Blog 8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vVrR3BJIUo&feature=related

In The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, the theme of the movie is very dependent on who is watching the movie and what they interpret from it. When I watch it, I reason that the theme is that the pressure put on manhood and idolizing those we call heroes to the point where we are obsessed can result in disastrous consequences. This scene exemlephines the theme because it is the scene in which Robert Ford assassinates Jesse James. The act itself may be considered a heroic action. Jesse James, who was a murderer and a thief, was finally assassinated. Most would say the killer should be awarded for such a heroic action. This was not the case however. Robert Ford was the guest of Jesse James in his own house and he was shot in the back of the head, one of the most cowardly ways to kill. The theme may seem active at first, but as you watch the movie, you realize theres more to it than a hero killing a villain because the villain didn't turn out to be as amazing as the hero thought he was.

I personally think this is a tremendous scene. In this scene, you can see just how terrified Robert Ford is. Furthermore, one could argue that Jesse James knows he is about accept is fate and that he is actually hoping that Robert Ford will end it all for him. Regardless, the director uses lines, shapes, space, rhythm and movement to set up this beautiful scene. When Jesse's daughter is sitting in the front lawn, the shot puts her between two fences. Your eyes automatically follow the fence to her. Again when the camera sees Jesse standing in the window, the lines of the panel contrast against him. When Robert's brother stands in the door frame, the lines on the door do tend to point at him. The shapes of the characters are also very noticeable. Jesse James is very rectangular and muscular. Robert Ford is very lengthy and short. The theme of squares is also very common in the shot. There are square window panels and square door cut outs. The director plays with space quite a bit in the shot. He has each figure move around so much that he staggers every person. The space is mostly ambiguous with some fixed space sometimes. The rhythm of the shot is very slow, almost like an actual execution scene. It seems like as Jesse walks from room of the house to the other, his face looks like he walked the gallows to the noose. Their rhythm is probably one of the most telling aspects though. How calmly Jesse moves in comparison to how shaky Robert Ford moves shows the audience that one is in control while the other is not. Because of the contrast in their movement you can see which one is the stronger man by who deals with things stronger. Affinity is shown when you look at their clothes and how they dress. The reaction to when Jesse looks into the picture and sees Robert Ford about to shoot him can yield either objective or subjective results. Objectively Jesse James sees Robert's face pointed a gun at his back. Subjectively it is up to us what we think went through his head. Did he want to die? Did he not want to react immediately when he thought they were going to shoot him.

Blog 7

I decided to use two of my favorite animated movies, Spirited Away and The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Both of these are oriented for children and adults. Spirited Away is an anime movie about a girl whose parents were turned into hogs and she must work with monsters to win them back from an evil witch. It has many deep messages about finding oneself and the power of imagination. The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Quazimodo falls in love with a gypsy and learns to follow his heart and for him to think for himself. The screenshots I used from both movies show the antagonists and how the animators portrayed them. Both pictures represent the antagonists in darker colors with wrinkly faces against a warm background. Both antagonists are older and are ornately decorated. One thing I found very interesting was the hair of the Witch and the hat on top of Frollo's head. They all seem to share a very triangular shape. Contrasting the two images, one can see the shape of their heads. Frollo's head is very long and triangularly. He has a pointed chin and a long neck. The witch's face is very round. Her eyes are gigantic in comparison to his. She has a double chin and her neck is not even visible. The color of the two characters are somewhat similar. The witch is wearing a blue dress with brightly colored jewelry and a warmly pale face with purple eyeliner. Her hair is a warm white in the frame as well. In comparison, Frollo's clothes are purple, brown, black and red. His face is also warmly pale but his hair is grey. The Spirited Away's frame seems to be a bit darker because of the lack of light. Furthermore this provides interesting shadows on the Witch's face. Half of Frollo's face is in shadow and his sneer helps makes him seem more disgusted. The shadows and the colors of the witch symbolize that she may seem to have this loving grandma like figure to her but she is actually evil as represented by the shadows and the contrasting colors of her rings. Similarly the dark and malevolent colors of Frollo symbolize how evil he truly is with his intentions.

Blog 6

Link to original video

A Fistful of Dollars was one of Sergio Leon's first movies. It was part of the "The man with no name trilogy" starring Clint Eastwood. Unlike most westerns before, this movie was different because Leone changed the space from the tradition flat space to a more ambitious space. Some of the elements he used were 180 degree rule, the rule of thirds and the 30 Rule. The first shot placed the figure on the right side of the rule of thirds with the head in the upper right intersect. Furthermore, the figure walking was located in the lower left side. The 180 rule was obeyed because there was no change in camera between the two subjects. The 30 rule did not change either because the camera did not move. The cut to the next scene obeyed the 30 rule because it jumped to the subject which was much greater than 30% zoom. The camera switched sides than the previous shot but because a new character was introduced the previous one was cut out a new line was drawn and therefore the 180 rule was not broken. The rule of the thirds was obeyed because Clint Eastwood was placed in the left side of the frame while the camera dollied with him as he walked in front of the undertaker. The next shot cut to four men behind a fence watching Eastwood walking off screen. The four men were not placed in the rule of thirds intersect. Since the cut was to a different object the 30 rule does not apply. The 180 degree rule does remain faithful to the side it was formerly on. We then cut back to Eastwood walking in front of the bar. Again he is placed in the rule of thirds and the 180 rule is faithful. The 30 rule does not apply because its a different shot than the previous. The next shot looks at a different view of the first shot from the point at where Eastwood originally walked. The subject is placed in the rule of thirds with the lines of the building highlighting him. This does not break the 180 rule because other shots have occurred between the original establishing shot and this shot. Furthermore the 30 Rule does not apply because its a shot of a new object.

Blog 5

Song 1

Song 2

For more than half a century, Ennio Morricone has composed hollywood soundtracks. Some of his greatest and most famous songs are theme songs to such famous Westerns as The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly, A Fistful of Dollars, One Upon a Time in the West and My Name is Nobody. His Western music has a specific type of style that usually highlights one specific instrument. This instrument is usually very high and drives the song's melody. Supporting the main instrument is usually a guitar. This running guitar usually highlights the groove and is mostly upbeat and supported by drums that resemble a "running horse". The two songs I picked were "The Man With Harmonica" and "The Theme from A Fistful of Dollars". These songs were both similar in aspects and very different. Like most of Ennio Morricone's songs, both feature a single instrument in the beginning with a high frequency. In "The Man With the Harmonica", a Harmonica leads the beginning. In "A Fistful Dollars", a whistle caries the melody. The rhythm in the first song was very mourning and slow while the second tended to be adventurous and wild. The first song was more intense while the second was more relaxed and laid back. The speed of "Harmonica" was slow and sluggish while the second was faster and more upbeat.

Animation Cutscene

The NUMBER 1 Fight Scene.

Blog 4

(Embedding was disabled on this video) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JeFpM2OEWPs

Part II

This scene from a fistful of dollars is a classic. The man with no name (Joe) goes to a rival gang and asks for an apology. When they ridicule him and attack them, he shoots all four of them dead. As the scene progresses, the listening modes are more easily heard. The sound of the guns and the wind are casual. They are indeed the same sounds that guns and wind do make in real life. The sounds of Joe's boots in the beginning are semantic. They most like are not that distinctive in real life. Sergio Leone most likely wanted those boots to represent the anticipation of this stranger approaching what is essentially four bad guys. Later, this sound of boots against the ground would become the hallmark of western movies. Another principle used in this clip is how space influences sound. As you hear the the boots walk closer and closer to the house, you hear directionality and movement. The sound shows that someone is getting closer and closer. This builds the mood that something important is about to happen. Furthermore, when strings begin to play after Joe is threatened, the audience is very much aware that the showdown is about to occur. This, in a way, is subjective and emotional. There is nothing in nature that says that "if you hear rising strings, action will follow". It is a tool used to by the director to build suspense and rising action. Eventually those strings are cut off with four loud gunshots and the fall of four bodies.

Blog 3

Part I

Godin's theory of being "brainwashed" is interesting as it exhibits why society has scrutinized the individual as a creative entity and has exhibited seven levers to "reinvent" ourselves. He begins by talking about "acknowledging the lizard". This "lizard" that lives within us is the part of the brain which we share in common with the lizard which fears rejection, failure and ridicule from our piers. Society has taught us to listen to the lizard and that we should do what we only feel comfortable doing. Godin says otherwise with the seven different layers.

Two layers he touches on is the ability to connect and for your skills to be shipped. There are those who might call this "networking" or "who you know". It is almost as important to know someone as it is do something. If you can do something but no one knows, you will not able to truly succeed. With social networking, communities and online forums, your work can be seen by many, partnerships can be made, and soon enough you can begin working on your dream. Furthermore you skills must be "shippable". This means that your work has to be able to be dispersed widely and not just locally. In a global economy this is the best and fastest way to succeed.

Part II

These excursuses make you think about the creative process. At times, creativity can be complex and frustrating, just as a math problem can be frustrating so too can creativity. Godin highlights on what he calls the "Lizard" inside us. This lizard is the anchor to our creativity. I am afraid that my work will not be good and that my thought process is not out-of-the-box as most others are. The lizard inside of me is afraid that I will fail: not just on the artistic level, but in society as well. These exercises train that part of my brain that has that creativity. It works it, tears it down, and builds it back together stronger, like studying math. The difference between math and the creative process is that both are judged by two separate criteria. Where as math is judged based on a right or wrong basis, a piece of art is based on a subjective point of view. One person's point of view can be completely separate from the creator's intent. I think the purpose for using blogs as a means to turn in our work as appose to private paper is that we expose ourself to the internet. Everything we write, make and create is public. This goes against the lizard part of our brain that fears society's criticisms.

This blog helps us better structure our work so that others may see what we have written. This helps gives us some idea of how we should present ourselves so that we may be "connect worthy". By "connect worthy" I mean presentable for someone to be attracted to your work. By doing these blogs we organize our ideas in that presentable form. This separates us from those who "shotgun" ideas when networking. Furthermore, we package our ideas and thoughts into a well written, easy to understand blog. For those who want to subscribe to it, it is very easily accessible. This means it has a very high shipping ability. Anyone from around the world can read your profile and those people can send it to anyone else. Connecting and shipping are intertwined. Without connecting, you would have no one to ship your creativity to. On the other side, you cannot connect if you do not properly ship your items in a way that is appealing to potential customers. This blog takes both of those concepts and helps us formulate those ideas into one professional source to express our creative processes.

Blog 2

http://changethis.com/manifesto/51.01.YourHowl/pdf/51.01.YourHowl.pdf

In Flumin's article, he highlights two stories, one of which is an assignment written by one of his fifth grade classmates. The story talks about a lion who tries to escape a cage which he is trapped in. Eventually his plan will work and he'll escape his cage only to be trapped in another, and then another, and then another until he realizes there are infinite cages on an infinite plane of existence in which he can never escape. Flumin uses this article to highlight about his personal view on life. If we try and escape our fears and limitations, we too will only be trapped in other fears and other limitations. It is by burying and surrendering ourselves with these fears that we are ultimately able to escape and find our true inner being, our "howl".

A saying I hold dearly is "You get out of something what you put into it." This quote is from no specific source but rather the motif from many stories. It's similar to Marty Mcfly's " If you can put your mind to it you can accomplish anything" from Back to the Future or the theme from most Disney movies. As shallow and and benign as this quote is, I seriously believe that it true. This is actually a bit of a controversial subject however. When I think of those times when people have put their heart into something and it has only let them down, what possibly could they have received? As this controversial topic ranges from failing a test to human infertility, I believe that this quote is applicable to any and all situations.

I first heard this quote from my junior year theology teacher. We were studying the works of Oscar Romero, a catholic arch bishop in El Salvador who stood for the poor's rights during a dictator's regime in the 1980s. The government was quietly executing thousands of indigenous tribes in El Salvador. Oscar Romero, against even his church's belief stood against the government and by civil disobedience was able to start a revolution. Romero poured his soul into that movement and now what remains is a better El Salvador. Although he was assassinated, his legend lives and he is considered a hero in most of Latin America.

The more I rolled around this idea in my head, the more it made since. I decided to apply this to parts of my life. I looked at my Algebra II grade and said "I want this to be better". I put a some work into it and sure enough it was better. But of course it would be better, I studied for a class as appose to not studying. It was bound to get better. This is a basic example of my axiom.

This saying is more helpful when you don't get what you expected out of something. I hated chemistry my junior year. I would not understand the material no matter how hard I studied. On one occasion I was nearing the end of the quarter and my grade was depending on one last test to either push me to a B or keep me at a C. I studied for hours that night, I understood the material and I felt like I could teach the class the next day. I soared through the exam and waited anxiously to see that good grade the following day. When she passed out the grades, I saw a 62%. My heart dropped and I immediately lost all faith in that saying. What did I receive from this grade that worth 8 hours of studying? It took me a few days before I realized that maybe I did take something away from the grade. I understood that procrastination maybe wasn't the best idea. I learned that life isn't always fair and I could accept failure a little bit better. Most importantly I learned that my quote isn't always cut and dry. There are other out comings apart from the the one that you executed.

My most precious experience when this advice helped me most was when I was assembling a documentary about a school trip to Guatemala. I personally had gone on this trip and took my camera with me to record the events. I recorded the work we did and the interactions between the kids of the garbage dump community and my senior classmates. In all, 11 students went on the trip. While making the video, I tried to capture the emotional journey of some students through interviews. I wanted this to be both a summary of our trip and as a sales pitch to try and get more people to go and experience what life is like in a third world country. I spent more than seventy hours on this documentary alone and it was one of the greatest things I have ever made. The following year, instead of 11 students attending the trip there were 31. Many parents requested copies of the movie to show their community the work my high school has done. I poured my soul into that project and in turn I think I have inspired others to take a trip that will change their lives.

Blog 1

My hero (Ishma) stands as a paradigm of his enslaved people. They are dirty and poor people, forced to do the God-King's bidding. When the God-King's tribe took the peaceful land of the Kolktos, he used up the land. Now all that remains is a desolate desert. While the God-King's tribe lives a life of luxury, the first peoples (Kolktos) live in the sand, huddled together, working day after day to meet the outrageous demands of the God-King. My hero is, for the most part, no different than his people. He is poor, dirty and is still under the King's rule. He has one characteristic that sets him aside from his people though. He acts while others talk. While others dream he does work. I kept his colors deliberately the same as his people to symbolize that each member of the Kolktos are capable of Ishma's deeds and that he really is no different than the rest of them.

Ishma is the first of his people stand against the God-King. As a result he is highlighted, but his identity is not important. The light from behind him symbolizes the light of his people. With the light being pointed at the audience and the God-King, the first thing your eye sees is one lone figure. But as you examine the picture more you begin to wonder if there are more in the background. This represents the Kolktos tribe's support of Ishma. The light shining at the camera represents the God-King's arrogance. He is blinded by his own self confidence that he does not bother to listen to the cries of his people.

The shape of a fox is representative of Ishma. He is isn't large, muscular and strong like you would expect. Rather he is weak and must substitute his inability with other skills. Furthermore he is cunning; he thinks before he acts. He seems to be two steps in front of everyone else. He has a slick and slender demeanor which helps him when getting to the God-King. Above all, he is fast. He is the fastest person in the land and he uses this to the best of his ability. He can get into the God-King's palace quickly and, when he needs to, get out quicker.

The God-King's (Ashama) colors are gold and blue. The gold represents his obvious greed of wealth. He conquered the land of the Kolktos and exploited its natural wealth for gold. He adorns himself with gold because he loves the feeling of being radiant. The blue dot in the center of the golden eye is representative of his human imperfection. He calls himself the God-King but in truth he is no god. He is only human and from that, he is vincible. Ishma realizes this and tries to show the Kolktos and the supporters of the God-King that he is indeed only human.

The lighting of Ashama is relatively self explanatory. He is always lit from above to represent the fact that he is divinely chosen. This light is above him at all times until his eventual downfall when it sweeps from above his head and is dispersed the people symbolizing the transfer of divinity from one to all. When the God-king is surrounded by the Kolktos or his followers, he is the only one who is lit. All others are cast in shadow repressing their lowness in comparison to his highness. This changes when Ishma encounters the God-King however as he too has light above him.

The shape of Ashama is a bear. This represents his strength and physique. He carries himself as if he were a predator watching over his territory.He is muscular but also a bit overweight. He tends to use this as an advantage through momentum. His demeanor intimidates most people. The shake when they are in his company. He can fill a room with his presence and he can empty a room with the lift of a finger. His yell is low and loud like a bear's call and all his followers fall to their knees when they hear it.

Retro Spiderman is the best Superhero of all time

Superman? Too Strong.

Batman? Too Dark.

Heman? Too Manly.

Spiderman? Too new.

1960s Cartoon Spiderman? Yes.

The residents of New York City have nothing to fear when their friendly neighborhood spider man watches the streets looking to put an end to crime.

Unlike his 21st century counterpart, this version of Peter Parker can save the world in twenty minutes, capture the bad guy without harm to anyone AND yell clever witticisms after each and every quarrel.