During my ten week internship with Luxottica Retail I was able to help the internal media department with many projects.

The biggest project that I took on was the Luxottica Internship promotional video.  I was able to see the internship promotional video through from beginning to end, working with many different departments to make sure that it reflected the the Luxottica culture and intern experience.

Bilk was a short film that was created by three different classes working together, Single Cam, Lighting and Post-production. I was part of the post production team which edited the video to create what you see here.

As an editor I had to work with my team and with the single cam class in order to help turn their script and footage into what they envisioned as a final piece. Through this experience I not only practiced editing skills but also communication between my teammates and the members of the other class. Communication was a huge deal throughout this project and without a clear understanding of what the writers wanted we could not have created BILK.

When we first started the project we had a general idea of the script, but had not been given the actual script yet. We were working on the dressing scene and made sure that, with the footage we had, there were cohesive cuts between both characters actions and their few lines.

Once we were given the script and more of the footage, we were able to really run with the story and turn the footage into a real story.

The opening scene was used to introduce the characters and instill curiosity in the viewers. Through the dolly shot of the two lovers and establishing shot of the pickpocket we were able to introduce the characters and create energy before our BILK title went up.

After we showed the movie title we wanted to increase the actions. Through cuts we showed the intensity of the lovers build as they reached “climax” as well as when the pickpocket gets his mark. We cut between the two in order to create a relationship of the respective “bilks”  of stealing money and cheating.

We used a distinctive sound every time pickpocket occurred  in order to bring even more attention to the action as well as to build a relationship with the viewer and the idea of the bilk.

One of the most complicated edits was when the lover and the husband are on the staircase, coming home and leaving the scene. We worked with the footage to create a clean, high energy exchange and build anticipation for what would occur. The use of close ups, medium shot and wide shots were interspersed to create the best build up for the exchange.

Every cut was made in order to keep the audience curious and anticipating the next bilk until the couple finally discovers each other’s secret and the audience is left to wonder about the repercussions.

Roommate Rumble was a no-dialogue final for Digital Sight Sound and Motion.

I wrote, directed, filmed and edited this short and was able to see how much effort goes into a piece like this.

When I was writing this film I wanted to create an entertaining storyline that would keep the audience’s attention and have a beginning middle and end. Since my class, and therefore my audience, was composed of college students I felt like a roommate prank war would be relate-able and entertaining.

I went a step further to give the whole piece a video game feel, which heightens the conflict and allows for the plot line to be a little less realistic.

While I was filming and directing the piece I was working with two novice actors to create every shot I needed. I only had one day to shoot for Roommate Rumble so I made it count, by thinking ahead, communicating and taking a few extra shots (just in case) I was able to get all of the footage I needed for the editing process.

Roommate Rumble’s soundscape was extremely important to the final piece. I found hundreds of sound effects and picked out the best ones to convey certain actions or emotions throughout the film. In order for this live action short to really seem like a video game the sound effects had to match what may happen in the video game world. Everything from opening doors to earning points was put into the soundscape as well as video game soundtracks to match the mood.

The time consuming process was well worth it when the final piece was put together and the live action video game came to life as an entertaining and quirky final project. It was also a big hit among viewers and was a big factor in holding their attention and engaging them throughout the story. Many said that it brought them back to their childhood experiences with classic games. They had to pay attention for the next sound effect in hopes to figure out which classic game it came from.

I have three different versions published to YouTube, you can see how much they improve from version 1, to version 2 and then to the final version I show here.

Version 1 was a whopping five and a half minutes, which was very slow and distracted from the story-line. There were some fun clips that needed to be taken out to progress the story. Cutting some of the clips and taking out others completely allowed me to create a better story that could keep the audience’s attention and build up the different pranks.

In version 2 I added a scores to the top of the screen and point like a real video game would have.  I also changed up the music, added sound effects and took over a minute off the total time for this version. While version 2 was a lot cleaner and more entertaining I knew there was more editing to do.

In version 3 I was able to cut another twenty or so seconds, cleaning up and compressing the actions in order to amplify the video game feel. I also finalized my music choices to reflect the moods and actions of the characters in each scene. In version 3 I have the point system going with some entertaining descriptions for why the characters earn the points and I made sure that the ending was climactic.

From the editing process I learned how many decisions editors have to make in order to keep their final project short and the action moving. There were many clips that I enjoyed filming, which had to be cut in order to create the best final project.

While this is not the most up-to-date representation of my video skills, it does demonstrate the creative process as well as the improvements I’ve made since my first video production class.

Granted is a movie trailer mash-up between 13 Going on 30 and Just Like Heaven which I chose for their common actor, Mark Ruffalo. The assignment was to use Final Cut Pro and any two movies to create a brand new concept and movie trailer.

The first step in this process was to go through each video and find clips that would mesh well together to create the new story-line.

One of my favorite cuts is when the snow globe world from one film cuts to the other film with the female lead holding something, closing her eyes and wishing for something. I was able to use each clip to create the wish for my plot line.

This was one of my first experiences using Final Cut Pro and was my second draft of this assignment. If you watch the first draft you can see how much my concept improved the second time around and how much of a difference even a few more days with Final Cut can make.

Through the changes in the versions, my familiarity with the clips over time and my growing experience with Final Cut I was able to transform my sub-par first draft into an acceptable movie mash-up.

This was a very time consuming assignment that pushed us as students to think outside the box and rework footage to tell a new story.

While I am using a WordPress template for my current site I still enjoy coding and I’m sure that in the future I’ll design more websites.

I am now learning the ins and outs of the WordPress template and I’m working to mold this website into a portfolio that shows off my style and skills.

I also have experience working with other Content Management Systems through my work with CCM’s E-Division. I have been able to help them update the websites by putting up media and making sure things are working.

This was a PSA I created for the University of Cincinnati’s Hockey Team. They were on their way to a tournament and we decided to create this PSA with the aid of their Play-by-play announcer Brandon Kisker. The PSA turned out very nicely and was run on Bearcast Radio.

I found out early on that there is a lot more to knitting than rocking chairs and blankets. From early research I discovered the new graffiti form called Yarn Bombing and I was very curious to learn more. After learning about Yarn Bombing I turned my blog about the knitting world into a blog about this modern form of knitting to create graffiti.

I was able to create weekly post for this Modernknitting blog for over six months and also developed a following on twitter with @modernknitting. During my time working with the blog I was able to interview yarn bombers, the woman who started Yarn Bombing, Magda Sayeg, and Sarah Gonzales who is currently working on a Yarn Bombing documentary. Through this process I was able to make connections with people in the Yarn Bombing world, work on my interviewing skills, and make Modernknitting a go to source for Yarn Bombing information through the blog and through twitter.

Even though the blog only ran for six months it reached hundreds of people and I was able to not only gain a following on twitter, but also make connections by retweeting events and art from other people while talking with and encouraging people to join in the Yarn Bombing movement.

Yarn Bombing has now become more well known and is spreading to more and more areas. It was a great opportunity to write about this emerging art form while it was still in its infancy and I’m curious to see where it goes from here.

Granny Marmalade was a podcast pilot I created for an audio class. The concept was a weekly recipe podcast that listeners would be able to learn a recipe from and enjoy entertaining subplots and catch phrases from Granny Marmalade. I created a fictional tie between Granny Marmalade and Kroger as a sponsorship which allowed me to create some commercials that tied in nicely. This podcast was created entirely in Adobe Audition and I was able to learn about the tool while being creative with this audio piece.

This was my first ever interview as a member of Bearcast Radio. Tony Thaxton, drummer for Motion City Soundtrack, was nice enough to call into the studio and discuss their current tour with me. We talked about their newest CD, My Dinosaur Life, how the tour was going so far and that they were going to be playing at Bogarts on Short Vine in a few days after this interview. While this is not my best interview, it was a stepping stone and I gained great experience.