Group Videos: Chris Dawson, Ray Miramontes, and I





High White Balance
1/30, 14.0, 200




Low White Balance
1/2500, 5.0, 200




Inside Shot
1/40, 5.0, 800




Outside Shot
1/200, 14.0, 200




Movement
1/200, 14.0, 200




With Audio

Brainstorming Ideas for the Week

Idea 1: My first idea would be a documentary style film focused on a local R&B artist I work with named Sam London. This film would be set in the studio and would showcase Sam producing, writing, and recording a new song right in front of our very eyes, so the essence of the film would focus on the creative process and the steps Sam takes to accomplish this task.

Idea 2: Not exactly a huge leap here, but following up on my first idea, I would then like to shoot a video for the song that was created by Sam. This would be the fruition of the process we saw in the first piece but because it would be dependent on what song came out of that first piece, its hard for me to give much detail as it related to this idea.

Idea 3:  My third idea is also a documentary, this one centering on the growing issue of homelessness in the Michiana area. Basically, the film would follow one homeless individual for 2 or 3 days and just document how they live, where they sleep, how they eat, their habits (i.e. drinking or drugs?), etc. The goal would be not to only show their lifestyle but to humanize them to the audience, removing the stigma of being a statistic and opening the viewers eyes to the person experiencing all of this. Could be powerful stuff.

Idea 4: My fourth idea would be to do a movie centered around the drug/street culture found in most of America’s inner cities. It would explore the lifestyle and its attractions, as well as its downfalls. Most of this film would take place at various places around the city, varying from restaurants to housing complexes to schools. I would want a single main character to drive the whole show, and they would have a large supporting cast around them, including some very supportive grandparents that are raising him and then a lot of younger people to play his “crowd”. The moral of the story would be the downfalls one faces when living in that environment.

Idea 5: This piece would be a sports highlight reel compiled of all the best local high school basketball players showcasing their skills on the court. Then, we would do short interviews with each of them to supplement the footage. The point would be to highlight all of the talent there is in our area, which is largely overlooked by college recruiters and coaches (I know this because I coached college basketball). The setting would obviously be various gyms around the area.

Idea 6: My final idea would be a short documentary of a friend of mine name Makeda Grier, who recently starred in the South Bend Civic Theatre’s production of “The Color Purple”. She is an amazing singer and actress and I would be very interested to find out what makes her tick, what her background is and what inspires her. As a local star, this would be a great public awareness video for those that have never experienced a show at the Civic Theatre and are unaware of the artistic endeavors happening in our community. 

Intro

My name is Lucas Packer, I'm 33, married, and a father of 3. I am a senior pursuing a degree in New Media Studies and plan on graduating in December. I came into school with the intentions of pursuing graphic design but along the way have found myself doing (and enjoying) a lot of video, both for school and professionally, so I'm not really sure what I'll end up doing after graduation. I really just love to be creative. I've worked in music for a long time, mostly hip-hop, while owning my own recording studio and that's what led me into New Media in the first place. I also do photography, web design, and whatever else I can get my hands on. I'm actually pretty excited about this class and I'm even more excited to be graduating!