Reflection

I'm not really sure what my biggest struggle was with actually making the documentary. Granted, we ran into minor problems with uploading it to YouTube at the end, but overall, I felt that everyone in my team had a similar vision for our documentary, which helped a lot with the editing. For the most part, once we all added our assigned parts to one computer, they flowed well together, and there were only a few things that needed to be edited to completely finish the project.

However, I think my biggest personal struggle was just working with a group. Not everyone was as motivated as I was to make a great documentary, and this really upset me. I'm not the type to just sit back and let someone do everything for me, and I would not be okay with taking a grade that I did not earn, especially on a project so demanding.

With all the bullshit aside, I still think that we managed to put together a good documentary. I am most proud of all of the voiceovers that we used throughout the documentary. I felt that they added a more professional-looking touch. The only thing that I would've changed about our documentary were the few things that only someone as anal as me would notice. The few grammar errors here and there and the part where we did a voiceover and the sound kind of faded out and then came back in. If we were given six months to do this project, I think that I would have done two separate interviews for each person that we had in the documentary so that editing could've been easier. Also, I would've looked for some way to make it more engaging or funny–just something to hold the audience's attention.

My responsibilities for the documentary were filming and editing, and I contributed a great deal with both. I filmed all of the shots of the RAs in Jewell Hall and the shots of students. With editing, I was responsible for piecing together the opening and the section about RA preparedness.

I'm not sure what I did to promote a "healthy" group atmosphere. I wasn't exactly nice, but I wasn't exactly mean either. I think that my role was more of The Enforcer. I told everybody what they needed to have done by the next class, and I think that I helped us to stay organized and on track. I don't think that there was much else I could have done to help the group, considering that I already think that I did a lot. I feel that my contribution was more than fair.

Documentary HW

After watching the three documentaries, I only liked the Royce White one. When I watched that documentary, I actually felt like I couldn't breathe and was having a panic attack. I felt emotionally connected with the story because I experience a lot of anxiety (mainly caused by small, stupid things), so I wanted Royce to be successful and overcome his panic attacks. Slow-mo and different sound effects (i.e. ticking and breathing) created the feeling of having a panic attack. The director did a great job of using shaky cam and silence to make viewers feel like they were a part of the film.

Although not to the extent of the Royce White documentary, I thought that the director of Korean Netiquette also was effective in making viewers connect with the film. We've all been through elementary school, so that was easy to connect with. Not to mention, our generation revolves around the internet, primarily social networking, which has created the need for netiquette. I remember being in the third grade in computer class and playing games that taught my peers and I how not to be cyber-bullies and what to do in the case of being cyber-bullied. The content was relatable, therefore, the documentary held my interest. I really liked the close-up shots of students using the computers and the children singing the song towards the end–it made me feel like I was back in elementary school again. Also, I liked that the narrator (or whoever he was) was in the film, since there wasn't any shaky cam to show that the film crew was there. Overall, the documentary felt very National Geographic or almost like a news report. I was disappointed that it was so short. I thought that there would have been more to the story.

I liked The Archive the least. I think this simply has to do with the fact that I don't care for records nor do I understand their value, so it wasn't something I could easily relate to. Also, I don't think the green/yellow filter added anything to it. Yes, I understand the feeling of nostalgia, but for me it just made the documentary even more boring and dull. Let's face it, in our generation, no one likes old people! They're too slow, and they always nag you. The use of still shots during interviews and shots of records playing added to the dullness. The director was effective in creating a sense of hopelessness; however, it wasn't something I enjoyed watching. I thought that the best part of the documentary was in the beginning when the man said, "Something this old must be worth a lot." This was the punch line of the entire documentary and was a great attention grabber. The Royce White documentary had somewhat of a similar attention grabber when he discussed panic attacks, but the Korean Netiquette documentary just kind of jumped into the meat of the discussion. Though they varied in style, all of the documentaries were effective in conveying their messages.

Podcast Interview Plan

Our group decided to do our podcast on R.A.s, specifically those of south campus. We hope to find out what exactly goes into being an R.A. and what kinds of things they deal with on a daily basis. We assigned roles as follows:
Evan: Interviewer
Kimberlyn: Interviewer/Scriptwriter
Kristina: Editor/Host
Shawnee: Editor/Host
Taylor: Interviewer
Our interviewers are going to interview about 4-5 R.A.s (male and female), students in the dorms, and a hall director. All interviewing will be finished by Sunday evening to allow enough time for audio editing. The following questions will be asked during all interviews:

1. What sparked your interest in becoming an R.A.?
2. Why did you decide to become an R.A.?
3. Did you have to give up anything to be an R.A. (i.e. sport, club, other job, etc.)?
4. What is the most difficult part of being an R.A.?
5. How do you balance your time with work and classes?
6. What advice would you give to others who are interested in this position?
7. What is the weirdest/most unexpected thing that has ever happened to you as an R.A?
8. Can you tell a story of a time where you had to deal with a serious situation and the outcome of it?
9. What are some of the benefits of being an R.A.?
10. How do R.A.s and hall directors work together?
11. Do you feel like you are a part of a community?
12. Do you feel more like an enemy to residents in the hall or a friend?
13. What is your least favorite aspect of this position?
14. How often are you allowed to go home?
15. Do you ever get lonely living in a room by yourself, or do you enjoy it?
16. Do you plan on being an R.A. next year or advancing to another position?

Scene Depiction Essay: UK Anime Club

            I chose to observe the UK Anime Club. Though I can’t say that I was particularly interested in this group, I can say that I was curious to see how they interacted with each other. Considering the stereotypes, I assumed that they would be a close group of nerds, people who looked to Anime because there wasn’t enough excitement in their real lives. Prior to attending the club meeting, I wanted to get a feel for exactly what to expect. Do people dress up to these kinds of events? What do they do at meetings–draw Anime pictures? And most importantly, am I going to stick out like a sore thumb? While confirming the meeting date with the club president, Ben, he informed me that any questions that I had could be answered by viewing the club website, UKAnime.org, so indeed, I did.

            The homepage of UKAnime.org was expected: anime cartoons and the usual tabs (i.e. “Home,” “Calendar,” “About Us,” etc.), but there was a section for upcoming events as well. Low and behold, there it was: Tuesday’s meeting description. I gathered that we would simply hang out and watch some anime; however, I also noticed that each week there was an optional club dinner in which they would hook up an hour before the meeting to chat and eat at the restaurant of the week. Not having had my fill of snooping, I decided to click on the “About Us” tab. Skimming the paragraphs, I noticed a link saying “You Can View Our Constitution Here.” Wow, these people really have a constitution… This must be more serious than I thought. Proceeding to the constitution, I read Article I which indicated, “This entity shall hereby be known as UK Anime.” Wow, they really weren’t playing when they said they have a constitution. Hmm… I smell nerds. Continuing my research, I looked at the calendar next.  Apparently, they had an Anti-Valentine’s Day party. Oh no, I love Valentine’s Day. Maybe they just don’t have valentines to share the day with. What am I getting myself into? I have nothing in common with these people.

            Tuesday evening finally rolled around, and I couldn’t help but feel a little nervous. I didn’t want to arrive too early, and I definitely didn’t want to be late, so I showed up to the student center about ten minutes early sporting my usual, drab look: sweatpants, Uggs, and an oversized hoody. I made my way to room 111, my nerves growing with the passing of each room in the poorly lit hallway. I could see a small puddle of light ahead of me on the hallway floor, which signified that the door to the room was open. Chatter from the room grew louder and louder as I inched my way closer. Taking a deep breath, I walked into the room and immediately scanned the crowd for Ben. Though I wasn’t sure what he looked like, my common sense told me that he was the guy sitting on the table at the front of the room as I walked in. Hah, I found him, and I didn’t even have to ask anyone. Turning to my right, I flashed a polite smile and said, “Hi, Ben?”

“Yes,” he said shaking my hand.

“I’m Shawnee, I’m here to observe.”

“Ah, yes. Please have a seat, and I’ll introduce you to everyone.”

I made my way to a seat in the back corner. Surveying the room, I noticed its odd shape: it was longer than it was wide. Three long rows of chairs spanned the length of the room with a projector dividing all three rows down the middle and a projection screen on the front wall. Smells of Subway and Panda Express, an unlikely combination, filled the room. Roughly 15 to 20 people were evenly dispersed throughout the three rows, some huddling together in the front row and others in the middle and back. Two rows ahead of me sat a pale girl with vibrant green hair. Not many can pull off the look, but surprisingly, she did. Scanning the rest of the room, I also noticed a fellow dressed with a Viking wig and hat­–interesting. Everyone else passed as normal.

I relaxed significantly once I realized that I wasn’t over- or underdressed and no one was awkwardly staring at me. The sound of talking and laughter was comforting: no one paid me any attention, and that was how I wanted it to be. The conversations varied from talk of the latest Anime films to that of boring people and alcohol. One girl in the front said, “If you have to drink to have fun, then you must be a boring person.”

To which another girl replied, “Maybe it’s not that they have to drink to have fun. Maybe they drink to change the people around them and make them more interesting.” I found amusement in this idea because Anime is so fantastical, almost how perception is when people drink. Submerging oneself in an Anime film for a few hours could surely make one think that they are apart of this fantasy world.

To the left of me, there was a guy with an open laptop controlling the projector, which played Anime music videos of some sort. As soon as one would finish, he attentively played another. The pattern continued for some while until I saw Ben stand to call the room to attention. He began rambling on about T-shirt orders: “If you have not yet submitted your T-shirt order form, then please do so soon… We are also accepting designs for next year’s shirts… Next week, we will be watching… Before club, we’re eating at… Oh, yes, and we have a guest today,” he said motioning towards me. I shyly waved to everyone.

At the conclusion of his opening words, he hit the lights, took a seat on the same table up front, and the movie began. Some people left once the movie started, but at least they showed their faces at the meeting. Ben pulled out his laptop and dimmed the screen; I guess not even homework would keep him from attending the club. Looking around the dark room, I noticed that several others had their dimmed phones and laptops out too.

The movie was completely in Japanese. I figured that out from the recurring picture of Japan–good thing I took geography in middle school. At first, it was difficult to get into the movie, but after a while, I adjusted to the subtitles and the over exaggeration of all the characters. In one scene, the bad guy jumped down two stories and dramatically flicked his hair, all while puffing on a cigarette. No broken ankles or anything. Regardless, everyone really seemed to be enjoying the movie. One girl even had her bare feet propped up on the chair in front of her. Once Ben finished with his laptop, he spread out across four chairs in the front row, crossing one foot over the other and using his backpack as a pillow. Since everyone else was comfortable, I was able to loosen up and get comfortable too. For a while, I almost felt like I was a part of the club. However, there were moments when everyone would laugh hysterically, and I had no idea what was so funny. I laughed along anyways. When in Rome, do as the Romans do. And I got lost in the film.

At one point in the movie, the protagonist’s cat turned into a naked woman that followed him around all the time. A female voice on the opposite side of the room spoke out, “I don’t understand why they always have to have half-naked women in these movies. Why aren’t there ever any naked guys?? This is so sexist!”

A male voice responded, “Because it’s a male-dominated industry. Guys like naked women, get over it!”

“Fine, if you all want to sit around watching naked girls, then I’m out of here!” At this, the girl gathered her things and stormed out. There appeared to be a unanimous shrug, almost as if everyone was thinking, Oh well, she’ll be back next week. One monkey didn’t stop the show. The movie continued on. Some people showed up late, and others that had left earlier returned.

Finally, the movie concluded. Ben stood up for some closing words: “Don’t forget next week… T-shirt order forms… Again, we’re eating at…” With that everyone slowly stood up and gathered their belongings, some stretching, others yawning. It was late and time to go home. Some people stayed back to talk, but a few others and myself moseyed out the door. I arrived while it was still light out, and I left in the dark.

Peer Review Feedback

Since I didn't have a rough draft of my paper for Tuesday, I wasn't able to get any suggestions on it. However, I do plan on having a friend read over my paper before I turn in my final draft. I think I will begin my essay by explaining some of the research I did before attending the anime club meeting and then describe my experience. I want to do it this way because I think that it is important for me to let readers know about the anime club website and things like their calendar and amendment. Yes, they have an amendment and it's pretty legit.

As a reviewer, I'd say that I gave Whitney some useful advice. I can't help it; I did give some suggestions for rephrasing sentences and correcting grammar and punctuation. I also mentioned that she should go into further detail on some things (i.e. BSU meets at 4:34, why such a specific time? More detail on the game they played at the beginning of the meeting and how it demonstrated how STDs spread). Additionally, I told her about some issues that I had with the organization of the first two paragraphs. I felt that she should have one paragraph of solely background information and then discuss going to the meeting so that readers wouldn't get confused.

In all, I think peer review was successful for Whitney and I. I really took my time and examined each aspect of the paper so that I could give her the best advice that I could. Next time, I think that everyone should peer review in groups of three. I also think you shouldn't let us leave early; I think everyone should take more time to read through their partners essay.

Peer Review

From past experiences, I have learned that peer review can either be extremely helpful or a complete waste of time. When someone peer reviews a paper of mine, I want them to look for the slightest errors and question everything that I've written. If I need some punctuation, tell me. If something that I've written is unclear or just simply ridiculous, tell me. And give it to me raw. I don't need someone to sugar-coat things or stroke my ego, and I think peer review often turns into that.

The goal of peer review is to give others constructive criticism on their papers. However, I think that peer review can be unsuccessful when a bad writer is paired with a good writer. The good writer can find everything wrong with the bad writer's paper, while the bad writer can't find anything wrong with the good writer's paper. No one has a perfect paper. Good writers need feedback too. Maybe if bad writers were paired together, then they could offer each other more constructive criticism. I guess it isn't exactly fair to break everyone up into good writers and bad writers, but maybe if we peer reviewed with two other people instead of just one, then everyone could get enough comments to revise their papers and make them great. With that said, I would prefer that you pick our peer review groups and pick groups that you think could give each other good advice. After all, you read everyone's writing, so you would know best.

As a reviewer, I'd say the only thing that I need is enough time to read through a paper. I hate speed-dating styled peer reviews. It takes me a good 15-20 minutes to read through something, correct grammar, and make suggestions for the overall piece. Oh, and it really helps to have a print copy. I like being able to write on the paper.

Finding Nemo Scene Depiction

I chose to do one of my favorite movies, Finding Nemo!

Resting in his anemone, Merlin is awakened by an excited Nemo. "First day of school! First day of school!" Nemo exclaims as he urgently nudges his father to wake up. Nemo, eager to go to school, swims circles inside of the anemone until he accidentally launches himself out of it and into a surrounding tube thing (sorry, I'm not sure what it's called). At this, Merlin instantly awakes and rushes to pull Nemo, who is still saying "first day of school," out of the tube. After rescuing him, Merlin asks Nemo how many stripes he has, to which Nemo replies, "Three."

Merlin proceeds to go through the usual, worried parent checks: "Are you sure you want to go to school this year? You know you can wait another five or six years." Rolling his eyes, Nemo tugs his dad to take him to school. Before leaving, Merlin reminds Nemo, "You forgot to brush." Nemo quickly brushes, and the two are off to school.

Scene Depiction Essay Plan of Action

So... The Quidditch team was a fail. They are seriously impossible to track down. I haven't completely given up on them, but I have decided to do something a bit more realistic I guess.

I'm going to observe the opera singers/theatre kids. I see them around in the cafeteria a lot, so I think it would be easier for me to contact them. I have already emailed the director and asked if I could observe, so now I'm just waiting for a response. Because there is a show coming up on March 1, it should be relatively easy to get to a practice or meeting within the next week or so (if I'm granted permission). I have not yet asked if I can take pictures, but I plan to if the director emails me back.

I chose this group because I've always had an interest in theatre, but I'm horrible at singing and acting. Also, since these people perform with each other, I'm sure that they are all very close and good at improvising, as it is necessary if someone forgets a line or something like that. I want to observe the relationships they have with each other and the role that that plays in how they perform.

Speech Analysis

Do I really sound like that?? Ew... It was so weird watching myself. I had to watch it a couple times to get used to it, but overall, I think I am pleased with my performance considering that I didn't have a lot of time to prepare and rehearse. My goal was to really make my speech conversational. I wanted to get up there and make it seem like I do public speaking everyday–what's the big deal? In fact, before I went up, I said to myself, You know, Beyonce does all the time... If Beyonce can do it, I can do it too!

But anyways, back to the analysis. I definitely think I could have walked around more. The room is kind of awkward, and I didn't want to block the projector, but I thought that Brandon was effective in the way he moved around. I noticed that I kind of started rocking back and fourth, so I would like to have been able to correct that while practicing. Also, my posture could've been better. I guess it got lost in the act of trying to make my speech conversational.

Lastly, I think I struggled a bit with my content. I felt that my thesis statement and conclusion were weak, and I'm still not exactly sure what my common thread was... But like I said, I'm still satisfied with my performance. I don't think I came off as too nervous.

Speech Outline

Ethos: My credibility comes from me telling stories about myself. Who is anyone to say I'm lying? As far as presentation goes, I'm going to try to move around the room more. During my last speech I was pretty stationary. I also want to talk with my hands more just to seem more comfortable to my audience.

Pathos: I will establish an emotional connection with my audience by telling relatable stories. I want to avoid telling any sad stories. If anything, I'd like to add a bit of humor to my stories (a laugh at my pain kind of thing), but above all, I just plan to keep it real and make myself vulnerable by being honest and not building myself up too much.

Logos:

I. Intro
  a. Hook: Some call it schizophrenia, others call it multiple personality disorder, but I call them Shawnee and Shawndra.
  b. Thesis: Shawnee and Shawndra are polar opposites, but they make up the person you see today.

II. Body
*Transition* The two constantly go head-to-head, and a lot of the times Shawnee comes out on top...
1) Main Idea: ...Particularly, in school.
    i. In school, Shawnee prevails. She is respectful to others and devoted to her studies. At times she's too hard on herself, but it's only because she won't settle for second place.
      -(Story about second chemistry exam last semester). In short, I studied like crazy. When my teacher was just explaining what was going to be on the exam, I started hyperventilating. I thought I was totally going to fail, and I got an A.
    ii. On the other hand, Shawndra lives by the saying, "YOLO." She insists that Shawnee wastes too much time studying when she could be out living... or doing something unproductive.
      -In middle school, all the cool kids were sent to ISAP, and Shawndra tried to find ways to act up and get sent to ISAP, too. I even asked a teacher if I could just go for shits and giggles and she told me no.
      -During finals week, Shawndra came out and was like "Woohoo! Let's pack and get the hell outta here! Forget finals!" ...But luckily Shawnee came back and got focused.
*Transition* ??

2) Main Idea: Shawnee also wins a lot of battles when it comes to dealing with family.
    i. Ever since I was a kid, my family talked to me like an adult. I was always in "grown folks" business, but it's only because I was mature. From an early age, they trusted that Shawnee would be responsible and do the right thing.
      -I'm like my family's last hope. My sister is 22 and already has two babies. My brothers are 21 and 27 and don't know what to do with their lives. No one in my family has gone to college, and now that I'm going my family pressures me to get good grades and get a degree. I think it's because of all this that Shawnee is like the "golden child," but I never asked to be.
    ii. Shawndra doesn't like all this pressure so she acts out in small ways... or at least contemplates it.
      -My grandma gave me the key to her car when I was 16. Shawndra always thought about how easy it would be to take the car out without her even knowing, but Shawnee was the voice of reason.
*Transition* Although Shawnee wins battles with school and family,...

3) ...Shawndra has more of a winning streak when it comes to my social life.
    i. Shawnee is really shy. It might be safe to call her lame.
      -On prom night, I didn't even dance with my boyfriend because I was too shy.
    ii. BUT, if it weren't for Shawndra, I wouldn't even be with my boyfriend. Shawndra gets stuff done.
      -(Story about how me and my boyfriend met). Me and my friends were at the basketball court. I saw my (now) boyfriend and approached him–something Shawnee would never have the balls to do.
    iii. Historically black colleges and universities tour
      -I was forced into a situation where I didn't know anyone, and thanks to Shawndra, I was able to come out of my shell and make a bunch of new friends.

Repeating Image/metaphor: ?? Owen, we need to chat tomorrow.

III. Conclusion: Though it seems like I can be two completely different people at times, in reality I'm just one.

Any Given Sunday Speech

In Any Given Sunday, the head football coach, Al Pacino, gives his players this motivational speech at the halftime of a big game. Their team is losing and players are injured, so second-string players have to step up and bring the team a victory.

Al Pacino's ethos comes from the fact that he is the football coach. He is someone who these football players and the audience trust. Not to mention, he is wearing a suit so that adds to his credibility. Obviously, the topic of his speech is relatable since they're at a football game and from watching the movie, so is the audience. Pacino also moves around in the front of the locker room, uses a lot of eye contact with the football players, and uses his hands well.

The football players can connect with Pacino because he makes himself vulnerable by admitting, "I pissed away all my money...and lately, I can't even stand the face I see in the mirror." He then tells them that life is a game of inches and relates the idea to football: "One half second too slow or too fast, and you don't quite catch it."

Next, he starts yelling at the players and getting them fired up (notice the guy whose eyes are practically bulging out of his skull). But then he brings his voice back down and ends by asking, "Now, what are you gonna do?" This was his call-to-action.

His speech was well organized. In the beginning, he gives the team two options: 1) to heal as a team, or 2) crumble. They can either stay in "hell" or "fight [their] way back." Throughout the speech, he references distance, specifically inches, and this is the repetition aspect of the speech. There is also good flow in the speech. Al Pacino seems as if he's just casually talking for most of it. In all, this speech is very effective and has many qualities of a good speech.

Baaa!

Personally, my style has always been kind of preppy (although you all usually only see me in sweats). As of the past two or three years, I have noticed a dramatic increase in the number of black people wearing Hollister and Abercrombie & Fitch; but honestly, I think it's just a new fad. Regardless of race, humans are blind sheep. I think this article just magnifies this humanistic quality in blacks.

I've lived through the eras of FUBU, Roca Wear, Abercrombie & Fitch, True Religion, etc. Us little people follow stupid things that famous celebrities do all the time. For instance, A$AP Rocky was seen on 106 & Park wearing a dress...   -____-    ....Let's see how long it takes for more guys to wear dresses. It may not be tomorrow, or even three months from now, but you just wait!

http://gossiponthis.com/2012/12/11/asap-rocky-basically-wore-dress-bet-106-park/

It took over a decade for people to bite Dennis Rodman's style. We all looked at him like he was crazy, but now Chris Brown and Wiz Khalifa are somehow cool..?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dennis_Rodman

http://www.christianpost.com/news/chris-brown-reveals-blue-hair-not-attending-vmas-photo-80852/

Morris mentioned that for some athletes, this new preppy style is insincere. A lot of trends are. For some reason, a few years ago we convinced ourselves that Crocs were okay to wear out in public. Crocs are the most hideous things I've ever laid eyes on. But I am happy that the current trends are more appropriate for perhaps a job interview. Employers wouldn't even think twice about hiring someone who came into an interview with their pants pulled down to their ankles.

I think that the more influential black figures are finally stepping up and showing the black youth how affluent people, or those who aspire to become affluent, present themselves. Notice that more and more blacks are attending college. The whole "Fight the Power" mindset was great for getting people fired up, but the real way to "Fight the Power" is to put oneself in a position to be "The Power." Word to yo mama!