Blog Assignment #8

http://changethis.com/manifesto/show/66.01.Brainwashed

One of the seven ways to reinvent you is to connect. Social media is becoming more and more a part of this world whether you like it or not. Before we were isolated from the world and different cultures but now we are connected with the entire world and it is through connection that one can find their following and gain influence and power. Another way to reinvent yourself is be generous. Godin promotes that generosity rewards people in the end and that the sharing of ideas and thoughts will pay dividends in the long run. It is the epitome of karma. One other way to reinvent yourself is to make art. Art is an original gift that can be interpreted in many ways. Godin believes that if you have the platform to create something new—something that changes everything that is considered art.

The blog assignments we are required to do weekly are thought provoking and help one elaborate their thoughts and feelings about a particular piece of art. The help you understand how to analyze certain aspects of art, particularly film, and critique them as well. However, I believe that some of these assignments are not really the best instrument for making a better artist, student, or even person. At times, these blog assignments get sort of boring and less influential to my artistic psyche than maybe originally intended. I believe that these assignments would have much more influence on a student such as myself if they were more hands on and “mini-project” like. This meaning if one wanted to “reinvent” his or herself through the use of these assignments, they would want to do something that was more interactive rather than just sitting in front of a computer screen writing essay after essay, worrying about how many letters they have to meet the requirement. I would suggest more video projects that are small and easy to do or maybe assignments that have to do more with drawing. I don’t necessarily believe that these ways to reinvent yourself are being fully utilized by these blog assignments. For instance, the first two “ways” are connect and be generous. If we wanted to do that through these assignments we wouldn’t be doing them individually. We would be connecting with other people in the class and collaborating with them like our main projects. And I don’t see how being generous fits in with these assignments either. I suggest the assignments be more hands on and interactive rather than individual and isolated.

Blog Assignment #7

STEP ONE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXbBlGBoUms

STEP TWO

The theme of Donnio Darko, in my opinion, is love and sacrifice. In order for Donnie to save his love from dying, Donnie must sacrifice himself by dying instead. It is exemplified in this scene by having Donnie and his lover in a movie theatre with no one else in it. He is then greeted by Frank, whom we find out later in the movie is the man Donnie kills and introduces Donnie to portals. In order to save both his lovers and Frank’s lives, Donnie must sacrifice himself and die instead. The theme is more didactic because it shows that morally right choices ultimately yield the best outcomes.

STEP THREE

The lines in the scene are much more linear as opposed to curvilinear. The lines of seats in the empty theatre as well as the entrance and lines coming up the walls help with that. Within the frames there is more affinity with the linear lines rather than any contrast. There are also very strong virtual lines with Donnie’s sinister look towards Frank. The shape of Donnie’s head is much more circular compared to Frank’s mask which, with the ears, is squarer. There is little movement in the scene only small camera movement. At first the direction is vertical coming from the top of the movie theatre back down to where we see Donnie and his lover together entering the theatre. Then, when they are in the theatre, there is slow horizontal movement of the camera as it gets closer to Donnie. The point of interest is consistent because it is a conversation back and forth between Donnie and Frank. The point of interest follows the rule of thirds with Donnie’s eye in the upper left third of the shot as well as Frank. Spaced is used within the first couple of frames showing the large theatre room completely empty with only Donnie and his girlfriend in it. This could symbolize that Donnie is doing this entirely on his own in order to save the lives of his girlfriend and Frank. The rhythm of the scene is pretty consistent because nothing really changes due to the ongoing conversation between Donnie and Frank.

Blog Assignment #6

STEP ONE

Image 1- The Jungle Book

Image 2- Aristocats

STEP TWO

                The two images I chose are my top two favorite animated movies of ALL TIME, The Jungle Book and Aristocats. These two images popped out to me the most because I can find major similarities in them as well as many differences. In regards to color, these two images are both similar and contrasting at the same time. The main similarity in color that these two images have is the hue and that they both use color schemes, some would argue very similar color schemes. The first image uses an analogous color scheme with green, yellow, orange, and blue—which are all next to each other color wheel. In this image, the color scheme is directly influenced by the background being that they are placed in a jungle; so green dominates the image with all the lush trees and foliage. The orange of the boy character “Mowgli” compliments the green as well as the grey-blue panther “Bagheera”. The second image also uses an analogous color scheme with the essentially the same colors green, yellow, orange, and blue. Where these color schemes differ is the background being that the second image is dominated much more by the color blue. Brightness and saturation differ greatly in these images. The brightness of the first image is profound being that it is set in the dame time. The direction of the light is above the scene shining down on the characters with the hue of the light being yellow. This is shown because the scenery and background that is shown in the light is more yellow in hue where as that which isn’t in the light does not have any yellow. The brightness of the second image is much lower because it is at night; however, the moon is shining directly in front of them—directing the light right towards them providing shape and depth to the whole scene. The source of light shining directly in front of them also provides intense shadows because the shot is behind all the characters in the scene. Saturation differs greatly as well with the first image using much more saturation with light colors where as the second images uses much more value with all the darker toned colors because it is at night. The lighting also sets the mood for the scene in both images. The first image uses much lighting giving an adventurous and energetic mood; even the characters have excited and happy looks on their faces. The second image’s lighting sets a mellow and relaxed mood. Everyone associates night with the winding down of the day and preparing to go to sleep and in this image it is no different. It has a calm and soothing effect to it.

Blog Assignment #5

STEP ONE

STEP TWO

STEP THREE

                “The Fallen” is a magnificent piece that portrays dramatic emotion and aesthetically appealing shots. The director did a great job when framing all of his shots. First off, the angle of all the shots is consistent throughout all five shots in that they are neutral (level with all of the characters faces). In the first shot, the director chose an extreme close up shot (XCU)—focusing on the eyes of the character (Soldier 1). The rule of thirds is definitely in play being that the left eye is directly top-left third of the screen perfectly following the golden rule. The second shot is a two shot, over the shoulder, close up of Soldier 1. This meaning that there are two characters in the shot, one being Soldier 1 and another character (Soldier 2), whose should we are looking over to a close up of Soldier 1. This shot initiates the 180 degree rule because there are now two characters in the scene, and the line is from Soldier 1 to Soldier 2 with the camera in front facing them as opposed to behind them. This shot also initiates the 30 degree rule being that there are now two characters in the scene. The third shot is an XCU of a third character (Soldier 3). Although this is a new character being introduced into the shot, it still follows the same line being that it is on the left side of Soldier 3’s face and in front of him. This gives the viewer the idea that all of these soldiers are looking and facing the same way as they are preparing for a battle. The rule of thirds plays another major factor in this shot because Soldier 3’s face is directly in the left third of the shot. Another way this shot highlights the rule of thirds is that in the bottom left corner of the shot there is a blurred character or object in the way of the camera and Soldier 3 forcing the viewer to focus on the characters eyes and mouth. The fourth shot is another two shot, over the shoulder, close up of Soldier 1. This shot is more of a close up of Soldier 1, however, the first second of the shot focuses on Soldier 2 who is perfectly in the rule of thirds (eyes are in top-left third) and the focuses back to Soldier 1 whose right eye is following the rule of thirds also (top-right third). The fifth and final shot changes the 30 degree rule appropriately as it shows a CU of Soldier 2’s face. This shot follows the 180 degree line and the rule of thirds is perfect with his fearful eyes in the top-right third of the screen influencing the viewer to look at his eyes.

Blog Assignment #4

STEP ONE

Original song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2015S3A-lg&feature=related

Cover: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2iSWnI9DtOI

STEP TWO

Original Framework:

Listening Phase 1 (Rhythm)

·         Tempo- Medium

·         Source- Drums, piano, and saxophone

·         Groove- Upbeat, rock, jazz

Listening Phase 2 (Arrangement)

·         Instrumentation- Piano, bass, guitar, drums, saxophone

·         Structure- Intro, Verse, Break, Verse, Break, Verse…

·         Emotional Architecture- Ranges from happy-happier the entire song; upbeat, nothing sad about song

Listening Phase 3 (Sounds Quality)

·         Height- high frequency

·         Width- even between left and right speakers of stereo

·         Depth- vast depth with all the different instruments being played

Cover Framework:

Listening Phase 1 (Rhythm)

·         Tempo- Medium-fast

·         Source- more saxophone, drums, piano

·         Groove- Upbeat, rock, jazz, live

Listening Phase 2 (Arrangement)

·         Instrumentation- Piano, bass, guitar, drums, saxophone

·         Structure- Guitar Solo Intro, Verse, Break, Verse, Break, Verse…

·         Emotional Architecture- Ranges from happy-happier the entire song; upbeat, nothing sad about song

Listening Phase 3 (Sounds Quality)

·         Height- high frequency

·         Width- even between left and right speakers of stereo

·         Depth- vast depth with all the different instruments being played; the cover is also live so the depth of the live music feel with the crown in the background plays a major part

STEP THREE

One of my favorite bands is Led Zeppelin and when any band covers them it brings me joy to see them paying homage to one of the greatest rock bands of all time. OAR’s cover of Led Zeppelin’s “Fool in the Rain” is no exception. There are many similarities to the original song and the cover obviously because they are the same song. However, there are a few differences as well. All the listening phases are very similar with just minor differences. For instance, the source that is driving the song in the original is the combination of the piano, saxophone, and drums; where as in the cover version the saxophone is the one source the sticks out more than any other instrument. The tempo of the live version is a bit faster, although not much, possibly because it is a live song and songs tend to go faster or slower than originally recorded due to slight human error when live. Other similarities include instrumentation, structure, and emotional architecture. The instrumentation is exactly the same as the original song in the cover. The structure is essentially the same; however, there is a small guitar solo in the intro as well as the middle in the cover where the original doesn’t either. The emotional architecture is also the same, but one can argue that the cover is higher because it is a live song and live songs tend to be much more enjoyable, at least in my opinion. The third listening phase is also very similar. The height is very similar with both having the higher pitched saxophone. However, naturally the voices are different where Led Zeppelin’s Robert Plant’s voice is a little higher pitched than OAR’s Mars Roberge’s. The depth is similar in the sense of instrumentation where both songs use the same amount of instruments creating many layers. Yet, the live cover seems that it has more depth with the minor echo, with it being live, and the crowd in the background. Truthfully, I prefer the cover OAR does compared to the originally song simply because the original version I chose was the studio version and OAR’s song was live. I prefer live songs, especially when it comes to rock, because it is more pure and authentic then rendered studio versions. Live performances convey true artistic expression without any editing like we see so much these days. The live version makes me happier emotionally.

The Fallen

Video of "The Fallen"

The listening modes in this short film causally are the sounds of bombs going off and the screaming and yelling of soldiers. Analogous sounds in the video are also the yelling of soldiers and the sound of planes going by symbolizing a war scene. The diegetic sounds of the video are the sounds of the battle and the non-diegetic sound is the voice over of the soldier where the audience can only hear that. Another example of non-diegetic sound is the piano playing throughout the entire film. An example of an on-screen sound that the audience can see is the sound of the reloading gun. Examples of off-screen sounds are the planes going over head, the voice over, and the piano. The piano brings a lot of pitch to the film with its different notes. The loud explosion of bombs brings intensity as well as timbre to the video. Flat sounds include the background of rain when the Sergeant notifies the widow of her diseased companion, giving a dismal and sad feel for the scene. Deep space sound is used when the camera pans out showing part of the battle scene with all of the sounds of warfare are surrounding the scene.