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.