XIC students roll cameras through the lenses of Parisian professionals
25-August-2023
by Ananya Nair, Student of Journalism & Mass Communications, Batch 2023-24, XIC
XIC collaborated with Don Bosco International Media Academy (DBIMA), Paris, for a four-day workshop on direction and cinematography. The aim was to teach students of all the batches, the basics and nuances of filmmaking. The workshop ran for four days, from 21st to 25th August. It focused on inculcating a sense of initiative and self-reliance among the students, especially when it came to making creative decisions and storytelling through a visual media.
Payam Azadi, Elizaveta Luzina, Cecile Quiroz and Nathan Taleb, along with Fr. John Paul Swaminathan, Director of DBIMA, were the educators that arrived from Paris to conduct the workshop. The faculty, with their diverse work experience and knowledge in the field of cinematography, took the batches under their wings, guiding them through the various phases of making ad-films and documentaries. The Advertising, Public Relations and Film and TV batches were with Nathan, Payam and Cecile, learning the ropes of making eye-catching ad films. Elizaveta guided the Journalism batch as they detailed their shot lists; and helped them string the ideation of four groups into one social documentary.
The workshop was rigorous and unrelenting, demanding students to manage their time, get their creative juices flowing and overlook differences as they came together to create a singular project. Over the four days the students engaged in planning, scripting, organizing, filming and editing. The workshop was a welcome change as the students learned a new skill that excited them and forced them to think outside the box.
The workshop culminated in a grand screening at St. Xavier’s College Hall. All the batches, as well as the XIC and DBIMA faculty, gathered to watch their films on the big screen. The students shared their experiences in making their films, especially pointing out how they managed it with large groups of people in such a short span of time. The evening ended with all the batches felicitating their respective instructors, a vote of thanks by our Dean, Mrs. Sandra Rana, and a lovely photo and cheer session at the Xavier's quadrangle, under a moonlit backdrop.