The five digital stories I viewed were-
"Resaved"
"The Good Fight"
"Roots"
"My Champion"
"Distance"
"Resaved" by Marie Lovejoy is my favorite of the digital stories I watched. It is a story of newfound independence by a young woman, who in turn misses being able to be dependent on her father after he is no longer there. It is told in first person, from the narrator, Marie's, perspective.
"Shortly after college, I drained my meager bank account to purchase a 1974 three-quarter ton, long-bed Chevy pick-up." This is the dramatic question. It draws you in and makes you want to know more. Why did she need a pick-up truck? Where was she going, what was she taking with her?
This digital story hit me hard with "all the feels". I did not expect to cry while watching any of these videos, but nevertheless I found myself with eyes full of tears by the end. It is an emotional tale of naivety combined with the fierce desire for independence; doubt from her parents, but unwavering support when she needed it most; and the kind of overwhelming, heart-wrenching sadness that can only come from the regret of not being able to say goodbye one last time.
Marie tells her story exceptionally well. She has great voice control, and her pacing is spot on. She enunciates her words in a way that adds drama and intrigue to her story, and accentuates the emotion her story carries. Her voice flows nicely with the tempo of the music and with the images presented to create a cohesive finished product.
I believe the music Marie selected, which is a folksy tune incorporating guitar and harmonica, definitely adds to the story. It is dramatic at times, which adds effect, but subdued when necessary to complement her voice as opposed to serving as a distraction.
The most powerful part of the story for me is when the screen fades to black, and there is approximately 6 seconds of silence before Marie's voicemail message from her father begins to play. It adds suspense, and the line that Marie utters just before the pause, "And I had only two things to say", leaves you on a cliffhanger that is never resolved. We never do find out exactly what those two things were that Marie longed to say to her father. We can only use context clues from the story to draw our own conclusions.
We picked the same story! This in itself make me happy to know that someone other than me watched it and thought highly enough of it to pick it as a favorite. First of all, I agree that it was a cliffhanger as to what the two things were that she had to say. I watched it again to try to see if I missed it, but alas, I don't know what she longed to say to him. And as soon as I got the feeling this was about losing a parent, I knew that I would be misty eyed. Also, I was definitely hooked after her opening line. I had many of the same questions that you did. Overall, I thought this was a beautifully tragic story that was told in a way that her father would surely be proud.
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