3rd Place :: Division A

Solidarity Bridge

Glenbrook South

Documentary

Entry Description

Last year, I traveled to Cochabamba Bolivia with my father as part of a medical mission trip. While there, I not only spent time in the operating room, but I also spent time helping mentally disabled children at a school called Centro Sigamos. The trip was part of a scheduled mission trip through a non-profit organization called Solidarity Bridge.

Judge 1

Positives: Awesome use of visuals. There is b-roll relative to the story and so many angles and settings. Pictures too!! Your talent is so well spoken! Their thoughts are detailed, emotional and fluid. That really helps keep the pace of a documentary and helps make your subjects look confident and knowledgeable.

Improvements: Not much to say here. You maybe could have had a brief interview with a patient who can talk about how their life has improved thanks to advocates like Malcom. On the interview of Malcom; make sure the person interviewing the subject is at eye level. You can see him looking up at someone and you lose the connection with the audience.

Judge 2

Positives: This was a very strong documentary topic. It definitely stands out from the rest of the videos because of the unique experience Hanna was given through Solidarity Bridge. She is very lucky to have this footage to look back on these memories and all the lives they touched during this time. It was great of her to put the exact number of patients helped and how much money was provided to really give the audience a sense of how much they did in such a short period of time. I particularly loved all the b-roll footage of the children. This was extra special and just melted my heart. It was so amazing to see how the organization is changing the children's lives and bringing smiles to their faces. This footage was well shot - bright and colorful. I also felt that the ending was so strong and impactful from the images that were shown to the music that was used. Really well done.

Improvements: The audio should definitely be looked at again. It continues to go up and down throughout the documentary. Some areas are very hot and I had to keep adjusting my speakers. In some shots you can see large lines wiping across the screen. I'm not sure why this was but I would suggest removing these shots so it can look as high quality as possible.

Judge 3

Positives: I love your music!! It totally fits this piece. It makes me feel uplifted. Awesome b-roll angles! Shots from the floor, from a second level, close ups, establishing... Thats exactly how its done.

Improvements: With a project this well done, really try to clip off the audio right after your subject finishes her line. Those little stutters can be real obvious sometimes. Remember, a film is half audio, half everything else. Take the time. Thats pretty much it. Great work!