Adding Tomorrows Everyday

First Encounter...

Cystic Fibrosis. I was first introduced to this genetic disease in my biology class one day as my teacher brought in a guest speaker for the day. This guest speaker had a son who had Cystic Fibrosis; it was a day that was very emotional for everyone in the class as she talked about the life expectancy of her little boy, Peter. We were all very touched and as a class we went on a CF walk where we donated to the CF foundation. It was a fantastic day as we got to walk with little Peter, and understand his struggle with this life. Therefore I chose this award-winning video made by the foundation I went on a walk for.  

The Reality of the Video

The fact that there are so many people struggling to do a basic thing such as breathing, in order to stay alive, is what makes this genetic disease very touching. Also, the fact that there is no cure to keep the lungs going is another struggle that is faced. Due to these reasons and many more it is logical that the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation chose to make such an emotional video for their cause, in order to make people who watch it understand the crucial aspect of such a disease.

The moving aspect of the video is brought through the background music that is utilized; it has a touching and emotional tone to it that sets the audience in a sensitive mood, but hopeful mood. It exemplifies the serious aspect of the disease. The tone of the person talking in the beginning, who is the mother of two children who have Cystic Fibrosis, is also very touching she talks in a manner that is as if she is almost about to cry. The video introduces the people who struggle with this disease and it is very emotional to grasp that since it is a disease that people are born with, they therefore pass away at a young age. The children they show in the video make the video very expressive and the insight of their lives that they give, with the medication that they use set the video at a very high level of emotion.

The video switches from different perspectives, as a parent the first speaker gives insight of her feelings and then there are also glimpses of the perspectives of the people who have to live with the disease. I believe that this contrast is very effective in portraying the significance of the disease and it makes you emotionally connected with the person suffering from the disease. As the video sheds light on how their day passes with all of the medication they need to take and all of the doctor visits that they need to go to, you get a feeling of being part of their lives which ties you into the cause of the significance of the foundation. The video does not bore you because you get to see a variety of compelling life stories that suck you in and get you emotionally worked up.
Also the camera shifts positions, and shoots the lives of the Cystic Fibrosis patients in the video from different angles. These different perspectives that we gain from the video helps us emotionally attach to the patients, and adds to the videos cause of incorporating us in the lives of those people and also to show them that they could continue what they are doing with our help.

Incorporating Emotion

One aspect I would like to employ in my own video, is the effectiveness of the music that is used in the background. The tone of the music is just right with the message that they are trying to portray in the video. I also wanted to interview people if I will be able to find people to interview, and this video did a very good job in employing the right people to explicate the right cause for the video. I love the slogan that the video used at the end, “Adding tomorrows everyday” and I am hoping to either begin or end my video with such a captivating quote.

Overall, I found this video to be very engaging and emotional and was very effective in portraying that Cystic Fibrosis is such a serious disease that needs to be fought against with collective effort. As the video illuminates the effectiveness of the cause and the treatments that are being found, it elucidates that it is not impossible, and that there will hopefully be tomorrows in the lives of these children.