Making a micro-documentary: Celebrating community-based branding through shortform storytelling

Going into this, I knew I wanted the tone of the film to be uplifting. With The Pastry Project’s mission to break barriers to employment and make pastry education more accessible, it was important for me to establish a parallel between Heather, The Pastry Project’s co-founder and culinary director, and the Project’s students while also acknowledging the uniqueness of everyone’s journey.

When it came to the visual aspects of the process, I piggybacked off another project we were working on, excitedly borrowing an Arri Amira with a set of vintage Nikons for the main interview. Then, I followed up the rest of the B-roll with my Blackmagic Design Pocket Cinema Camera 4K paired with a set of vintage Contax Zeiss lenses. The optics on both sets of lenses harbored a soft and natural look, elegantly highlighting their imperfections through beautiful, warm flaring and a gentle falloff when handling skin tones—all while maintaining a nice, deep contrast throughout the entire image. Though the lenses weren’t optically perfect, I leaned into their imperfection to establish a flawed yet delicate look that felt fitting given the theme of finding one’s footing through the process of learning in a supportive environment.   
 
Aside from the interview footage, most shots were captured handheld, at a higher framerate of 60fps to achieve that smooth, slow-mo look while compensating for any micro-jitters. This also gave the shots a dreamy effect, emphasizing the feeling of deep focus as Heather mastered her craft and the students honed their skills.

As for the music, anything classical with keys or strings was fair game. The first track I landed on sounded welcoming, enchanting, and even a bit sentimental. The overall tone and ease of the instruments helped convey that Heather was in her element while in the bakeshop’s kitchen. It was like her sanctuary. 

The repetitive plucking of strings in the second track sounded scholarly and in the realm of something educational—right on point to complement the narrative in which Heather was describing the obstacles she faced on her academic journey.  

The overlapping instruments of the last track loosely resembled the broad dynamics of the free curriculum offered by the talented staff at The Pastry Project. The somewhat raw twang of the various stringed instruments could be interpreted as the students learning the foundations of baking, while the more refined notes of the piano could symbolize the culmination of their growth.

Storytelling has always been a communal activity, a means to reach out and connect with those around us. Both inside and out, this project reiterated the importance of building up the communities we live in daily. Our best work comes from the culmination of many different backgrounds, experiences, and skill sets. We must nurture our community members’ untapped potential—while simultaneously learning from them—to become better than we were yesterday.