For this project, Maps and Networks, as much as I have really liked the idea of being able to create an installation for the first time and make it a 3D piece hopefully I also have the option to simply create a piece of film for a one screen purpose if I choose to. I think in my mind I want to create an installation because it has so many opportunities to be creative that I haven't had before however It doesn't mean I am going to rule off one screen all together. I have looked into some one screen pieces we were shown and have shared my thought and feeling on them to try and get into the actual themes I could choose a bit more as this is primarily what one screens are about, the themes and stories:
John Smith - Blight (1994-96)
Blight, 1994-96, 14 mins. (excerpt) from John Smith on Vimeo.
(Unable to embed this video)
I have had to put a link above to a small excerpt of this film as the full thing isn't available online but I personally have seen the full thing on DVD prior to looking at it again now.
- It is a protest film against the motorways (M11) being built which meant a lot of houses were knocked down and people had to move.
- I found it to be a very powerful piece visually because of a lot of striking imagery like the walls falling and also I found it powerful through its use of sound and the way that peoples voices were repeated and built up to help it gain meaning. This sound collage that was made was really effective.
- It makes you very empathetic as a viewer because of the powerful images and sounds you start to feel the stress and also sadness these people loosing their home must of felt.
- Their is a very interesting structure to this piece because it starts very slow and quiet and slowly gets built up and up then ends very quietly again with the same women saying the same line 'They use to kill the spiders' which I think symbolises the way the motorway map looks like a web itself and we even see an image of the motorway map at the end to further concrete this symbolism.
- Because of this structure and the way it built up it did tae initially a while for me to realise what this piece was about and what it was trying to say.
- This is a very exciting way of taking these interviews and using them in a unique way to still show people how they felt but actually make people feel this way too. The snippets all added together to build the story and themes of the piece up.
- I really liked the way the sound track built up as the piece moved along because I feel like this was to represent the expansion that was happening with he motorways and also the chaos that this caused.
- I think the way the sound has been used int his piece is what has appealed to me most and therefore I will keep this in mind when working on sound for my piece. it also appeals to this project in terms of psycogeography.
John Smith - The Girl Chewing Gum (1976)
The girl chewing gum, John Smith (1976) from Austerlitz Film Gallery on Vimeo.
- With this piece it initially appears as if he is directing the scene as the voice over is so perfectly times but it becomes more confusing and out of time as it goes on to the point where you realise he isn't actually directing it and then you realise he isn't even there which is quite a shock.
- This idea works really well at getting the viewers to react and be involved because we go on a journey with him having our perceptions constantly changed as it develops.
- This is a really imaginative and actually quite funny and ridiculous way of telling and story that takes the viewer on such a rollercoaster.
- I like the way that the sound of where he actually was has been layered on top of this archive footage and so the archives footage sound track has then been put on top of the images at the end of where he actually stood the whole time which really messes with our perceptions.
- I think it shows us as an audience how easily manipulated we can be to view something in a particular way. It again links to my project through the use of psycogeography but in a playful and imaginative way.
Deadly Serious Productions - Digbeth A Thousand Welcomes (2014)
Digbeth - A Hundred Thousand Welcomes from Deadly Serious Productions on Vimeo.
- In this piece we have a really weird and interesting mixture of good and bad visuals which I think is a tool they use in this to make it as honest as possible and true to real life.
- This is a really sarcastic and quite funny way of making a documentary with the voice overs also poking fun at the situation itself.
- It is admits like an over honest documentary but then this makes you question the whole genre of a documentary because they are meant to be honest yet here we re questions why this one is too honest.
- I think it takes what is actually potentially quiet a weird but interesting topic and makes it appeal to a wider audience by poking fun at it.
- This piece like the two others prior I have looked at are all very much based on the idea of walking, thinking and doing in terms of psycogeography. I like this very light hearted approach to it that still gets you thinking and it has opened up my mind to the genre possibilities with in this project that I hadn't thought of before.
Miles Umney - 'The Ouse - Yew' (2013)
The Ouse - Yew from Miles Umney on Vimeo.
- This piece comes from a larger set of films which were all part of a gallery exhibition. This piece would have just kept playing through as a loop and you would have had headphones to listen to it.
- The voice over made me feel a little uncomfortable after a few moments because it was like someone was whispering in my ear constantly which is something that doesn't usually happen in good situations.
- The speed of this piece is very overwhelming at first but the good thing about having it on a loop is that after watching it a few times you have had a chance to actually take in what is happening and process the information.
- Once you realise that he is whispering all species of flower to you it then makes a lot more sense and the visuals become a bit more powerful in context.
- I think he is trying to show how overwhelming nature can and should be to us before we became unconnected with it. I like this idea and it fits well into our theme again in terms of psycogeography making us really think about nature and its place in our world.
Beatrice Jarvis - I Asked the City to Dance with Me on a Tuesday Afternoon (2015)
[ i asked the city to dance with me on a tuesday afternoon ] from Beatrice Jarvis on Vimeo.
- This piece actually really didn't sit right with me and made me feel very uncomfortable because of how weird the concept was of it and also because of the weird way it had been filmed.
- I think another reason I didn't enjoy it was because the voice over was making me very uneasy because again it was like someone was whispering in my ear which is a very strange thing to listen to for such a long time.
- The piece seems very sad and empty because of the emptiness of noise apart from her voice and this is effective if this is what she is trying to make us feel like.
- Im not sure if you could define this piece into a genre because it was documenting the city and the people of the cities reactions to her dancing with it yet it did so with really abstract camera angles, speed, focus points and sound.
- I think if she was trying to make the audience uncomfortable when watching this piece she certainly achieved it and this does almost make me reflect a bit more on why the city is so such and unsettling to her. It makes you think about where she is because she is reflecting so heavily on where she is again using this idea of psycogeography.
Lee Kern - My Back Garden (2006)
- This piece uses humour to really engage with the viewer here. He took a thing which is considered normal and boring which is a dog digging up the garden and added a whole back story to it and made it into something really fun and interesting.
- I like how he has technically kept it quite basic and simple so that it is essentially a home made movie which adds to the charm of this piece.
- Humour is used but also some of the point he makes are actually really interesting and it makes you reflect back on your own childhood as well in a similar way to him.
- I think this piece has again opened up my eyes to how keeping things basic and using humour can work really well for this topic of maps and networks.
Looking at these one screen pieces has showed me how you can keep things simple and focus more on the topic and theme to make a point. I still think I will make more of an installation piece yet I will use some of these techniques I have picked up here.
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