See the full project at: https://www.mediastorm.com/training/workshops/mediastorm-storytelling-workshop/santa-cruz/finding-balance

In the Making of Finding Balance, the staff and participants of the December 2023 MediaStorm Storytelling Workshop review the decisions they made during the production and editing of Finding Balance, a film the team produced during the weeklong workshop in Santa Cruz, Ca.

Director Brian Storm walks the team through the film’s editing timeline, discussing the footage the group gathered in the field as well as the techniques used in post-production to turn their coverage into an intimate documentary.

In the film, commercial fisherman Tim Obert describes how his journey began and how regulations aimed at saving whales and salmon in California have left him struggling to find balance between his dream, his family’s needs and the industry he loves.

The workshop team spent multiple days in the field documenting Obert as he worked, as well as conducting an in-depth interview with him on the “Stacey Jo,” the boat he captains.

The team’s challenges and successes during their reporting process provided fertile educational ground to discuss best practices for all stages of the documentary process.