MY CREATIVE PROCESS
Inspiration
I was inspired to make a project incorporating mental health challenges with art because many, many people are currently experiencing such challenges. Although most are aware of some of these issues, I want to target those who are facing difficulties and don't know what to do. My personal goal was to create a character who realistically shows an emotional disorder, and is able to still enjoy life.
Attention Management
During the Capstone process, I definitely learned to space out all the components necessary to create the final product ahead of time. Making a plan is one thing, but following through with it over several months can be a lot to manage. One thing that changed my whole outlook on the work and semester was timeboxing, designating a specific time and amount of time to spend on each part. This took away the overwhelming feeling of facing an entire moviemaking process, and broke it up into small parts. I worked a little on each segment each week, and while I still felt a bit rushed to finish at the end, I luckily got everything done without too much stress. Another thing that helps is to remember that everything can't be perfect and exactly as you imagined it. Focusing on just completing what I set out to is more important than making something profound and groundbreakingly artistic.
TECHNIQUES
RESEARCH
I underwent an extensive research process including psychology classes, online tutorials, movie screenings, and web surfing. Because there are so many components of filmmaking, I needed to learn at least the base level of each part. My main goal was also to accurately tell the story of a girl with bipolar disorder, so it was important that I knew a lot about that specifically.
SCRIPTWRITING
In beginning my project, what I most looked forward to, and apprehended, was forming my script. This would be the backbone of my movie, and it needed to be just as I wanted. My most important factor was keeping the dialogue and actions relatable to actual teens/young people. Overcoming this hump in the road took a tad more time than what I'd allotted it, but eventually I was able to craft an entire story that would take place within ten minutes.
FILMING
Of course, a movie is no movie without the filming. Casting and directing my inexperienced friends as characters in my short film was not as difficult as expected, I just had to keep in mind their abilities and comfort levels. I also incorporated the genre of mumblecore (as suggested by my advisor Gabi), which prioritizes dialogue and does not require a large budget or skilled actors. This approach made the filming run smoothly, along with the flexibility and patience of my actors.
EDITING
Putting all the scenes together was not too hard, once I had learned the ropes of Premiere Pro. I tried to take a lighthearted approach, so that the tone wasn't too much of a downer. It was tough to get the pacing and sound right, but I mostly kept to the original clips so that the product didn't look overdone or immature. I just wanted everything to appear as naturalistic as possible. Overall I was trying to have fun with the whole thing while also including an underlying message.
Sparking Creativity
Figuring out what I was going to do for my Capstone was actually the simplest part. I am generally an extremely indecisive person, but for this project I just knew that I wanted to advocate for mental illness and finally make my own movie. I've always enjoyed editing things together and, of course, watching movies, but I'd never taken the time to create my own. It was also essential that my product had a point, as I like to add meaning to my art, and I'm very interested in helping people become happier. Because this was my first major film project, I went with the old adage, write what you know. The story is of a girl in a similar environment and place in life as I am, and so making my characters and plot came almost naturally.
MY RESEARCH PROCESS
LITERATURE REVIEW
I had to start at the root of my project: mental health. With this, I researched online for personal stories of those with bipolar disorder, medical overviews of the disorder, and advice on how to cope with it. Then I had to look into how characters with mental illness had been portrayed in movies in the past. I wanted to see what made a good, and bad, representation. Finally, I had to learn the technical skills: filming, writing, editing.
Evolution of my Work
