Students Collaborate To Tell Stories
of Post-Katrina New Orleans
In mid-August 2005, Robert Racine, assistant professor in digital technology at the University of New Orleans (UNO), put the final touches on the school’s new Digital Media Lab for use by students in UNO’s film program. Then just days later, the unthinkable happened. Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast of the United States, killing hundreds of people and destroying thousands of homes. While the university itself remained relatively unscathed, the storm devastated entire neighborhoods and left many parts of New Orleans uninhabitable. As a result, people in the area were faced with an enormous challenge to confront the new realities of a way of life that had been drastically changed.
One way that UNO students are rebuilding their lives is by continuing with their studies at the New Orleans-based university. For students in the department of film, theater, and communication arts (FTCA) this means working on their storytelling abilities. According to Racine, who has an MFA in film from UNO and is an Avid Certified Support Representative, the current environment is ripe for great storytelling. “Our focus is on teaching students how to tell great stories. Whether on stage, on the page, or on the screen, we want our students to understand how the decisions they make and the tools they choose can help them tell their stories,” he says.
Technology plays a vital role in their storytelling abilities. Says Racine, “We believe that every technical decision has an impact on the story. We want our students to know the whys as well as the hows of their work.”
“We believe that every technical decision has an impact on the story. We want our students to know the whys as well as the hows of their work.”
- Robert Racine, Assistant Professor, Digital Technology, University of New Orleans
Storytelling Technology
Systems in the FTCA department currently include 40 Avid Xpress Pro workstations on Windows-based PCs, two Avid Mojo
hardware accelerators, one Windows-based Media Composer Adrenaline system, one 2.8 TB Avid Unity LANshare system, and one 4.6 TB Avid Unity LANshare EX system. The two LANshare systems are connected via two Cisco Catalyst 3750 GigE switches that are bridged together, acting as a 48-port GigE switch. Mission Service Supply, an Avid Gold Premier Reseller headquartered in West Monroe, La., was a key system supplier.
The majority of the editing workstations are located in a central Digital Media Lab, while seven of the systems are housed in individual suites. Most of the capture and transfer to tape is efficiently handled in the college’s Media Transfer Center using two Avid Xpress Pro systems along with Avid Mojo hardware, which provides compact and versatile I/O capabilities for working with a variety of professional DV and analog decks and cameras. All of the editing systems are connected via the LANshare shared-storage setup, which enables students and professors to simultaneously share projects and media so they can easily create and distribute assignments. In addition, the program has access to an Avid DS Nitris system in the high-definition production suites at the Nims Center Studios, a facility run jointly by the university in conjunction with the State of Louisiana and City of New Orleans offices of film, television, and video.
Students in the FTCA film program first encounter Avid systems in the required Intro to Digital Technology course and spend a full semester learning how to maximize the feature set in the Avid Xpress Pro system. Says Racine, “While the students find it easy to edit using the Avid tools, they also learn that editing requires a lot of decision making. They have to decide about importing and exporting, frame rates, timecodes, compression, etc. This introductory class prepares them for future projects as well as for the industry.”
Students who choose to continue with editing learn the more sophisticated features of Avid systems, including visual effects, color correction, titling, and other online finishing tasks, in courses such as Advanced Editing. The students’ real-life learning experience is enhanced by the recent incorporation of an offline-to-online workflow, which helps train as many as 200 students per semester in a full range of editing tasks. After students lock their offline edit on Avid Xpress Pro systems, they move their projects into a finishing suite where they use a Media Composer Adrenaline system to conform an uncompressed, color corrected final master. This Media Composer Adrenaline system not only enables students to produce high-quality work, it provides them with valuable hands-on experience using the industry-standard editing system, which can help them land jobs after graduation. Today, the new, specially priced Media Composer Academic software makes the complete professional toolset even more accessible to students and educators and within the financial reach of any educational institution.
Says Racine, “Our students learn to think like editors because the techniques we teach them are supported in the editing tools that they use. The process of editing a film should not be a ‘workaround.’ The tools they use should directly support the specific needs of the editor, and Avid’s technology does just that.”
“The number one benefit that the FTCA department offers students is a collaborative and supportive environment where they can work together to create films rather than compete for equipment and resources.”
- Robert Racine, Assistant Professor, Digital Technology, University of New Orleans
In the Hurricane’s Aftermath
It was not until mid-October, almost two months after the Hurricane, that Racine would see his media lab again. At the time, he believed that the setup looked intact, but he could not be sure what damage the equipment sustained until power was restored at the university.
While there was only minimal computer damage, the main campus power grid was completely destroyed and the buildings were closed until January 2006. Despite this, the University of New Orleans was determined to offer its students a Fall 2005 semester using the Internet and offsite facilities. Racine continued to support his students by offering his Advanced Editing class online with the help of donated Avid Xpress Pro dongles and software that were provided to students to use with their offsite setups. By offering this class online, Racine helped a number of students in the film program prepare for a major film project that they would face in the spring term.
Explains Racine, “Every year, our students register for a class called ‘Spring Film.’ Instead of going to Florida for spring break, they spend 10 days making a film. The Spring Film is an excellent opportunity for our students to get a ‘big film’ experience with a large, complete crew and a full complement of equipment.”
In 2006, the 60 students in the Spring Film class produced Watermarks, a narrative, non-documentary, short film about Hurricane Katrina. The film assembles three separate shorts, Floating, Crescent City Connections, and NOLA, into one piece. In Floating, audiences see Shelia and Melvin trapped together on a rooftop and forced to deal with their mutual isolation. Crescent City Connection follows a Houston-evacuee back to his brother and their destroyed home. NOLA is a story about Kate who pitches a tent in her empty neighborhood, and who, despite her loneliness, finds a community in a unique and powerful way.
Michelle Benoit, artist-in-residence in the FTCA department, conceived the original project, assigned production roles and grades, and was first to suggest a series of wraparounds to connect the three stories. All of the stories and wraparounds were directed, produced, and edited by students.
Like all of the faculty at UNO, Benoit was extremely involved with her students during this production. “I was on set for all shooting days, helping the students to understand real teamwork and what each department is responsible for, as well as the value of good communication. I also oversaw the technical work done on the film and approved the final edit.”
According to Simon Carmody, the film’s co-producer and finishing editor, “The format for the Spring Film means that we work together to create one film and our only real competition is failure.”
Watermarks had three editors, one post supervisor, one assistant editor, one finishing editor, and two sound designers/sound editors, and all used the Avid systems. Says Allen Myers, a student in the second year of his MFA in film production and the director of Crescent City Connection, “With the school’s LANshare system, we were able to jump from suite to suite and combine the efforts of all three editors. Finishing on Watermarks was completed in about a week, and I don’t think this would have been possible without the Avid workflow.”
This collaborative environment is very important to the faculty at UNO. Says Racine, “The number one benefit that the FTCA department offers students is a collaborative and supportive environment where they can work together to create films rather than compete for equipment and resources.”
Reaffirming Stories
Students were treated to added insight on the film and its impact when editor Tina Hirsch (The West Wing, Gremlins) visited the university in the spring of 2006 to give a lecture about the important role of editing in the storytelling process. After her presentation, she sat with the editors and directors of Watermarks and provided feedback on the rough cut and suggestions on how to improve the storytelling.
“Students got honest, valuable feedback on our Spring Film from an experienced editor who was not biased by having lived in the Katrina affected area,” says Racine. “In addition to helping our students, Tina’s visit helped send a message to students that the UNO film program is still capable of providing them with a quality education.”
While many students are still struggling with the aftermath of the storm, the University of New Orleans stands ready to serve its students as they use powerful storytelling as a means to prepare them for the road ahead. Watermarks is currently being submitted to several film festivals, so the stories from Hurricane Katrina can be shared with a wider audience.
* CREDITS: Courtesy of University of New Orleans.
Photos: Robert Racine and Kevin Hughes.