Integrative Oncology: Synergistic Healing

This video was made in Adobe After Effects, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop and Pro Tools. I recorded the audio in Pro Tools and added background music using the same software. The symbols were drawn by me in Adobe Illustrator. I imported all the elements to after effects and combined these elements with text transition compositions. I learned everything that I now know about After Effects through this project, as I had never used the Software before. Below is a screenshot of my workspace in After Effects during the process of creating the video.

This is an image of my After Effects workspace

Book

book thumbnail

My documentary book, titled Integrative Oncology: Synergistic Healing, records a new branch of cancer treatment which combines traditional, Western treatment with unconventional care. This includes mindfulness meditation, massage therapy, alternative dieting, and more. Many steps were taken in the production of the book. Firstly and most importantly, I went out into the community to find my documentary subject, reaching out to fascinating people in order to document their stories. After this initial step, I used interviews and testimonies combined with my own research to formulate the structure and purpose of my book, going on to write the final product. In order to translate this writing into the final product of a book, I used InDesign, Adobe Illustrator, and Adobe Photoshop software to edit photos, create formats, paragraph and character styles, draw images and symbols, and structure designs with a color scheme. This second part of the process was assigned in my Design class, with content borrowed from English class. In digital media class, I supplemented the book with this corresponding website coded in Adobe Dreamweaver, as well as a video created in Adobe After Effects, Adobe Photoshop, and Pro Tools to introduce the book. In making the video, I taught myself how to animate a rotoscope using Photoshop, by importing a short video which I took. Photoshop turned the frames of the video into photos, which I then traced over individually to make a stop motion animation.

" It’s so clear to me now, with my perspective from my work, that that’s the space where the actual integration happens. And the word is integrative. Oncology. So it’s this actual space where all that has happened, all that is happening can actually digest, and find its place, and come home and settle, where it can be accepted and integrated into the being "
~Noelle Morris

My goal in producing this documentary was to share the contemporary field of Integrative Oncology through informative research and testimonies of personal experience. When I began the project, I wanted to gather as much information as possible and dive deep into the research aspect of the subject. The challenge then was to express the emotional resonance that accompanies the human experience of going through cancer and the process of healing. I discovered connections I had never anticipated between my documentary subjects, and realized the cyclical relationship between mentality and physicality. I managed to stay motivated during this difficult project because the opportunity to have a hard copy of a book entirely written, designed, and formatted by me was incredibly inspiring. I discovered a passion for my subject and enjoyed the learning and reading that went along with writing about it. It was difficult after expending so much energy during the writing process to then have to learn to use InDesign and switch gears to focus on the aesthetic angle of the process, but this was also very inspiring because I could execute my artistic vision without having to focus on data and structure. This project took me beyond the traditional high school curriculum, and I have learned more through this project than any other in my life. It taught me to manage my time, ask for help, reach out to people, prepare for interviews, research a complex subject, use new software, and open myself up to new ideas.

Bios

I interviewed two inspiring Bay Area women in the process of researching my subject. These interviews gave me a deeper view into Integrative Oncology, and gave me a stronger connection to the subject. I learned a lot from reaching out to these interviewees, and their stories and information were essential to the production and writing of my book. I chose these two interviewees because of their perspectives from their work and life experiences, and I greatly value the hours I spent with them.

Chloe Atreya
Chloe Atreya

Chloe Atreya is a medical physician, researcher, and professor at UCSF Hospital in San Francisco. She specializes in metastatic colorectal cancer, and is heading a pilot study called “Being Present” which is observing the effects of mindfulness on the quality of life and health of cancer patients and their caregivers. She is one of the first doctors involved in Integrative Oncology, and her and her team are working to introduce mindfulness to the West through technology and in-person care. I interviewed Dr. Atreya to find out more about the medical angle of my subject.

Name of person 2
Noelle Morris

Noelle Morris is a bodyworker specializing in massage therapy and counseling for adults suffering from trauma, PTSD and other cognitive disorders. Noelle went through breast cancer recently, and although she did not have access to an integrative oncologist during her treatment, she implemented her own forms of alternative therapy throughout the healing process and is now back on her feet, dancing, teaching, and healing others.

Photo Gallery

These are photos that I took and editted in Photoshop throughout the interview process. The photos were assigned to add visual interest, and many of the photos in the gallery below will appear in my book.

  • Buddha at Zen Center
  • Chloe Atreya
  • Chloe in the garden
  • Chloe Portrait
  • Cranes at the Zen Center
  • Dr. Atreya in the bookstore
  • Dr. Atreya
  • Meditation Room at UCSF
  • Meditation room at Zen Center
  • Meeting at Osher Center
  • Noelle Morris
  • Osher Center SF
  • UCSF Hospital Hallway
  • UCSF Labyrinth
  • UCSF Zen Sign
  • Zen sign
Buddha at Zen Center1 Chloe Atreya2 Chloe in the garden3 Chloe Portrait4 Cranes at the Zen Center5 Dr. Atreya in the bookstore6 Dr. Atreya7 Meditation Room at UCSF8 Meditation room at Zen Center9 Meeting at Osher Center10 Noelle Morris11 Osher Center SF12 UCSF Hospital Hallway13 UCSF Labyrinth14 UCSF Zen Sign15 Zen sign16