Video Essays
Exploring Video Editing
As my last semester at Notre Dame, I decided to explore more of the Adobe Suite by learning Adobe Premier Pro through a video essay class. Using the first season of Netflix’s hit show Stranger Things as a primary subject matter, my task throughout the semester has been to explore film critique through the unique delivery method of videography.* Each week, I am challenged to explore not only a new thematic, analytical lens of the work, but also incorporate a brand new video editing technique to bring the argument to life.
* This project was purely for educational purposes and does not represent or is associated with the property holder. All video, audio, and other intellectual property is protected under Fair Use.
Text on Screen
This first project called for students to make the use of some passage not overtly related to the media subject, and incorporate the text into the subject. The video and audio track of the subject were also to be highly manipulated as part of the prompt.
Thinking of Stranger Things Season One’s use of prototypical 80’s tropes for both heartwarming and subversive purposes, I decided to highlight the dichotomy of the TV series’ warm appeals to nostalgia with its intense, unexpected emotional beats, which are evocative of a more nuanced approach to filmmaking than the series initially implies. To accomplish this, the video itself is manipulated to imitate the media of the time, including a manipulated aspect ratio, CTV color and projection quality, constrained audio, and VCR imperfections, among other effects. The technology begins to break down more as the negative memories of the past slowly break through the idealized nostalgia initially presented.
MultiScreen
This project called for the use of a new technique, Multi-Screen, and a combination of your own subject matter with that of another student. I decided to create a piece that highlighted the thematic similarities between Stranger Things’ depiction of Eleven’s exploitative childhood and her uncontrollable, unknowable powers, with Jordan Peele’s discussion of exploitation and hubris in his film Nope.
This video features audio from Nope pieced together from several scenes, to create a track which self-commentates on the unpredictable power of nature, and the folly of those who think they can control it. Video from scenes of both subjects were manipulated to closely align with one another, attempting to compliment the audio track and bring together the thematic arguments of both media.