Sitting in the front row of the packed room in Cornerstone, it hit me. This is my final. Not an essay in a blue book or a multiple test online, but this, a Gala! It also hit me that a whole semester has been compiled into a 46 minute film.
For those who couldn’t make it to the Thursday and join the audience of Steve and Don Shondell, Burris volleyball players from 1982 and 2007, Ball State professors, and all the friends and family that came with their support and enthusiasm, I’ll try to sum up the experience.
The Cornerstone Center of the Arts did a wonderful job with the twinkling lights and Christmas trees. The Events Committee in our class did a great job with setting up volleyball nets that had photographs of the Burris volleyball players and behind the scenes of us this semester, taken by us. In a corner we had the Behind the Scenes documentary, compiled by non-Telecommunications majors. After mingling with delicious appetizers, most of the seminar went up and spoke to the audience about their experience in the project. Despite everyone being tired from the rush to complete the film, no one tripped to the stage.
And then the film began. Not to give anything away for those coming Tuesday, but I was too awed to be nervously sneaking glances at the audience. My friends were amazed at the music and the camera’s shots. One friend said she was surprised to have the emotional response she did. After the light slowly came back on we wrapped it up with a few more speeches and a Q and A session.
Earlier I had compared this experience to scuba diving, and Sam had said how her grandmother first thought immersive learning was about swimming (“Not sub-mersive Grandma”). But now as we are working on our portfolios and looking back, I think we are realizing how we were truly submerged into this project.
Showing posts with label gala. Show all posts
Showing posts with label gala. Show all posts
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
It's too late... I'm using too many elipses...
0400 . . .
The gala is . . . technically, well, tomorrow. The butterflies are more than hardcore now, and even though I am home, I still cannot manage to let my brain rest.
I feel so much for our editors who have been working so hard in the cave, and I have complete trust in their abilities to turn out a film that is guaranteed to turn heads. They truly are the core of this project, and I don't know where we would be without their talent, commitment, and patience. We could not ask for more.
Today was an eye-opener. Everyone has been talking about immersive learning and what it is like to collaborate this entire semester, and I guess I just took it as a given. I thought, “Of course, we have to work together. We are together all the time." Today, I realized I have to be open to others. Yes, I have been teaming up with others for weeks, but I have always tried to do things the way I envision them, and haven’t really gotten past that until today.
The Behind-the-Scenes Documentary crew has mainly consisted of Kristen, Samantha Davis, and me for the better part of the semester. We were assigned to do a piece in the early weeks and just kind of were . . . in charge from then on. With other committees and commitments outside of the project, I have been spread pretty thin giving me limited knowledge/focus about the project with the two them. With the gala nearing and other projects wrapping up, I have been able to spend more time with them, but am extremely behind on the keyboarding/editing skills they have acquired. Long story short, I went in with different ideas and skill sets, and I quickly became frustrated. After talking with Laura and Kristen, I realized my frustrations (with myself and the BTS documentary) only made the situation more difficult.
The skills I am learning, no matter how minute they might seem compared to my peers, are those I might not have learned otherwise. So, again, I thank them for their patience in teaching me and putting up with my stubbornness . . . next time, a swift kick will do.
On the topic of collaboration and new skills, Blake and I worked together on the invitations and programs for the gala. My interest and abilities with photography and Adobe Photoshop were rekindled while working on these projects… which remind me that the gala is EVEN CLOSER! There were a few problems we didn’t catch through editing the programs, but as Jamie said, “If that’s the worst thing to happen, we’re in good shape.” (KNOCK ON WOOD!)
The photos for the gala are in, and spiffy at that! Adam Wilson was hiding his awesome photography capabilities all semester! Some of the best photos we have are from the state game with the Owls, and our audio gentlemen in the studios. I really hope everyone enjoys them.
As I type, Adam and Dan are pulling one of many over-nighters in Sursa for the second week in a row. They top my list of favorite people, and have probably the toughest job of all because they have to wait for the rest of us before they can finish their work. I have complete faith in them, and will never pass up bringing the cherry scented lotion for their cracked hands and chocolate coffee for rejuvenation.
Last kudos go to Sarah Marty and Michael Straub who lent us their time in finishing up this project. I can’t wait to see your work with our final presentation.
. . . bed.
The gala is . . . technically, well, tomorrow. The butterflies are more than hardcore now, and even though I am home, I still cannot manage to let my brain rest.
I feel so much for our editors who have been working so hard in the cave, and I have complete trust in their abilities to turn out a film that is guaranteed to turn heads. They truly are the core of this project, and I don't know where we would be without their talent, commitment, and patience. We could not ask for more.
Today was an eye-opener. Everyone has been talking about immersive learning and what it is like to collaborate this entire semester, and I guess I just took it as a given. I thought, “Of course, we have to work together. We are together all the time." Today, I realized I have to be open to others. Yes, I have been teaming up with others for weeks, but I have always tried to do things the way I envision them, and haven’t really gotten past that until today.
The Behind-the-Scenes Documentary crew has mainly consisted of Kristen, Samantha Davis, and me for the better part of the semester. We were assigned to do a piece in the early weeks and just kind of were . . . in charge from then on. With other committees and commitments outside of the project, I have been spread pretty thin giving me limited knowledge/focus about the project with the two them. With the gala nearing and other projects wrapping up, I have been able to spend more time with them, but am extremely behind on the keyboarding/editing skills they have acquired. Long story short, I went in with different ideas and skill sets, and I quickly became frustrated. After talking with Laura and Kristen, I realized my frustrations (with myself and the BTS documentary) only made the situation more difficult.
The skills I am learning, no matter how minute they might seem compared to my peers, are those I might not have learned otherwise. So, again, I thank them for their patience in teaching me and putting up with my stubbornness . . . next time, a swift kick will do.
On the topic of collaboration and new skills, Blake and I worked together on the invitations and programs for the gala. My interest and abilities with photography and Adobe Photoshop were rekindled while working on these projects… which remind me that the gala is EVEN CLOSER! There were a few problems we didn’t catch through editing the programs, but as Jamie said, “If that’s the worst thing to happen, we’re in good shape.” (KNOCK ON WOOD!)
The photos for the gala are in, and spiffy at that! Adam Wilson was hiding his awesome photography capabilities all semester! Some of the best photos we have are from the state game with the Owls, and our audio gentlemen in the studios. I really hope everyone enjoys them.
As I type, Adam and Dan are pulling one of many over-nighters in Sursa for the second week in a row. They top my list of favorite people, and have probably the toughest job of all because they have to wait for the rest of us before they can finish their work. I have complete faith in them, and will never pass up bringing the cherry scented lotion for their cracked hands and chocolate coffee for rejuvenation.
Last kudos go to Sarah Marty and Michael Straub who lent us their time in finishing up this project. I can’t wait to see your work with our final presentation.
. . . bed.
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Sorry can't talk now...
I'd like to blog, but I am so busy trying to score the documentary I don't really have time to talk about anything. Dan and I have been up past 7 AM everynight, working over 18 hours a day for the past week or so. It gets to be time consuming when you are composing, performing, recording, editing AND mixing all the music for a film project.
Hopefully I will see you all at the Gala, there I will be able to answer any questions you might have about the process. Later!
Hopefully I will see you all at the Gala, there I will be able to answer any questions you might have about the process. Later!
Monday, December 3, 2007
3...2...1...
There are only three days left until our showcase. To think, just three months ago, we began this project, and it all comes down to these last few days. There has been a shift in urgency in all of us, but, at this stage, there are only a few specific tasks to be complete, namely editing and scoring. Both the t-commies and music tech people are working to finish their respective pieces, while working together to ensure cohesion between the two projects.
One challenge to this goal is that Evan, Audrey, Blake, and Jon have been working here at the mansion, while Dan and Adam have been at the music building using the recording studios. This distance makes it difficult at times to collaborate effectively, as Dan and Adam need to see what they are scoring. As a result, there are lots of trips between the two buildings to transfer files and get a general sense of what each team is working on.
For those of us without a lot of the technical expertise needed to edit or score, we have been trying our best to fill in where possible. It has certainly been a source of frustration to know there is a tremendous amount of work to be done, but to not be able to directly contribute to completing that work. A few people have complained of feeling useless or like they aren’t doing anything. In all honesty though, at this point, there are a limited number of things that can be done and a limited amount of people that can effectively complete those tasks. The situation is a conundrum, because we want to make sure that the editors and musicians have everything they need to do their job, but we don't want to be in the way of that process either.
With seventeen of us, as we have found throughout the semester, it is far too easy to have too many cooks in the kitchen. We try to help out by finding scenes or quotes to fill in our story. Others provide a fresh eye and mind to the editors as they piece together sequences, while others have been around to offer support and boost morale.
Some of the general moods I sense around the mansion are panic, frustration, anxiety, and hope. In three days, all of those emotions will melt away with a huge sigh of relief as we sit back and watch our film with a deserved sense of pride.
One challenge to this goal is that Evan, Audrey, Blake, and Jon have been working here at the mansion, while Dan and Adam have been at the music building using the recording studios. This distance makes it difficult at times to collaborate effectively, as Dan and Adam need to see what they are scoring. As a result, there are lots of trips between the two buildings to transfer files and get a general sense of what each team is working on.
For those of us without a lot of the technical expertise needed to edit or score, we have been trying our best to fill in where possible. It has certainly been a source of frustration to know there is a tremendous amount of work to be done, but to not be able to directly contribute to completing that work. A few people have complained of feeling useless or like they aren’t doing anything. In all honesty though, at this point, there are a limited number of things that can be done and a limited amount of people that can effectively complete those tasks. The situation is a conundrum, because we want to make sure that the editors and musicians have everything they need to do their job, but we don't want to be in the way of that process either.
With seventeen of us, as we have found throughout the semester, it is far too easy to have too many cooks in the kitchen. We try to help out by finding scenes or quotes to fill in our story. Others provide a fresh eye and mind to the editors as they piece together sequences, while others have been around to offer support and boost morale.
Some of the general moods I sense around the mansion are panic, frustration, anxiety, and hope. In three days, all of those emotions will melt away with a huge sigh of relief as we sit back and watch our film with a deserved sense of pride.
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