Long Take

Saturday was fun.  I really enjoyed shooting the sequence.  The process of developing the film was really interesting also.  Our group really did not have an idea or what we were going to do, but we soon came up with something that worked.  I really did not have much to do with the idea.  There was not any input on my part of the story.  The only thing that I really did was act in the film… if you wanna call it acting... Anyway, I really enjoy my art.  It was nice not having to come up with something.  Sometimes it’s nice by letting someone else come up with the ideas. 

The idea was funny for a one-minute long take.  But, the story does not make any sense I must say.  Overall, the film is enjoyable.  Especially being that our group didn’t know what we were going to do until the minute we started blocking.  It was a very physically demanding shoot.  For my character I had to do a lot of running.  There is even a point were I stop running because my character is out of breath.  By the time the final take was shot I was really out of breath so I’m sure it looks realistic enough on film.

The other group that we helped out had a good idea too.  Their long take was chaos.  It was not chaos in the sense that they did not know what they were doing.  It was chaos in the sense that so much random stuff was happening.  I really liked that they used so much stuff in their take.  Their long take seemed thought out… at least more than our group had.  It was also fun that our group was apart of their project.  The monster that was in our project was originally part of their shot, but they did not use it so we worked it into our project.

Overall it was a lot of fun.  I have only seen a quick negative of the other group’s projects, but what I saw was good.  I think we all did well on transferring the projects… especially considering that we did not have a teacher there.  The only thing that I really didn’t like was showing up to school on a Saturday.  I had other things going on day; so I would have liked it better if we would have did the project on a weekday.

48 hr video race

I really feel that I need more explanation on our assignment.  I have read the paper that was given out, but I don’t fully understand it yet.  From what I do understand; this assignment is going to be rushed.  I have competed in a forty-eight hour race before, but our group filmed it.  That took way too much time to try to make the film good within two days.  Now, this assignment is supposed to be without a camera?  I’m not looking forward to it.  For me, I’m a perfectionist when it comes to film projects.  So, this assignment is not made for me.  I felt that we should have had more time on the “cameraless” project.  The fact that I only have two days to make a project without a camera is not going to be fun for me.  I felt like I was drained with the cameraless project…  And, I didn’t think it was going to turn out good.  That was when I had a couple of weeks of work put into it.  But, I liked how it turned out, so maybe this project won’t be that bad.  Either way I’m not excited about it.

As far as ideas go… I won’t have an idea till I have the prop.  It would be like writing a paper in the dark.  So for now I can’t say what I will do.  I already feel stressed about the project.  Until then I will think more about how I’m going to make a film.  Maybe upload images on a computer and edit them together…?  I’m sure when the pressure is on I will think of something good.  I really don't want to go through scratching on film again… I liked doing that when it was new to me, but I feel that’s all I did on the cameraless project.  Plus I don’t want to rush through the film manipulation (being that I only have two days).  That idea of filmmaking is fun, but I don’t want to burn myself out on it.

I also have other projects that I’m working on (in this class and others).  I really don’t like thinking about more than two or three at a time.  I will wait a couple of weeks before I truly have something that I want to use. I really don’t have anything definite, but I will come up with something good… I know it.

 

Thoughts on cameraless filmmaking...

            At first I didn’t think that our project was going to turn out well.  But, after seeing the finish product I was really happy with the final result.  We ran into problems with the printer that was going to print directly onto the film.  So, at that moment we didn’t think we were going to pull off the animation part.  We were going to animate fire, so we ended up printing off our animation and putting the film overtop of it and tracing the animation with a sharpie.  I actually liked how it turned out more than I liked our original idea.  The animation looked hand drawn… because it was hand drawn.  It made the film look more hands on.  So in the end something better came out of the final result.

            I was confused on what we were supposed to accomplish the whole time that we were making the film.  This confusion was also another reason I felt that the project was not going to turn out well.  I really did not understand how to show elements like wind or earth.  For earth we took the rayograms and colored brown, blue and green to represent the look of a globe.  For wind we used bleach on the film that already had images on it.  This experiment turned the film blue, but we were still able to see the image on the film.  We were able to do the magazine transfers for water.  We simply took images from a surf magazine and transferred them onto film.  We were struggling to make everything work, and in the end it all worked out fine.  I thought we was not representing the elements good enough, but my partner told me not to stress so much about it because this was an experimental project.

            We waited till the last minute to splice the film together.  There was three other groups waiting to splice their project too.  We were organized though so we got in there and spliced it quickly and got out.  We did mess up on the fire though… it’s actually upside down, but (again) I like this better.  In the end our “mess up” become (what I thought) the more interesting aspects of the project.  I do not think I could reproduce that again.  I mean I could do the project again, but the next time it would be more polished.  I think the fact that we did not know what we were doing helped make the project better.

Projections of Sound on Image/Acoustic Ecology

Projections of Sound on Image:

The first reading “Projections of Sound on Image” is an interesting read.  I have heard a lot of people discuss how the silent film era gave better performances than in the sound era.  Some may agree with that statement.  This article seems to argue how sound is a very useful tool in making the audience “feel” what is going on in a film.  The author discusses how the ear processes quicker than the eye.  They continue to discuss how spoken words make the ear work faster.  This idea seems to be over looked by people who argue the statement made by the silent film era.  Those people maybe right, but it seems that they are quick on what they say.  I feel they do not give sound the credit it deserves.

   The author does a great job at explaining how an audience gets an impact on sound.  By using the example of Bergman’s Persona in which a hand is impaled by a nail.  The author talks about if one was to take the sound away the audience may still be shocked. By adding the sound the audience is able to hear the sound of the nail being driven in the hand one, thus making the experience more gruesome and realistic.

Overall I found the article very interesting.  The author discusses more about sound/music with the definitions of “empathetic” and “anempathetic music.”  It was very informative and I hope to read more articles like this in the future.

Acoustic Ecology:

“Acoustic Ecology” was not as effective as the “Projections of Sound on Image” reading.  I felt that this article was not really teaching me anything.  The author basically talks about different ambient sounds.  I know about ambient sounds, so I really do not need to read about what they are.  The article spends almost an entire page about different sounds in different locations.  For example, “the sounds of the meadow and its surrounding hills are subtle.”  Well… of course they are!  Anyone who has been out on a meadow or field can tell you that there is not a lot of sound.  It’s not just this.  The author discusses other sounds in other places.  Why waste my time?  I know what certain things sound like, therefore no need to describe them to me.

In the end, I really didn’t find this article very useful.  If I didn’t know what ambient sounds are… then maybe I would have needed to read this article.  But, I really don’t think anyone needs to have the sounds of a meadow or anything else described to them.  If so, then that person needs to get out more…

Theory of Animation

`            Upon reading “Notes Toward a Theory of Animation” I did agree with what was being conveyed.  The short paragraph at the beginning discusses on how animation can be cheaply made.  This idea reigns true in today standards probably more than ever.  What I mean is that the animation that is being made today is very cheap and lazy compared to animation of the thirties and forties.   Most of modern animation is 3D computer animation, and virtually no traditional hand drawn animation is being produced.  One may be so bold to say that hand drawn animation is… dead. 

            Later on in the excerpt, the author discusses the fact any camera movements in animation are limited to pans and tilts.  This statement is true, maybe because the animators are lazy, or maybe cutting to different shots is too expensive.   The passage never really discusses why this idea is true.  It does say that more experimental animation films contain different shots.  The author seems (to me) as if they are putting down any animation that isn’t experimental… According to the author most animation remains consistent in how they are made.

            Speaking of “remaining consistent,” how many times do I have to have Duck Amuck crammed down my throat?  I like this cartoon, but it seems that when theatrical animated shorts are brought up (at least in film classes) this is the one that is discussed.  Okay… I know it is a good cartoon and a good example of an experimental cartoon, but there are more out there that can be discussed.  How about Fantasia, or more specific “Meeting the Soundtrack.” This portion of the film shows the soundtrack like the one that would be located on the filmstrip of the film.  It may not have much camera movement but it does use experimental elements.  The author doesn’t have to use this as an example, but they could use something different.

            All in all the reading is very informative for someone who doesn’t know anything about animation.  But, I guess that’s the point.  I would have liked to read something different on the subject of abstract animation.  I did agree with a lot that was being said, but I would have liked something that I haven’t heard a million times before.  I would also like to make it clear that I do not hate Duck Amuck.  It probably seems that I dislike the short film.  I do like the cartoon, but I also think that it is very overrated.

            My experience on the project thus far has been… well, kind of confusing.  Basically, I am still trying to figure everything out.  I have worked on the fire aspect of the four elements.  I am starting out painting the cells with yellow, orange and red ink.  Then I started to scratch some of the ink off and continued to add more of the same colors to the clear strip of film. I also used a mix of oil and ink.  This method broke the ink up more instead of being a solid mix.  I’m not finished yet, for I want to add more to this part of the element.

            The other elemental aspects have not been thought of much yet.  Mainly, I’m waiting to see what I can do in the dark room.   I really do not know what direction I’m going with this project.  Maybe that’s good… maybe bad.  I do not really know, but I feel like going with my gut on this project.  I think that will make the project more interesting.  I want to try printing on the film like we saw/talked about in class.  I am also interested in seeing what I can do in the dark room.  I want to know how that works and I’m interested in seeing what I can creatively do with that aspect.

            I really do not know how my partner did in the dark room. They really liked it though.  My partner said that it was really enjoyable.  So, needless to say, I’m excited about going into the dark room tomorrow.  My partner did not really say what they did on Monday, but this person really enjoyed it.  This seems like good news because I have enjoyed everything that we have done in class thus far.  As I have stated before, I’m not into Avant-garde filmmaking, but I do enjoy what we are doing.

            Working without a camera as a whole is quite interesting.  I have not made a film without a camera before.  This experiment is very enjoyable, for it reminds me of being in an (visual) art class.  We are making art instead of pointing a camera and shooting a subject.  I think by starting out with a “cameraless” project will help us become more creative on future projects.  We will be able to use a camera, and also use different techniques to make a more interesting film.

Synesthesia and Cymatics

      Synesthesia seems to be both good and bad… at least to me.  The reason that it’s is good is that certain types may make one more creative or even smarter.  By having the “number form synesthesia” one may be have numbers come to them easier than that of a person without this condition.  Wikipedia shows a picture of a colored number scale.  This scale seems like it would help relate colors with numbers for someone who is doing math problems.  To me this condition seems similar to someone who has an Eidetic/Photographic Memory.  By seeing a certain number one may be able to remember certain equations.

            This condition may help someone become more creative.  Hearing sounds can create different colors in a person’s head.  This idea will marry sounds and visuals together and make the experience of the artwork complete.  The unity of the art will make the art whole, and will make the art more interesting.

            On the other hand, it may work against someone.   For instance, people with the Personification type of Synesthesia may have a hard time coping with life.  The Personification type seems to be almost like Schizophrenia.  I do not claim to be a psychologist, but from what I know this seems to relate to each other.  The website gives the example that “U is a soulless sort of thing. 4 is honest, but… 3 I cannot trust… 9 is dark, a gentleman, tall and graceful.”  Does this mean that a person with this condition may not trust someone with a “3” on their shirt?  So, this seems like it would lead to an extreme paranoia such as Schizophrenia.  Then again, I maybe wrong, for I’m not a genius in Synesthesia or Psychology.

            Cymatics is not a new breakthrough study, but it is an interesting one.  The idea of different vibrations making different shapes creates a more organic aspect of an experimental film.  I personally love this idea because I feel that it connects visuals and sounds to make one fluid experience. I enjoy the use of different sounds to make music, and in turn creating a visual experience to go along with what an audience is hearing.

            The article on Wikipedia did not go into too much detail about Cymatics.  I guess this is more self-explanatory than Synesthesia.  Both studies are very interesting, and both are something to take into consideration when making an experimental film.  Synesthesia was a little confusing, or maybe I just don’t understand because I do not have this condition.  Either way I found the subject very informative.  I have heard of Cymatics before, but I did not know that this was the proper term for it.  I would like to attempt to use both ideas for one/few of my films in the future.