“F Word” is a great series. The format of the series is laid back but at the same time the content presented in the videos is heavy. The series is deeply personal but also playful in the way it presents a lot of the content. One thing that stands out when I watch the series is how Nicole uses animation to share information.  Animations are used throughout the series to do things video simply can’t, for example in the first episode when Nicole and Kristan share how they met and eventually settled in Oakland animation is used to give us a lot of information without taking up too much screen time in a short film series. In addition, Nicole’s use of animation adds to the laid back nature of the series.

It didn’t take more than a few minutes into the first episode for me to feel connected to Nicole and Kristan’s story. The human emotion portrayed in the series is so honest and relatable. The series allows us access to a deeply  personal story, which I really appreciate. I have never had to experience the immense pressure this couple must be experiencing, but with every  episode I find myself  identifying more with them in different ways and I hope to see their story end happily for all parties involved.

I really appreciated Mr.Seidman’s visit to our class. As a person who prides himself in being interested in a lot of things and also having a lot of projects going at once Bob’s story is inspiring.  As we get older we are often encouraged to heavily specialize in a small set of things, but Bob’s story defies that idea. In addition to defying an idea that many of us take for granted, Bob show show rewarding it can be open to chart your own path.

Of the projects we viewed in class I enjoyed watching the documentary about the young homeless men and women of the Great Depression the most.  The director of a film obviously plays a role in the direction of a doc but Bob’s discussion highlighted truly how much of a group effort every film is. As a person still learning about documentary and story making, it was important for me to hear truly how much people like Bob do to make sure high quality work is done. From writing grants to putting together scripts, it was great to learn more about the role Bob played in making some really great documentaries.

I also appreciated the conversational tone that Bob approached his presentation with. As Bob’s remarks continued I began to see him almost as  a grandfatherly figure.  His talk wasn’t necessarily  packed with facts but I derived a great amount of value from Monday by simply soaking up the anecdotes Bob shared us about his experience as a screenwriter and producer. Bob is a remarkably personable guy.  In short amount of time I felt relaxed around him, and I got the sense that he just makes people around him comfortable. It is always nice for me to just listen to someone who has done cool things, and Bob has no doubt done some really cool things with his time.

The intention of our film isn’t to shit on Rep Freeman or anyone for that matter responsible for bringing many of the changes to Easton that we see today, but rather our goal is to bring light to the idea that there are winners and losers in situations where a community changes over time. We want to challenge young people to cultivate a mindset where they are considering the impact these changes have on all stakeholders in a community not just themselves.

How is the economic development of Easton’s downtown  affecting different citizens at all levels of the community?

Thin Blue Line is a documentary that centers around the story of a man who was egregiously wrongly convicted of the crime of murdering a police officer in Dallas County Texas in 1976. The documentary to me was so great because it didn’t attempt to artificially increase intrigue, it allowed the story to speak for itself. At first the film to me was a little dry but as I watched I became dumbfounded at the profound lack of humanity that the prosecution presented throughout the case. The documentary was a great  watch for new documentarians because  every interview was important to the film; they carried the documentary forward. The B-roll didn’t age well but the human emotion and tension produced by such a story was completely and utterly captivating. As Bernard referred to in her book Documentary and Storytelling The film did everything a good documentary does, it had a tangible goal (to free a wrongly convicted man), was true to the story, made me feel something, and had a defined spine and theme. Though Thin Blue Line was probably more narrative driven than character driven the people include in the doc all played important roles in carrying the film forward, there weren’t any wasted interviews. Thin Blue Line is a great documentary and I learned a lot from watching.

Kirsten Johnson’s The Above is a short documentary rich with symbolism and interesting images. Through her documentary KJ questioned how far is too far for a government to reach in the name of keeping the peace? The film which spanned less than 10 minutes centered around the presence of an ominous U.S military blimp on opposite sides of the world. While it seemed that the short doc took “detours” from the main track of the film every scene in some way related back to the mysterious blimp. One thing I appreciated about her film was the fact that though it was short it was a dense project. I got the sense that every shot had a purpose and tied closely to the theme of her documentary.

Opioid addiction is a national crisis; and its effects can be seen first hand in the Lehigh Valley. As a person who has not been affected immediately by opioid addiction, it is important for me to learn the ways I can assist in the fight to combat this epidemic. I want to become more informed about the state of opioid addiction in the Lehigh Valley and share what I learn in a compelling way. I don’t have a solid idea about the way I want to approach this project but I want to go about the story in a way that is unique. First and foremost my goal is to tell the story in a way that respects all those affected by opioid addiction. Besides that  there will be certain constraints. One I expect to run into early is trouble  gaining access to first hand accounts, but just as any good documentation my group mates and I will have to find ways around the constraints working against us.

Kirsten Johnson’s  “Cameraperson” is an amazing work. With just discarded clips her documentary provided stunning insight into her personality, and strung together an overarching narrative about her life.  After watching the documentary I truly felt inspired by something KJ said during the Q&A. “Do something you haven’t seen before” she said this is the idea that drove her to create the documentary. To me theses are words to live by. When we strive to create things that are unique we enrich our world. “Cameraperson” enriched our world, and will inspire others to create things they too haven’t seen.

When reading Kirsten’s statement the line that resonated with me the most was the idea of physical freedom. In America many of us, myself included, underrate the privilege that our physical freedom awards us. I grew up in St.Louis, and the idea that I could pack my stuff and leave to the other side of the county for college is far from extraordinary but it is a blessing that many will never have the ability to experience. I too hope to find a career that will allow me the blessing that is freedom. The second point I wanted to visit from Kirsten’s statement was the idea that she still has to juggle her work relationships like many of us do at regular jobs, which I thought was interesting.