UT’s film program has been very beneficial to me. Some of the most useful classes I’ve taken have been Narrative Productions with Walker, who helped me take on a very complex short film project. Learning about creating shot sheets was crucial for my film. Also, Digital Imaging and Intro to Screenwriting with Perkins helped greatly. Digital imaging helped expose me to multiple forms and styles of photography and challenged me to use different styles for my own work. Screenwriting was something I dreaded before taking the class, now I feel more confident in it.

My biggest strength is working with and around the camera, whether as a DP, camera operator, or AC. I feel that my cinematography has improved rapidly over my years at UT, from shot composition to my choice of shot types and camera movement. I have also improved my audio, lighting, and editing skills, however I feel I need more practice in these areas to be proficient. The audio quality of my projects has improved due to higher quality gear being used, but I still have trouble editing audio in post-production, removing background noise and hisses mainly. I feel I need a better understanding of the tools and software for this. I have improved my editing skills greatly. I do not enjoy directing or producing very much, it’s difficult for me to manage and balance all the moving parts of the production. I know that this is something I need to work on, and I think more practice is the way to improve.

After I graduate, I would like to go into the corporate side of film, creating commercials, promotional videos, social media content, etc. While the techniques taught in the current film classes will carry over into this aspect of filmmaking, I feel I need to do more work outside of class to understand what makes a commercial effective. Something that I think would help with this would be creating unofficial commercials to use on my portfolio. In the time I have left here, I would like to improve the skills I am not fully confident in, and continue to develop my camera skills in particular.