In 2024, I made an ambitious plan: to create 100 short films in 2025. It felt like a bold yet exciting challenge—100 is such a solid, satisfying number. But when I divided it up, I realized the enormity of the task: nine films a month, or two to three videos a week. Despite this, I was determined to see it through.

To stay organized, I drafted a list of keywords to guide the themes of each video. For my first project, I chose Resilience. It felt like the perfect way to kick off the year—a reflection on pushing through the difficulties of 2024 while stepping into the possibilities of 2025.

When it came to filming Resilience, I didn’t want it to be just me talking to the camera. For me, short films are more than simple vlogs; they should tell a story, evoke emotion, and connect with the audience. I set a minimum runtime of 1 minute and 30 seconds for all my films, but as I began, it was harder than I expected. Every attempt felt like a rant about how challenging 2024 had been, and I wasn’t happy with that tone.

At one point, I decided to lean into the ranting. Why not just express my raw emotions? I thought. This approach gave me the space to be honest, yet it pushed me to channel that energy creatively. After recording my audio, I began looking through the B-roll footage I’d captured in 2024. The contrast was striking: my voice narrating the struggles I faced overlaid with visuals of the beautiful places I had visited. It was symbolic—despite the hardships, there were moments of beauty, joy, and growth.

To give the film a more structured narrative, I decided to add a beginning and ending clip that symbolically connected. The opening shot featured me walking moving toward the camera, while the closing shot showed me walking away. Together, these clips symbolized leaving 2024 behind and stepping into 2025.

For color grading, I wanted to highlight the greenery in my footage, making it vibrant and alive without being overly bright or cheerful. I balanced this by slightly dimming the overall visuals, adding a touch of saturation to emphasize the emotion. The result was visually stunning—rich in color but grounded in tone. For any close-up shots of me speaking to the camera, I framed them tightly to create an intimate, personal connection with the audience.

Creating Resilience felt like a microcosm of its theme. It challenged me to push through creative blocks, balance vulnerability with artistry, and embrace the beauty in imperfection. It’s the perfect start to my journey of 100 films in 2025, and I can’t wait to see where the next one takes me.