Production Quiz Comm 360

     After gaining the opportunity to work with class members to create, produce, and edit a fifteen minute round table discussion, I have realized many things.  I really enjoyed some aspects of the entire project, but others aspects were not as enjoyable.  To begin, I really enjoyed the organization of the whole project.  I am a very organized person and work best with an organization that fits me, because organization can come in many different forms.  Luckily, the producer of the show was very dependable and reliable.  He was able to allow everyone to participate by starting discussions and gave everyone clear direction as to jobs.  Thus, everyone was given the chance to basically participate where they wanted to but no one was left to do everything by themselves.  For instance, I was selected as host and although I finalized the script, almost everyone put something in to it.  Another aspect of the project I really enjoyed was just being given the opportunity to gain experience at something I could potentially  make a career out of.  Not only will I have an upper hand on other applicants in the future because of my resume reflecting my experience, but I will also be able to prove myself since I have the experience.  Finally, I also liked the fact that it was completely student run.  The professor must have had a lot respect and confidence in the class to step back and let the students take control.  We were able to gain experience contacting guests and dealing with all the problems that occur naturally in a studio production.
     Although there were many things I enjoyed about the project, there were some less than enjoyable times as well.  The biggest turn off for me was that not everyone in the group was as focused or determined as others.  This is a reoccurring problem when working in groups and I tried as much as possible to pull people back on topic, especially during brainstorming.  Even though the entire process did not go as smoothly as I would have preferred and some could have brought more to the table, I feel that the group really came together to produce an excellent broadcast.  Dealing with a diversity and individuality will be something I will face often in the future and it is best to determine the most appropriate ways to deal with the situation.  The only other part of the production that I really didn't like was after we had finished shooting.  Because I wasn't the editor, I felt that there really wasn't much for me to do.  There wasn't another show in the future to plan for and I also felt that there was too much time devoted to editing.  The show could have been edited in a couple of days instead of more than two weeks.  After we had commenced filming, only a few people actually  had something to do.  However, if I really had wanted to I could have probably been more involved in the editing process, especially because I have experience using Final Cut.  In the end, though, a few people took over the editing and I am excited to see the final product during our last class.

Production Comm 360 Blog 5

Several weeks ago in my Studio Production class, we divided up into groups and came up with a topic to do a fifteen minute story.  My group came up with the idea to do the show on the many end of the world theories and decided to shoot the second week (April 3, 2012) of shooting, which makes us group B.  Fortunately, our producer Jonathan took on the leadership role and we initially started brainstorming for questions and guests.  After coming up with several professors on campus for the show, Jonathan had everyone write one question and two job positions in the discussion forum to give everyone a chance to obtain a job they would enjoy.  Personally, I knew I wanted to be the host or the technical director.  By the next class, he had posted job positions, and I was the host.  This excited me because I knew I would get a lot of say in the script and the content of the show. 

Mayan Calender

Before doing that though, our next task was to find two professors to be guests on the show.  Another student had suggested his biology teacher and luckily, she was available and willing to do it.  We struggled to find another guest because the end of the world is a somewhat strange topic and professors are really busy.  I tried a few different times to contact an old history professor who I thought would fit the part.  After several failed attempts to find him in his office, I emailed him but he was unavailable.  Thus, after other failed attempts as well, we decided that another student could do some research about the different theories that would be discussed and could fill in as the guest.
After brainstorming with the rest of the class, we had a set list of topics we wanted to discuss throughout the show, including the Mayan calendar, global climate change, overpopulation, and others.  So, a few days before shooting, I looked at the discussion forum and took everyone's questions into consideration and came up with a final script.  Additionally, I had written the introduction to the show and another student had come up with an ending.  This is the final script I compiled (directly copied from the discussion forum):

Hi and welcome to the Shepherd Connection.  Today's topic will focus on the many end of the world theories.  Lately, with December 2012 quickly approaching, which may be one of the most publicized theories, society seems determined to figure out the way the world will end and popular movies and television shows drive that obsession.  Our first guest, Dr. Conley, is a biology professor at Shepherd University and will tell you a little about her background. (Dr. Conley speaks) Thank you, Dr. Conley.  Our second guest _________ will also tell you a little about himself/herself. (2nd guest speaks)
-Let's begin my discussing the Mayan theory that so many are talking about.  What exactly were their predictions?
-Why do you think it has become so popular in our society, are people just looking for something to talk about?
-In your opinion, does the fact that the Mayans did not account for Leap Years disprove this theory?
-Another interesting theory involves global climate change and, let's be honest, the weather this past winter has been quite odd.  Can you briefly describe global climate change and do you think it could wipe out the population?
-What can we do to prevent or hinder the change?
-In the past, there have been several epidemics, such as the Bubonic Plague, across the globe that have killed many people.  Could a terrible enough epidemic destroy humankind and what kind would it have to be (i.e. virus, plague, flu, etc.)?
-Do the United States and the rest of the world have the resources to stop an epidemic if a bad enough one started?
-The idea of overpopulation is also a world ending theory.  Could the perpetuation of the human species really be it's own demise?
-As the population expands, more food is being genetically modified.  How dangerous is genetically modified food and why?
-Is genetically modified food enough to potentially kill off the population?
-A final theory we are going to touch on today is the idea of a World War 3 that involves nuclear warfare.  Could a world wide nuclear war demolish humankind as we know it and how?
(If time permits, other questions could be)
-In your professional opinion, which world ending theory do you believe holds the most weight and why?
-Which is the least likely and why?
-Are alien invasions and zombie attacks possibilities, they sure seem to be the topic of many popular television shows and movies?
So it looks like the world is safe for another day.  Thank you for joining us today on the Shepherd Connection and thank you to our guests for being here.      

Overall, I am happy to have gotten a chance to write a script and conduct an interview in this setting.  Not only did I have fun, I also feel that I gained experience that will help me in the future.  We are currently in post-production and hopefully will be able to each obtain a copy of the show for future reference.