When you intend to enter a career in film, particularly with the current state of the industry and without any prior experience, any expert will tell you that the most crucial thing is to “get out there and create.” When I first came to Swarthmore, I was certain that I was going to become a director, so I decided to seek out as many experience-based opportunities as possible.
In my first semester, I registered for Film and Media Studies (FMST) 001: Critical Approaches to Media. Every Tuesday and Thursday, I would sprint to Kohlberg Hall for the 9:55-11:20 AM class. Eager to absorb the content as best I could, I sat in the front row, my readings from the night prior in front of me, littered with annotations. Tuesday classes revolved heavily around theory, whereas Thursdays focused on applying it towards individual pieces of media. Every Wednesday evening, from 7-10 PM, the class hosted movie screenings of pieces like Citizen Kane or Bo Burnham’s Inside. The following classes were led by a set of three students: prompted by in-depth questions about the film that helped facilitate class discussion. Tuesdays, on the other hand, looked at media from a more general perspective: diving into history, technique, and the meaning behind certain elements of a scene (ex. In a shot of a train, what different elements paint the scene? Lighting, framing, background, characters, costuming, distance, historical context, et cetera). This, coupled with the different projects that we worked on, such as analysis essays and editing assignments, helped me to better understand and recognize the meaning behind directors’ decisions in creating media.
Through joining Cinema Club, I was able to participate in the filmmaking process more directly. Recruited by a friend, I aided on the production of a short film: A Good Listener, with three other crew members and three actors. The process was incredible—it was a day-long shoot, and, in that time, I was able to learn how to work different pieces of equipment, such as the cameras and shotgun microphones, and provide input on the final project. The shot list was not terribly extensive—about thirty-one total–so we were able to shoot the entire piece within the Ideas Lab in Beardsley Hall. The conference table worked as an ideal set and the space’s green screens were used for shots with less feasible backgrounds. The project revitalized my love for directing and film, and to have been able to work in a collaborative environment with so many passionate individuals was absolutely transformative.
I did not take any FMST courses in my second semester, but I found my life forever changed by those first months within the department. I was never able to attend the weekly movie screenings for Critical Approaches to Media because of a conflicting course (Chorus), so I watched the films independently before Thursday classes—birthing a new tradition of movie nights among my friends and me. We would meet up on Friday afternoons in the McCabe Video Viewing Room, and grab copies of the films from the library’s collection. In the words of my film professor: “Watching a movie with other people changes the whole game. Being with an audience brings a whole new perspective to the piece.” I kept track of different moments within the film that were particularly intriguing, from plot to tactics, but took note of what scenes produced reactions from the audience. Even after my class concluded, Friday movies continued. We shifted more towards musicals (since I returned to acting and directing in the second semester), and the audience slowly expanded with each new film until the room was practically overflowing. Having learned about the intricacies in each individual shot, I was able to better appreciate each piece we watched.
While I may no longer devote my life to film, as originally intended, the interactions I have had within FMST have been among the best of my time at Swarthmore. I am excited for the next chance I have to continue to learn and interact with this incredible department—taking full advantage of one of the many remarkable opportunities that this institution has to offer.