Showcase

Hello, my name is Tyler Buhr and I’ve been a Film and Digital Media Student at Freestyle Academy.  Throughout the past two years at Freestyle, I have been able to experience a multitude of media types.  Switching from Digital Media to Film has allowed me to find my passion in acting, editing, screenwriting, sound design, and music.  When I’m not at school, I spend my time with friends, exploring music, and playing aquatic sports.

For the Senior Showcase, I am going to display my film work. Joining Film this year as a senior was an eye opening experience for me and I realized film was something I want to study in college. The two projects I am going to present are the films I am most proud of and feel best show my skills. The first piece is a video essay and the first film I ever created at Freestyle.  The story behind it comes from a personal issue I was dealing with. I learned how to express these thoughts through a visual story. The second piece is a narrative film I worked on with a peer. My partner took the lead behind the camera, but I found my strong suit in screenwriting, directing, and editing. Coming into Freestyle I was really into music and sound. I furthered that passion through my work in Digital Media.  When I had to switch out and join Film, I realized that sound plays a huge part in movies. I found something that I enjoyed just as much when I discovered sound design. I did all of the foley and sound in this film. I also created the ending credits with After Effects.

It would be great if I could get some feedback on my sound design and editing skills, mainly on my narrative. I’d appreciate any feedback on the overall screenplay as well.

Next year, I plan to continue my Film studies at San Diego State University. I am eager to explore new topics in film and uncover other hidden passions of mine.  College is the perfect time to test out career options and with that mindset, I am always open to new experiences and opportunities.

Video Essay: “Focus”

This was a video essay I did about study drugs like Adderall and Ritalin and how they affect your thinking. It was my first ever film and gave me my first opportunity to create a visual story. I’d never used Premiere Pro nor filmed with an actual camera before, so I had to get over a few learning humps before I started. The idea of this film came to me when I couldn’t think of any and sat there staring at nothing for a hours. I am proud of this film because I was able to share a strong opinion of mine and shows where I started as a filmmaker. I believe this project represents the way I think while creating something and is a very influential part of my work.

Senior Narrative: “When Life Gives You Lemonade”

This was a Narrative I worked on with my fellow classmate, Ben Cornell. This is my favorite product that I have ever created. I was extremely dedicated to this film, putting in a lot of time and work. We started the idea for this film from randomly pitching ideas off each other. We both decided to create a story around a lemonade stand and this is what we ended up with. I thoroughly enjoyed the screenwriting process and focused a lot on creating flowing and natural dialogue.

Screenplay

When it came to filming, I hit some road bumps. I was just learning how to use a camera properly and now I had to pick up audio as well. Learning the boom mic was a hassle, but over time I slowly began to get the hang of it. There are some scenes that don’t have the best audio, but it was a great learning experience. The last scene’s audio was so bad we even had to dub it over in post and I had to foley every sound in the entire scene. I honestly really enjoyed this process and enjoyed the sound design for every scene. I am very nitpicky when it comes to music, so I spent a lot of time figuring out which song was perfect.

On set, we let our actors improv the scene after they finished the script. A lot of the time we kept this in our film, but it was very difficult to include as editing it together with other takes was tricky. I am very proud of the editing, especially during dialogue scenes, as it stays fluid and paced well. I do also really enjoy After Effects and got very familiar with it while in the Digital Media elective. I used this knowledge to create the credits, which is one of my favorite features of the film. Even though it’s technically after the film, I believe it does a great job of wrapping the whole thing up.

This film was also selected to be presented at a local movie theater for Freestyle’s Teen Film Showcase. As this was my first narrative film, I was extremely honored. Watching my film play on the big screen was a very surreal experience and it’s one I will work hard to achieve again.