For this Project we were asked to revisit something we made in a past humanities course and then transform it in a way that shows how our skills and thinking have developed.We also had to explain our creative and academic choices tying it to humanities values like research, creativity, ethical awareness, and reflection. My Revision Project is called The Living Coast, which is a documentary I created by transforming my earlier audio postcard about the Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge. This project let me look back at previous work and rebuild it into something new that reflects how I’ve grown as a communications student and storyteller.

My original project was an audio postcard created during my first visit to the Rachel Carson Wildlife Refuge that I created for the Podcasting course here at UNE with Mr. Cripps in the Spring of 2024. I decided to turn this podcast into a documentary for a few reasons. As a Communications major who is interested in filmmaking, I wanted to challenge myself to work visually and practice skills I hope to use in the future.

Adapting my audio script into a visual script meant imagining what each line would look like on screen.Instead of relying only on sound, I thought about specific visuals  like sweeping marsh shots, close-ups of grasses, wildlife, Carson’s archival photos, and restoration work.  I reshaped the narration so it followed a more visual arc: beginning with the coastline, moving into Rachel Carson’s life, then the habitats, restoration efforts, community partnerships, and finally the current challenges and call to action. This helped the documentary feel more cohesive and visually driven.

What I want my viewers to take away from the Mini Doc:

A deeper appreciation for Maine’s coastal ecosystems

An understanding that conservation is both science and community effort

Hope: ecosystems can recover when we invest in them

Awareness that climate resilience begins with local action

Recognition of Rachel Carson’s legacy and its relevance today

A sense of personal responsibility and empowerment:
Protecting nature begins with us.