What next? Semester wrap-up reflections

First, please update us on your Proof of Concept project. How are things coming along? Have you created it already, and if so, how do you feel about what you've created? If not, what are your plans and are you on track to achieve this project successfully? 

 Unfortunately, I have not yet gotten to film my proof of concept project and wasn’t able to check out equipment before break (which is entirely my fault for not prioritizing it above other assignments). At this point, I am hoping that I can put together some archival footage, voiceover etc. over break, and film the interview on the Monday we get back from break to edit and turn it in by its final due date on Tuesday. If I am not able to film new content before Tuesday, my backup plan is to put together the interview that I made for my initial media with archival footage, voiceover and maybe some animations or other fun content. This would give me the chance to practice correcting some issues I had with my initial footage, and combining elements, which are useful skills too. If I have to take this path, I will still check out my equipment later and practice the skills I was planning to practice for this assignment. It would not be ideal (and can be blamed on poor planning on my part), but I think my backup plan would still contribute to the skills I need for my project. 

Next, please summarize feedback you are receiving from your committee chair and/or committee member(s). What feedback have you received, and based on this, what are your next steps? What is your next deliverable? Do you have a set committee?

My committee has given me some great advice, resources and direction on my project so far, and has been really encouraging and helpful overall. Kristine Weatherston gave me some great resources for finding archival footage, some advice for getting permission for content, some new vocabulary for describing my project, and even some ideas for further research. She also added me to the MA documentary project canvas page which has a lot of great tools and resources. Laura has given me some great tips for choosing cameras and filming techniques for the effect I am trying to achieve, and helped me solidify the framing that I’m using for the content of my project overall. Jan has been super helpful in guiding me through the process of working with my committee, forming a timeline to complete my project and balancing the work and feedback. My next steps are definitely forming more of a solid outline and organization for my work, such as a filming schedule and new treatment. I also will start collecting and organizing my archival footage more formally, and reaching out to potential collaborators and interviewees. My next deliverable will be my website, which will include information about my project and a submissions page along with features like a horror host map, timeline and database that will hopefully lend credibility to my project and make it more interesting to viewers. I need to follow up with my last committee member, Professor Kartik Nair, so that I can get my committee form finalized before the end of the semester. 

Finally, as this is your your final blog post, consider what the future-life of your project will be. What will you do with it after you graduate? Where will it go? How will you use/share it?

After graduation, I definitely want to continue my work with my documentary as a larger project, hopefully bringing together modern horror hosts and helping to archive the history of the trend. I would like to continue using the website and social media I create for the project to do more content creation moving forward, maybe even a podcast or ongoing blog. I would like to use it overall to make connections and contribute to the horror hosting fandom, especially since I have witnessed how strong it used to be compared to its current activity. I have so many ideas for content and ways that I can turn segments I have planned for the documentary into their own videos or series. I would also love to work towards publishing an article or two about this topic. Like I’ve mentioned, there is no scholarly research about this topic published currently and I would like to use the connections that I’ve made through my research to start the conversation. I believe that tying previous literature with the unique aspects of horror hosting would contribute something new to media studies scholarship. For the documentary itself, I would potentially like to submit it to festivals and do screenings. Laura brought up the idea of doing a drive-in theater screening event with a horror host introducing my project, which would be my ultimate pipe dream. Overall, I know that my project is already ambitious and I tend to want to do too much with my projects, so I’ve already accepted that some of my ideas will have to be incorporated outside of the film. However, I definitely see this as a positive because it means that it will have more of a promising life after completion/my graduation.