LYM (assessment)

At the beginning of the semester I had no idea what to focus my project on, but soon realized Love Your Melon would be something meaningful to me and this could be used as another way to spread our message. Throughout this project my idea changed as I explored different topics and focus points. What began as just a suggestion at an LYM meeting turned into an actual thought out process for this assignment. I am glad that I chose to pursue this promo video, and was able to connect my academic life with a passion of mine.

The “open endedness” of this project was great because it allowed me to use my creative side and take my project wherever, but I also got caught up in a lot of different details. I had first decided to write a paper that addressed the emotional and psychological effects of cancer patients and their support systems, but soon realized this would not be an effective way to present my project. Written papers are fine, but this project called for creativity and I wanted to really immerse people (as best as I could) into this life changing experience and be able to see the difference. I don’t think a paper would have accomplished this; it would have just been boring and not eye catching at all. The Prezi proved to be a great option especially for drawing emphasis on different topics, videos, etc. It also made the project a bit more interactive by engaging the audience. The movie clips were great examples, but also I narrowed down what videos I included based on their content/impact. I wanted my audience to see the videos and somehow connect to them, or feel pulled into the situations and I felt that by having so many videos I would lose this effect. When I came up with the questions that drove my project I opened my scope a little too wide by including thoughts/emotions of loved ones and patients. I ended up touching a little on loved ones in regards to family dynamics, but mainly focused on the patients themselves. Both were very interesting, but I liked seeing how they affected one another and the changes that ensue a cancer diagnosis versus analyzing people individually.

The overall goal of my project, which was to plan a video for Love Your Melon and raise awareness, did not change; only the logistics of the background knowledge did. I think my project did LYM justice and was able to reach people on a more personal and vulnerable level. The reality of cancer is hard to know unless actually experiencing it, but I hope my project was able to shed light on some of the major changes and problems that come up. I’m sure my video will continue to evolve once in the actual filming stages and when trying to coordinate with “campus celebrities”. But, the positive responses make me excited to get the ball rolling. I am glad that my classmates find this interesting; hopefully it urges them to find out more about Love Your Melon and tell everyone they know. I think everyone likes to hear about positive organizations like LYM, but what sets us apart is that we are benefitting people in our backyard, which I feel triggered the response. Once the video is released I think it will get good feedback and reach many people not just on our campus, but LYM crews across the nation and make the brand even bigger (and hopefully increase sales). The only problem I could see is just finding people to commit to film/coordinate with everyone’s different schedules. After filming comes the editing which of course will take time, but once out I know it will be successful. This was a fun project that allowed me to pursue this idea that I didn’t even think could happen; I’m excited to see how it changes and evolves before it is a finished product.

I really enjoyed this class and felt the atmosphere and set up was well organized and made “plagues” way more interesting than I ever thought possible. Thank you for the great semester!

Danielle Espinoza