Blog #5

This semester media 160 has most importantly exposed me to the production process involved in several different types of media. First, we discussed all of the collaborative work involved in making a movie, a documentary, or even a short film. There are so many roles and efforts going on behind the scene that allow the film to actually come together. There is a hierarchy of jobs, from the producer to the boom operator, or the director to the makeup artist, everyone must work together like a team on a tight schedule.

When making our own short film, I quickly became aware of the in depth planning and organization that is required in order to be successful. I finally recognized the importance of storyboards and keeping layers organized and labeled correctly. I was introduced to the editing process, mainly in final cut pro. This program allows editors to manipulate and alter any scene to make the audience interpret it exactly how they want it to be interpreted. It is amazing how much you can do to a scene with music, transitions, sound tracks, sound effects, coloring, etc.

The last type of media we produced was a graphic animation using the program Flash. I now have a good understanding of the tools and potential that flash animation offers. The importance of organization holds just as true for flash animation as it does for final cut pro. Keeping your layers organized and labeled helps dramatically when you start to get in depth with your animations. I never fully comprehended how often flash animation is utilized on the web. We are bombarded with flash animations every day on almost any website you go to. I now understand the process involved in getting these animations up and working.

Overall, this semester has broadened my knowledge of the "behind the scenes" of many different media types. I now have a better understanding of how the final product is produced, edited, manipulated, and ultimately created for us, the audience, to finally see.

Blod #4

The “Y0UNG-HAE CHANG HEAVY INDUSTRIES” is a group consisting of two artists who utilize flash animation in an unusual way to narrate their stories.

http://www.yhchang.com/DAKOTA.html

This particular piece is called “Dakota”, and is actually characterized as a film noir digital animation. The art piece is simply a browser page of flashing words in a variety of different sizes and shapes synchronized to many different drum rhythms by Art Blakey. To follow along with the essence of film noir, the piece is in all black, white, and grey. It tells the story of three different very cynical narratives; the first about a group of kids on the road, the second is an homage to Blakey, and one in a fast-food noodle stand late at night in Korea.

Watching the piece, it is difficult to look away. The artists successfully accomplish a state of urgency, as the fast paced drums keep impelling us forward with the bold, flashy, and blunt narrative. The fact that you are not always able to read every word due to the quick speed of the piece keeps the audience interested. You are still able to comprehend the narrative with the key words you do catch. This keeps the audience constantly captivated; constantly trying to catch each word before it flashes away. The combination of the two different art forms (drumming solo and flash animation visual text) are both so prominent in the piece, it is as if they are in a constant battle to outdo each other. However, without one or the other, (the drums or visual) the piece would not work as effectively. Also, the piece is captivating by nature due to the unorthodox way of narrating a story. We are used to hearing a story in a particular way, in chronological order, in complete sentences, and without repetition. This piece however, breaks these orthodox boundaries using flash animation to blast words into the faces of the audience, often times repeating specific words and altering the shape and rhythm for emphasis. I consider this piece extremely successful in its attempt to capture the full attention of the audience, keeping them in a state of awe and bewilderment, by shocking them, blasting them with images and sounds, all to convey a very melancholic story.

Blog #3

Never having planned, shot, or edited a video before, the initial process of planning the project was somewhat uncertain as to how detailed and in depth the storyboards and scene outlines actually needed to be prior to shooting. After having completed the project and looking back, I would have spent more time carefully laying out each scene and including what each scene needed in order to maintain consistency and fluidity between shots for the later editing process. It was somewhat frustrating during the editing process to realize that certain scenes that were planned to be back-to-back couldn’t be because they weren’t exactly fluid due to some minor detail that is crucial later on. For example, we planned on shooting two different shots that were supposed to be back-to-back, but shot them from the same angle, and therefore the fluidity was lost. These are details that I would definitely think through more thoroughly next time.

Looking back at the shooting process, I would have been more organized in keeping track of the different shots that I have or have not taken, especially since we were shooting them out of order. During the shooting process, we found ourselves saying, “Did we already do this shot? How many times did we take it?”, which was frustrating and time consuming to figure out. I would have used a shot checklist that would dictate which shots I have finished, and I would include how many takes each shot was taken. Organization is definitely a key factor during the shooting process.

I think we did pretty well during the editing process; staying organized with each file and naming them properly. It helped a lot when you are deep into the editing process to have them properly ordered and labeled.

After finishing the entire process, I realize how crucial organization truly is. It may seem somewhat unnecessary at first, but it is evident that right from the start it makes the entire process go smoothly.

Blog #2

Katie Blauvelt

Blog #2

As a piece of linear media, I chose a scene from the Godfather that exemplifies a very compelling example of parallel editing.

http://www.spike.com/video/godfather-baptism/2724589

The scene depicts a baby’s baptism, while at the same time numerous men are being brutally murdered. The juxtaposition of actions occurring is extremely ironic for the viewer, giving it that much more significance. The contradiction of such an innocent baby in such a holy environment accompanied with such evil and corrupt murders brings about an extremely dramatic effect. The combination of music and baby’s crying successfully creates a tense atmosphere, which is accompanied by quick flashes of the murderers preparing for their days. Even more interesting, as the scene progresses, the baby and murderers become more intertwined, as you hear the babies cries and see the murderers walking to their victims. The climax of the scene is constructed so in sink with the organ/church music, bringing yet another ironic tone to the scene. As each murder shoots his gun, the organs emphasize each bang. The constant switching back and forth from the church, where michael is announcing his faith in god, to the murders that michael has ordered, emphasizes further the hypocrisy of Michael's character. Each shot was specifically planned to intensify this contradiction. The intent of the entire scene is to evoke a dramatic feeling from the audience, and I believe this was done extremely well due to the cut of each shot carefully matched with the music, and contradiction of the two scenes occurring simultaneously.

Blog #1 Media 160

Media 160 Blog #1

Currently, my relationship with media today is a very reliant one. I depend on numerous websites in order to communicate with friends and family, to complete my school assignments, to find jobs, look at the weather, entertainment and music, and much more. At this point in my life, it is hard to imagine a lifestyle without these easily accessible forms of media on the Internet.

One specific site that I use on a frequent basis (along with many other people) is Face book. Being that I went to an international high school in Amsterdam, my friends are now spread all across the globe. Face book provides an extremely efficient way to communicate with these friends via messages, images, online chatting, etc. My parents still live in Europe, so it is a very easy way to communicate with them as well. The user-generated content makes the site so successful, as the user creates their own accounts, pictures, and decides what to display and not display.

Another site I use every day is Pandora.com. This site allows me to listen to an endless playlist of songs from a genre of my choice. By typing in my genre or artist of choice, I am communicating with the site what music is popular amongst my demographic. Furthermore, they are communicating with me via advertisements on the page, and via a commercial every 10 songs or so.

I am aware that I am constantly bombarded with hundreds of forms of media each day. This includes print ads on the subways, billboards, buses, etc, all television and commercials, radio, Internet, etc. Our society is based on a system of mass communication, where personal contact is becoming less of a necessity. Whether this is a good or bad thing is up for question.

Blog About Anything...

Fargo (1996)

My Film 101 class recently screened the film Fargo, as it represents one of the great classics in film history. Fargo epitomizes the film Blanc category, as it is the direct opposite of the typical film noirs of the past. There is no femme fatale character; instead there is a naïve and very innocent wife who is victimized and eventually suffers a tragic ending. This is quite opposing to the Film Noir’s femme fatale that is dangerous, sexual, devious, and manipulative. Instead of a “hard-boiled” detective, there is Marge Gunderson, the very optimistic and moral police chief working the case. All of the scenes are consistently lit high key to emphasize the light atmosphere of the film, contrasting film noir’s low-key lit scenes filled with shadows and dark corners that stress its dark outlook. The ending of the film suggests a moral outlook and a somewhat happy ending as one family (Marge Gunderson’s) has a very optimistic future to look forward to (Very different than the typical ending of the film noir that concludes with a dark ending to match its dark content). Joel and Ethan Coen did a remarkable job of combining dark and serious content with comedic antics. It is rare to find yourself laughing during such cruel and malicious scenes, but somehow Joe and Ethan Coen were successful. For example, when Jean Lundegaard finally gets out of the kidnappers’ car, she desperately tries to escape. However, the black bag fastened over her head prevents her from seeing absolutely anything, and results in her clumsy running in circles aided by frequent falling, (alluding to the headless chicken act). The combination of lighting, Jean’s ridiculous screaming, the kidnapper’s laughing, and music all create a comedic scene although the content is truly horrible. Overall, I think the Coens did a fantastic job combining juxtaposing aspects to create a very entertaining result.

"What I Hear"

“What I hear”

Sitting in central park on East 103^rd street

Initially laying in the grass in central park on the Upper East Side, all I heard were the lawn mowers and hedge clippers that were unfortunately maintaining the field the same time that I sat down. These soundmarks of central park are frequently heard in any field or landscaped area. However, after sitting silently and listening for about 5 minutes, I started to become attuned to the myriad of other sounds that served as keynotes in the background. These keynotes usually go unnoticed, as if immune to their mundane nature. However, with the incentive of this blog, I began to notice the hum of a far off jet plane. I noted the occasional chirping of birds that even outshined the landscape machinery. Being in New York City, one becomes extremely used to the sounds of people, talking, walking, singing, running, etc. However, when in the park you experience a peaceful atmosphere lacking the abundance of people. Therefore, I found myself being particularly attuned to the sounds that one single runner would make jogging by, which is extremely different than the usual sounds of hundreds of people. Over the machinery, I could make out his faded footsteps against the pavement. Two women power walking talked amongst themselves, producing a keynote of vocal tones that went from a low, serious chatter, to a high shrieking of laughter. Two men walked by, one holding a boom box. The music, intended to be a sound signal to attract attention, became another keynote as it was washed out by the lawnmowers. All of the sounds I hear contributed together to create one single atmosphere. Typically, I would have recognized the atmosphere alone, without pinpointing each individual sound. It was interesting to dissect the entire myriad of tones instead of grouping then together into one vague sound.