For this video project, I have again chosen to focus on the digital divide, by choosing the topic “Digital media has seen new divides form and old divides grow wider, but can also be used to diminish the divides that separate”. I am exploring the ways that vulnerable people in society use smartphones to bridge the digital divide and keep up with the rest of us. I have found articles and studies to support the argument that the digital divide is shrinking among more developed nations, and the correlation to access to smart phones. I built upon research I did in my previous video, going more in depth this time, and honing my focus.
I chose to film the talking head portions of my video in a ‘selfie’ style, rather than a set shot with a tripod. This was in order to drive home the point that mobile phones are essential to everyday life, that our window to the world is literally in our hands. I also chose this style to imitate the way many people communicate with their phones, either through Facetime, or Snapchat, Instagram etc. By having a more hands-on approach, I found it much easier to frame my shot than I did in the previous video, where I was constantly back and forward between camera and backdrop, trying to get the framing where I wanted it. I took into account feedback about my audio quality from the previous two videos, and opted to use my phone to record all audio this time, instead of my laptop’s onboard microphone. This resulted in much clearer audio than previously, thanks to a superior, more portable microphone. I copied the common news and current affairs technique of showing generic footage of people in a city walking, with a voice over, to represent our society, and the busy modern world. While talking more specifically about refugees and homeless people, I used footage of those people who are less fortunate to reflect exactly how hard their lives are in comparison to the viewer’s. I also used generic footage of mobile phones etc to fill in gaps to break up the monotony of my talking head, or to patch up holes where I’ve cut footage. Like last time, I used YouTube to find Creative Commons licensed video, casting a critical eye towards the uploader, ensuring they were in fact the real owner of the footage. I also reused some footage I found for my previous video. The combination of talking heads and overlay B-roll footage allowed me to add a personal touch to the video, hopefully gaining the trust of my audience. I opted this time to not use graphics and sound effects, as they felt a little forced, and didn’t quite fit the general tone of the video. I again decided to relegate background music to the credits, as I couldn’t find anything I found appropriate to overlay on the story as a whole. I took on board advice and selected different music that was a closer fit to the video’s content.
The biggest problem I found was self-imposed, which is time constraints. I left starting my assignment too late, and with other assignments due at the same time, I found time management to be of paramount importance. By doing everything but the filming and editting while I was at work, I managed to fix this problem with little trouble, thanks to lax policing of my workplace’s acceptable use policy. My time constraint did lead to another problem, in this week I have developed a bit of a cold, meaning I had a stuffy nose and persistent coughing and sneezing. This made recording difficult, with a lot of stop starting, and made my voice overs a little on the dull side. I just worked through it, and chalked it up as a lesson learned. The weeks between assignments meant my editing skills were a little rusty, but I had the hang of cutting the clips together pretty quickly, and the various lessons of the previous assignment made it much easier to produce this time. Most importantly, save and backup everything, every chance you get. By combining techniques, I also managed to cut down the amount of editting required: longer clips, with sound still attached meant less editing in the long run, even with a longer video. Unfortunately, the microphone on my phone produced wildly different audio quality from clip to clip, with no apparent reasoning, and there was only so much that could be done with editing.
Sources:
Voiceover/Talking Heads: Cameron Brogden
All other media used under a Creative Commons Attribution License.
Music:
“Intrepid” by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com)
Video:
“Footage of People Walking” by Greenlight Stock Footage
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NBwbKMyzEE)
“Woman Using Social Media” by Free HD Stock Footage
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b46KcSgHJfY)
“Tired Homeless Man Sleeping On The Street” by Chhoun Chan
Rasmey
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I-DqCySDl4U)
“Lonely Homeless Man Sitting On The Street” by Chhoun Chan
Rasmey
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tP7SNcpWoho)
“Homeless In New York City” by HDFreeFootage
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RggqxjypsxE)
“Syrian Refugee Camp” by Direct Relief
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SPNW0Qefus)
”Rohingya Refugees Enter Bangladesh by Boat” by Mithanzzzz
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkmZ36kH4as)
“Girl on Phone Free Stock Video Footage” by Videvo Free
Stock Footage
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBEFdc6Naxs)
“Making Z” by Critics Company
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrbN7WxiNdk)
“Man Waiting On The Street In Italy” Free HD Stock Footage
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBOm5LwSpYc)
“Texting on a iPhone 6” by Creative Commons Footage
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zg4LOcvdawI)
Quoted Texts:
The Digital Divide : Facing a Crisis or Creating a Myth?, edited by Benjamin M. Compaine, MIT Press, 2001. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/deakin/detail.action?docID=3338879.
Fairlie, R. 2017 Sep 1. Have we finally bridged the digital divide? Smart phone and Internet use patterns by race and ethnicity. First Monday. [Online]
UNHCR. 2018. How Smartphones and Social Media have Revolutionized Refugee Migration. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.unhcr.org/blogs/smartphones-revolutionized-refugee-migration/. [Accessed 2 September 2019]
Other Resources:
Internet World Stats. 2019. World Internet Users Statistics. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.internetworldstats.com/stats.htm. [Accessed 2 September 2019]
Humphrey, J., 2014. Homeless and Connected: Mobile phones and mobile internet in the lives of families and young people experiencing homelessness. 1st ed. Sydney: Australian Communications Consumer Action Network.
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