Showing posts with label Useful Links. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Useful Links. Show all posts
Monday, 26 August 2013
Useful Resources
While I was orchestrating the EYES project, the following resources were invulable in helping me achieve the project's success. I would highly recommend each of them!
Wednesday, 17 July 2013
Dream - Motivational Video
I just came across this - very inspirational!
"This is what I believe and I am willing to die for it. Period."
My course is set.
"This is what I believe and I am willing to die for it. Period."
My course is set.
Monday, 20 May 2013
Rise: A Reflection on Being Enterprising
What follows is essentially my final reflection or plea, if you like. I have put a great deal of work into this project and its holds a great deal of content. I will now allow it to speak for itself.
My attitude this year can best be summed up in the following image.
I would also like to take this opportunity to direct your attention to a resource that has had a huge impact on the project and changed the way in which I think about storytelling as a whole and my attitude towards making a living from that venture.
Synopsis:
The writer's guide was developed through the Australia Council's Story of the Future project to explore the craft and business of writing in the digital era. It includes case studies from Australia's rising generation of poets, novelists, screenwriters, games writers and producers who are embracing new media and contains audio and video content from seminars and workshops, as well as extensive references to resouces in Australia and beyond.
The Writer's Guide has been my bible while undertaking this module and formulating EYES.
Another resource that as had some impact on the project and my thinking in storytelling in general is Getting Started in Transmedia Storytelling. While the guide's strong emphasis on transmedia is not something that I have completely incorporated into my project (it was a strong component in the initial planning stages), you will see that it has still had an impact on my vision for the EYES web series.
By understanding the fundamental influences these guides have had on my thinking, you should be able to understand my intentions for the EYES project and my personal approach to the business aspects of the Creative Enterprise Project module.
My iPad ran out of memory while recording this, hence why it suddenly cuts off. However, I feel that it says enough and acts as a good introduction to what I have done artistically with EYES...
...as well as my intentions for doing so, from an enterprising point of view.
Collected in the notebook below are the online resources I've looked at in an effort to improve my professional image in relation to the module.
This seven month experience has been utterly exhausting, but undoubtedly rewarding!
I believe I have risen a great deal in the last seven months.
My attitude this year can best be summed up in the following image.
 |
| 'Deshi Basara' means Rise. |
I would also like to take this opportunity to direct your attention to a resource that has had a huge impact on the project and changed the way in which I think about storytelling as a whole and my attitude towards making a living from that venture.
Synopsis:
The writer's guide was developed through the Australia Council's Story of the Future project to explore the craft and business of writing in the digital era. It includes case studies from Australia's rising generation of poets, novelists, screenwriters, games writers and producers who are embracing new media and contains audio and video content from seminars and workshops, as well as extensive references to resouces in Australia and beyond.
|
| The Writer's Guide |
The Writer's Guide has been my bible while undertaking this module and formulating EYES.
Another resource that as had some impact on the project and my thinking in storytelling in general is Getting Started in Transmedia Storytelling. While the guide's strong emphasis on transmedia is not something that I have completely incorporated into my project (it was a strong component in the initial planning stages), you will see that it has still had an impact on my vision for the EYES web series.
 |
| While my approach can be considered slightly messy, it is highly intricate and progressive. |
By understanding the fundamental influences these guides have had on my thinking, you should be able to understand my intentions for the EYES project and my personal approach to the business aspects of the Creative Enterprise Project module.
My iPad ran out of memory while recording this, hence why it suddenly cuts off. However, I feel that it says enough and acts as a good introduction to what I have done artistically with EYES...
...as well as my intentions for doing so, from an enterprising point of view.
Collected in the notebook below are the online resources I've looked at in an effort to improve my professional image in relation to the module.
This seven month experience has been utterly exhausting, but undoubtedly rewarding!
 |
| My enrollment in the CEP module has been out of a desire for self-improvement. |
I believe I have risen a great deal in the last seven months.
The End User: Target Audience Considerations
As I've noticed that the Creative Enterprise Project module has a strong emphasis on target audience, I felt that it would be good for me to present what I feel is the target audience for EYES and the research/reasoning that helped me deduce this.
As I said in the vlog, I term my target audience as being in the 'mostly young adult' demographic (mid teen - pushing through the 30s).
To understand the type of content I am trying to create for that target audience, see Rough Cut 2 - Reflective Commentary.
Below are the research and resources I spoke about in the vlog. These were invaluable in helping understand what a target audience is, how to identity one and how to create content designed for a target audience.
ReelSEO - The online marketing guide. This is quite literally a toolbox for young creatives like myself.
IPF Marketing Guide: How to Build an Audience for Your Web Series - a step-by-step guide for doing just that. However, the time window of the module would not allow me to follow the guide through and through, but the guide has made for good referencing in times of need.
Here are links to the two television shows I mention in the vlog: Twin Peaks and Being Human.
To understand the type of content I am trying to create for that target audience, see Rough Cut 2 - Reflective Commentary.
Below are the research and resources I spoke about in the vlog. These were invaluable in helping understand what a target audience is, how to identity one and how to create content designed for a target audience.
ReelSEO - The online marketing guide. This is quite literally a toolbox for young creatives like myself.
IPF Marketing Guide: How to Build an Audience for Your Web Series - a step-by-step guide for doing just that. However, the time window of the module would not allow me to follow the guide through and through, but the guide has made for good referencing in times of need.
Here are links to the two television shows I mention in the vlog: Twin Peaks and Being Human.
Sunday, 19 May 2013
The Springpad Notebooks
Springpad is something that I have been using a for about two years now, as I read a lot of online articles I find it to be a very good tool for storing the articles I would like to reference later on. Therefore, I have used it to store resources on all of my University work and I have been using it to keep track of all the resources and research I have done for the EYES project and the Creative Enterprise Project module. To this end, I consider the Springpad notebooks to form a part of my project's appendix and they should be reviewed as such!
The notebooks and their items can be viewed in the following embedded windows. Alternatively, you can view my Springpad homepage.
Below I have also embedded the notebooks for my two other final year modules: Documentary Making and Film Dissertation, as the research I did for these has had a very direct impact on the work I have done as part of the Creative Enterprise Module, and vice versa.
The notebooks and their items can be viewed in the following embedded windows. Alternatively, you can view my Springpad homepage.
Below I have also embedded the notebooks for my two other final year modules: Documentary Making and Film Dissertation, as the research I did for these has had a very direct impact on the work I have done as part of the Creative Enterprise Module, and vice versa.
Saturday, 18 May 2013
Friday, 1 March 2013
EYES Vlog Update 6: Technical Concerns
In
these vlogs I discuss some of the technical concerns I've had in regards
to filming, the test I've done to explore these problems and the
solutions I'm going to implement to illuminate them when we do actually
film the Pilot.
For best results put the video qualities up to 1080p.
EYES Vlog Update 6.1: Lighting Problems
EYES Vlog Update 6.2: Sound Problems
Sunday, 3 February 2013
Blog Update
To save myself some time I have decided to refrain from posting on this blog all of the online resources I come across. As I have been storing them in my Springpad notebooks and sharing some of them in the Facebook group, I see little point in posting them on here as well. However, If some of the ones I come across do require further commentary then I will do so in their own posts on this blog.
Wednesday, 16 January 2013
A Stress-Free Workaholic
People say I'm a workaholic so I might as well start trying to live with it harmoniously and these are some useful tips to achieve that.
Fine-Tune Your Focus
There are two types of people in this world: those who make lists and those who make piles.
3 very simple tips to fine-tune your focus. I will be putting these into practice.
3 very simple tips to fine-tune your focus. I will be putting these into practice.
Re-think Your To Do List
The To Do list then is something that I shouldn't get stressed out about if I don't complete all of its items in the time period the To Do list dictates and you know what... I'm not going to.
Friday, 23 November 2012
Thursday, 22 November 2012
First Impressions: The Science of Meeting People
This is a very informative and reassuring article. Definitely worth a read if you want to learn how to more accurately read people and create better first impressions.
Tuesday, 13 November 2012
Social Media is One Big Coctail Party
Apply the same skills that you might use to work the room of a cocktail party to build the right relationship with your followers and fans.
This made for a good read; especially in regards to online advertising. The article was comprised of five key points:
- Listen first and never stop listening.
- Tell don't sell.
- Be authentic and transparent.
- Respond to everybody.
- Be valuable.
It certainly makes for a good argument to treat online networking more like real life social interaction and less like a business transaction. I will follow this advice while promoting EYES and Remember This.
Sunday, 4 November 2012
Time Management, Part 1
Here I discuss how good time management has been making my life more enjoyable.
Time management was the only area in my skills survey that Mimi identified as needing improving upon. I’ve never really been one for schedules; I’m more for completely disregarding everything else until I’ve got what I’m working on done. To this end, she suggested that I book myself onto the time management workshop offered by the University’s Academic Writing and Learning Centre. However, the time management workshop was not in the list of the upcoming workshops, so I switched to my tried and tested approach of teaching myself.
Naturally, I started with Google and the first link that came up was: 20 Quick Tips for Better Time Management. I had a good look through it and the links it suggests to look at. Overall, I’ve been attempting to integrate all of the article's tips into my life, but I won’t bore you by going through all them. Instead I will just discuss on the one’s that are having the most impact.
Google Calendar
I absolutely love Google and the whole array of free services they offer: Gmail, Google+, Google Drive, Picasa Web Albums, YouTube, Blogger, Google Chrome, Google Dictionary, Google Reader, Google Scholar, etc (see Google Products).
But Google Calendar is something I have always shied away from. Last year I used it to record the deadlines of my assignments, but that was it.
However, now that I’ve started using it to plan my days out thoroughly my life has completely changed! Now it feels like someone else is in charge of this busy life I occupy. Google Calendar is my new best friend!
Since using it:
Google Tasks/To-Do list
Google Calendar comes packaged with a to-do list function and after I started to get more comfortable with using Google Calendar I started to use Google Tasks.
On a more minute and mangaeble level, a to-do list allows you to break down a task into its basic required actions. So to write this blog post, I didn't just put "write blog post" on my Creative Enterprise Project to-do list (left). Instead I broke it down into four tasks:
I've started to break down all of my University related tasks in this way. Although, because my single to-do list was getting very overcrowded, it has meant that I've had to assign a to-do list to each of my modules, which is taking a bit of getting use to.
Timeboxing
Timeboxing is where you assign a specific amount of time to a task. I was slightly wary of this one, becasue I hate leaving anything unfinished.
What I've found, though, is as long a I don't allow myself to be distracted while doing a task, my subconious forces me to stick to the time limit and pushes me to finish what I need to get finished in the time limit. I'm amazed how easily I have taken to this concept and how much it has already benefitted my work flow.
Perfectionism
This is one I've alwasy been guilty of; for me a task is never done, even when it is done. Being a perfectionist is time consuming work and one of the aims I had for this year was to become less of a perfectionist, so it was just as well when it popped up in the article (see this Perftionist article).
This I want to achieve because it will reduce the amount of time I spend on one task and increase my overal workflow. This is especially important to me because on top of my CE Project and this blog I have numerous other things that demand an equal amount of my time in the final year.
In regards to this, I've been following the example I've set in my writing - just getting it done! There was a time when I would spend hours writing something that was truly minute in the grand scheme of things. Now, though, I write almost completely stream-of-conciousness all the time (which is hell of a lot faster) and then I edit it later.
If I stand any chance this yeat then my attitude has to be: let's just get the job done!
Learning to say "No"
One of the annoying things about the final year of University is this when you start getting offers for things all the things you want to do. The only problem is you get them from left, right, center and all at the same time!
I learnt this one the hard way when I agreed to make one final video for my Video Producing job at the Bath Institute of Medical Engineering. I filmed four hours of footage and then realised I didn't have enough free time to edit my through it, so I had to drop the assignment. Really, I should have looked ahead and said "no" when they first sent the task my way. I am glad I said "no" when I realised I had bitten off more than I could chew, opposed to just doing it and stressing out.
Certainly, this is a good skill to nature and one I plan to continue doing so. However, I have to be equally careful not to say "no" to something that might actually benefit me and/or something I'm working on in the log run. Thinking things through is the key here and not to feel always obliged to say "yes".
In Conclusion
The five items I have outlined here are not the only areas that I have taken from the 20 Quick Tips for Better Time Management article, but they are the ones which have proven to be used most prominantly in my life, so far.
What I have gained from maintaining good time management is a less stressful and more stable lifestyle. Therefore, it is something that I'm going to keep doing with the aim of improving further.
As I've already had slight instances of it, the one major factor I feel I need to be very careful of is not to let organising my time become my new form of procrastination! It I allow this to happen then I'm sunk.
Time management was the only area in my skills survey that Mimi identified as needing improving upon. I’ve never really been one for schedules; I’m more for completely disregarding everything else until I’ve got what I’m working on done. To this end, she suggested that I book myself onto the time management workshop offered by the University’s Academic Writing and Learning Centre. However, the time management workshop was not in the list of the upcoming workshops, so I switched to my tried and tested approach of teaching myself.
Naturally, I started with Google and the first link that came up was: 20 Quick Tips for Better Time Management. I had a good look through it and the links it suggests to look at. Overall, I’ve been attempting to integrate all of the article's tips into my life, but I won’t bore you by going through all them. Instead I will just discuss on the one’s that are having the most impact.
Google Calendar
I absolutely love Google and the whole array of free services they offer: Gmail, Google+, Google Drive, Picasa Web Albums, YouTube, Blogger, Google Chrome, Google Dictionary, Google Reader, Google Scholar, etc (see Google Products).
 |
| The Google Products I use most often. |
But Google Calendar is something I have always shied away from. Last year I used it to record the deadlines of my assignments, but that was it.
 |
| My year 2 Google Calnedar. Bleak isn't it. |
However, now that I’ve started using it to plan my days out thoroughly my life has completely changed! Now it feels like someone else is in charge of this busy life I occupy. Google Calendar is my new best friend!
 |
| My year 3 Google Calendar. |
Since using it:
- I feel less stressed.
- I feel more in control of my life.
- I feel like I’ve achieved more at the end of the day.
- I feel like I’ve achieved more at the end of the week.
- It allows me to put other people in their place and for me not to give away my time too freely.
- I don’t forget appointments.
- It allows me to see what commitments are not getting enough of my time.
- It allows me to see which commitments are taking up too much of my time.
- I feel like I might actually make it through this final year, just as long as I stick to my Google Calendar!
Google Tasks/To-Do list
 |
| My Google Tasks. |
Google Calendar comes packaged with a to-do list function and after I started to get more comfortable with using Google Calendar I started to use Google Tasks.
On a more minute and mangaeble level, a to-do list allows you to break down a task into its basic required actions. So to write this blog post, I didn't just put "write blog post" on my Creative Enterprise Project to-do list (left). Instead I broke it down into four tasks:
- Identify specific areas to talk about.
- Write post.
- Proofread post.
- Publish post.
 |
| Google Tasks allows you to assign specific tasks on to specifc days of your Google Calendar. |
I've started to break down all of my University related tasks in this way. Although, because my single to-do list was getting very overcrowded, it has meant that I've had to assign a to-do list to each of my modules, which is taking a bit of getting use to.
Timeboxing
Timeboxing is where you assign a specific amount of time to a task. I was slightly wary of this one, becasue I hate leaving anything unfinished.
What I've found, though, is as long a I don't allow myself to be distracted while doing a task, my subconious forces me to stick to the time limit and pushes me to finish what I need to get finished in the time limit. I'm amazed how easily I have taken to this concept and how much it has already benefitted my work flow.
Perfectionism
This is one I've alwasy been guilty of; for me a task is never done, even when it is done. Being a perfectionist is time consuming work and one of the aims I had for this year was to become less of a perfectionist, so it was just as well when it popped up in the article (see this Perftionist article).
This I want to achieve because it will reduce the amount of time I spend on one task and increase my overal workflow. This is especially important to me because on top of my CE Project and this blog I have numerous other things that demand an equal amount of my time in the final year.
 |
| The perils of being a perfectionsit. |
If I stand any chance this yeat then my attitude has to be: let's just get the job done!
Learning to say "No"
One of the annoying things about the final year of University is this when you start getting offers for things all the things you want to do. The only problem is you get them from left, right, center and all at the same time!
 |
| Stress relief. |
 |
| I'm not Superman (I'm Batman). |
Certainly, this is a good skill to nature and one I plan to continue doing so. However, I have to be equally careful not to say "no" to something that might actually benefit me and/or something I'm working on in the log run. Thinking things through is the key here and not to feel always obliged to say "yes".
 |
| An Inforgraphic on Time Management. |
In Conclusion
The five items I have outlined here are not the only areas that I have taken from the 20 Quick Tips for Better Time Management article, but they are the ones which have proven to be used most prominantly in my life, so far.
What I have gained from maintaining good time management is a less stressful and more stable lifestyle. Therefore, it is something that I'm going to keep doing with the aim of improving further.
As I've already had slight instances of it, the one major factor I feel I need to be very careful of is not to let organising my time become my new form of procrastination! It I allow this to happen then I'm sunk.
Web Series Channel
Web Series Channel was created to answer a simple question? Where can I watch web series? Our mission is to provide a one stop shop to watch the latest and most popular web series online.
I think I'll be spending quite a bit of time on here doing research. It's good that there is a place which exists just to host online web series, this is very promising.
Saturday, 3 November 2012
Escape My Life - Web Series
This is a very clever little web series designed to advertise "the all-new 2013 Ford Escape". This it does do, while also telling a very engaging and entertaining story. It reminds me of the BT commercials where each new advert is the next episode in the life of the BT family (now it's been spun-off to focus on the Son). I hope more commercials adopt this format, because I can't stand commercials as they are - a complete waste of my time.
This is a real gem!
This is a real gem!
Friday, 2 November 2012
Boost Your Writing Creativity with a Camera
As adults, we live busy lives. But if we are constantly busy, we will miss out on all the story ideas around us. And if we don’t write them down, we do forget them.
Some of us also find ourselves stuck for story ideas because, instead of looking to the world we live in for inspiration, we see the rushed, unromantic lives we’re living.
But it all depends on the point of view. Look at your life through the lens of a camera, and then suddenly things will start to look different.
I came across this article today. It seemed relevant to EYES so I've posted it on here.
Monday, 29 October 2012
Ways of Seeing
Mike Johnston encouraged us to look at this for Short Docs and Suman Ghosh has also encouraged me to take a look at it for my dissertation. I'm so glad I followed both of their advice because this is amazing! It has really opened my eyes to just how brilliant and complex human sight can be. This is definitely going to rub off onto EYES!
This Sounds Familiar
An Interview With the Creators of the web series Glitch.
Much of this sounds familiar, apart the published part.
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