Blog 10B

I think that I enjoyed the part that said normal is not good. I liked this part because I agree normal is not good. You should try and be different and unique. I can imagine he made this influence his work by having this fact. I think being not normal is good. You should try and be yourself. Not someone who you are not. Because being someone who you are not is bad, it is not good. That is why I think not being normal is good. I do see some correlation between the work he does and what he has written here. I think having spirituality makes it easier for him to better understand the world around him and how it functions and works.

Blog 9B

Blog 10A

Read this Here

Ok this article was very interesting, I think the main thing it was trying to convey was not be afraid of having weaknesses and that you will not be great at everything. I found this entire article to be very interesting. In this summary I will be focusing on three aspects of the article. The first one is to build on your strengths, I would use this by making up for my weaknesses, for example if I was not the best with people, I would you my strength of framing and understanding of shooting to make up for that weakness. I would also try and make sure to try and have my strengths be known. The more I work the more I think I will fully understand my strengths and weaknesses. The second part I chose was Whats my problem. I liked this part because it helps me understand how I can use my weaknesses to better understand my strengths. I think people telling use what is wrong with us makes us feel less good. But we are still great and no one is perfect. The people who make masterpieces just understand better what they are good at and not good at. It is very acute skill but still very important to have. I think understanding this is extremely important. I would to understand this by keeping a notebook, and writing down what your good at and not good at. It is very important to understand these things so you can better be a creative person. The other one I liked was the power of uniqueness. I think everyone has a unique voice, and everyone has something they are strong at, if people who are strong at things understand what they are strong and weak at they will better understand what they can bring to they table. That is the thing I will always try to remember. what I can bring to the table. Looking at myself I have learned that I am good at editing, and good at looking at footage and constructing a scene, sometimes however I am not the best at conveying my ideas to people through my words and understanding what I need to tell people. Looking at and understanding a career and becoming a good artist is essential. I try to look at my weaknesses and understand what can make me a good artist and what can make me a bad one. I always try to understand how to become a good creative artist. I look at people like george lucas who understood their weaknesses, he understood that he should not be directing and so he did not. For empire strikes back that is. That is why many times it is considered the best of the star wars films. 

Blog 9A

In the gaming presentation we tried to convey a certain message. I think two things that got lost in the presentation were the story and the HUD. The story was very complex and I had like no part in the story. We did not even create a HUD for the game. I really did not feel I had a big contribution to this game. We used a previous game design for this which is why I had little opinion because it was a previous idea.  I think we had a strong point in our characters, and a weak point in our plot, because it was confusing. I think this project would be much better if we could use a simple program to create a game demo. I think that would get the message across much better.  I think the rules are the hardest thing to convey in these presentations. With these power points it is really hard to convey rules, because it turns into a laundry list and you have to use your imagination to really understand them. Rules turn into a laundry list of things so i think it is hard to keep them entertaining.

Blog 8B

Petes Video is not up


Click here


Critique : I could only find a video game character for Chris Rush and his partner. There video tried to use color by making a use of hue. Hue is manipulated by making the hero a green color, and the villain a blue. They made their villain have much more saturation while the villain was much darker than the hero. This helps make their villain appear more menacing. The hero and villain have a contrast and affinity. The picture contrasts eachother because the hero smile and the villain frowns. The affinity between the pictures because both characters have a square head. There is subjectiveness in the video comes from because you have to look at the irishman and understand it means good luck. Objectiveness comes from looking at what colors they are 

Blog 8A

Before listening click Here

Joke Videos

Video 1

The two the videos are extremely different. The two videos were shot on the same camera, but many of the angles and styles are very different as well. The first deviated a little from the original joke, instead of using a dinner scene at the end, the wife hired a film crew to film her and her husband having sex. The second joke had the conventional dinner scene although there were some differences between it and the original joke. Visually there were some differences between the two differences as well. One thing that was similarly utilized was rhythm. In video 1 we tried to utilize rhythm by having our hero fart 3 times after he eats the beans, while he is in his room. This creates a joke rhythm of farting three times. In the second video we tried to utilize rhythm with the radio farting scene, and the scene eating the beans. In the eating beans scene we used a montage of three different beans being eaten, this created the rhythm of the beans being eaten. In second use of rhythm in the second video came during  scenes while on the radio. Each time our hero listens to the radio something on it reminds him of farting, this makes him panic and change the radio station 3 different times. We tried to keep a rhythm of threes in both of our videos. The two videos have an Affinity as well, because both involve farting, both have the hero wearing a blindfold and both have a rhythm of three. The videos have contrast  as well, in video one the hero ends on a bed, while in video two the hero ends at the dinner table. The first one also had no outdoor shots, and the second does. Lines were also used in our videos. In the first video we did not have a lot of actual lines, but we did you use a lot of virtual lines. Especially in the scene were the wife unmasks the husband and says I have a surprise for you. She then looks over to the other side of the room. We then follow were she is looking and then it cuts to the two camera men waving their noses. In the second video we had actual lines, especially when our hero was leaving the "diner" after eating his beans. As he walked away there is the counter thing to his left and the tables to the right. These actual lines frame the character as he walks.  The thing I shall compare from these videos is subjectivity and objectivity. When one watches both videos, from an objective standpoint the audience can realize that the main character is farting and that after eating the beans is when they started to fart. Subjectively we have to realize in both vids that the main character was farting due to eating the beans. In the first video we must also realize the sexual undertones at the very end and that the wife wanted to film her and her husband having sex. The second was closer to the original joke and did not have as much subjectivity other than the radio part. The audience has to understand he is changing the station because they are reminding him of farts. 

      \

Video Game Video

Passage review

Before viewing click Here

Comparing Pictures

I was drawn to this image because there is so much going on, that it is easy to not notice the man with the cross.  With all that is going on in the center of the image. I chose to frame the image with a close up because I wanted the framing to focus on the man with the cross. The image has a virtual line of the man looking up at something. We do not know what it is but there is  a line created from it. I also found that there was no space in the image to focus on anything else. The original image is definitely a deep shot but the close up turns it into a flat shot. The close up makes it just the man and the cross dominate the picture. I think it between the two pictures there is an interesting contrast and affinity. The picture that I cropped almost looks something like Jesus, while the mythical creatures that surround the picture make it seem like something out of a Greek story. I think the man in the corner is what drew me to this picture. He was so separated from everything else and so small compared to what else is in the picture, so I thought it would be interesting to see what he would look like cropped. I think that the artist chose to frame the picture the way he did because he wanted to emphasize the size of these creatures in relation to the man. You have this tiny man sitting in the foreground, while even far in the distance these creatures still look massive and threating. It makes me wonder whether the man in this picture is assuming a defensive position. He has the cross pointed at these creatures, so we could be warding them off, or trying to bring them over to him  

Song Reviews

Dylan Brown Song Review
Dylan Brown Song

Logan Song
Logan Song review

Sound Scape Reviews

James Meyers Review
^^Soundscape


Joe Soundscape
Review


Logan Soundscape
Soundscape Review

Acknowledging your lizard
The first part dives into the concept of acknowledging your lizard. This means to be prepared for failure or the unexpected. When you acknowledge your lizard you conform to what society wants you to do. According to Godin the great artist in all of us must understand our lizard so we can block it when we have to reach outside the box and not conform.

Fail
The part that struck me was fail. Godin Said that in order for you to be able to do anything great and groundbreaking you must be willing to take the risk of failing. I think not enough people in Hollywood take risks anymore, and that is why movies so often seem to be following some stale tried and true formula.

I think both of these relate to me going into the blog because I could try something very complex one of my lab projects and take a risk and end up failing at it. I think not conforming (acknowledging lizard) is tied with taking risks. When you take risks you grow as a person, and when you fail you grow even more as an artist. I think this is relevant to me being creative because people could end up thinking anyone of the projects I put up sucks and not like it. So I risk failing on this

Blog 3a

I am usually not much of a fan of covers. Many times they are just used by an artist who wants to play it safe. Besides if the song has a really legendary status a cover is never going to be able to top. The covers I have enjoyed the most were from songs that had a fair amount of obscurity. Of course that is not the only thing that makes an amazing cover. It also has to somehow bring something new to the song. Something that the original did not offer, this can be done by a change in tempo, instrumentation or pitch. I think covers which are a different genre than the original is the most effective way. A great example of this is the song Mad World. I will be looking at the original 1982 version by Tears For Fears and the 2001 cover by Gary Jules. 

When we look at Tears for fears version we hear a low eerie pitch. The song sounds as if it were sung in a shower or church hall. The Timbre in the Tears of fear version has an echo added to it which gives the song a strange dreamlike quality. The pitch in Jules version does not sound as low as the Tears for Fears version. The cover has a much less manipulated sound with its pitch and comes off as more natural. Jules version also relies more on his voice than Tears for Fears. The timbre of Jules version sounds completely natural as well. The echo that is in Tears for Fears is totally absent in Jules cover.

TFF version’s speed is an allegro. It is what I would call fast, not very fast but it is fast. The quick tempo makes it hard to absorb the lyrics on a first listen. Although none of the lyrics have been changed between the two versions, certain elements have placed a emphasis/de-emphasis on them. Tears for fears version concentrates more on the beat and rhythm of the song, not so much the lyrics. TTF version has a faster speed and an echoy eerie timber. While this helps give the song its eerie sound it also makes it much harder for us as a listener to hear the lyrics. Gary Jules version has a much slower speed/tempo, I would call it slow to medium slow. The tempo change means it is easier for the words to heard and absorbed by the listener. Also since the timbre of Jules version has no distortion it makes it easier to hear the lyrics.

When we look at the difference between these songs objectively we can easily hear these differences. The speed, timbre, pitch and lyrical emphasis. Of course subjectively we have to ask what the differences are and why are they there. The reason that Jules makes the song a more somber note is because in point it is used in Donnie Darko is a sad and somber moment. Looking at the lyrics reveals that the song is one that is somber, and Jules choice to make it that is reflected in the work.

I myself prefer Jules version to TFF version. I think the lyrics of the song are convened better in Jules version and I do not believe I am the only one who thinks this. On American Idol Adam Lambert performed Mad World, and he sang Jules version.

Soundscape

soundscape

Blog 2

Blog number 2

http://changethis.com/manifesto/51.01.YourHowl/pdf/51.01.YourHowl.pdf 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0mUuZ6i5CAw

The story is about a red wolf named Murmon, his species is raised in captivity. They have forgotten how to howl and have been raised in captivity and almost extinct. They are released into the wild, Murmon goes on a journey to find his howl. On his journey he eats a deer who tells him that his howl is something you just do, not something you try. He then kills the deer and eats it. He feels the deers spirt inside him afterward as the deer gives him energy. He then looks and sees a hunter with a gun, and then sees a fire and goes into the fire and a pack of hunters dancing. Then the hunters become his fellow pack and the fire a rock, as Murmon is standing by the moon howling to the ski. He relates this story to his article by saying that to find our howl we may have to go from hell and back and sacrifice everything that they want.   

Blog 1b

The Article by Ditkoff had many valid points in my opinion. His article was about about how inspiration comes about, and it brought up many valid points. I found it interesting that each part of the article explained exercises on how one can achieve inspiration. Overall the article seems pretty good, my only criticism is that it seems to think that you can make breakthrough ideas happen. I think that sometimes breakthrough ideas just happen. You can’t do certain exercises, it just happens. When breaking down the article and looking at three sections I look at. One of the exercises; immerse yourself is a very good on in my opinion. First off I think this is good because many times people can be inspired to do things based on things that others have done. Also immersing yourself in your craft gives you a blend of different viewpoints and facts. That can lead one to mixing different ideas together and creating new breakthrough ideas from these. To become completely self absorbed in what you do is immersion. One can have a much better chance of being inspired by being around certain elements     all the time. Although I do not think it guarantees anything it makes the chances of it happening much better. I would immerse myself with other people and view the works of others as well. I would watch independent films and mainstream ones and go into creative sessions with other people I know. That is how I would make myself immersed. 

The one that I think is very good as well is taking a break. Sometimes the harder you try for something the farther the way it goes away from you. That is why I think that taking a nice long break is a very good idea. Just going for a walk or doing something were you are not around technology is the best. Sometimes media activity can not be counted as a break. Something with out being connected could be the best thing in my opinion. If I was taking a break I would go for a walk, or sit on a park bench or get some food, or just relax and watch my favorite movie. I would make sure to have a pen and notepad handy but not plan to use them. You can not plan inspiration. Breakthroughs can not be forced as well. Then Ditkoff also has one that says to brainstorm. The classic example, its interesting that it is not at the beginning. I think brainstorm is good but sometimes it only goes so far. The only problem I have with brainstorm is that I feel like it can be considered a combination of many of these different pieces of advice such as hangout with a diverse group of people or use creative thinking skills and techniques. When you do these though you do not sit down and say, I am going to brainstorm. The exchange of ideas and opinions however could be considered brainstorming. Brainstorming is not as specific. If I were to brainstorm 80% of the time I would do it with a group of people, I think it helps when you have you other people. Sometimes however it is better to be by yourself for self reflection as Well.

What is the topic of your next group brainstorm? Who will you invite? Who will facilitate? When? For me my next group brainstorm topic will be, what should our movie be about? This will be during the 48 hour-shoot.  This is an event talking place from Feb 4-6 where a team is given a genre, a prop and line of dialogue. We get everything at 5:30 friday and we have to have a dvd of our film turned in by 5:30 pm on sunday. Basically we have to write a script shoot our 5 minute movie and edit all within the weekend. The people at this brainstorm will consit of our production crew and some of our actors, so 9 or 10 people. We are thinking that the location of this brainstorm will be in one of the group rooms in Alden Library and then somewhere else after midnight. I will most likely not get any sleep at all during this shoot. None of our main crew will get a lot if any sleep. I think it will be a really good experience though and I will learn a lot about it. I am the Director on the shoot.      

  

Blog 1a

I am the kind of creative person who wants to create works that both move and inspire people. The kind of thing that sticks with people, and unconscious becomes a part of there style. That is the way to last with someone forever. Many creative people have influenced me as a creative person. There are three that come to the forefront of mind however that have especially influenced me. They are the Coen brothers, Stanley Kubrick and Stephen Spielberg. 

The Coen brothers have been writing there own scripts for their films since the start of their career. This has given their movies a unique style, not the usual Hollywood formula. Not every plot line is resolved in a Coen film, and many times we don’t the certain fate of some characters. If too much is wrapped up though then the film can start have that formula feel. The trademark of almost all of the Coen’s films though is the dark comedy which they employ. I take this scene from the Coens breakthrough film Fargo as a perfect example of how Coen’s perfectly mix darkness with humor. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8qWFhDvURLg. Many people are killed in Fargo. The humor however is a great release to the tension of all the killing. The wood chipper scene also shows how the Coens used tension and release. As Marge is slowly coming around the corner we kinda see someone doing something, but we are not sure yet. Then Marge, the police officer tries to scream at him but he can’t here him. This ads to the tension and it is released once he starts to run away, because it is then we know Marge will triumph. This is just one example of how tension and release is used in Fargo and in the Coens film. The main thing that watching Coen brothers films have taught me is to always and try have your own style to thing. That is something I have admired about their films. They have their own unique feel about them http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhXJcfczNIc . This scene is a great example of Subjectivity and Objectivity.  For the entire film we have seen Anton (the customer) killing people meaninglessly and for no reason.  When one just looks at the scene objectively we see a gas clerk and Anton talking, and Anton telling him to flip a coin, and when he says what he has to gain from the coin flip he says everything. What does he mean when he says everything? Objectively it could be money, his business or some secret. When one looks at this scene subjectively one can see that it is fate that rules this scene. Anton says You know what date is on this coin? 1958. It's been traveling 22 yrs to get here. And now it's here. And it's either heads or tails, and you have to say. CALL IT"". Fate is the subjective thing that can be drawn from this scene, and is one of the scenes of the film. Anton is saying how it is fate that the coin is here that it was meant to be here. Themes are the greatest aspect of Coen brother movies. 

When I get out of school my main ambition is to become a director of photography. When it come to cinematography one director come to mind as a great source of inspiration. Stanley Kubrick, often considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time. His films are marked by the great craft each shot has and by the stark reality on which Kubrick presents. I take this scene from one of Kubricks most well known films http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jFVyAjj3Bs0&feature=related. The tracking scenes with Danny on the his bike were considered groundbreaking at the time of the films release, and visually the entire scene is expertly crafted. The scene is also is a great example of contrast and affinity. When Danny first comes around the corner we see the girls saying come to come and play. This image is disturbing all in its own and very weird. To fill on the context there is not supposed to be anyone in the lodge besides Danny his mother and father. As they say come play with us we suddenly see an image of the two girls bloody bodies on the ground, with an axe by it. Then flash back to a less intense image of the two girls saying come play with us. Then flashing back to the girls saying come play with us Danny it then flashes back to the bodies two more times before it ends. This is standard work by Kubrick, who is a master at these things. 

Moniques Blog Post

Blog Post