The documentary project was one of the coolest experiences. To begin this reflection, I want to talk about the planning portion. We knew that we wanted to do something that was relatable to a lot of people so we started brainstorming ideas and throwing them out in the open to see what stuck. After careful consideration, we decided to go with the topic of how language barriers cause immigrants to struggle when creating businesses in the US. We decided on this topic because all of our parents were immigrants and have started a company from the ground up here in the US. Our parents all decided to come to this country to create a better life for us as well so I feel like this is relatable to many around us.
Our documentary explores the challenges faced with language barriers when starting a new company in the US with the focus being on Javier Galarraga. Javier, born in Venezuela, is the proud owner of Sumiflex. Javier transitioned from Spanish dominance to English fluency, and it is a clear indication of how difficult it can be for aspiring businesspeople to make their dreams come true in this country.
Our main goal with this project was to delve deep into the Latin American community, specifically those who deal with language barriers. We hoped to inspire individuals within the Latin American community to embrace the entrepreneurial challenge and make Javier a relatable figure and symbol of encouragement.
Javier shares his challenging journey in the documentary, emphasizing the need for Latin American entrepreneurs. His candid narrative includes the difficulties he faced and how he came to overcome them and get where he is today. Through Javier, we aim to establish a personal connection that resonates with the viewer.
Our target audience consists of ages 18–30, and ‘Make it Happen’ serves as encouragement to embrace entrepreneurship and an informative narrative on the successes of Latin American entrepreneurs in the U.S. The intention is to challenge stereotypes and enlighten impressionable minds, illustrating that immigrants can indeed be successful job creators, bilinguals, and diligent contributors.
In our documentary, we struggled with the choice between direct and indirect interviews. While ‘American Promise’ primarily utilized indirect interviews for their smoother look, we chose to implement direct interviews during editing due to unplanned events. Though this decision made it a little rough, it proved advantageous when interviewing Javier’s Spanish-speaking mother. Her interview really backed up Javier's journey and helped corroborate his story and fill in missing spots.
While brainstorming with somebody about possible things to include, we came up with the idea of interviewing his daughter Isabella (our group member). Using multiple subjects was an idea that we borrowed from “American Promise”. The inclusion of Isabella and Izaskun interviews brought a whole new point of view to Javier's story, shedding light on how this affected not only his life but his family. Isabella's role as both an interviewee and a member of our team added depth to our documentary. Her interview also reinforced Javier's journey even more and gave the viewer a different perspective on how it affected her life growing up. Meanwhile, Izaskun, as an older individual, offered valuable perspectives on the cultural intricacies that influenced Javier's path. Javier spoke very well on the camera and I’m very happy with how these interviews turned out. Our other subject, Izaskun also seemed very comfortable since her granddaughter was the one interviewing her. This is good because it
When watching the film ‘American Promise’, we noticed the substantial use of b-roll and soon discovered how important this was in completing the documentary and keeping the flow. The inclusion of b-roll kept the audience engaged and helped complete the story.
Another thing that we implemented in our project was direct interviews; it is quite funny how this came to be. The documentary ‘American Promise’ inspired us to use indirect interviews. However, when editing, we chose to include direct interviews instead because I (the most experienced in editing) was unable to help with the final edits due to untimely circumstances, and direct interviews were easier for my teammate Isabella to edit.
Though direct interviews made the documentary feel choppy at times, they were useful when interviewing Javier’s mother. This is because she only speaks Spanish, and this way, viewers could understand what the interviewer was asking her while also seeing the responses in the subtitles. Javier’s mom Izaskun added a lot of value to the piece because she showed that Javier was the first person in his family to learn english and this reinforced the struggle that he endured when establishing his company. This shows the struggle he faced.
Additionally, “American Promise” had an amazing flow to it. It had more b-roll than interviews which made the documentary feel more natural and less forced. Despite our interviews being long, our b-roll kept the audience engaged.
In the end, the journey of creating 'Make it Happen' has been a rewarding experience. The resilience and success of Latino entrepreneurs are portrayed through our very own subject, Javier Galarraga and his company, Sumiflex. The narrative unfolded against the backdrop of language barriers, showcasing how Javier, born in Venezuela, transformed from Spanish dominance to English fluency, mirroring the challenges faced by many aspiring business individuals in the U.S.
As we reflect on the process, 'Make it Happen' stands as a testament to the resilience, determination, and success of Latino entrepreneurs. The blend of personal narratives, strategic choices in interviews, and the incorporation of b-roll collectively culminate in a documentary that not only informs but also resonates. The project has been a truly enriching and fulfilling endeavor, and I am immensely pleased with the final result and the collective journey we undertook.
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