Final Project Discussion

Yesterday in class we got into large groups to discuss our projects, and I think that this was very valuable. I loved hearing about the ideas that others had- they were all really great- and I think that our group worked really well together and was able to help everyone enhance their current idea even more.

Personally, I think the group discussion gave me more ideas for how I actually want this video to come out. My current project idea was inspired by the story I wrote for the paper and that my group did our Soundslides project on about the marijuana protestors in Manchester. This was honestly the most fun I've had reporting yet. I am not really sure why, but I really enjoyed working on such a complex and controversial issue that has so many sides to it, from the people who want total legalization, to those who are simply in favor of medical marijuana, to those who don't want any level of marijuana usage allowed. However, it was in talking with Matt Simon, the director of NH Compassion, a group that is working in favor of the medical marijuana bill, that I became really interested in learning more about medical marijuana.

I know I want to focus on a patient, Clayton Holton, who is 23 and has a rare form of muscular dystrophy. He weighs only 90 pounds and only weighs this much because he has been smoking marijuana to increase his appetite. I have already talked with him some, and plan on meeting with him probably next weekend for a preliminary meeting and interview. The group liked my idea and was able to give me some great ideas for actual shots and things to include in the story, which was very, very helpful, as this was something I was still unsure of.

I am definitely excited about this project, but also nervous. I still am not sure how confident I am in my abilities, especially when it comes to video. I will definitely have to work on planning this whole thing out a lot better than I planned out my last video. Last video I didn't plan very much, mainly because I didn't realize how much I should have planned, and then was kind of lost when it came to actually videoing and filming sequences. The only other thing that will affect my project is the outcome of the NH state legislature vote next Wednesday. I feel like the tone of my story, I guess, kind of depends on the outcome of this vote. If the veto on the medical marijuana bill is overridden, then my story could be a happy, vitorius one- Clayton has been an outspoken supporter of the legalization of medical marijuana in addition to a medical user of the drug. If the bill is not passed, the story would most likely have a sadder tone, showing how he has to break the law to have a higher quality of life, etc. This is the main thing that I am unsure about, and will have to see what happens on Wednesday.