The feedback from my group regarding my media portrait was mostly positive, and included some constructive criticism. Oliver admitted he would have liked more information on how Tom lost all these aspects of his life. However, he realised it would have been difficult given the time span of only 2 minutes. On the other hand, Samantha thought it was just enough to allow the audience to create their own assumptions and think about it themselves. Georgia said the visuals were timed well with the text, and liked the deeper side to the video. Everyone agreed the subtitles were effective and helped engaged the audience. The feedback given to me was helpful, and I will take it on board next time I create a video for Media Comm. 

Media Portrait from Alana Cooper on Vimeo.

For this media portrait project I chose to film my older brother Tom. Not out of convenience, in fact, he is extremely difficult to get a hold of. I chose him because to me he reflects a typical young adult male. Not only does he hold very ‘masculine’ considered characteristics, but the past few months have been very hard on him. Tom is not one to share his feelings, or express when he is sad, which is why portraying this side of him in my video was challenging. Tom actually didn’t like the final video, apparently it made him seem “like a loser”. I told him I thought it made him look human. Everyone struggles in their life, whether they show it or not, this media portrait gave me an opportunity to see things from my brother perspective. His life isn’t exactly easy right now, I know he’ll bounce back, but I think it was important to shine the light on his recent difficulties and hardships.

When producing the movie I had so much fun using the video camera I hired from RMIT. The quality was better than I have ever experienced, and made me feel like a real professional. The editing phase did take some time, but I think the final outcome is better than what I originally thought it would be. I created a story-like portrait of Tom, which I believe keeps the audience engaged. I used i-Movie to edit the video, and again feel far more confident and experienced with the program, and I am now excited to create my next film. 

Todays lecture involved librarian Amy Saunders who gave us very useful tips on how to effectively use Library Search when resourcing. I had already listened to Amy’s lecture in another subject, so I used the time to edit and update my blog. Rachel then took us through the importance of teamwork or “collaboration” in the workplace. We wrote down our good and bad experiences we’ve had when working in teams. I for one know how frustrating it is when other team members fail to contribute their share of the work load. However, most of my team work experiences have been positive. It’s a great way to establish heaps of ideas, and helps  solve problems more efficiently. When working in teams, you always have support and there is generally less stress on each individual. We discussed what collaboration is good for, which I agreed it helps to develop leadership, practise professional communication and establish peer relationships.

Todays lecture covered many areas. We had two guest lecturers, one spoke about documentaries and the importance of whats real and what realism means. Whilst the other spoke about editing and how actual editing is what engages an audience into a story. It’s what gets their brains thinking and questioning what the story is about. We were also given time to write our own stories, based on 5 postie notes. My partner and I created a dramatic story of a day in the life of bad luck. Our character had numerous events happen throughout the day, which contributed to the “worst day” of his life. We then had to try incorporate 3 other events, one being a major turning point, and try to fit them into our storyline.  The editing side of the lecture was probably the most interesting, I really liked the examples he used and how he got us thinking as the audience.

Yesterday’s lecture involved two guest speakers. We had a lady tell us all about copyright and how to avoid infringement when producing our own work, which was very informative and useful information. That part required a lot of attention as there is so many rules and exceptions involved with copyrighting. We then heard from Kyla, who produces her own radio documentaries. She showed us some of her best work which was very interesting. She also encouraged us to research elements of the world which are outside our comfort zone, and to be persistent and enthusiastic about our work. Kyla was really motivating and her experiences in life were inspiring.

This week we were asked in our lecture to go off into groups and capture and write down any media artefacts we could find. My group was sent to Melbourne Central, which gave us great access to media. Every shop in Melbourne Central is media itself, as they all have their store signs/logos above the entrance and on the windows of their shopping space. As well as the stores themselves, exit signs and directories act as a form or media, simply because they deliver a message to people. I even took a photo of the train platform, the yellow line indicates a danger zone, and signifies that passengers are not to pass it. The music played throughout the shopping centre also acts as in aretfact, it draws people in/ out of the store. Furthermore, the actual Echo of many voices talking in the food court comes as a background form of media.                               

My first week in Media 1 was interesting, confusing, exciting and new. The first lecture asked us to write to our future selves, what did we want to accomplish on the completion of this course? I’m not entirely sure to be honest. I know I want to have a deeper understanding of media, and how to use certain software. But most importantly I want to ensure I have the qualifications to set my life up. Monday’s class was great, it was so unusual sitting in a room full of people with the same interests as me. I’m also looking forward to our first assessment,  it will definitely be a fantastic way for us to really get to know our classmates.