Hofmanlc's Blog

hofmanlc — Tue, 04 May 2010 13:37:27 +0000

In this process reflection post I wanted to detail my struggles on decisions with all of the elements that make up my digital documentary. First, I’d like to talk about the story. At the beginning, as I mentioned in my previous blog post, the purpose of my content was to persuade people (essentially to change Miami students minds about the way they view diversity and “townies” as well as change the way Oxford residents view Miami students). I think that I was too caught up in portraying my own viewpoint and my message and I think that I was forcing that. After gaining some clarity on the issue, I decided that my story may be more powerful with merely the facts–how Uptown Oxford, in my opinion, is the most diverse place on campus/in the Oxford area because it is the unification of the Miami student population and the Oxford community. So, for a certain period amount of time, I moved away from being overly concerned with the content of my “story” or message and I moved on to deciding how I graphically wanted to portray the message—whether that be through interview or through photographs. I think I made the right decision to move forward with photographs for the final project. I was able to visit Uptown several times and take photographs and I really lucked out on timing. Each time I visited the area the lighting and weather was perfect so there were lots of people outside engaging in activity. I simply took photos for an hour. Whatever felt right to be at the time or whatever remotely seemed interesting I took a snapshot. After uploading the photos onto my computer and reviewing the individual shots, I thought I had a lot of great stuff. It seemed that going through and picking out the photos that I loved I was thinking up content for the story itself along the way. It ended up that my video was being created and driven by the photographs and I seemingly crafted the text to flow with the photos–more or less off the cuff–this was the exact opposite of what I expected initially (which is rather interesting)! As for music, I had no music in my beta draft but I knew that I needed some, but at the time it was my last priority. I searched folk, indie and pop music on jamendo and eventually I found a folk-ish song with a small town feel that I felt fit the tempo of the story and helped it come to life!

hofmanlc — Tue, 04 May 2010 13:27:50 +0000

The initial idea I had for the digital documentary detailing the interdependent relationships between Miami University and the Oxford community has truly come to life and evolved dramatically over the past few weeks. In the beginning, I really struggled with simply communicating the idea in my head and overall organizing my thoughts–my struggle was how exactly will I be able to make my idea engaging for the audience and make them feel a certain way or look at the issue differently after viewing my video. When I first came up with the idea to document diversity uptown I was set on trying to persuade students and “townies” to change the way they viewed each other. I was always bothered to a certain degree the way that most students looked down upon many Oxford residents. Much of my frustration was the judgment of these people (many great and interesting people) who they did not even know. Conversely, I felt that “townies” many times would resent the Miami students for their attitudes towards them and ultimately group all the students together into the Miami stereotype (rich, white, stuck up), which is not the case. Many time, I have been almost embarrassed to say that I attended this school because I resent the reputation we have. Obviously this is an important issue to me, so I was incredibly passionate about changing people’s attitudes. After venturing uptown to take photos and really craft my story it seemed that over the weeks my purpose seemed the change. I moved away from my initial idea of trying to persuade anyone of anything to just presenting the facts. I found that my story became much stronger once I stuck to the basics—simply stating the Uptown Oxford is a place of diversity–a place of such diversity that you may not experience elsewhere on campus. I think keeping the viewers on edge and curious about the diversity you can experience uptown (for potential viewers not familiar with Miami) they will be open enough to check it out for themselves!

FINAL DIGITAL DOCUMENTARY!

hofmanlc — Tue, 04 May 2010 13:17:23 +0000

Blog Post Make Up: An Anthropological Introduction to YouTube

hofmanlc — Tue, 04 May 2010 13:12:55 +0000

After watching the “An Anthropological Introduction to YouTube” video below, I am incredibly impressed with Michael Wesch and his students. I remember hearing about this new website launch called YouTube and I was thinking what a funny name and who possibly would be interested in such a site. I enjoyed his points regarding YouTube-how it creates a new type of platform of creativity and communication(everyone can now join and participate); that the “Numa Numa” video craze wasn’t about mocking a guy in his basement, but venerating him, by documenting your own version of the song, copying him, and sending it to your friends, and they join in; and that anyone has a voice, a presence, and an opportunity for new possibilities. He discusses the variety of videos–from home videos(Charlie Bit Me!), to Soulja Boy’s user created dance moves that became a Billboard hit and played at every school dance or radio station, to how YouTubers are using the site for their own personal blog or “vlog.” It was impressive to hear the stats on his “Machine is Us/ing Us” video, and amount of buzz it generated over that Superbowl weekend-a slim 250 viewers grew to millions by that Sunday. Yet, YouTube has created a culture of disconnect, and a desire to communicate. We see this in almost every web 2.0 application, especially with Twitter and Facebook. Not to digress from the topic, but people follow others on Twitter that I can guarantee will never meet in real life(unless it truly is a friend or family member), and honestly, I “friend” many people on Facebook these days just to keep tabs(as opposed to four years ago when I signed up as a way to stay connected…well, I still have those feelings, too. It’s a mix!). YouTube, as Michael Wesch said “is an integrated mediascape.” It increases the individuality, yet we long for a community.

hofmanlc — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 16:26:01 +0000

So I presented my beta draft in class and it seemed that overall the class liked the idea and flow of my documentary (which makes it easier to move forward). I, too, was pleased with how the inital version of my documentary turned out. First, I will detail the preparation of the documentary. For this beta version I simply used the text that I had posted previously on my blog to show that I at least had a solid concept. After receiving positive feedback from Jason I wanted to stick with the text that I had previously used. I ultimately decided that photos that I took myself of the uptown area may be more powerful than interview footage (since that can be diffcult to master due to sound and content quality). I rented a camera from King for the day and I ventured uptown to take some photos about 6:00 p.m. I must have lucked out with timing because the lighting seemed to be absolutely perfect. In my mind I kept referencing the text that I had already created in Flash and my goal was to take photos that represented my content. I first started taking pictures of the park itself and the pavilion and as time went on I was inspired by different people and photographed them. I was able to get great shots of children playing on the stone animals uptown and two elderly women chatting on a park bench. It seemed that I was able to take great photos which definitely made my video that much stronger. After taking all of the photos (about 60 or so) I chose a few to feature in the beta draft. Some of the strongest feedback I received in class was that people loved the candidness of the photos (which is what I was aiming for). Once I craft the rest of the story (and revise existing text) I will be able to put in many more photos (which is what people wanted) since I have about 60 or so to choose from. I also decided that I may venture uptown one more time to take some more photos if there is a particular shot I would like to get (to go along with the text). Another important aspect of the documentary I need to take into account is the audio. I have yet to choose appropriate music for the video. Of course everyone agreed that my video will need music. Someone suggested that I should choose something folksy or with a small town feel and I thought that was great advice–that I definitely intend on taking. I also need to make sure that since I have such a text-heavy documentary the speed of the text and the length of the text is not overwhelming. I think at this point in the video (the class felt this way as well) I need to break up some of the long paragraph like blocks of text. I think my message will be more effective and “user-friendly” if I cut down and/or separate the existing text. I also need to fiddle with the timing of the the text. Right now the text comes and goes too quickly but that should be a fairly simple adjustment. Overall, I am REALLY happy with the way the video has turned out thus far. I am so excited to continue working toward the final draft in the next week or so. It seems as if I first need to complete the story, take and add more photos, modify the speed and chunks of text and add music. I should be good to go in the next week!

hofmanlc — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 15:21:19 +0000

hofmanlc — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 19:00:24 +0000

After watching Family Farm I really was able to think more in-depth about the direction I would like to take with my documentary. Family Farm was truly inspiring in its design because the black and white effect seemed to align perfectly with the story line. The story itself was rather dismal talking about the struggles and ins/outs of the family farm and business. I think the black and white effect on the video footage collected strongly added to the overall mood and feel of the documentary. I was most impressed, however, by the context of the documentary. Many of the user generated documentaries I have seen (such as the ones many peers have created–and myself) have not always been the strongest. I noted that this documentary was particularly strong because the interviews that were done were not at all disjointed. As we mentioned last class, one of the biggest struggles in this documentary assignment was to create and drive compelling interviews. A great interview is a balance between maintaining a great role as an interviewer and therefore insuring that the interviewee performs well. The interviewer must be clear in asking their questions and ask leading questions that will allow the interviewee to construct a compelling story. The interviewee must be thoughtful, thorough and complete in their answers while being concise at the same time. In terms of the structure of the interview, there must be a great flow to the interview and function more as a conversation. The goal is for the interviews embedded in the documentary to flow seamlessly (which can be difficult). Lastly, the quality of the video footage and the sound quality must be very strong for the interview to be successful. While I have considered using interviews in my animated text-based documentary, I have decided to move forward with original photography. I think my challenge in my decision will be to offer compelling photos that really add to the story and message. I will take enough pictures so I can have the utmost quality and I will get creative in the angles and effects and lighting. I am looking forward to starting the photography portion of my documentary…

hofmanlc — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 15:18:42 +0000

hofmanlc — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 03:19:26 +0000

Audience: My target audience is both residents of the community of Oxford and the Miami University student population. Additionally, this documentary could be directed towards prospective students in order for those students to better understand the dynamics of the Oxford-Miami relationship.

Rhetorical Purpose / Unique Angle: The primary goal of this documentary is to change the way the Oxford community views the students of Miami, the way Miami students view “townies” and allow prospective students to have a more diverse view of the campus. It is my hope that I can ultimately change the way people think, feel and act towards one another. Essentially, I want the residents of the Oxford community to look more favorably upon the students here at Miami and realize that not all students on campus have a superiority complex and many of us would like to forge relationships. It is my hope that after viewing this documentary, Miami students as a whole will realize the integral part that “townies” play in the economic successes of Miami University and Oxford as a whole. Moreover, I’d hope that students would stop using the term “townies” in a derogatory manner. Lastly, I hope that prospective students of Miami who are working to determine whether or not Miami is a fit can see that Miami does have diversity and Uptown Oxford is a great way to experience such diversity. I feel as if this documentary would shed new light on diversity and what it means to the Oxford-Miami community. Let’s be honest, Miami University is far from being known as a “diverse campus”, so this documentary would be a great opportunity to touch on how Miami perceives diversity and how Uptown (the central location of Miami University/Oxford) creates that diversity and unifies vastly different groups of people (not only racially but age, gender, socio-economic status, etc.). In terms of a larger argument that can be viewed as relevant to those not intrinsically interested in Miami as a topic, I believe that this documentary can shed a light on the notions of the unification of people as a whole and how people find themselves drawn to particular places or locations no matter how different they may be.

Primary Research: I plan to conduct research by interviews (and/or) original photographs. For the interviews I plan to rent a recorder from King library and spend a week or so (different days, times, etc.) getting in touch with different people (varies on age, race, gender, political affiliation, religious affiliation, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, etc.) and asking them a series of questions (perhaps why they come uptown, what are their feelings on uptown oxford, do they feel if uptown brings people together, etc. etc.). In terms of photography, I plan to spend a week or so (different days, times, etc.) taking photographs of different people or groups of people (varies on age, race, gender, political affiliation, religious affiliation, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, etc.) engaging in different activities. I plan to have at least 15 different interviews and well over 200 photographs in total.
Arrangement: As previously mentioned I plan for my final documentary to be one of text and images (perhaps interviews). To ensure that my footage is arranged in a logical order, achieves its rhetorical purpose and appeals to its audience, I plan to use post-it notes and index cards with topics that I want to cover written on them. When I have all the topics/ideas written on the index cards and post it notes I will be able to rearrange them and therefore being able to visualize the order of the documentary (this will allow me to have a clear focus). As of now, I first plan to introduce Uptown Oxford and what the area (including the paviilion/park as the main focus, the fountains and the surrounding stores and restaurants) has to offer. I will then introduce the existing relationship between the Oxford community and Miami University. I will then introduce the role that the community of Oxford plays in the dynamic relationship between the townspeople and the school. Then, I plan to introduce the role Miami University and the student body plays in the relationship. I will wrap this documentary up by depicting how Uptown unites these seemingly different groups of people.

Project Timeline: Since I will be completing the Miami documentary by myself I need to have a proper timeline to ensure that I will not be rushing to complete this project at the last minute. I plan to complete the individual process reflection by the end of this week. For the remainder of the week I plan to rent a video recorder and camera from King library. I plan to write the interview script for the prospective interviewees to answer on the footage. I plan to begin filming (if that is the route I decide to take by this Saturday). With the photos I too plan to rent a camera from King library and begin taking photos immediately. I plan to take photos of the pavilion and park itself as well as the stores and restaraunts. Before taking pictures of people I would naturally have their consent and fully inform them of the project. I plan to have a rough draft of the video completed by the 20th (the text in flash and images/interviews embedded) and depending on the time I present I would make necessary changes. After presenting my video in class I would gain feedback from Jason and my peers and then based on that feedback I would make necessary changes. I would work on those changes and have the final draft ready by May 4th. At that time I would also have the final individual reflection written and posted.

Ethical Concerns: The only ethical concerns I would have would be not gaining the consent of the interviwees or people being featured in the original photos I take. As I previously mentioned, non-consent should not be a concern because I plan to explain my project to everyone featured in the photos and take down their names and information.

hofmanlc — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 02:09:45 +0000

1) What organizations, places, events, or people at Miami would be interesting to document?

I think to gain the most unique perspective on Miami (perhaps one that has not been done before) would be filming in the park in uptown Oxford. In my opinion, after living here year-round for four years, the park uptown seems to be the only true place that unites Miami University and the surrounding Oxford community. It is rather ironic that despite the town itself being incredibly dependent on Miami University (and vice versa), there is a noticeable divide between the Oxford community and Miami University. Therefore, I find that the park uptown is the one place that the town and Miami University can share and enjoy. There is a sense of unification uptown that cannot necessarily be found in other areas of the town or university. It is not uncommon on a nice day to see children of Oxford families running around barefoot in the sprinklers, an elderly couple (perhaps Miami mergers) sharing ice cream and students tossing around a frisbee. I live uptown so I am fortunate to see these two different cultures intermingle on a regular basis—living uptown has truly changed the way I perceive uptown. Additionally, it would be neat to also document how uptown changes/evolves depending on the day or time of day. I really want to re-brand Miami. Beyond the academic reputation I want to change the way outsiders view Miami and its culture. While I understand that there are some aspects that will remain the same, I want to show that there are lots of good, open, accepting people at Miami (an aspect of Miami that is not currently represented). I would love for people to see that we are making strong initiatives to have a more diverse campus (gender, race, viewpoints, religions, etc.)

2) How is Miami currently represented on the internet (on blogs, on websites, on youtube, on vimeo, on googlemaps, on twitter)? What is missing from these representations? How would you like the rest of the world to view our town and our campus?

It is my personal opinion that beyond a strong academic reputation, Miami can be represented much better on blogs, websites, etc. Sure, Miami’s “target audience” is most definitely attracted to what our school has to offer (predominately caucasian, wealthy, cult-like fashion followings, same mindsets, values, etc.). We are forgetting about what Miami is TRYING to attract! After all, we are trying to improve our student retention, therefore we need to take the appropriate steps to do so (i.e. showing the world that we are more than a preppy party school). We need to advertise the student initiatives to increase acceptance of different races, genders, mindsets etc. through student created groups and organizations.

3) What kinds of media (video, alphabetic stories, photos, maps) are you most interested in making for this project? Why?

I am most interested in using video footage, photos and compelling use of text.

4) How could you collaborate with peers to compose media texts for this project? Might you work together to make a video about a campus organization, to make a map of Miami, to document a day in the life at Miami, to collect “oral histories” of Miami, or to explore a key question/issue about Miami life?

I think I would be interested in working with a small group of people getting video footage, conducting interviews from many different, diverse people.

5) What url do you think would be good for the website for “documenting Miami” project? (You can search to see what names are available at the Go Daddy site. We probably would want to be a .org address)

ExperienceMiami.org