The Value of My Time & Skill

Posted on by jesse

There is so much more to video editing than most people realize. The editing process is also way longer than most people realize as well. Those who work in video production are very much under-appreciated for this very reason. To most common folk, anyway. There was this one time that somebody I barely knew messaged me on Facebook and asked me what it would cost for me to create a 3 minute flashy video of him driving his semi-truck around. He didn’t realize what he was asking of me. I informed him it would require an entire work day of following him around so that I could get different shots from different angles of the truck, then it would take about another 5 hours of editing. I also let him know that I don’t work for free, so roughly 15 hours at 50 bucks an hour was going to cost him $750. Funny thing is he never responded to that message. I am not going to utilize my skills for free. Not unless it is for a good cause, like the documentary I am creating for 4PA.

To be honest, I don’t know when I would even have the time to do projects for other people in the first place. It’s been crazy enough just trying to do this one for 4PA with school, work, etc. Bottom line though is that I feel I am worth at least $50 an hour if not more if someone wants to pay for my services. Now, if it’s for a good cause like the non-profit, 4PA, then I might just do it for free. I see this as my way as contributing to the cause because I do believe in what they are doing.

As far as marketing goes, I think that the best way to market myself would be through social media and the web. However, like I mentioned, I don’t really have the time at the moment to be doing outside work, but that could change once I am done with school!

Definitely check out the following video:

Respect on the Road

Posted on by jesse
Respect on the Road

Script

Jesse: Fun fact: semi-trucks cannot stop as fast as cars. I’ll be honest. I feel like our driver education system has a major flaw in it. They don’t take the extra time to educate student drivers about how air brake systems operate and how much more of a delay there is for a big rig to slow down.

As a truck driver myself, I can say that I’m literally astounded by how many people I have seen in my short career pull right out in front of me like they have a deathwish or something.

Bottom line is, respect trucks, respect their drivers, and always give them plenty of room on the road and don’t cut them off, unless you want to risk your life and the life of anyone else in your vehicle. Because if our 105,000 pound truck smashes into your 3,000 pound car, it’s not going to be pretty.

Storyboard

My Motivation

Posted on by jesse

Video games motivate their players with mastery all the time! I am living proof of this. Some of us grew up wanting to master sports in school. Some of us wanted to master computer and technical skills. There were also some of us that grew up addicted to video games and the only thing they were worried about mastering was the Xbox Live achievements for Assassin’s Creed II. In case you’re wondering, yes, I am referring to myself there. I was what some would call a completionist. I couldn’t just play the game and finish the storyline. I had to make sure I went through and found all of the different locations, found all of the collectibles, and completed all of the side quests. These games were intentionally designed with all of this extra content to motivate players to put all of this time into it so they could get the “achievements” as a reward. While completing some of these tasks in these games can be very daunting and repetitive at times, it would help the player get tens or hundreds of hours of gameplay out of a $60 video game which made it so much more worth the price.

Another very neat aspect of the Assassin’s Creed game series was the fact that there was so much history incorporated into it. You would travel back to ancient times and go through locations such as Italy, Egypt, Syria, and Greece. You would encounter historical characters and work alongside them during historical events as the game developers devised a way to tie your fictional game character into the event somehow.

There are many different ways people can be motivated by information, education, and mastery, but I can whole-heartedly say that the thing in my life that motivated me the most in all three of those areas was certainly the Assassin’s Creed video game franchise.

Proposal – The 4PA Story

Posted on by jesse

THE 4PA STORY

(May come up with better title later)

A ten minute documentary that introduces the founder of 4PA, Joe DeScala, tells his story, explains what 4PA is all about, the impact it has had on the community, and goes over how to join the effort and contribute to the cause.

JESSE SEWARD

WRITING, FILMING, EDITING, INTERVIEWING

Statement

Port Angeles is a beautiful area. If we all pitch in and work together, we can ensure that it stays that way.

Background & Need

The Port Angeles local non-profit organization, 4PA, has been around for a bit now. Their goal: to clean up the trash and other items left behind in places where the unsheltered have set up camp. They also want to help these unsheltered individuals gain access to basic services and eventually housing to get them out of that situation in the first place. However, I believe a lot of residents of the area still might not be very familiar with what is how and how it operates. I truly believe it is a much needed asset to the local community and I can only hope that my documentary production can be used to inform, educate, and inspire others to volunteer and/or donate to the cause. Port Angeles needs this. This town has changed so much since I was a child. It’s time to make Port Angeles the clean and safe town we know it can be.

Approach, Form, & Style

This short documentary will be composed of a few different pieces and perspectives. First, we will hear Joe DeScala’s story. We will hear what inspired him to start this all in the first place. We will also hear from him about what all it entails and what it takes to keep this thing moving. Then we will hear from other board members, employees, and/or volunteers. I hope to be able to interview volunteers and donors and hear from them about how rewarding those things can be. Lastly, if I am able to find a willing subject, I would really like to hear from an individual that they have helped find housing and other services. A 4PA success story if you will. I’m hoping I could get their perspective as well. I hope that 4PA will be able to use my production to promote themselves and inspire others to join, volunteer, and/or donate to the cause.

Shooting Schedule

May 8-19, 2023

Concept, development, and writing

May 20-21, 2023

Filming in Port Angeles:

Interview with Joe DeScala

Interview with 1 other board member

Interview with employee

Interview with donor(s)

May 26, 2023

Rough Cuts

June 3-4, 2023

Filming in Port Angeles:

Interview with volunteer(s)

Film the cleanup process at job-site

June 5, 2023

Rough Cuts

June 5, 2023 – June 16, 2023

Editing

June 8, 2023

Submission of First Edit

June 11, 2023

Submission of Second Edit

June 16, 2023

Submission of Final Video

Budget

Hourly Rate…………………………………….$60

6 hours total filming…………………..…….$360

15 hours total editing……………………….$900

1 hour travel time…………………………….$60

4 hours concept & development………$240

Total hourly charges…………………………$1620

Miscellaneous Expenses

Lapel Mic and cord………………………..$15

Total Film Budget…………………….$1635

Audience, Marketing, & Distribution

Upon completion of the video, I plan to share it to my personal social media accounts and give a copy to 4PA so that they can distribute it in the manner they choose. I hope to create a product that they wish to post on their own social media accounts. I believe it will be a useful marketing tool for them.

Biography

Jesse Seward is a lifelong resident of the Port Angeles area. He has had a passion for video production and multimedia in general since he was in middle school. He is also a current student in Peninsula College’s Multimedia Communications Program. He works for the local company, Hermann Brothers Logging & Construction and handles all of their digital media products as well.

Miscellaneous

Release forms will be required for all individuals shown in the film.

PREPARED BY:

Jesse Seward

Proposal – A Local Success Story

Posted on by jesse

THE HERMANN BROTHERS

A Local Success Story

A five minute documentary that covers the history of the Hermann Brothers and their Port Angeles company.

JESSE SEWARD

WRITING, FILMING, EDITING, INTERVIEWING

Statement

Hermann Brothers is one of the biggest, most successful companies on the Olympic Peninsula. Let’s find out why.

Background & Need

The Hermanns started out as chicken farmers 70 years ago. Today they own a fleet of 140 commercial vehicles. The company has grown exponentially in the last several years. Producing a documentary about that will give them the opportunity to tell their story and explain what they did to accomplish that. This may also be used as a marketing tool to appeal to local residents that hold commercial driver licenses and inspire them to apply with Hermann Brothers for a driving position.

Approach, Form, & Style

This video will mostly consist of old photographs, old video footage, interviews, and narration. An interview with Bill Hermann will tell most of the story.

Shooting Schedule

May 8-19, 2023

Concept, development, and writing

May 25-26, 2023

Filming in Port Angeles:

Interview with Bill Hermann

Interview with Mike Hermann (possibly?)

Interview with Fred Hermann

May 27, 2023

Rough Cuts

May 29 – June 2, 2023

Filming in Port Angeles:

Filming at the Hermann Family Farm

Filming at the Hermann Brothers Yard

Filming at the truck shop

Filming at the wood chipping plant

Filming of the trucks on the road

June 5, 2023

Rough Cuts

June 5, 2023 – June 16, 2023

Editing

June 8, 2023

Submission of First Edit

June 11, 2023

Submission of Second Edit

June 16, 2023

Submission of Final Video

Budget

Hourly Rate…………………………………….$60

4 hours total filming…………………..…….$240

8 hours total editing……………………….$400

2 hour travel time…………………………….$120

3 hours concept & development………$180

Total hourly charges…………………………$1000

Miscellaneous Expenses

Lapel Mic and cord………………………..$15

Total Film Budget…………………….$1015

Audience, Marketing, & Distribution

Upon completion of the video, I plan to share it to both my own personal social media accounts and the company’s social media accounts. I will more than likely post it on the company website as well.

Biography

Jesse Seward is a lifelong resident of the Port Angeles area. He has had a passion for video production and multimedia in general since he was in middle school. He is also a current student in Peninsula College’s Multimedia Communications Program. He works for the local company, Hermann Brothers Logging & Construction and handles all of their digital media products as well.

Miscellaneous

Release forms will be required for all individuals shown in the film.

PREPARED BY:

Jesse Seward

Ingenuity at its Finest

Posted on by jesse

The Lift n Go is a neat little device that allows truck drivers to over inflate their air ride suspension so that it is easier for them to hook up to trailers instead of spending a long time cranking landing gear and potentially injuring themselves.

Ingenuity at its Finest
Storyboard

Script:

Ingenuity Project

STARRING:

Steve Reifenstahl

STEVE: Tired of finding trailers that were dropped to high?

Shows him trying to hook up to trailer that is too high.

STEVE: Well, not anymore. This is the Lift n Go. Just push the button and watch ‘er go!

Shows the air bags inflating so that that truck sits high enough to hook the fifth wheel now.

On-screen graphics will talk about what it does and how it prevents shoulder injuries.

Shows Steve spending a long time cranking landing gear and hurts his shoulder.

WRITTEN BY:

Jesse Seward

“Caffeine” Production

Posted on by jesse

This was originally a video I had created for a different project in a different class, but it fits the bill! I asked myself, “What motivates me?” While there were more important things such as fatherhood, happiness, financial stability, and so on, I have to remember that none of those things would even be possible in the first place without caffeine! Therefore, I made a few tweaks to this video for this project. Here are the storyboards for it. There was no script since there wasn’t actually any dialogue.

Storyboard 1 of 2
Storyboard 2 of 2