Songs by Others in MDIA 203

Juliette

Michael Stephens

Kramer

10A-Freak Factor

Freak Factor by David Rendall

4. Forget it: Don’t try to fix your weaknesses.

I agree completely with this assumption. Weaknesses are not the biggest problem in the world that people have to deal with. I like his point that weaknesses give us our uniqueness and they also show us what our strengths are. Weaknesses are different in eveyrone’s eye and there will never be a day when someone is able to completely be perfect in a sense to someone. I like other people’s weaknesses because it helps me see what that person truly is. We can work on really bad weaknesses like ones that hurt others but we should not have to change ourselves for others if it is painful for us.  It is very hard to change weaknesses and  no matter how hard an individual tries there will still be a little part of them that still has that weakness. This is why I think that everyone should have weaknesses because it can lead to great relationships. We can all help eachother out with our different weaknesses which will bring us all together and help us work together. If everyone had all the great strengths in the world, the world would be boring and no one would need another person.

5. Foundation: Build on your strengths.

I think that this is a very great thing that any individual can do. We all have different levels of strengths and we need to harbor those strengths and use them to our advantage. Working with our strengths will help all of us succeed in the real world. We also should enjoy our strengths and be able to find out what our strengths actually are. Our strengths are usually what we enjoy and what we use to get ahead and focusing on our weaknesses can destroy some of our strengths in a sense. We could start to not utilize our strengths and just focus on what our weaknesses are which can hurt us in the long run. We must work on our strengths in every aspect of our lives. And I do believe that if we utilize our strengths we are also working on our weaknesses without even knowing it. We are denying our weaknesses in a sense where we don’t focus on them and we are getting ahead with our strengths.

8. Freak: The power of uniqueness

I agree that everyone has a certain sense of uniqueness to them. We all need this uniqueness or we would all be the exact same person in a sense. I like my uniqueness. No one else is like me. No one can do what I can do. No one can help people like I do. No one can make people laugh like I do. I enjoy what I am and I do not want to change because others think it is wrong. I am a clutz and disorganized and always a mess. I enjoy what I am and I would never change for another person. No matter how hard I may try I wil never be able to truly fix all my flaws. And I am okay with this aspect. Being different is what makes other people like me more because I am different than them. I have different aspects of me that cause me to be unique. It is great to be unique and all of us are unique and we have to see it that way instead of flaws or problems. People will always try to fix our flaws but if they aren’t hurting anyone we should see them as great things that just make us different than others.

9B-Collapsus

Collapsus

I did not really enjoy what this "game" was doing. I enjoyed what it was about and what it tried to touch on but the way that it was played was not fun. It seemed to be trying too hard in a sense. It was very hard for me to follow because of the diactic and active learning it was trying to achieve. I think that it is hard for anyone to follow these two playing styles when they are put together. When they are separated and in different settings, it is much easier to follow but all at once it is very hard to follow what is going on. It is also hard because you never know what you are going to be doing or what you should be doing. These two different playing styles are so different. I enjoyed the work that we did over this course. I loved doing the blogs even though they were quite tedious at times. But it was a new experience and it taught me to share what I was doing with others. I learned how creative others were with their blogs and I really enjoyed watching other's work and what they really enjoyed to do. It was a very fun experience and I think that everyone has a creative side that they need to share with others. I am very intrigued by why others do things and what makes them want to be creative and these blogs really started to help me understand these things.

9A-Gaming

We had so much fun trying to figure out a cool and new game that everyone would want to play. We finally decided on a game about the Greeks in Athens, Greece. There has not been a game similar to our game’s theme. We thought this game would be appealing to male individuals between the ages of 16-25. This game is very similar to Halo’s and Grand Theft Auto’s set-up. Our hero Alixis was trying to defend the Greeks because the gods were starting to just mess with them for no reason. The king sent Alixis to fight Zeus but he lost automatically and was sent to Hell. During the game the player must defeat the three worlds to conquer the game and accomplish the main goal. The main goal is to conquer the heavens and defeat Zeus to save the Greeks. The first objective is to defeat Hades and get out of Hell. While the player is there, he must take souls and get their powers to defeat Hades. After the player is out of hell he must set the Titans free from Poseidon. The Titans hate Zeus and will help Alixis conquer the Heavens. So the player’s objective in this world is to defeat Poseidon and free the Titans. During this world the other objectives are for the player to get more powers by talking with scholars and other Greeks. Also, to get tools from the market and barter. The next step is to travel up Mount Olympus and try and conquer the Heavens. This is the final objective to reach the overall goal of defeating Zeus. He must fight off the watchers of the Heavens so that he can get to Zeus. He has help from the Titans. Then he must fight Zeus when he finally reaches the Heavens. The rules are very simple, there are none. The player has free wandering and is able to kill anyone. But if the kill is unnecessary there are repercussions. Fieries will start to build up and follow the player and slow the player down throughout the game as soon as he kills for no reason. SO there are no rules but there are things that will happen to the player. The hardest thing to describe to the audience is the mechanics. There is no way of really getting the real feel for the game unless the audience is playing the game. We tried by describing that everything would be free wandering and making references like halo and Grand Theft Auto. We showed pictures of what the game would look like but that is as close to describing what the game would actually feel like to play as we could get. I enjoyed this project and wished that we could invent this game.

8B-Hero/Villian

Connor Gartland & Michael Stephens:

I am going to critique Connor and Michael’s villains and heroes. They decided to have two villains and one superhero. What I first noticed about these characters is the colors of each one. They are very misdirecting and different than what a normal super hero and villain would be like. I really like the choices of colors that they picked. The hues of the hero are very dark and powerful. They chose to use a dark deep red and that may symbolize power because the character appears to be very powerful with his square body and straight up stance. What I first noticed of the hero was his hand. It is a bright yellow with a star on it and it stands out more than the actual character does. The two villains are both drawn in white and the brightness of these two is what I was drawn to. This color usually symbolizes good and not evil but I like that they chose to draw them in white to make them stand out against the hero. Since they are in white there is no saturation that really goes on in their drawings. They chose similar contrast colors that go with the hero. The one villain has hints of yellow around him and as I remember it is because he is the one that is greedy and wants all the money. The other character is more mechanical looking. They seem to be good in the color sense but the visuals and the way that they composed their faces makes them look and act evil.

Juliette Rocheleau & John Mikesell:

The next character critique I will be doing is of Juliette Rocheleau and John Mikesell. Their characters are a two year-old Eros who is the villain and the hero is Captain Stickman who has a soul patch of justice. These two characters are very interesting to me because they are not your normal hero and villain. It is a two year old and a stickman for the hero. The way that the used the colors in these two characters is interesting. They chose to use the deep reds and oranges to show that the two year old is evil. But they really showed the mood of the villain by her movement in the picture drawn. She has her hand up like “don’t talk to me or get away.” It really shows that she is not to be messed with because of her movement. The other thing that they touched on is symbolism with her heart that is drawn on her overalls. If a person was to  just look at the heart they would think that she is just a nice little girl and that she’s not evil but in her soul she is truly evil. Juliette talked about how Eros wants to be a cat and that is why she drew her hair the way it is. Her hair looks as if she has ears because they are set up on top of her head in two pigtails. The villain is drawn in a nice warm blue and his mood is shown with the smile that they chose to draw on his face. He seems to have a happy demeanor instead of the negative one that the villain has.

 
Tanner Simmons:

The next hero and villain duo will be Tanner Simmon’s characters and his partners. His characters are a young roman gladiator and what seems to be a leader in the roman world. These characters appear to be normal in the way that they are dressed because of what the norm was back in the day to wear. But during the video I rememeber that is was apparent that these two characters were not normal in any sense. The first character that I will discuss is the hero. He is just a normal gladiator it seems but he has super powers to fight the evil of the roman world. I can tell that he is the hero because he is drawn in a way that makes him look misunderstood. This is the mood that they are setting for him. He does not appear to be the biggest gladiator or the strongest but he looks like he wants to do some good.  The villian’s mood and stance makes him look like he thinks he is all powerful. He is standing with his hands up in the air and does not seem to have a care in the world. His facial expression shows that he is angry and mean. He does not appear to care about what others think of him and looks strong and able to use his body to destroy people that he does not like. These are just the assumptions that are coming from the mood that these characters are putting off.

8A-This American Life

This American Life

I know this may be a very weird “superhero” to want to be but I would want to be a Greek goddess. I would think that it would be better to be the goddess of love, beauty and sexuality more than an actual superhero in a sense. I was deciding between wonder woman and Aphrodite and I chose Aphrodite. She doesn’t technically have super powers but she is the goddess of love and anyone that is the goddess of love is all-powerful. Love is what makes the world go round and everyone needs love to live. I would enjoy being able to make others love more than being able to just help myself. I would try to help others in every sense in their lives because that is what is important to me. I love making others happy and I feel that everyone needs love in their life and this goddess is the reason that people love. Plus being a goddess always trumps being just a super hero.

7-Jokes

These two videos were completely different in almost every aspect. The shots were similar and the way that we collaborated was that same. We also worked together on almost every aspect of the process. The scripts were completely different and had a similar sense. The one video that I acted in was close to the exact joke script that we were given. We used a simple approach by not speaking and playing a song by crash test dummies to show so that everyone would focus mainly on what was happening on-screen. In this video about the car crash, we used a lot of tension at the beginning with me driving the car while drinking out of a flask. This was the very first scene that was shown to create the tension. The next scene was Ashton driving while being very upset, these are two things that one should never do while driving because it is distracting. The tension continued to build as the viewer saw Ashton get more and more angry and as I was still seen drinking three or four times out of the flask. The tension continued to build and then finally it explodes into the release. The release happens when the cars finally crash because the viewer knew it was bound to happen. The cars appear to have been in a crash and this is where spacing comes into play. The space between our cars needed to be perfect to show that we had crashed. We also used space pertaining to where we would be sitting for the camera. We tried to stay close together to appear that we were bonding after the crash. The rhythm of the video is similar throughout entirety. It is a steady build to the climax then a release and then the movements and actions start to build again and then another release happens at the end of the video as seen when I call the police at the end because I have forced Ashton to drink the rest of the wine. This is also a very good use of misdirection. At first the viewer may think that we are bonding and that I am going to drink the wine, too. Ashton thinks the same thing. But what he doesn’t know is that I am putting my finger over the bottle so that I am not really drinking it. Only the audience sees this and he thinks that I am being a great friend. Our other video has a very similar sense of rhythm because it builds up then lets down then builds up again and releases at the very end when Ashton asks the girl out instead of dumping her. The movement of both is similar because there is not that much movement and we are really just sitting and talking during the videos. This video is also driven by misdirection by Ashton asking the girl out and during the phone call everyone thinks that he is going to dump her. The videos are similar in format but different in the scenes and stories.

Cartoon Character

Videos

6B-Video Game Critique

6A-How to be creative

How to be Creative by Hugh Macleod

5B-Favorite Scene

5A-Reimagining Visual Framing

I was drawn to this image because it appears to have a deeper meaning than just what is going on in the image. There is a lot more going on in the original photo than when I first looked at it. I remember glancing at it when we had our first project and thinking that it was nothing more than about the little girl holding a cigarette. Because of the rule of thirds, the first part that a viewer will look at is black then the next area is black then the viewer will finally look at the little girl holding the cigarette and finally to the other little girl next to her. This other little girl draws the viewer’s eyes to the left background because her head is making a line towards that way. It makes the viewer wonder what is going on in the background, which provides a new subtext to the image. There must be something going on back there that the viewer cannot see. As I kept analyzing this image I finally noticed the little boy in the upper left side that seems to be floating without a head. He appears to be on stilts and the reason that I noticed him was the intensity of the color of his shirt. His shirt is white which brings his body to the front of the image and makes it stand out to the viewer. The space between the three individuals makes the boy seem superior to the girls. And where the horizon line hits him makes him seem superior to the girls. I chose to frame the image to just the boy because it is still a mystery to me to why I did not notice him the first 4 or 5 times that I looked at this image. I think that it has something to do with the contrast and affinity that is going on in this image. The whole image is black and white and the main focus is on the little girl in the front. He is in the background out of focus, which makes him contrasted to the two girls in front. But since the colors are mostly the same, it makes the boy stay out of focus even more to the viewer. I focused on him because I never noticed him before and I wanted to make it a point to focus on him. I think Sally Mann chose to frame the image this way to let the viewer understand that there is more going on than just that little girl holding a cigarette. There are things going on and problems other than that little girl. It gives the viewer a sense of depth into the life of the girl.

4B-Song Critique

http://www.youtube.com/my_videos?feature=mhum
Song Critique

3B-Soundscape Critique

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVhz5lOHbYI
Soundscape Critique of Ashton, Tony, and Mark.

Music/Song

http://www.box.net/shared/7l552033u8



By:Annalisa

4A-Brainwashed

Brainwashed-Seth Godin

Make Art

Seth Godin’s Brainwashed is an eye-opener to the idea that we are becoming mechanized and are not becoming all that we can be. We are simply striving to be plain, normal, and boring. This is dangerous for us and for the future of the world. In this section he talks about making art and how everyone is capable of making art. “Art is an original gift, a connection that changes the recipient, a human ability to make a difference.” Art is when we interact with another human and by this action we create something that wasn’t there before. There are no instructions for art because it is new every-time. The last point he makes is that art is risky but it is all worth it.

Ship

This idea to ship goes along with the idea of making art. In order to make art there needs to be someone who is willing to ship his or her ideas out there. There would be no art if only one individual saw the piece and it is impossible to connect with another human being if there is no connection. To ship is to get things done, to make things happen, and creating the outcomes. There are many individuals who have great ideas but are unwilling to share the ideas because of the risk of failure. “Quieting the lizard, acknowledging it and then ignoring it-it’s the only way.”

This blog has increased my need for more art in my life. I enjoy trying to learn the proper ways of discussing art and learning more about different works. This blog has indeed helped me become more aware of art but I do not know if it has made me a better artist. It is hard to put a deadline on art. I think the hardest part is having only one week to do a project that would require at least two weeks. Blogging about ideas has helped me ship out my ideas to others and think about things in another way than I usually do. It helps me see what others students are capable of and helps me learn new things. I am now more aware of what is art and that there is a strong need for artists in every workplace.

 

3A-Demo

Iron & Wine-Such Great Heights

The Postal Service-Such Great Heights

“Such Great Heights” is one of those songs where no matter how the artist rearranges the notes behind the lyrics, it will change anyone’s emotions. The lyrics in each of these songs stay the same in the sense that there is no spontaneity in adding words. These artists change the feelings of the song by how they speak the words. The only similarity that can be heard is the fact that the lyrics have not changed in each of the songs. The artists have taken a completely different feel on the musical portion of the work. These two different versions give the listener a completely different experience

There is a definite text and subtext of each of these songs. In the Iron & Wine version there is a more melancholy feel for such a happy song. For example, “I think it’s a sign that the freckles in our eyes are mirror images and when we kiss they’re perfectly aligned.” The sounds behind the words are not upbeat but more easygoing compared to the Postal Service version. As I listen to the Iron & Wine version I feel very somber and relaxed compared to the lyrics. Reading the lyrics makes me very happy and makes me want to sing along compared to my mood from the subtext.

The Postal Service version has a feeling of tension and release. During the entirety of the song there is a beat that never ends and keeps the speed fast. The lyrics are also overlapped and this causes the listener to never have a break for just the sounds. There is a never-ending circle of voices in this version. The Postal Service uses the sounds in the background to keep the intensity high and to not know where the song will go next. The only release that happens is when the song is slowly ending and there are no lyrics. The organization of this piece is a little more chaotic than I&W’s because there are many sounds that come in at different times. During the I&W piece, the organization is steadier and there is not that much depth in the sense that there are a lot of instruments being played. In I&W’s piece, the intensity stays the same and is lead by his voice. He keeps his voice at a steady volume and a lower pitch. It is almost like he is singing a lullaby instead of a love song. There is a definite order to the organization during this piece and which gives it a steady beat.

This is a tough call on which song I like better. It definitely changes when my mood changes but I have a lot of history with this song. I would have to say that the Postal Service version is my favorite for many reasons. I do like the Iron & Wine version but it gets old listening to the same steady organized beat over and over again in a three-minute song. I like the fact that the Postal Service has taken a melancholy song and has turned it into something that is upbeat and has a similar feel to the lyrics in the song. I also like the fact that the Postal Service has added a background vocal to make the listener feel like the singer was talking to an actual lover. It gives the song a realistic touch.

             

 

Soundscape Dan & Annalisa

 or go to http://danielrambacher.blogspot.com/

2- Finding Your Howl- Jonathon Flaum

Finding Your Howl by Jonathon Flaum

1B- 14 Ways to Get Breakthrough Ideas- Mitch Ditkoff

14 Ways to Get Breakthrough Ideas by Mitch Ditkoff

This article was one that inspired and intrigued me. It is always hard to find ideas when your brain is always doing the same thing over and over to find them but this article started to spark new ideas in my head. I am very interested in trying new ways to think about old ideas and to see what would become of this. In this article Ditkoff writes about how there are two different ways of innovating, the “I think therefore I am” and “I am therefore I think.” He points out that most individuals are a hybrid of these two schools of thought. This is exactly what we need in this world to find new innovative ideas that are somewhat practically but at the same time are able to let us fly and try something new. The three approaches that I found the most interesting and would like to write about are 6. Define the right challenge, 10. Hang out with diverse groups of people,14. Suspend logic.

6. Define the Right Challenge

Almost all of the suggestions that Ditkoff introduced were great and new suggestions to me or I already knew them and saw them in a new light as a way to find innovation. Everyone these days is trying to find a new idea but is not starting the process in the way that would give them the best results. I am a strong believer in first finding the REAL problem whichever way is perfect for the individual. Ditkoff talks about framing the challenge that is set before you before you try and tackle it so that you do not get lost in the other information or the other information may be able to spark an idea. Right now I am in two consulting business groups and what we call framing is called baselining. It consists of asking questions about every aspect of a business so that we have a strong understanding of what the business is truly about and what powers the business. This activity helps us find the true problem to the business because most problems are really from a completely different part of the business. This process has taught me to look at the big picture so that I can ask the right questions and find the right answers because I have all the information in front of me. This is a very good suggestion in my field because if I do not know what I am looking for then how would I ever be able to solve it.

10. Hang out with Diverse Groups of People

A hermit may get an idea but without interacting with other people and the world he will not know if it is innovative or will not see what the true needs are. When we are around the same people all the time we will almost always think the exact same way and do the exact same things. There is no change or mixing up the regular path because there are no variables in the situation. If you have not noticed before new people in your life can change the way you think about things because they see things in a different light than you may ever see them in. But when we are just seeing the same people individuals will start to fall into groupthink. This is because no one is challenging them to second guess what they are seeing because it has already been established what the group would think. Another suggestion that he proposed was about discomfort and hanging out with different and new people is definitely one way of finding discomfort. Throwing yourself into new problems and new places can help you second-guess your true reality. Artists do this all the time because the art that they produce is usually a different reality and lets the viewer jump into their lives and see things from a different point of view. I agree that to find a new and brilliant idea there must be some form of tension and or new surroundings. If you do the same thing over and over again you will always get the same result.

14. Suspend Logic

Logic is a main aspect of American culture. If there is no practical reason for an idea then why even have the idea in the first place. But that is not how the best ideas are formed. Everyone thought that Einstein was crazy because he thought of ideas and plans that didn’t seem practical at the time but now are common knowledge. Daydreaming is how artists change a normal idea into something fantastic and new. When people are stuck in the same humdrum of noise and just think about what is practical they are not letting themselves go to another form of thinking that could free their mind. Daydreaming for a child is almost their reality and as we start to learn the practical information in school we start to lose what our imagination and usually never go back to having one. There is no way that an artist would ever be able to think of wonderful ideas if they thought about them in only one reality. We all need a distant world that is not like ours to find new ways of thinking and new ideas. Challenging our brain to not think the way that we always think is one great way to get innovative ideas.

Prompt 14:

I have always fallen habit to only thinking things that are practical can be useful and meaningful. But this is a major problem and has sometimes halted my brain to think of new ideas and new solutions to a problem. I usually go straight to the point and do not look around at other things that may help solve my problem. I have also always thought that daydreaming was a great way of getting ideas but am so lost on how to do it anymore. This week when I have time or even when I do not have time I would like the daydream and just that. I would like to let my mind go free. Another way that I may be able to suspend practicality is when I have to write my next paper instead of starting the paper maybe draw or paint for a little before so that I can get new ideas about the paper.

 

1A- Always an artist.

There has not been a day in my life where I did not create something. I am always seeing everything in a different light or different meaning. I take in inspiration from everyday things such as how someone walks and try to figure out a way to incorporate those images or movements into my dance. I have always lived and breathed dancing. It is my way of expressing my feelings and letting my creative side run wild. A deep connection with the audience or just trying to change a simple move into a complex one is my main goal. I enjoy content that makes the audience's mind think and try to think deeper into what is really being viewed or heard. As an artist, it was easy to make the audience second guess what they know. I have always been interested in this sort of mind changing art and try to put these techniques into my own art. I am an artist and will forever be one.

I may just be a media management major but I will always want to be involved in the creative side of this industry. I am always interested in music. Every aspect of making a record interests me but I am the most interested in the lyrics. No matter what the background noise is I mainly listen to what is being said and how it is being said. There has been one man that has always been able to inspire me in his career and that is the clever and witty, John Mayer.

John has always been able to touch my soul and muster up feelings that I may not want to feel or do want to feel. His ironic and sometimes misdirecting text make a simple song seem innocent but they are really about something entirely different. There are so many examples such as “Assassin.” The listener may think that the song is about an assassin by these lyrics, “I was a killer, was the best they’d ever seen” but then he hits you with, “I’d steal your heart before you ever heard a thing.” Even the video makes him appear to be an assassin but then it shakes up the viewer's brain. He is truly talking about being able to break hearts but the name of the song is misdirecting you and making you think deeper into what the song is truly talking about. His work has always made me think deeper into what I want to say and how to turn words into art. I would love to get inside of his head and learn how he can turn something so simple into something complex. He is truly an artist.

From the minute that The Thin Red Line started, I was amazed. This movie is truly a film a viewer will never forget. Terrence Malick changes a scene into a feeling. His unique way to film a scene is what truly hit me as an artist. He does not simply put images on the screen but makes the audience feel they are there. For example in many of the scenes in The Thin Red Line, there is no action or diegetic noises it was just a solider and what their thoughts were at the moment. The Thin Red Line has a constant feeling of tension. Just playing what the soldiers are thinking is one way that he cranks up the tension in the film. This is when he uses silence to create tension and then when he finally lets the tension release, one minute later there will be even heavier tension. The one aspect of the film that struck me the most is that he could make the audience feel the same feeling that the character was feeling just by his cinematography. His work is a reason that I changed my major. He is very creative and is not like any other artists I can think of. He draws you in and keeps you in the story and when the film is done you feel that you belonged with the characters and the story. 

 

As a dancer, I can fully understand and am inspired by this great story. Darren Aronofsky has portrayed the life of a dancer perfectly. This is another example of a story appearing to be one idea and then changes into something that is entirely different. Ballet has always been seen as light, airy, and easy but in this film he touches on the completely different side of the spectrum, the dark side. During the entire movie, everything appears to be objective and Natalie Portman’s character is just a dancer that is trying to be the principal dancer. What the viewer will soon realize is that the movie is truly subjective. By the end the viewer will be questioning what truly happened to her and change the reality of the viewer. Darren Aronofsky is genius in the way that he can lead a viewer down one road and then the viewer will notice that they are on a totally different road. This movie is a piece of art and is an example of what hard work can give you. The movie has been in the works for around 4 years and is masterpiece in my eyes.