Reflection+3


 * Reflection 3 **

Post a critical review about how you (as students) could improve the Shakespeare video. Be sure that your reviews are organized logically and consistently and your ideas reflect what you are actually willing to do next time we try a similar concept.

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I felt that the video was really good, for a first attempt of our own filming. The only problem was that many people's facts about Shakespeare were not posted on the video. It would have been better if everyone's facts were on the video. Also, as all of us said two facts, mostly one fact from each person that was on the video was posted. Overall, the video was very good and very enjoyable. The background noise was a slight disturbance, but it can be fixed for next time. Good job guys! ~ Birunthaa

I felt that this video turned out fairly good, although I still don't like my clip. But I also felt that it was slightly repetetive and possibly in the future we could try to get everyone to do different points. But over all I feel it went well. -Kevin Lee

I think that this video was a valiant attempt for one. However, the video felt rather disorganized with its difference locations and it was often difficult to hear exactly what everyone said. The points should have been arranged in some way so there seems to be a chronological order to the life and times of Shakespeare. The points should have been better organized when presented but other than that, the video was done very well. -Frank

For a first-time of a student organized class project, it was pretty good compared with the one on boy's literacy. As individuals, we should practice our lines more or have someone hold up a script next to the camera like a teleprompter as that is a good use of having group members. The video also reflects our productivity working together because not all groups finished all of their facts. Another factor that may have affected that was the amount of background noise that was lingering around. Because the class split into 4 separate groups, the facts that were to everyone's general liking were often repeated. Everyone in the class would generally choose some short facts that would be easily memorized and recited without fail. Although this was a good idea for the amount of time we were given, it also proved that many people did not want much of a task. Overall, it was very well done and I enjoyed watching the video. - Michael (309)

The format we choose to structure the videotaping did not really suit the product. Since the taping was split up amongst multiple groups, without any clear guidelines throughout, the videos were not consistent in terms of sound quality and angling. Additionally, because no prepping was made between the groups, separate groupings ended up producing overlapping statements (Such as the line on homo-erotic poetry), resulting in the scrapping of several videos. Assuming we redo the experiment while following the same format, we should at least publish the videos separately. I think, anyway. It was good overall. -Alan.

I think the idea may have worked better if there was better communication between the four groups and which lines were being said. The organization in the order of lines being said could've developed some structure as well, giving the video better flow through different lines. On the matter of lines being said, this also would've prevented the issue with redundancy found when several lines were repeated (especially the bisexual and homo erotic lines). The sound quality in the videos filmed within the classroom also could be improved, perhaps with people speaking clearer, and a reduction in the background noise. A way to avoid this could possibly have different groups film in different places, so no two groups would be in too close of proximity with one another.I think certain groups had a better delivery of lines, as well as a more creative use of their backdrops. I also think some people might not have been very comfortable in front of a camera, or lacking confidence, which would've helped a couple performances. And a more technical point I want to make is the fade between the videos, sometimes the audio overlaps, and I think a straight cut would work better.

However, there were also some outstanding performances among the countless clips, especially the group filming in the stairwell. I think they had a creative use of their environment and camera angles to create some variety in their shots. Perhaps an Oscar or two would be good.

-SingYu

I think everyone's individual parts were good however we could've worked better together as a class. The four groups should have collaborated so that no lines were repeated. We could have worked together to reduce background noise as well. For example, the two groups in the classroom could have taken turns in who was recording so that there was complete silence. What i did like about the video was the change of scenes and angles. They made the video more interesting to watch. -Julie

A Critical Review by Johnson Qian

Hello. I think if we all organized ourselves as a class and each came up with a separate individual line, it would've seemed not so awkward when someone said the same line, and the viewers of the video will not get confused as much, maybe thinking we made an error. I like the idea of the different scenery, it makes the video look less boring because theres something new to expect. Although I think time was wasted, if more time was spent rehearsing the lines I also think the delivering of lines would be much clearer and more enthusiastic. Maybe when video editing, a little twist or two could be made to perhaps make the video more amusing or cool so it wouldn't seem like every person just stood and read a line. Presenting the topic of Shakespeare might be hard to get people to into it (well me at least), but I do like the fun facts about his sexuality in there, along with a couple weird ones like the way he spelt his name. Not just some random line from his autobiography.

Despite all this, I did enjoy the video. It still seemed like time well spent and it was fun making it too. The idea of a montage is excellent within a class to get everyone involved. So this video=good

I think that for a first effort, this video wasn't too bad. I found that for some scenes, the background noise was somewhat distracting. I also think that as a class, we should have agreed on who would've done which lines, because some of the lines were repeated. Also, some people weren't looking at the camera (myself included) so I think we should have memorized our lines instead of holding the script next to the camera. Other than that, I think this was a fun way to learn a little bit about Shakespeare, and overall, the video was pretty good. -Tim

In my opinion, this video was definitely less organized than our last one. With the last video, every person in the class had a unique line to say that all contributed to the topic of the video. However, in this video, there were many lines that were repeated by different classmates. To improve this, we could have collaborated as a whole class, and organize the lines so that no line was repeated. If we collaborated as a whole class however, there should be definite roles assigned to individuals to keep everyone in order and to make sure that we finish the task properly and on time. I definitely agree with many of the other reflections from above, as the sound could be improved, as well as being more confident in front of the camera. If these improvements can be made for the next video our class makes, I think that it will be much better. - vivian

I felt that the video created was pretty good given that it was only our second try at making a video. I quite liked that everyone in the class was included and that the shots were taken from many different settings within our school. Many of the facts stated were quite interesting but there were some repeats. If we organized the facts better as a class like we did for the first video, it would have allowed for a more organized presentation of the information. Two other things that I noticed were first of all the sound quality in the background. With all the fuzz and background noise, the video is tough to watch and listen to. This can be changed by using better speakers to record the video. A video with clear sound is much easier to watch than one with a lot of background noise. The last thing I thought could be improved was how comfortable people were in front of the camera. Many of the clips had people not looking directly into the camera and I guess as we do more of these videos, people will become more comfortable and this aspect of our videos should improve.

Overall I thought it was a creative and useful video and if we make some changes, hopefully our videos of the future will be even better.

– Austin

I think that the video wasn't as bad since this was just an "experiment" except there were some flaws. I think to make up for the flaws, we could have gotten a bit more time to memorize our lines, a collaboration of our class to eliminate or reduce repetition of facts, better cameras that are more sensitive to sound, areas with minimal to no background distractions, and a more creative format of expressing the facts (could be singing, or whatever that might catch people's attention). Since we had none of anything mentioned above ^, we used whatever we could, and we actually ended up with a nice video. Good work people, and let see if we could try to improve any further assignments from Mr. Forsyth that requires a camera. -Edward-

In my opinion it wasn't all that bad especially since it was our first time doing it it small groups. However i feel that we could have done more work to reduce the repetition in the video (like Edward said above). I also feel that we should have done the clips in places that were similar because in some places (like the hall and the stairs) there is an echo while in the classroom it seems more stuffy. There could also have been some silence when each group was recording in the classroom cause it sometimes picks up on other groups. In my opinion the place that probably sounded and looked the best was in the hall, the only problem with it though was people kept on walking back and forth and so it was hard to actually film. I also suggest for next time that people actually look into the camera because alot of the time they were looking just next to it, at the person who was holding the lines. Other that that i thought it was really good. -Zane

To me, this video seemed somewhat disorganized. I say this, meaning that it looks somewhat unprofessional, and rushed. The layout of the quotes could have been in better order, and the general organization of everybody's jobs were kind of out of place. But this is from a point of view judging this video on a higher standard, which I can tell that it shouldn't be. As a test-like video, I think it was a good run-through. One major point that I cannot help commenting on is the feel that the actors and actresses give the viwer. This meaning how they communicate the information to the viewer. I know I am one of those people who dont like talking to cameras, like many others, but maybe we can do something to help that.

Kevin

What first struck me was the poor quality of the video itself. The picture was mostly good but the audio was lacking greatly. In many shots there were a lot of background noise, and in some they were hard to hear. I suggest all the groups doing it in separate areas so the noise wouldn’t be a problem. The back transitions with the rudimentary pictures of Shakespeare really ruin the flow of the video and taking it out completely will probably make it better as a whole. Memorizing the lines is a definite must for the next try.

Alex Wu

I think this video wouldn't serve as a good educational video. It's not-always-clear audio and video would most likely distract and perhaps mislead students. This video could probably have been made much better if more efforts were made to tune down the background volume and keep eyes concentrated on the camera (some people weren't looking directly at it). The fact that some lines were repeated could be fixed as well. Some things I liked about the video, however, were the music and the overall feeling the whole thing gave. A steady sort of friendly video is much better than some cold, serious one. All in all, not really horrible, but not very good.

- Katherine

P.S., sorry for posting at 11 PM, my brother's been using the computer all day :P.

The video wasn't too bad over all, but it was lacking in some areas. The audio was very unclear in some places, and the inconsistency in the level of background noise made the vidio a bit rough. Also, I think that the groups could have worked better in communicating to each other which lines they were doing to avoid the repetition of lines that occurred. It was not bad for a first try though, so kudos to everyone that made it happen!

~*~ /=Hussain=\ ~*~

The video was interesting, but it could be improved greatly in some areas. The video was good for the cameras it was shot on, but the audio felt like it didn't capture what was being said in front of it, but was recording everything around it. The background of everyone talking should be more similar next time; maybe we should decide on a general area, such as a classroom or the hall to shoot it in. Maybe having subtitles could make the video better, and we should make it so that none of the facts about Shakespeare are repeated. I think the first video was better. -Allan

The videos facts were good, however a few things should be changed. Firstly the audio quality seemed to really lack which really took away from the experience. This could be improved by having an external method of recording the sound, such as a microphone. Secondly the filming could have been improved to make a more appealing video. The lighting seemed poor in many cases, which by finding a brighter area would have improved the appeal. Perhaps choosing a general area for filming would have created a better picture. Overall the video was decent in some aspects.

-Adam Winick