Blog 10

Our film explores identity and belief because while our subject was deaf, we did not just focus on her and that aspect of her life. We strove to figure out who she really was, what she aspires to be and how her beliefs influence that. Her beliefs are closely tied with the church and so we asked her questions about how her mission helped change the way she thinks. We actually organized the clips and stories she talked about into a chiasmus. The topics are as follows: Freedom she gets from rock climbing, why she decided to go on her mission, her beliefs on Christ, what she wants to do with her life now and how the freedom she feels from rock climbing is the like the feeling she gets at the temple. First the two were separate, the rock climbing and the beliefs, and then she tells us how they are related in the end.

One of the huge strengths of the film is the subject matter. Shantel was a very inspiring person. She’s accomplished so much in her life already and works really hard at becoming the best person she can be. Everything she does in her life is to help her achieve and accomplish. We just had a lot of great stuff to work with. What an interesting and unique experience!

The main thing I learned about identity and belief was how much her beliefs were infused into everything she did in her life. You can’t do something without believing in it. Everything you do is inspired by what you believe! Shantel rock climbing was an extension of the values that she held close to her heart. Her ideas about happiness and how she wants everyone to be able to have that are evident as she plays with her little sister, experiencing the true happiness that only the gospel can bring. We are what we believe.

I didn’t maybe so much learn this, as I did wonder. I wondered how my beliefs influenced my actions. How was I outwardly showing what I believed, and what did the things I do influence the way I act? I think I just made the goal to really figure out what a documentary on me would have looked like.

Reflection

My goal as a Mormon artist is to be a Mormon and an artist. I don’t plan to produce content for the church--although I’m certainly not against it. I want to produce technically sound and aesthetically pleasing content which is wholesome but never sugarcoats the realities of the human experience, with all it’s struggles and beauties. The interview with Kelly addressed this subject. There is a definite and important place for religion and faith in personal identity, but we must also address and come to terms with our primal nature. The field of psychology is fascinating and can answer many of the questions we have about ourselves, and should never be discounted or made subsidiary to religious teachings. Kelly put these two supposedly opposing fields into a nice harmony. I’m a naturalist and a Mormon. I recognize the contradictions, but it is possible for two contradictory theories to be true at the same time.

The collaborative process has always been a difficult thing for me. John Jacob Astor said that if you want something done, hire someone; if you want something done right, do it yourself. I have a hard time letting people help me. Not because I don’t want help, or because I think I can do a better job than others could, it’s because I am very particular about what the work that I produce says about me. How my work represents and portrays me is an important issue to me. I would rather not turn something in than turn something in that is mediocre and not an adequate reflection of my ability and creative motivations. By that same token, I want my work to be a representation of me, and not diluted by the contribution of others. I must get rid of these ideas if I am to progress in the BYU film program, as collaborative as it is. This project was good practice. I had my idea that I pitched for the project. I had it all planned out, and felt like I could have done it alone. However, it didn’t work out, and I was back at square one. Luckily, I was in a good group and we were able to plan and produce the project together. I enjoyed the experience.

The Collaborative Process

The collaborative process while in both this class and those that accompany it have taught me that no great work or endeavor can be undertaken alone if it is to achieve glory in reaching out to other people. It seems folly to believe that one person is the mastermind behind such great works of art that give us breath and feed us life. As we learn quickly in an artistic field of expression, we must take from others what gives us life so that we, too may internalize it and utilize such glory in our own works of art.

This final project has helped me in my goals as a Mormon artist so as to help those around me to understand that there is more than meets the eye to many people – I, for one, have often felt judged at first glance for many things that have happened in my life. Nevertheless, I am grateful for these more infrequent experiences, as they helped to primarily shape my youth and have had rippling effects throughout the rest of my life. In my final project, I was able to interview someone who was extraordinarily well-spoken and well-versed in a topic that I knew nothing about: Hebrew and how it pertains to the field of Law and Linguistics. Such an intricate mind is evident only upon getting to know someone deeper and find out truly what their passions and belief systems are. I hope in the future to find more people of all kinds all over the U.S. and learn about why they believe what they do. I feel that this kind of individual exposure to unique individuals and common but misunderstood conditions in our country can help others to release the stigmas that they might have about fat people, mental illness, or any number of things that make us different. Everyone has a story, and when will we be able to tell it’s most interesting parts? Some of these people just need someone to help them tell their story, and that is what I want to be able to do, at least in some small capacity – tell the stories that make up why the world is so phenomenal and people are so great at being what they are and believing with a fire in their hearts and a passion in their spirits.

Final Project Reflection

For my group’s final project, we interviewed a guy named MacGregor Whiting. He has several digestive diseases and has resorted to an extremely unique, simple, self-discovered diet to make sure he gets all the necessary nutrients without any discomfort. Basically, his diet and entire outlook on food blows my mind because it’s never something that I could be strong enough to do. I guess these are the types of stories that I would really love to tell as a Mormon artist – I want to find interesting and unique stories about people who are a lot different than me. They don’t have to be different in a bad way, just different. Like MacGregor. I want to document and tell the story of people that I really respect and look up to because of their focus in life. I’m hoping that finding inspiring stories will help me grow as both an individual and a filmmaker. If I’m lucky, I will be able to portray them in a way that is beneficial to others as well.

In short, completing this documentary really helped me wrap my mind around what stories I would like to create or find. It showed me that I need to find people who share this dream so we can work towards it together. I’m glad that BYUs film program is as collaborative as it is, because sometimes I need motivation that only comes when other people are relying on me. I’m excited to work together with others to find interesting stories and portray them in a compassionate way. This collaborative effort also taught me that I still have a lot of patience to learn when working with others. No one was appointed “group leader” or anything like that, so we sometimes found ourselves chasing our own ending or goal. Obviously, I was rooting hardest for my vision and sometimes got frustrated when the other group members opposed me. In the end, I learned that these disagreements can create the best type of film because it contains so much from each group member. We were each able to help the others get over particular things that they were attached to so that the whole would be coherent and interesting.

Goals and Realizations

In working on this final project I have discovered that one of my greatest goals as a mormon artist is to portray others in the best light possible. It is important to have well rounded characters, but that doesn't mean that we have to exploit them and show the world something that they would be embarrassed about. I have learned how important it is to me that I create/portray well rounded characters without alienating the people I film by doing or showing something that could do that.

Another goal that I feel my group has accomplished that shows forth through our final project is doing something that glorifies our God. This is the most important thing. In whatever we do we should be glorifying our God. He is the one that blessed us with talents to create, and we must give him the credit. We can do this is so many ways, but I feel like very few people actually do this. When it is done, however, it is extremely powerful and is the most influential and inspirational kind of story. I think back to the stories that I consider the most powerful and the films in which I was most emotionally involved and they are always ones that glorify our God. We are fools if we do not use our talents to glorify God.

Now that I have said that I feel like there is much room for improvement. But I know that the more in tune with the spirit, and the more we seek to glorify our God through our craft the greater we will become. The Lord will bless us with creativity and a greater ability to create emotion, and teach others what we know through what we do.

Regarding the collaborative process I learned the importance of working together and delegating responsibilities. I am the kind of person that likes to do things himself, and pound it out that way. But on this project specifically I learned that in order to succeed I must delegate, and I must let others do their part or I will burn myself out in a hurry. You can't make movies alone. You need a team, and above all else you need God.

Final blog, Spencer Tasso, Yeehaw

Film is a powerful medium. It appeals strongly to many, because it’s so unique, yet entertaining- just look at the movies. And in today’s world, film, videos, movies, etc. are becoming ever more popular. In short, film is entertaining and is going nowhere because people like it. But with this popularity comes a responsibility to produce uplifting material. Of course not necessarily Mormon explicit material, just uplifting. Although I do love making movies, ironically I’m not sure if I’m going to do it as a career. I may try for business instead. But whatever I do, the things I produce need to be uplifting and good. As a career path, I’d like to work as a social entrepreneur helping people, which in turn would be a terrific medium to document, therefore producing something uplifting, inspiring, and good.

Working on our film, initially I didn’t have much devotion to it. I hadn’t interacted with our subject at all, and wasn’t there for any of the filming. The only exposure I have to him, is watching, re-watching, and editing the footage of him. But interestingly enough, I feel like I know him now. If I saw him walking by on campus I’d want to recognize and talk to him, but of course he’d have no idea who I am. Creepin’.

Working hard with others will bring you a much better product than if you have a solo vision. Honestly, I feel quite proficient in cinematography and editing, but in conceptualization and storytelling/screenwriting, I feel I lack. With our final film, I had other ideas for a story, but was turned towards our current subject, Theo Harris, and although I thought initially the story may lack flare, I find it compelling and meaningful now. To progress and grow, I need to give my best effort into every group project, so I can collaborate with the talents of others and myself. We all got in for the same basic reason- competency in film, but we all excel in such different ways. Learning to work together and to accept the differences of others is how I can get better. 

Last Post: Final Project

This final project helped me reflect on my goals as a Mormon Artist. One of the main reasons I love film is because film is such a wonderful and unique way to get a message across whether it be an innocent story or a lesson to be learned. All invoke some sort of emotion and it is beautiful what imagination and creativity can do.

As a Mormon artist I want to share messages to those around me. What this project has allowed me to do is to understand an individual and see what is special about that person. I was able to see that person and the story behind how he became a psychologist for BYU. Not only that but the collaborative process allowed me to capture his story in a very simple way and allow it to be visible for my classmates to see it. This in turn allows for the word of this simple BYU psychologist to be spread with a message that if you need help there is place on campus that you can find it. That was the intent and that is intent was reached in my opinion. The piece of work may not be entirely entertaining and/or funny however, there is something to be learned by that. Kelly deals with students who are going through rough patches and need help such as students with depression. As such, depression is not something to be entertained with and it is not a funny comedy. On the contrary, it’s a very serious matter. One that should be helped with professionally, such is the documentary on Kelly, serious and professional.  

SO what have I learned from this collaborative process about my own need for growth in the BYU film program? Well, I learned that in order to be successful there is a great deal of organization, communication, and teamwork involved. If my team and I had not organized the project in advanced there would have been a lot of confusion and stress. If there had not been communication nothing would have gotten done. As for teamwork, we each had our specialties that we could rely on each other for. At first I was to be the main editor. However, as technological issues arose, I had to turn to my peers and receive support and help from them and I’m grateful for that. We each pulled in our efforts which in turn helped create a project. What I need to learn is the technological part of the program so that I can be a little more independent on my part where I don’t feel stressed or overwhelmed because I can’t fix something. I have a lot to learn and I am ready to learn it all. 

Final Project, Final Blog

To discuss how the final project reflects my goals as a Mormon artist, I guess I should first have some goals as a Mormon artist. I've talked about what it means to be a Mormon artist, and about what an artist's general responsibility is, but I don't suppose I've ever actually thought about my goals specifically. I don't think my goals as a Mormon artist are particularly Mormon in nature. They're probably not much different from the goals that any other artist has, unless of course there is an artist whose goals are anti-Mormon in nature. At any rate, I guess you could say that my goals as of right now are somewhat selfish. I hope to, by learning about other people and their beliefs, be able to establish and solidify my own beliefs. This project fits perfectly with that goal. Did the project partly inspire this goal? Maybe. But it's a valid goal nonetheless. In addition to the fact that this project was purposely constructed to help us learn about the beliefs of another person, our documentary subject was particularly interesting in this regard. She is a BYU professor that taught a class called "This I Believe," where she guided college freshmen as they attempted to find their beliefs for themselves. Her interview was very thought-provoking. She talked a lot about paradigms and paradigm shifts. She talked about the importance of time spent thinking about beliefs. This project, for me, was a little more than just a school project. It was somewhat of a mentally challenging, if not spiritual, experience. I learned things about myself and was able to understand the viewpoints of another person. I’d say this pretty well fits with my goal as a Mormon artist.

I really did learn a lot about what I’ll need to know in the future and what I should learn in the film program at BYU. I don’t know anything about Final Cut Pro, for example. I should probably learn how to use that. I also noticed that I tend to think very simply. I don’t really think a lot about the different sorts of shots that I’ll need before I start shooting, and even then I usually just pick one and stick with it. It was good to get some varying ideas from my group members. It makes things more interesting. Really, I need to learn more about almost everything, but it was good to pick out some things specifically to focus on.

Blog 10

Describe the ways that your final project reflects your goals as a Mormon Artist. What has the collaborative process has taught you about your own need for growth in the BYU film program?

END OF YEAR AND STUFF

Describe the ways that your final project reflects your goals as a Mormon Artist. What has the collaborative process has taught you about your own need for growth in the BYU film program?

It's hard for me to say exactly how my final project reflects my goals of being a Mormon artist. I don't really want to be considered a "Mormon" artist to be honest. I am all for upholding my values, but at the same time I want to be who I want to be without having any kind of label or being placed into a certain group of people just because of my religion. I can't really say that my final project reflects exactly Mormon values just because of its subject matter (being video games), but there are elements of family and other productive activities. I don't really know if this has to do with being Mormon, but for me, this documentary gave me a heightened awareness of human qualities that people do and don't want to show on camera. Our interviewee completely changed when on camera as far as his personality goes. He acted like a completely different person and we had a hard time getting him to show who he really was. The collaborative atmosphere taught me that I am a lot less prepared for the real world of film then I thought I was. Not that I considered myself to be cocky or anything about it (and I hope other people didn't think that about me, but you never know), but I have (what I thought to be at least) a lot of experience in the film world. A lot of things can't be taught from being on set. Film, whether fiction or documentary, is all about people skills. No matter what position you are taking you cannot learn about people without outside experience. In the end, I am just as experienced as everyone else because even though I have a lot of time on set, I need to spend more time thinking about people rather then film while on that set. If that makes any sense...

Reflecting on the Semester

This semester has been an incredible one. I feel like I have learned and grown in ways school has never forced me to grow before. As me, Jacy, and Amy have worked on our final documentary, I have been thinking a lot about what I believe and what goals I want to set for the future.

Our documentary is about an inspirational professor named Cheri Earl. She teaches a variety of classes, but we specifically asked her about the “This I Believe” class that she created for Freshmen. As we interviewed her, I was really impressed by how well she knew herself and her own paradigms. She said that she tends to react with fear first in any stressful situation. She has had to work to strengthen her faith so that it counteracts or replaces that fear. As she was explaining this, I realized that I too tend to respond with fear first. When I face a big trial or difficult situation, I tend to get really stressed out and worry about it until it’s over. Then, I look back and say, “well, that wasn’t so bad.” I know in the scriptures we learn that faith and fear cannot coexist. So, my new goal as a Mormon artist is to strengthen my own faith so that others can gain strength from my art.

As I go forward in the BYU film program, I know that I will continue to face new obstacles and be stretched in new ways. I think that I need to learn to be more open about myself and not be afraid to speak up. I also need to be willing to take on extra projects and learn new skills on top of regular classes – not to the point of being overwhelmed, but enough that I can feel confident in myself as a filmmaker. As I do these things, and continue to work hard, I believe that I can make an impact in my own unique way. I look forward to the rest of my time in this program.

Hey, Did You Know This is Our Last Blog Post?

Last blog post. Weird. I am not much of a blogger. But maybe I will feel inspired to get my own blog. Probably not. But you never know.

My final project (along with Seth's and Parker's) was about this gamer named Jordan. I know next to nothing about gaming, so i found this topic really interesting. Because I think there definitely is the stereotyped "gamer" and that;s not fair because there really is so much more underneath it all. This film really helped open my eyes to the stereotypes I place on people every day. I mean it is pretty hard not to. It is something I am sure we all are guilty of. So this project really helped me take a step back and dig a little deeper. I think as Mormons, we are often stereotyped as well. I know back home, I was the "Mormon Girl." Once you have a label like that people continue to make assumptions about you that really aren't true. This project taught me that as a mormon artist, I want to make sure I don't create stereotypes or be stereotyped. It is important to to create art that is wholesome and uplifting and sticks to our values, but I dont think it needs to yell "Hey I am a Mormon!" The subtle things in life are much more effective.

Working with my wonderful teammates has been a great experience. With this project, and other ones I have worked on this semester, I have learned that you cannot do it alone. A finished film is a culmination of a bunch of different people doing different things, that become one big whole thing when put together. If that makes sense. I've learned that in order to grow in this program, I need to help on as many films as I can getting experience doing different things. I hope to gain lots of experience in these next few years, so that when the time comes,  I am able to survive out in the world. Well I couldn't think of a better first semester in the program and it so crazy it is already pretty much over. But I am so excited for everything to come.

Cotton: I think we are supposed to do this post, but I'm not sure. Either way, I'm going for it.

My final project shows my need to be honest to the source material I am working with. With this documentary it would be easy to take out-of-context snippets and make them seem like they were said together and thereby make my subject seem crazy. This would debatably be more interesting but not at all honest. Our subject is on his way to getting his PhD in microbiology and is a very well educated person, even if his opinions go against the status quo (as has been the case with almost every revolutionary scientist). So I feel it is my responsibility as a mormon artist to capture what this person is really like, and not try to alter the story in any way as to make it dishonest.

The collaborative process has taught me that I need to be more open to other people’s ideas and trust in their strengths and abilities. I am a controlling person and can be very prideful so it’s easy for me to think that x person will do a bad job or that they might not have anything valuable to offer. This has proven to not be the case, so I need to let go of my anxious tendencies and confide that other people have talents that will better the project as a whole.

As this is my final blog post I would like to say a few final words to my fellow bloggers and bloggettes: I’m sorry if my blog posts have been angry, grouchy, cynical, and even apostate. I usually remember that I have to do these posts late at night when I need to sleep or finish other assignments. So my apologies if these posts have been this way, I’m not usually a terrible person. I love and respect you all. May the Force be with you, always.

Final Reflections

   I think that using the final project to represent my “Mormon artistry” is a bit of an interesting thing to do. On one hand, my subject specifically someone who has moved to a new country and begun a successful business. Similarly, I am from the east coast and have come out here to school. As a result, I am learning things that will make me successful in life. Although adjustment at first was difficult, things have panned out now, and it’s great. On the other hand (referring to this project reflecting my ‘Mormon artistry’)I think that this project shows how I have a genuine interest for real people’s lives and situations. If I were not a member of the Church, I do believe I would be much more like House--not really caring about the little details that actually make life important, meaningful, and valuable...and also being much more cynical. However, I am a member and I truly have come to appreciate the beauty and strong value that hard work, as well as everyday life, has.
    Although I enjoy working as a team, I have never had to do much creative collaboration in my life. It has taught me so much. I never cease to be amazed at the more complex stories groups can come up with as opposed to what one can come up with on their own. Multiple times this semester, I have just been talking about a project idea and someone else says something and I realize ‘Yes! That will make a world of difference and be so much better!’ Then, when the project is finally done, I am so pleased at the results--a conglomerate of ideas fitted together to make a more perfect whole that is even bigger and better than any one person could have done on their own. As a result of this, I am able to see how important it s that I keep this up, if for no other reason that to grow and to hear about ideas that I wouldn’t have thought of myself. Furthermore, I have learned to respect my fellow film-students, they are all so talented and have a lot to offer and I know that I can learn from helping them out with projects or having them help me with my own. By doing this, I hope to become a more well-rounded filmmaker. I have a long way to go, but collaboration will be a great tool to get me closer.

Are we suppose to do this?

          Well, to be truthful, I do not know in which ways my final project does reflects my goals as a "Mormon Artist" because we haven't really done it yet.  (But a rough draft will be done by Tuesday, so don't fret!)  But, I guess I really only have one main goal, and everything else is appendages to that goal.  And said goal is: to make a living doing what I love.  If I wanted job security or something, I would have been an accountant.  But, that sounds lame/I don't want to do that.  So, wether I'm making something uplifting or just something fun, as long as I'm getting paid to do what I love to do, I will be a happy camper.  (Which phrase I use in the literally, not figural, sense because I do like to camp.)


          The collaborative process has taught me several things about my need for growth.  Well, actually it has taught me one thing for two reasons.  One thing - it has taught me the importance of knowing something about everything.  Reason One - if I know something about everything, I will be more useful to my fellow classmates; which, in theory, will allow me more opportunities to work on projects.  Reason Two - if I know something about everything, I don't need to collaborate.  Now, I'm not saying that collaboration is bad, just that sometimes it is hard to find people who can do it.  So, by being a jack-of-all-trades, I can pursue whatever project I want without needing to rely on others.


          I guess it has taught me some other stuff too.  And that is to be reliable.  If you're not reliable, you do not do your part, things do not get done, and no one wants to work with you in the future.  So, you're stuck by yourself.  (Which might be ok if you know something about everything because then you don't need them, right?)

Mason: Final Blog Post EVER...

The final project that Sam, Ryan and I are working to create originally sought to provide a closer look at the situation of the homeless here in Provo. We wanted to investigate how their trying life circumstances influenced their beliefs, as well as how they managed on a day-to-day basis. We felt it would be interesting to learn about a homeless person’s connection to Mormonism, whether through personal history or interactions with members on the street.

Unfortunately, our encounters with the homeless have not gone well during this project. On Tuesday we approached a man on the corner of Center and University and received an earful about how the CIA and Secret Service have been ruining people’s lives for years. The man offered veiled threats about the people he has killed; he was obviously not in a state of mental health to respond to our questions, and explicitly refused to be interviewed, due to the government’s crackdown on him personally.

This experience, combined with our lack of many possible alternates, caused us to reevaluate our project goals, which resulted in a change of topic. Talking with this man on the street corner, however, gave me some personal insight into the conditions in which the homeless have to struggle. I felt compassion for this man, even as he was talking about the latest men he has killed, because he was suffering from mental instability and likely had no other options at the time than to be homeless. Had he consented at that time to let us interview and film him, we would have needed to ensure that we treated him humanely as a subject. Many of the things he said were false, but that would not allow me to discount his belief in them, which was obviously vigorous.

I feel like this final project helps to illustrate my goals as a Mormon artist by portraying the charity we should try to have for other people. Not to say that I’m fantastic at respecting everyone I meet, but this experience helped me self-reflect a lot more about how I would want to portray someone with the issues this man was facing. As a member of the Church, I feel as though I have a duty to highlight the good in the world around me, as well as to strive to change situations for the better. My influence can be positive or negative, depending on the manner in which I portray subjects and the topics I choose to address, and I have to make sure that my work is conducive to the Spirit, which is an important consideration as we move forward with our backup plan.

The collaborative process of this project has helped me further understand the need for interaction with other creative minds and the pooling of talents and abilities; I can imagine few situations in life where my abilities will suffice for entire situations. Everyone has something to contribute in a positive way, and as I move forward with the program, it will be important for me to remember how much I both need the support of my peers and need to support my peers. So that’s gotta be my goal…