Pick one of the following films that we've seen in class:
Baillie, Bruce. Castro Street.
Baillie, Bruce. Valentin de la Sierras.
Brakhage, Stan. Cat's Cradle.
Bush, Paul. Incidents from the Life of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
Clarke, Shirley. Bridges-Go-Round.
Connor, Bruce. Breakaway.
Gerhard Holthuis. HKG.
Jennings, Jim. Close Quarters.
King, Joe and Rose Pedlow. Sea Change.
Marcellvs L. Man.Road.River.
Menken, Marie. Glimpse of the Garden.
Pierce, Leighton. Pink Socks.
Richardson, Emily. Aspect.
Riedelsheimer, Thomas. Touch The Sound: A Sound Journey with Evelyn Glennie
Smith, John. Worst Case Scenario.
Write a three-paragraph statement answering the following three questions (one paragraph per question), as a comment to this post:
Please state your name (First and Last)
1. Identify the film you have selected and why you chose it.
2. What are the some of the key characteristics, images, scenes, transitions, events, edits, ideas, connections, etc., in this film?
3. How has this film inspired you (or frustrated you) in your practice as a media artist?
The deadline is Wednesday, April 9, 3 PM.
52 comments:
The film I selected is Touch the Sound: A Sound Journey with Evelyn Glennie. I chose this specific film because of all the details of sound that were represented and shown in the film. It gave a close look at the different representation and manipulations of sound that surrounds us. The film also contributed images to the sounds that were created by Evelyn and helped give an example of what we are doing in class. Thus, by selecting this film, it would help guide me in making my final clip with the combination of sound and images.
The key connections I found in this film were the different sceneries that Evelyn Glennie was placed and yet she always found a way to make sound with whatever instruments were surrounding her. The part of the film that stuck me the most was when Evelyn was in Japan. It was an interesting transition from Scotland to Japan, learning their traditional music and instruments. This transition of time and place shows that any interesting or beautiful sound can be made if given the opportunity to explore.
This film has inspired me in my practice as a media artist to explore my surroundings around me. Instead of searching far and wide for unique sounds, I should use what resources of sound that surround me. It shows that you don’t have to travel far to get the most unique or beautiful sound/music, but use whatever is closest to you. It really is more about idea and creativeness about what you can do capture sound and imagery. The most uninteresting building can be caught on camera as the most interesting building on the block if you capture it at the right angle, and also depending on what feature of the building you caught on camera. Everything that a media artist needs in creating a film with sound and motion capture is around him/her, it only takes thought and consideration as to how to take it to next level of just point and shoot and recording whatever sounds that pass by.
Jean Yang
Lab 5
Lilly
The film that I oicked was "Pink Socks". I chose this piece because of the enviromental sound and also the unique editing style. It gave an interesting perspective of the world that we live in from the viewpoint of a pidgeon. It was not only the image that was from this view, but also the sound. The sounds of footsteps from the child and the other pidgeons were quite distinct.
I thought a unique characteristic was the blur effect that was used sporatically throughout the film. It gave a slight chaotic feel due to the massive amount of activity going on on the screen. The interesting part about this whole piece is when you break your concentration on the pink socks of the little girl and finally realize that all of the pidgeons have "pink socks" on in a sense.
Something that inpired me from this film is how much it looked like a painting, especially in the sections where the blur effect happened. It took on an almost impressionist feel, and that inspired me to try and strive to make my pieces paintings in a way.
Jake Jendusa
Lab 5
The film i have selected to write on is "Worst Case scenario". This wasn't my first choice of a movie as i really enjoyed "Sea Change" but i did not see it as an option for a movie to reflect on under the course schedule. Getting back to the reasons I chose "Worst Case Scenario" second has a lot to the do is that it captured my attention a lot more than say "Castro street" which i did not care for whatsoever. I liked the whole editing techniques of this piece.
Some of the key characteristics of this film deal with repetition. From the sounds of the doors slamming over and over to the dog barking, or the people making out. Everything seemed to be on a loop and would repeat multiple times before they were eventually phased out by different acts of repetition. The events in this piece seemed not-sequitur in the sense that they didn't really have any real connections to each other, other than that they took place in the same urban landscape. I only way it seemed different things would tie into each other was when the sound was overdubbed to make it sound as if a previous clip was coinciding with the clip on screen.
this film has inspired me as a media artist by giving me new ideas with what to work with. I really liked how the clips were looped throughout the whole movie. I never really gave the whole back and forth motion much thought. Something that frustrated me about this movie was how long it was. I know if i was making films like that i would be frustrated with all the editing and trying to keep peoples attention.
Jonathan Lorbach
I selected the film, Incidents from the Life of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, by Paul Bush because of the clever us of the employed technique. I like when you can quickly identify an editing style 5 seconds into a film because it quickly makes things interesting. I have a strong interest in the concept of each individual frame because it is the most essential element in a film, and if you can get the audience to become aware of such a small unit of time, you can go into a ton of detail for even the shortest of films.
The film makes us of varying cuts between characters with similarly positioned actors. This is used perfectly in the film portraying the different egos or intentions of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde as well as the mixed feelings and emotions of other people on screen. The technique quickly identifies the inner conflict of people's sense of good and evil and gives the person a much more complicated range of emotions through the most basic juxtaposition technique imaginable. The fluctuations of the cuts allows the viewer to experience the character's struggle so by slowing down the cuts, they are attempting to push one of the character's identities away. The final scene when the town’s people attack Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde is incredibly tragic as he attempts to deny is counter personality although it is visibly seen on screen half the time. Although the film was a bit difficult to watch at first, after about a minute you become used to it and can appreciate it much better, I this can go for any technique.
As basic as this technique is, It seemed to me that more film makers should employ this technique. It can show an impending outcome of possibilities and heighten any level of drama. I think this would work great with crime movies where the suspect is debating if or how they will commit a crime, the technique could be employed in objects like murder weapons or blur the identity of a characters. Other psychological dramas could also be used; perhaps multiple characters could share the same identity. Simple techniques like these inspire me to work more on the level of frames, though I have found this specific technique difficult to arrange, and even more time consuming, but overall worth it.
Daniel Dillig
Seth-
1. Identify the film you have selected and why you chose it.
**I chose the film Meshes of the Afternoon by Maya Deren. When I saw the film I immediately fell in love with it. I loved the way dreams and reality meshed so the viewer never really knew what was going on and if it was in her head or actually happening. It also wasn't even until the "dream" began that the audience even got a full view of the women's face, which I found to be interesting. The film is so remarkable because so little is known and yet I am captivated to keep watching this unknown woman and her world. It's also quite disorientating not being able to tell what is real and what is not. To me it felt as if I was in one of my own dreams, chasing after some unknown person, never catching up. It really captures the viewer into another world.**
2. What are the some of the key characteristics, images, scenes, transitions, events, edits, ideas, connections, etc., in this film?
**Some of the key images are in fact the key itself and the knife which are used interchangeably in the film. The key is first presented out of a purse then twice the women pulls it out of her mouth. I've been trying to figure out exactly what the key/knife mean, although technically they could mean different things to different people. The person with the mirror face who carries a flower also presents itself a few times and later we are led to believe the mirrored person was in fact a man, of some relation to the woman. In one way I understand the film and it makes complete sense yet I can't seem to quite comprehend it.
3. How has this film inspired you (or frustrated you) in your practice as a media artist?
**This film has inspired me to tell my own stories, in such a way that it is understandable yet incomprehensible. It pushes me to different, to chop up images, use unique camera angles, show the world my view of things. It inspires me to not be afraid of showing exactly what I want. Using objects and people in disorientating ways. Our minds are so complex, images constantly flashing through, thoughts buzzing about all day. It becomes possible to create the unseen. To tell a story everyone can relate to. It makes me want to keep making films long after this class, because I can.
1. Identify the film you have selected and why you chose it.
I chose, Touch The Sound: A Sound Journey with Evelyn Glennie because I thought it was the most interesting compared to the others. The way that Evelyn could find or se anything to make sound or music was extremely interesting because I would have never thought of something like that. To stand on a roof top and listen to different sounds and to use them to make music makes me think that I could use anything to make music or to use them and put them together.
2. What are the some of the key characteristics, images, scenes, transitions, events, edits, ideas, connections, etc., in this film?
I think the key elements of this film was to show that you can use anything thing to make sound and or music. You don’t have to use an instrument to create a wonderful sound, you can use anything and it can be just as beautiful. When she was in Scotland making the CD with a man that she had never met was really intriguing. The fact that they had never played before together and could make music was great. They created really cool sounds that went together and they didn’t even have to tell each other what they were going to do or what they were going to play.
3. How has this film inspired you (or frustrated you) in your practice as a media artist?
This film helped me try to find unusual sounds on my walks. I think that it is important to find sounds and collect them for future projects and with watching this film it helped me realize that I need to find more sounds and I need to collect them. It is always good to have lots of sounds that you can use for other projects.
The Film that I have chosen to write about is Touch the sound: A Sound Journey with Evelyn Glennie. The reason why I chose this film is because My main focus for my drift 3 walk was to gain precussion sounds, and Glennie's main proudction of sound were precussion based sounds. Another reason why I chose to write about her project was because I found it intresting seeing her travel all over the world gaining sound knowledge, opening up my eyes and bringing me out of my ignorence on what I consider a "good sound:
One key idea that I found intresting was that even though deaf people might not nessicarily "hear the sound" but they can still "feel the sound" with their bodies. Another idea that caught my eye was one wants to make a really cool rythemic sound, then one can just pick up and place any objects around you, and attempt to make sound. Finally, there was a image that stuck out to me, it was when Glennie was in New York and was playing that one peice drum set in the middle of that crowd, the echo sound that i got from that gave me chills down my spine.
To be honest, this film has been my main source of insperation for my drift 3. I am having my final movie be based off of my soundtrack, and I mainly tried to emulate Glennie by trying to record precussion sounds.
Jon Elliott
Group 1 (David)
1. Identify the film you have selected and why you chose it.
I chose “Glimpse of the Garden” mostly because I did not really understand the message or meaning to the piece. I wanted to view this piece again to see if I could further connect to it. Having viewed it several times I am not quite sure that it says anything. I believe that this piece does not really need to say anything at all. I guess I just take this piece for what it is.
2. What are the some of the key characteristics, images, scenes, transitions, events, edits, ideas, connections, etc., in this film?
There is a combination of handheld shots as well as stationary shots. The combination creates a sense of motion similar to that of a bird. The audio is bird songs. The audio is upfront and flat with no background noise which almost suggests that this was shown in a theater of birds and this was their reaction to the film.
3. How has this film inspired you (or frustrated you) in your practice as a media artist?
Well, I’m not sure that this film frustrated me, but I could say that it did inspire me to create simplistic pieces. This piece also made me think about my choices in audio. The audio in this piece takes you away from the moving images by making you realize that the audio is not from the visual. By choosing this type of audio it changes the views that the audience has. This is a good example of choices of audio and how it plays a role in the direction of the film.
Dusty Vollmer
The Film i chose is Bruce Conners Breakaway. I chose this film because I love the editing technique he used used to integrate the song "Breakaway" into his piece. He used quick movements and a close view of action for the main most part of the film, while still integrating regular paced movements and medium shots.
The key characteristics of the this film was the duality of the film. The first half was about breaking away. This was achieved by breaking the image out of it's frame, breaking out of the social norm of clothing, and the speed normal speed of human movement. The second half created a alien pitch that I didn't expect. The same song and movements were cast backwards, this created a unusual visual and sound representation. The actress now seemed to be a scary former self, distinct visions of her face and the distorted vocals created fear.
This piece inspired me to also create a duality in a film. Conflicts are a normal part of life and conflicting points can create interest. Normally I would have not watch something after the repetitive actions got boring but the second half shined a perspective on the human action of dancing she was performing. Overall, I think this film was a good piece to gain insite on, many experimental films ( I feel ) are just a waste.
David Orawiec
1. I chose the film Sea Change because visually it was the most appealing to me. The sense of place established in the opening shot was really effective; it felt like a place I had seen before. I liked the smoothness of the tracking and I liked the rhythm that developed as the trailers passed trough the frame.
2. The transitions from the longer medium shots to the shorter, closer shots were flawless. I know that logically, I saw the same trailer at least twice, maybe even more, but the cross fades from medium to close shots concealed this very well. I also really liked the sound mixing—the way it shifted from ambient sound to layers of the natural field recordings from the shoot. That, combined with the rhythm of the moving trailers was almost hypnotic. I also liked the lack of highly charged or political statements in the film. The filmmaker didn’t seem to have an agenda, rather, it was simply a series of visually interesting and poetic shots. If there was a “deeper message” behind the the film, I didn’t get it—and while I appreciate films with statements, it was refreshing to see a film that was artistically sound and very well put together.
3. Again, I think the rhythm of the film was the most mesmerizing. As a media artist, I’d like to be able to develop such a strong rhythm in my own work. Sound and image blended together were absolutely stunning. It seems like a very well thought-out film and I hope that I too can send as much time finding connections and editing them as well as Sea Change demonstrated. The mood of the piece is something that really inspired me to try and create something as powerful.
Chloe Arbiture
Julie Murray
Touch The Sound: A Sound Journey with Evelyn Glennie, made by Thomas Reidelsheimer, is a video we have been watching in class throughout the semester. Out of all the videos shared in Film 116, Touch the Sound will be longest remembered maybe because it took over 3 class periods and over half a semester to finish it (Ha ha). On a more serious note, the reason I loved this video was mainly due to the main character, Evelyn. She was so passionate about love for sound. Through her many locations of professional percussion playing it becomes more and more evident how much she loves the sense of hearing. She bases her entire life around that sense, which I find to be a noble way to choose to live.
As I write this response at 4:44pm I hear a strike of thunder crash from outside my slightly opened window. Evelyn and the film Touch The Sound will forever be noted as inspiration for my love of sound, particularly in nature. I set up my microphone recorder out my window in hopes that the thunder will continue. When Evelyn is on top of the several story building in the city, drumming on her favorite instrument the snare drum, it is noted how the natural sounds of the city move in relation to her drum. The flock of birds with sounds of flapping wings is most notable from this scene. Other scenes, such as playing the snare drum in the mall or playing various instruments in the hollow building under construction, also show connections to how her sound interacts with the sound of the world around her.
How am I to view sound? Evelyn Glennie seems so in tune with the sounds she creates, as well as the sounds surrounding her day to day life as a media artist. Sitting through three class periods viewing Touch The Sound: A Sound Journey with Evelyn Glennie has moved me to listen to the world in as many different ways as possible. Going out on my Drift sessions out on the urban landscape which is Milwaukee, I would take a whole different approach to listening as I recorded my sounds. Now onward to record sounds for Drift 3, I plan to think about ways I can interact with all that I see. I’ll listen not just how my interaction sounds but also all the ripples and randomness that occurs in the duration of the recording.
Michael Curtis
The film I have selected is Sea Change by Rosie Pedlow and Joe King. The reason I chose it was because I found it visually stunning with beauty and thought that the transitions from night to all the different times of day were done so smoothly. I didn’t see any direct edits or cuts and the houses remained in the same position as the time of day just changed. All in all the shots did not look like the same places as they changed lightings, yet they were.
The makers of this film basically glide across this landscape which is almost that of a trailer-park and simply film as they move from right to left across it. The camera gets closer to the houses and all the while this is happening, the time of day in which is being film constantly changes. Basically they transition from the same location into a different time without making the camera blink. The lighting from the sun or lack thereof fades into one another; although it is clear that it was taken at different times in the day. I think the point of it was to show how drastically different something can look depending on light. It completely alters your perception.
This film has inspired me to continue playing with people’s perceptions in my works. I like to make people see the fact that the way we see things isn’t always what it seems and for everyone is different. At one point in the film I said that’s a beautiful house when the focus was on that and literally seconds later my focus left that for the sky when the lighting changed. As a media artist I too wish to play with the beauty in everyday life and this film truly expressed that along with the world’s full blown canvas in its entirety. A really gorgeous film and the ending shot with the tree and the peacefulness of the leaves rustling was an extraordinary finish.
Zach Rudd
1. I picked the short film Sea Change by King, Joe and Rose Pedlow. First of al I thought it was the most visually entertaining. I didn't get bored with it like some of the others. It was the perfect length, unlike some of the others that just kept going and going.
2. First of all the sounds were amazing, almost intrancing. I thought the track shooting was very effective and added to the almost mesmerizing feel of the film. The transitions speak for themselves (spectacular). I also thought the fact that there was this erie silence through the transitions from night to day was interesting. It made me feel like this place was forgotten.
3. I really wish I could float because I really liked the way the shot just kept going at a continuous level, and because I could never imagine seeting up a track that long.
The film I chose was Bruce Connor's Breakaway because of the fast edits and the constant motion. The pacing is well set, with mostly fast zooming motion and then just enough slower motion to give you a breather. I love extremely fast edits and motion, but I understand that can be a little jolting for people so to get the pacing right is very important to me.
The key characteristic for this film for me is the fast editing. I believe that Connor creates this disorienting motion be zooming the camera in and out randomly. The images are edited so fast that it's a bit disorienting, but Connor keeps the pace by adding some slower moving images. The outfits that the girl is wearing keeps changing randomly too, so the audience is not seeing the same image over and over, there is always something a little different. Other differences with each image are the camera is zooming in on a different body part each time; one time it's her face and another time it is her breast. And the girl's movements are ever changing as well. In one shot she's just standing looking at the camera and in another she's jumping in the air and dancing wildly. Connor uses the same type of editing style throughout the whole film but keeps it interesting by constantly changing the images.
This inspired me to attempt some fast edits and overlapping images to get that disorienting feel. I like how it looks so different, yet you can still tell what the image is; it's like creating a new perspective. This movie also taught me about pacing. On my first attempt at this style editing, everything was fast and I realized that I had to give my audience a breather with some slower images.
Brandi Stone
The film I chose to write about is Marie Menken’s Glimpse of The Garden. When I first saw this film in class, I was so easily distracted by the bird’s calls that it was hard for me to focus on the visual content and the edits. I decided that this would be a good time to watch the film with sound and without sound, as it was posted for viewing on the internet. After re-watching the film without sound, I was really entertained by the simple nature of it and after adding the sound again, the combination of the sound and image was really fascinating to me.
One of the main characteristics of this piece is that you have this constant call of birds, which helps to add rhythm and a sense of place to the piece. The piece seems rather simple, like somebody taking a long walk in a garden and what they see and what’s interesting to them. I’m sure there is a deeper meaning to this piece, but that’s what I got out of it. The faint, but constant movements of the plants and flowers add a sense of liveliness to the film along with the bird’s calls. The scenes in the film don’t seem to build up on one another, which suggests to me, along with the nature of the simple transitions, that the organization of the clips is pretty random.
This film has inspired me to not always take your artwork so seriously and to realize that being simple is okay. The subtle clash of the bird’s sounds and the garden’s images inspires to create contrasting images/sounds and to try to find a balance between the importance of the two.
The film I've chosen is 'Pink Socks' by Leighton Pierce. I really enjoyed watching this short film because it was entertaining both to my eyes and ears. It made me feel very peaceful and forget that I was sitting in class. I thought it directly related to the course and gave me a good idea at what we are aiming at with our sound videos.
The things that stuck out the most in the film was this overwhelming feeling of space. There were pigeons chirping, kids laughing, people talking, and the church bells going off. There was so much going on at the same time, and they seemed to follow this sort of rhythmed pace.An editing technique that really stood out was the blurring of images of the running feet. This gave the images a variety in pace and disconnected the film from just regular time.I also thought the image of the little girl with pink socks running around with a bunch of pink-footed pigeons was beautiful. Made me think of the similarities between all creatures on this Earth and how we can all live peacefully together, just as the little girl and the pigeons did.
This film really inspired me because I realized how much content there can be in just one area. It made me realize how editing can really change images and sounds and make them flow together swimmingly. I'm not sure if the whole pink socks and pigeon feet correlation was planned or not, but regardless, it made me think how many correlations of things are out there waiting for me to capture and made me eager to go find some.
http://film-116.blogspot.com/2008/04/reflective-response-4-screenings.html
1. Identify the film you have selected and why you chose it.
Smith, John. Worst Case Scenario
I choose this film because it was made entirely from still images much like what we are currently doing with Drift 2 and 3. It also reminds me of many of the flash animations you see on the Internet where animation is limited but you have some very detailed high resolution images used to tell a story.
2. What are the some of the key characteristics, images, scenes, transitions, events, edits, ideas, connections, etc., in this film?
The use of sound was almost minimal, in that most were foreground sound and it was stagnant, but every one he used instantly connected to the visual in some way. Many of the sounds felt “larger” than the images themselves at times.
Each scene represented somebody in the city setting doing whatever it was on that day. The task they performed were generally simple made up of on average what appeared to be three or four frames of animation. The actions themselves like the sounds were very large in that sometimes they appeared to be surreal in nature. This process tended to start simple and as the film progressed they escalated into repetition and then eventually combinations that weren't necessarily connected together in real life. For example when he created the accident with the car and the train.
3. How has this film inspired you (or frustrated you) in your practice as a media artist?
My experience with using images to create animation has been based on changing the entire image to match in some way where he generally left the majority of the image itself the same changing only very small portions to generate animation. I think by watching this film I realized you can create a very compelling story with the most minimal of animation. I also enjoyed the playful nature of the film. It appears one could have as much fun making it as watching it. The only thing that frustrated me is many of these aspects would be much easier to reproduce with a decent tripod as it's nearly impossible to take a series of images where the background remains exactly static.
Eric Wescott
802 - David
1. Identify the film you have selected and why you chose it.
I chose Sea Change by Rosie Pedlow and Joe King because the simplicity of the video. By moving left across the trailer park for the entire film I thought created a pleasant rhythm to the film. I especially enjoyed the different look of the same trailer park in different lighting and weather conditions. I thought the soundtrack went along well with the trailer park. The music seemed to stay constant for the whole video until the end with the trees blowing in the wind.
2. What are the some of the key characteristics, images, scenes, transitions, events, edits, ideas, connections, etc., in this film?
One characteristic that stuck to me was the camera only zoomed in and out with the steady flowing motion keeping the same angle on the trailer park. The way the sky changed the mood of the trailer park was also very interesting. Combing the sky with the right weather conditions created very striking imagery. One particular scene I enjoyed was what looked like early morning sunrise with fog rising from the ground then a man walked across the shot which was surprising because up until then the trailer park looked almost like a ghost town. Also the end of the video stuck out to me because it was the only shot that paned up, also the sound changed from music to trees rustling in the wind.
3. How has this film inspired you (or frustrated you) in your practice as a media artist?
I enjoyed the simplicity and rhythm of the video. This film was a great example for me to see how the rhythm of a video can be simple yet still work very effectively. The way that the time of day can create settings in the same place was also something that I will take away from watching Sea Change. The editing through out the film also looked extremely smooth. In my practice of with video I defiantly need to work on my editing skills. This video also blended sound and video together very well this is something I am going to need to keep in mind for my third drift.
Max Bouril
lab 5
The film I chose is Touch the Sound. I decided to blog about this film because of the major importance which is placed on sound. It was interesting to see someone who takes a different approach to sound/music than what is conventionally accepted.
The film really focuses on Evelyn Glennie and her ability to manipulate and/or observe the sounds of her surroundings. The scene that most sticks out in my memory is when she is walking through the airport terminal - we really get the sense of being almost overwhelmed by all of the sonic possibilities. I was also moved by the scenes where she works with hearing-impaired children, giving them the opportunity to experience sound in a physical way that they might not be used to.
This film is very inspirational, in the sense that it gives us a clear window to an artists appreciation of sonic environment. I also enjoyed her improvisation with Fred Frith, on a purely musical level. The film shows us a new way of listening and interacting with our surroundings.
The Short film I am writing about is Pink Socks by Leighton Pierce. The main reason I am choosing to write about this video is because it is a simple, yet powerful film, and shows a great way to use effects in editing.
The biggest characteristic of this film that I enjoyed is the fact that there are no cuts to different shots. The whole film is one take. As the movie progressed, all the pigeons started to blend together, creating simply gray space on the screen. I really liked the use of blending and speed in this film. Also, this was basically a black and white film, there was a big lack of color. However, had there been color in this film, the pink socks wouldn't have been noticed. Overall I like the way he edited and transformed a simple video into a video that really shows the same thing, but keeps your eyes on it because of its style choices.
This film has inspired me as a media artist because it reminds me that not all films need to have fast cuts and narratives. I like this because it shows me how some simple footage can be turned into something intricate and different from mainstream.
Tyler Arthur
TA David
Glimpse of the Garden was probably the one that reminded me of one of my clips that I edited which is why I chose it. One of my clips, of the Milwaukee River downtown had the similar nature aspect as well as the 'walk' look. As I was watching Garden it reminded me of mine in that it starts out like a stroll along the path but then cuts to a different time in the path as well as details of the trek.
Of course the first thing I noticed about this film was the use of the color. The artist took closeups of bright yellow and blue and etc colored flowers, but also had wideshots emphasizing the extent of the garden and what all these little colors made up. The shaky pans also give the feel of the viewer actually walking in the garden, and while you're walking you notice a flower and take a closer look (ie: the closeups of the flowers).
I guess you could say it inspired me because I had a similar theme so I took this film as a sort of example that I could use. My piece and this piece may have similarities but what am I missing that I feel this film achieved? That is what I looked for when viewing this piece.
I chose Touch the Sound: A Sound Journey with Evelyn Glennie. I found this presentation to be eye opening to me. It made me realize a new level of importance that sound has in film. I enjoyed the passion that was behind the film and what the sound did to amplify Glennie's sincerity to her love of sound. I was continually interested in the sounds that were paired with certain images; it made you think more about what you were watching.
A few connections I discovered in this feature were mostly between sound (of course) and and images and the effect they have on the viewer. The scenes that stuck out to me were of Glennie and her friend making music in the abandoned building that Riedelsheimer uses to introduce the sounds then he juxtaposes images that are somewhat obscure while keeping the sound over the image. Also, there were connections between nature and sound and the idea that sound is a natural thing that is all around us.
This film has inspired me by showing that sound has a huge ability to carry emotion and meaning in a film. Instead of just being secondary back round sound to emphasize the image sound can be the central element and the image can work to emphasize the sound. This struck me as I realized that the film was really about sounds as opposed to the narrative or image and I realized that the documentary was really secondary to the unique and intriguing sounds.
Jacob Rengstorf
I have chosen John Smith's Worst Case Scenario. I choose this film because it had a lot going on in terms of action and movement for being made completely of still images. It also created a narrative out of pieces that in real time don't seem like they would have been related.
Some of the key characteristics for me in the film was how Smith was able to make it seem that all of the cars, trolleys, people, etc. were all at the intersection. He would allow them to move about the intersection, but he never made it seem as if they had gone that far away. Another key piece for me was the fact that up until the very end, he made it seem as if all this work was going unnoticed. Then at the end he allowed for some the people to acknowledge his presence at the corner.
The thing that inspires me the most about this work is all of the work that went in to it. It seems to me that it would be a very tedious process, and in my own work, I sometimes have a hard time doing the tedious work that takes things to the next level.
Clay Miller
Justin Tilley
I chose the Marcellvs L. film Man.Road.River. It shows what a unique art form film is. It would have not been as powerful as a still image and would have made for a boring and very short story. Also if it were written it would have required getting in the character’s head thus forcing the reader to have to interpret through the eyes of someone else. There would be no need for one to use their own intuition in order to make out what the hell was going on. Granted a lot of movies contain a narrative and work like a story and are through the eyes of characters who dominate the whole story leaving the viewer to simply tag along. But when a film just uses motion and sound to say something it works like a dream, and dreams are far more personal than stories. Even when we read a story and use our imaginations we are told what we should be thinking about. If we are told that there is a red pencil we imagine a red pencil. If we are told a character is staring at a red pencil we are told why they are staring at it. But in a film you could make a whole movie about a red pencil and never say why it is there and allow the viewer to be the character. Obviously the filmmaker did it for a reason unless they are just up their own ass or lazy but if they are sincerely fascinated and are truly attempting to invite you into a strange place where you are left alone with their dreams than it becomes something amazing. You see the world as they see it, but you also see it through your own eyes so the film is yours if you choose to open up to it. If you just get frustrated and scoff at it because it isn’t being clear with you or telling you how to feel than it won’t work. As far as I know only humans make movies which is the thread that connects all of us to them. Along with all other artforms.
At first I found myself very bored watching this film. So much so that I chose to write random things down in my notebook looking up every now and than only to see what I thought was the same shot yet still not completely sure as to what I was looking at. I noticed people shaking their heads, letting out frustrated sighs or simply walking out. It just seemed to be shadows walking in place “I get it!” I thought to myself. Than when I realized the camera was slowly zooming out and that what seemed to be a man going nowhere was actually a man who had walked from one side of a river to the other I found myself thinking “wow, that was neat”. Had I read it or saw a photograph of it I would have thought nothing. Film can take a simple moment like walking forward and turn it into something, frustrating, strange and surprising.
It appears that we have now come to the end of our journey,yes, yes i know, I'll miss you too, but before departing i will like to share my thoughts of a very poetic video, created by Marcellvs L. Viewing Man.Road.River in its simplicity it is by far one of the most meditative endeavors i have had the pleasure of experiencing. The overall mood of the piece had allowed my mind to travel within itself and drift along buoyant memories of a time less concerned with deadlines and tribulation. Seemingly contradictory, since this man must struggle across a once clear road now flooded from a rainy day, somehow i still sense a connection between our states of mind and the condition of all these paths. I chose to examine this work primarily to offer this man gratitude for my new level of self-awareness.
Man.Road.River. functions entirely on a single shot, zoomed to the point of pixelation. The frame is focused around a shadowy individual, slowing compensating for his movement forward by pulling out, widening the image. Marcellvs never cuts, nor does he move from his vantage point. I believe he pays extreme attention to scale, successfully imprisoning this man within the same area of the frame for well over half the film. Mimicking this man's struggle through the clever use of such a simple technique, i, in a sense feel that at the conclusion of the film, both the filmmaker and his subject and the viewer had not experienced the compression of time, but of rather the compression of three separate realities over time.
Reflecting upon my previous drifts i can safely say that i was quite preoccupied with the attentiveness of my audience. I manipulated my material in such a way where i was certain that a viewer would not find them self bored. While that approach was indeed effective, i feel that after witnessing Man.Road.River. I've come to realize that fast cuts and fancy tricks aren't always necessary or appropriate given content. This film has inspired me to experiment with a more relaxed style of editing, so that i may avert my focus to content and perhaps find the proper balance between rest and action. For my next short video i will attempt to execute a narrative that has the meditative properties of Man.Road.River so that i may build suspense, at which point i imagine the imagery will unfold as naturally as breathing.
I hope that this time has been as insightful to you all as it has been to me. Thank you for sharing your time and thoughts. Hopefully, we'll all be sitting someday together at the Academy Awards, which would of course have been completely restandardized by our high quality of work. Good luck to you all ;)
David J Ortiz
Lab 5
Lilly Czarnecki
I am choosing to write about Thomas Riedelsheimer's Touch the Sound: A Sound Journey with Evelyn Glennie. This film was a really showed a really interesting insight into her Evelyn's world as an artist and musician. I really appreciated her overall enthusiasm for what she does and her innovative ways of making beautiful sound.
The way the film transitioned from scene to scene was really creative and emphasized sound while not forgetting the image. When moving on to a later time or different location, the film would often times become silent. While familiarizing the audience with the image on screen the sound would then be introduced, disrupting the calm silence before. This technique was very effective and contiuned to catch my attention. I thought this idea hinted at how we should perceive most sound by not looking at it as simply background noise, but as a meaningful sound that shouldn't go unnoticed. One event in particular that I thought was really powerful was when she went to visit her brother's home/farm and soon after found out that it had burned down. The following scene showed Evelyn practicing more music. This sound had a very sorrowful tone to it and was a very apparent change from the other music of the film. Not only did the sound portray sadness but the emotions on her face and how she played it conveyed a sense of loss.
This film inspired me to be more passionate about the things I do. Watching Evelyn enjoy every note that was produced from her instruments was really amazing. I also loved how she took unconventional materials and used them to create music. I hope to look at the obsccure more and be open to find art in things that wouldn't ordinarily inspire.
John Smith Worst Case Scenario
I found this piece really enjoyable, Smith was able to do a lot with very little. The seen taking place on a busy street with people, dogs, cars, and trains is a simple every day thing. The way Smith edited this is what I think makes it so special. All of this piece is nothing but still photographs and a sound track. The photographs are in a series and edited in to a simple form of animation, with the people and cars moving back and forth. I liked the way Smith would use repetition and back words movements. The part that was the most memorable to me was when the family was crossing the street and a train ran them over with the loud train noise. Smith was trying to mess with are emotions give us a shock. For most of it the photographs are black and white but for a few shots they are in color, when the little girl was looking in the bakery window at all the cakes and goodies. The dominance of the black and white makes the color stand out. This piece reminded me of Monty Python with its crude animation.
This film has inspired me to use more stills in my videos. I also have been experimenting with backwards movements.
Andrew Page
The film I selected was "Breakaway" by Bruce Connor. The main reason that I chose this film is because it really was the only film we saw that entertained me. I can't explain really what grabbed me about this film it just entertained me and thats the one thing I believe films are meant to do.
The most notable characteristic of this film was quick zoom ins and zoom outs. Throughout the film the camera zooms in and out so fast you never really get a long period of time focusing on the girl dancing. The zooms happen so franticly fast you just get mere glimpses of girl perform. I mean you don't know whats going to happen next. One second she has scandalous clothes on the next she leaps across the screen naked; you don't know what to expect next. Another major edit is running the entire production backwards immediately after the last scene. It's as if the second the woman becomes free from her confinements she is immediately punished and sent back to it.
The number one thing that this film has done for me is inspired me to believe that maybe experimental films are not all bad and boring. I have to admit coming in to this semester I was questioning the idea of becoming an experimental film maker, but now I am overwhelmed by how exciting and different it really is. I have now realized that experimental films are not only intriguing but simply a blast to make
Bruce Connor's Breakaway is one of the hope filled satisfactions that remind me of the perks of being a film student. This film, like James Benning's 11x14, is a piece of work that would allow me an even happier death, knowing I had made it. My initial response of Breakaway, from the first thirty seconds was,"Yes, oh yes." Due to my elementary love of black and white film, the introduction of a great song I've never heard and a gorgeous 60's dancer that reminded me of the Laugh In girls I was no doubt going to enjoy the next four and a half minutes of my life.
This is an underground film of the 60's so to give it more meaning or 'key connections' would be to soil the film. Breakaway is a very cool experiment for Connor, this is the type of film you would see playing at a Warhol party or some hipster di**heads house (the two are interchangeable). However, the film really works, outside of the great song, b/w film and dancing is the camerawork and editing which acts as first person perspective of a ball of chaos unleashed on film and this woman. The most striking images are those of the blurred gusts of white that hold Antonia Basilotta's face. We're left with a spectacle, Connor captures what it would be in the mind to remember a face and makes it a physical sight. Basilotta's costume changes, or lack there of, are usually handled with an off shoot to the black surrounding her, which reminded me of our editing techniques with the silent videos. I will not gush the entire time over this film, after a second viewing, and this is a point to it being experimental, the song goes backwards along with the footage. I was surprised, considering the spitfire editing, camera zooms and speed of the film, how less effective it was backwards. The relationship between the song and film prior was truly something to behold. Although, my mind has surely become desensitized to reverse and backwards play because of overuse in today's films, videos, and some music. The second half could have been the reason it became an underground success, or is it above ground? Connor also uses the camera as an object as much as Basilotta. At some point you think,"who is directing who?" The last facet of the film I'd like to bring up, as to why it works, is the black background. The opening image of Basilotta standing and dancing makes for such an appealing image, had it been in white I would have called it a Gap commercial. When white does enter in the editing it has character and is not just a color, it moves and seems to have a texture all it's own, as does Breakaway itself.
As I mentioned above, the editing cues in Breakaway reminded me of the steps I took in editing aspects of my silent videos. I noticed that Connor spends more time on the black space before moving back to dancer (after changing clothes, the reverse of the film). From an editing perspective, I see how much more effective it is to linger for a moment before returning to the object. The extra frames are what make the transitions fluid, as opposed to waiting for a shot of all white/black and finding another frame of all white/black and cutting it together, leaving what is essentially a regular cut, which could have been to anything. That is definitely something I will be considering for the final videos.
The film I selected is Sea Change. I chose this particular film for many reasons. First I really like the way all the different clips of night and day ect. are put together. Second i thought the subject and environment of the film was very different and unique. Lastly I just have always been fascinated with differences between light/dark and weather. You really get to see that in this film.
There are a couple main things about this film that make it so great. First being the transitions. They film the whole movie without moving the position of the camera. It’s one long panned out view basically. Also they are also pretty short and fade between each other perfectly. The sound in this film is also done flawlessly in my opinion. They add a little bit of music in the background which helped give me as a viewer a sense of place.
I think this film inspires me to do great things as in artist. I feel this way because I thought this film was very cool and interesting in general. But it also appeared to be something that doesn't seem impossible for someone like me to create. I just hope one day I can come up with something this interesting and cool someday.
Eriks Pukite
Lab 5
Lilly
1. Identify the film you have selected and why you chose it.
The film I chose was HKG by Gerhard Holthuis. I was totally captivated by all the images of building and planes. The concept seems simple but the way it was constructed was beautiful and rich. The high contrast film really creates a wonderful texture for this film to play out.
2. What are the some of the key characteristics, images, scenes, transitions, events, edits, ideas, connections, etc., in this film?
The film is really about the relationship between the landing planes and the Honk Kong buildings. The planes are shown so close to the buildings that it gives a strong sense of anticipation, but at the same time the overall feeling of the film is quite calming and surreal. Often The plane wasn't shown in full, but just potions of it, which make them seem entirely massive, like some kind of a monster. Until the end the film is also devoid of human presence which in the context of the film creates a bit of an eerie feeling.
3. How has this film inspired you (or frustrated you) in your practice as a media artist?
This film was incredibly intentional. Every shot was carefully crafted, planned and executed. The sheer amount of time it would take traveling around the city to find successful vantage points and the opportunity to film a landing plane, blows my mind. The thing I think I most learned from this is that with a few critical creative decisions with something as simple as planes landing in a city can be quite profound and meaningful.
-andrew sampers
Joe Gilliland-Lloyd
1. Identify the film you have selected and why you chose it.
I chose Thomas Riedelsheimer’s “Touch The Sound: A Sound Journey with Evelyn Glennie” because of it’s unique take on audio as an exploratory measure with no bounds. Throughout the film Evelyn Glennie takes you under her wing and shows you her own unique experience with sound. From the time she was young she knew what she wanted to be involved in and, despite the complications of her hearing, she was able to accept it while not allowing it to drag her down. The fact that she can even sense the vibrations and pitches through touch is extraordinary.
2. What are the some of the key characteristics, images, scenes, transitions, events, edits, ideas, connections, etc., in this film?
One thing that makes this documentary jump out at you are the moments of raw sound and imagery. The camera’s focus seems not to be a guide but rather another tool for exploring the world around and discovering new and odd entities to experiment with. Despite the fact that the basis of the film is audio it depicts a totally different perspective, one without the majority of the focus being on melody, or rhythm, but a journey through the infinite opportunities the world presents us to create entirely unique experiences specifically but not solely with sound.
Another key idea in this film is the connection between sound and space. Each timbre and pitch is directly related to a location or an object, and the camera lends itself to establish the relationship. Not only does it pan across the areas giving lasting images of the environment utilized to create the sounds but it traces the movements made by Evelyn as she feels her way through it.
3. How has this film inspired you (or frustrated you) in your practice as a media artist?
The film inspires me mainly because of the unique relationship Evelyn Glennie has with sound and the world. By just watching her movements and expressions it’s obvious to see that she’s in tune with everything she does because it’s so smooth and animated. While I’m an avid listener and critic of music whom often gets upset with hearing out-of-tune or rhythm pieces, I was able to understand Eveyln’s connection because she communicates through each movement. Every change in velocity or timbre signifies a new emotion or change of pace. The reason this inspires me is because I always saw music as a means of communicating feelings, or expressing deepest desires that can be said. Evelyn shows me that it’s not only possible, but it’s something I should keep encouraging and experimenting with.
Sea Change was a unique film that was simple in concept but the landscape proved filmworthy. The use of the caravan park was interesting, along with the different fades and film techniques. I think the contrast in colors as the scene change was the most interesting part of the film. I can recall one shot where the sun was setting, filling the frame with a warm orange feel. The continuity of the film was excellent even with the night/day transitions, proving good film work. The music added a mellow tone to the film, complementing the visual portion of the film,
Granted most of the caravans are somewhat similar, Pedlow and King found many unique attributes about them, for example the impression of people in the caravan park. One example that comes to mind is the beginning of the film, as the child runs and gets his bicycle, starting the motion of the camera. They played with foreground and background as the caravans were sprawled about the field. Close shots of windows and far shots of children playing are a couple fixations that caught my eye. There was the constant pan of the camera which made the eye crave more as the caravans passed by the frame.
I think one of the most interesting parts of the film as stated above was the use of color. On any given day or night the entire caravan park would appear to be one color, Pedlow and King found hues of almost every color as the season was changing by the sea side. This could be helpful when filming for a scene, the use of color, time of day, contrast, and other aspects of film are all something to be carefully noted.
The film I chose for this reflective response was HKG by Gerhard Holthuis. I chose this film because I found that in terms of composition, content, editing, and sound design it was the most inspirational piece that we watched.
I'll admit that I'm not really an experimental film kind of guy. I love making films because I like to edit, the shooting process - although endlessly frustrating at times - is overall thoroughly enjoyable, and I love film as a storytelling medium. In too many experimental films I see there just isn't any feeling of a story, or even purpose. Obviously I have much less experience watching these films than traditional narrative films, but it is sometimes difficult for me to separate bad experimental film from good. In watching Gerhard Holthuis' "HKG" however, it was night and day. This is a great, moving experimental film. The film opens with static shots of a white sky with airplanes moving through the frame. As the airplanes pass sound is heard, but not the traditional sound of an airplane. The sound is more animalistic. So right from the start these planes appear less as vehicles piloted by men, and more as giant majestic birds. The film is filled with shots of these birds passing close to the ground over Hong Kong. Even when the actual mechanical sound of the airplanes is added in the sound design the planes still appear as separate entities from the man-made metropolis. About half-way through the film music comes in. It sounded somewhat like electric violins. This beautiful, fragile score enveloped the images of the city and the giant planes overhead with a sense of wonder and a kind of hopeful sadness. The composition of the shots should also be noted. The geometry of the buildings, the angles at which you saw the city all served to perfectly frame the planes as they passed by. At times the sound of a plane getting closer and closer, it's mechanical hum getting louder and louder and growing to a screech, would be juxtaposed with a shot of the city the camera scanning slowly upward. And as the sound got louder the camera movement got faster and faster until finally looking up to the sky just in time to see the monster pass by.
This film has inspired me as a media artist by showing me that sometimes the only purpose a film needs to fulfill is to leave the viewer with an overpowering emotion. I can't say that this film was particularly trying to make a point about anything, or that it was specifically trying to create a narrative. But the images and sound came together harmoniously to create the feeling of a peaceful, wondrous place. The viewer is simply happy to have been able to visit, and that's enough.
Alec Beaird
Seth Warren-Crow
Lab 2
I chose to talk about Touch the Sound: A Sound Journey with Evelyn Glennie. The film was an interesting look at how we make art and what we need to have inside of us to create our works. The sounds that were made set to scenic areas that they were played in and other odd settings is a great example of our final projects, thus a good video to talk and think about for us at this time.
One of the key scenes to me was the scene where Evelyn was in Japan I believe, taking in all of the sounds that surrounded her, and managed to make her own sounds out of whatever she could find. Then later when she was in the bar, she managed to make a complete "song" per say out of bottles, glasses, empty cans and several other random objects. She was able to pick up sounds and compose them on the spot based on her surrounding only.
This inspired me directly because it is exactly the lesson we are supposed to be learning from our drifts. We are supposed to take in what is around us, instead of just seeing the obvious images and sounds that are in front of us. If we stop and look or listen to what is around us, we can create some projects with material that not everyone tends to see in their everyday lives. Everything we ever need to capture is all around us in our world, as long as we stop to look at it
-Will Olsen
Steve Wetzel
My name is Miranda Kube and the film that I chose was, "Incidents from the Life of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde." The reason I like it so much was because of the rapid movement of each frame compiled together to make a film.
The rapid movement of the scenes of the film really captures the rapid changes in the life of Dr. Jekyll. They could have just set each frame at a slower speed but the movement that they chose is perfect.
This film has inspired me to have the patient to take multiple stills to create a beautiful piece of art. I like the way stills look when they are spliced together and I think that is what I want to do for my final drift.
I chose Touch The Sound: A Sound Journey with Evelyn Glennie because it was about sound, but the fact that it was a film meant it used images as well to portray the idea of feeling sound. That led to some interesting connections between our senses that not many films have the creative license to focus on.
Some characteristics were that it connected the viewer with the performer and showed the performers connection with sound as not only something you hear, but something you feel as well. In any film the audience can see and hear what is happening, but they do not necessarily feel (or are not yet aware that they can feel) what is happening. The task of this film was to use sound and images to convey the sense of touch. This was done through a bunch of different methods. First of all there is the close-up or medium close-up on the performers face as they create their sounds. This is one way of telling the viewer to imagine what the performer is thinking and most of all feeling just by the emotion on their face. An example of a scene that portrays this when Evelyn is talking with the deaf child and showing her how to feel the vibrations of the bass drum. Reminding the audience of vibration as a way of feeling sound as well as the emotion on their faces as they experience it further convey the connection. An example of shots that more subtly suggest this connect is when the camera includes images of empty corners or other areas of the warehouse were they are performing. The echo seems to portray sound as something that is alive and has an effect on its surroundings, and therefore something to be felt. Also the images of the ripples in the water are another prime example of sound as something to feel because the viewer is likely to remember what water waves feel like. Also the pulsation and the disruption of the waves suggests sound as something to be felt, which is a perfect example of incorporating imagery and sound to convey the connection between our senses. Finally the transition from the snare drum in Grand Central Station to the similarly echoic location of the warehouse also stresses the ability of the echo as a way of reminding us of the quality of sound and its connections to the other senses.
This film did a good job of reminding me about the possibilities of media to toy with and connect the senses, just as real life experiences do. It has inspired me to have a greater focus on using media to convey a real experience, which means using ideas, sound, and images together to portray on overall sensory experience.
Joe Steigerwald
Lab 2
I chose to talk about Thomas Riedelsheimer's film Touch the Sound: A Sound Journey with Evelyn Glennie. This particular film really has inspired me throughout the semester to look for things that are simple, and also look deeper for interesting things under the surface on my walks. The way that Evelyn is always creating using so many different resources is what really got the ideas flowing for me when planning out my Drifts.
I think that the most important scene in the film is the section where she is teaching the little girl how to "feel" the sound like she does. Many people would probably hear things about Evelyn and say that she is a nut, or that she's just BSing it, but the section enables her to have a solid connection with other people and prove her point, that sound really can be felt. The use of interesting scenery and scenarios throughout the film really added a lot to it. Evelyn made her interesting music in places ranging from her old house, to an abandoned building, to a very busy building in a big city. No matter where she was, she freely expressed herself and was always caught up in the particular moment. I think that many people are afraid to openly express themselves in some of these larger-scale situations like she did. It seemed easy to relate to her on so many levels even though she is very different and I will obviously never know or meet her.
As mentioned earlier, this film has heavily influenced me in my walks, and work for this class throughout the duration of the semester. When we were presented with the first Drift, I wasn't exactly sure of how to find interesting sound. Evelyn does experimentation with so many different kinds of things to come up with thousands of different sounds. Another way that I can relate this film to my experience with this class is because we were basically forced to use low-budget software or freeware. For the most part, Evelyn is just using the resources around her to create her sounds.
Jason Edwards
804 - Julie Marray
Touch the Sound, starring Evelyn Glennie appeals to me because of its depiction of not only straight sound design and composition, but devotion and overcoming personal obstacles. I found it fascinating that Glennie is legally deaf, yet she has a sheer devotion to sound as a whole which bleeds into her craft.
Some of the key moments which, essentially, present the point of the film are the train station snare solo scene and every scene which involves her and the guitarist (his name escapes me). These two scenes in particular I feel are the best representations of Glennie's devotion because, unlike other performance scenes, she becomes fully entranced in the sound.
This film has inspired me because even with her disability she is as devoted, if not more so, to her craft than other musicians or sound designers. My desire to be a sound designer is only accelerated by films such as this. Touch the Sound has taught me how the love of the work truly yields the best results.
1. I chose Marie Menken's "Glimpse of the Garden.” I chose this particular piece because I found it the most grating and, therefore, the most memorable. While I found the footage to be very tranquil and nice, I am not a person who deals well with repetitious sound. The constant sound of the birds nearly inspired me to take up hunting.
2. One key characteristic of this piece is simplicity. There's no fancy editing, just a smooth transition from one shot to another. This is not a fast paced story. It just pertains to pretty plant life without harsh or confusing angles. It's simply a view of a garden from Marie's perspective… simple, peaceful, and lovely.
The other key aspect is the sound of the birds. I will presume that the point o the birds was to add a warm enveloping feel to the whole picture. For me, however, the sound is overbearing and takes away from the natural beauty of the plants themselves.
3. The film makes me feel good about the choices I make when deciding on a project because it's a good example of how delightful simplicity can be. It's also a good example of how sound can still work while being completely unrelated to the picture being shown.
Lab 2
Seth
1. I choose Bridges-Go-Round by Shirley Clarke because, it not only entices the viewer to see a familiar landscape in a new way, it also creates a new landscape by pushing our perspective to the limits of no longer recognizing something. I think this is the ultimate goal of our drifts. Also this one reminds me most of the work that we are doing now.
2. This film uses cuts, pans, zooms, and overlaps film on film, along with playing with the exposure of the film. The key connection to be made is that it is a never ending bridge or at least one that we cannot see the end of. She goes beyond simple panning over and over, but uses several cuts from multiple perspectives and overlays the film to make nothing seem repeated. The science fiction sound track that is made really makes it seem new, or takes our general perspective of what something that we are seeing might sound like, and totally blows it away.
3. This film has inspired me, because it was so successful at creating a new perspective and land scape and it was made 50 years ago.
With the technology that we have today, it is exciting to think of what the next project will bring.
I like both Rose Pedlow’s Sea Change and Gerard Holthuis’s HKG a lot but I decide to write about HKG since the editing style in Sea Change is somewhat related to the restriction to our drift editing. HKG is very interesting not only because of the discovery of how close the airplanes fly by the urban territory, but also the metaphor about size that the editing contributes.
I found the key characteristic of the film is another perspective of viewing planes that is often seems so tiny, unreachable, and transient on the air through naked eyes. The filmmaker gives viewers a total refreshing view of airplane that is gigantic and long lasting. He makes intervention between the planes and the urban structure. It is also a great idea to consider the structure of Hong Kong city that is land reclamation by the ocean, so where the airplane crossing by was originally ocean space, and nonetheless the city’s reclamation change the viewpoint of airplane completely.
Holthuis’s idea about editing two objects with largely different size together also strikes me as media practice. There is one scene involving a burial yard shot from a low angle. In the foreground it shows a group of figuratively towering tombstones, and the background is the overall view of the notable Hong Kong skyscrapers. This overlapping editing makes a direct connection between an unreachable object (skyscraper) and a touchable one (tomb). In my own drift practice I have gotten this idea inspired by above that connecting the unreachable trace (trace left by unreachable objects) and the reachable one.
The Film I have chosen is "Sea Change" by King, Joe and Rose Pedlow. The editing choices were very effective, with the matches on action with the camera moving to the left continuously throughout the scene. It told an interesting story of the quiet deserted looking trailer park and how it changed throughout the day. The weather changed, so did the time of day, but the camera angle and motion stayed consistent, which created a calming effect. As the film progressed, more and more people started appearing in the trailer park, and it became more full of life. As it became more lively, the weather also became more clear, less hazy, and the colors became more saturated and vibrant as well, giving a warmer feeling to the scene. This gave it a simple narrative, which was interesting with such a simple film.
Some of the key transitions were just simple cross-fades from scene to scene, continuing the same motion from the previous shot. The position of trailers was also matched between cuts to give the appearance of continued motion, as if one were driving by. This matching of action and visual shapes gave it this effect, even though the trailers were often not the same from shot to shot, and probably from completely different parts of the trailer park but it still gave the look. At one point there is a character walking in the same direction and at the same pace as the camera. his position and action also is contiguous from shot to shot even though his actual location in this space varies. He seems to traverse time very quickly and in a non human way because of this. This is because the scene will go from night to day and back and to foggy weather to clear weather in a matter of seconds.
This film has inspired me to work with this effect of action and shape matching through edits. I think it can really connect the two shots even though they may be from completely different locals. I will definitely explore this idea/technique in my final drift 3 videos. I may even try to experiment with this idea in audio as well, to cut different audio clips together and match them based on rhythm.
Jordan Steffen
Group 1
I chose Touch the Sound: A sound Journe with Evelyn Glennie. I chose this because I can personally connect to what she is trying to convey. When I listen to music or a sound, I dont listen for the noise and the on going guitar stroke, but I listen to it for the experience that it provides. The way it makes me feel, move, think and create. For me music and sound is more than just a noise but a starting point to create something.
The main connection that I found was the classic: "If life gave you lemons make lemonade". Evelyn was trying to show her audience that there is more to life than what meets the eye, and as we walk this land we should keep all our senses in touch, so we can feel, touch, taste and hear what is all around us, so we are abel to create and be creative. She oftens shows her audience this by gathering random materials (glasses, pens, plates, papers and so on) and creating something with it.
This film inspired me in many ways, it made me feel impowered and ready to create. It made me want to go back to my room and create something that I never imagined I would create. She gave me the sense that music is more than just noise, and that it is a experience that you need to be willing to open up to, making me want to just go sit on my bed and listen to my ipod for hours. Which leads to me wanting to create something else, because music is usually my first step when I'm starting to create something
The film I chose was Gerhard Hothuis’ film “HKG”. I chose this film due to the fondness I felt for it. I appreciated this film I many dimensions, including: the music, the filming techniques and effects, and the way he took a scene, which to the people who live there, may seem boring and mundane, and turned into an almost epic video.
There were several characteristics this film had that I enjoyed. The high-contrast Hothuis used when filming gave the viewer I sense of peacefulness. This peacefulness would then be shattered by the emergence of a rumbling plane. Also, the high contrasts made the sky appear to be nothing but a white slate. I found that to be an excellent way to show transitions in his film. I found a certain shot he used very effective, as well. It appears he is on the top of a bus of some sort and viewing the road moving. This furthered my feelings of being in a dreamy state of mind. The final thing I noticed about this film was the music. The music comes into the film later and adds a whole new dimension. The rich sounds of various stringed instruments suits the film beautifully.
I have learned a lot from this film. One thing that particularly stands out is the use of high-contrast. I realize that effects may be over done; however, when utilized correctly—such was the case in this film—effects can not only change what the picture looks like, but also, be utilized as a means to make transitions. Thus, I believe this film gave me a better understanding for the use of effects.
The film that I selected is Man.Road.River. I chose this film because at first glimpse it reminded me of an old horror zombie scene. I have always liked zombie movies. I chose it because the images I thought were superb. At first, the lone man, who is all black, looks very apocalyptic; especially, when he just begins to walk into the river without any hesitation. Also, the use of bird sounds and nature clashes with the bleak imagery and lack of colors, I thought was superb.
The first thing you notice about this film is the that there is no color. Also, the fact that there are no edits to different angles and scenes I thought was perfect. By keeping that scene continuous, the viewer focuses on the lone man walking into the river. Also, the brightness of the road with the darkness of the environment really makes you focus on the man and other people walking down the road.
Also, one walks away with the power of nature because you see stream hindering the life of the people who need to use that road; simultaneously, if you listen to the sounds and chirping of the birds, you feel that nature does not care and everything is the way it should be.
This film has inspired me because this artist's piece shows that one can be simplistic in creating a powerful clip with sounds that has a meaning. He does not use repeats or extreme editing to physically show you what you should see, but allows you to watch and walk away with your own thoughts and ideas. I feel that to be inspiring because
I think that sometimes people will get to caught up in special effects edits and this can distract from the media piece.
I chose to watch Glimpse of the Garden by Marie Menken because she films a lot of nature and the sound in her film is of only birds. I chose it because I have always been intrigued by the sound of birds chirping and many of my sound recordings have included birds. I also like that she used only shots of nature, with no fancy editing.
Some of the key images are of plants, flowers, grass, and the sun. There aren't any fancy transitions or editing techniques. It is just shot from shot but it adds more to the film in that it feels like you are looking at one plant to another. It is feels like real life.
Because I have recorded so many birds I am really inspired to have one of my final films be a recreation of Marie's Glimpse of the Garden. I want to make my own film on plants, flowers etc.
Jonathan Lindenberg's Reflective Response
The film I chose to respond to is Touch The Sound: A Sound Journey with Evelyn Glennie by Thomas Riedelsheimer. I thought this was a very good choice of film to watch prior to going on drift 1 with an emphasis on audio recording. Although there were some very beautiful scenery and images as Evelyn traveled the world the primary focus of the film was on the sounds that she was able to create.
All of the musical sequences of the film were really eye-(or rather ear-)opening as to how one could experience sound. It inspired me to try and find interesting audio events while on my drifts. It also led me to try and really focus on what I was hearing, at times closing my eyes and just standing still listening intently and closely observing my aural surroundings.
This film helped me as a media artist by showing me that it doesn't take much to create an interesting sound, it just takes a little experimentation. Evelyn was able to make unique and beautiful sounds with whatever instruments and objects were around her, even though she couldn't even hear. While going into drift 1 I was a little nervous about whether or not I would be able to discover interesting enough sounds, but this film helped me to just open myself up to the experience and to not be afraid to experiment with my surroundings and the objects in it to try and find unique audio events.
The film I selected was Sea Change. The day it was screened I was not very intrigued by many of the first films. The title interested me as it was a Beck cd and so I perked up a little bit. The movie was fairly simple. A sparse soundtrack and a weird scene made it a somehow highly addictive movie. It made me really think about how they were doing all of the fades and how it was so perfectly lined up.
I think the most important part of this movie were the transitions. If this film had no fades in it, it would be a ridiculous homebrew project on a bunch of mobile homes in England. The framing couldn't have been more perfect as well, with the whole mood of the sky being captured in each shot.
This impacted me heavily as a graphic artist because of the sheer amount of precision obtained in the transitions. I was mesmerized by watching the homes fade from one to the next and then in and out from the same one. It is something I have always strived to do, have transitions that smooth and effortless, and to see it done that perfectly is quite a high goal to reach.
I chose the film “Bridges Go Round” by Shirley Clarke. I chose this film because I could actually play it in my computer but also the title implied that it was about bridges/cities so I thought I could apply it to my work.
This film was a mish mash of panning shots across, up, and down bridges and other man made buildings. The film was colored very dark purple almost which gave it a heavier darker tone. The spinning shots of multiple bridges at once were mesmerizing. Also the fact that no humans were shown during the film as well as the interesting shots of the buildings gave them a life like characteristic.
This film can be applied to my work because it showed that you can take something as normal and everyday as bridges and change the viewpoint, making it a unsettling experience. This can be applied to the streets I walk down that, when I view them differently, they can be a totally different experience.
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