All About Mike: Mastery Journal

Michael C. Anderson Jr. was born and raised in St. Petersburg, FL and as a child he always had a love for reading and writing. He always loved a good story. He got a Bachelor's degree in Public Relations from the University of Florida to improve his...

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I am a writer!

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Effective Branding - Portfolio I

Apple

One company that is notorious for their effective branding is Apple. They do an amazing job at using marketing strategies to pinpoint each of their target audiences. For example, back in 2014 Apple used Tumblr to promote the release of the iPhone 5c. The Tumblr user demographic and the iPhone 5c customer demographic matched perfectly with about 56% of the demographics being people 34 years old and younger. Social Media is always a great way to reach the younger demographic.

Source: https://www.searchenginejournal.com/tumblr-marketing-10-examples-effective-brands-right/124194/

McDonalds

Another company that has effective branding is McDonalds. McDonalds is able to maintain their brand in all 17 countries by segmentation and experimentation. McDonalds does not market in the U.S. the same way that they market in the 16 other countries. The executives adapt the brand to the changes in each company, which is why McDonalds does such a great job staying relevant at all times. The company also focuses on experimentation, and you will often notice that certain food items appear and disappear from the menu. They do this by staying up to date with consumer trends and local popularity. Adapting to the taste of the customer is what keeps McDonalds on top.

Source: https://www.blurgroup.com/blogs/marketing/what-is-the-secret-to-mcdonalds-global-branding-success/

Coca-Cola

The final brand that I would like to discuss is Coca-Cola. Coca-Cola focuses on sticking with tradition and will often recycle its classic advertisements. People are more likely to stick with what’s familiar, right? Right! Because of this recycling, today Coca-Cola is one of the easiest brands to identify and “when most people see a red soda can or a bottle with a red label or logo, their minds immediately jump to ‘Coke’.”

Source: https://richtopia.com/strategic-marketing/how-to-brand-like-apple-mcdonalds-cocacola

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Storytelling & Storyboarding for Animation

Ashia: The Legend of the Orisha

Photo Credit: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/363947213612582988/

The picture above is an example of the look of Ashia, the protagonist of the story. Ashia is described as having thick, dark hair that defies gravity. This picture is a perfect example of the look for Ashia.

Photo Credit: 

http://community.comicbookresources.com/showthread.php?116-Storm-gt-gt-gt-APPRECIATION-lt-lt-lt/page1399

The picture above is a perfect example of how Ashia looks after tapping into the power of Yemaya. In the story, hey eyes glow white and her hair turns white.

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Gamificiation & Media Convergence :Reimagined & Remized (Writing for Games)

My first example of ​gamification and media convergence is Harry Potter. The story started off as a book series by J.K. Rowlings, but now has entered into, if I'm not mistaken, all channels of media. The story of Harry Potter has expanded into film, theme parks, websites, video games, merchandise, etc.

My next example of gamification and media convergence is a program called ClassDojo. ClassDojo is a communication app for the classroom. It connects teachers, parents, and students who use it to share photos, videos, and messages through the school day. ClassDojo allows teachers, parents and students to work together as a team, share in the classroom experience, and incorporate new ideas in their classrooms and homes. I have personal experience with this app and it certainly gets the kids excited! (​ClassDojo)

My third and last example of gamification and media convergence is Evoke. Evoke is a "10-week crash course in changing the world." The game is an educational game encouraging youth to develop innovative solutions to the world’s biggest challenges, such as hunger and poverty, and was created by The World Bank in 2010. (​​Evoke)

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Insight into Writing for TV

Working as an ad hoc writer during my time in the Episodic and Serial Writing class has been quite an experience. It was interesting having to create an episode based off of another person’s story. This experience meshes very well with my goals as a writer. My goal is to land a staff-writing job on a television show and eventually work my way up to serving as the show runner of my own television series. Writing like this has definitely given me insight into what my future career could be like. 

This experience is extremely different than other writing experiences I have had. I’m used to creating and developing my own original stories. I’ve never written a story based off of somebody else’s writing before, but I found it to be pretty easy and it kind of came naturally. The experience was a new one, but I was okay with it. I neither felt negatively or positively about working with someone else’s creative property. It was just something I knew I had to do. Maybe I would feel more positively about the experience if I was more interested in the story or if the assignments were more collaborative.

I can definitely see myself doing this in the future since my ultimate career goal lies within this realm of writing. To pursue my goal, I plan to make my way out to Los Angeles after spending some time honing my writing and preparing spec scripts. I would also take the time to polish my pitching skills, which I’ve already had a jump start in doing coming from the Master of Fine Arts Film Production program here at Full Sail University. I would need to find an agent and just go from there. Taking this course definitely got me excited for my professional future.

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Script Analysis & Criticism Mastery

I just started a job with a company called Dial America which offers telemarketing services. I was hired as a call center sales representative. I am brand new, so I do not know much about the company; however, I have seen a few ways in which I could assist them with my creative writing skills.

A community organization that I would like get involved with is the Boys & Girls Club of Central Florida. I have done some community service with this organization while working with campus organizations in undergrad, but I would like to continue on my own.

IDEA 1: The script that Dial America asks its employees to use when talking with customers is robotic and extremely impersonal. I believe that if I could use my creative writing skills to personalize the script and find ways around the legal jargon, customers may be more receptive to the what the company is offering.

IDEA 2: The website content is a bit dry and boring. I believe that I could use my creative writing skills to spice up the website which may encourage visitors to find out more about Dial America and maybe even convince them to look into inquiring about how to get involved with the company.

IDEA 3: The training that new employees must complete before starting with Dial America is filled with important rules and procedures, but all of this is delivered in a boring and uneventful way. I believe that I could use my creative writing skills to help improve the delivery of these rules and regulations in the recordings and maybe even create stories that new employees may be able to relate to, which could make the training process more enjoyable.

[thewritewire]

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Photo: http://compfight.com

Quote: Maya Angelou from I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings

Meme: http://addtext.com

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Business of Film: Personal Branding & Navigating the Industry

My initial goal for Business of Film was to learn how to navigate the business side of film. I do believe that I have reached this goal during my time in this course. I learned quite a bit about ways to get our thesis films into film festivals and ways to navigate through the film industry as a whole. We were also taught how to market ourselves in this industry. I did not expect to go over self-marketing, but I really did appreciate it. I really enjoyed the fact that developing ourselves is part of the course’s curriculum because many programs do not include self-improving aspects like Business of Film.

I believe everything I have learned in this course can directly apply to my life professionally and personally. Professionally improving my resume, creating a personal branding video and writing a professional biography is extremely helpful in branding myself the way that I would like to be seen professionally. These things also give you an advantage in getting the attention from potential employers. I also feel much more confident in my abilities to get my projects into film festivals. I was not too sure about that process worked, but after taking this course I am very excited to get my work out there. I would prefer to work in the television industry and while researching film festivals for the film comps presentation, I found that some of these festivals take web series episodes as well. I would have never known if it was not for this course.

Personally I believe the information I have learned in this course is helpful because personal branding can be useful in more aspects of life than some people may think. Personal branding should not be limited to just finding and maintain careers. It can also be useful in dealing with relationships and other aspects of life. Taking this course has been very beneficial and I am glad that this course concludes the program.

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Post-Production: My Experience as an Editor

My initial goal for this course was to learn how to effectively cut and edit films. I also wanted to learn as much as I could about the technology that went into the process. Interestingly enough, I was able to learn quite a bit about editing before I even reached this point in the program. Editing in Post-Production was just the icing on the cake. I am not really technologically savvy person, but I have really enjoyed taking this class.

           During this course we were forced… I mean “required” to use Avid Media Composer, which was a bit of a challenge being that I had grown accustom to using Final Cut Pro for all of my editing. At first using this editing software was a bit intimidating, but throughout these past few weeks I have started to get the hang of it and even be able to assist a few of my fellow cohort members as well. In some ways I kind of prefer Media Composer to Final Cut Pro. I also learned how complicated and important the process of transcoding footage from a camera to a format to be edited and then to a format that can be shown in theaters could be. It is an extremely complicated process that I have never really thought about before.

           I have learned quite a few things from this course that has given me insight into how the film world works as a whole. I have also had a change of heart. Post-Production never really interested me. I enjoy being able to start and plan things, so pre-production was more of my thing. I never really was a fan of editing, but during this course I discovered that I am pretty good at it and maybe post-production work might not be so bad in the near future.  

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What We All Have Been Waiting For: Thesis Production

My objective for Thesis II: Production “to learn how to successfully lead and manage a set while filming.” During this course I was able to accomplish my goal. I learned quite a bit about what goes on during a small production and how many of these tasks can multiply and become more complicated as the production grows larger. After working in a role with more responsibility on a Full Sail student production, I do believe that I was able to learn many of the basics to managing a successful small production.

 I served as the Unit Production Manager for the Full Sail May 2016 Thesis Film, Invited. Although most of my work came from pre-production, there was still a lot that I had to do during production. My duties were to handle all paper work for the production, which included the production reports, call sheets, crew deal memos, talent releases and paper work from each department, and oversee all departments to make sure that production was running smoothly. It was a lot to juggle, but the department heads made my job a lot easier. I also helped out with securing food for crafty and lunch and even helped our crafty production assistant organize the crafty/lunch areas each day on set.

 Moving forward there were quite a few things I learned that I could and have applied to my life professionally and personally. The first lesson I learned is when planning an event or production expect the best, but plan for the worst. You never know what could go wrong, so it is smart to plan for it to go wrong so you can prevent it from happening or be aware of how the problem can be easily fixed. The next lesson is to keep an open mind and be patient when dealing with a large amount of people. With people comes different mind sets and opinions. It is very important to try to be patient with some of these personalities, so that feelings are not hurt and the production/event can continue to run smoothly.

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It’s Just The Beginning: Pre-Production

My objective for this course at the beginning of the program was “to learn how to successfully collaborate with the crew about details of the film.” Just looking at the objective that I wrote only seven months ago, it is obvious that my knowledge of filmmaking was very limited at that time. I can honestly say that I have learned quite a bit about the ins and outs of pre-production.

My primary thesis position is Unit Production Manager for the Thesis Film, Invited. Although I enjoyed working under the Producer and handling many of the logistics of the film, this was not my favorite part of pre-production. Ultimately, I would like to become a Casting Director and Pre-Production was the perfect opportunity for me to shine. I started off only casting one of the thesis films within my cohort, but in the end I was asked to be Casting Director for all three films. As of now, this has been the highlight of the program for me.

One thing that Pre-Production has taught me that can be applied to all aspects of my life is the importance of preparation. While wearing my UPM hat, I was responsible for making sure that locations were found and secured, making sure the cast and crew fill out the appropriate contracts and agreements, making sure that craft services/crafty are set up for the production dates, and just making sure that all assignments from each film department is being completed in a timely manner. Organization and communication is the key to success in this role as well as in many other facets of life. It ties in nicely with my public relations background and I believe that with the knowledge I acquired from Pre-Production I will be more than prepared for whatever Production throws my way next month.

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Being a Director of Photography: Visual Storytelling Techniques & Technology

When I first started the Film Production MFA program at Full Sail, I did not know what to really expect with a few of the classes, especially Visual Storytelling Techniques & Technology. My goal for this class was to learn how to create themes and emotional moments within films. I actually achieved my goal, but not during this class. I accomplished my goal while doing projects in Experimental Filmmaking, the previous course in the program. Visual Storytelling Techniques & Technology taught me everything that goes into being a Director of Photography on a film set and it is a lot more work than I thought it would be.

Visual Storytelling taught me quite a few things that allowed me improve the visual storytelling skills. During Experimental, I learned how certain objects, color and sounds have a certain meaning that can add to the way a story is told visually, but Visual Storytelling taught me that the meaning of the things shown in a film is just a small part of the equation. How the things appear on the film screen also affect how people perceive the story being told. One thing that I found interesting is how the framing of certain things can change the meaning. For example, buildings and/or people appear more powerful if they are shot from a lower camera angle and buildings and/or people can appear smaller and weaker if shot from a higher angle. I found this very interesting and it made me think of all of the movies and television shows that I have seen use this technique to give the story more meaning. During this course I also learned specifically what a Director of Photography does during a film or television show shoot. The DP is in charge of the camera, lighting and power crews, which is pretty much covers the entire technical aspect of filmmaking. I knew that the DP is an important member of the crew, but I did not know how much work they have to put in to bring the Director’s vision to life.

I learned quite a bit during this course and I do believe that there is a way that I will be able to apply these skills to my professional life. I really enjoy writing and working with talent, so ultimately, I would like to become a casting director and writer. I have also recently become interested in script supervising. I believe that I could work some of the visual storytelling techniques into my writing to give it something extra. I believe I would also be able to use these skills if I decided to pursue finding work as a script supervisor. I could use these skills to find a production assistant, grip or electric position, which would allow me to bump elbows with other professionals who could potentially be my way into the script supervisor position. These skills are also helpful as a script supervisor because it could allow me to be of more help to the editor with my script supervisor notes. So not only will these skills help me land a job, the skills could also help me excel in that job.

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The Art of Film: Experimental Filmmaking

My goal for the Experimental Filmmaking course was to learn how to make films without having to use the traditional filmmaking equipment. It is very obvious now that I had no idea what to expect from this class. I thought that we would experiment with ways of making films, but I actually learned a lot about the art of filmmaking. I did not just learn what I was expecting to learn achieve my goal for the course; I was exposed to so much more and it really helped to alter the way I think about and observe film.

           During my time in this course I learned a lot of interesting things, but my biggest takeaway is that there will always be a difference between what the writer and/or director wants the message of a film to be and the message the audience actually takes from the film. Not everyone will always understand what you are trying to do with a film and you just have to accept that fact. I also learned that there are a lot more experimental films out there than I realized. I do not necessarily understand the point of a few of them, but it has been interesting being exposed to this type of filmmaking. It really opens your mind to different possibilities.

           I can apply what I have learned in this class to my personal life by having an open mind when preparing to watch an unusual film. I will remember that filmmaking is not just about storytelling, but there is an art to every single aspect of it. Filmmaking is an art in itself and that I should not be so quick to dismiss a film that does not fit into my idea of what a film should be and consist of. Experimental Filmmaking has been very enlightening.

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My Experience as a Director: Directing Talent

Taking the Directing Talent course was a very educational experience and I would even go as far as to say that this has been my favorite course of the program thus far. Allen Gorney is an amazing instructor and I was able to learn quite a bit from him. My goal for the Directing Talent course was to learn what it is like dealing with actors/actresses, writers and crewmembers on set. I also hoped to learn techniques used to successfully direct the talent for television and film. I would say that I accomplished my goal and then some.

During my time in this course, I spent a lot of time reading the course’s textbook, Directing Actors by Judith Weston. This book helped me not only to become a better director, but also a better actor. One of my biggest take-aways from this book was result-oriented directing versus action-oriented directing. A few other topics that I learned a lot about was “moment by moment”, which dove into how some actors work while on set, listening and talking, which allows the acting to be more believable because actors are actually reacting to what the other actor says, script analysis, rehearsal and shooting.

Another thing that I loved about this course is that Gorney would have an open discussion in class about the reading and provide more examples from videos or real-life experiences. This really helped to clarify thing that may have been misconstrued and make the information stick with me.

I was also able to get a good amount of real-world experience because of the three directing scene assignments. We got a chance to be the director and get a feel for what is required of them. The experience was amazing and I learned quite a bit about what it takes to be an effective director and ways in which I can improve personally as well as professionally.

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This is my Mastery Vlog discussing my experience in the Script Production & Analysis course. Pretty interesting course. I learned a lot!

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