Getting help from the Zen Master

For my capstone documentary I chose Jonathan Joy as one of my consultants. The reasons behind this made this decision a no brainer for me. Jonathan Joy's background is quite impressive and is one of the reasons I am thankful to have him as a consultant. After completing his undergraduate studies at Westminster College in 2003, he worked in the film/television industry for over five years in Los Angeles. This included a role as a videographer on the hit MTV show The Hills. Jon is currently as a full-time instructor in the Communications department at Clarion University.

Recently, Mr. Joy taught a workshop at Westminster College that I was in called Shooting Interviews. This class, taken in the Spring semester of the 2011-12 academic year, showed me all of the different aspects of shooting a proper and effective interview. I learned many new techniques involving lighting, head room and backgrounds from Mr. Joy that I was able to apply so far in the interviews conducted for my documentary. I am able to get constant feedback from Mr. Joy regarding any question I have about putting the pieces together for this film. His advice has definitely put me in the right direction for my capstone class.

You can check out some samples of Jon's work below!

https://vimeo.com/jonathanjoy

And the Academy goes to....

Progress is going along good so far with production. I am really liking how interviews are coming together for a good story. Looking ahead, when my capstone documentary is finished I will be submitting it to a film competition in hopes of receiving recognition. The film festival that I have chosen to submit to is the Broadcast Education Awards (BEA).

The reason that I am choosing this particular festival is that it centers around my major which is Broadcast Communications. I feel that the criteria that I will be judged on will have a broadcasting based background which I am used to having made many TV packages during my time here at Westminster. Being that it is a national based competition, I am assuming that it will be very difficult to win. However I am confident that through effective storytelling and solid editing that I will have a chance to get noticed.

Here I go....On the road again

             Today I am getting prep work done for more interviews that I am scheduled to shoot tomorrow. One of these interviews will be with Head Athletic Trainer Shaun Toomey. Toomey will supply his medical expertise regarding the injury Scott Coy suffered at the Opryland Hotel. I also want to ask him about the role he played with Coy's physical rehabilitation process. Another interview that I am conducting tomorrow is with Westminster Head Football Coach Jeff Hand. I want to get his take on what went into the decision process to keep Coy on staff. After the incident there was some national publicity given that didn't show Westminster College in the most positive light. The story was put on the internet by groups such as ESPN and USA Today. You can check out the links below.

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=3831034

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/football/2009-01-14-coaches-hospitalized_N.htm


Pre-Production research played a key role in helping me get more familiar with my topic, primarily Scott Coy. With the many talks that I had with him before even touching a camera, I was able to get a better understanding of the events through his eyes which really helped me centralize my focus. However it was the interview that I had with his wife Sarah that really helped me hammer down a solid storyline. I talked with her about the incident as well as the role she played in his road to recovery. It was apparent to me that their relationship strengthened through all the trials and tribulations that they faced as a couple. Take that and add the fact that they were scheduled to get married a month before the day of Scott injury. I thought "Bam!" now there's a story. I want to show my audience the strength and determination of two people through some of the most extreme circumstance. I want to convey the loving relationship between Scott and Sarah and show how that has helped them get through all of this.