Introduction

At the end of our senior year at Freestyle Academy we were assigned Zenith, the “Ultimate Freestyle Project.” We were given the freedom to create anything we wished, showcasing our most polished work. I decided to make three documentary shorts, a nature, a DITL, and a sports short.

To begin this project, I started by planning my shots. On google docs I made a shot list for each of my documentary shorts. Then, I began scheduling my actors and planning locations.

My Three Documentary Shorts

Nature

For my nature documentary short I decided to film at Redwood Grove and Hidden Villa. I filmed different subjects like trees/branches, running water, birds, flowers, etc.

The editing process for this documentary short consisted of audio editing (using graphic equalizer), and video/audio transitions (using cross dissolve).

Final Product

Day In the Life

For my DITL documentary short I decided to film at multiple locations. I followed my actor around for the day, filming realistic and planned shots of her day. I shot at her house, driving through town, getting food, etc. Below is the final product of my video.

The editing process for this documentary short consisted mainly of color grading. I adjusted exposure, as well as temperature in order to create a “warm” feeling.

For this documentary short I also recorded music, played by Jason Liang. He played the piano.

Final Product

Sports

For my sports documentary short I decided to film at Los Altos High School. I included two different sports for this film, both running and soccer. I filmed shots of my actors warming up, running reps, doing footwork, hitting long balls, etc. Below is the final product of my video.

The editing process for this documentary short consisted also of color grading. I filmed my running clips and soccer clips on different days, with slightly different weather which required me to color grade in post, in order to match the lighting of all the clips.

For this documentary short I also recorded music, played by Landon Qizilbash. He played the electric drums, guitar, and bass.

Final Product

Presenting

After creating my 3 documentary shorts, I then created a slide show in order to help me present in front the entire Freestyle Academy. We gathered in the film room and all had around 10 minutes to present.

Reflection

This project was one of my favorite projects during my time at Freestyle Academy. I really enjoyed the freedom we were given and it was motivating to create something that I was interested in making. I am really glad that each of my videos are distinct from one another and all convey a different emotion. Being able to use the recording studio allowed me to become more comfortable with Pro Tools and I am grateful for that.