Week of June 12

Well this week was beyond productive and far more than what i would have imagined. Our group got the chance to film all of our scenes for our final film last Saturday and so all this week we have been editing and trying to finish this film as fast as possible. In addition, we have to create a film for our AP Calculus class and so Frankie and i have been working on that as well from recording, to singing, and editing this all before Monday 5th period. Ultimately, throughout this week i felt extremely happy working in this class. Unlike previous weeks.

Week of June 5

This week has been one of our most productive weeks yet. My group, Areli, Natalie, Jose, and I finished filming our music video and since Areli could not appear in our music video she was in charge of the storyboards. In addition, once Jose finished editing and adding the final touches on the music video we decided that it was time to continu filming our third film. We have a lot of scenes for our third film as of now since we started early on it and so we only need to finish recording a few more scenes of action and then we can import. The editing on our third film will be a little bit tough considering how it is an action film and it has to have good or at least decent transitions so that means I have to be careful with how i edit the film. In conclusion, a very...unique...experienced happened to us while we were filming for our third film on Saturday of last week. So we decided to go to Sunset Blvd. and film some scenes of action there after visiting the Psychiatric museum but while we were filming Areli a man passed by in a bike and dropped Natalie's bag to the floor. Initially, we believed he was just being rude and wanted to drop it only but then he turned straight to us and laughed while telling us "I can't believe i missed it." As he left Areli had quickly picked up the bag and we realized he tried to steal Natalie's bag. That was a very scary experience in all honesty.

Week of May 29

This week we have been revising our screenplay and we finally have a strong plot. Our narrative is a spy action movie where i chase some villains that have done a "bad" thing but if i say the conflict it would ruin the plot right now. Anyway, we also have decided where we are going to film. We are going tomorrow to the Psychiatric Museum in West Hollywood and we are going to film our chasing scenes and more there are multiple locations we can run. In addition, we are adding more scenes on Tuesday where there is a plot twist and as of now once we have the scenes we that will be filmed tomorrow, Saturday, on Monday i will import and begin editing so that when we have the rest of the scenes we can simply add them.

Week of May 22

This week, although it has taken us an extremely long time to write it, we finally finished writing our scrip for our drought narrative. It conveys the struggle of trying to have water for the future generation and not kill off the species as we know them. In addition, we are also filming this Saturday and Sunday to try and finish filming our narrative as soon as possible to be able to edit. This film seems like a very interesting one because we have never filmed a film that addressed a worldwide problem that has been getting so much attention lately by the media and even our teachers. Therefore, it excites me to see that we can possibly make a film that has multiple shots and has decent editing in order to achieve to send out the message that we want, which is to preserve water because it is not longer as prevalent as we have grown accustomed to believing. We will have to find a group that can share a camera with us because there are no more cameras but we will try to share with someone from 5th period and we will be filming at Areli's house.

Week of May 15th

This week was not very different from the last one because as a group we were continuing the writing of the script and makes sure we liked how each scene was turning out. In addition, we established which roles would be given to each individual in the film and which people we could use as extras. Over the weekend i decided to attend the LACMA film presentation and i really enjoyed it. Our film was featured in the presentation and we were still VERY shocked that they chose our film. I liked the feedback of people's faces when they saw our film.

Week of May 8th

This week my group and i have been quite indecisive about what film idea we are going to officially go with. Initially, we wanted to do a music video about a song on The Smiths but Mr. Lansdown pointed out that our music video needed to have one type of conflict which it didn't have. Ultimately, we ended up deciding to do a PSA on the dangers and impact of overuse of Earth's water and we decided to pitch it to Mr. Lansdown which he did a few suggestion on how to make our film much more impacting to the audience. After finally having a stable and approved idea for our PSA we have began to write the script and the storyboards to which we will follow unlike our previous film, which was good but, we didn't follow our script for that one. This week has consisted of constant argument as to which idea of ours we would use for our next film and with the compromise of each one of our members we all agreed. Jose, Natalie, Areli, and myself have agreed that perhaps our next film will be a narrative on action because we want to have a bit more fun working as a group on our film.

Week of April 24

This week was primarily focused on editing our film because we finished importing the last piece of our film i believe on Monday. With the importing done, i just had to edit and areli and natalie from 5th period came into class because i needed any opinions that they had in regards to the transitions i was using on the editing. They approved of it and we agreed on a music to transition as the individuals filmed because we did not want a quiet background to be while there was a change in the person since that seemed too banal. In addition, We attempted to begin thinking of new possible ideas that we can use for our next film because we need to move quickly since we feel we are a bit behind and because AP exams are approaching very swiftly. Ultimately, this week was productive because editing is something that i truly enjoy since i see the recording come together due to my editing and it seems quite smooth of a flow.

Week of April 17

This week was the most productive week we have had yet because we filmed about four more people for our film. In addition, we had Areli and Natalie from 5th period import the recordings that we did so that the next day we simply edited. There were people that were comfortable with us filming them so this made our job much easier. We did have a difficult time finding out a quiet spot to film because when we recorded there were children and music outside that were making a lot of noise which was coming out in our film. Once we recorded that people doing what they were required to then we asked questions and all of us four were present because if someone did not agree with the questions then we had to ask. As of now all we have to do is edit and review or retake any final shots we may need.

Week of April 10th

This week was very confusing for our group because the film footage we have recorded and imported into our computer is not all the footage we need. We need to film about 1/4 more because as of now we have 3 minutes worth of footage. I have been editing and putting together the chopped footage so that it looks and flows nicely. The problem has been that our group has been contemplating about changing topics in regards to our film and filming another short film instead and this film that we are working now can be for the second fim we turn in because we need quite a bit more footage and editing to do on this movie. In addition, i have been adding sound effects and different transitions to our movie but when i tried to use garage band and create a certain melody that i had in mind...i couldn't figure out the program as easy as it may be i was honestly having trouble. This weekend, Saturday and Sunday, my group and i will be filming again to gather up more scenes and finish the importing and editing of our film on Monday. We have signed up for the cameras for this weekend so it should be a smooth plan.

Week of April 3rd

This week was all about getting to work because our film has been mostly discussion but no action. During film this week Areli and Natalie (from 5th) were adding the final touches to our screenplay and any additional lines, while Jose and I drew for our story boards. Our story boards, sadly, were not finished this week because the screenplay was subjected to change after we read it during 2nd. Furthermore, yesterday was such a fun day because we got nearly 3/4 of our film done and all throughout the process we were laughing and having such a great time recording. This is really why I like film class because one gets to record a self-composed script and have fun with peers that make the time enjoyable. Since our film is one revolving around comedy we did last more than 40 minutes recording some scenes but it was only because for the most part I could not keep a straight face around Jose because he is quite the comedian but a great actor. In addition, our filming process was efficient because we got to film some of Areli's and Natalie's parts but any small mistake while filming that either would make, we would laugh and reenact it but extremely exaggerated. Ultimately, we nearly finished recording our film yesterday but will add the last scene or two next week. I look forward to filming again and editing the final film!

March 27, 2015

This week our group has decided on our film. Areli (5th), Jose, Natalie (5th), and I have agreed on filming a narrative with a touch of comedy to it. We are doing a news report where Jose and I are the anchors and we begin the report. Then Areli will report the Sports center with any football or soccer game going on and she will seem completely lost because she will be using swimming terms or baseball terms for a soccer game. Natalie will report the weather and she will be confused as to where the states are located and which capital belongs to which state. Furthermore, since she is known for being quite short she will at some point during her weather report bring in a little stool in order to successfully point at the northern areas. Areli has been working on the screenplay and Natalie has been helping her. Jose and I are planning the location of our filming and what time is best for us all. We have discussed on the props and actions that we will be taking when we record because we are trying to make this narrative funny.

What is music to me?

Where to start? Music to me is a gateway and unrealistic portal to a sublime state of emotion. Without my personal pick of songs i cannot make it through the day because everytime i listen to my music i visualize the artist pouring out their emotions onto a piece of paper, it can instantly change my mood because if i am in a gloomy mood i know exactly which songs i can listen to and instantly pump me up. Personally, i respect everyone's music taste but i have specific taste that i would not give up for any other choice. It bothers me so much when people hate on others' music preference and they make their choices seem bad but why would someone do that? It isn't like everyone has the same music pick, that's why when someone made rude comments on my music taste i kind of lost my cool and went off on them...anyway music is a form of art that, for the most part, an artist composes with their thoughts and comcealed experiences. It is a way to try to fit in someone elses shoes and try to understand their story which is why i prefer music with deep interesting meaning. My all time favorite artist is Eminem no doubt about it! By far he is the man who has learned to take his scars and bruises and turn them into an extraordinary work of art that reaches out to me like no other. I love his way of wording the pain and struggles into entwined lines of clever rhymes and loops with a major touch of comedy. Everytime he words his stream on conscousness onto a verse i enjoy listening to it for hours and trying to understand what he is trying to paint. I could go on forever about how amazing and talented Eminem is but i would be here for hours. Another artist that i really like are three bands called Thousand Foot Krutch, Hollywood Undead, and Red! They have a way of filling me with energy and adrenline that makes me feel unstoppable and remotely capable of doing anything i set my mind to! Honestly, this is just the very beginning about how i feel about these artists and music

High School Struggles

The transition from middle school to high school is very different because in high school one begins to see that the education and material that is being taught determines whether or not you go to college, but the years throughout high school can be difficult ones. The four years spent in high school are not easy because some students have to deal with the pressure of finding a "clique" as soon as possible in order to not be alone during breaks and the concept of fitting in is one that many students stress about, in my opinion. Furthermore, nowadays it seems as though the majority of students that enter high school are filled with violent thoughts, reckless attitudes, and sometimes unstable minds which can consequentially put other students and staff in danger. It is a struggle to try and come to school with the initiative to learn and trying to not be influenced by the other people who do not care about school and do drugs. So as high school students seem to face their years in school, i think, we develop a stronger sense of ambition to succeed and follow the correct path even though school may no longer feel safe because there are some people who do not think straight and decide that violence is the answer. Personally though, i think that the music or video games that students play are not the ones to blame for their actions. It is the parents and behavior that they see at home because they grow thinking that it is fine to resolve to hurting because they witness it but everyone seems to find it easier to blame the artist/music or games because it is the easy way out without having themselves be blamed for it. School is a place to learn but the struggle nowadays is that it isn't so much of a safe place to be at anymore because there is bullying, taunting, and harassment for even the smallest things such as appearance or friends.

The Most Interesting Person

The most interesting person in my life is my dad. Everytime i am with my dad i learn new things from his childhood or life when he lived in Mexico growing up. One of the most interesting stories that he has told me that caught my attention immediately was when he told me that he use to race cars on crazy curbs near the mountains. He would race with my uncles while they were laughing and scared of losing control. I found it funny when he told me that they once took my grandpa's car to race and he found out. So when they arrived home each one of my uncles that were in the car and my dad got quite the punishment. My dad is the most interesting person i know because he knows a lot about classic cars and more. When i would ask him how his life as a child was he always tells me that his childhood seemed so unrealistic because he would do things that did not necessarily fit his age. My uncles are pretty interesting as well because for the most part my dad and uncles share a lot of the same stories but whenever my uncles tell me things that they were up to i laugh since they got caught everytime but they were not good actions though. The reason why i think my dad has a lot of interesting experiences and stories is because he grew up in Mexico and back then there was much more liberty and less restrictions from what kids could and could not do. Besides no one could watch over them so their "adventures" are quite amusing/dangerous for the most part.

Anit-drug: Need for Speed

Overall I am quite a joyful and optimistic person but whenever i am feeling under the weather, stressed, or mad i like to do certain things. My anti-drug, whenever things are not going so well for me is music, video games, and speed. Music and video games distract my mind from any problem or trouble i am having so i like to resort to those two things. On the other hand, speed soothes me and makes me forget of all the stress, anger, or gloomyness that i may feel at times. I truly enjoy driving fast because, to me, it's a sense of lightness, anytime i am driving it seems as if nothing can ruin such calm, quiet moment and the feeling of fresh wind blowing on my face makes me extremely happy. Anytime i get the opportunity to go to races or events like those that involve watching cars take off within seconds, i take it. The sense of control and smell of the sky is amazing. Personally, my favorite weather for driving is warm or cloudy because when it is cloudy it smells like if rain is approaching and that is relaxing. In addition, the warm weather makes me feel happy because everyone is out and having fun at parks. Overall, i would say that music, video games, and speed are my anti-drugs but the most effective and soothing one for me is the need for speed and the feeling of having the foot on the gas which is an amazing adrenaline rush for an adrenaline junkie like myself!

The Inconvinient Truth

This film always seemed like a documentary for me because of the voice over that Al Gore would do. We never saw him speak straight to the camera so I always recieved the impression that it was a documentary and it has been one of the best I have seen. I truly enjoyed this film because it made me realize how ruined and damaged our Earth is, this film demonstrated the catastrophic conditions of the ice glaciers and how they are crumbling down. In my opinion, the fact that in a few years perhaps 40% of the people will be in the desperate need of water due to the minimization of the water that flows down though their area is only due to our over-abusive ways of using mother nature's preservatives and killing them off with gases. I learned that in order to see change you have to participate in making it happen yourself. The factories and pollution kill and slowly destroy the thin layer of atmosphere that protects us here on Earth and if we live here we should be able to keep it clean. For example, when one goes to a friend's house you don't trash it and throw trash on the floor or damage the house, on the contrary you try to be as careful and clean as possible. That is how we should treat Earth; as if it were someone else's home and keep it clean without putting hazardous toxins and materials that hurt mother nature. This film taught me that Earth is a very beautiful, but feeble place to call home yet it's the only one we have and so we must treat it with care and keep it looking beautiful.