What started as an assignment for an audio/video class soon began to take on more meaning to me than just another assignment. I was given the task to create a video montage of my choice which had to include music, and I was required to align the video somewhat to match the beat of the music. You know to get that nice flow we all like when we watch shows!
After racking my brain to figure out what my video was going to consist of, I started thinking of videos that has kinda "stuck in my head" for various reasons. I decided to match this particular assignment with one of these "stuck in my head" videos. The videos I kept recalling are the ones I remember seeing in high school. You know, the amazing sports montage video that included awesome highlights where you get choked up because our home team won the battle against a tough competitor and the team was overflowing with comradery, or the end of the school year videos, where it looked back upon the good, bad and just plain craziness that happened since the first day of school.
Having chosen the basic idea(s) of how I wanted my video to be presented to my audience, I immediately thought that I would make a video of my hometown, kinda like a tribute to my roots!
I come from a small farm town (Connersville, IN) of approximate 14,000 people and for the most part everyone is friendly. Of course, you have the few bad seeds that try to ruin the whole crop, but I believe there is more good than bad, and I feel more people in the community want to see our little town succeed than to fail.
Anyway, as I was coming up with ideas for video clips I would always think back to the things that made me who I am today and portray them in a way that the audience could identify with. Btw, my intended audience is the typical midwesterner that is familiar with "genuine, hard working, appreciative people who hold on to old fashioned values."
The more I filmed, the more I began to appreciate the simpler things in life. For example, watching cows graze in an open field, while weather beaten barns, rusted windmills and worn out tractors and trucks abused by the land sit on display in the background. The strong bond of local farmers who come together and help each other out to bring in the crops before the weather turns cold. Watching the early morning sunrise as the fog and dew dissipates back into the atmosphere. The absolute stunning beauty and sounds of water flowing down the river as a fisherman catches and releases a fish back into the gently flowing rapids. And lastly, I cannot forget the sheer generosity and abundance of people willing to stop and wave to a person they may have never met before.
All of the examples above are part of my life in one way or another, and I will never let that part of me fade away. Just like memories, I hope this video lives on to show how small town life can still be a thing of beauty!
I hope you enjoy!
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