Blog 4: Reflecting on Project 3
Written by: Dana Rothstein
Every project I’ve worked on this semester has been quite a challenge. Everything from making phone calls to schedule interviews to simply setting up the camera to the correct lighting setting. I love diving into stories and getting to know characters from all walks of life. However, when Patrick and I were assigned to do the story on the Pennsylvania governor election along with the rest of our classmates, I was nervous because politics is something I never really took to the time to sit down and research about.
Originally, we were going to do our story on the Penn State Republican Club and the work they were doing on this midterm election. I contacted the members, arranged filming times, and interview times. I also did research on the Republican Party’s chances on winning back the senate and the candidates that were running in the Keystone state. Patrick and I invested our time efficiently and got great shots of this hard-working club. Nonetheless, there’s always a catch. This story we ended up doing the footage got lost somehow. It is still a mystery how that happened since we set our cameras up properly every-time.
Despite our frustrations and being back to square one, Patrick helped us turn this road-block into a workable path for a new story. The new story being on the PA Representative of the 77th District, Patrick Conklin. Conklin had such a humility about him, which in my opinion is very rare in politics today. He seemed like a normal guy that just wanted to make a difference for others and was not in it for the press or the attention. A character like that, to me, deserves recognition and a chance to have his qualities shown on film.
Working with Patrick has always been a pleasure. He has a niche for finding the perfect shots for each story, so it adds an enriching experience for the eye while you are listening to the natsound. My skills as a writer and his skills with film, we are able to sit down and be upfront with each other on what shots will add more to the story. Even with all the frustrations, we are able to keep other positive throughout everything whether or not the technology we use for these projects decided to work well or not.
