#ACM-UHWO

[kriscotchay-uhwo-acm]

Capstone - Introduction

[breakingthethinblueline]

Behind the scenes editing!

Here's a little behind the scenes look of Breaking The Thin Blue Line, with countless hours of not just capturing everything on video and audio, but editing it all as well.

This has been an extremely fun project to do, and I'm excited to share it with you all very soon!

[kuleana--does-anyone-care]

Hello everyone!

I might come back here and post a social media page for the Kuleana project. But I haven't set one up yet. Oops~

Take care y'all. It's been good ^_^

[kacis-capstone-journey]

Tumblr Update #6

In the past two weeks I was unable to work with the children due to their spring break and their own unavailability. However, in the meantime I have mapped out my website and created the template I want to use. All that’s left is to scan their work and display it properly. 

In the next two weeks, I hope to continue working with them and getting finalized drafts. There will be a lot of changes to the tutoring program I am working with, so I am hoping to work with even more children. I am hoping the transition will be smooth. So far the hurdles and hiccups I’ve faced is the lack of working with them for the past two weeks. It has technically pushed me back, and this is not something I was hoping to rush as I want to give the children adequate time to produce quality work. However, I’m planning to see how the changes in the program go and see where to go from there. 

I have no deliverables to share at this time. Currently, I am behind on the timeline due to the small setback, but it is not devastating to my project, just not what I hoped for. However, I’m going to keep on working to make sure I get this capstone out!

[ako808]

10) Capstone Journey - Part 3/3 Reflection video

Aloha everyone! 🌸

Welcome to my Capstone Journey! 🎓✨ This is it—the final stretch, the reflection, and the moment I get to look back on everything I’ve created, learned, and overcome. From the early brainstorming sessions to the long nights in Figma and feedback-filled meetings, this journey has been challenging, meaningful, and full of growth. I’m excited to share with you what this experience has taught me—not just as a student, but as a creative, a problem-solver, and a storyteller.

—------------------------------------------------

In this video, I will go over:

What were your thoughts about your research topic going into the first week of the semester?

I had a rough beginning. I wasn’t sure whether to pursue an internship or a capstone project, so I turned to my professors for advice—and they all strongly encouraged me to go with the capstone. I also debated whether to create a music education app focused on Western music theory or to explore Japanese music, specifically the shamisen, a traditional three-stringed Japanese instrument. At first, I just knew I wanted to make something music education-related, but I wasn’t sure how to narrow it down. I felt overwhelmed by all the possibilities and didn’t yet know how to tie everything together in a clear, meaningful way.

2. What are your thoughts now about your research topic and your project/practicum?

Now, I feel really proud of how it turned out. I strongly believe taht my project, ShamiZen, showcases my upbringing—in my academic bacground in music, Creative Media, and Video game Design and Development, and my passion in , coding and shamisen. It’s more polished, personal, and purposeful than I imagined in Week 1. I’m glad I stuck with it and let it grow with me.

3. What did you learn about yourself as a creative through this journey?

Through this journey, I’ve learned that I do have solid ideas and a clear creative vision—I just needed to find the right structure and tools to bring them to life. I realized I’m a perfectionist; I get really nitpicky about small details, which can be both a strength and a challenge. But I also learned that having a vision isn’t enough. Execution is just as important, and that comes from planning, outlining, and being open to feedback. I discovered that when I have structure—like wireframes, timelines, and support systems—I’m able to channel my creativity much more effectively.

4. What did you learn about the creative and production process?

The biggest lesson I learned is that pre-production is everything. I used to think the actual production—building the app—would take the most time and effort, but it’s really the preparation that lays the foundation for success. Research, user studies, wireframes, mockups, and prototypes all take time, and skipping over them just leads to more stress later. Once your blueprint is solid, the rest of the process flows more smoothly. I also gained a deep appreciation for designers, especially UI/UX designers—so much of the vision comes from them, and they really are the unsung heroes of the process.

5. What advice would you give new senior capstone students?

Start earlier than you think you need to—seriously. Even before the semester officially begins, start brainstorming and preparing. Give yourself time to explore different directions and don’t underestimate the value of research and planning. Pre-production might not feel glamorous, but it will make everything else easier. Get feedback early and often, whether it’s from professors, peers, or people who know the topic. And most importantly, choose a topic you’re genuinely passionate about. That passion will keep you going when you hit roadblocks or question yourself. Your motivation needs to come from within, and passion is what fuels that.

6. Where to now?

Now that the semester is wrapping up, I’m preparing for graduation—finally! After that, I’m planning to take a short break to rest and reset, then possibly continue developing ShamiZen with the goal of launching it in the future. I’m also looking forward to joining the Women’s Freelance Alliance (WFA) cohort this summer to keep building on this project. Beyond that, I’ll be applying to jobs in the tech field, ideally in software engineering, with the hope that my capstone can show potential employers what I’m capable of. This project helped me grow so much, and I feel more confident entering the professional world with something so personal and meaningful to show for it.

🎵 Music Credit:

Cherish Tuttle Music. Somewhere Over the Rainbow – Piano Instrumental Karaoke Track (Higher Key) with Lyrics. YouTube, 30 Apr. 2018, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrKWG8BEBJY.

Kato, Tomomi. Tomorrow Morning (Piano Solo Ver.). Pixabay, 3 Mar. 2024, https://pixabay.com/music/modern-classical-tomorrow- morning-piano-solo-ver-312045/.

—------------------------------------------------

🎬 Whether you’ve followed my progress from the start or are just tuning in, thank you for your support. I hope you enjoy this final look into my Capstone Journey!

[marijoycapstone]

This video wraps up my capstone journey in UHWO ACM, what started as a rough concept that turned into a meaningful creative process that challenged and helped me grow. From reimagining ancient mythologies through visual art to navigating creative blocks, burnout, self-doubt, and finding balance as an artist and a creative. 

Thank you for being part of this experience.

[esportsyay]

FULL SPRING BREAK FOR ESPORTS

Truthfully, it was a busy spring break but a satisfying one. I wanted to delay this post to discuss my experiences with my project and also the two events that happened this past week. I think it was a growing and learning experience for all parties involved.

During the first weekend going into spring break, Kawaii Kon 2025 took place at the Hawaii Convention Center, a convention celebration Japanese culture. The three-day event included many spectacles with one of them being esports which is ran every year by respective esports and gaming communities. I was involved in mostly every of the esports rooms (PC Gaming, Smash Bros, 808FGC), and it was a pleasure seeing so many familiar faces in one place. The significance of this event was to give the opportunity for the public to play in various esports tournaments while also attending a coveted event. With this, in my honest opinion, I didn't do much filming sadly but I have a lot of b-roll courtesy of EMP Live Designs who I will be interviewing this weekend.

Second, this past weekend, the Vanta Hawaii Esports Invitational was held at UHWO at the ACM building. It included both High Schools and Colleges. The visiting colleges included the outer island schools such as Kauai and Hilo as well as two mainland schools, Michigan State and Boise State. This event proved that Hawaii could be a powerhouse state of esports as the community has been presented with a great event, first time ever at UH West Oahu. Although there are still obstacles and boundaries, UH Systems have been able to partner with the best esports companies and businesses around to make an event like this possible.

Some hiccups within in project is time and I will full admit that. I am glad to see so many people thrive and excel in their projects so far but I am somewhat scrambling at this point. Sharla was right about people wishing they had more time. However, I am still feeling confident with the product I can put out with the support of the Hawaii esports scene behind me. I have contacted who I need to contact to make this possible. I hope I can bring out an excellent product. Thanks for reading and go esports!

[ggarcia9]

Update #5

What are the biggest challenges you’re facing in your capstone right now, and what strategies are you considering to address them?

The biggest challenge I am facing right now is making sure I am able to post all the content onto my instagram page. I have gathered so much information and am wondering if I can post it all before the semester ends. To accomplish posting the majority of the main content, I need to free up time in my schedule so I can continue to work and focus on my capstone which I have started the process by making a big decision in other parts of my life to be able to achieve what I want out of the results.

As you approach the final stages, what feedback or guidance do you need from your peers or mentors to refine your work?

The feedback or guidance I would need from my peers or mentors would be if the content I am sharing is too long or if I need to condense it. There is so much information that I want to share especially when my topic requires so much information. My captions tend to get pretty long but I am wondering if I am being too informative or if there should be other ways I can share the information I have gathered.

Looking ahead to your capstoneʻs "presentation", are you satisfied with the quality of the work? How do you plan to communicate the impact and significance of your work effectively?

So far in the quality of my work, I am satisfied with it but I know I can do more that will help impact my capstone project. I am satisfied that I found the consistent theme I wanted with my Instagram and that I was posting weekly. I am also satisfied that I was able to gain some followers from outside of the class through the UHWO ACM Instagram account by the posts being shared on their story. This means that people are interested in what I am posting and what purpose my account holds. To communicate the impact and significance of my work, I want to share my progress on Instagram and how I impacted some of the counselors in the organization I am interning for. Quick peek, one of the counselors who filled out my survey said they used this moment as a career reflection. I found that really impactful that I am not only sharing about my main topic, but that counselors are reflecting as well. (I will post more about responses in instagram.)

[mcabalse]

Progress Update #7

Hello everyone! Hope everyone is doing well! I just finished posting my final post! However, I had to cut off some prompts because the deadline was closely approaching, and also, it just felt very excessive. I had to cut off the last category of posts that I initially planned - abstract adjectives. It felt repetitive from the abstract concepts category that I already posted, and the prompts were very simple and vague: cute, masculine, and sadness. So, I made the decision to not do those prompts. My last post was the prompt "The Aloha Spirit" and I felt that it was a fitting prompt to end my capstone journey! Also, I feel very satisfied with how the visual design of my Instagram tuned out!

I feel so grateful for everyone who participated in the polls that I posted! To ensure that I reached as much people as possible, I not only posted the polls on my capstone Instagram, but I also made sure to tag the UHWO ACM Instagram so that they could share it with their followers as well! I also shared the polls on my personal social media accounts. It was fun to see everyone's responses and see how people have both different and similar preferences when it comes to color.

I will be posting my concluding posts on my Instagram shortly, so stay tuned for that! 𝗖𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗿 𝗣𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: 𝗛𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝘃𝘀 𝗔𝗜 🎨 (@color_humanvsai) • Instagram photos and videos

[chari-sunflowers]

First Draft of Release Forms

UHWO ACM Model_Liability Release Form

UHWO ACM Release Form Folder

At the moment, I'm still working on one more transcript document from the extra International student. As a result, I will have five different interviews but only post four interviews online. I plan to upload all the transcripts on Tumblr before the end of the month.

[dexzigncollective]

Intro | Dexter Corpuz

Wassup everyone, my name is Dexter Corpuz and I am a distant learning student residing from Maui transferring from UH Maui College graduated last spring. This is my 4th year of college but 1st at UHWO majoring in Creative Media concentrating on General Creative Media. I am taking this class to further my design and creativity/thinking skillset, and to be versatile in many forms of design and tackling design problems. I look forward to showcasing my work and seeing all of yours.

[breakingthethinblueline]

This has been an exciting ride, and quite the experience. I've gained quite a lot of knowledge, not only academically but in life as well. One thing I can say to pass along, is when it comes to doing interviews, make sure you have plenty of back up options and you figure those out way early in the planning process.

[kuleana--does-anyone-care]

capstone update #5

Hello! We're in the final stretch now... A lot has happened since my last post. Sorry, but I'm really not the blogging type.

So! Over the past two or three weeks, I've cut together my "extended trailer" for my doc. My goal was to have something between 3-5 minutes, and ended up with something around 4 minutes 40 seconds. I figured this was the way to go since there is so much information to share on the topic of Red Hill. If I'm making a trailer for something this complicated, I need to make sure that viewers are getting all of the context they need to understand why the issue is important.

The biggest struggle was figuring out what would make it into the trailer. I spent a lot of hours going through my footage, and collecting public domain clips from DVIDS, the "Defense Visual Information Distribution Service". (Anyone can use content from DVIDS: dvidshub.net is the URL. All of its content is produced by the US Military.)

After much hemming and hawing, one night it just came to me. I put together the first draft of my trailer, and it restored hope and light to my world. 😂

I got feedback from 9 people about it. Only two people had doubts, but I've been working to address the things they mentioned. Everyone else really liked it, which was very helpful to know. When you're editing something, you start to question whether it makes sense after viewing it 20 or 50 times over.

I have a corkboard that I used earlier this semester to help me wrap my mind around all of the different parties and topics involved in this Red Hill story. After making the first rough cut of my trailer, I decided to use the corkboard to visualize and rearrange my trailer's narrative. This was absolutely necessary, because of the sheer amount of sequences and clips I had prepared. Last weekend, I spent a lot of time standing in front of the board, trying to figure out what I could move, and where I could place new clips. It was well worth it, and I can't imagine trying to do this kind of work a different way. (Thanks Professor Farinella and Gabby Navalta for recommending this method!)

All in all, I'm really pleased with how my trailer is coming out. It has changed a lot over the past week! The storyline is mostly the same, but I managed to add in a lot more information at just the right moments. The narrative feels cohesive to me, and the people who have seen the new version agree. I did not, in fact, mess up the magic I had going in the original cut. Relief!

Until next time, please enjoy these photos which document my trusty corkboard's metamorphosis over the past week. I will treasure them always.

[kacis-capstone-journey]

Hi everyone! Thank you for joining me on my capstone journey! And congratulations to everyone that finished their projects/practicums! <33

[ako808]

10) Capstone Journey - Part 2/3 Reflection video

Aloha everyone! 🌸

Welcome to my Capstone Journey! 🎓✨ This is it—the final stretch, the reflection, and the moment I get to look back on everything I’ve created, learned, and overcome. From the early brainstorming sessions to the long nights in Figma and feedback-filled meetings, this journey has been challenging, meaningful, and full of growth. I’m excited to share with you what this experience has taught me—not just as a student, but as a creative, a problem-solver, and a storyteller.

—------------------------------------------------

In this video, I will go over:

What were your thoughts about your research topic going into the first week of the semester?

I had a rough beginning. I wasn’t sure whether to pursue an internship or a capstone project, so I turned to my professors for advice—and they all strongly encouraged me to go with the capstone. I also debated whether to create a music education app focused on Western music theory or to explore Japanese music, specifically the shamisen, a traditional three-stringed Japanese instrument. At first, I just knew I wanted to make something music education-related, but I wasn’t sure how to narrow it down. I felt overwhelmed by all the possibilities and didn’t yet know how to tie everything together in a clear, meaningful way.

2. What are your thoughts now about your research topic and your project/practicum?

Now, I feel really proud of how it turned out. I strongly believe taht my project, ShamiZen, showcases my upbringing—in my academic bacground in music, Creative Media, and Video game Design and Development, and my passion in , coding and shamisen. It’s more polished, personal, and purposeful than I imagined in Week 1. I’m glad I stuck with it and let it grow with me.

3. What did you learn about yourself as a creative through this journey?

Through this journey, I’ve learned that I do have solid ideas and a clear creative vision—I just needed to find the right structure and tools to bring them to life. I realized I’m a perfectionist; I get really nitpicky about small details, which can be both a strength and a challenge. But I also learned that having a vision isn’t enough. Execution is just as important, and that comes from planning, outlining, and being open to feedback. I discovered that when I have structure—like wireframes, timelines, and support systems—I’m able to channel my creativity much more effectively.

4. What did you learn about the creative and production process?

The biggest lesson I learned is that pre-production is everything. I used to think the actual production—building the app—would take the most time and effort, but it’s really the preparation that lays the foundation for success. Research, user studies, wireframes, mockups, and prototypes all take time, and skipping over them just leads to more stress later. Once your blueprint is solid, the rest of the process flows more smoothly. I also gained a deep appreciation for designers, especially UI/UX designers—so much of the vision comes from them, and they really are the unsung heroes of the process.

5. What advice would you give new senior capstone students?

Start earlier than you think you need to—seriously. Even before the semester officially begins, start brainstorming and preparing. Give yourself time to explore different directions and don’t underestimate the value of research and planning. Pre-production might not feel glamorous, but it will make everything else easier. Get feedback early and often, whether it’s from professors, peers, or people who know the topic. And most importantly, choose a topic you’re genuinely passionate about. That passion will keep you going when you hit roadblocks or question yourself. Your motivation needs to come from within, and passion is what fuels that.

6. Where to now?

Now that the semester is wrapping up, I’m preparing for graduation—finally! After that, I’m planning to take a short break to rest and reset, then possibly continue developing ShamiZen with the goal of launching it in the future. I’m also looking forward to joining the Women’s Freelance Alliance (WFA) cohort this summer to keep building on this project. Beyond that, I’ll be applying to jobs in the tech field, ideally in software engineering, with the hope that my capstone can show potential employers what I’m capable of. This project helped me grow so much, and I feel more confident entering the professional world with something so personal and meaningful to show for it.

🎵 Music Credit:

Cherish Tuttle Music. Somewhere Over the Rainbow – Piano Instrumental Karaoke Track (Higher Key) with Lyrics. YouTube, 30 Apr. 2018, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrKWG8BEBJY.

Kato, Tomomi. Tomorrow Morning (Piano Solo Ver.). Pixabay, 3 Mar. 2024, https://pixabay.com/music/modern-classical-tomorrow- morning-piano-solo-ver-312045/.

—------------------------------------------------

🎬 Whether you’ve followed my progress from the start or are just tuning in, thank you for your support. I hope you enjoy this final look into my Capstone Journey!

[dexteracm]

Week 8! Update

An update for my overall practicum/deliverable project as my research, journey , and brand evolves tremendously I had changed my name for my project name to Growing Creativity! Me and Sharla has been in talks via email in updating the name for some time from Creative Adolescents to now Growing Creativity! I feel this name is way more fitting for my overall deliverables such as my podcast and social media, practicum research connects and ties everything together from what I have been not only creating but documenting! I had let my followers on Instagram know on the new changes, and also create a logo for my overall research brand and also for my podcast: Growing Creativity Podcast.  My new ig link is “ https://www.instagram.com/growing.creativity_/”

The logo is surfaced around a G + C with elements of art such as a video play button and a designer pen tool . I have created a logo guideline for me to follow in terms of having a consistent social media and brand for my followers to learn and see how my project evolves! Here is how the logo for my research looks with color variations along with the secondary logo for the podcast “Growing Creativity Podcast” and a documentation of guidelines for my overall brand to keep everything consistent and professional! I have also attached screenshots of introducing these new logos on instagram!