Multimedia

First Gen Week is an annual tradition at George Washington University to create a space for students to honor their successes and navigate college. As a multimedia production intern for the GWU Office of Marketing, I assisted in documenting the week-long celebration and edited together the final piece for use as promotional material both by the university and the First Gen United organization.

At the beginning of last year, I became fascinated with aerial photography and videography, ultimately earning my commercial drone pilots license so I could further explore the techniques that I was so intrigued by. I aimed to incorporate them into whatever project I could, including this one, which highlights an installation piece at the Society of the Four Arts in Palm Beach. Dozens of Dreyfoos students spent all day placing 9,000 utility flags in the ground to perfect the piece, all while I documented the process from beginning to end.

Going into my senior year of high school, I had one goal: create my second LipDub but do it bigger and better than before. Though we filmed during Spirit Week in March 2023, planning began in July 2022 as I met with administration, my crew, and School Board members to plan out each detail and flush out the logistics. With a team of the school's most talented filmmakers and creatives, we spent months devising different ways to showcase the spirit of our campus, incorporating clubs, the spring musical, student accomplishments, and much, much more. Ultimately, I couldn't be prouder with how it turned out and to call it my last legacy at Dreyfoos.

Ever since I first heard this song, I knew I wanted to find a way to incorporate it into a film and took my semester exam as the perfect opportunity to do so. Focusing on elements of cinematography, I chose to go down the experimental route where I could challenge myself to create a cohesive yet imaginative story — while simultaneously crossing things off my film bucket list, such as trying new low light techniques (and forcing my actress into the shower fully clothed).

Having dedicated a year to this two minute film opening, I wanted every detail to be perfect. It was part of my Cambridge portfolio and came after seemingly endless research that culminated in a 17 page paper analyzing mystery films, so I wanted to prove to myself that I was capable of executing the vision I'd seen all year. But, of course, rain ruined any hope of a bonfire setting, crew members canceled just hours before shooting, footage corrupted on my SD card, and my passion project was dissolving before me (taking pieces of my sanity too, it seemed). I managed to work with my team to devise creative solutions that actually made the final product better and learned how to adapt in new scenarios while ensuring everyone stays positive. See my full process here.