To ensure success in our endeavor, we focused our initial efforts on creating a strong and constant communication between members. So we got things started with a mail merge list for group members. As a second step we created a Wiki for our project at: http://lamar-group-5363.wikispaces.com, to focus our collaboration and monitor our progress.
Those steps set the foundation for our pre-production, production, and post- production process. So, with clear expectations and good communication via email and Wiki, we started our brainstorming sessions using email and the Wiki. Then, I suggested that we have a live brainstorming session using Oovoo free video conferencing software. This step proved to be most important in team building, for it allowed us to meet our team members face to face, and it cut down tremendously on our brainstorming time by allowing for multi-tasking during those sessions (discussing, typing, and editing).
Throughout weeks 3,4, and 5 we constantly communicated via email, Wiki posts, and video conferencing. We exchanged 32 emails, posted 27 wiki posts and edits, uploaded 18 different files to the Wiki, had 4 video conferences, and collaborated on editing the proposal as a Google doc.
The interaction between members was very professional yet relaxed, everyone was fulfilling their part of the assignment on time and contributing to the steady progress of our work and monitoring of its progression. The productive contribution and effective collaboration were illustrated through every phase of our assignment.
Pre-production phase: during this phase of the project, we set up a “week” page in our group Wiki. We used this page to brainstorm ideas about the content of the PSA. After discussing the merits of each idea we agreed on the cyber camp PSA suggestion. Then, we held two video conferences. The first one allowed to meet each other and discuss our ideas, and in the second conference we decided on the individual roles, script, shot list, narration, and the video format that will be most suited to upload the video to youtube and to the wiki, and we created a pre-production document on google docs.
Production phase: We created a “week 4”page to host this week's work. Felicia and Shantay filmed their children acting the shots agreed upon and intuitively added more shots that they believed could add value to our video, Brooke recorded the narration, and I searched for the required footage and music. Each one uploaded their material to the wiki and we shared feedback on the wiki, by email, and discussed it further during our weekly video conference. Necessary changes, such as narration, were made, and we updated the production document accordingly.
Post-production phase: We created a “week 5” page to host this week's work. I continued editing the video, adding SFX, as well as transitions, and posted the audio file and the video file separately for review and feedback from team members. Members posted their feedback on the wiki and I re-edited the video accordingly. Then, I posted the first complete version of the PSA. I received further feedback from the group and made the requested the change. At that point the video needed only an end slide that Felicia made and posted on the wiki. I converted the slide into an image file and made one last change to the video. Mission accomplished, I encoded the video in .WMV format and uploaded it to the wiki using, then sent emails to everyone in the group to inform them.
Since, I volunteered to direct and edit the project, I also, undertook the task of finding additional footage and soundtrack music for the video on the Internet. I limited my search to creative commons licensed materials only. That search yielded a perfectly fitting soundtrack titled “The Final hours” (Hollidayrain, 2009), and great footage from “Coombs Intermediate School Computer Class” video (Banning Unified SD, 2009).
I also downloaded images of the copyrighted logos of the different programs that are mentioned in the PSA, because they will be taught in the school cyber camp. Those logos were used for informational and identification purposes only, in compliance with fair use under United States copyright law.
However, the final PSA could have been further enhanced had our group done certain things differently. One of those things was the way the group was formed. We were put together by a person who actually had requested team members, but ended up joining another group and connecting the students who contacted her with each other. So, we did not have a chance to evaluate each other's skills before we became a group. We could have had a more balanced group in our skills and thinking preferences had we had a chance to evaluate our individual strengths and weaknesses before hand. Another issue was the distribution of responsibilities. I took the responsibility of editing the video, directing it, and finding the soundtrack for it. But eventually ended up being in charge of finding creative commons video footage, finding creative commons images, and updating the production document as well.
If we had more members who are knowledgeable in video editing, and are willing to spend the time to search for material on the internet, we could have distributed the roles between us in a more equitable way that would have given one person more time to focus on editing, and another person would have focused on finding video footage and images, while a third person would have done the document updates for the group. As a result, each member would have had more time to improve the quality of their respective parts, contributing in enhancing the overall quality of our PSA.
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