I was amazed by just how much different content I was able to create in the span of a week-long project. The NexGen schedule kept production moving at an impressive pace.
I knew my subject had an impactful story, and the planning activities such as the storyboard and mind map helped me to hone in on the essence of the piece and create a narrative arc that made sense.
Natalie Dunlap interviews Hazim Mohamed, about how fatherhood and family contribute to his sense of home, at Penn Meadows Park in North Liberty, Iowa. July 9, 2023. (Photo by Zachary Oren Smith)
I am coming away from this project with more technical skills in managing Audition. The system of region marking and nondestructive cuts was very helpful in organizing my audio.
I was also able to expand upon the audio story with digital elements such as the story map and audiograms, tools that I plan to incorporate into future stories.
As someone whose background is primarily in writing, it was empowering to see just how much I could learn other storytelling skills.
Thank you to Michelle and Gabriela for great edits that make the four-minute audio piece as strong as possible. Thank you to Patrice for mixing the audio so beautifully. Thank you Josie, Kevin, and Emily for bringing the story together with beautiful digital, visual and illustration elements. Thank you to Zach for being a great mentor and helping me navigate this story.