Fireside Chat

The fireside chat was by far the most moving and the most incredible of anything we have done so far. I can honestly say that some of the pieces truly touched me and spoke to me. I think I loved the entire process more than any of the other assignments as well. I think part of it was the performing, there’s a sort of terrifying thrill of performing that I find exciting and invigorating. But even that being said, there was so much more to the meaning of this assignment than the performance. For me, it was mostly in creation.

I decided that since the whole point of this class is to stretch ourselves, explore new mediums/inspirations, and to even put ourselves out there, that I would perform a rap. It combined my natural skill of rhythmic rhyming with a form and culture I have little to no experience in. I was going for a sound and style like Eminem’s “Lose Yourself”, which though I haven’t heard since high school, it still stuck with me and reminds me that not all rap is crap. I knew that my lyrics would need a song to start with, so I rummaged through my spotify and found one of my particular favorite instrumentals-- “Palladio” by Escala. I find it so powerful, moving, and exactly the kind of style that I was hoping to emulate. However, I will confess I was really scared, because I was worried that such a heavy form would create misunderstandings about me and my classmates. I didn’t want everyone to think that I was this heavy, angsty guy, but I decided to go through with it anyway. I’m so glad I did.

The subject matter: Why did I pick standing up for/defending yourself? No, I haven’t really had a problem with it in my life, at least not in that way. I did it because it was the first thing that came to my mind because it is something I believe in, and I thought I could put it across in a unique way, especially with this form, because of the same ideologies I have in my decision to join the Army. So, I created a narrative. I picked a story of a young man that formed in my head and put it to rhyme in the rhythm of the song. I was pretty proud of the lyrics when it was finished, but I wanted to check how I sounded...such a bad idea. I listened to myself and almost swore then and there that I would completely change my piece (this was the night before). However, I decided to go for it for the same reasons I came up with the idea: I wanted to stretch myself and put myself out there.

So, I went all out. I dressed to fit the occasion, especially choosing clothes with a military theme or feel, because that relates directly to the subject of my belief: Defending and standing up for oneself and what you care about/believe in. I was so scared, my hands were shaking really bad, but as the music came on and the words came out, though I stumbled a few times, I actually really enjoyed it.

Concerned Citizen

http://soundcloud.com/dancermlee/concerned-citizen-tma-112

Artists’ Statement

We decided to focus on someone who is a part of the armed sources. A song which inspired us to pursue someone in this field is the song “Citizen Soldier” by 3 Doors Down, even though its talking about the National Guard, it applies to all men and women in the service. They are all citizens and everything they do helps provide us with a better tomorrow. We decided to film Lieutenant Colonel Boberg, who is the Professor of Military Science over the Cougar Battalion (includes BYU, UVU, SUU, and Dixie) because he is concerned over the development of the next generation of leaders and firmly believes that what is learned in the ROTC makes better people as wells as better soldiers and officers. In the reading there was a quote that said “The antidote to despair is to remember the world to come.” LTC Boberg is always talking about the future of his cadets in the ROTC program. He strives to build better people by training them today. What better way to gain hope than to help provide the hope for everyone else?

When editing the interview which we had with LTC Boberg we focused on what the ROTC strives for as a whole, what LTC Boberg personally strives for in regards to the ROTC, and how the ROTC affects the community, and how the members of the ROTC affect the community. Also, originally we were going to have the piece be a film but upon examining the interview we decided that it was best to focus solely on LTC Boberg’s words. We have included about 15% of the interview and because of what we decided to focus on from the interview it was impractical to include the footage we had captured from his personal training session and from practice at the range with some cadets as cut-aways during the interview. Therefore, we decided to focus solely on his words and have the piece be audio only. 

Overall, piece seeks to demonstrate and celebrate the role which LTC Boberg has in teaching future leaders of armed services as well as future leaders and contributors of our community and how they give priceless service to this country and community. 

Protest Poster

Artist's Statement:

     When I listened to the video, as Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie talked about having “a single story”, of uninformed perceptions, or rather only having one incomplete idea that forms a whole perception, I immediately thought of Disney. I love Disney, and they are wonderful, wholesome family films, however as we’ve spoken of many times in multiple film classes and discussions, they are not accurate or conducive to realistic perceptions (if Disney films are all that are consumed by an individual). I decided to use a Disney reference for that very reason. Now I needed a medium, a style that was both effective and recognizable. It didn’t take me long to think of the Demotivational posters, the “You’re Doing It Wrong”, etc. They are short, but like Haiku poems, they say a lot with just a few words. I found a generator online that had the font and layout to make my own Demotivational poster, or in this case, Protest Poster.

     Now that I was armed with an idea for a Disney reference and a medium, all I needed was a subject matter. As I contemplated, looked for, and considered multiple topics, I remembered a Youtube video call “After Ever After” where a guy sings a few very clever renditions of Disney songs about the main characters ‘after’ their ‘happily ever after’. One was Ariel, and everything that would happen to her fish friends, especially oil spills. Perfect! Now, there are a lot of politics when it comes to oil spills, but regardless of your stance on any of them, one thing remains the same: we as a species need to be careful, mindful, and dutiful in our stewardship of this earth and the animals that inhabit it. Yes, there are those who take that to an extreme, but just because there are extremists does not make the ideology false. In this case, I wanted to simply show the horror and extremely sad effects of oil spills so that when anyone has a chance to make a difference, they will remember “Oil Spill” in big caps with the pitiful photo I found. Hopefully, it will inspire them to make a difference.

Webspinna Artist Statement

The webspinna was really fun! I really enjoyed perusing the internet for sounds. I didn’t know anything about soundboards, or those sound games, or the free mixing sites because I’d never come across them. Now, after having done this I’ll definitely be using them in the future. The mixing was really fun too. As I found fun sounds, especially the soundboards on Newgrounds, I couldn’t help but smile as I tried making rhythms and beats with bizarre soundboards. I knew that I didn’t necessarily have to have a rhythm or beat, but I thought it would be more fun, and make it all the funnier, especially the gunshots on titanium and “I am not a Ninja” from Sub-zero. I wanted to take these sounds that before had nothing to do with each other initially, but make it enjoyable, kind of like Pitch Perfect’s mix of “Titanium” and “If I could walk 500 Miles”.

The performance was a good mixing of fun and nerves as I experienced what DJ Spooky referred to as “haunted by the way things could have turned out”. For the most part it all went according to plan, except for the gunshots, I didn’t quite get it like I wanted to. The first couple times I practiced I had it down and it sounded great (to me, anyway) but stage fright got the better of me and I choked a bit. However, that was a very valuable experience. I know have a great respect for those that mix and remix, Dj’s are really impressive. Since the Webspinna I guiltily admit I’ve been nerdily indulging in Zelda Remixes and they are so impressive! I actually have a few songs I would like to juxtapose and infuse with sound effects because it would be fun.

The best part of the night was hanging out with my new friends of 112. Now that we’ve all got to know each other really well, we were all able to enjoy chatting and eating (so much junk food! It was gluttonously enjoyable), and going beyond getting to know each other—just enjoying each other’s company. I’d definitely do this again. 

WEBSPINNA YO!!

DJ Brando's Mix: NOS-talgia

Incredibox 
Invader ZIM!!!
Sub-Zero
Grooveshark
Guns

Medium Specificity

Haiku--succinct sonnets

Just five syllables

Two more for the second line

Five more syllables

It does not take many

Words, syllables or phrases

To say quite a lot

In fact,

You can change the rules

To fit.

Artist's Statement:

                     Both the Rankin photos and McCloud’s “Show and Tell” take their respective mediums (photography and comics) and use the basic core elements to describe/illustrate how the medium works. Having considered these ‘readings’, there was a wide world of mediums from which I could choose, though within bounds of time, reason, and budget. It was a welcome challenge, and originally I was going to explore the medium of CGI. However, while I was brainstorming ideas for this project, a friend jokingly suggested using haiku. At first, I laughed along with them, but then I realized that there was a lot to be discovered with haiku. Yes, they are short, but they are also beautiful, and they use that succinctness to say so much more than the 17 words they use. So, in order to capture the spirit of haiku, I read over 50 different haiku online, both contemporary and classic, from a few different sites, as well as did some light research into the history and form of haiku as well. Their whole purpose is to make brief, beautiful statements that act like a picture (in that a ‘picture is worth a thousand words’). Not only is it an art form, but it is a way of looking at the world.

I wrote three haiku to use for this particular assignment, each one exploring a particular element of haiku. The first is a humorously frank explanation of haiku structure. Just like the Rankin photos and McCloud’s “Show and Tell” comic, it simply lays out ‘how’ to write a haiku. However, it lacks a lot of the spirit and poetic nature of the haiku form. To remedy that, I wrote the second haiku. This explains and illustrates the beauty of the form, showing one of the greatest and most valuable effects haiku can have. However, I noted that not all haiku fit the 5-7-5 rule exactly, so I wrote the third for a more complete illustration of the concept. The serial haiku was in part inspired by serial art such as Andrew Grassie’s serial paintings known as Windmill. Individually, they all say something about haiku, collectively they are designed to embody haiku. 

Textual Poaching

I am Brandon, And I'm a Dreamer

Artist's Statement:

This assignment was helpful for me personally, because as I’ve mentioned in previous pieces my search of self has always been a struggle. So to have to identify a part of myself, then explore it through art was a welcome challenge. The moment in class that we had to say “I am a ______” first drew the blank as written, but then immediately I thought “a dreamer”. I am a dreamer. That has been a constant since birth, I think.

So, how do you illustrate being a dreamer? At first I thought about taking clips from my favorite “Dreamer” characters, such as Will from A Knight’s Tale, and D’Artagnion from The Three Muskateers, and doing something with that…but I realized I had no idea how to rip the clips legally. So, then I thought of Inception, and how the dream sequences were inspired by surrealist paintings.

So, I picked some surrealist paintings I found online to insert my personality into. Although I don’t have the incredible skills of Tibor Kalman, who took two seemingly opposite things and created a whole, incredible image from it, I figured that a Duchamp style was more in my grasp. I decided I would simply “paint” myself into these in what I dub a ‘dream-ish silhouette’, which I thought fit the surreal/dream theme. The silhouette is shaky, childlike, and I used Gimp’s paintbrush (rather than pencil) tool, because it creates a less distinct figure. That shade of blue is my favorite color, and the color with which I identify myself. It’s a really simple addition, but it goes from being a surrealist statement to being illustrations of my dreams, which is metaphorical in a couple of different ways. It shows the magnitude and strangeness of a lot of my ideas, as well as the improbability of a lot of my ideas. In this assignment, I’m acknowledging my talent as well as its weakness.  

Movement Manifesto--Beauty in the Everyday

Our Manifesto:

• Good art takes the everyday, the typical, and presents it in a thought inducing and inventive way
• Good art explores new approaches to something ordinary.
• Good art creatively blends conventional with experimental.

• Good art takes the everyday, the typical, and presents it in a thought ind

Artists' Statement:

In our manifesto we really wanted to conceptualize the significance of finding beauty in typical things or actions and depicting them in an interesting or unique way. We were really inspired by the grandeur found in Revolution (Life Cycle of a Drop of Water) by Chris Turner and Plastic Bag by Ramin Bahrani. As the title of each signifies, they are each about something simple and that we associate with every day. But through the creative eyes of these directors we as viewers are given new insight into the life of each of a simple drop of water and an average plastic bag. We, too, wanted to depict something very typical, but in a way that causes viewers to stop and really appreciate the magnificence something taken for granted. Breathing is definitely something that most of us take for granted; in fact it's so common that most of us can probably go all day doing it and not even think about it. In the exposition we have a girl under water drowning herself; withholding the very thing that grants her life: breath. We juxtapose this several times with underexposed clips of people using breath in various forms. This creates a stark contrast between one and the other: the first no longer wishing to breath, the other finding great joy in their use of breathing. Whether it is blowing out candles, catching your breath, or using a cool breath to cool down a drink, breathing is pretty spectacular and certainly under-appreciated. The last two scenes juxtapose a sigh of relief and choosing to come up for air and live. The multiple shots of types of breaths were to signify how whenever we are without air all we can think about is breathing. The scenes also gradually become shorter in length as the film progresses, in a similar way that breathing increases as stress increases. And then, finally, at the end we slow it down as the the sigh of relief is exhaled and the girl takes a much needed breath. Through this we hope that the viewer will view breath with more appreciation and maybe recognize its significance a little more regularly. 

Movment Manifesto Pitch Piece

Historical Story

NES

BY BRANDON CONOVER

AND KADEN WATSON

EXT. ARCADE - DAY

Establishing shot of the neighborhood arcade. Text on screen reads “February, 1986”.  Various video game sound effects can be heard in the distance.

INT. ARCADE – DAY

The arcade is crowded with nearly every machine occupied.  DANNY, a 12 year old boy, is getting Jujy Fruits (or some other candy) out of a vending machine at the back of the store.

Danny begins to weave his way back through the arcade, occasionally stopping at a machine and making a wise crack, calling the gamer by name.

DANNY

Hey Johnny! You’re supposed to avoid the ghosts not run into them... Brad’s about to beat your Galaga record... Richard, did I ever tell you that Q*Bert sucks?

Danny eventually returns to a group of 3 other kids, KEVIN, RICK, and COREY, watching a 4th, TAYLOR, play Donkey Kong.

COREY

Watch out for the flame.

TAYLOR

(eyes glued to the screen)

I’m not an idiot.

RICK

Why aren’t you going for the hammer??

DANNY

(pulling on Kevin’s shirt)

How far is he?

KEVIN

The score is in the same place it’s always at.

DANNY

Yeah but I can’t see over your fat head.

KEVIN

He’s not even close to my record.

COREY

(taunting)

Taylor’s doin’ pretty good isn’t he Kevin?

KEVIN

Anyone can jump over barrels Corey.  Except maybe you.

RICK

Danny, give me a Jujy Fruit.

DANNY

No.

Rick and Danny fuss in the background.

TAYLOR

Guys... quit it!

Rick rips the Jujy Fruits from Danny’s hand with a victorious laugh.  Danny falls backward into Taylor which causes the joystick to jolt forward and Mario dies.

Taylor sighs. He grabs the Jujy Fruits box out of Rick’s hands and throws them in Rick’s face who reacts nonchalantly.

RICK

(picking up the Jujy Fruits)

If that was your last life then that game was going nowhere.

EXT. ARCADE – EVENING

KEVIN

Ya’ know Taylor, you should probably stop trying to beat me or you’re gonna’ end up crying yourself to sleep every night instead of every other one.

TAYLOR

Mark my words Kevin Richards.  Your reign will end.

COREY

So Kevin... what’re you gonna’ get for your birthday that I can play with?

The kids’ nonsensical conversation continues and fades as they walk away, and a technology magazine cover is shown that is detailing the release of the Nintendo Entertainment System.

EXT. SCHOOLYARD – DAY

The five kids are playing tether ball at recess.  It looks cold and they’re all bundled up.

RICK

Alright, Corey I’m sick of hearing about your stupid collector’s Star Wars figurines.

COREY

If I keep them in good condition do you know how much they’ll be worth?

DANNY

75 cents?

They all laugh except Corey.

TAYLOR

What about you Kevin?

KEVIN

(grinning)

You guys wouldn’t believe me if I told you.

COREY

(completely serious)

An authentic lightsaber?? I didn’t know the crystals were even available to the public yet.

KEVIN

(irritated)

No. You guys will just have to come see after school.

INT. KEVIN’S HOUSE – DAY

The group is heading up some stairs with shag carpet.

KEVIN

Alright, you guys have to promise not to pee your pants.

DANNY

Get off your high horse Kevin. Unless you got a--- (gasp).

On the ground in Kevin’s room, connected to a TV is an NES.  There are two cartridges next to it, Duck Hunt and Super Mario Bros. Kevin looks satisfied at the group’s astonishment and envy.

RICK

How? I thought these were only going to be available on the East coast until next year.

KEVIN

My dad’s got some connections.

The boys marvel at the machine for a few moments.  They then begin to play the two games Kevin has and seem to have a lot of fun.

INT. KEVIN’S ROOM – EVENING

The boys are all watching Taylor play Super Mario Bros.  Kevin looks smug as Taylor isn’t anywhere near his record. Mario dies, and Taylor tosses the controller to the side.

KEVIN

Easy!

TAYLOR

You own the game and play it all the time, it’s not fair! When are we gonna’ go back to the arcade guys?

GROUP (general chatter)

What?  Why would we do that? We’ve got everything we need right here.

Outside the room KEVIN’S MOM is heard.

KEVIN’S MOM

Do you boys want some pudding cups?

RICK

Plus free food!

The boys excitedly run out except for Taylor who looks disappointed.

KEVIN

(As he exits the room)

Try Duck Hunt. You might be better at it.

Taylor angrily removes Super Mario Bros to put in Duck Hunt. He jiggles the stand the TV is on, causing a book to fall near the console with a big cloud of dust.

Taylor puts in Duck Hunt and it doesn’t work. He frantically resests the machine and the same thing happens. He then looks at the book, pulls the cartridge out, blows on it, and puts it back in. It works.

Taylor sighs with relief. He then gets a devious look on his face.  The boys come back in and begin to play.  They decide to switch back to Mario Bros and Taylor asks Rick if he’s ever read a book, holding a particularly dusty one out to him.

RICK

(hitting book)

Get that crap outta’ my face!

The book lands by the console and Taylor dusts it off near the cartridges. As Kevin puts in the game, it does not work to his dismay. He sets down the cartridge and controller, obviously put out.

KEVIN

Looks like that’s it for today guys, sorry. My dad will fix it when he gets home.

Taylor grins to himself, pleased with his revenge. However, after looking around and seeing how sad his friends are, his smile fades, replaced by a guilty frown. He sighs in resignation.

TAYLOR

Maybe you should try blowing on the cartridge?

Kevin looks like he’s going to retort, but decides better of it.

KEVIN

Can’t hurt to try, I guess.

Kevin blows on the cartridge, and puts it back in the console. Everyone holds their breath as he pushes the power button. It works! They all cheer.

KEVIN

All right! Not bad, Taylor.

Taylor smiles briefly as the other boys crowd around while Rick starts a new game. Taylor wishes everyone a quiet goodbye, but they are all so absorbed in the game no one hears him or sees him leave.

INT. ARCADE - EVENING

Taylor is playing Donkey Kong alone in the arcade.  The only sounds to be heard are the sound effects of the game.  Taylor is focused, but doesn’t look all that happy.  Mario dies, and the words, NEW HI-SCORE flash across the screen.  Taylor looks ecstatic for a moment then looks around the empty arcade and sees that there is no one to share in his feat.  He solemnly walks away from the machine.

EXT. STREET - EVENING

Taylor walks alone down the street obviously depressed.  He passes by a store selling NES consoles, scowling at the NES display as he walks by until he sees a large poster hanging next to a display in the window that says DONKEY KONG COMING SOON ON THE NES with an image of Donkey Kong.

He passes the window, then runs back to the poster.  He stands in front of the window for a minute and looks down the street back at the arcade.  He smiles fondly and looks back at the window eagerly. With a nod and a grin, he continues to walk home.

THE END

Artists’ Statement:

The reason we decided to go with a story set in the 80’s at the dawn of home consoles, was mostly because of the characters we knew we could create from that era.  Most people are at least aware of the gaming industry and some of its history (people would usually be able to tell you what an NES was if you showed them a picture), so it would be a known and recognizable point in time, while also giving us the freedom to create our own characters and story.  
We wanted our characters to each have a distinct personality and to be established early in the story.  We wanted it to have a The Goonies or Super 8 feel, where the characters are all very real and their own people.  We wanted the audience to know and enjoy the group, while also believing that they really were a close-knit group of friends in 1986.  However, since neither us lived at this point in time, we had to draw on our knowledge of pop culture (i.e. 80’s movies) to attempt to create an authentic atmosphere to fit the era.  

We also drew upon knowledge we gained from people we know who did live in that era.  For instance, Kaden’s dad played the NES quite a bit as a kid.  It’s a family story where his dad was almost late to the MTC because he was trying to get to the last level of Punch Out beat Mike Tyson before we would leave for two years and not be able to play it.  Plus, Kaden’s grandma kept the NES all these years, and Kaden was able to play it as a kid at least a little bit, and thus had some first hand knowledge about the machine (i.e. blowing on the cartridges).  This however, did not contribute much to trying to get an authentic era-feel, and thus we turned back to that pop culture knowledge.

In the very exposition, the comic medium used for After the Deluge instills an inherent nostalgic connection in young readers, especially young men. This is really effective as such readers automatically open themselves up to care and concern for the story, whereas most other means may come across as mundane regardless of the serious and tragic nature of the history. In a similar manner, the video game subject matter will connect with the same sort of demographic, using that connection to the home console culture to teach. In this case: the merits of finding hope in, and embracing, change.

Geneological Artifact

My sister gave me this desk ornament as a Christmas gift back when she was around 7 or 8. I think I must have been working on my Eagle Scout Award at the time because on the box it had a picture of an eagle, rather than a wolf, which is why she bought it. She still apologizes that it wasn’t an eagle, and I still assure her that I love it. In fact, I love it now even more than I did. There are quite a few reasons this arrowhead desktop item has become one of my most treasured possessions, but I will only have room to discuss the two that are at the heart of its symbolism to me: the whole arrowhead itself as a symbol of my love and relationship to my sister, and the wolf as my personal symbol.

Alexis is my only sibling, and being ten years apart has its challenges. I’m sad to admit that one of these challenges was often being considerate and active in my love and relationship to my sister. I was not horrible to her, in fact I do also admit I was a very good big brother; however I still regret not choosing to spend time with her more often and being more attentive and sensitive to her needs as my baby sister. I liked her little gift, which I kept on my desk, at first more for her than for me, but when it came time to pack for college I almost didn’t pack it so during my attempt to not bring too many knick-knacks. My mother saw that I was leaving it behind and inquired. I decided to bring it, and in that moment the symbol became a metaphor, as it represented my change from the selfish teenager, to the fiercely-loving big brother I had, eventually, began to become. She means more than anything in the world to me, and for that alone, the fake arrowhead is precious to me as it represents that love I have for her, and my resolution to never again take her for granted or give her anything less than the absolute and utter best that she deserves.

The second part is the wolf. When she first gave it to me, I had no connection with a symbol of the wolf. It looked cool, but nothing more. In fact, the eagle actually had more meaning at the time, to be honest. That changed in college, when I came here, to BYU. I was once asked by a great mentor what my favorite animal was (to use as a motivational symbol) and I told him a wolf, though that was far from what I was going to say. I don’t claim any mysticism or spiritual origin, but I did contemplate why I subconsciously named the wolf as my symbol, and I found it incredibly fitting. Like me, the wolf is a pack animal that needs to belong, and yet is also prone to be a loner, hence the term “Lone Wolf”. I am the same way. I have been blessed with many wonderful friends, but I’m always an add-on, an included member, rather than an actual member myself. I’m a part of the group, yet always apart. I still don’t completely understand why, but it’s apparently what I’m currently comfortable with.

Why do I love this so much? Why does it mean so much to me? It represents who I am.

Artist's Statement:

This assignment gave me the chance to take a wonderful walk down memory lane and find something that I could truly identify with. I found it. In fact, ironically enough it was my first instinct and inclination, but I decided to look through all my stuff, both at my apartment and my parents’ house. It came right back to this desk ornament. To me, identity is everything. I really struggle to find my identity, and so whenever I find something that I identify with it is extremely important to me. When I do find it, I cling to it. Take my favorite color for example. Even as late as early high school, I never had one answer for my favorite color. Turns out, it’s blue, specifically royal blue. In consequence, anything I can buy blue, I do. The very sight of blue makes me happy, makes me feel at home. Strange, yes, but there it is. To me, identity is precious, because it’s been so hard to find what I have. So this object, as you can tell, means a great deal to me, because I identify it with myself. It is a very special symbol to me.

The writing portion was probably pretty hard because it required me to expose myself in a way I haven’t before. I don’t recall ever vocalizing my connection to the symbol of the wolf, and frankly I hope it’s not misunderstood. It’s a precious, hard fought-for knowledge that defines myself. My little desktop item is like my totem in Inception, a reminder of who I am, and anchor in reality. Interestingly enough it also serves as inspiration. Its design, meant to feel old and with the spirit of unity with dangerous nature, acts like the keys in “Unknown Keys” from the readings. It both inspires me to continue one, to understand and accept myself, as well as provides motivation and inspiration to write and create stories. It’s me. 

Process Piece

https://soundcloud.com/jacobneuenswander/assembling-an-ar-15-rifle

My partner and I wanted to do a process that was both (hopefully) unique and that would create a reaction to the listener. After brainstorming for awhile, I was reminded of a friend of mine with a gun who I knew would be able to assemble it. A gun is something we are all very aware of because of their use in media and politics, but how many of us know how they work? I sure didn’t. We knew they had a lot of parts, but we didn’t know what parts, how many, or how they all fit together. We made two recordings: one with just the sounds of the assembling, and a narrated recording, trying to capture as much of the sounds as possible. At first we thought we’d us the sounds of him assembling the gun, followed by a gunshot for context. However, we found out in the Thursday lab when we showed it to another group, that without the narration the process was terribly unclear. At first the narration seemed hesitant, but like the viewing we were given in class My Mom the Taxidermist by Borup, our friend the gun owner’s frank, neutral, instructive voice describing the intricate pieces and process of assembling the gun, using equally complicated jargon, is unbiased and therefore it is up to the listener to decide what to think about what he is describing. This neutrality reminds me of a documentary we were shown last semester in TMA 102 called The Devil’s Miner. They simply show things as they are, what occurs, and allow the miners, especially the young boy, to tell the story and day-to-day life of the miner. To some people, it is interesting to see their conditions, for others it is a ghastly revelation of a poor people that are put in both physical and spiritual jeopardy from a shockingly young age. Likewise our friend’s description of the gun in its neutral, frank tone simply states what is, and doesn’t give any points or descriptions of his feelings about the gun or the uses of it. The audience’s reaction is therefore their own. It is a direct reflection of what they believe. To some it will be interesting and baffling in its complexity. To others every click will bother them as they imagine what they deem to be a terrible weapon as it is being created. As the shot is fired, some will hear it with interest, while others will be concerned. There are, of course, many feelings and beliefs, and I only named a couple, but the point is that both should come away with a better understanding of the complexity of the gun. 

Tiny Stories

I’m really glad that the focus of this assignment is exploring different sources, because it made this process so much more stimulating, enjoyable and creative. My first order of business was to think of all my normal sources of inspiration and get as far away from them as possible, at least for the initial idea, or the connecting element. I finally thought I would have the connecting element be five people I know, as it would be both interesting and new for me. It hit me that I have five roommates, and if I could find a way to hone in on a piece of each of their personalities, then that would be a fascinating and fun inspiration for a tiny story. My next order of business was to figure out how to get down to such a specific and deeper part of their personalities in a connected way. I originally thought of having them all do a mad-lib or word association, but in class Claire suggested I ask a broad question. That suggestion was boosted by Sterling’s about a minute later, who shared that if you want to get to the root of anything you ask the question “why?” five times. Bingo, there was my process, but what of the question? It hit me as I was walking home the other day: ask what their favorite color is. Something that seems so small, insignificant, and basic about a person just might hold a deeper meaning and reveal more about their character than politics or pet preferences when explored more thoroughly. I was right! As I interviewed each roommate I asked them what their favorite color was and asked a ‘why question’ at least five times to their response. I actually did the brainstorming and interviews before the reading, which made me both understand and agree with it all the more. Dillard talks about ‘seeing’ the small things that goes unnoticed. Both I and my roommates saw things that were so foundational parts of their personalities that none of us had realized or taken notice. I failed to mention that one of the stories ended up being mine, as I was unable to get a hold of one roommate. That was a fascinating experience as I ‘interviewed’ myself, striving to be as strictly honest with myself as possible, to truly dig in as deep as I had with my roommates, and the answer was enlightening.

Once I had those ‘pieces of personality’, it was time to fashion a story around them. I decided that the colors were important, and I wanted to incorporate them somehow. I like to listen to music when I’m doing this kind of work, and I had been craving the “Misty Mountains” song from the Hobbit for awhile, so I put the entire soundtrack I found on Youtube. As I listened I was reminded about how fantasty/fiction is the perfect basis for establishing symbols, so I considered each response and created a symbolic story for it. 

Music Mosiac

Song: "Strange Paradise" by Bonds

link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PRvl-djWMd8

(Note: I did not see the video until after the images were already created)

            I’m not going to lie, at first glance it seemed a bit of a stretch to connect this week’s Music Mosaic with Forbes’ “The Power of Story in an Age of Consequence” talk. However, now it makes more sense when I consider that these mosaics are a reflection of our personalities, of our own selves. At least, I found that my mosaic is a reflection of myself and my thought processes. Forbes talked about the importance of the story in shaping culture and crossing boundaries by communicating on a level that is much harder to reach in any other way. What better way to tell our stories than through a careful selection of music? And, better yet, to then depict the images and feelings we receive from that piece of music?

I found this song, “Strange Paradise” by Bonds, on a CD in one of the apartments on my mission, having been left by some missionary sometime earlier. At the time I really connected with this track because its “traveling” feel encouraged spiritual pondering. Now that I’ve returned from my mission the “traveling” aspect is often more related to a colorful space journey, which is where the first image comes from. However, after sharing ideas with a partner in class these images evolved from a simple space odyssey to include the kind of wonder and graceful beauty in our own world. My mind combined not only Sci-Fi images in response to the song, but also the beautiful flow of a city at night, especially with a combination of old and new buildings (just like the combination of the violin and the electronic effects). As I took time later to sit and listen to the song I saw the neon stars, hyperspace, and vortex images, each image followed by another image, such as the road trip, contemporary dancer, and the city at night. I tried to recreate this visual journey by starting each ‘segment’ with a base ‘space’ image that I had created in a CG software called Lightwave, then a corresponding photo image, as that is how they appeared in my head.