Chapter 9 Project Changes

If I could redo or edit my Rhetoric project and video, I would make some considerable changes on both the surface and structure level. On the surface level, I would definitely add more relevant footage to the subject matter of institutionalized solitary confinement. My original video had images that vaguely resembled a solitary confinement cell and the experience of an inmate, but weren’t immediately recognizable and thus didn’t really strike me as profound or something to consider. I would keep the tone of imagery, just make them more immediately recognizable and less abstract. I would also change the transitions from slide to clip. The quick fade-in effect gives off an amateurish vibe that distracts from the message, at least to me. The audience of my video is another thing to consider. My original video aimed to tap an audience oblivious to the issue of institutionalized solitary confinement, but it ultimately didn’t push enough or even at all to enter that demographic and give said demographic proper instructions for initiative. I would add more slides and clips that display how the issue is relevant to the general populi and go in-depth as to what exactly a layman can do to resolve the problem at hand. Structurally, if I had more budget and time, I would have made my video single-take with no black slides interfering in-between. My original vision was to portray how a victim of solitary confinement lived, specifically his sufferings and how he can be a danger to society. This would likely make the video more captivating and poignant than just short clips and slides. I would keep the dreary, melancholic tone, but make the experience of the video more intense. In general, I would like to make my video more pathos-heavy and less expositional, although I would like to keep the end part where I inform my audience in what they can do.