Name, Major and Minor, Graduation Year:
My name is Cayenne Cave. I am a double major in Documentary Studies and Production and Sociology, graduating in 2025.
Hometown:
I am from San Francisco, California.
Why am I a Documentary Studies and Production major?
I am a Documentary Studies and Production major because I believe in the power of storytelling. A well done documentary can be the perfect combination of film and journalism, building connections and understanding through a deep exploration of a subject.
Courses in the major that impacted me:
The journalism courses that I took freshman year greatly impacted me. Introduction to Journalism provided me with foundational knowledge of the journalistic process, I learned to pitch a story, find leads, and how to write an article in the journalistic style. Investigative Journalism allowed me to delve deep into exploring topics that interested me, and my confidence in writing and interviewing improved as a result.
I took Nonfiction Production as a sophomore. It has been without a doubt my favorite course. Over the course of the semester, I collaborated with my group members to develop and produce a fifteen-minute documentary “Without Shame, Without Stigma, Without Fear.” It explores abortion access and reproductive justice activism in Ithaca. I learned so much from the process of making a documentary, from the early stages of development to submitting our work to film festivals. One main takeaway was discovering how much the story changed from our original pitch. A bonus from the experience was that I was offered an internship with the non-profit, End Abortion Stigma, running their social media outreach.
What I learned screening my sophomore documentary at film festivals:
“Without Shame, Without Stigma, Without Fear,” screened at the Reproductive Justice Film Festival in Ithaca. It was an amazing experience to hear the audience’s reactions during the screening, and to discuss the film during the talkback. Our film screened before On the Divide, directed by IC Documentary Studies and Production alumni, Maya Cueva and Leah Galant and I was very inspired by their work.
I also traveled to Auburn to attend the screening at the Cayuga Film Festival in Auburn. Once again, I had the incredible opportunity to watch the film on the big screen and respond to audience questions after the film. Our film won best ‘College Documentary - Long’ at the Cayuga Film Festival
Something about me beyond my major:
I like to go swimming, thrift shopping, and to watch movies with friends. I love spending time outdoors and exploring Ithaca’s natural beauty.