Hi there!

The following reflective post will be in regard to the class project final take on week 6. Fortunately, most of the crew was present this time. So, having everyone at their designated place and task was crucial to maintain a smooth filming of the project. It was insightful to note the manner in which all the tasks of the crew came together to finally create the final take. The final project wouldn’t be what it is without the work carried in the control room and the behind the scenes crew (lighting, camera, and floor manager). This session succeeded in proving the need of strong communication within the members to carry out a professional, smooth process. Like always, we should always expect the unexpected in a studio as no matter how much you plan for a project, when it is actually set in motion…something’s ought to happen out of nowhere. This time there was an issue with the audio (that I still don’t get), and it took some time from the actual filming. On the other hand, an on-screen issue was mostly related to misreading words from the prompt. That issue could only be solved with practice, and re-reading of the script, which is why we did multiple takes. Overall, I had a good time working on a studio. In particular, I enjoyed the task of a DA, and I look forward to pursuing a career that integrates a lot of studio work.

Aside from all the studio talk, I managed to put a little bit of research on Middle Eastern satire. Through my research, I came across Bassem Yossef.  He is the host of El Bernameg (literally means ‘the show’), an Arabic satirical news program. He has been compared to Jon Stewart in multiple occasions, which makes sense as The Daily Show inspired Yossef to initiate his own show even though he already had a career of his own as a certified surgeon and physician. He has invited and been invited by the hosts of The Daily Show as well as The Colbert Report, and that in itself is a testimony to his influence. El Bernameg had lots of similarities to The Daily Show and The Colbert Report in its satirical elements and objectives, butit is worthy to note the intensity of the consequence suffered by the prior as compared to the later. For example, Yossef had his show cancelled by media channels on multiple occasions, he had been prosecuted on multiple incidents by government personnel, and finally arrested by authorities. This makes one think of what would the present circumstances be like if people like Bassem Yossef were given the freedom to impact their nation? Perhaps, we wouldn’t be in the mess that we currently live in.

 “We were trying to make people think first and laugh later.” – Bassem Yossef