Final project

 Instagram

This is my Instagram account, where I will be marketing my series.

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/tlm9vxz84z89zaw/AAAcWS15i7_dIUVQtpoYS5lIa?dl=0
Project Link

https://www.canva.com/design/DAFf6DHTH1g/hY1Ego_x2sXYVA5zgH1cOg/view?utm_content=DAFf6DHTH1g&utm_campaign=designshare&utm_medium=link&utm_source=publishsharelink
Magazine article 

Reflective comments

 Well, this is my final project in this course. It was difficult I will say, juggling with my senior year and this project it was a handful but a good experience I’m glad I got to go through. It helped me grow and learn. See you late!

Critical Reflection

 The Docuseries, Voiceless Companions: A Fight For Animal Rights, works to bring awareness to animal cruelty more specifically the episode I filmed is called Left A Stray. Left A Stray is about bringing awareness to the idea of adopting and not shopping. Something most people in our community don't indulge and think about, the ways constantly shopping by breeders affects a shelter animal's life on the daily.

Animal shelters can represent social groups in various ways. Firstly, animal shelters cater to people who are passionate about animals and have a desire to help them. This group of people can be considered as animal lovers or animal welfare advocates, who share a common goal of promoting the well-being of animals.

Secondly, animal shelters represent a diverse community of people who share the same interest in adopting pets. These people may come from different backgrounds, cultures, and socioeconomic status, but they share the same passion for animals. Animal shelters offer a platform for these people to connect and share their experiences, forming a social group that is united by their love for animals.

Thirdly, animal shelters also represent a social group of volunteers who dedicate their time and effort towards the care of animals. These volunteers may come from different walks of life, but they share a common goal of helping animals in need. They form a social group that is focused on providing care and support to animals, and their efforts contribute to the success of the animal shelter's mission.

Animal shelters represent social groups that are united by their love and passion for animals. They bring together people who share common interests and goals, creating a community that is focused on the well-being of animals. Whether it is animal lovers, pet adopters, or volunteers, animal shelters provide a platform for people to connect, share experiences, and make a difference in the lives of animals.

Animal shelters face various issues in society that affect their ability to provide care and support to animals. One of the significant challenges is the overpopulation of animals, which results in overcrowded shelters and limited resources. Animal shelters often struggle to provide adequate care to all animals, leading to high euthanasia rates and poor living conditions.

Another issue that animal shelters face is the lack of funding and support. Many animal shelters rely on donations and grants to operate, and the funding is often insufficient to meet the growing demand for animal care services. As a result, animal shelters may be forced to limit their operations or reduce the quality of care they provide.

Animal shelters also face challenges related to animal welfare laws and regulations. The laws and regulations surrounding animal welfare can vary from state to state, making it difficult for animal shelters to navigate the legal requirements. In some cases, animal shelters may be held liable for animal-related incidents, leading to legal and financial consequences.

Finally, animal shelters may also face social stigma and negative perceptions from the community. Some people may view animal shelters negatively, associating them with animal abuse or neglect. This perception can make it challenging for animal shelters to build trust and establish positive relationships with the community, making it difficult for them to fulfill their mission.

Making an Instagram account engageable is essential because it helps to build a community of followers who are interested in your content, brand, or cause. Instagram engagement refers to the interactions that your followers have with your content, such as likes, comments, shares, and saves. When your Instagram account is engageable, it means that your content is resonating with your audience, and they are more likely to interact with it.

Engagement on Instagram is important because it helps to increase your reach and visibility on the platform. Instagram's algorithm prioritizes content that receives high engagement, which means that the more engagement your content gets, the more likely it is to be seen by a wider audience. This can lead to increased followers, brand awareness, and ultimately, more business opportunities. Because of that I made my instagram have “This or That” questions

Making My Instagram Account

I went on Netflixs instagram so I can go through their following. I did this because I was finding inspiration from other accounts that have shows as well. I wanted to see how they title their account names and how they design their feed. I found this documentary on Netflix called dogs so I went on their instagram and took inspiration from what they would include in their bio and what their posts are about. Here are some screenshots I took from their instagram. 

I took more inspiration from other animal accounts. So here's a few things I will list that will be included on my social media page:

-Statistics and facts about animals in shelters

-Pictures of the dogs at the shelter that are listed for adoption 

-Videos of dogs having fun

-Poster of the doc posted throughout the feed

For the profile picture I'm not sure if I should make it just the title of the doc or make it a title with a paw or an outline of a dog. I'll design it on Canva and I'll make the three designs and pick which is best. This is the profile picture I designed on canva.

Its simple but I don't know if I'll stick to it. There's too much going on so I might design some other ones later. 
 I just created my instagram account. I followed animal accounts just so it looks more put together. Once I added the profile picture I made I didn't like it enough. There's too much going on, so I'll make a new design. 

Designing my Poster! :)

 I am going to use Canva for my documentary poster that will be posted on the social media page I'm making. On Canva I searched up ‘Movie Posters’ and a lot of templates came up. This is the first template I found that caught my eye. 

Instead of a picture of a man I will include a cat on the left and then a dog since it's what the documentary will be focusing on. While I was filming at the shelter I took these pictures that I thought would be the best fit for a poster. It is going to be tricky getting these to be in the same color since both pictures have totally different lighting. Maybe I'll make it black and white or I'll try to find a picture from the videos I filmed. 

TADAA!:

 

OR

THIS ONE HAS A SLIGHT DIFFERENCE

This is what I came up with and I'm very happy with the outcome. It's simple, which is what I wanted it to be. The images look like they have about the same lighting right now, which all I had to do was increase the brightness of the cat picture so it can match Sol’s picture. But something seems off, I don't know if it's me overthinking it.

Started Editing!

  Today I began editing my piece and there were small problems that I encountered. So, I began to download creative cloud and downloaded premiere once I did. As I was working on my project little by little the software began getting too heavy for my laptop so it would start to take a while to load. Which drew me back to what happened last year. Last year while I was editing my short film once I was down, my computer just deleted the whole file by itself and I was left in shock anyways, I stopped editing on my computer just to prevent that from happening. Because my computer just wouldn’t respond to anything anymore. So I decided to download premiere rush on my phone and edit it, which was so much better. It was responding well and it had no glitches so I continued with it. First I edited the interview so I cut off all the extra parts where you would hear my voice. That’s all I did today because it took a while to cut out the extra parts while making the audio smoothly transition through the questions. There were some extra questions I asked but I don’t think I’d include them since they’re kinda irrelevant to the subject of the doc. 

This is what the layout looks like at the moment, I think I got the perfect amount of footage because it shows that I am at 5:31 but when I took that screenshot I wasn't done cutting part of the second interview so I would say I'm at 3:30 now but when I added the b-roll of the dogs and cats I'll be at 5:00. I also zoomed into the interview because I felt as if the interviewee was a bit too far away from the camera so it can cause a lack of attention or disconnection with the audience. 

  I'll work on the color filter once I'm done inserting all the clips. As I was editing I did some research on how to edit certain things on premiere. Now I have to figure out how to insert the separate clips without having to shift all the other slips because that will cause a mess. I'm also waiting for Sol's foster mom to send me extra footage of her since she was scared of the tripod when I tried to get clips of her. 

  

Film Day!

Finally, filming day came. When I arrived at the shelter I interviewed Sol's foster mom and Kara who is one of the managers over at the shelter. These are the questions I asked them

While I was preparing the camera on the tripod I handed them the questions just so they can get an idea of what they'll be talking about. At first, we were filming outside so I decided to do a test run just in case the audio wasn't good, and plus it was raining a bit. Thankfully I checked and I was able to notice that the audio wasn't good. So, I asked Kara if there was a better location and she mentioned the studio next door and it was a perfect setup. It was indoors obviously and there was good lighting coming in so I was content with the location of the interview. I wasn't able to get much of my own footage of Sol because prior to filming she hit a small puppy gate at the shelter and the sound of it dropping to the floor startled her a lot so she was tense and didn't want to stay still for a while. But I still have enough footage from the shelter and her foster home. Here's a screenshot I took from the interview. While Kara was talking about Sol (who is right next to her throughout the interview) she looked up at her and started giving her kisses and I found that adorable. I might have shot the interview tighter since it is a bit far. 

  Once I was done with the interview I went back to the shelter to get a lot of b-roll of the other animals. I got some of the cats sleeping or just doing their thing. It was a bit hard because they all wanted my attention so I'd be filming a close-up of them coming to me and moving the camera. Very cute, I tried my hardest not to take one home with me. Here is a shot that I took of one of the cats that I thought would be a really good shot to include because it goes with the documentary well. The kitten is sticking out her/his paw trying to grab my hand and I thought that it went well with the idea of rescuing these animals who want and need a home badly. 

I also got a shot of this dog who to me looked very sad which is what made me film him if I'm being honest. As the other dogs were jumping and barking to get my attention he was just in the corner all alone. He didn't bark, wag his tail, or even have light in his eyes. He looked afraid to even hold eye contact with me. 

I tried to get a lot of extra b-roll of the shelter but I did make one mistake. I totally forgot to include an establishing shot of the shelter which is what I wanted but I got a shot of the door you'd go through to get to the dogs. It's okay though. 
 Overall filming didn't take long, maybe about an hour or an hour and a half. They just let me roam around the shelter and film whatever I thought would be worthy to include in the doc. This weekend I will start editing probably today, depending on how much homework I have to do for other classes. 

Progressss

 Today was supposed to be filming day but while I was in class I received this message from Kara who is one of the managers at the shelter. She told me yesterday how she was out sick yesterday and today so I can interview her on Thursday but then it turns out that Sol’s foster mom was going to have to make it on Thursday as well, so I have to reschedule the filming day once again but it just got pushed one day so no biggie!

  While we were talking she mentioned to me how I should also interview Sol’s foster mom and I thought that was a great idea. Questions I would ask her are:

-Why did you decide to foster?

-How have you seen Sol change since being in a home?

-What would you say to other people thinking about fostering?

-Is it hard to foster fail?

-How do you help promote Sol to help find her a forever home?

Interviewing Sol's foster mom would help bring awareness to the idea of fostering and how it also saves animals. 

  Since I wouldn't be able to come in today to film as I was planning, I still got footage from Kara that I'll be able to include in the documentary from the time that she was found. Here are the pictures I have from Kara. There are also videos but I'm not able to include that on the blog but it will be featured in the doc.

   I won't show too much of the footage I got because again I don't want to spoil the footage that will be in the doc, so this is all I'm showing. I do have a picture for the cover of my documentary but I will post that in the next blog since I will be planning out the font and colors of the documentary cover. 

Quick Hello!

 I have nothing much to do as of now. I'm just waiting to start filming on the 29th and think of a title for the documentary which I will have for next week. As I'm editing I will be picking fonts that I want to use during the doc. See you next week!

Sound and Shot Ideas!

 Foley sounds:

Diegetic sound: There are specific shots I want to film where I will be including some diegetic sound in

- Dog coming up to the camera creating a tight extreme close up shot: I will be including a sound of intense sniffing as the dog gets closer to the camera. 

- Dog playing with toy or bone: Include sounds of a dog biting on a toy or bone. 

- Dog going into kennel and closing behind its back: Sound of kennel closing and locking

- Long Shot of the room where all the dogs are kept: Continuous barking

Those are a few ideas I have as of now, for now I don't think I will be adding any background music because at the same time I don't think it will match the subject and I don't want to force too much emotion. 

Shot Lists (brainstorming):

- Extreme Close Up of dog coming close into the camera

- Possible long shot of dog being walked around the neighborhood

- Close Up of dog interacting with other dogs

- Long shot of dog sitting or laying on the floor

- Tracking Shot of dog walking into its kennel

- Close Up and Low Angle Shot of dog laying in its kennel

- Interviewee playing or petting the dog 

Those are my ideas for now. There will also be footage of photographs from when the dog was in bad condition but I don't have those yet!

Shelter Visit Update

  When I went to the shelter last week I agreed with one of the managers to come in the following week and get the b-roll of the chosen dog and then the week after spring break we would do the interview. So today I went to the shelter and had to choose a dog. As one of the workers Luna took me to the back where they had all the dogs. Each cage had a clipboard that showed each dog's break, size, and personality (what they prefer and what they are scared of). I explained to Luna how I needed a dog that had an impactful story that can hit a soft spot for many. Luna showed me this dog that was brought in from a euthanization shelter, they were able to rescue her the day before she was going to get euthanized. She was also blind in one eye and had a fear of males. So we took her to the back where their play area is and I got to meet her and slowly introduce myself so she's comfortable around me. I got to meet the dog I explained to luna that I would need pictures of when they came in when they were in bad shape, to which she replied that the dog I was meeting at the moment didn't come in rough shape, so I asked her if she had any other dog in mind.  

 After a while of thinking Luna brings up Sol. Sol was found during mardi gras and was all bones when they found her that immediately caught my attention because they had pictures of when she was found and evidence of the bad shape she was in when she was found. So we settled with Sol but there was one problem, she was at a foster home. So since she wasn't at the shelter we had to reschedule for me to meet and film her for next week which would put us behind schedule but that's okay. So I walked to the manager and decided to film next week on Wednesday. So that's where we're at right now TTYL bye.