I always thought I was fairly well-versed in movies, and I was, to an extent. But, being in this class has opened up a whole new door in the way that I perceive, watch, and understand a movie and its making. I had taken film & tv production classes in high school, as well as plenty of theater, but, I've learned more in one Semester of this class than in the four years of those.
First of all, my understanding of Film Production has been broadened immensely. I already loved watching all the special "making of" features on DVD's, but, watching them in class with a better insight and guidance, hearing personal stories, as well as having to research and write papers on how it's all done, made me love and appreciate the art of filmmaking even more than I already do. I now understand a lot better all of the hard work that goes into making a movie. For some reason, when I got into this, I had this idealistic view that it would alway be just easy and enjoyable, but, nothing comes without hard work, and for once, that makes me happy, because in the end, all of your hard work goes towards bringing entertainment and smiles and emotions to audiences and honestly, making their day by creating something that they enjoy watching.
This class has also changed my views on how I watch a film and process it as I sit in the theater or in front of my tv or laptop. I already tended to pick apart the acting, some of the camera angles, small things, and go on and on about how great (or not so great) it was in the film, which my family always found to be slightly annoying but were too nice to say anything. Now I don't think they'll ever want to go see a movie with me again. Having learned more about the audio, special effects, art and production design, cameras, and lighting, I'll have ten times more things to talk about. Even just recently, my roommates and I watched The Social Network, and I wanted to go on and on once it was over about the acting, the lighting, and the camera angles, but my roommates thought the film was completely boring and stupid. I tried to explain what made it so great, but, they wouldn't have it, so I was left to mull it over to my own frustrated self. Now that it's summer and so many new films are coming out, you better believe my family will be hearing nonstop talking from me.
This class has shown me that being in this industry takes a lot of hard work, but the rewards are well worth it. That every aspect of the film is important, that each job holds a special and crucial place in production and should be appreciated, that film is honestly an underrated field of work, and should be honored and treated with such respect for all of the effort and time and love that it takes to create that two hour experience of sitting in a theater and letting your imagination run free.
