This is the third of three presentations I delivered at the 2019 JEA Advisers Institute in New Orleans.

1. LISTENING TO VIDEO STORIES
Presentation by Jim McCarthy
Joseph Gregori High School
Modesto, CA

6. What did you hear?

19. NEWS STORY
WRITTEN FOR THE EYE

20. NEWS STORY
WRITTEN FOR THE EYE
RADIO / VIDEO STORY
WRITTEN FOR THE EAR

25. NATURAL SOUND: [Gloves hitting bag]
Reporter Voiceover: Freddie Neil's boxing gloves…
NATURAL SOUND: [Gloves hitting bag]
Reporter Voiceover:…have taken him around the world.

27. TYPICAL REPORTING PROCESS FOR HIGH SCHOOL VIDEO REPORTERS
1. REPORTING
2. 1. Story is assigned
3. 2. Student reporter may or may not research subject/topic in advance
4. 3. Student reporter shoots b-roll
5. 4. Student reporter conducts interview(s)
6. EDITING
7. 1. Student editor reviews interviews, identifying potentially useful soundbites
8. 2. Begins to recognize story structure possibilities
9. 3. Begins to realize missing elements that would make for better story
10.4. Editor begins to fill in gaps with reporter voiceover script
11.5. On deadline, makes the best of what she has collected

28. TYPICAL REPORTING PROCESS FOR HIGH SCHOOL VIDEO REPORTERS
1. REPORTING
2. 1. Story is assigned
3. 2. Student reporter may or may not research subject/topic in advance
4. 3. Student reporter shoots b-roll
5. 4. Student reporter conducts interview(s)
6. EDITING
7. 1. Student editor reviews interviews, identifying potentially useful soundbites
8. 2. Begins to recognize story structure possibilities
9. 3. Begins to realize missing elements that would make for better story
10.4. Editor begins to fill in gaps with reporter voiceover script
11.5. On deadline, makes the best of what she has collected

30. NEWS STORY
WRITTEN FOR THE EYE
RADIO / VIDEO STORY
WRITTEN FOR THE EAR

31. Legally Blond
Reporter & Editor: Cesar Flores
THE DRAMA DEPARTMENT HIT THE STAGE LAST WEEKEND, PERFORMING THE BROADWAY
MUSICAL LEGALLY BLONDE. < Summary Lede >
KYLE HOLLMAN: Legally Blonde is about this girl name Elle Woods, and she's basically like your
basic white girl, like sorority sister. She goes to UCLA. < Plot Summary >
MORGAN McKAY: She is in love with her boyfriend Warner and he ends up breaking up with
her because he wants to be more serious and he goes to Harvard Law School. And so she
decides, okay I'm gonna get in there too. < Plot Summary >
NANCY MAXON: As she moved into Harvard Law, she learned that she could be more than that.
So, it’s really everyone’s story, ya know. Don’t sell yourself short. < Plot Summary + Theme >
THE PERFORMANCE WOULDN'T BE THE SAME WITHOUT THE WAY THE CAST PLAY THEIR ROLES,
ENVISIONING THEIR DIFFERENCES AND CONNECTING SIMILARITIES WITH CHARACTERS. <
Transition to Character Analysis + Art of Acting >
KYLE HOLLMAN: My character is Professor Callahan, who is basically the master lawyer at
Harvard. I love playing jerks. I’d like to think I'm not that, so playing it is fun, because like
surprises people. So I prepared for that by like really putting myself into the shoes of like a
really bad predator. He's a predator, basically. Because I know I can never be that so I'm trying
to think my best like how can I like pretend to be that. That's what acting is. < Character
Analysis + Art of Acting >
MORGAN McKAY: Well, I think that she's a little bit more similar than those people think
because although she is, you know, people think that she's this stereotypical dumb blonde.
She really is smart. It’s really just puts her motivation and determination and I think that that's
something that I sort of aspire to be, you know. And her optimism, she has a lot of optimism,
because you know she's like, you know I'll get into Harvard. That's fine. I can do this. And I think
that I see myself in that a lot. < Character Analysis + Art of Acting >
KYLE HOLLMAN: This is definitely like a great way to end it and I would love for like as many
people as possible to come see it. < Brief Commentary on End of High School Acting Career +
Plat Promotion >
REPORTING FOR JNN, THIS HAS BEEN CAESAR, FLORIDA.
Emma
Reported and Edited by Julie Glodek
NATS: 5 sec.
FROM THURSDAY, MARCH 2 TO SUNDAY MARCH 5, GREGORI’S DRAMA
DEPARTMENT PERFORMED ITS SPRING MUSICAL EMMA, BASED OFF OF THE
NOVEL ORIGINALLY WRITTEN BY JANE AUSTEN. < Summary Lede >
TRACE HUGGINS: Emma is a about a girl out of private school that is trying to play
matchmaker after she sets up one functioning couple. < Plot Summary >
STEPHANIE CONKLIN: And then her best friend Jeff is telling her all the time like you
can't meddle and other people's lives and eventually she learns that like she has
feelings for him like I was kind of stuff and it's crazy. < Plot Summary >
NATS: You are right about one thing I should stop getting an older people's lives and
figure out what’s going on with mine.
THE PLAY TAKES A MORE MODERN APPROACH TO AUSTIN'S CLASSIC NOVEL
WITH UP TO DATE MUSIC AND SCENARIOS. < Transition to Adapting Play >
TRACE HUGGINS: It's so much fun being able to perform music that you hear on the
radio. You don't hear musical songs on the radio. Being able to perform Heartbreaker by
Pat Benatar is probably like my favorite thing I've ever done in drama. < Adapting Play >
STEPHANIE CONKLIN: That's what I like about the show the most is that it has a
sense of reality within the universe it’s in. < Interpreting Play >
AS WELL AS EMMA BEING THIS YEAR'S LAST MUSICAL. IT ALSO MEANS IT'S
THE LAST PRODUCTION FOR GRADUATING GREGORI SENIORS. < Transition to
Senior Actors in Final Play >
TRACE HUGGINS: It's bittersweet about it being the last year because as much as I'm
so happy that I'm moving on from drama. It's also sad because you're leaving behind all
the kids that I've mentored basically my children, but at the same time is really happy
knowing that they're going to grow up and they're going to be the mentors now. <
Personal Response to Senior Actors in Final Play >
NANCY MAXON: It's always…ahh… a sad time when you have to say…umm…
goodbye, but to enjoy their growth from freshmen to seniors is such a wonderful journey
and to have them all performing together and showing how talented they are and being
excited about where they will go. < Personal Response to Senior Actors in Final Play >

32. Unedited Otter Transcript
Story: The Crucible
Reporter: Kristina Carrasco
school drama department perform their first play of the year in
the beginning of November with the production of the recent
increase all about the Salem witch trials and healthy and
typically about Abigail Williams and Dawn crop during their
fair and how their fair caused her to accuse hundreds of
people being witches and that cause it was rested eyes
Proctor into the village eyes he's a really good man he's kind
of seen as number one I guess everybody respects him and
so when they found out like he did that with Abigail they were
all shocked and confused this play is different than most of
their productions because of its circular town we usually do a
lot of comedies and if there's a lot your friend that are normal
play the fact that we had nooses and I felt that everybody
found out how bad the Salem witch trials were Avigail crazy
she's manipulative with her friends mercy and Susannah
or really on many levels I am I get mad easily he gets mad
easily my attempt I have temporary issue he has some issues
is pretty much the same person. I guess you
could say. The language definitely was the hardest thing
about production, you know, still going tasks have very long
speeches and they were in older English with a lot of biblical
terms. Terminology we probably had about 600 overall and

33. TRANSCRIPTION APPS

34. “Most assume that [reporting with video] to be a
backwards process...they’ll shoot video, then write
to it. But I find it so much more fruitful to have an
idea of the WORDS first, then look out for the
correlating video. Often times, on my drive to an
interview, I’ll track the story in my head.”

35. Lavalier (Lav) mic

36. Dynasty Youth Program Reporting Process
“Many of our best stories come from people reaching out to us.”
Day 1:
1. I knew the police officers would be there to chat with the kids.
I mic’d up one of the officers and shot the WHOLE thing. 30 minutes.
1. Interviewed John Calvino. 30 minutes.
1. I met boxer Freddie Neal. Learned about his background and
2. decision to come home to help the kids.
3. “I knew he had a prominent role to play in the story.”

37. Day 2:
1. Shot Freddie Neil sparing with kids.
2. “I ALWAYS have my subject mic’d up when I’m shooting b-roll.”
3. 45 minutes.
4. Interviewed Freddie Neal.
5.
6. “I purposely wanted to talk with him after the workout for two
7. reasons: I knew the sweat beading off his face would look great
8. against the lights, and I find subjects are more relaxed and
9. thoughtful when they’re completely exhausted.”

38. Day 3:
1. Basketball camp day. Randy Barnes is mic’d throughout.
2. Nate Phillips speaks to a group of kids. He was mic’d before he
3. spoke.
4. Interviewed Randy Barnes.
5. “Because I already spoke with John and Freddie, and knew the
6. direction the story was going, this interview was much more direct.”

39. Day 4:
1.
2. I went back strictly to find a kid to talk to. I strolled around,
3. without my camera, chatting up different kids…and that’s when I
4. found and interviewed Cameron.
I had edited much of the piece and wasn’t happy with my first
few shots, so I got together with one of our top photographers to
pick his brain. We looked back over some of the sports stories
he’d done in the past, and that’s where I got the idea for the
opening scene.

40. Day 5:
1. I went back to the gym looking for one specific shot…I dimmed
2. lights on Freddie and shot him punching the heavy bag for about
3. 20 minutes before I finally got the shot.
EDITING:
I probably had 5-6 hours of video to weed through to put
together for a three minute story.
The bulk of the editing took place over the course of about 8 hours.

41. I have some idea of what my script is going to sound like
BEFORE I even go in for interviews/video, that way, I know what
to look for in the camera lens when I get there.
Most assume that to be a backwards process...they’ll shoot
video, then write to it. But I find it so much more fruitful to
have an idea of the WORDS first, then look out for the
correlating video. Often times, on my drive to an interview, I’ll
track the story in my head.
Obviously, my origins as a writer fostered this. In TV,
reports/photographers so often get caught up in the video,
because that’s what people see...for me, the writing is so much
more important. Make the footage work with your words, not
the other way around.

42. I have some idea of what my script is going to sound like
BEFORE I even go in for interviews/video, that way, I know what
to look for in the camera lens when I get there.
Most assume that to be a backwards process...they’ll shoot
video, then write to it. But I find it so much more fruitful to
have an idea of the WORDS first, then look out for the
correlating video. Often times, on my drive to an interview, I’ll
track the story in my head.
Obviously, my origins as a writer fostered this. In TV,
reports/photographers so often get caught up in the video,
because that’s what people see...for me, the writing is so much
more important. Make the footage work with your words, not
the other way around.

43. I have some idea of what my script is going to sound like
BEFORE I even go in for interviews/video, that way, I know what
to look for in the camera lens when I get there.
Most assume that to be a backwards process...they’ll shoot
video, then write to it. But I find it so much more fruitful to
have an idea of the WORDS first, then look out for the
correlating video. Often times, on my drive to an interview, I’ll
track the story in my head.
Obviously, my origins as a writer fostered this. In TV,
reports/photographers so often get caught up in the video,
because that’s what people see...for me, the writing is so much
more important. Make the footage work with your words, not
the other way around.

44. Calvillo: The streets are undefeated. You're never
going to beat the streets. So our whole commitment
is keeping these kids off the streets.
Reporter Voiceover: And the program does that not
just with boxing, but basketball and bonding too.
NATURAL SOUND: You got this, you got this.
Reporter Voiceover: Open and free to all.
Barnes: Inside these these walls, they're safe.
NATURAL SOUND: OK, all right, all right, all right…

45. Calvillo: The streets are undefeated. You're never
going to beat the streets. So our whole commitment
is keeping these kids off the streets.
Reporter Voiceover: And the program does that not
just with boxing, but basketball and bonding too.
NATURAL SOUND: You got this, you got this.
Reporter Voiceover: Open and free to all.
Barnes: Inside these these walls, they're safe.
NATURAL SOUND: OK, all right, all right, all right…

46. Barnes: We either invest in our kids now,
but we're going to pay for them as adults late.
NATURAL SOUND: Good job. Good job, good job.
Calvillo: Lot of people tell me when groups
and we have, you saved the one, you did your job.
I don't like that. I want to save them all.
NATURAL SOUND: Again, again, again, again…

47. Barnes: We either invest in our kids now,
but we're going to pay for them as adults late.
NATURAL SOUND: Good job. Good job, good job.
Calvillo: Lot of people tell me when groups
and we have, you saved the one, you did your job.
I don't like that. I want to save them all.
NATURAL SOUND: Again, again, again, again…

48. A Special Piece of History
In this old railroad town…But there’s a big turnout Tuesday morning
to watch...the movers. The original homeowners are long gone. But
neighbors line the sidewalks. This historic home built in the1880’s...will
have a new address. It is being moved...from Main St. to Oklahoma
Ave. Spectators stake out the best vantage points while movers
admit they’ve hit a road block. While repairs are made...the tension
escalates. Finally...with everything secure...the movers begin the
dangerous journey. Spectators hold their breath. It’s a one truck
parade. It’s a small slice of America’s past. Now preserved for the
future.
In Sikesville...Kathleen Carons, FOX 45, News at ten.