Thursday May 3, 2007 (3)

I was not in class this week, as I had severe alarm clock malfunctions. However, I will reflect on what I intend to do for my essay rather than the material from class.

Experimental media is...
the use of any medium to reach an audience in a way that would not be possible using a conventional method of filmmaking.

I thought of this for my thesis, and it seems a bit weak. I want feedback on it, and I believe it really could be a good essay if my thesis gets stronger and more precise. I need to be able to prove my idea, to really convince someone who might not be sure that I am telling the truth. I believe my statement is true, but that hardly matters. What I need to be sure of, is that at the end of the essay, you believe it's true as well.

Thursday May 3, 2007 (2)

When viewing Sharon Lockhart's "Goshogoaka," I always felt like I was waiting for something, something to happen. I was not enthralled with the material of her choice, but I can see why one would be.
I find it interesting how this is supposed to be staged like a performance. It is very much a performance in choreography and practice, but I noticed that the girls were doing normal basketball drills. It was strange to think of this normal thing to be choreographed, having done the exact same practice drills when I would play basketball. It seemed very natural, even though the "stage" was set with a fixed camera, and a very literal stage set right behind the girls as a backdrop. I find it hard to analyze this piece, because like much experimental film, it really was what it was. I don't find myself looking beyond for some deeper meaning, even though there may have been one. I rather find myself reflecting on the beauty of pattern, of uninhibited performance, the repitition of sound. The repitition of both sounds and movements brought me to expect the next, and I was able to find comfort in that. It was like a chant in another language that I did not know, but I understood. It was almost a universal language, and I was able to hear it just as well as those girls could perform it.

Thursday May 3, 2007

I have yet to write about "Hamilton" in my blog. I am very behind.

I want to explore the reasons for the differing styles between "Hamilton" and "Love with a Little 'L'." The differences in styles are easily identifiable. "Hamilton" is subtle, slow, easy to follow, and overall very pleasing to the eye and mind. "Love" on the other hand is in-your-face, personal, vulgar, and intrusive as well as uses symbolism. However, why such great divide between the two styles? The crudity and upfront attitude of "Love" makes it controversial. This makes perfect sense since the topic is one of womens' empowerment and adolescent attraction, things which are controversial and complicated. It is confrontational for a reason, to grab attentino and make one think about what is being said. Also, this symbolism used is able to make the vinettes about more than what is portrayed by simple yet strange acts.
The subtlety of "Hamilton" greatly contrasts the intrusiveness of "Love." The vinettes in "Hamilton" are simple, showing little conflict, little confrontation, and little action. This quite obviously achieves an aura of simplicity and mundaneness that is commonly reached in normal everyday life. I believe that this film was made as an experimental film, like most experimental films, to challenge the idea of conventional film. It is difficult to illustrate the complexity of adolescence, and almost harder to convey the prosaic mood of day-to-day life. And I believe these films took on their differences in style in an attempt to bring the complexity and the simplicity of life as close as possible to the audience.

Tuesday, April 10 (2)

I am writing about Jennifer Montgomery's Age Twelve: Love With a Little L

Although the message of adolescent sexual frustration between girls was very prevalent, I really think there was unnecessary things that needed to be in the film.
Exhibit A: peeing
Yes, I can see how these women were marking territory like animals. For women's impowerment, I believe this can be a powerful statement. And the girl pissing on the rooftop was alright. It seemed to me that she was marking territory that really did not have a strong resonance as to what it was. This can illustrate that girls do not really have a place to mark, or that they do not really know where. However, when she pissed on the girl in the bathtub, I see that as completely unnecessary. That kind of thing is just shocking and disturbing. That could be the statement, but it really is not something that anyone should be watching, at least not me.
Exhibit B: tampon
Yes, there was a point to a woman taking out a piece of something completely feminine that men really do not understand. It is something I do not understand, and I can readily admit that. However, I do NOT need to see a bloody tampon come out of a woman and rubbed around a canvas to drive home that point, or any point for that matter. Some things are kept private for a reason. Would a woman want to see a man cleaning off his genitals, or masturbating and wiping the sperm around on a canvas? I know that I wouldn't, whether I understand that or not. I believe those graphic illustrations of women's empowerment are unnecessary, and could definitely be illustrated in a more tactful manner.

Tuesday April 10, 2007

I am a little behind, so two posts are in order today.

It is my contention that, even though Scott Stark wanted to show the transition of the "we" 60's and 70's into the "me" 80's through the work of Jane Fonda with respect, his representation through context and format overshadowed his respectful message.

Scott Stark attempted to show the shift of people, including celebrity from "we" to "me" by showing Jane Fonda at protests and rallies in the 60's and also doing workout videos in the 80's. He wanted to show that the silly things like workout videos should be overshadowed by the great things Jane Fonda did as a political activist. However, this only becomes apparent if you read the article he wrote about it.

I believe that film should be able to be taken out of context and understood. I believe the meaning should be able to be accessible to anyone willing to watch and discuss. I don't believe the viewer should really have to "go the extra mile" so to speak, and not be met halfway. Scott Stark made his message too ambiguous, and his choice of costume and venue as a part of his performance, to me, negated the intelligent things that Jane Fonda was a part of and made it overshadowed by something as ridiculous as a workout video.

I think this video was meant to say "Yeah, Jane Fonda has done some silly things like plugging a workout video, but she has done this great stuff for the "we" of our country." And to me, whether Scott Stark realizes it or not, this video says "Yeah, Jane Fonda has done some worthwhile stuff, but look at this stupid, pointless shit that she is going to get remembered for." What sticks out is the pointless stuff, rather than the important. And I think that does not give the credit that truly is due.

Tuesday, March 27 (3)

Last class we had Vladimir the storytelling clicker-viewer artist come in from Oregon. I will admit, I think that it is a bit ridiculous to tell a story through this method. But I also am intrigued by what Mr. Bogner touched on in terms of the idea that this story controls how we view the images and therefore we are bound, not able to control the destiny at all. I suppose that is the same for most narrative stories, but this way it seemed to control me, making me move the narrative when it wanted me to. The thing that I thought about all of these short stories (which I thought were beautifully crafted and interesting) is that they would be absolutely beautiful side stories in a feature length film, but would not work as a film on their own. I thought the stories worked well through the viewer as a short story, but I do not think they would stand alone as a film. I wonder why that is. I especially liked the story of the man and the machinery. I thought that it could really be a touching addition to another story, or stand alone, untouched in the format that it is currently in.

Tuesday, March 27 (2)

I did not know if I had to make a post when I was on break, but I wrote one down in my notebook just in case. We obviously had no class, so no specific art to reflect upon. However, as I was reviewing for a meeting with the film curator at the Walker Art Center (an acquantance of Mr. Bogner's), I thought very deeply about what my year at UW-Milwaukee's film school has done for me. I believe that I have mentioned before that narrative film was how I came to be in love with film. And it remains my passion. However, as I work through this class and my Basic I film project, I have become painfully aware, much to my chagrin, that experimental film has found a place in my heart. I still do not want to believe that I have come to learn from experimental film, as I began this class as a bit of a snob toward it. However, I find, especially in thinking about my Basic I film, that it provides such interesting opportunities that a narrative film cannot really delve into. I am not saying that either is better of course, that is a matter of opinion. But I have come to respect the differences and how they can connect a filmmaker to their audience in unique and beautiful ways.

Tuesday, March 27

I have a bit of a backlog of posts that I am going to put up tonight since I did not have access to a computer over Spring Break. The Wednesday before break, I visited the camera obscura that was set up close to downtown. I really did not think that it would be that intriguing, but it surprised me. There was such a beauty to have an outdoor scene projected onto a wall, a ceiling, etc. I really was not so impressed with what I saw set up, but that was made with pretty limited resources. I thought the beauty in the images from the Powerpoint presentation was incredible. That in itself reminded me of really amazing special effects like in Donnie Darko and other films. I really think that seeing a sky in a place where it does not belong is kind of magical. And capturing that as an artform is genius in its simplicity.

Monday, March 5

I feel like I owe this class, and Kerrie a bit of an apology. Since the beginning of this class, and even before so, I have had a certain bitterness toward some experimental film. I have thought it pedantic and pointless in many cases, with a touch of arrogance. The problem is that, many times, I still see it this way. But, really, I have too much respect for Carl Bogner and Kerrie to think that this mode of filmmaking is really only that. I believe there really is a reason that Experimental Film exists outside of a narrative. Although I prefer when experimental techniques are adopted into a narrative format, why should this be the only way that it is used? Through and through, my passion is narrative film. However, I believe this class has already begun to reshape how I can look at narrative. Viewing these pieces that convey unconventional methods of filmmaking, I believe, is going to make me a better filmmaker and able to reach a larger scope of people. I will be able to show what I wish to do through a more unconventional and creative manner, and I really am grateful to this class for that.

Tuesday, February 20

Yesterday we watched the film D'Est. I found many of the shots, at least in part, to be very visually pleasing and striking. The people and the everyday situations that were captured so candidly in shots were absolutely mesmerizing in their simplicity. However, I found that the shots were too long and drawn out, slowly losing their purpose along with the time. I understand that he was showing how life is in it's simplicity and length, but I guess I am not interested in seeing that without being connected to someone. I think I miss that when we watch experimental films, a lot of times I do not feel connected to anyone in it. I think the filmmaker wants me to be connected with him or his feelings in D'Est, but I suppose I have been trained against that by growing up with Hollywood in my blood. I love artistic films, but not when they do not make me feel anything for a person, a character, a scene, nature, anything. This film just got so long with nothing to follow that I slowly faded away into apathy.

Monday, February 19

This post I just forgot to post on Monday, even though I wrote it early Monday morning before 8 a.m. class:
I was laying around my apartment last night and I began to think about Leighton Pierce's film "Thursday." I really believe that it was one of the best films that we have watched, simply because it focused on striking images that shone beauty. It was like a photographic log of his normal day, seeing things one would not normally find attractive in a new way. I contrasted this, which really does not have too much of a point to it, with something like Data Diaries which had absolutely no point to it. Really, I can honestly say that I hated Data Diaries because it was not beautiful, there was no point, and there was no striking imagery. Things like that can be good within another work, but I cannot enjoy them outside on their own. Back to "Thursday," I really appreciated the photographic eye and the ability to find the mundane beautiful. I think the idea of shooting what is around you that you find striking is really important, just as documentation but as well for putting into future works. Being into more poetic narrative film, I really am always looking for interesting images to intersperse with a story to make it more interesting and visually pleasing.

Sunday, February 18

I was still out of town Sunday but I was able to find this to post:

I just think it is interesting how many people have actually done the same thing that Renato Umali has done. Here is one example: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6B26asyGKDo
or this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IvDxUoadG6A&mode=related&search=

Saturday, February 17

I wrote this post out of town on February 17th:
I just attended a conference that talked specifically about beauty, art, and God. C.S. Lewis once said, "Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy and art. It holds no value for survival, rather it gives survival more value." I want to discuss what C.S. Lewis had to say about art. Even if you do not believe in God, this can still touch you, and maybe even challenge you. I do believe in God, and believe fervently in his prescence in art as well as beauty in the rest of the world. He also told a story about a man who was gardening and came upon a rose and was simply astonished by its beauty. He was so touched, that he had to stop and thank the Lord for making this flower so beautiful. And he felt a longing, a pain, seeing this beautiful image. It was a yearning to see that flower as it was really meant to be seen, how it may look in heaven. C.S. Lewis said he has felt this pain, this longing that beauty can bring to his life, even if just for a second. And whenever possible he seeks that pain because it is such a majestic and beautiful feeling and longing. I think this is what we should strive for in art. I can say that I really am not usually a fan of experimental film, because it usually does not produce a feeling like this for me. But that is not to say that someone does not feel this way about experimental film. It could do just that for someone else. But I love to strive for that feeling of beauty so great that it is painful to see. For meaning so true that my heart reaches out to it, reciprocates it. I believe that is what art should be about.

Friday, February 16

I wrote this post when I was out of town on February 16th:
What I am really inspired to write about today, by both lecture and discussion, is the style of Vito Acconci that has spilled over into artists such as Renato Umali. In Umali's "I Learn Something New Every Single Day," he uses the space around him to project a certain energy. He is always at an arm's length or less from the camera and the camera is able to capture the atmosphere and his mood in every shot. This is similar to Acconci's theory where he wants to invade the space, being very close to the camera so the video can pick up his mood, his emotions. In this way, who is gets projected to the audience in a much more personal, one-on-one sort of way. His space is supposed to be just him and his viewers and is meant to be shown in that same way, like on a small screen with a few people watching. Umali does this as well, using a medium that is most easily seen on a computer, which would be a very close and personal area for the viewer. It becomes something that may invade that space, making a special bond between the artist's emotions and your perception.

POST ONE

This is my first post just so that I can see if it is working.