Reflection

In “Amateur Versus Professional,” Maya Deren compares the amateur and the professional filmmaker. Before reading this article I did not know that amateur meant lover even though it makes sense. When someone finds a passion for something it drives him or her to want to be able to replicate it in some way or form. Every filmmaker has had to start somewhere and I believe they have all begun with a love of cinema. In the article she also compares the filmmaker to the still photographer. This drew me in as I started as a still photographer. Everyone knew my mother as a photographer and soon that trait was passed down to me. That devotion started me on my path to film. Now I am able to further experiment with the camera and what I want an audience to see. Her quote “cameras do not make films; filmmakers make films” also spoke to me because of something many people have told my mother and I; “you have a good eye.” The camera is not placing itself, the person behind it is. They are the one controlling every aspect of how the product will result. One is able to experiment and test how they want something to happen. They are able to change settings to make corrections they see fit. However, the product is nonexistent without its creator. Deren explains how the most important thing you can have for a film is yourself, for everything is nothing without creativity and imagination.