DRAMA 406: Digital Cinema Production

I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity to have taken DRAMA 406 as someone who is deeply interested in computer graphics. This class delivered invaluable education on how real filmography works and represented my first formal training in traditional filmmaking. Throughout the course, I learned practical filmmaking techniques and gained a deeper understanding of the science behind how cameras worked—knowledge that perfectly aligned with my learning philosophy of applying concepts through hands-on experience.

What surprised me most was how interested I became in the “traditional” filmmaking pipeline. Coming from a background in digital animation and computer graphics, I expected to be drawn primarily to the technical aspects. Instead, I found myself appreciating the roles people take and the etiquette on set, which created an incredibly efficient system for creative work. This structured collaborative approach was something I hadn’t anticipated valuing, given my digital background, but it opened my eyes to new ways of organizing creative processes.

For my final project, I wanted to showcase a blending of my passion for VFX with the live-action techniques taught in class. This embodied the interdisciplinary approach central to my growth as both scientist and artist—bringing together my computer graphics knowledge with newly acquired filmmaking skills. It was challenging but rewarding to merge these two worlds during the limited timeframe of finals week. Although I always feel there’s room for improvement, I’m happy with what I accomplished, and this experience further validated how practical application deepens my understanding and capabilities.