http://changethis.com/manifesto/45.02.FreakFactor/pdf/45.02.FreakFactor.pdf

Focus: you can’t do both. This suggestion resonates quite well with me. Everyday I try to become a better student, dancer, fraternity member, guitar player, video game designer, friend, brother, etc. These are all things that I enjoy doing or being. The problem is I can’t focus on all of them at the same time. The suggestion makes the point that we have limited resources and energy to work on tasks. I’m currently exhausting all my resources just trying to balance school and fraternity matters. It’s pretty ridiculous how unbalanced my schedule got so quickly simply because I overloaded it. Now focusing on all those things I wanted to do would be completely counter-productive because none of them would get done in time. Attempting to fix my disorganized self can diminish my corresponding strength (creativity, according to the chart). So instead of trying to organize my entire schedule, maybe I should figure out how to turn some practices or activities into less time-consuming activities. It will take some creative thinking, but I’m sure I’ll come to a conclusion eventually. I thought it was extremely interesting to see this point illustrated in the retail industry. Both Target and Wal-Mart have strengths that they play to, but when another retail store such as K-Mart attempts to be well-rounded, there becomes no reason to go there. This is similar in any field. If an employee is too well-rounded they won’t excel at anything, and probably won’t get hired. An unfortunate paradox to what we’ve been taught almost our entire lives.

Forget it: Don’t try to fix your weakness. “You can’t put feathers on a dog and call it a chicken” is the inspirational quote at the beginning of this suggestion. I feel like I really need to pay attention to this suggestion in particular because I’m always beating myself up about how I need to change myself to eliminate my weaknesses. The truth is that’s only making me more stressed, frustrated, and miserable. Just as the manifesto mentions “It’s painful. We don’t enjoy working on our weaknesses”. It’s entirely true. I hate organizing and planning and trying to figure out what I’m going to do with myself. I’d much rather be playing video games or watching Doctor Who. These are activities I could be making a significant progress in and finding self-fulfillment (also addressed in the manifesto). If I become successful at realizing what I enjoy doing then it shouldn’t matter what I don’t enjoy doing, because I won’t have to do it. The process through actually addressing a weakness and trying to fix it is slow. Not only is it slow, but it is extremely cumbersome, as previously mentioned, we hate working on our weakness. At the end of the day, it doesn’t actually work. Even if we eliminate a weakness, it doesn’t become a valuable strength. All that time refining our problems becomes wasted and we simply become mediocre.

Foundation: Build on your strengths. It just makes sense. What do you like doing? We will hardly enjoy doing something that feels bad. We enjoy something because we’re passionate about it and proficient in it (or becoming proficient in it). Statistically speaking you also have the greatest potential to succeed in areas you’re already strong in. Because you’ve developed early interests and retained them, you’re more inclined to indulge those interests. As mentioned in the earlier suggestions: if your strengths are well defined they make up for your weaknesses. It can get to the point where your weaknesses become completely irrelevant. If you never excelled in math, then why would you want to become a math major? Instead of torturing oneself and trying to make something work, they should find what works and pursue that instead. I took 3 years of animation in high-school. Despite the fact that the tasks were time-consuming and tedious, they were tasks that I had fun with. Because I found enjoyment in my work the tasks became much easier at times and that much more rewarding at the end of the day. Not only was it rewarding, but I could see physical improvement in my skill-sets. The point is that you should definitely look into what you’re good at or what you enjoy doing and keep at it.

Brainwashed

http://changethis.com/manifesto/66.01.Brainwashed/pdf/66.01.Brainwashed.pdf

Acknowledging the lizard refers to the prehistoric part of the human brain that is resistant to criticism, punishment, or embarrassment. No one wants to be embarrassed or laughed at so we avoid situations in which we would expose ourselves to that sort of attention. Similarly we try to avoid anything that would lead to self-disappointment or punishment. We have become conditioned to be fearful and avoid things that might be risky, but beneficial to ourselves.

Failing is a key part of what we must learn to do to overcome our lizard portion of our brains. The ability to accept failure, take it gracefully, and try again, is not only a way to overcome fear, but also a way to learn. If you never try to become successful you will never learn what does and does not work. Everyone can be successful at something if they can recognize how they need to go about achieving their goals. Resources are a factor, but resources are being made more readily available every day.

Connecting is arguably the most important resource our generation has. The ability to converse easily with someone thousands of miles away to get advice, seek criticism, bounce ideas off of, even just be personable with, is simply astounding. We no longer have to spend an obscene amount of money to get a name out on the internet and available to billions of people. We can publish our personal arts to all these people and those who like it will share it with their friends.

I’m acknowledging my own lizard this year just by writing these blogs. These aren’t something I would’ve done on my own, but I see how helpful they can be in making me think differently, analyze more critically, etc. Not only has it provided an outlet for me to express my thoughts, but this blog will be connected with everyone else who has internet access. I have to think carefully about what I want to express because billions of people could be reading my entries as I type this. It’s interesting to know that this resource is something that could be what lands me an interview, or sparks a random conversation with someone I’ve never met, or never would have had the chance to meet. At the same time I know that a lot of what I type here is opinionated. Some of the billions of people (perhaps every single one of them) might completely disagree with what I have to say. This degree of failure does not appeal to the lizard-brain portion of my thought processes. Quite the opposite it’s telling me “don’t post that shit, it sounds dumb. You’re gonna get laughed at for saying that you moron”. On the other-hand I’m also being graded on some of these for a class I’m currently taking, so if I do not complete them I will get poor marks, which is another form of punishment that the lizard-brain does not want. I can already vouch for the fact that networking through online social tools can create connections with people you never would have expected to meet. I’ve talked to artists, game designers, code-monkeys, journalists, but most importantly: friends. Everyone I’ve connected with I consider a friend because I’ve adopted the “be generous” layer also described in the “Brainwashed” manifesto. I don’t mind collaborating and doing favors for other people I meet randomly online, because that not only gets me experience in something I’m interested in, but also builds and strengthens my connection with others, as well as gives me more things to put on a resume.

In regards to whether or not these exercises are effective or not, it all depends on what each individual takes out of them. I personally feel they’re helpful, but counterproductive to the “let’s kill the lizard-brain mentality”. They promote that we have to connect or we get punished, which will eventually become a faulty system and basis for thinking. We must encourage people to overcome these hindrances on their own; the problem lies in how we measure how well people do that. The educational system is entirely outdated, but what could possibly replace it? I will be curious to see what evolves from my current generation as we learn to break the mould and lizard-brain mentality.

Scene Deconstruction

This was an entry into the 2011 Ohio University 48-Hour Shootout. Each group had 48 hours to construct a film using a random genre, prop, and line.

The theme of this piece is centered heavily around relationships. Being able to get through the best and worst with a single person can be the most difficult thing to do. This is apparent through the heavy use of flash-backs that provide us a window into this couple's relationship. Another theme seems to be regretting; this is not apparent until the very end (unless you're watching the video a second time through). The end sequence shows the main character staring at what appears to be an engagement ring, and a woman asking if he's ready to go. The camera focuses on the woman in the background who is not the woman from his flashbacks. His expression becomes somber and the clip ends, this makes the title of the piece "My Intended" make a lot more sense. He intended on giving the ring to this other woman he remembers, but something happened and now all that's left are memories.

This short film used a surprisingly small amount of space to convey its message. The flashback scenes were all filmed with the characters being shot from the waist up. This made the scenes feel smaller and gave the illusion that the characters were that much closer together. Because the characters appeared to be closer it added to the tension and emotion they were portraying towards each other in each scene. The characters are also always facing each other in each shot up until the last scene where the main character is facing away from his assumed girlfriend. Interestingly the characters’ colors change to reflect the mood in each scene. For example in the scene where the main character is trying to comfort his upset significant other, he is wearing yellow, a warm and comforting color while she is wearing a pale, white sweatshirt, making her seem flat in the space. This becomes contrasted when he places his arms around her, making him appear larger and more protective in their embrace.

Movement was also very important in this piece. The camera transitions were marked with a slow swipe between each scene and the camera would take a second to adjust. This mimics not only the human eye, but also the human mind when processing and correlating its thoughts. This technique is very similar to Alfred Hitchcock’s style of directing. The camera would focus on important items, but continue to slowly focus around the room, taking in every forefront detail that the human eye would usually capture.

Animation Deconstruction

 

 

Both of these pictures are from the British Broadcasting Corporation’s hit series Doctor Who. Both pictures feature the main character (The Doctor) in an active pose facing the camera. The first major difference between the two is the color scheme. The Doctor in the first picture (the tenth doctor) is surrounded by a white light, the hues in his apparel being dark navy-blue, accentuated by the white and red lights surrounding him. The second picture featuring the eleventh Doctor features him wearing a brown jacket and surrounded by blues and a bit of violet. This second picture is darker than the first one which sets a more serious tone and portrays a more serious attitude. In both of the pictures the main source of light is coming from the upper-right. The mood for the first picture portrays a bit more action because of the brighter tones and exaggerated pose. The lines are also drawn straight and inwards all toward The Doctor which draws out the action more directly. In the second picture the lines are drawn in a spiral towards the center. The Doctor isn’t at the center of the picture because his companion is with him so the lines are drawn towards both of them and detracts from just the action of The Doctor. The curved nature of the lines is also detracting from the overall action giving a darker mood. The lines in both pictures are following parallel movement but the weight of the first picture is a lot lighter than that of the second. The overlapping movements of the action lines in the second picture make it much heavier.

Storyboard Imitation

Frank Darabont did a fantastic job directing the escape scene for Andy. He abides by the 180 degree rule and the rule of thirds as well as the 30 rule. The scene starts with the camera switching between 0 and 180 degrees then focuses on Andy packing at a 30 degree angle. Whenever Andy is being depicted before transitioning settings, him or an important object is highlighted and focused on, being placed on the left third line. This abides by the rule of thirds and remains consistent throughout the entire scene. Even in the scenes where Andy is cramped and confined to a narrow passageway, the 180 degree rule is never broken. At the very end of the scene the director breaks the 180 degree rule and superimposes the angle by panning an extra 30 degrees. This was done strategically because the character was “breaking free” of his boundaries that were imposed on him and keeping him in jail. Likewise the director was breaking the boundaries of the 180 degree rule and reflecting the character’s experiences.

Song Deconstruction

LISTENING FRAMEWORK 

"Take on Me" by A-ha

LISTENING PHASE 1 (Rhythm)

Tempo [slow, medium, fast]

                The tempo is very quick

Source [where is the rhythm coming from?]

                Rhythm comes predominately from the drums and slightly from the keyboard.

Groove [describe how the personality of the rhythm]

                The groove is very lively and uplifting, much like a modern “pop” song

LISTENING PHASE 2 (Arrangement)

Instrumentation [which instruments drive the song?]

                The drums and keyboard drive this song completely.

Structure/Organization [how is the song built?  Order, patterns, etc.]

Opens with the quick drum-beat, kept steady through entire song, keyboards are added, chorus builds up to an impressive falsetto high-note.

Emotional Architecture [Draw how the song build and drop?]

Each chorus consists of chords that build up to a climactic high-note, this stresses tension/release.

LISTENING PHASE 3 (Sound Quality)

-  Height [high and low of frequency]

                Generally low frequency, gradually gets higher

-  Width [stereo panning left/right]

                Keyboard part in the middle pans between left and right speakers

-  Depth [layers of instruments - via loudness]

                More instruments are continually added, adding more layers and making it louder.

LISTENING FRAMEWORK 

"Take on Me" by Reel Big Fish

LISTENING PHASE 1 (Rhythm)

Tempo [slow, medium, fast]

                The tempo is very quick

Source [where is the rhythm coming from?]

                Rhythm comes predominately from the drums and slightly from the guitar.

Groove [describe how the personality of the rhythm]

                The groove is very lively and upbeat, but slightly heavy, like a punk-rock song

LISTENING PHASE 2 (Arrangement)

Instrumentation [which instruments drive the song?]

                The drums and guitar drive this song completely.

Structure/Organization [how is the song built?  Order, patterns, etc.]

Opens with the quick drum-beat, kept steady through entire song, heavily distorted guitar is added, chorus builds up with brass instruments to an impressive falsetto high-note.

Emotional Architecture [Draw how the song build and drop?]

Each chorus consists of chords that build up to a climactic high-note, this stresses tension/release, added harmonies aid this

LISTENING PHASE 3 (Sound Quality)

-  Height [high and low of frequency]

                Medium frequencies, that quickly become higher ranged.

-  Width [stereo panning left/right]

                Guitar solo and some other minor instrumentation pans from left and right in middle

-  Depth [layers of instruments - via loudness]

                More instruments are continually added, adding more layers and making it louder.

For this little project I decided to choose a cover song, and it’s original. The song in question is “Take on Me”, originally performed by A-ha and released in 1985. The cover by Reel Big Fish is a ska implementation was recorded around 1998. Even though they are both the same song they have a lot in contrast as well. The original 80’s version sticks to layering the drums and keyboard in a simple manner, having the harmonies only come in during the “call/answer” section in the chorus. Reel Big Fish however, layers the drums on top of a bass and a distorted guitar, then throws in brass instruments for the harmonic “call/answer” section all while adding their own harmonies to the rest of the song. The added distorted guitar makes the groove a lot heavier than the original, changing it from a “pop” sort of feel to a “punk” kind of feel. Though the drums are the driving force for the rhythm in both songs, they have a few key differences. The first is that the drums in the Reel Big Fish rendition are slightly faster, which assists in giving the groove a heavier feel.

The other difference is that the kick-snare pattern in the Reel Big Fish version is accentuated by a high-hat on the off-beats. This also makes the rhythm feel faster and because the high-hat is open it provides a lasting sound to fill the space between beats. This detracts from the “pop” type feeling in the original piece. I strongly prefer the Reel Big Fish version to the A-ha version of “Take on Me”. My opinion might be a tad biased seeing as how my ska band in high school played the Reel Big Fish version, but aside from that I feel it is livelier. The original is great, but the added layers of the horns and harmonies make the melody stand out a whole lot more. It is a much more “danceable” version of the song (not to say the original was impossible to dance to), though to be fair, the original music video was a whole lot cooler.