Ocean Minded

Ocean Minded originated from another class I enrolled in, where I was fortunate to be on the same team as two of my close friends. Despite our close bond, we encountered several challenges. Our initial plan was to create a film about Kelp agriculture and how some companies use it as a substitute for plastic. However, due to budget constraints and time limitations, we couldn't afford multiple trips to San Francisco, where some startups were developing in this area. Realizing that a few days of filming wouldn't allow us to produce an engaging film, we concluded it would be too rushed and lack authenticity.

Drew and I decided to abandon that treatment and search for more feasible subjects. Drew managed to connect with a recent UCSB graduate working at a nonprofit called Heal the Ocean. Wanting to avoid the video feeling like a sponsored piece, we opted for a character piece focusing on Jasmine Tupy and her relationship with the ocean. Although I anticipated the editing process to be easier than the Cultured Abalone project, I was mistaken. Fortunately, she lived down the street, making it easy to conduct numerous interviews. However, this abundance of material and 5+ hours of soundbites – made editing challenging.

After the first interview, I realized the importance of crafting questions that would yield answers essential to our story. This preparation proved beneficial during interviews with her parents and friends. Throughout pre-production, I learned to organize b-roll and interview clips on Davinci, streamlining our editing workflow in post-production. It involved many late nights and debates in the editing bay to best represent Jasmine and create a coherent story. I particularly enjoyed being behind the camera for this project, as we had beautiful spaces to work with.