Keep Running, Don’t Stop
Keep Running, Don’t Stop is a 10-15 minute documentary film that explores the notion of positivity and dealing with loss through one college student’s incredible story.
KRDS follows Tom Strand, a sophomore at Lafayette College, whose unbeatable alacrity excites and inspires all those around him. After taking one glance at Tom, you would never guess that he has battled something many couldn’t imagine. Tom lost his older brother Alex, but ultimately did not respond as many would. Tom turned the tables on his own story and set out to live his life like he wanted to and like he was meant to: with an uncontrollable smile and infectiously positive energy.
I thought long and hard about what my capstone would be and how I would tackle this project. After a lot of flip-flopping, I ultimately landed on Tom. I’ve always loved documentary films that told a personal story, one I couldn’t read in an encyclopedia or learn about in the classroom. Connections are something I value, and finding connections with people through personal stories is the most effective way to move somebody. This documentary will briefly touch on death and the loss of loved ones, but that is not what this story is about. This story is about a young man who chose to overcome such loss with radiant positivity, and sharing his story is something all could benefit from.
I have a fairly extensive history of interviewing on camera, and this will prove to be incredibly useful for me, as I plan on interviewing many of Tom’s closest friends. I’ve conducted 2 full interviews so far, and have created a schedule that will hopefully have all interviews finished within 2 weeks. In addition to the interviews, I will film Tom at track and field practice, follow him around on campus, as well as use photos from his childhood to use as B-Roll. I plan on sitting down with Tom 2-3 times for extensive interviews, and hope that he will be the talking head of the film. My older brother is a musician, and he will be writing a score for the film.
My audience is really anyone, any age. Because this film tells a personal story, many will be able to relate, and I am hoping that I can successfully tell this story all while sharing the importance of positivity in your own life and in others’ lives. Below is a rough timeline of how I want everything to pan out.
Week 1 (8/29)
-Solidify Plan
-Schedule Interviews
Week 2 (9/5)
-Conduct Interviews with friends
-Start putting them into final cut
-Film Tom at practice
Week 3 (9/12)
-Conduct Interviews with friends
-Start putting them into final cut
Week 4 (9/19)
-Sit down with Tom #1
-Film Tom at Lafayette
-Start editing rough cut
Week 5 (9/26)
-Sit down with Tom #2
-Editing
Week 6 (10/3)
-Rough Cut DUE
-Continue Editing
Weeks 7-9 (10/10 – 10/24)
-Edit
Week 10 (10/31)
-Fine Cut DUE
Week 11 (11/7)
-Edit
Week 12 (11/14)
-Final Outline DUE
-Continue Editing
Final Weeks
-Solidify Final Cut