northern_sky Posted January 12, 2011 Posted January 12, 2011 Half asleep right now, so my coherency will probably suffer. For those who were concerned about me, I'm back in good academic standing. My appeal was granted. Also two grades changed. But I'm not out of the dog house just yet. 2.5 large drawings are due Monday, and they take about 20 hours a pop between planning and execution. After that to graduate: 1) Shoot and edit my film. This is obviously the biggest source of anxiety, as I need to find another actress who doesn't suck. I can't decide if it's better for me to lower my standards and go with somebody who is bad, which will ultimately make the film crappy, but allow me to graduate sooner. Or if I should spend more time looking, which will hopefully lead to a better film, but delay my graduation. My concern is without an OK short film under my belt, my confidence will be lower moving to NY and will have a worse reel. Basically, the way you make it in video production in NY is through your reel and your connections. Both are equally important. Most places don't even look at your reel unless you have connections, but your reel is ultimately what gets you the job. 2) pass a software certification test. This will probably involve a full week or two of studying several books I've hardly even cracked. I'm a great test taker, though, so I'm not too concerned. 3) two small design projects -- cutting/pasting colored paper. I've been avoiding it for ages, even though it seems rather trivial. I'm not great at design, and I tend to avoid things I'm not good at, because they shake my confidence. I suck at time management when I don't have outside structure imposed on me. Not only do I need to finish those projects, but I also need to look for a day job soon in order to support myself while I'm still here. I plan on staying until I finish the film and graduate, and I'm hoping that's only a few months. I also have a year lease on my apartment with two roommates, so I'll need to find a subletter. It worries me that there are no real deadlines, and this thing could drag on forever. I'm not good at sticking to deadlines I make for myself. I can never seem to take them seriously. I really would like to have this film done no later than April. So, how do I structure myself? Should I just focus on doing the drawings this week, or should I try to multitask? When should I start looking for a job? How do I solve the lack of deadlines issue? Lately, I've been spending a lot of time depressed, barely leaving my room or getting stuff done. This is what tends to happen when I lack structure. Any advice?
OceanGirl Posted January 12, 2011 Posted January 12, 2011 I always have exactly the same problem. My PhD took forever because I had to structure it myself and impose my own deadlines which I just ended up ignoring. I think this is due to us being "P"s in Myer-Briggs test What I would do in your case is NOT lower your standards for 1). From what I understand this reel will end up being the most important part of you degree and will help you get jobs. If you don't have a firm deadline on it, that's even better. I think taking a bit more time will pay off in the long run. I would slack off on 2) and 3). Just do the bare minimum to pass. I also wouldn't multi-task unless you have a special gift for it. Take it one step at the time and complete the drawings first. With that out of the way, I would knock off 2) and then 3) while searching for an actress for 1). Then I would 100% focus on 1). What used to help with my PhD was that I sat down and wrote a detailed breakdown of the tasks needed to complete each project and realistic time line for each. Say for 2) do not just write 2 weeks to complete, but break it down into days and say on Monday I will do 5 hours of X from 12pm-5pm - be as detailed as possible and make sure it's all written down. You are basically trying to impose a rigid structure on yourself. It will be harder to slack off that way.
Kamille Posted January 12, 2011 Posted January 12, 2011 Is the main issue that if you don't have stict deadlines you end up slacking off or is it that you end up spending too much time working madly in all direction? Is it a question of motivation or organization? Another question, once you are out of school, will you still have access to the equipment that allows you to shoot and edit the reel you have to submit? Example: in academia, we can always rework our thesis after we've received our diploma, improve on it and publish it. In other words, how do you plan to build your portfolio once you are out of school? I With that out of the way, I would knock off 2) and then 3) while searching for an actress for 1). Then I would 100% focus on 1). Good plan. What used to help with my PhD was that I sat down and wrote a detailed breakdown of the tasks needed to complete each project and realistic time line for each. Say for 2) do not just write 2 weeks to complete, but break it down into days and say on Monday I will do 5 hours of X from 12pm-5pm - be as detailed as possible and make sure it's all written down. You are basically trying to impose a rigid structure on yourself. It will be harder to slack off that way. Great idea. For now though, I'm not fully on-board with OG's advice to taking a bit more time to finish your reel. I think, NS, that you're someone who tends to have irrational expectations of yourself and that it stomps you at times. You're a perfectionnist and in creative industries, perfectionism often gets in the way of creation. My advice would be more along the lines of "Get it done and have fun doing it!". I don't doubt that the NY job market is tough, but I imagine that as in most markets, potential employers will, at first, be as interested in your creativity as they are in your capacity to successfully manage a project. So I imagine they'll pay as much attention, when hiring, to the process and the product. I also imagine that anyone hiring a cinematographer is interested in hiring someone who can bring a project to fruition within a reasonable amount of time. Correct me if I'm wrong. As such, I think your expectations need to be in line with a well-planned deadline.
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