Dear Mark,
The reason for which I took this course was to improve my writing, social skills, creative process, and better my use of different types of media. To begin, all of my expectations were met and surpassed, as my skills with writing this semester have evolved greatly due to the increased amount of practice in the craft. Furthermore, my ability to develop tasks in a creative way has been made a lot easier thanks to the diversity in the projects which were assigned; the terms of service video, group media projects, our personal video, and the blog, are simply three examples of projects which focused on creative ways in which we can use different media devices with diverse goals and environments. Certain aspects of the course such as the increased level of socializing integrated into the class wasn’t expected and was definitely one of the bigger struggles regarding the course. I wouldn’t consider myself particularly good at socializing, however I wouldn’t say I’m incapable of it, and this aspect of the course forced me to develop my social skills in order to be able to participate to the greatest extent.
Your lectures, similarly to last year, were extremely effective at directing the point of the lesson. Your direction to classes this year involved a more hands on approach to tasks and allowed class time to develop our ideas. This was extremely effective regarding the group work which we had to finish, as group tasks can be difficult without the proper direction to begin with; this class time provided allowed the group projects to have a more cohesive approach, rather than chaotic. The provided time in class also allowed for your direction with problems which we encountered, as well as the feedback of other groups. I was pretty unfamiliar with developing large projects in groups, and this course allowed me to effectively recognize the different aspects which go into group projects. Aspects such as the development of a concept as the ideas develop through the input of every group member, in contrast to simply you are developing the concept alone, showed me certain benefits which I previously didn’t recognize in regards to working with others. An example would be with the Stank-Away media project which was developed by Amber Banks, Reilley McCann, Eike Brüning, and Devon Robertson which began focused on reducing methane emissions from farming instituted in Guelph; however the idea was developed into a more practical version which would focus on reducing levels of air pollution by implementing a filter which would be applied to any sources of emission. This development of the concept would’ve been completely different had it not been for the input which every member provided, and the vision of the project would have been prone to biased had it just been a single individual working on it.
In continuation, the course content was ridiculously interesting. Some recommended pieces of media such as the Mr. Robot pilot “eps1.0hellofriend.mov” enlightened me to certain perspectives regarding security which I had not previously considered, regardless of whether the possibility of a hacker-terrorist group implementing a virus within a bank’s network was likely. The nihilistic perspective painted by Rami Malek towards society sets up a certain level of motivation towards taking an act against the system which we all currently rely on, he falsifies our public figures when he says “We all collectively thought Steve Jobs was a great man even though we knew he made billions off the backs of children” among other statements. The questioning of what most people accept sheds light on serious issues which western society isn’t concerned with and antagonizes the businesses which the society was built upon. Furthermore, the idea of expecting security from a corporation which you’ve subscribed to seems to be an expectation in today’s world, however that doesn’t necessarily represent reality, and the hyperbole which Sam Esmail, the show’s writer, paints in the pilot regarding the extreme situation sheds light on more truth than is instantly clear.
Other recommended texts which I thoroughly enjoyed were The New Yorker article regarding Obama’s views on net neutrality. While it is an old article, it was effective in contrasting it to recent events regarding the same issue, and how the issue has managed to pass. Net neutrality is interesting since it seems to occur as a trend instead of an issue which the people are genuinely concerned about, which in my opinion happens as a result of most people not fully understanding the consequences of it being removed. In continuation, the YouTube video “A fair(ly) use tail” regarding copyright laws, and how to effectively approach fair use laws, showed how much one can use other people’s content while still shifting the overall message of the original work. I reflected upon this while I was developing my own personal video project as I used some footage found from YouTube and connected it with the concept of remixing and mash-ups. I found that ultimately if you were to use other footage found online under fair use laws, the final project would be a mash-up of videos. However, it could also be argued that the final project is a remix since the meaning of the original work has been changed.
In regard to different ways in which I learnt to develop media, prior to this course I had never developed a video. The two video projects this semester have greatly encouraged me to continue making videos since I found it an enjoyable and creative activity which I didn’t consider as hard work. I learnt the basics of editing videos and have continued to improve this skill, as well as developed a new appreciation for photography and cinematography which I previously didn’t have. Other aspects of the video development process, such as creating a coherent viewing experience from multiple scenes is extremely useful regarding both general storytelling and video making.
Overall, I believed the course was ridiculously effective regarding developing a broad spectrum of skills and encouraging us to continue with what we’ve learnt. As stated previously, more effective group interactions will be necessary throughout my entire career and this course has improved that aspect. In continuation the content which was recommended to be read was all informative and expanded my views, as well as represented an array of perspectives regarding the issues which we discussed in class. Your lecturing was compelling and when asked about clarifications on certain course aspects, it was carried out thoroughly and with the student’s understanding as a forefront. I appreciate the feedback which you present regarding issues since it doesn’t seem to be regarding your own personal opinions, but instead in the effective development of the student’s opinion; which in my view is rare in University. In conclusion, I very much enjoyed the course. The content was intriguing and relevant to in-class discussions, the activities which we carried out in class helped to finish our final projects, and the development of the student’s skill seemed to be your largest focus. The lectures themselves were helpful, informative, and enjoyable, accompanied with the work which we had to do that was all captivating. I would thoroughly recommend the course to anybody eligible and regarding developing the student’s media skills, you and the course did a great job.