Artistic Statement: A Concerned Citizen
Being a concerned citizen does not have to mean just giving stuff to people. Sometimes it is just as important to know HOW to give or how we can improve how we help. This wasn’t the concept we expected going into the interview, but it was just right for making a compelling and insightful little documentary. It is having things develop naturally like this that makes developing our artistic vision more interesting.
One thing we wanted to do with our presentation is invite a calm and reflective environment for the audience and the speaker. Thankfully, the speaker had such an environment in the house she was staying at. Partly this served us because it was easy to access, but we felt it really served the tone of the narrative. When we think of someone who does service for communities, we picture a humble home and lifestyle that reflects their work. Complimented by the unflashy lighting and leisure flow of the editing, we hoped that the setting of the piece set the tone well.
However, this does not mean we just wanted to do a “gather around for story time” video either. As sweet and calm as the speaker and environment are, there is still a sense of fun to the things she does to help in Bolivia and the other countries they did work for. To reflect this, we added a few creative choices into the mix. One of those choices was the Latin music in the background. It is just subtle enough to not be distracting, but light hearted enough to add some enthusiasm. The other big choice was the inclusion of some lighter moments from the taping. Jordan’s hands serving as a clapper, some of the speaker’s comments, some moments where she can just laugh, etc. It not only rounds her as a character, but it adds depth and personality to the narrative.
Ultimately, all of these decisions and manipulations of the film are to portray an honest picture of the speaker. She is a very humble person. She is a funny and lighthearted person. She is informative. Through the way we assembled it, we wanted to give respect not only to the advice she gives on how to do service well, but respect to her as a concerned citizen.
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