Wyndi: Great Expectations

Taking photographs….Filming….Editing….Producing…I feel like I’ve entered a communications major’s dream! As an intern, I will have the opportunity to participate in all the activities mentioned. I will also have the opportunity to work with many talented professionals with the hopes of picking up essential skills. One of the main reasons I’m so excited about the HFB project, however, is that it’s ambitious AND practical. It’s ambitious in the sense that it will be an ongoing process that will require effort and energy from its participants. But HFB is also a practical way to learn about local history and make our Virgin Islands’ community a better place.

Kadeem: Intern's first week

In my first week of being an intern for "The House That Freedom Built" project, I was exposed to different aspects of filmmaking. From camera operations to getting funding for maintenance, restoration, and renovation. Under the direction of Ms. LaVaugn Belle, I've been able to further develop a creative eye for taking pictures and videos. We watched films and videos and Ms. Belle pointed out several camera techniques. Although, I've been watching films for a long time, the techniques she shared became more noticeable. For example, some films shift the audience's attention by changing the focus on an object and blurring everything else that would seem distracting such as people or other objects in the background. With a simple switch of the lens of the camera and a focused object, the subject comes to life. Because I've never worked with a professional camera before, the technique is very new to me but it is an example of one the many things that I look forward in learning about.

Being chosen for an internship for this project is an opportunity to improve my film skills, learn more about our history, develop a creative eye, and to learn the fundamentals behind film-making. In my first week alone, after being exposed to just a little bit of the project, my curiosity and interest have expanded and I look forward to making this internship a memorable learning experience.

I've got INTERNS!!!!

This is a quick pic of my new interns: Kadeem Hendrickson and Wyndi Ambrose. They are star students at the University of the Virgin Islands and will be working on the production of the film. This is from our first meeting. You'll be seeing a lot more of them!