Monthly Archives: April 2016

PB3 feedback

Posted on by under Media 1, Workshops

In class we viewed everybody’s final product for PB3. Afterwards we split into groups in order to give each other feedback.

Wanting Xu:  The introduction was able to communicate Rebekah’s personality extremely well. It was engaging and interesting. Throughout the film I noticed that the music was perhaps a little loud next to Rebekah’s voice, however Wanting did explained that Rebekah is quite shy. With this context I think it works very well. The choice and use of found footage also does an excellent job at reinforcing Rebekah’s stories.

Kris Qui: Kris’s cinematic skills were very engaging, each shot was well constructed and interesting to look at. Because the footage was shot while it was quite dark the quality of the image is a little noisy, the dark atmosphere however worked very well for the film. The found footage, along with the music, added a magical, inspiring tone to the film and complimented the narrative very nicely.

Camilla Moi: Camilla’s editing constructs an engaging film with a sense of rhythm. The found footage illustrates the portrait well and fits in almost seamlessly. Her film is energetic and vibrant, her choice of setting was well chosen as was the framing of the shots.

Overall, I enjoyed watching every final piece. They were all interesting and engaging, and I look forward to seeing what else everybody will produce in the future.

So it begins – Meeting no. 1

Posted on by under Media 1, Workshops

In the workshop in week 7 we were assigned groups for project brief 4, the topic we were given is ‘Mediums and Media Technologies’ and I have to say that I was a little confused as to what that meant. We spent the hour using the notes that we were given to do a small bit of research, before creating a mind map of possible directions. At this point, it’s still up in the air about what we are going to do for our topic.

 

 

Collaborative Projects

Posted on by under Media 1, Readings/Lectorials

In this week’s lecture Rachel talked about collaborative working. It’s something we needed to do for PB4, and throughout our future careers. I personally like working in groups, sometimes it doesn’t always work out and it can be frustrating, but when it works it’s great. We began by creating a list of pro’s and con’s. I wasn’t surprised when the con’s list grew while the pro’s remained pretty empty, many things can go wrong – and I think it was best to get the negative stuff out of the way. After the con’s list we started working on the pro’s list. It grew just as fast until it matched size with the con’s list.

Rachel then briefly talked about how to make collaborative projects work through communication and problem solving. Although I had heard most of it before, and the foundation of the advise did seem like common sense, I think it was good to be reminded. In my three classes I had group project coming up, and being reminded of how to make it work took away some of the stress.

Audience Lectorial

Posted on by under Media 1, Readings/Lectorials

Audience is important to a lot of people in the media industry. A list from week 8’s names some of these. including; Advertises, Production Houses, Policy Makers and Cultural Theorists. Obviously the audience is an extremely important aspect of media. I remember in one of the first lectures, Brian asked us to list the things we immediately think about when we hear the word ‘media’. A fair amount of our answers referred to audiences. In fact, ‘audience’ is the first word on my list. Other things we were able to come up with included;

  • Human Culture
  • Connection of identity
  • Reflection of values
  • Accessibility

The point is that the central priority for all types of media seems to be it’s audience. The concern for an audiences well being as caused some controversy in the media world. Back in the 1940’s people were convinced of a ‘hypodermic needle theory’. Audiences weren’t involved with the production of media as we are now, so there was a belief that media had the power to influence an audience behaviour exactly. As time went on this changed and more theories came into existence that suggested the audience has more involvement with the content they consume then previously thought. It came to the surface that audiences weren’t as subjective to media content, that they can be active towards the media they consume. Although, there is still caution towards these ideas, since there remains the belief that media can still hold direct influence over it’s consumers. Despite the fact that audiences are now even producing their own content, the idea of passive audiences still remain relevant.

 

Non – Narrative Form

Posted on by under Media 1, Readings/Lectorials

Bordwell and Thompson explain that while most documentary films follow a narrative of some sort, there are those that are non-narrative. These usually fall into two categories; Categorical or Rhetorical. So what exactly do these mean? In all honesty, I still don’t entirely understand it myself – but here are some pointers that I used to help myself understand.

Categorical:

  • Documentary filmmakers may present the information in categories to organise their film’s form.
  • The documentary will begin by identifying it’s subject, then present the information using a patterned development. Bordwell and Thompson explain that the film “might move from small to large, local to national..”
  • Because of the repetition that usually occurs within categorical films, the often risk boring the audience. It needs variation to keep the audience’s interest.
  • They can also maintain audience engagement by including miniature narratives.

Rhetorical:

  • Filmmaker presents persuasive argument.
  • It’s common in all types of media, advertisements, salespeople and even conversations with friends can incorporate rhetorical form.
  • Has four basic qualities. –
    • It address the individual viewer openly
    • The subject is mostly a matter of opinion rather than strictly factual.
    • The film may target the viewers emotions.
    • It prompts the viewer to make some sort of decision based on what they’ve viewed.
  • They can consist of;
    • Sourced arguments (Rely on evidence)
    • Self Centred Arguments (Appeals to the beliefs and values of their audience)

Noticing

Posted on by under Media 1, Readings/Lectorials

I met a friend and her little brother at the park today and thought I’d use it as an opportunity to do a small media audit. So here goes.

A sound box that tells stories when you crank the handle. It also has a list of stories and instructions on how to use it.

A sound box that tells stories when you crank the handle. It also has a list of stories and instructions on how to use it.

 

On the side of a story box is a list of Australian animals that children can find.

On the side of a story box is a list of Australian animals that children can find.

 

One of the animals from the game.

One of the animals from the game.

 

'Stepping stones' that allow children to create music.

‘Stepping stones’ that allow children to create music.

 

A sign displaying safety cautions and emergency information.

A sign displaying safety cautions and emergency information.

 

Sign to direct visitors around the park and the estate.

Sign to direct visitors around the park and the estate.

PB3 Reflection

Posted on by under Media 1, Workshops

Throughout the production stages of the project I ran into quite a few complications. The first was my lack of planning. I had planned to base the portrait around my friend, Adrianna, who is currently studying a Bachelor of Paramedicine after wanting to become a paramedic her entire high school life. Beyond that I was completely unsure about how anything else would work. Beside this information I was completely unsure of how my project would work, how it would be structured and what exactly it would contain. I realise now that to prevent a creative block, I should have made mind maps and flow charts to document the different paths I might have been able to take.

After writing a list of questions for Adrianna I sent them to her and organised a date to film. After looking at the questions she notified me that she wasn’t sure if she wanted to be a paramedic anymore. I had to start back from page 1. After talking to her for a bit I realised that the controlling idea of the brief could be about self discovery. The situation she was experiencing also allowed my film to follow a three act structure. The beginning would talk about her desire to be a paramedic, the turning point would feature her confession for not wanting to do her course and conclusion would focus on what her plans were for the future. I wrote up new questions based on this and came away with the lesson to always be prepared for accidents and changing circumstances when planning to film with another person.

After filming the interview and looking over the footage I realised how ill prepared I actually was. I had so much content but little idea of what to do with it. The only solution I could think of at the time was to wing it. I put it into Premier and started making editing as best as I could. Here I noticed how fast Adrianna was talking. Some areas of her speech weren’t needed in a shot, but were difficult to cleanly cut out. In some areas I was able to hide gaps in her speech (places where she’d said “uhh” or “umm”) and hide the gaps with the found footage quite well. After the editing process I realise how much of a difference it can be to make your interviewee as comfortable and relaxed as possible. Because I had very little idea myself on how the process would work, I failed to brief her properly on what was happening, therefore making us both a little nervous and stressed.

Upon looking over the completed film I found that the editing is quite jumpy. Cuts are made mid sentence and during the interview the camera remains at a medium distance. This can be quite boring after a while and I understand now that in certain areas of the interview I should have used a variety of shots and angles to make the film a little more interesting.

The biggest thing I could take away from this project is how much it helps to be prepared, and to always think ahead while filming.

Narrative Structure in PB3

Posted on by under Media 1, Workshops
  1. What is the controlling idea of your portrait? The controlling idea of my portrait is self discovery and how experience can create changes in a person’s decisions
  2. How is your portrait film structured? The film will be structured following a basic three act structure. 
  3. What do you want your audience to make of your interviewee? I would like the audience to relate to her experience. To understand and sympathise with the position she’s in.
  4. How is the portrait being narrated? The portrait is being narrated through the point of view of my interviewee.
  5. What role will the found footage play in your portrait? The found footage will reinforce the ideas mentioned by my interviewee. It will also create a dramatic element within the portrait.
  6. Does your portrait have a dramatic turning point? Yes it does
  7. When does this turning point happen? The dramatic turning point will occur after my interviewee’s personality and expectations are established.
  8. How does your portrait gather and maintain momentum? The portrait will gather momentum through the use of my character’s personal story as well as the use of found footage.
  9. Where will you portrait’s dramatic tension come from? The dramatic tension comes from my interviewee and the revelation of the decision she must make.
  10. Does the portrait have a climax and/or resolution? Yes, the resolution occurs when my interviewee explains what she plans to do in the future.

The wonders of sound

Posted on by under Media 1, Readings/Lectorials

As I sit in my study rereading Roberts-Breslin’s ‘Foundations of sound and image production’ I have become aware of all the noises surrounding me. In the foreground are the tapping computer keys as I write this. Under that, the crickets outside my window, sometimes drowned out by the voices of my family from the next room. Behind that again, the occasional car that drives past the street.

As Roberts-Breslin explains, sound is vibrations that manipulate molecules and create waves that travel through the air. As it travels through our ears it transforms into electrical signals that travel up the auditory nerve to the brain, where the signals are then read.

Now that I think about it, the effects that sound can have on us are amazing. We meditate to sounds, creating visual imagery within our minds to help us relax. Sounds can trigger memories and make us feel nostalgic. If we like a song, we may get goosebumps, if there’s a noise we don’t like we become repulsed. Sounds such as sirens and alarms even save our lives when there’s a fire. The ways that sound can effect us physically are numerous, and something that I’ve often overlooked. Thinking about it now, I realise just how incredible it can be.

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