On Friday, April 30, the organization Compound collaborated with VoiceWaves on a workshop about video journalism. Voice Waves is a Long Beach youth-led journalism and media-training project. Students are learning to report, write and create digital journalism content.
This event dove into the world of video journalism and how it has adapted and how it functions now at home during the pandemic by giving tips and tricks including affordable apps to use so that you are still able to create from home.
When asked why she decided to host the event, Paula Kiley said, “I wanted to help make video journalism more accessible and seem easier for folks since it can be quite daunting and expensive, so I wanted to offer affordable ways to put together quality publishable videos from home straight from your phone.”
Kiley is a multimedia journalist and documentary filmmaker with an interest in producing character-driven documentary shorts with social justice and equity lens.
She is working on her bachelor’s in journalism and a minor in film at Cal State Long Beach.
Serena Au, a staff member from Compound said, “Compound is an art and community space focusing on the intersection of art, wellness, and community impact.”
Compound has contemporary art exhibitions and wellness programs like meditation, breathwork, yoga, and community workshops.
Kiley gave many tips such as using materials found straight at home such as magazines, stickers, and paint, to create your studio and begin filming at home straight from your phone.
Especially during the pandemic, these are some of the ways video journalists have done their work during this time. With limited options it’s not impossible to be a video journalist.
One way for one to be able to accomplish video journalism at home is by downloading the app Stop Motion Studio. You can use this app to make stop motion videos straight from home on your cell phone. It’s a full-featured movie editor.
The app is very affordable for those wanting to create great quality videos but not over pay for expensive software or apps.
During the pandemic it has been difficult for some journalists to create content and write stories due to working from home or remotely.
Using apps like the Stop Motion Studio as well as crafts and materials found at home can help create the videos you need. Whether it’s for a class project or simply for yourself.
Being a journalist at home is not an impossible task to do. Using items from home and free apps such as Stop Motion Studio can help with the creativity process when filming. It can make it a bit easier for journalists to still be able to create content like before pandemic times.