Progress in Multimedia
As an aspiring journalist, my first impression of this course was that it would prove to be beneficial because I would acquire multiple storytelling skills. Through learning how to use different programs such as Audacity, Garageband, iMovie, and Adobe After Effects I have acquired various prowesses regarding presenting a single story visually and in terms of sound. At the beginning of this course, I was only aware of how to portray a story in a written context, but now have a better understanding of how to showcase my work in a way that is supplemented by either visual cues/effects, sound effects, and/or music.
***Assignment That Stuck Out to Me:***
Blog Assignment #3: Read Pam Painter's Office at Night and then write a 500-word story inspired by one of the works of the artist I assign to you in class
This was the first blog assignment in which we as a class were required to write from an entirely fictional perspective. Writing a fictional short-story piece after not having necessarily taken the time to do so this semester felt nice and gave me the opportunity to write from a completely creative viewpoint. It was the assignment that had me realize that I already possessed a particular writing skill: dialogue. Writing for dialogue, at least for me, is always approached in a way as if I were writing a portion of a script. In the aspect of writing full-on and believable conversations, it was my jumping-off-point for dialogue writing. It was nice to see how my writing for dialogue became better throughout the entire course, and I feel was especially evident in both podcast projects.
Blog Assignments #4: Take the secret you created in class and expand on it. Include at least 5 lines of dialogue. Have something change from the beginning of the piece to the end. Put up the postcard you created in class along with the story.
This project was a lot of fun, mainly because I loved decorating the postcard with a bunch of dramatic images and animations. At first, it was hard to develop a story from the secrets I had developed in class. But after I changed the quotes, I had initially chosen. I began to create a story that was creative, interesting, and... dramatic! It was another project that consisted of exercising one's imagination in a way that can or cannot be personally related to the writer, and again I loved how my dialogue seemed better than in my previous blog post.
Podcast Project
The group podcast project is definitely my favorite assignment besides our video project. It was the first assignment that we were required to include all aspects (minus visual imagery) that are a part of multimedia storytelling. As the project's sound editor, I was able to play around with all of the different sound effects, dialogue recordings, and music cuts we had incorporated to create a flowing and well-done audio story. It also helped me understand that visuals are not the only components that make a story captivating, and helped me reflect more on my own writing (since, in my opinion, that is usually what determines a great podcast). I loved the project so much that I began to look into other famous or well-known podcasts besides the ones that were assigned for us to listen to as homework, such as Serial by Sarah Koenig and The Combat Jack Show by Reggie Osse.
Video Project
This project is by far the most exciting and most challenging to create. Even though I have Adobe After Effects and Premiere downloaded on to my computer video editing is definitely a challenge, especially for someone such as myself who does not have much experience with it. My favorite parts are collecting my own footage and learning how to use video editing software, which are both two skills that will personally assist me in the future.
***Overall***
Overall, I really loved having this course. It's helped me manage my time so that I was continuously exercising my creative side throughout the semester, which is something that I really appreciated and enjoyed doing. I believe that creating this blog has given me the experience and push necessary to create my own and broadcast my writing from there, the same way I have done here.
I was also only aware of how to tell a story through written context. This class taught me I can tell stories through Audacity, Garageband, and iMovie, through visual cues/effects, sound effects, and/or music as well. It's fantastic how so many of us now know how to use these tools now to tell a story.
ReplyDeleteDear Cynthia,
ReplyDeleteThanks for going through the assignments in this way. it really helps me a lot in planning the next class because it lets me know what the value or take-away was for the students. You have a creative soul---i was happy that you were in the class to add your voice. I hope you continue to write, to explore, to create, to push yourself. you are talented!