Untitled from UMBC Digital Stories on Vimeo.

In this digital story, Nathan Ferrell discusses his transformation while on a trip to Cuba.  He is in college at the time, and it appears that he attends Cuba during the Bush administration.  I’m not sure if he travels to Cuba as a study abroad student, although he makes reference to being a college student in the very beginning.  I like social change pieces, and I think this story definitely conveyed a strong message.  Nathan wanted his audience to know that the Cuba we are exposed to in the United States is not the Cuba that he experienced during his trip.  He doesn’t want his audience to believe what the U.S. government says about Cuba.  He uses a mixture of personal photographs, art, voice over, Cuban music and uses fading to transition from picture to picture.  I really enjoyed his story because I think that many Americans put stock into the negative portrayal of other countries and eventually miss out on amazing cultural experiences.

In her digital story entitled, "Mothers, Most Influential People in the World - One Child at a Time", Moh focuses on the importance of motherhood.  She is a Native American from Alaska who appreciates the influential position of mothers in her family.  I think she is trying to convey not only the importance of motherhood, but also the instincts that come with motherhood that are important and add to the influence of their positions.  The gift of her story is that motherhood is important and should be respected.  She uses photos, instrumental music, voice over and art.  When displaying a photograph of her great, great, great grandmother, she uses an effect where the story looks like an aged movie reel from the early 1920s.  I thought that was a great effect considering the age of the picture.  She also uses the technical effects of zooming and various transitions that seem to work for her story.  I love her story because I am a mother and understand how important that position is to me.  She embraces it also.