Junior Iron Chef
Behind the Lens at a Jr. Iron Chef Event
Filming a Jr. Iron Chef competition was unlike any videography project I had done before. Instead of dancers, athletes, or performers, my subjects were young aspiring chefs. Some have never even been in a kitchen before.
Before competition day, I spent time filming the team’s practices. They made their signature dish — Soba noodle soup— again and again, perfecting timing, technique, and teamwork. As a videographer, these rehearsals were incredibly helpful. I learned the pacing of their cooking process, where the most visually interesting moments happened, and which angles best captured the energy of their kitchen. The repetition allowed me to anticipate their movements so I could record each step without getting in the way or missing key moments like chopping or plating.
When competition day arrived, the environment felt completely different. Instead of a quiet practice space, the room buzzed with noise, motion, and pressure. Multiple schools were cooking at once, judges walked between stations, and the countdown clock never stopped. Filming in that environment meant constantly adjusting: weaving between crowds, keeping my camera steady, and even standing on a chair to get the best angle, as I tried to capture both the intensity and excitement of the event.
One of the biggest challenges was balancing close-up detail shots with wider, storytelling frames. I wanted viewers to feel the precision of the knife cuts, the softness of the dough being kneaded, and the teamwork happening at every station. I also needed to show the entire competition: the judges, the audience, and even a minor fire at another school’s station —this, sadly, did not make the final cut— and getting the viewer feeling one with the team kept the video immersive.
Filming this event gave me a new appreciation for the art of cooking and the excitement of capturing it on camera. It was fast, intense, and incredibly fun. This project pushed my videography skills in all the right ways on a topic I knew nothing about.
