This is a practice story that we did in the beginning of the year. We were practicing our use of b-roll and voice overs in our news packages. I worked with 2 other people, Grace and Liam. Some challenges we faced were the audio on the interview because of the wind from outside. Also, we had trouble with our interview so we had to redo it. We were very successful with our b-roll and the final project. We had a wide use of interviews and we took advantage of the fact that we could interview students. In their interviews, they gave very useful information that enhanced our story very well.
This was my first Wildcat Weekly story that aired to the school on October 16th. I worked with Liam Kirstein and we learned a lot from making this story. The show was about spirit week and my story was specifically about the preparation for the Pep Rally. I succeeded in my use of b-roll, but got stuck with some spaces that needed b-roll. I used a little too much b-roll from football games, but I could not get much video from last year's Pep Rally. I also had good interviews with people who know a lot about the Pep Rally, and I had a good use of music in the background of the story. Overall, I learned a lot from this story and it helped me excel in future stories.
This was my first NV Pulse story that aired on 10/23. The story was about the gym program at Neuqua called "Peer Partners" where students have the opportunity to work with students with special needs. The story focuses on the swimming unit of the class. Some difficulties I faced were filming in the pool area and having to be very cautious of water. In my story, I should have incorporated more voice overs instead of just the sound byte of the interview. I learned that I need to capture as much b-roll as possible, and also use more voice overs.
This was a Pulse Story that I did informing people about a club called Project Unify. I chose to do my Pulse on this because I am very involved with activities including students with special needs. Some trouble that I faced was not having a proper interview. Although it is important to lead your story with voice overs, I still wish I had a small soundbyte to put in. I excelled with my b-roll. I went to a meeting to see how everything was run and how many people were involved. I had gotten very good information that I shared through my voice overs. From this story, I have learned that interviews are always very important to have including your voice overs.
This was the most recent Wildcat Weekly story I have done. I focused it on the Neuqua Valley Varsity Dance Team and their first competition coming up as their football season spent on the sidelines came to a close. Some difficulties that I faced were lighting on my interviews. I should have used a lighting kit to enhance the naturalness of the shot instead of having nasty yellow lighting. I did well with my b-roll, I used shots from a football game, an actual practice, and last year's team competing at state. By doing that, you can see how much the team actually does participate in. From this story, I have learned that lighting kits are very important and I should use more voice overs.
This was a Pulse that I did in January, right after Winter Break. The lights in the Kathryn Birkett Freshman Center were changed from old, orange lights to bright, white lights. I did this topic because I am often in the dance gym with Orchesis, so the new lights were a big deal for us. Some difficulties that I faced were time crunches while making it. I should have used a tripod while filming my b-roll. I learned the importance of using a tri-pod, and using an interview to get someone else's opinion on the new lights.
This was a Wildcat Weekly story that I did in February to anticipate the premier of Orchesis' annual showcase. Since I am on Orchesis, doing this story was an honor. Representing my team on Wildcat Weekly was my favorite part of the story. I enjoyed all of the b-roll that I included. I wish my story could have been longer, because I planned on including more information. I learned how hard it is to make a story more concise, when there is information that I wanted to include. Overall, I enjoyed this Wildcat Weekly story and it was one of my favorites throughout the whole year.
In February, I did a Pulse based on what the Noise is. The Noise is a newscast that Broadcast Journalism class displays every week. Not many watch the Noise, which is what inspired me to do a Pulse based on it. I enjoyed all of the b-roll I included, but I wish I had gotten an interview at some point. Having an interview from a Coordinating Producer would have given more insight on the topic. Overall, this Pulse of mine was informational, and I enjoyed producing it.
In March, I hosted Wildcat Weekly for the first time. Getting the opportunity to host was one of my favorite memories from the year. I enjoyed my presence on camera, but I disliked the giggle that I did after every intro. Some roadblocks that I faced were being nervous on camera and stuttering on words. To fix those, I relaxed and redid the introductions until I got them perfectly. Hosting Wildcat Weekly was one of my favorite memories from the year, so I hope I get to do it again.
In March, the Marketing classes at Neuqua were all selling products every day for a few weeks. Many students were curious to why the selling was occurring, so I chose to do a Pulse on it to inform students at Neuqua. I enjoyed doing this Pulse because I got an interview. I disliked how difficult it was to get b-roll, but I am glad that I was able to get b-roll of posters around the school. I learned that getting b-roll can sometimes be difficult, but there is always something to have that fits.
As spring sports began, I decided to do my next Wildcat Weekly story on the Boy's Varsity Lacrosse team. The boy's started their season strong. I enjoyed my interviews, but regret using color correction because I did not enjoy how bright they looked on the big screen. I enjoyed my b-roll that I was able to get, but I disliked the darker shots that I got. I enjoyed the amount of voice-overs I included. This story was not my favorite, but I learned some tips from it that I would later apply to my next story.
As the end of the year came so quickly, so did preparations for the year to come. Orchesis Auditions occurred in April, which is what I decided to do my Pulse on. I enjoyed my use of natural audio and variety of b-roll, but again I wish I had included an interview. I liked how I used a tri-pod for more stable shots. Overall, this was one of my favorite Pulse stories because of my connection with the Orchesis Team.
This was a story that I did on the Girl's Track Team. The team was in the middle of their season, so I decided to do a story on their successes. I wish I would have focused the story more on the few girls that had gotten records, instead about the team as a whole. I enjoyed my variety of b-roll and voice overs. I also enjoyed my interviews that I got in two different locations. I did not like my initial shot in the story, I could have gotten a better establishing shot. This also was not one of my favorite stories, but I am glad that I learned from it.
As the year came to a close, Ms. Traut and I decided on a very interesting story topic, Mean PARCC Tweets. Inspired by Jimmy Kimmel, I was able to create a story similar to his production of celebrities reading mean tweets. I should have turned my music down, but I chose a good song so it was not extremely distracting. I enjoyed the lower thirds that I included, and including the tweets at the bottom. This was my favorite story of the year because of how successful I was with each aspect of it. This was a good note to end the year on, and it makes me excited for the stories that I will produce next year.