Author: kirstenmintun

I cannot explain how challenging I found this class and it’s probably not for the reasons you’d expect. Y’all are incredibly talented- every single one of you (that’s you too Dr. Kwami). With a broad spectrum of specialties ranging from graphic design, personal brand, aesthetic, photography and video and website editing, I walked in knowing just a little bit of everything. And I seriously mean

a little bit.

I tackled each task with my personal best, but it never seemed to compare to the content y’all created. I felt defeated at times. To my friends and family I am creative and artsy, but here I sometimes felt as if I were lacking a certain something. I was so happy with my final individual project, but even after our presentations I found myself comparing my end product to everyone else’s end product. I mean that’s natural right? However it dawned on me to compare my own drafts and look at how far I have come throughout this class.

I have learned more about creating websites, video editing and effective story telling.  I learned about some amazing and fun resources for the future, including thinglink and medium. I was not sold on using Medium for my individual project, but the more I kept using it the more I realized I got to highlight some of my favorite parts of my project- my writing. It allowed me to build a text based personal narrative with multimedia visual and interactive aids.

I really enjoy my thinglink and I love the video I have from Botswana. My project felt very different from my peers’ project. Yet I believe I showcased my strengths and I am proud of everything I accomplished.

//cdn.thinglink.me/jse/responsive.js

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I am not walking away a pro in any of the before mentioned categories, but I am walking away better. All of the content I produced throughout this semester got me one step closer to figuring out just what my specialty might someday be. Even more importantly I began to realize what mattered most to me. Through constant reflection I found myself.

I am learning how to best showcase my passions and what I have learned from them. My favorite idea that I had for my e-portfolio was my “Travel” page which showcases what my travels have taught me.  It also lets my future audience know that I am actively reflecting on my life experiences and learning from my surroundings.

My peers have inspired most of the content I have created both in and outside of this class. I am working on a better social media presence and hoping to figure out what my atheistic can be. I am enjoy putting work into my posts on social media sites, because I now understand the importance. I’m also having fun playing around with my brand, because now is the time to figure out what it is I want to be known for.

I have started to go out of my comfort zone to try messing around with applications that intimidated me before- like photoshop. I’m starting to see the importance of post editing and how a picture can be salvaged from bad lighting.

This class has peaked my curiosity and has made me believe in myself. I am not missing anything. I am just as capable as the incredibly talented young women in my class. Before taking this class, you all might’ve put more time into learning multimedia skills, but that doesn’t mean that I can’t do the same now. We all have to start somewhere and I choose for my start to be now. I will no longer back down from a challenge. Instead I will embrace every challenge thrown my way and I truly have Dr. Kwami to thank for it.

Dr. Kwami, thank you for your guidance over the past year.

I have gained a confidence throughout the course of this class and I know it will aid me in all of the future challenges life will give me.

Last Chance: Who?

This project has had a long life for me, considering it is something I started Fall semester 2018. I knew that I wanted to expand the project into a multimedia long form, but I didn’t know what a turn it would take.

I wanted my project to speak to all, but I found that goal unrealistic and instead had to find my niche market. Those interested in Global Citizenship are the ones who will find my site and what my site should be doing is taking the role of guiding those specific people to more information. The information I provide cannot just be listed in a aesthetically pleasing format, it must also grab the attention of my readers. I must create “unique, thoughtfully designed, premium experiences and stories.”

Global Citizenship Brand

I am now using the phrase “Explore the World” which I have incorporated into a still image that a friend of mine took.  I am using this to spear head the changes I have made in my storyline.

My story started off with how I wanted people to be able to spark an interest in global citizenship without having to leave home.  Slowly but surely, my story has begun to shift. While I do want people to be knowledgable global citizens from wherever they call home, I also want them to expand their horizons. In my opinion the way to do this is to get out of the home! There are many things to be learned from the world and the best way to learn is to experience.  I am still sticking true to my belief that people can work on their global citizenship from anywhere and do not need lavish, extensive international trips, I now believe that it isn’t all about researching from the comfort of one’s bed. In fact, global citizenship isn’t really about comfort at all. The comfort zone can be limiting to both body and mind so I have found the need to encourage people to go beyond what is comfortable. It is time to “Explore the World” and that doesn’t have to mean physically travel the world. I found that my writing subtly includes these ideas, but it is my video that I think hits the “call to action” part of my story right on the nose.

Yet again my vision shifted and I did not mind.  In fact, I have thoroughly enjoyed getting to think more on what it is to be a global citizen. The idea can start small, by trying something new and it can be as easy as trying a new, authentic cuisine from another culture. Culture expands beyond the land you can travel to- Culture is within people and luckily, the US has a large melting pot of people from various cultures and beliefs. 

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Ethos, Pathos & Logos

In a past reflection I included an infographic with statistics about the world. Now I am playing around with different ways of incorporating the data into my website, particularly using GIFs. I’m working on establishing my official color scheme so that I can utilize eye drawing colors within the GIF. I am hoping to create a sense of credibility by using the skills of data journalism.  There can be draw backs to statistically driven stories, but luckily my story has my voice.

I truly believe that I have succeeded in the task to be human, which is to “Be trustworthy, transparent, and approachable with human interaction preferred over machine interaction.” My story no longer lacks the human interaction, and it has by far exceeded my expectations for my end product. My story is emotional in that it peaks a person’s curiosity. A new figurative door is opened for my audience, because they have an idea of how they can kick start their global citizenship.

Lastly, producing this project has taught me to value logic above all. I very easily over think things and I often overcomplicate tasks. Throughout many of course readings readings, I have come across a few ideas that have resonated with me; “Users Want Clarity & Simplicity” and that less can be more. I can have less content, but have a better project, because I can put more time into what I already have.

https://giphy.com/embed/95cMvXe1i6rYY

via GIPHY

In my experience, the pre production phase and the production phase have proven to be incredibly similar and here’s why.  I am continuing to find long form media that uses multimedia and I have lists of what I like for inspiration. I am researching long forms often so that I can expose myself to the most content, templates and formats.

Moving Forward

As I have continued on to creating the content and deciding how best to use multimedia, my vision is constantly changing. With the implementation of ideas taken from various sources of inspiration, I have started to find what works and what doesn’t. Throughout the production phase I find myself constantly asking myself,

Where am I?

Okay, hear me out.  I know where I am.  I am physically sitting in my bed working on this assignment, but in my writing I want to know, where am I? Where is my voice? My story? My influence?  This question is one I fought with through my pre production phase as well, but I thought it would be easier. Essays are easy. They are informative and formal, whereas the world of writing for the internet can be intimate and influential.

I am struggling to write in this informal format even in this very blog post.  With this post I am practicing what it can mean to have MY VOICE be the driver of the story.  My thought process matters in such a personal setting, because I am what and who will make this post different and interesting- this process I struggle with. And because of that I have turned to outside help.

I have my writing content finished.  Now its about fine tuning it.  Making it MY STORY. And damn has it been hard, but it has also been extremely rewarding. I feel like the creation of content that showcases me has made me more proud of my work and my passions. I want people to read my story and I want to make a difference in their ways of thinking about Global Citizenship. My own passion feels stronger than ever, all because of how I am being taught to write the story. It’s all much more interesting when I get to make it my own story.

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Execution

I conducted an interview with Ben Efird, Assistant Director of Furman’s Study Away office and he gave me such wonderful material to work with.  I didn’t even see the potential it has until recently.  Beforehand I edited the video to fit the time constraints of an assignment and did little to make it very engaging.  I came across the same problem in the video editing as I did in my writing.  The video is informational and interesting in content, but not visually stimulating.  Now how do I put my own twist onto someone else’s words?  How do I make someone’s voice fit my story? The answer is simple.

Experience.

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I have photos and videos from all over the world.  Truly my travel experience is what ignited my passion for global citizenship so why not start with some of that footage to take them on that same journey of the glamour and excitement that then turns into something more meaningful and reflective. This is how I will make my video reflect

My voice & My Story.

 

My project topic, global citizenship, is near and dear to my heart, and started off with an educational emphasis.  At first, I thought I could merely transfer my content from my previous blog over into long form, but quickly realized that there is a different approach that I want to take.  I am incredibly passionate about global citizenship, however my blog posts don’t reflect that.

Finding My Voice

I have not found my voice in my writings.  In Ellen Lupton’s Design is Storytelling, she has a section called “Emotion”.  My writing is straight forward in step taking, but doesn’t appeal to the individual.  Lupton uses Don Norman’s Three Layers of User Experience to explain the visceral, behavioral and reflective- beginning, middle and end listed retrospectively. I have what I thought to be a clear three step story, but this idea changes how I should format and recreate the story.  I need to engage people through visual stimulation, a call to action and end with a prompt for reflection

My Heroic Story

In Seth Gitner’s Multimedia Storytelling, Chapter 2, the different types of stories are explained I think my story combined with my educational information from my blogs, will form a “refusal of the call”.  The call in this case would be to fall victim to merely the glamorous side of global citizenship without considering all of the other aspects that make a global citizen.  I would be the hero in this case and would refuse to fall victim and instead take action to fill in the gaps of what it takes to be a global citizen. My story will beckon my audience to do the same.

Updated Game Plan

I plan on applying the video I am recreating by using the interview I already have to guide my story, but not focus on it to the same extent.  I want to start with a format similar to the travel videos, vloggers often make with fast paced music.  I want about 20 to 30 seconds of this before slowing down the video and the music and flashing a question across a black screen.  I will then edit in Ben Efird’s voice to start talking and use the J-cut we have talked about. This way my video catches people’s attention, because it will be different than originally expected.  The interview part will engage in the call to action and I will end with a question that will spark reflection.

It has taken a lot of tweaking to get to a place where I am content and truly excited about my proposal.  Even since the Final Proposal turn in date, I have continued to make changes, especially when I think of ways to apply concepts from the reading.  For example, the most recent reading talks about “multi-sensory design” and I think this concept would be great to consider with music. Music is so different across cultures and would make a great way to introduce global citizenship on my long form page.  Not only might it engage my audience, but it also combines two of my passions.