Junior (view this story)

Details

Category: Feature
Media: Video
Turnaround time: More than a week but less than a month

Description of story

Angel Caloca carries his family name in a tattoo on his arm and the legacy of their history in his heart. As a father, he passes that legacy on to his two young sons, Julian, 2, and Angel Caloca, Jr., 4. As they raise their boys, he and his wife, Lauricia, continue to struggle together as they deal with a debilitating disease that still threatens to take their first born son, Junior.

Feedback requested

Any and all. Thanks for looking!

Gear used in production

Canon 5dmkII, Zoom H4n, Jag 35 rig, a slider that I forget the name of, Bowens trilight, and my mitts. Oh yeah, and a small vari-color led, those things are awesome.

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Rep: 141
Colin Mulvany Feb. 19, 2013, 9:59 p.m. permalink

Nice work James.  I can see you took some time with this edit.


Nicely paced story with good emotion and strong characters. I like how you open the video. You pulled me in and keep my interest. The opening music was perfect for setting the mood of this story. Also, good use of music to enhance the emotion without piling on throughout the rest of the story. It is hard to find the right music bed, but I think you got it right here.

Your interview audio is nice and clean. I see you used a H4 Zoom to record your second source audio. I didn't see a wireless mic on the subjects. DId you boom this? Or use a shotgun low?  Good use of weaving in natural sound of the family interacting. To many times on stories like these, the interview audio never takes a break. Your nat sound is intimate, which really helps the viewer connect better with the subjects.  

You have good sequencing, but I still could see places to break down your wide, medium and tight shots more. 

It looks like you faced a lot of tough lighting conditions, which made for some funky color balances and exposures. Did you color correct your footage? The blue (cyan) footage at the hospital stood out to me as something that could use some warming up. 

As for the story, it seems a bit unfinished to me. It needs a stronger resolution. Some questions I had was how the family copes financially with having a sick child. The husband touches on it when he say marriages break up over challenges like this, but I wanted more. 

You might want to follow up later and see what happens to the child. If he becomes cancer free that would be a stellar ending. If not, well, there is all sorts of storytelling in that sad narrative. 

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