Apocalypse now

The film apocalypse now really disturbed me when i saw it as the imagery is so shocking and when i was younger it gave me nightmares. Looking at it again the context of my studies it seems like a precursor to so many of the video games as i played a a teenager. It is mostly set in a jungle and the depravity of the people of become to be part of the camp/cult there is so shocking even now.Obviously this is really relevant to the competition as it is based on the book heart of darkness.Its interesting how this films story is so close to the book heart of darkness even though the book was written at the end of the 19 century and the film is set in the 1970s.It has been well documented how horrific the vietnamese war was and using heart of darkness as the basis for this film seems to me such a brilliant choice as the viewer/reader really gets drawn into the nightmare of the scenes portrayed.

-Dream state-manipulation by media The film i made for this project

I decided to create a 3 minute film titleed Dreamstate inspired by the video installations such as Un Chien Andalou that I saw at the Tate Modern as a child so often. I also wanted to give a feel of the title sequences by Saul Bass for Vertigo. I like the fragmented editing that was used in the 1960s to portray confusion or hallucination and again more recently in films like Trainspotting. I wanted to create a loop of video that can be stepped into at any point and that could run on a loop as an installation. My idea initially was to create an installation for an exhibition on the manipulation of reality. For my essay I looked into the manipulation of reality and I have tried to use some of the techniques that were used in the examples I used there. I have used a mixture of close ups and long shots and a variety of camera angles to try to create a dream like sequence that lets you the viewer decide what is happening as I would give no information if I was showing this in an exhibition apart from the title. I used different lighting and some colour editing to try to give a variety of effects to the footage. I tried to find soundtracks that would give a different feeling to each part of the film to try to show how the different sounds can make the visuals give a different impression.

comparison Jiri Trnka Ruka The Hand and Ersatz (Surogat) - Zagreb Film (1961)

I looked at these two films the hand and ersatz and zagreb film.In my opinion both of these films are very stylerlised. They both have sound tracks that echo the mood of the films. They are two different types of animation, the traditional animation works better here than the stop motion animation used for the longer film. This is not as well done and i think the film seems to stutter a bit.I enjoyed how the two films had soundtracks and colours that make you feel the emotions being portrayed, happiness, loneliness etc.I feel that the stop motion film was too long for the story and that this made the viewer (me!) lose interest.It is also interesting how the graphics in the first film are so of their era, all though that this style is coming fashionalble again.The first film all so made me feel like the main character was talking even though he never actually said anything that i could understand it made me believe in the charecter/animation more.I believe if they used this technique in the hand and ersatz it would have made the film 100 times better. .If i had to choose a favourite film out of the two i would defiantly choose the zagreb film as it kept me entertained throughout.It was very fast paced and very inventive in some ways it reminds me of cartoons today such as the rode runner from the looney tunes.I also believe as i am a fan of the Aardman animations the creators of Wallace and Gromit i probably looked at the stop motion with puppets and was straight away comparing it to stuff from Aardman,this is possibly the reason i did not rate it as high as the other one.In conclusion i believe both films were amazing for their time but i would have to give the zagreb film a higher rating as the and ersatz film was very slow paced and lacked excitement witch i believe is the most important thing to think about when making a film as a film is made to entertain people and with out excitement a film/animation will lose the interest of viewers very quickly but on the other hand it could just be the way i think as the the hand and ersatz could entertain people in other ways that don't interest me or entertain me.

Lecture=Synthesis File

To provoke you into thinking about design, rather than just ‘doing it’ To encourage you to pursue issues in more depth,To form your own conclusions independently of practitioners and academics,To experiment with ideas to see if they work in practice POLITICAL ECONOMIC SOCIAL TECHNOLOGICAL Evidence the ability to use logic, reasoning and critical judgement to analyse ideas from a range of primary and secondary sources KEY TRANSFERRABLE SKILLS Organise and carry out self-directed projects and communicate outcomes through written and other appropriate forms KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING Demonstrate a critical understanding of the aesthetic, cultural, historical, technological, social, political or other contexts relevant to individual subject disciplines. N

Lecture=What is Critical Analysis? File

Aims of lecture To explore the meaning of critical analysis To develop critical thinking and writing skills To begin critically analysing some examples Definitions These will come in handy ....critical analysis an appraisal based on careful analytical evaluation Critical analysis is a central process involved in all academic work Critical analysis - what is it? n academic terms, critical analysis means considering the claims of theorists, governments, authorities and so on, what they are based on, and how far they seem to apply or be relevant to a given situation Why use critical analysis? How does it work i should look at this in more detail... Carefully considering an idea and weighing up the evidence supporting it to see if it is convincing Then being able to explain why you find the evidence convincing or unconvincing Practicing critical analysis It helps if you ask yourself a series of questions about the material you are reading Writing critically Walter Benjamin ‘The Work Of Art In The Age Of Mechanical Reproduction’ 1936 Dennis Hopper’s Chairman Mao, with bullet hole

Lecture=Themes: Subculture & Style File

Definition of Subculture In sociology, anthropology and cultural studies, a subculture is a group of people with a culture (whether distinct or hidden) which differentiates them from the larger culture to which they belong An introduction to writings on Subculture Skateboarding/ parkour and free running/ graffiti as a performance of the city,The Riot Grrrl movement as a feminine and feminist subculture,The portrayal of youth subculture in film and photography Look at Dogtown and Z boys (2001) Skater Peggy Oki Ian Borden ‘Performing the City Urban street skating is more political than 1970’s skateboarding South bank closure threat to skaters i believe this should not happen as it would be like taking the soul out of the place Lords of Dogtown (2005) Parkour/Freerunning Yamakasi (2001) Jump London (2005) Nancy McDonald The Graffiti Subculture, Here (on the street) real life and the issues which may divide and influence it, are put on pause. Miss Van McDonald suggest that women come to the subculture laden with the baggage of gender in that her physicality Swoon (US) Motorbike girl Girls trying to become more than just trophies to men Brigitte Bardot 1960’s Hells angels Women still being treated as lesser human beings Mod girl Girls standing up and fighting for their rights/ Girls rebeling Need to watch Quadrophenia (1979) Hippy girl Subculture arises through universities of the late 60’s and early 70’ s Media attention turns to Grunge scene Style without the subculture Distorts even further as the 90’s continue into the more more media friendly Spice Girls use of phrase “Girl Power” The commodity form Subcultural signs like dress styles and music are turned into mass produced objects

Lecture=Themes: Cities & Film File

This lecture looks at: The city in ModernismThe beginnings of an urban sociology,The city as public and private space,The city in Postmodernism,The relation of the individual to the crowd in the city Georg Simmel (1858- 1918) German sociologist Writes Metropolis and Mental Life in 1903 Dresden Exhibition 1903 Architect Louis Sullivan (1856- 1924) creator of the modern skyscraper an influential architect and critic of the Chicago School mentor to Frank Lloyd Wright Modern Times (1936) Charlie Chaplin Stock market crash of 1929 Factories close and unemployment goes up dramatically Leads to “the Great Depression”,Margaret Bourke-White LA Noire (2011)I really enjoyed this film but must look at it again for some refrenscing the first video game to be shown at the Tribecca Film Festival look at Cities of the future/past- Fritz Lang Metropolis (1929) Ridley Scott Bladerunner (1982/2019) LA Surveillance City Since the attack on the Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre in 2001 and the ensuing war on terrorism

lecture=Themes - The Gaze and the media File

Hans Memling Vanity (1485) alexandra cabanel Birth Of Venus 1863 Do women have to be naked to get into the met museum? I believe this is so as how people have been brought up to look at women with lust and amazement. I dont believe this is the case as most musuems have old art in and women in the olden days were not painters etc normally. MANET - Bar at the folies bergeres, 1882 Jeff Wall picture For Women’(1979) Coward, R. (1984) Eva Herzigova, 1994 Coward, R. (1984) From 2007 Marilyn: William Travillas dress from The Seven Year Itch (1955) Look at .Barbara Kruger Your Gaze Hits The Side of My Face Tracey Emin ‘Money Photo’ 2001 Paparazzi shot of Princess Diana i hate the paparazzi i should look into this a lot more as it intrests me Big Brother 2011 Further reading John Berger (1972) Ways of Seeing, Chapter3 Victor Burgin (1982)

lecture=Themes - Identity File

Physiognomy--- ---Phrenology ---Physiognomy legitimising racism--- ---Historical phases of Identity--- ---Pre-Modern Identity ‘Secure’ identities related institutional agency with vested interest--- ---Farm-worker The Soldier The factory worker The housewife The gentleman husband-Wife (family) landed gentry The state--- ---Industrial capitalism patriarchy--- ---patriarchy Marriage/church--- Modern identity 19th and early 20th centuries Baudelaire – introduces concept of the ‘flaneur’ (gentleman-stroller) Georg Simmel Look at Edvard Munch, Evening on karl johan Oil on Canvas, 1892 Discourse Analysis dentity is constructed out of the discourses culturally available to us. What is a discourse ? ---Possible Discourses--- Age Class Gender Nationality Race/ethnicity Sexual orientation Education Income---Class--- i should look at .Humphrey Spender/Mass Observation, Worktown project, 1937 Martin Parr, New Brighton, Merseyside, from The Last Resort, 1983 - 86 Zygmunt Bauman

lecture =Themes, Consumerism - Persuasion, Brand, Society, Culture File

 AnalysetheriseofUSconsumerism Discuss the links between consumerism and our unconscious desires SigmundFreud Edmund Bernays Consumerism as social control Look at century of self adam curtis Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) New theory of human nature Psychoanalysis Hidden primitive sexual forces and animal instincts which need controlling Look at model of personality stucture 1930 Fundamental tension between civilization and the individual Edward Bernays (1891-1995) Press Agent Torches of Freedom product placement has always been around Celebrity end or sements The use of pseudo- scientific reports Fordism HenryFord(1863– 1947) TransposesTaylorism to car factories of Detroit Marketing hidden needs Selling emotional security reassurance of worth,ego gratification,Creative Outlets,Love Objects,sense of power conclusion Consumerism is an ideological project We believe that through consumption our desires can be met The Consumer Self

How religion and beliefs alter your perception of reality

I did some research into how religion changes one's perception of reality. The video above tells you how what you do in the first few years of your life will shape how you perceive the world.If people are brought up on religion they will probably percive the world in a different light to someone who was not. For example not eating meat,that they will live another life after death,to not judge people on what clothes they wear,if they live a life of sins they will go to hell if they live a life of being good they will go to heaven etc.It is a bit like the media - what you see depends where you are coming from...

How drugs (lsd) can change one's perception of reality

As I am looking into how the media changes ones perception of reality I thought I would look into how drugs also change ones perception of reality to add depth to my research.The video above is about what it would be like on lsd and what kind of thoughts would be in your head.The way drugs such as lsd change your perception is a lot different to the ways in which the media do it but I believe they have some similarities: for example in this video he talks about how some things you see could be real but could also not be real you just don't know. This links in with the media as the stuff we watch on tv could just be something else and is normally someones view of that reality. For example looking back at Benefits Street if they had used some happy or more optimistic footage at the end of the title sequence peoples perceptions of the programme and those filmed in it would change. similarly in the programme, the editing of the footgage they shot affects the viewers perception of the lives depicted.

Benefets street title sequence and how they manipulate ones perception of the media

One of the first things that sprung to my mind about when i asked myself how do the media manipulate reality was this title sequence,as this title sequence finishes off with a woman from the street called big d who says "you could have nothing and have all the money in the world and have nothing compared to what we have down here",then moves on to a shot with 3 drunk people.Why did they have to use imagery like this at the start they could of used a piece of footage that actually put the series in a good light.I believe the media did this to give the impression that this series was going to be about showing how bad the people on this street are and i believe their target audience would have been middle class people that like to look down on people that are not as well off as they are.In conclusion i believe this is terrible and makes me wonder why people think its ok to broadcast stuff like this.

vertigo title sequence and what im going to do for my project

As I am very fond of the work by saul bass and have been for many years I thoughtIi would try and incorporate his work into mine for my project. Above is a video of the title sequence from the film vertigo made in 1958 by Alfred Hitchcock created by saul bass.I particularly like this one as it shows how you can make a title sequence that is very simple but yet shows you what the film will be about without giving too much away,The music,lighting,colour and visual effects give the impression that the film will be a tale of gore and maybe a bit of mystery.I want to make a film that loops over and over again that i would put in a exhibition. The film will consist of many different images and sounds(manipulating media to give off different impressions)I will use saul bass insperation.

Junlge the heat video and why it is relevant to my end film

I looked at this video as it is in a way manipulating the perception of reality. At the start of this video as i see it i see 2 guys wearing hip hop style clothing i think they are going to do a hip hop video/rap video. The video then starts and i see a man who i feel will start rapping/dancing because of the cloths he is wearing, he then starts moving around the floor very quickly and smoothly like he's doing a moonwalk,The camera angle then changes and lets you see the guy i thought was moonwalking is actually roller blading,they start danceing to jungle music with moves that were hip/cool and funky.If they started the video with both of the men in shot so you could see the roller blades in clear view instead of using the shot they did,I believe it would change a lot of peoples minds about what they think is going to happen at the start of the video.