Despite this week's WINOL not being broadcast as live, the last two days have certainly given me a lot of experience, ways to improve, things to work on, as well as a taste for what is to come this year. I found it extremely hard work to organize, find and follow through an interview in the short space of time available and I know that I will have to fully prepare all interviews and stories before Monday next week. Despite being told that I would be given an interview, I was told this morning that I would not be able to get one until Wednesday morning, nowhere near enough time to complete the entire package and therefore this week I had to make do with a statement from Winchester City Council, not what I intended. With this sorted, my next problem was soon to follow, after struggling time after time to complete my lines for my piece to camera without a mistake or interruption, I did eventually manage to complete my piece to camera to the best of my ability; nowhere near the standard I would have liked, but I did not realise how hard I would find a long piece to camera.
When i returned to being the editing process I discovered that the tape for some unknown reason was not working and the quality of the recordings were poor, with green lines across the video. I therefore had to re-record the entire piece to camera which again I found very difficult and not at all as good as what I expected.
Returning to edit I was thankful to receive the expertise of the 3rd year students who greatly helped me to edit when i needed assistance with anything I hadn't previously come across as I have only edited once. I did really enjoy editing my video however, and I think this will be very enjoyable for the year ahead, and I can only get better at this process and the entire package making process as a whole.
I'm not entirely pleased with my package all in all, and hope that it gets better quickly in the up coming weeks. Tomorrow brings my first look at the packages coming together.
You should aim for personal finance stories - how students are affected by partiocular things - above all student grants, loans, fees, cost of parking, cost of trains, cost of equipment. It should always be bad news, perhaps a story about the launch of a new bursary scheme or something, so even a "puff" piece about discounts for students somewhere - that would need balance.
ReplyDeleteYou can also peg something on inflation statistics from the government (this means proce rises). Look up when the new monthly inflation stats are coming out, and then do a "shopping basket" comparison this month as opposed to last month - you can keep that going through the year (that is very pro - "last month the winol shopping basket was £23.45 this month it is £23.87 p - an X percent increase".
Also you can have a bit of fun with teh shopping basket of "essentials " for students, it could include pot noodles, condoms, alcopops, giant size cocopops, rizla papers, Red Bull.
You go do shopping (using speeded up camera). You don;t need to actually buy this crap, just add up what it costs.
To start with you would do a comparison of the same shopping basket at Tesco vsd Waitrose vs the (total rip off) Student Union shop.
Ah - just an idea - do a comparison with the student union shop at (1) southampton Proper Uni, (2) Southampton Solent (3) Winchester.
that will build our audience. it is a fair bit of work.
Justina Chlad did something similar last year as a feature. We put it in student news feature of the year - but it did not win due to us being stitched up of course.
Also you need to listen (on play again) to probably the two worst radio programmes in the world radio Four MONEY BOX and Radio Four YOU AND YOURS - that is the BBC anchor output for personal finance. They are radio four and you can get them on iplayer I think or Radio four play again facility.
Your beat also extends to all BIG PICTURE economics and marketsnews - like Robert Peston and Colaterly Sisters .
But I reckon you can have some graphics in the studio, with teh presenter having you point at the your WINOL INFLATION BASKET of specially chosen student goods and services, etc.
This is a very good beat and there are thousands of starter jobs in websirtes, magazines nad newspaper sdections dealing with personal finance. You don;t need to know anything about economic theory - in fact it probably helps to to throw the cold light of ignorance on these matetrs.
Typing error - I meant to say it should NOT always be bad news
ReplyDeleteAlso on screen you look a bit nervous and scared. You can get around that by using FUNNY PROPS or by holding a report or even just a sheaf of paper. It somehow makes people more relaxed looking and solves the very very nerve wracking problem of what do i do with my hands.
ReplyDeleteIf you get your WINOL wirebasket organised you can sort of contemptously toss things into the basket, and it will be a bit of a laugh and this will make you look less nervous.
That's a point for everyone - you look less nervous (and will feel less nervous) if you do walky-talky [needs practice and is hard]and use a prop [as in "according to this report" - and then you wave a laod of sheets of paper about.
It is absolutely terrifying to stand as it were naked (meaning no props)plonked mid-shot and standing still. You just know you are going to look like a charlie. A good example as I say is the Leeds contribution to UK Today. A very good package, but the presenter not knowing basic stuff about presneting, such as the above.
Anyway once you are doing a performanec, it is just much less terrifying and you will naturally look relaxed.
The exception to this as ever is a PTC in a war zone - then it is actually a good thing to look terrified. You would do a walky talky down 'sniper alley' holding a cluster grenade saying stuff like "Now how many of us have ever wondered what a cluster bomb looks like, well I'vre got one here, so I went to speak to Mr Terrorist about hoiw he uses it".
No that wopuld be bad.
In that case it would be best to gabble into the mic in mid shot standing as still as humanly possible - like the Leeds reporter on UK Today.
By the way - don't get grumpy about technical failures. These failures happen everywhere. The only way to deal with that is to develop tech paranoia - assume that it will NOT work, and therefore you have to arrive earlier at places and set yourself earlier deadlines because you assume that the equipment will work. Then if it DOES work, this is a sort of bonus and you have extra time to do some more editing before the deadline.
ReplyDeleteThat's another difference with WINOL and other colleges - I have actually seen with my onw eyes at anotehr place a student say 'I couldn't do it because the equipment wasn;t working' and the tutor said 'that's OK then, don;t do anything you will still get marks because it is not your fault'. That is very bad - actually training people to fail in life!