Creating a Video Editing Portfolio

During the time when I was informed that the Personal Project was coming up, I was already aware on what I am planning on doing. Ever since 6th grade, I already started experimenting with various video editing software such as Kine Master and Power Director. This two software’s allowed me to familiarize myself with post-production. I spent a lot of time experimenting with different ways of combining clips together, experimenting with effects and it is something that I am really interested in. I also took film classes for a short while which got me even more drawn into video editing. During 9th grade, I was given a task in Math’s where I had to make a video explaining how the Pythagoras Theorem can be used in real life. I enjoyed working on the project because I experimented with Adobe Premiere Pro on different effects and transitions. I grew up watching content creators on YouTube and they are the main reason why I decided to try out video editing software. I was always fascinated at how these creators are able to make their videos so hilarious through editing, so I wanted to try it out on my own. I was also fascinated with cinematic shots and montages that are so smooth to the point where you feel like you are in a different world when you watch it. When I researched about video editing, I was shown that there is also motion graphics. I have never done motion graphics before, so I would love to learn more about it and integrate it into my videos. Therefore, since I am so fascinated with video editing and cinematic montages, my Personal Project would be the perfect opportunity for me to learn more about Video Editing and Motion Graphics.

Product Goal

My learning goal will lead me to acquire some new skills such as being able to do motion graphics and complex video editing. Therefore, my product will be a portfolio that contains a collection of the different videos that I have edited that are in the cinematic genre, which means montages and cinematic videos. The reason why I chose the cinematic genre and montages is that I have always been intrigued by them. Plus, montages will allow me to implement more of my skills into the final product.

Reflection

My Personal Project was to create a Video Editing and Motion Graphics portfolio, it really had a big impact on me and my learning since I managed to learn a lot of new skills from doing this project and I gained some new experiences from working on it for the past few months. Some of the new things I learned was how to use After Effects, composite footage with After Effects, mask out different objects in a scene, create seamless transitions, put the right transitions in the proper place to maintain the flow of the video, cut by the beat, stabilize footage and many more. It is safe to say that I know how to video edit at a professional level and when it comes to motion graphics. Although I am not yet a professional, I have improved a lot compared to a few months back. Not only has this Personal Project have an impact on my learning, it has also affected my motivation positively. Before this project, I was not too motivated to improve my skills in video editing, primarily because I found it to be really difficult and it led me to doubt my skills and knowledge on whether or not I was able continue doing it. But after working on this project and completing it, I started to feel a lot different towards editing, it’s not as insurmountable as I thought, and in fact, it isn’t stressful, it’s actually fun. When I was editing the short film video of the Death Stranding, I had a lot of fun mainly because my imagination just went all over the place and I put clips together without following the blueprints. The process was awesome, and when I was done, the video was so satisfying to watch. It gave me a feeling of accomplishment and that is what changed my perspective towards editing.

Product Evaluation

Once I finished my product, I immediately evaluated it based on the product success criteria that I made during the planning phase. While I was grading my portfolio based on the product success criteria, I did not just use my opinion, I also included my friends and family's opinions on the videos that I have created. The product is evaluated on four main criteria’s which are Theme, Quality, Video Runtime, Aesthetics, and Portfolio Design. The evaluation is done out of 5, with 5 being the highest / best / exceeds expectations and 1 being the lowest / worst / way below expectations. For my peer evaluation, I asked my friends and family to make a fair evaluation of my skills, using a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being the highest and 1 being the lowest. I asked a total of 15 people, 7 people from my family and 7 friends. When asking my family to evaluate my videos, I played all 3 videos in front of them and I recorded their comments. When I asked my friends for feedback, I gave them the link to my portfolio website, and ask them after class via zoom on what they think of the videos. I also recorded their comments and included some of them in the table below: Overall, I'm pretty satisfied with the results of the peer evaluation, it's an eye-opener. I was little bit doubtful whether or not people would give me a good score because while I was working on my project, I encountered a lot of obstacles such as being sick, which was a setback and I felt bad because I wanted to work on the project. But at the end, things went well and I'm really glad that people enjoyed watching the videos that I have created. The peer evaluation also has increased my motivation to continue editing and I will probably do it for the rest of my life, I see it as a career now and it is all thanks to this project.