Dreams Deferred - ID# 514
Homewood-Flossmoor
Documentary
Entry Description
Story of an ex-con turned Pulitzer Prize-winning podcaster.
Copyright Info
Recent Teacher Comments
- 4/28 9:13 pm - +Good b-roll, interesting topic, good story find -Doc would benefit from additional interviewees
- 4/12 8:46 pm - KEEPERS: This documentary has really impressive production value. Great job with the interview set ups and in particular, the sound. This story is really incredible to hear and inspiring on a lot of levels. You clearly had access to trove of old photos for broll and you used them well. The open and closing was attention grabbing and hooked me into the story. IMPROVEMENTS: From an editing stand point, pace your broll a bit better. Many times, it felt like the photos were on and off screen too quickly - in particular with the newspaper clippings about the boy getting beaten by racists. People want to look closely at that imagery and it needs to be on screen a touch longer. I think more music was needed in the piece. I liked how you used songs as transitional elements and that was effective but I think having some songs for each "chapter of the piece would provide additional emotional pull. Finally, could it have been possible to have gotten an additional voice from this project? A family member of Yohance or a member of his podcast team...some other voice to lend credence to his journey and his evolution. Overall, this was a really cool story. Great job finding it!
Judge 1
Positives: -Great story and use of archival to establish credibility -story arc was well managed
Improvements: -Include sound design during the emotional moments to increase emotional pull (specific example: when he got arrested) -stick to your guns with the style at the beginning. use as a a motif. that was strong and i felt like the stylistic choices became vanilla after that -what was prison like? 25 years skipped through
Judge 2
Positives: Obviously, there is a lot of loaded ideaology. One being which break the cycle of oppression the justice system, unshackling men of color within. you handled the subject matter like an adult, waiting the line of what's acceptable for MMEA standards and what is the ugly truth. its hard to not get to big for your own shoes, I know. and you seem to be handling your curiosity as by gracefully painting and painful subject matter with such mature colors.
Improvements: Its a complicated issue, what parts of the story do you reveal vulnerabilities of. Obviously he's no saint, and if you do the crime you do the time. but it would be helpful to sprinkle a few things into the mixture here. a.) the disparaging results of the war on drugs for communities of color, and why people fall into the street life cycles. B.) his road to a comeback. Its got to be darn well impossible to revive your career when you've been bottomed out, injustice or not. So showing his humility and vulnerability here, might help his over all portrayal. Persistence pays.
Judge 3
Positives: Great story and topic. Really inspiring. Loved the B Roll, the movement in the shots.
Improvements: The interview location didn't seem to fit the story. Remember to use title safe and video safe areas. Head was chopped off in a few interview shots.
Judge 4
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Judge 5
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