Creative Critical Reflection

These videos not only reflect my process of this projectc but also my intentions I tried to put out into the world. After putting in lots of care and love into this CCR (and loads of work), I really hope you enjoy. 

 My first video answers the questions, "How did your production skills develop throughout this project?" and "How did you integrate technologies – software, hardware and online – in this project?"

Here is the link.

My second video answers the questions, "How does your product engage with audiences and how would it be distributed as a real media text?" and "How does your product use or challenge conventions and how does it represent social groups or issues?"

Here is the link.

Film Opening

After lots of hard work, I am fianlly finished. This was an amazing experience and I learned so much along the way. At first, I made this film with the intentions of creating a good film to send Cambridge for my exam. But looking back, I created something that could really help others and could be used in the real world. I really hope you enjoy and thanks for coming along this journey. Bye for now:))

Music by Elysium Audio Labs Track: “Just Like That”

Here is the link.

Reflection on Portfolio Project

What a journey it has truly been. I put my all into this project. Blood sweat and tears have gone into this (literally). When I first heard about the project I was super stressed, I didn’t think it was possible.

I had knowledge on how to produce and edit a film, but I just wasn’t confident that I could do it.




I remember when we were taught about this project. I was so stressed out. The only thing I knew I wanted to do was a coming of age genre. The process of figuring out what I wanted to do was extremely challenging and way harder than I thought. I am an extreme perfectionist and I will not produce something if I don’t like the idea.




After talking with my partner, and with some of my classmates, I came across one of my classmates, Megan. I remember sitting there as she was telling me about her project and I was amazed, and she was so far ahead of me. As this did stress me out, it also inspired me. I asked her for some guidance, and she suggested a pregnant teenager.




When she told me this idea I was totally opposed. I thought “Why would I ever create a film on something so uncomfortable and controversial?” After speaking with my partner, Madi, about it and to my teacher, they absolutely loved the idea. Although this was a weird concept for me to grasp, I knew I had to try it out and trust the process.




After stepping out of my comfort zone, the ideas just started to flow. I knew I needed some sort of obstacle to overcome during this film, considering the genre. Having a pregnant teen wasn’t enough. I wanted to add more layers of conflict like the fact that she is excelling in high school, and has a big future ahead of her. This, still, was not enough for me. I wanted viewers to be engaged. I thought, “wouldn’t it be so interesting if we had the guy that impregnated her, just leave her alone the next morning?” to add a further sense of suspension. Ideas were FLOWING. And then I needed to spice it up, even more, and I had the guy be in the same classroom as her.




After my ideas started flowing, I started to stress out way less. But then, I realized I was brainstorming way too much, and I needed to start filming. There were many hardships in trying to find times that worked for me and my partner to film. Not only do we have to film, but we also needed to find actors. Then I began to stress again.




My partner Madi, really only filmed me once as we needed to find times that were more convenient for me as I was the lead actor. This lead to the decision that Madi would edit the whole thing since she was barely able to really help produce or direct. Most of the time I had friends filming me with Madi on the phone and helping make mise-en-scene choices and decisions.




Finding actors wasn’t too bad, but I obviously felt a little guilty for having them take time out of their lunches or days to help me film. At some point, I did just grab random people and teachers from the hallways which ended up working out.




After I was finally done filming, I felt so much stress leave my body. That was until I found out about the CCR. All that work and I still wasn’t finished.




I started working on my CCR’s RIGHT AWAY. I started brainstorming ideas, and I had a good idea of what I wanted, but my teacher did not recommend it so I had to get ideas from friends and obviously come up with some by myself. I ended up doing a house tour and a podcast which I think came out pretty well. The editing process for the CCR did take me a fat minute as I had to incorporate lots of multimedia, all while I was in Aruba, on spring break. It was quite annoying that I had to work on it during spring break but I’m just happy that it’s all over with.




Overall, I’m extremely proud of my work and I’m extremely proud of how far I’ve come. I think I’ve put so much effort into this project and it’s finally over. The stress and the tears were all worth it and I’m so proud of how far I’ve come not only as a producer, director, and screenwriter, but also as an actor. I think I really challenged myself with this film and I hope Cambridge enjoys it.

CCR's are almost done!!

Blogger I am doing amazing!!!! Last night, from 10 PM to 12 AM, I wrote the script for my CCR for the questions “..” and “…” That was the one that was supposed to be a normal CCR and I recount the script, but at the last minute, I decided to change my CCR idea to a house tour explaining my whole process. Without my friend Jessica I don’t know what I’d do. She filmed me from 1 AM to 3 AM. I am now on a plane on my way to Aruba and me and Jessica are editing this entire thing.

Ok I’m making this paragraph the next day but me and Jessica filmed the whole podcast scene and we did it on the hotel bed. We did a series of wide shots and then close-ups of each of us talking to add more of a real effect.


I’m scared that Cambridge is not going to understand that I’m not being lazy by doing it on a bed; It’s just the way that podcasts are filmed nowadays. It’s a more modern take on a podcast and really inspired by Jake Shane and Tana Mongeau.


Ok we’re back and I’m almost completely finished editing. I wanted to fill you in on some tactics that I used when editing. By the way, I’ve been editing on CapCut. I took clapping sounds off of YouTube and screen-recorded them for the intro of the podcast when Jessica introduced me. A lot of influencers do this when they film an edit so I decided to take that as inspiration. Use little popping effects for pictures that came up and I did this in not only the house tour CCR but also the podcast one. I still have a little bit to go for the second CCR but I’m gonna try to finish editing by tomorrow so that I can submit it.

For the second CCR, I had some technical difficulties with Jessica‘s sound as her voice was very muffled, so to overcome this obstacle, I just had her record a voiceover and I implemented it into the video.

Script for CCR #2

My second CCR video will include the questions:
"How did your production skills develop throughout this project?"
"How did you integrate technologies – software, hardware and online – in this project?"


It is not set in stone but here is what I am thinking of saying:


I finally finished this portfolio project. 6 weeks later and I'm done. I never thought this day would come! So let's recap. It all started when I joined Aice media and we had to create something called a sound project.

I had yet to learn how to create a soundscape or anything. That is when I began to ask friends and watch YouTube tutorials because I knew I needed to know how to edit sound for some "portfolio project" we had to do.

The music video project really challenged me to not only be able to edit, but also act. Once our concept was established, we as filmmakers had to translate it into visual imagery through cinematography and visual storytelling techniques. This involves selecting appropriate shots, framing compositions, and capturing scenes that convey the intended emotion and message we tried to get across.







All of these projects helped to improve my editing and filmmaking skills. I encountered challenges and obstacles during the production process.


For example, when I forgot to bring my jeans for one of the scenes, I had to reflim and it was a huge setback. It taught me how to work around a situation and adapt to changes like a lot of the scenes were altered because they weren't how I envisioned them.


I improved my time management skills by prioritizing tasks, setting deadlines, and efficiently getting all of the actors and resources I needed.




Working on a film project often involves collaboration with a team of cast and crew members. My partner and I had trouble finding dates that we were both available for us to work on the film. I had to film some scenes without my partner which made it difficult but I overcame these challenges by having other friends help me film.







Paying attention to detail is essential in every aspect of filmmaking, from scriptwriting to post-production. While Madi was editing, she realized a huge problem. There was no throw up in the toilet, making it a very unrealistic shot. To fix this issue, Madi had to edit in a way to make the shot quick and not draw attention to the toilet.



And that ladies is how you use technology to overcome errors. Speaking of technology, you might want to know how I even produced all of this.


I used YouTube to search sounds and the music behind my project.



To film the actual project, I used an iPhone 15 pro max.






Madi and I used iMovie to edit.



I actually used the Voice Memos app to record the teacher speaking and the student's responses.








I also used Blogger to document my entire filming process.



Overall, when I joined aice media I really had no idea about everything that goes on behind the scenes of film making. There are so many different aspects of film that you don't see. From picking the location to wardrobe choices and finding actors,





I underestimated how much went into actually making my own film. I can't wait to create more in the future and I definetly have way more respect for filmmakers.

Script for CCR #1

My first CCR video will answer:

• "How does your product use or challenge conventions and how does it represent social groups or issues?"
• "How does your product engage with audiences and how would it be distributed as a real media text?"

My script will include my friend Jessica interviewing me on the film.

Jessica: Hey Chlo, welcome back to the podcast.
Chloe: Aw thanks so much for having me. I missed ya.
Jessica: Congratulations on the new film, The Valedictorian, I loved it.

Chloe: Aw thank you so much

Jessica: Before we start, would you like to tell our viewers a little about it?

Chloe: Yea of course so basically I directed and starred in a film called The Valedictorian about a smart, popular, 18-year old girl named Lily, who has recently received Valedictorian but also has a big secret that she's been hiding which is that she is pregnant.

Jessica: I have so many questions to ask you!
Chloe: What do u want to hear about?
Jessica: Well of course this is a little bit of a controversial topic, so what made you want to do a film on it?
Chloe: Yea great question. actually one of the main reasons I wanted to do it was because it IS controversial. You know, we don’t see a lot of films about teen pregnancy, especially in a school setting excluding Juno which is a great film by the way.

Jessica: One of my favorite movies. But I get what you mean, teen pregnancy comes with social stigma, judgment, and shame.

Chloe: Yes, this is seen a lot in the media field. Teen pregnancy in films, television shows, and social media is frowned upon and can contribute to controversy by influencing public perceptions and attitudes which I wanted to challenge in this film.
Jessica: Preach
Chloe: The topic of teen pregnancy is very hard to showcase in a coming-of-age genre as the audiences tend to be younger like I don't want to normalize it

Jessica: Ya no def
Chloe: Because in coming-of-age genres the audiences are typically teens and I don't want to encourage risky behavior but rather promote safe sex practices and responsible decision-making.

Jessica: Yea, in your film, I think it was really important to include the friend helping her out in the bathroom because it really helped show that like you have support and people that love you

Chloe: EXACTTLLLYYYYY, And like depicting Lily's interactions with classmates and teachers, the film like really explores themes of social judgment like this pregnancy could really mess up the way everyone sees this smart, popular girl

Jessica: And the part when Lily starts to zone out... I was like girl is STRUGGLING to focus and it really impacts her academic journey

Chloe: Mhhhmmm. Especially having Jake in the same class as Lily caused her focus to really drift. I wanted to highlight themes of accountability and the consequences of past choices and relationships. It showed how symptoms of a pregnancy aren't the only thing that girls may struggle with.

Jessica: The tension between Lily and Jake had me on the EDGE OF MY SEAT. Like having him actually in the film AND IN THE SAME ROOM added another layer of excitement
Chloe: Thank you (smiles)

Jessica: So Chlo, I also wanted to ask you how your film will engage with audiences
Chloe: Yea so like I said before, our film is primarily focused on teens. This setting engages audiences by offering an authentic portrayal of high school and teenage life (emphasized), including its highs and lows.

Jessica: I think it was so smart to also do it about a teenager like you lowkey ate with that one
Chloe: Well I wanted it to be relatable to teens that actually go through this or maybe relatives of those who are pregnant and who may not see the struggles they go through.
Jessica: LOVE
Chloe: Thanks (blushes)
Jessica: I found this film on YouTube but like where else can our viewers find this film or how else will you distribute it?
Chloe: So guys I actually just submitted my film to "Sundance Film Festival" so you should definitely check that out. I made it available on free streaming sites like "tubitv.com" and online digital platforms such as Vimeo On Demand and YouTube Movies. I also partnered with local schools like Cypress Bay for classroom use and educational purposes.

Jessica: That's amazing, I'm so proud of you Chlo, you've come so far
Chloe: That means a lot Jess I love ya
(Hug)

There might be minimal changes while filming this, but this is pretty much my script!

CCR updates

Since Madi is now editing most of the project since I acted in all of it, and did lots of scenes without her, she agreed to edit the project. This way, I now have time to film and edit my CCR's. 

I'm not going to lie, I am procrastinating a bit. I'm going to Aruba on Wednesday, meaning I have Monday and Tuesday to create the scripts and film at least one of my CCR's.

The first video will probably be filmed on the trip. For my first video, regarding the questions, "How does your product use or challenge conventions and how does it represent social groups or issues?" and "How does your product engage with audiences and how would it be distributed as a real media text?" I will create a podcast environment, based off of a Jake Shane, "Therapuss" vibe and a Tana Mongeau, "Cancelled' vibe. My friend Jessica will interview me using a cozy background much like Jake and Tana do.







If I film in Aruba, I will have a prettier background.


For the second video, regarding the questions, "How did your production skills develop throughout this project?" and "How did you integrate technologies – software, hardware and online – in this project?" I will do these two as a normal, plain video like this where I create the CCR like a regular video, with multimedia and all, and then repeat the whole script as the video plays and say how it is my "special talent." I think this one will be more efficent.


I will create both scripts in my upcoming blog posts, with the multimedia and everything that I will show in the videos.