Rebecca M Digital Story Treatment
From LIS5313
Contents |
[edit] Summary
Title: The Reader
Description: My digital story is about a reader who loves stories. As he sits on steps in a park, he watches people pass him by and notices that to them, he's just part of the background. He then imagines how all people are connected through stories. Perhaps the people passing him by have even read the same stories that he's read. His thoughts wander to the characters he's been as he reads books and imagines that other readers have also imagined themselves in those characters' shoes as well. He sees how stories connect people, even when they just pass each other by.
[edit] Media Assets
After searching extensively through music available on ccMixter and Internet Audio, I decided to use a song from freeplay.com called "Martian Bayou" as the background music. It is quirky and upbeat, which is the overall tone I wanted the video to portray. The main person in my story is the narrator, and I used a photo from Creative Commons as a picture of the narrator in order to create a visual connection with the viewer. I am using 51 photos from Creative Commons because I'm trying to create the connection between readers by flashing a couple fast series of pictures of people reading.
[edit] Pacing, Rhythm, and Juxtaposition
I am using a voice-over narration at the beginning and end of the video, with text narration in the middle. So, the story starts with a photo of the narrator and his voice. Then the voice narration is replace by text narration to indicate the narrator's thoughts. Each thought is illustrated with a different photo. The text narration appears over each photo. Several times in between his thoughts, a photo series of different readers flashes quickly to show the overall theme of his thoughts. I tried to time the four fast photo series to match a faster refrain in the song, which is difficult to do.
[edit] Narration, Dialogue, and Text
Voice-Over Narration: "People pass by and think I'm just that guy on the steps. I'm part of the background. Perhaps strangers connect as we each play a part in the stories we hold collectively. In fact, at some point, we may have all been the same person..."
Text Narration: "...Walking a tightrope with skill and ease, Spying ninja-style, keeping records from public sectors, Skipping through puddles laughing with glee, Casting spells on unsuspecting specters.
We may all have been Jacques Cousteau, Gliding by a social shark. Or the tin man with a big heart.
Turn the page and you may be... A rock climber, A day-dreaming rider, A knight in shining armor, A courageous firefighter, A tiger-carrying wonder.
Voice-Over Narration: "I'll keep sitting on these steps, one guys with many themes. Through these stories, we're all connected. When you see another reader, ask them who they've been and what they've seen. You're a character, just like me."
[edit] Reflection
Finding a story idea for this assignment was more difficult than I thought it would be. I decided to creatively describe one of my passions: reading. So, of course, I had to describe it from another character's point of view. :) It was difficult to include text narration that is legible for an Ipod screening. The text is legible when the screen is larger, but some of it is harder for a viewer to read if they are viewing a smaller version of the video. I hope that viewers will be able to understand the story; it is more abstract.
[edit] Draft Media
- Background Song: "Martian Bayou"
- composed by Christian Montalbano, Scott P. Schreer, and John Loeffler
- published by J.Supreme Music and Freeplaymusic
- My Digital Story Rough Draft: The Reader
- My Digital Story Final Draft: The Reader
- My Photo Source: Flickr
- Software Used in Production: Audacity, Windows Movie Maker
[edit] Copyrighted Materials
I am allowed to use the song "Martian Bayou" from freeplaymusic.com if I give proper attribution. I am allowed to use the images from Flickr if I give attribution because they are under a Creative Commons license that allows for adaptation, derivatives, and redistribution with attribution. My husband freely lent his voice as a source. I wrote the narration used in voice-over and text.
