Weekly Check In 7

This week the programming department finished up the final class jury.  It was lead by Kevin who did an excellent job.  While he led the jury I controlled the database and updated it as decisions were made.  Things are starting to slow down in the programming department.  Last Tuesday, February 23 I learned that I was going to be a volunteer coordinator.  I will be responsible for creating databases for the directors to request volunteers and a database to organize the people who volunteer for Visions6.  I have been speaking with Rob (my new director) on exactly how to start this project.  Right now the directors are trying to decide if they would like students from George Mason to apply to become a volunteer.  I think this is a good idea.  The more help the better!  I present a plan to begin this process in two weeks.  Before that, I will be brainstorming ideas on how we can reach out to enthusiastic students who can help us make Visions6 an awesome experience for everyone that participates!  So far, I am thinking flyers at the bake sale and posters around campus would do the trick.  I will get with the art department to set that up and also speak with Jack about making some posts online!

Week 6 Check-in

This week the programming team updated the films on the database that are still in consideration. We stayed late after class on February 16.  During this time, we worked on creating a consistency between each film database that are in the programming folder.  I think the problem was that we each created different formats for each round of films and for each genre of films.  There were different color schemes, which made it confusing.  After we were finished, all the colors were the same and this made the database easier to understand.  This process took about 45 minutes.  During the rest of the week, I re-watched films to prepare for the last jury on February 23.  The programming team met on Monday, February 22 and Kevin informed Jessica and I that our next project would be to help with the installation.  I am not quite sure what this entails but I am sure it will be interesting and fun!  Last week, I ran the class jury and it went well!  I opened up to classmates and it was nice to be heard.  This week Kevin will be leading the last class jury.  While he leads, I will be updating the database with a list for the final films that will be in Visions6 Film Festival.  This should be exciting!

Week 5 Check In

This week, I constructed the database for the films in round 4 that we will be jurying in class this tuesday.  I have gotten a hang of how things work in google drive so this did not take long.  The programming team has learned to work efficiently.  While I set up the new databases, Jessica updates the inconsideration films in the database.  I then go over the database she has made to check for any mistakes (there never are any, but just in case).    The programming team works well together, supporting each other and always answering any unclear questions.  Last week, I got to watch Jessica lead the class jury.  She did a wonderful job!  Watching her helped me prepare to lead the jury in class this week.  I am still nervous, but I know that it will go well!  I am glad I got to know everyone better at the Valentines party and I know that they will all support me despite my shyness!  This week the programming team will work together to prepare the database for the last jury in which we will decide the final films to be included in Visions6.  We will also be working on constructing a way to notify the filmmakers of the chosen films and let them know that they will be apart of the film festival!

Week 4 Check-In

This week I got to not only grade films, but also papers!  The papers were very long and some were interesting.  The films were also quite unique!  I graded the films over two days.  This allowed me to focus on all the films and fully appreciate them.  I read the papers in one day this took several hours.  Some of the papers required extra attention in order to understand what was trying to be said.  Kevin needed help setting up the database for round 3 films for the jury this week and updating the inconsideration films from the jury last week.  The Google database is very touchy and some things got a little messed up but with the help of Kevin and Jessica we got it all fixed.  All of this was completed on one day and it took about 2 hours.  I am beginning to feel more comfortable working within the database on Google.  On another note, this coming week is the Valentines Bake sale.  I went to the store and bought all the ingredients to make Valentines blondie bars.  They are going to be delicious.  This week I must also prepare to lead the jury in class and while I am a bit nervous because I am very shy, I think it will go well.  All in all things have been going very well.  I have made some new friends and I am sure that will continue!

Week 3 Check-In

This week I focused on screening the next round of films to jury in class.  There were twenty creative and interesting films.  I screened them over a 3-day period.  I found that it is better to watch the films over a long period of time rather than all at once in order to be able to fully appreciate each one.  Kevin also asked me to organize a spread sheet in excel for each round of films we jury in class.  It took a few hours to organize the films.  I thought it would also be a good idea to color coordinate narratives, experimental, documentary, and animation within the spreadsheet in order for more clarity.    The films that we decided not to screen are in a group at the bottom of the spreadsheet.  I think having this spreadsheet will allow for a more efficient jury during class.  This week Jessica will be leading the jury and next week it will be my turn.  I am a little nervous but it will be awesome!!!  This upcoming week I plan to get with Kevin and see what we can do to organize the papers for the jurying process, as I feel it worked well with the films.  So far, things are going well within the programming division.  I enjoy working with Kevin and Jessica!