Rating the Six Projects

1,) Crowd Sourcing- 5
Learning about how crowdsourcing can be use in the realm of film making was a new concept to me. This project ended up being more involved than I at first realized however it was fun involving friends who are artistically inclined to create film frames. Having been a small part in a larger film that is entering film festivals was an exciting experience.
2.) Film Manipulation- 6
This was a very freeing and fun assignment to work on. To start off with a blank film strip and to have the creative power to manipulate it using a variety of materials was a fun experience.
3.) Multi-Plane Animation- 6
This was one of the most rewarding projects that we have done this semester. It was also one of the most involved but I feel like I learned about an amazing film making technique that I would be interested in exploring further. The experience with our group was a long shoot but the process was very educational and the creative process was thrilling. I am the most proud of the end product of this project.
4.) Bolex Long Take/Extrasensory Element- 5
The bolex had the most fun viewing experience.
5.) Rhythmic Editing- 3
This taught me a valuable editing technique to use in future film projects.
6.) Free Style- 3
This project had the least amount of direction but I was the most happy with the end result and I am considering expanding this project into something larger.

Experience with Bolex shoot

Shooting with 16 mm bolex camera was a very enlightening experience. I love the process of shooting and processing actual film as apposed to digital. I took a b&w darkroom photography course at a community college and I loved the hands on manipulation of the artistic outcome. This project was the film version of that. It was challenging to film under the limitations of having only 1 minute of film and having the film be 1 continuous long take. Our project idea involved filming in a swimming pool and using props in the pool. Our planning process took a long time but was very creatively fluid and fun.  

Media Fast

Having done the 72 hour media fast, I can say that it was sadly harder than I expected it would be. Media has engulfed our lives in ways that not many people would like to admit. It has almost become a sort of addiction to be constantly connected to people and post about benign things in our lives. I also believe however that media is a necessary tool for communication and outreach. Social media has made an important impact on the world in a political and social way whether it was the Arab Spring or the 2008 Presidential Election in the U.S.

I found myself instinctively reaching for my phone to check texts, Facebook, or email. It does seem like an addiction to always be connected and know what is happening at all times. However it seems more efficient to have this level of media to stay connected so that jobs can get done and communication is at an optimum level.

That being said, on an instinctual level, it is and would be refreshing to go back to more natural time of personal one on one communication instead of this artificial communication that is causing us to slowly become more and more antisocial.

Experiences with the Cameraless Filmmaking

The direct film manipulation project was a really fun and interesting project to work on. It has definitely been one of favorite projects we have worked on so far. By directly manipulating and designing the actual film, we are breaking down a wall between the act of film making and the audience. Having studied Stan Brakhage in my FST 205 class and enjoying his work, it was exciting to try use some similar techniques that he has used in his work. This is something that I am interested in pursuing as a hobby in the future. It was cool to experiment with different mediums like bleach and alcohol inks to see how the outcome would look. I experimented with putting salt in with the inks to give it an interesting texture.

Sound

The short film Listen by David New was a very interesting almost surreal reminder of what sound really is. We often take the sounds we hear on a daily basis for granted and we are bombarded with so many that we often don't even hear some of them. There truly is art everywhere around us. The concept that recorded sound is an artificial, almost filtered sound that we hear was an interesting concept to think about. It is like a memory of a sound that happened a long time ago.

Crowdsourcing

In this modern age that we live in, technology is inevitably infiltrating our daily lives whether we want it to or not. We as a society are becoming more and more connected through the internet. The idea of crowdsourcing to collaborate on projects and ideas in different ways feels like an exciting move forward to operate. Whether through financing projects, coming up with business ideas, or completing a task, the work can be outsourcing to people around the world to get the best ideas that are out there and to unite the world to work together. There is something highly romantic about the idea of the world coming together and completing tasks instead of being isolated and misunderstood. The Cloud Filmmaking Manifesto by Tiffant Shlain is an innovative manipulation of technology to make the art of collaboration.

Cymatics and Synesthesia

The power of the human brain to process numbers and letters and see them as different colors is an amazing phenomenon. To turn often mundane numbers and letters into something beautiful adds another dimension to a persons outlook on life. What is art is one of the biggest questions there is in the world. Art has been been around in some way, shape or form since the beginning of humans being in existence. The intersecting rather than the collaboration of the different senses is a concept that artist have been experimenting with, specially in the 21st century with the increase in the access and quality of technology. Cymatics is the ultimate example of this marriage of technology and the mixing of senses. The visual manifestation of sound is something that people often image when they hear  music or sounds, but seeing what that sound could look like is opening a new door into the barriers of the senses, In film, senses are extremely important in sight and sounds. In experimental film the sky is the limit to what is acceptable.