Doing a self introductory video is one of the best ways to express personal identity and an excellent opportunity to access and reflect on my potential career pathway aspirations and my video-making skills.
Authenticity is extremely hard to define. It can described as creating a virtual community in which users feel comfortable sharing personal experiences. Authentic online personalities and brands often draw large audiences as connections are created. #ALM102 @SnibDubTv @KHRl5NA — Annie Utiger (@UtigerAnnie) July 27, 2021
Seminar group exercise summarizing our definition of ‘authenticity’.
I decided to use this digital platform to express details about myself. In Adam Brown’s (2015) book chapter, he references how when individuals typically look to engage with social media platforms, in this case, YouTube, they look to media to be entertained as a way to “escape reality” (pg. 156). Furthermore, in making this video, I intended to target my video to an audience demographic between the ages of 16-26. It was also a consideration to use this video to form a video portfolio that I can use in the future. With this being the case, I wanted to ensure my video combined a sense of both professionalism and entertainment. By being aware of my personality traits and being the same age demographic as my target audience provides me with greater flexibility to be authentic and truthful. This created an ‘Intimate public sphere’ (Smith and Watson, 2016:75) with my audience. I achieved this through being energetic and helping others my age gain a perspective of my life journey up to this moment in time.
Shooting And Lighting Plan (Appendix 1)
Producing this video was a great chance to practice both current and previous video production techniques that I’ve learned through various experiences. I used Celtx Screenwriting Software to generate a basic script that I referenced during the filming stage. I also created a Shooting and Lighting Plan (Appendix 1) to layout where I wanted the equipment to be placed. The cinematic look I was attempting to establish was of a documentary using a black backdrop and a three-point lighting setup to light the talent (myself). However, instead of traditional back/hair lighting, I used a disco light to shine on the black screen creating contrast to engage the audience visually. As referenced in Appendix 2, the composed shot followed the rule of thirds principle to make a more visually engaging shot to help the audience understand where the action is taking place on the screen. In composing my shot, the talent (myself) faced slightly off-centre on a 20-degree angle to give it the documentary feel. To get the necessary audio coverage, I used a RODE microphone attached to the camera and a Lapel microphone to get better quality sound. An XLR Condenser microphone was available for backup audio if required. Before shooting, I captured a room tone recording to be used where needed. To create an engaging performance, I used hand gestures, vocal tone variation, and facial expressions. This supported my intention to provide an authentic performance demonstrating that I’m engaged and invested with what I am speaking about.
Storyboard (Appendix 2)
In completing my introductory video, there were some challenges that I had to overcome. One of the challenges was in the shooting stage. The black background that I used resulted in the visual appearing grainy requiring intensive camera adjustments. A secondary challenge was the reading of the script whilst facing towards the camera simultaneously. It was a challenge to ensure I was engaging with the camera and not continually looking at the script. To reduce problems with script reading, I had myself facing slightly off-center, more towards the script, which allowed it to look more like a documentary style while still having the script in the right spot. The biggest lesson that I learned during the experience of making this video was the practical processes required when developing a set concept and putting it together to execute the project.
References:
Smith, S and Watson, J 2014, ‘Virtually Me: A Toolbox about Online Self-Presentation’, in Poletti, A and Rak, J, Identity Technologies: Constructing the Self Online, The University of Wisconsin Press, Madison, pp. 70-95.
Chalkley, T, Hobbs, M, Brown, A, Toija Cinque, Warren, B & Finn, M 2015, Communication, digital media + everyday life, Oxford University Press, South Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, pp.155-169.
All images and videos created by myself unless stated otherwise
Opmerkingen