too sinful for the priesthood, and too artsy for the medical field. The University of Alabama

7) I have never made it to a year anniversary. It's not my fault. (OK one was, but its not like she really though we were gonna last.)

8) I taught myself how to play tennis. I'm quite good, but my best skill is my verbal antics.

9) I have sang on stage many times, never to my liking.

10) I have seen the Temptations, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, street corner rappers, my girlfriend and many others perform on stage, much to my liking.

10 Things About Me

1) I used to make a living playing/writing music and this is what it looked like from my perspective on stage :

2) I play a wide variety of instruments including the violin, guitar, bassoon, cello, piano, and trumpet.

3) My favorite composition is "Making Christmas" from The Nightmare Before Christmas

4) I began playing music at the age of 3 and I eventually shared this talent with people by playing on stage. Here is a clip from a show: LifeNradio - Spice

5) These guys are who I aspire to be like (Tim Burton and Danny Elfman) :









6) I write compositions for the films I write and direct. Check it out!

7) I enjoy many creative outlets like Painting, playing music, writing stories/poetry, making films, designing 3D Animation Rigs, and making Video Games.

8) I grew up a military brat in 4 different countries: Germany, Italy, Panama, and the United States.

9)  I love to get tattoos. They allow me to make my body into a work of art!

10) My favorite snack is Twizzlers.

Ten Things About Me!

My Favorite Movies (In no particular order)
By: Leigh Rusevlyan

1.) Bottle Rocket

2.) Cool Hand Luke

3.) The Outlaw Josey Wales

4.) The Royal Tenenbaums

5.) Goodfellas

6.) No Country for Old Men

7.) The Princess Bride

8.) Bridesmaids

9.) Lonesome Dove

10.) Almost Famous

10 things about me

1. My name is Kathleen Hinman.
2. I am a senior.
3. My favorite color is blue.

4. I have a dog named Daisy.

5. My favorite food is pizza.

6. I have an older brother.

7. I want to move to a big city.

8. I am 21.
9. I like to make movies and act.
10. Some of my favorite movies are 500 Days of Summer, Love Actually,
About a Boy,

Definitely Maybe, Kill Bill, and Elf.

Ten Things About Me

This is my first post as part of the course. As a way of getting to know me I am posting ten photos related to a hobby I started several years ago. My hobby simply is growing facial hair.

Specifically having patterns of each type of facial hair that one would want to grow (and that I am physically capable of growing).

1. The Full Beard

This is by far the easiest to grow and is a great starting point for anyone wanting to get started.

2. The Muttonchop

This was a fun one to wear around because at the time the character Wolverine from Marvel Comics had a feature film.

3. The Dutch Beard

This was not as fun as everyone thought that I was Amish.

4. The Van Dyke

This is often called a goatee but that is not accurate since the mustache is connected.

5. The Handlebar Mustache and Goatee

Notice that they are not connected. Also notice that this is the coolest mustache in the world.

6. The Horseshoe

This has been called a Fu Manchu but my understanding is that a Fu Manchu does not have hair under the nose. Speaking of no hair under the nose...

7. The Klingon

This is a Fu Manchu with a beard made famous by Worf, Son of Mogh on Star Trek: The Next Generation. 

8. The Chinstrap

This was far too much work to maintain but it was fun to try it for a bit. People treat you differently based on your facial hair to be sure.

9. The Friendly Muttonchops (Chin Curtains)

This is one that really just made me feel like a banker in the 1800's. That or perhaps a political candidate at the turn of the century.

10. The Joe Dirt?

Not sure the name of this but Joe Dirt had it in the movie of the same name.

So what is next?

Ten Things About Me

1) I am from Mobile, Alabama! http://www.cityofmobile.org/

2) Favorite Actor: Michael Ealy

3) I love the Andy Griffith Show!

4) I am an AKA! http://www.aka1908.com/

5) I am interested in all things hip-hop!

6) I have recently been introduced to the writings of Audre Lorde and can't wait to read more of her works this summer!

7) I love to cook! My friends call me the Black Paula Deen! :)

8) I am learning how to sew!

9) I love to watch movies and tv shows on Neflfix.

10) I love comic books and superheroes...my favorite superhero is Captain America.