Human Interest Story: Day 4 - Due!

3rd period:

Please use the next 15-20 minutes to complete and proofread your human interest article. Make sure you check your spelling, sentence construction, diction, and mechanical usage of grammar. Print 1 copy of your work and keep it with you for our next activity.

If you finish early or at the end of our prep time, let's get some writerly advice from published authors:

• Boredom is a selfish act, be curious: Patti Digh
• Elizabeth Gilbert, Author of Eat, Pray, Love: TedX: Success, Failure, and the Drive to Keep Creating

If you watched these videos, please make a comment about what you think or learned by watching these videos in the COMMENT section below. 

At about 9:30, when instructed, get into groups of 3 (that is: you and 2 other students in the class). Invite students who are alone to your group of 2!

Taking turns, please read your human interest article out loud to the other two members of your group. Listeners should listen to the speaker and give the reader some comments about his/her performance or writing (performance, word, or text).

Listeners may wish to comment on:

• The performer's volume (how quiet or loud the performer read)
• The performer's pace (how fast or slow the performer read)
• The performer's vocal range (how varied or energetic was the performance)
• The performer's overall effectiveness in performing/reading out loud
• The performer's written story/article (identify strengths and weaknesses in the article)
• The performer's opening hook
• The performer's written content & details

Each listener should complete the evaluation sheet with his/her comments, share these comments with the performer, and hand these critiques in to me for participation credit. The performer should hand in a copy of his/her human interest story. 

When time is called, let's view a few human interest videos as models. This will begin our next project.

• 3 Beautiful Human Minutes: food for thought on the power of Human Interest stories (intro)
• Ann's Story: A Foster Care Story (cause focused)
• Daughters Growing Up Without a Father: Letaris Witfield (cause focused)
• Animal Rescue Human Interest (cause focused)
• Michelle Duty: Human Interest (human focused)
• Jonathan Martinez: Human Interest (human focused)
• Caroline Bilta: Human Interest  (human focused)
• Rodeo Human Interest (topic focused)
• Construction Human Interest (event/place focused)

For your next project you will make a short 1 minute to 3 minute human interest video. You will shoot, edit, and upload your human interest story on Youtube to share with the class. 

Some things to remember:

• Your human interest story is a story. It should have a specific subject (see examples above) and involve some understanding of what it means to be fatally and tragically or humorously human.
• Create questions in your journal that you might ask your subject.
• Follow your subject around for some time (usually a day) and take pictures or video of him/her doing something normal.
• You may write a voice over script introducing your subject.
• You may use partial interviews or researched statistics in your video.
• You may use a musical underscore to add tone and ambiance to your video.
• Above all: Be creative!

How to go about doing this project. 

1. Decide to work alone or with a single partner. 

2. If you work alone: make a list of potential subjects for your human interest video. Choose one as your subject (this can be a family member, a friend, a neighbor, a teacher, a person of interest, etc.)

3. If you work with a partner, decide who will be the subject and who will be the videographer.

4. Videographers should come up with some interview questions to ask the subject. Record your questions and answers in your journal.

5. Decide on where you will shoot video footage of your subject. You may have to travel, so plan accordingly. Brainstorm different possible settings to use as an appropriate backdrop for your video in your journal.

6. Record your interview with your subject. Use some of this material (the best parts) for your video.

7. Use your smartphones or video equipment (you can borrow this from our department) to make your film.

8. Upload your video/audio footage into Windows Movie Maker (or iMovie or other video software if you have access to it).

9. Edit and prepare your video. It should be, again, 1-3 minutes in length.

10. Upload your video when it is completed. 

This is an ongoing project. No due date has yet been set--but note that we will be moving on to other tasks and activities while you gather the resources and spend the time to shoot and make your video. Due date will be set by next week. The sooner you begin working on the project, the better. 

And if you forget why you're here: I am Human: Unique and Imperfect (view this video and feel free to respond in the comment section below). 

HOMEWORK: None. Begin planning/writing/shooting your human interest video project.