Webspinna Links

Here are the links I used:

http://www.incredibox.com/en/#/application
http://archive.org/details/rain039
http://archive.org/details/ASimulationOfAnOldEmptyVinylRecordforCd

http://soundcloud.com/acfm24/brecht-huac-hearing-1947-10-30
http://www.inbflat.net/

Medium Specificity - Frames of Light

Frames of Light

             Artist’s Statement:             

The key to film is the movement and flow of images. Without fast movement or sometimes the addition of sound, film is simply still photography. Often times we forget that film is just that, images. In most cases we see 24 or 30 still images per second. But due to the phenomenon known as persistence of vision, our eyes and brain interpret the fast succession of images as fluid movement.            

I deconstructed a film and reduced it to just an array of the still images that once made the complete moving image. I then arranged all these stills into one complete and still photograph to represent the whole film. Viewing the same images this way gives the viewer a new experience. These stills are what make up the movie clip, but are presented in a way that allows the viewer to progress through the images at their own pace and not a pre-determined or industry standard rate or speed. This breaks the illusion of continuity.Viewing images like this also tears down movement to its core. Although this clip is only just over 2.5 seconds, the flame moves a great deal and produced 84 images. It helps make actions look more significant and illustrates just how much action and how many details and images make up a few seconds of any film.               

Creating a still piece from the frames of a moving image was my main goal, but I made other aesthetic choices based on this medium. When deciding on what event to film, I decided to capture a match being lit and going out. I focused on this because another basic element of film is lighting. Film is in essence, capturing light. So, in my film I also depict different levels of light.            

I arranged the photos in the way I did so they could still tell the story. A film’s story is produced by putting all the still images together in a certain progression and order. Most films today follow a linear narrative structure. I wanted to emphasize this throughout the pictures to show they were still telling the same story. The progression of the intensity of the light represents the progression of a story. It starts of with an inciting moment (the match being lit), builds to a bright climax, and then whittles down to a resolution. You can visually see the plot arc represented by the light intensity when looking at this photo.            

A lot of work goes into films, and I think this photograph I have made helps to illustrate that. It deconstructs film structure and gives a new perspective on what we are really seeing when we watch a film. 

Social Media Adaptation

Frankenstein Adaptation:

YouTube channel:  archangel.capt

Link: click here to see the adaptation


By: Camlyn Giddins, Jason Richey, Justin Zarian, and myself
 

ARTIST STATEMENT

Our literary work was Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. Within that work, we found the Creature’s experience most intriguing. His journey basically compiles the learning experience of a baby, child, adolescent and finally he develops into an adult, and a tormented one at that.

To recreate the Creature’s experience, we decided to create and gather images and audio. The story behind it all is Frankenstein creating this being from human remains as well as machinery. The images coming from one of the Creature’s eyes, which is a camera. The audio coming from Dr. Frankenstein’s recorder.  

The social media aspect went through many phases.  We first wanted to use Soundcloud and Instagram, but later realized that Youtube would be a good way to combine both audio and pictures in one.  Youtube also allowed us to incorporate the captain character from the book and create a context in which he found and shared these tapes. In the books, Captain Robert Walton was a narrator, telling these stories to his sister in letters. We found it appropriate that he help tell this story over a social media site and created a profile based on his character.

Artistically, we wanted to show the progression of the Creature’s character. The photos and audio also reflect this progression, as far as quality of the images and sound go. His speech and contemplation also improve.

One of the hardest things to do in this class is to curb creativity and focus it in order to not spend a ton of time doing things that are too big for a week long project. This was probably the worst one for that.  A few of us constantly found ourselves wanting to tell the WHOLE story of Frankenstein, but this daunting task led to frustration.  We had to set limits. Even within those limits though, there was plenty of room for spontaneity. We decided to end the entries with something open ended. We didn’t want to recreate the whole story. We thought it would allow for more thoughts and comments to end with themes like Frankenstein’s abandon, or what is a monster?, what is beauty?, why do we react the way we do to ugliness?, what’s in a name?    

We ended up separating the responsibilities, having the guys in charge of audio and the girls in charge of pictures.  While this seemed a good idea at first since we couldn’t find a time to work all together, it caused a bit of a problem as the we didn’t really communicate what each was doing.  Thus when we met up, the guys had recorded something different than what the girls had taken pictures of.  In the end it worked out, but I think if we had had the opportunity to work side by side more it would’ve been easier.  

Clash of the Cultures - Textual Poaching Asignment

This song represents my struggle and attempt to create a cultural identity. I’m a TCK - a third culture kid.  American sociologist David C. Pollock defines a TCK as: “a person who has spent a significant part of his or her developmental years outside the parents' culture. The TCK frequently builds relationships to all of the cultures, while not having full ownership in any.” (Wikipedia) That about sums up my situation. I lack a solid single culture of my own. I spent half of my elementary years and over half of my high school years growing up in Japan. My immersion in Japan’s culture, language, and lifestyle shaped who I am and my cultural identity. However, as much as I want to be a part of the Japanese culture, I can never fully assimilate.

If I were to tell someone I’m Japanese, they would think I’m a crazy. My blue eyes and white-as-day skin say otherwise. In Japan I was always labeled as a “Gaijin” or “Foreigner”. Japan’s  homogenous nature isn’t as accepting of many foreigners like myself into its cultural body. I recognize I am still far from being Japanese. I wasn’t born there, I don’t have Japanese blood, so why should I try to call myself Japanese? I want to be able to take on and better appreciate, even become a part of their culture. I am used to bowing and taking off my shoes when I enter homes, using chopsticks, and much more that cannot be found within the bounds of the typical American culture. As the song goes, I was born in the USA. It is so natural to call myself an American. But, I feel that label doesn’t wholly represent who I am. I am rooted in the American culture, but have branched out.

This song, which was originally the Japanese national anthem, has been tweaked to represent my cultural identity. I in no way mean any disrespect to the anthem.

The song starts out nice and calm, but is interrupted by Springsteen’s rambunctious tune “Born In the U.S.A.” cutting in and out disrupting the peaceful beauty. It wants to be a part of the song, but it just doesn’t flow. Both songs are from different times, have different tempos, and one is more poppy while the other is traditional. I didn’t want the songs to compliment each other, rather stand in stark contrast. At first the songs sound out on their own, competing for dominance. Then they blend together, despite the fact they can’t mix to create a well-structured song. These last few seconds represent who I am, the mixture of two very different songs (or cultures) creates a unique conglomeration that can be difficult to define or understand.

The repetitious phrase “Born in the USA” reminds me of my origins and the concept that your culture largely comes from your birth country. There are several more sound bites of the song “Born in the U.S.A.” that I included because of their pertinence to my journey of cultural discovery. I can identify with both cultures, but in the end, my American identity is strongest and wins out calling me “home”. I would love to be able to identify more with the Japanese culture, but some things I cant completely connect to or don’t feel a part of.

This was an interesting revision process. For the most part, the feedback I got was exactly what I wanted people to feel. They recognized that this song represented a struggle with two ideas and how they were so different from the other and contrasted well. I also got back some flat feedback that was along the lines of “ I like it, good job!” which was encouraging, but not as helpful.  A few also thought some parts were confusing or a little much, so I was able to better focus my creation. For example, I originally blasted the word “U.S.A.”, but that got negative reviews. In the end, I feel like this is a good representation of my struggle to identify with one specific culture. 

Historical Story

By Anna Berbert and Myself

Artist Statement:

            The main character, Eva, is a character of our own creation. She symbolizes the women who were left at home during World War II and the various struggles they faced. Her story represents a culmination of these stories of women of the 1940s. For example, many women lost loved ones in battle. Others had to pick up jobs left vacant by the soldiers. Many films portray the hard-hitting events of the battlefront during the war, and while this is respectable and important, we can’t overlook those who fought their own battles at home.

            The 1940s were a time of optimism despite rampant struggles. In this screenplay, the shimmer of hope and optimism is given by Dave’s character. He adds the wit and comic relief needed to balance this piece. On a broader human theme, war is not just about the human casualties, but the emotional casualties. In class we discussed how history is formed by those who tell it. The most prominent stories about World War II focus on the overseas combat instead of the war of the heart and mind. In this story, the characters are sharing some of the lesser-told accounts of the same conflict.

 We did some research on the vernacular and etiquette of the 1940s and it aided us in the development of our characters and screenplay. Dave shows respect to Eva because she is a woman, but at the same time playfully blurs the line as he flirts with her. Eva is respectful and proper, as women were expected to be. We also tried to incorporate props and costumes that were appropriate to our time frame.

            We wanted to address themes such as: dealing with loss, the comfort of friends and forgiveness, and how many hide their emotions behind masks of complacency. Instead of explicitly dictating our thoughts on these topics, we demonstrated our convictions through the actions and interactions between our characters. Though the story is historical, the issues dealt with are relevant and relatable to any time period.