I found this film especially interesting for its approach at mimicking cooking shows and exposing notions of feminity and she clearly has an anti-kitchen mentality. Her demeanor was very serious and you could see her anger by how she demonstrated using kitchen items with strong force which is unusual given the familiar context of cooking shows. Her voice and actions were very ironic in nature. The stationary placement of the camera in front of her made the piece have a very cooking show style because she was clearly giving a demonstration. This film forces the viewer to reflect back on the common cooking show in a different context. This film examined the relationship that women have with kitchen utensils by problematizing them. For example she stabbed the knife into the air. She sseemed to be reintroducing people t how these items are to be used and viewed. M favorite part of this film was when she used the ladle and demonstrated it by scooping and then tossing the imaginary contents onto the floor.
Theme Song- Vito Acconci
The first thing I noticed when watching this film was the depth of field created b having the camera on the floor angled at a position that it looked down his entire body to a couch in the background. His relaxed nature of singing and talking directly to the audience and asking if anyone was there -made it seem like the intention was to break down the barrier between image and audience. However, I think it reinforced the barrier because there is the realization that you can't join him. With the technology of today it becomes easy to feel like you may be watching reality unfold but you don't realize the barrier until asked to become part of the image. Acconci is also playing with notions of masculinity by conflicting with stereotypes by expressing insecurities and loneliness. He says he wants to know that he matters " I need someone to remember me someone to take care of me."
Joan Does Dynasty- Joan Braderman
I really liked what Braderman was doing with this piece. I think that the critique of a show helps the audience to view it with a different context. The different positions and movements on the screen foreces the audience to pay attention to her commentary which is especially important since it is easy to get absorbed into television dramas. I think I would have been more appreciative of the critique if I had seen the show before. It is difficult to watch something for the first time and watch it through two lenses. I was trying to watch both the show and watch the critique equally in order to get the most out of the critique. Familiarity with the show would have allowed me to step back and absorb what she was saying more.
Ilha das Flores- Jorge Furtado
The film's uses build up and repetition to stress it's point of view, which made it very effective and impactful. The video was structured like an educational video. The stress on the of human beings as having highly developed brains and opposable thumbs explanation was important because it is a seemingly obvious statement. We see that the people on the screen are human beings but the fact that it is explained makes this film an important commentary on how it is easy to understand that all people are human beings and that is exactly why it is so absurd that human beings all with the same important characteristics are treated differently by the amount of money they have. The collage of images and the quickly repeated sequences created continuity and flow illustrating the interconnectedness surrounding the common thread of the tomato.
Caught Between Two Worlds- Simin Farkhondeh
Caught Between Two Worlds was a very interesting and informative film. Stylistically, I especially liked how it transitioned between different interviews. The film had a very natural flow and progression. Each interview seemed to lead to another person, another story of what it is like to be and exiled Iranian living in the United States. There was a diverse range of people interviewed and what they did for a living and their experience living in the U.S. Also I enjoyed seeing the reality of the interviews early on. Specifically one woman was talking candidly before the interview started and in another case showing the cab driver getting rear-ended and then getting out to check if there was any damages. Those moments added a certain something to the film.
Secret Daughter- June Cross
After watching the entire film I was suprised by how dynamic her story was and how much she was able to explore her history, her family and race relations in just one film. The film had a clear evolution. Once she had a crew with her you could see how the quality of the film changed. She also became more naturally integrated into the film. Having the crew really made the film because she became apart of the interviews. Instead of just hearing her voice from behind the camera you could see her expressions and responses. The movie became less of an interview and became a series of conversations. In retrospect, I realized how important it was that she included the first interview that she did of her mother even though it had no sound. This film followed her self-discovery and you felt as if you were learning more as she learned more about herself and her family it was just a re-telling of a story. Having her voice narrate though the entire film gave it continuity throughout the different images. I wondered why she chose to inter disperse beautiful images of the ocean, it was aesthetically pleasing but I wondered if it acted as a metaphor or had a specific purpose. I really liked how she would reenact or show images of the things she was talking about using photography and specifically the images of her pushing her green beans away and throwing her toys down the stairs. There was a sense of resolution when she meets her half-sister that went through a very similar childhood and now they both have found a strong feeling of belonging to each other.
Meshes of the Afternoon- Maya Deren
The cinematography was interesting and the different techniques that she used were inspiring because with the camera she was able to create various illusions. For instance, she made it appear as though the stairs were moving, that the woman instantly moved about the room and she also made it appear as if the woman was floating down to pick something up. The woman seemed to always be looking for something and everything unraveled like a mystery allowing one to decide who was the murderer and what was actually real.
Cassie J's Final Project
I really liked how you approached this final project. The images that you shot were all very beautiful with good composition. I think the fact that you shot the images before and you knew which poems- must have made editing a challenge but it definitely gave the images a natural flow. I also liked how you began and edited with footage of the speak out. It would be interesting to do a similar project but shoot each shot with a poem in mind. Since the spoken poetry was such an important component of this piece it seems to be really worthwhile to rerecord the poems.
Claire's Final Project
Your piece was very aesthetically dynamic with many colors and textures. I really liked the cross dissolves between the images especially when transitioning to and from water. Your use of keeping the images out of focus at first definitely allowed for smooth transitions. You clearly tried a lot of different things and it was really interesting and enjoyable to watch. The only thing is that maybe the story of the apples and the unidentified man could be pushed further to make it clearer.
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