The importance of a presence…

…on the web, that is.

Lately I’ve been mentoring students and a few newbies to both videojournalism and video production.  Frankly they’re all pretty much rank beginners with the basics and a dream of getting better.  And of course, they all have a website showcasing their work.

But.

The websites are pretty much shotgun, not sharpshooter and well-aimed and focused.  They’re tossing it all out there without filtering.  The good, the bad, and the ugly are all on their sites.

Anything.

They’ve.

Ever.

Done.

Please spare me.  I don’t want to see it all – that is not only boring and a complete turn-off, but also not good for your odds of impressing a potential employer or client.  Those last two only want to see your best – what makes you stand out above the herd. What makes you the one they want to hire.

So winnow through your work.  Filter it down to your best one or two or at the most three pieces of work.  Label each story (or video) clearly, with information about your role in creating it…as well as whether it was a school project, a volunteer effort, or a paid gig.  Don’t be overly wordy (a sin I commit frequently).  Just a simple caption for each.

And speaking of writing…please remember basic English when writing.  Keep it simple, making sure your grammar and punctuation and spelling are spot-on.

Remember you are striving to work in a visual medium and everything about your site will be judged in an instant and will either attract or repel.  So stuff like color schemes and font choices do matter.  Photos do matter.  Words. Do matter.  Don’t post photos and words that are in conflict.  In other words (you know who you are) don’t say you are a journo and post a duckface and photos that imply you’d rather be in Tinseltown. Do not try to create an image that is not you…be real.  And please post your work – not just photos o you working. I honestly don’t care how you look. I want to see what you can do for me. Be who you are…a newbie with dreams.

And.

Again.

Keep it simple.

A few more items.  Don’t post your resume or all the world to see.  If asked for your resume, DO include references.  NEVER state that they are “available on request.”  Really?  So you want me to take extra steps to check you out before hiring you?

On that note – do this now, while you’re still in the prof’s mind.  Ask for (1) a recommendation letter based on what they know about you now as a student and (b) permission to use them as a reference for future gigs or employment.  If you wait two or three or more years, you’ll just be another ghostly body in their memories.  Unless you really really stood out (for good or bad reasons).  And choose who you ask to be a reference.  I gladly told all of my students I would recommend them – but they had to carefully consider what I would say about them.  Because I will not lie.  A number of kiddos really did think and back off from asking…they knew exactly how they had behaved and how much work they had done (or not).

In closing.  Have friends, mentors, teachers all check out your site and pick it apart.  Put on your rhino skin suit and take their advice as help, not hate.  While your besties might say it’s all good, they might be lying or just buying into your lies to yourself.  Listen to those who’ve been out in the big bad world and use what they tell you to fine-tune your web site.

So good luck with it and all.  And review and update your site as your skillset and experience improve.

Tah!

Addendum 3.08.2015
Wow – and just when I thought I’d seen it all – I haven’t. A local “producer” OMB (one man band) who has a great gimmick called “A Dolla for a Holla” where he pays passers-by a buck to say something in front of the camera…something positive for a program he is working on. Gets them to sign off on a model release so he can use their comments in said program. We had a discussion and I asked for his card with the intention of checking him out via his website. Um…no. No website. In fact – no web presence at all. No facebook. Googling his name, his show name, anything and he is invisible. I gotta tell ya, that if this is the new Marketing 101, then I’m clueless. As is his potential audience. (Oh – and no phone number either…apparently the ONLY way to track this enterprising young man down is through his email.)

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Crushing dreams for being realistic?

We all have dreams. A better life. Being thinner, richer. Sometimes material things. Sometimes something else. Hopefully though we all have a way to balance our dreams with the real world and not spend life wallowing in regrets.

When I look back at my life I see that many of my dreams never materialized through either my own poor judgement or circumstances, but I don’t let it bother me. Much more than a twinge…and then I move on. I’ve been lucky enough to have two careers that totally absorbed me. Three girls who have grown into women I could never have imagined…like me they forged their own paths. And a husband who is so much a part of me that I can’t imagine life without him.

Enough about me though…here’s the rub. How do you explain to the upcoming generation how to balance reality with dreams?

I’m a cheerleader for our young people. Volunteer with high school and college age students, nudging them to excel. Mentoring more young people via the Internet, again nudging them to think about their choices. And I like to think I’ve never told a young person that they can’t do something. All things are possible. If they prepare themselves.

Now in the case of the high school students my advice is primarily take the right courses and focus on passing with a good enough grade they can move on to college and a career. In some cases I’ve actually told students they can flunk. Harsh? If you take a student who has flunked English or math or science from middle school forward pep talks don’t work. Tutoring can help but not with every student, especially if their life and home situations place barriers to becoming better. So I give them permission to flunk with the following advice.

Sure – flunk English. But you want to be an auto mechanic (or warehouseman…or beautician)? Then learn how to write a solid resume, learn how to write a business letter. Pick up a good solid workplace vocabulary…know the language of the career path you have chosen.

Sure – flunk math. But learn how to add up services and products to write a receipt. Don’t forget to include tax (a percentage of the total). Know how to write an estimate for repairs. Understand how to read your paycheck…not just the total or amount after taxes. Have a handle on all those niggling little details like FICA and state and Medicare (how big a bite those deductions take out of your hard earned money).

And now. On to college.

There are students who you know just naturally are gonna make it. They may struggle with this course or that course but they are willing to give it their best shot. Take the core hard classes and go into class with the intent not just of passing but learning. I am very proud to be acquainted with a number of these golden youth.

And then there are … the others. Those with a dream, but unwilling to be realistic. Those who just know they are going to be great but are unwilling to put in the time and effort to pay their dues at the bottom in order to earn their way slowly up the ladder to success. (Success by the way, as defined by me, is not money…but happiness in both your career and life paths.)

I run into them both on campus and the Internet. Had a discussion with a young man from India (much) earlier this morning. He tried to join a professional site I moderate which doesn’t allow students…after explaining that to him, he told me he really wanted to learn how to be a travel journalist…and after more probing, a travel cameraman. One – he is studying to be an engineer. He has no background of any kind in any phase of journalism. Not insurmountable, but his dreams are not going to happen soon.

And then more…he desperately wants to get away from home (and possibly his down-to-earth parents), travel to a foreign county (Europe or the US) and go to journalism school. And become a glamorous travel journalist/cameraman.

The implication that all a cameraman does is point and shoot. Anyone can do it. I heard that so many times over the years from folks with a home handycam…”Hey, I’ve got a Sony too. Bet I can do your job. How to I apply?”

Not. Gonna. Happen.

So more guiding…and explaining the complexity of the job. Shooting, research, scheduling, logging, transcribing, writing, logging, editing…all with the intent to pop out a concise visual story. He is much subdued but listening to the advice to consider going into engineering and working on his passion weekends. A paying job and a dream to work towards.

Meanwhile the on-campus students. The students who don’t “do” tripods. Or want to know manual controls. Just pick up a camera and wave it. Or sit in front of said camera (maybe with a shaky friend holding it) and pretend to be a celebrity interviewer. Forget about light, audio, exposure, sequencing, framing, writing, editing. It’s all in the moment.

Unfortunately that moment isn’t even their fifteen minutes of stardom. It is a momentary flash seen only by themselves and a few friends.

Yeah…the terminal termagant is crabbing today. Again…I never tell students they can’t. But also never lie to them and say they can…

Dreams are flights of hope and passion…but making them real takes dedication and work.

Afterthoughts added later…
Getting into a job as a videojournalist takes time and talent and work and to some extent luck. My crabbiness comes from seeing and listening to young people who think “anyone can do it”. Truth be told, anyone CAN do it. But to do it professionally (for pay) and in a style that compells people to actually WANT to watch you work (meanings strangers, not just friends and those who love you) takes more than a shaky hand, a dream, and being clueless.
And the journalist part is just as challenging. Knowing and understanding your legal rights. Being able to write in clear, concise English (or whatever language you own). Knowing what facts are and not “expanding” or “enhancing” them to make the story better.
Sure, I was a dreamer once. But I sweated blood and tears some days to even get in the door (which btw was pretty much closed to women in 1972 when I forged out into the work world).
Just remember all you need to do is work until you can’t move, learn until your head hurts, and aim for perfection.
Now that’s not too hard, is it?

Routine…

Finally it’s happening…I’m settling into a routine at school and home and life is beginning to be good again.

Not totally – the two English Support classes for second language learners are a bit rough. I’m going to workshops to learn how to teach them effective writing, so we’re muddling through this together.

Today all but a handful of these students were in for CELDT testing…to check their English skills. So the three I had in first period and the two in second period got some personal instruction in – of course – video production. One even liked it enough to stay through his lunch period (he’s a keeper).

Broadcasting has settled into a somewhat chaotic routine. The students are done with Basic Shots, Animations (I have GOT to get permission to post some of these – they are amazing), and are working on their Research PowerPoints and Autobiographies.

The new routine, begun last spring, is that after the basics, they must bring me assignments. I do, of course, offer up general work – be the video producer for football, wrestling, etc. But I want them to think and look around and write proposals. I’ve heard talk about a music video here and a movie short there. Some students are checking out the contests I post up in the front of the room.

All the while they will be learning some basics of news writing, shooting, editing…but the bulk of their grade after this will be generated by them. After all…isn’t this the way it is in the real world?

Heads up – we have a ton of work ahead of us!

Heads up kids – the 48 Hour Film Project is next weekend!. We will be working in teams from 7pm Friday night through 7pm Sunday to script, shoot, and edit a movie. Hope you’re keeping an eye on this.

The first meeting is tomorrow at the little park at the end of the street from the school. Be there at 4, preferably with a parent. I have model releases and waivers to be completed and signed.

Later in the week we’ll meet at the school to view past entries in the contest and get an idea about what we should be doing.

If I don’t hear from you by Wednesday…well, how ’bout you just get in touch BY then. You can reach me at cyndyg@mac.com.

Go Eagles!