Filmmaking in Prague By Ramanda Pierre

Hi, My name is Ramanda Pierre. I'm a DMS (Sonography) Student at Miami-dade College. I got the opportunity to travel to Prague and learn how to make a movie and this is a journal detailing my experience.

Being a non-film major learning about scriptwriting, directing, and cameras was a bit difficult at first but with the help of our amazing instructors, it almost became second nature.

The first chance I got to direct a film was through a class workshop and it gave me the confidence I was lacking in my abilities as a director. I absolutely loved it and was one of if not my favorite thing to do besides screenwriting.

Working with my talented classmates to make my vision come to life felt like a dream. Even though it was a workshop being a director for a couple of hours sparked a newfound joy in filmmaking.

I loved my time in class. It was a time to explore and learn in-depth about different lighting techniques, how to handle the camera, and even a chance to work in the sound booth.

Coffeeshop Workshop that I directed in during class

Filming at shooter's park

While working hard on my film and in between classes I made sure with the little time I had to see the city and enjoy the many different cuisines.

Being able to make a film of my own is something I never thought I'd be able to do but with the help of Miami-dade and the wonderful people over at Prague Film School, my dreams came true

I've always loved writing and thought scriptwriting would come easy to me, but having to do six major edits to my script because of budget or some other limitation, I now understand how important it is to have a good foundation and script before anything else.

The props I needed for my film I got at barrandov studios. It's the biggest prop facility in Europe and I got access through PFS.

After requesting the equipment I needed with the help of my DP (Director of Photography) and instructors, my crew and I were off to our location to film.

After a long day of filming

Trying to get the best shots possible sometimes required us to try unconventional filming styles.

Prop setup courtesy of Barrandov Studios

Learning how to edit was hard for me as I've never edited anything a day in my life but with the help of Luca our editing instructor and my amazing classmate Khalil who offered to co-edit with me I was able to put out some films that I was proud of.

I want to give a special thanks to my wonderful crew Joelle, Khalil, Nicole, Luis, and my very talented actresses Wendy and Sarimar for helping my film come to life and even through all the problems never giving up on me. I can't say thank you enough <3.

I not only made my own movie but got the chance to help my classmates with theirs.

I AD'd (Assistant Directed) for two of my classmates Joelle and Danielle

I also did sound for the first time for Nicole and Sarimar which scared me at first but after a couple of hours I got very comfortable with

I think my favorite part of it all was meeting and working with such amazing and talented people. They made this trip more than I could've imagined

Thank you to Miami-dade and PFS for allowing me to enter this program and leave with experience and memories that will last a lifetime. Thank you again to my classmates and everyone I've met and had the opportunity to have a conversation with. You've made my life that much richer.

Appreciate