My Preparation for this class started over last summer. I didn't have a computer by the end of the year last year and knew I needed to get a new one for school over the summer. I talked to Pat and after a few discussions and research of my own, I determined that the macbook was the way to go. Editing and composing multimedia files is leaps and bounds ahead of what I was able to do on Windows.

Throughout this class, I've learned so much about my computer, that I would not have explored on my own. I have been able to explore the suite of editing software that comes with macs, as well as the add on Quicktime Pro. Quicktime Pro was a purchase I never would have considered before taking this class, but now that I know how to edit video on my computer, I have found how powerful a program it really is.

In the middle of the semester, I had the opportunity to work with the Signs of Life troupe as a VJ. Using Pat's PD patch, we were able to show and manipulate video clips supplied by the group. The clips were placed into directories which were then randomized using a joystick to switch randomly between clips. This was augmented by a wide array of effects, including a live feed of a person in a mask, which we keyed over the videos being mixed in real time. Other effects included static, blurring, text, bloom, and gain. The part that was most artistically satisfying for me with this project was the collaborative aspect. Along with Pat and Shamar, we each controlled different aspects of the live mixing, while also feeding off of music played by a live DJ.

Throughout the semester, I was also the digital designer for the Florida Player's show Braggart Soldier. The concept for this show was that the characters were like those of a cartoon, and we're invading reality. To facilitate this concept, two separate digital aspects were introduced. First, as the backdrop of the set, there was a large projection screen, on which flash animations were projected. The cartoons were first drawn by a cartoonist, and then animated using the adobe flash program.

The other digital aspect was used during the intermission. There was a small television set in the lobby, andd it played a DVD I authored of commercials circa the 1960s. Finding appropriate commercials in creative commons websites proved dificult, however, there was one source that had ample content, Youtube. The problem with this source was that the videos could only be played in a browser. To solve this problem, I downloaded the Youtube Video Grabber program to extract the files and convert them to .mov files. I was then able to edit out introductions on the youtube videos and have just the pure commercials. I then edited them together using Quicktime Pro to create 1 .mov file of all the commercials, and then authored a DVD of the file using iDVD. The result was exactly how we wanted it to turn out. However, had the videos not been played on a small television screen, youtube would not have been an appropriate source, as the resolution on youtube videos is notoriously bad. For the purposes of this project however, they served excellently.