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Mike's final video piece

It was really pleasing to watch your final video, not only within the context of our classmates' work, but also within the context of your work throughout the semester. As Janet mentioned, you did a really good job of pairing imagery, sound and words in order to produce the additional elements of concept and metaphor. I appreciated the visual style of your piece, which felt very aware of it's video-ness. In particular, I was impressed by your manipulation of the green screen. You mentioned in class that you could've tweaked the filter to get the "ideal" effect, but preferred the strange, chaotic look that you ended up with; I think you made the right choice and a bold move as well. You approached the filter creatively and employed it in a way that's theoretically "wrong", but in doing that you created a new use for it. Breaking so-called rules like this is very necessary, especially when everyone in the world making videos is essentially using the same handful of editing software. Without a certain level of disregard for the proper function of our tools, we end up with videos that all look the same.

Good luck with your future work.

Response to Jeff's, Hannah's, and Mike's Final Videos

Response to Jeff’s:
I liked the idea of doing a “Rugrats” stylized remake. It was well filmed, well lit, and had good continuity in all areas. As I said in class, you seem to have a particular style that has come through in all your pieces, and as the semester has progressed I like that you keep exploring your particular style and getting more complex in your shooting, editing, and sound design. In the video I think that the sound design in particular set the tone of your video really well. I think that it was okay to never see the actors together in a circle, but if you want them to appear like they are in the same room together you might think about doing some L-cuts with the audio so that it sounds more conversational, but keeps to the style of the filming.
The times when the characters were dancing were definitely my favorite parts of the video. I liked the movement of both the characters and the camera, and the quick editing. It also looked slightly altered, and I am not sure if it was strictly camera work and lighting, or if you did something in post-production, but I think that was where the epitome of your style came through and I would like to see more of that. Overall, you do very careful and complete work, and out of it came a lot of good work.


Response to Hannah’s:
I like the topics you are exploring in your film. I think that it is a topic very often talked about, making it difficult to bring something fresh to the discussion, but that you have a very good start on it. I especially like that you are asking women to draw what they think is a “beautiful woman.” I think that the part that was my least favorite was when you added in the media-images of women. I think that sometimes that can come off as too blatant and is done pretty often, so as you continue with this project you should be careful where you put it in. I like the idea of it being a contrast to the young girls you are hoping to interview, and I think that you can use your techniques to juxtapose girls and sexualized women and your film can become a powerful statement on this topic.

Response to Mike’s:
I really liked your twist on people who are bombarded with media becoming zombies. It looked like you had taken inspiration from a lot of the videos we watched for our class into account when making your video, and I liked how your video came out. I think you have a good handle on the definition of hegemony, and your own ideas on it as well. Your ideas about the media are often discussed in Hampshire classes, and I think that many students have become desensitized to many of the ideas, but I think your video says what many discussions I have sat through over and over tried to say much more eloquently and concisely. Your use of found footage right after your definition of certain words worked well because by putting the definition into context the viewer could grasp immediately what you were saying, and by knowing the images on the screen (for example, we all have seen images of war on the news), you give the audience a particular context in which to view the images, evoking a different response to them than usual, and therefore you open up discussion on both the definitions you put up, and media’s place in out lives.

Responses

Secret Daughter- June Cross
I thought this documentary was well done because of its strong narrative. Cross made the story very personal, which always helps bring empathy and understanding to any situation. June Cross was exploring the place of mixed race individuals in America because she wanted some resolution to her own place in the world, and along the way she discovered with the audience that she is not the only person and that this is a difficult issue that everyone in America needs to deal with (not just people who are biracial). I’m sure she knew all this when she started, but by taking the audience with her on her journey to understanding her own family history, she allowed the viewer to understand one story in depth and therefore connect with her on a personal level. This makes the viewer care about the bigger issues in America, and perhaps it makes some viewers seek more information and want to change the way that race is dealt with in America.

Joan Does Dynasty- Joan Braderman
I agree with what Cass said about wishing that I had seen the show before. I also had to split my focus between the commentary and the show to understand what she was saying. I think that it is a very good idea to put commentary over a well-known tv show (or movie, or anything). I think if it were a newer show that I knew, I would have really liked it—especially the times when she would say cutting remarks that sounded like something I would say when watching a show like that. I think that if this documentary was out to educate people who watched this about the misogyny in the show, she may have been too blunt and not ironic enough. I think this because if someone is trying to sway me to have a certain opinion, I prefer to feel like I am being talked to like an intelligent person, rather than bombarded with opinions. However, I recognize that there is a place for this type of activism, and while it is not to my personal tastes, I still think it is important to have it and this piece was well executed in what it was doing.


Ilha das Flores- Jorge Furtado
This film was the most effective for me (which I think speaks to the kind of activist films I like rather than the film itself). By starting out like a satire on educational videos, it immediately established a connection with its audience that allowed the viewer to let down their guard and get into the video. Then it foreshadowed the seriousness of what it was talking about by cutting to a few graphic pictures when it talked about animals and people. I found as an audience member I knew what was coming but was still surprised to see the ending, and that by making the narrator sound like he didn’t care about the people who are in these horrible situations that it made me care even more. In opposition to “Joan Does Dynasty,” this video makes the viewer feel that they have been shown something that they should draw their own conclusion about how to deal with it—even though it is perfectly clear at the same time that they are supposed to want to help.

Semiotics of the Kitchen- Martha Rosler
I liked this film a lot and am not entirely sure why. I think that I liked the simplicity of it. Her message was simple and clear: she is breaking out of her role as a housewife and is angry about women’s believed role. I think I like that it was one of the first women’s experimental videos and she found a public voice for herself in television—which in her time was heavily male dominated. The simplicity of the video—one straight on shot of her picking up, defining, and “demonstrating” common kitchen utensils is deceptive. I think it shows a lot of other layers to her anger, one with I think is that the simplicity parallels the idea that a woman’s place in the kitchen is simple and straightforward. This may be stretching what she wanted, but I also think that a viewer can take their own ideas into account when interpreting a piece, and this video is particularly geared for people to understand her specific point (because it is so obvious), and because of its seeming simplicity people will look for more in it and find what they want.

Fast Trip, Long Drop (in response to Anjali)

I also found that I had a hard time with the film, but for opposite reasons. I was thoroughly engaged in the first ten minutes when he was playing many different characters and being satirical, however I started to lose my connection to his story when the man playing the different anchorman-type roles left. I feel like he started something that was going to bounce between satirical and genuine and be both engaging and moving, but when the satire filtered mostly out I found that even though the topics were important and I cared about what he was saying, the documentary itself didn’t leave as strong an impression as Tounge’s Untied did for me. This is not to say that you have to be funny to get a point across to an audience anymore (I hope that I have more an attention span than that), but I feel that this documentary in particular would have benefited from keeping the contrast between the satire and the genuine in strong form, and it would create more of a connection to the characters.

Meshes of the afternoon

Meshes of the afternoon is a profoundly important piece for its symbolism and use of sound to enhance the overall subject matter. The film is extremely dense; however, there are several instances where the message of the movie becomes clear. When the main character of the film enters her house each time, she experiences similar things; however, each time there is a slight difference. She chases a faceless figure, only to find that when she finally sees its face, it is a mirror. This may suggest that she sees herself within her own enemy. This could also imply a that the mirrored figure is what she sees in her lover. Symbols are extremely important in a movie such as this, when words are absent. The sound complements the symbols to suggest differentiate between what is important. Her struggle to decide whether or not to kill this figure becomes increasingly complicated once she experiences the same scenario, but with her husband in place on the demon. The idea is obvious: although she wants to kill her husband (the embodiment of the demon), she sees herself in her husband, and loses the struggle, only to kill herself in the end.

Tongues Untied, Fast Trip Long Drop

Tongues Untied
Martin Riggs' Tongues Untied is an excellent example of the artfulness that can employed in the construction of documentary. Riggs uses form, composition, pace and emotional dynamics to create a rich viewing and hearing experience that challenged my comfort zone without being overly assaultive in its force. I thought his combination of found footage, performance, evocative imagery and talking-head style interviews allowed for the themes of the video to be expressed on emotional, intellectual, and sensual levels. Riggs did an excellent job in fulfilling the responsibility to capture a culture, scene and lifestyle that many can only understand superficially or one-sidedly. I was really impressed with his, and the actors/contributors ability to use humor and poke fun at themselves in order to relate to viewers on that crucial level. The use of humor also provided a refreshing ease for the viewer which, many times is left out in order to maintain a sense of seriousness and importance when discussing the emotionally charged topics of sexuality, gender, and ethnicity.

Fast Trip, Long Drop
Gregg Bordowitz's video has an interesting combination of personal and autobiographical reflection combined with a historical approach to looking at the cultural and individual experience of AIDS. His device of playing many different characters was clever and very inspirational in the spirit of independent video. Much of the camerawork and editing decisions (intercut black&white archival footage) gave the video a bit of an amateur feel, but this felt appropriate as it added to the feeling that Bordowitz could be just about anyone and that his experience represents a small ripple in what is an enormous wave of suffered, proud, oppressive, and often silenced experience.

Tongues Untied

I like the way the beginning consists of silent, mostly slow motion images with poetry over it, and I really liked the way the rest of the film wove in music and poetry and heartbeats throughout and also played with ideas of silence and speaking. I found the structure of the film fascinating, and I really liked the way close up shots of men’s faces both speaking and silent kept reappearing throughout, which juxtaposed with the voice-overs of poetry and commentary over other images.

Sibba's final video

After I left class, the image from your film that stayed with me was the one of the hands covered with mud, persistently rubbing and scratching at the drying mud to try to get it off. That was a strong image that really worked in putting me into the creepy dream world of your film. Even though I didn’t quite follow the plot as I was watching, I enjoyed the atmosphere, and the plot didn’t seem to matter. The editing together of interesting and striking images kept me intrigued all the way through.

Fast Trip, Long Drop

I couldn’t seem to get into this film completely. The reappearance of the same man always pushing a message of “there’s still hope” and “I wouldn’t be here if I was handing out death sentences” as well as the initially very ironic found footage set me up to expect more consistent satire, so I had a hard time switching back and forth from the clearly satiric interview into the mode of watching a serious documentary about the personal experiences of one man and of other people who appeared only once or twice. Because we read the essay by Gregg Bordowitz, I caught on to certain points he was making about the portrayal of AIDS in the media that I don’t think I would have gotten out of the film on its own. Still, I liked the informal style of the interviews, and found what they were saying extremely interesting.

Semiotics of the Kitchen

The very slow, deliberate pacing of this film, the simple setting, and the single unchanging angle of the video camera create a tone of honesty while also showing the monotony of a woman’s life in the kitchen. The motions she uses are also really interesting, and of course humorous. For instance, the quick, abrupt movements with which she tosses imaginary substances aside were very convincing—I almost thought I saw something actually flying out of the spoon. I was entertained by this film—I thought it was short and to the point. The way she ran through the utensils alphabetically built up well to the sudden dramatic Y toward the end, which I liked because it seemed like a question rather than a letter.

Camilla's final video

Camilla, I thought your piece was very original. The way it showed the physical tension and pain experienced by women going through the trauma of an abortion really made an impression on me. I thought you did an excellent job of showing the relationship of the women to their bodies during this experience, and the way they were both trying to stroke or comfort themselves and each other and also pressing and scratching at their own skin in anxiety. I would really like to see this documentary expanded—I think you could work the techniques you used in this short piece into the more complex structure you had imagined in your treatment.

Meshes of the Afternoon

One thing I admire in this film is the use of sound. The sound of the key falling that is disjointed from the image of the key falling and continues as she walks into the house and then turns into something else entirely is really interesting. I like the way the dark, jarring music only comes on at certain moments. It puts me immediately into the realm of nightmare each time it occurs, building suspense in a way that makes the silence of the scenes in between stand out even more. It also draws my attention to the potential violence or horror in the visuals, for instance, when the mirror woman lays the flower on the bed or when they are all sitting around at the table with the knife which turns into the key.

Ilha das Flores

Ilha das Flores uses humor really well. Its images stay with you. I think its power is in the way it takes an image or phrase and repeats it, giving it a new context each time. For instance, the progression of describing every person as “possessing a highly developed brain and an opposable thumb” and therefore being a human really makes you think about all the ways in which modern social and economic systems dehumanize certain individuals. Similarly, the repetition of the images of the tomato, the flowers, the perfume bottles, the brain, etc. shows the connections that are often hidden by the words we use. The definitions of things such as “owner,” “garbage,” and “the second,” work really well because of the way they are given over images of the consequences of these words that might not be immediately evident. For instance, defining “the second,” a precise and scientific term, leads to defining “cesium,” another precise and scientific term, but meanwhile, the image on the screen makes the connection between that term and the little child who dies from repeatedly rubbing it on his face.

Joan Does Dynasty

I thought this film was really interesting, although it made me feel dizzy. I think it’s a film that you can’t view just once if you want to really understand it, especially since she speaks so fast and so disruptively that it’s almost impossible to process what she’s saying the first time around. However, I also feel like part of the point of the film was to be extremely disruptive and hard to process, since it is trying to break with the way we as viewers simply accept the images that shows like that constantly present us with. And what she is saying actually does make sense, not to mention it’s hilarious. I would love to see a similar stream-of-consciousness rant done over Sex and the City or a similar show—there would be so much material. I think that the piece would have seemed very different to me and probably much more effective if it had been about a show that I was more familiar with. But I loved the idea and the mood of disorientation.

Secret Daughter

I loved the way June Cross tells such a personal and intimate story in a very genuine and real way. This story explores the history of her family, racism and racial divisions, the relationship between the filmmaker and her mother, and much more. It takes courage to tell such private story and to make it so public and visible. I found the documentary very ‘unconventional’ especially in the part where she finds out that the entire registration of the interview of her mom didn’t work. I liked the part where she is re-interviewing her by phone and she ‘struggles’ to put the microphone on the phone.
It was interesting for me to see the way in which she makes the audience aware of the technical procedures and difficulties that she had to go through while making this documentary and, that in different ways, all filmmakers have to go through.

Tongues untied

This documentary is multi-layered and depicts in a very effective way the identity, struggle and pride of black gay activists. The repetition of the voice brother-to-brother becomes a cantilena, where the sounds of the different words confuse and overlaps, creating a new sound and melody. Sound and voice are fundamental in this piece, giving voice to those who are constantly silenced.
The narrative structure of this piece is very unconventional and I really liked the way the shots are designed and staged (especially in the ‘snap’ part at the beginning). I really liked the dynamics of the piece and the mix between the stories that he is telling and footages of demonstrations and of the civil rights movement.

Responses

Semiotics of the Kitchen- Martha Rosler

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.

Blitzkreig of Work. Dan C

Vito Acconci – theme song

Our preview in class of this piece was actually the second time I had seen it. However, the seperate viewings left entirely different impressions on me. The first time I saw it was with an earlier media course and it was played in its entirety. The only context for the piece was essentially that Acconci was an artist and an explanation of the type of equipment he was using. In our class it was explained that he was actually playing popular songs from the period this was set and originally shown in, which I did not previously know. The first viewing ended up mixing feelings of anxiety with his calculated movements along with impatience at the pace of the surprisingly long video. The second time I viewed it these elements were still there, but they were not at the forefront now that I had a new context for the video and] control of watching it instead of having to sit down and take it. Essentially for me this piece helped display the very different meanings created by context that the creator may have no control over.

Semitotics of the Kitchen

This video is interesting to me in how its cultural moment has passed. Julia Child’s influence on modern adult women has nearly disappeared and even the target audience of “house-wives” that she appealed to has changed and dispersed in a variety of ways. So we are shown a video that is almost a relic of the early days of the feminist movement that portrays a young woman pretending to use cooking utensils with a surprising amount of aggression. The anger that is shown in her movements does make the viewer empathize with her sentiments but as it is so far removed from the moment it is impossible to avoid the absurdist humor of the video as well. The academic nature of the language and metaphors used also makes me wonder if this video was only circulated around academics who had already been exposed to this rhetoric or was it ever viewed by a slightly wider audience, and if so how was it received? Looking at modern day comments of the YouTube upload of the video (always a treacherous affair) there was about 3 pages of people arguing over who “got” it.

Jova’s Final

My favorite part of the video was the way it was able to capture the whole energy of what was happening around Hampshire. Having footage of the walk out, as well as hearing chanting in the background, both helped but then even in the other shots that energy still persisted throughout the video. This was conveyed well by your use of talking to people about their emotion and their reasons for being involved, instead of just the logistics of what was happening. There were a couple of things that just seemed like technical hiccups and they didn’t detract at all from overall good work.

Julio’s Final

It really helped to have the context of this video and worked really well within it. I basically got a realty good sense of “Alright, we’re gonna sit down and make music and its gonna be pretty sweet” and then doing it. The flow of starting working on it and then really getting into it as the video progressed was captured really well. The editing helped that go together, even though when I first saw the special effects at the end I wasn’t really for them. After your explanation though they made a lot more sense and seemed appropriate to me. Good times.

Daughters of the dust

One of the things that I appreciated the most about this movie is the richness and power of the colors. Stories of different women overlap, creating a common story, the story of a community. The tension between what is old and what is new, modernity and tradition, leaving or staying, accompanied the entire movie. It is an astonishing and vivid portrait full of memories of a community. The women have a central and powerful role.
The non-linearity of the movie evokes the melody of poetry and of pure art. During the movie, I let myself forgetting about the ‘story’ and I just enjoyed the beauty of some of the shots.

Theme Song

My experience of this piece changed as I was watching it. For the first two or three minutes, I thought it was clever, but weird. By the time I was five or six minutes in, I was bored. My mind started to wander as his voice droned on. But after another five minutes, I found myself very disturbed by the patterns in what he was saying. I felt like he was directly addressing me when he said “you,” and I did not want to be the object of his lust/longing. It was especially creepy when he would pull his legs toward the screen. Maybe it was just because I was in a small room wearing headphones, but his voice, the things he was saying, and the proximity of his face to the screen made me feel claustrophobic. I think this piece is very effective despite the music being dated. I think the comments he makes about our society and popular culture are still relevant to today’s media. Still, I’m not sure I’ll ever watch it all the way through in one sitting again. I went away from it wondering how this piece might change if it was a woman speaking to the camera and whether I would be as disturbed.

Daughters of the Dust

This was a beautiful movie, and I really enjoyed watching it. One of the things that I thought the director did really well was create a portrait of individuals as members of a community. This seems to be what the photographer is also trying to do throughout the movie. Dash creates the impression of community both through shots that show large groups of people and by juxtaposing closer shots of different people interacting with each other at the same time. For instance, she often uses shots of a group of people playing or dancing to break up other conversations or interactions. I also liked the idea of the unborn child running through the community that is about to be separated, and the link she and the great-grandmother provide between the community’s history and future.

Semiotics of the Kitchen, Secret Daughter, Meshes of the Afternoon

Semiotics of the Kitchen:

I really enjoyed Martha Rosler’s “Semiotics of the Kitchen.” Watching it today, over 30 years later, I have a completely different reaction from what I think I would have had if I had viewed it when it was created in 1975. The film was made to poke fun at figures like Julia Child. Although there are similar figures existing today, such as Martha Stewart, and I appreciate the film, I find the more humorous. The exaggerated gestures and her straight facial expressions make the piece more comedic. I also thought displaying the utensils in alphabetical order made it more entertaining and engaging. I kept wondering what utensil she would use for the next letter. I also thought the framing, having her and the table take up most of the frame in the center held my attention – there wasn’t much else to look at which made it more focused and less distracting.


Secret Daughter:

It was interesting to compare all the different types of “documentaries” we watched in class to June Cross’ “Secret Daughter.” Unlike the other videos we watched, “Secret Daughter is more of a traditional documentary – it consists of interviews, old photos, reenactments and old found footage (home videos as well as television programs and concerts). What made “Secret Daughter” really interesting for me was to compare and contrast the way both her mother and father dealt with racism. While her mother was ashamed of her and felt the need to come up with stories to explain her (when they took a family photo for the television show), her father continuously dated white women and had another child with one. In the beginning of “Secret Daughter” I found the mother very aggravating and could not believe some of the things she did, but as the movie progressed, I grew fonder of her. I especially enjoyed the end of the film when it was June and her mother and it seemed as if her mother had realized she was wrong and hurtful. I looked the movie up online and was upset to see that her mother passed away in 2003. I also enjoyed the ending because it looked to the future with June’s realization that she must “keep the conversation going.”


Meshes of the afternoon:

I loved the use of light and shadows in Maya Deren’s “Meshes of the Afternoon.” Especially in the beginning when she was is walking next to the wall and you see is her shadow holding the flower and when she drops the key. High contrast and shadow is used affectively throughout the film to add to the dream-like/surreal state.

I tried watching the film both silent and with the music and although the film was originally created without the music in mind, I prefer it with the music. I thought the music matched the film well and added to the eerie tone – especially when she sees the cloaked figure through the window.


Also, it seems as if the library has lost Caught Between Two Worlds (they lost it a while ago) and they couldn't find YiYi for me tonight.

Martha Rosler- Semiotics of the Kitchen

I think this video is hilarious but I think I approach it from a post-feminist perspective. It is so straightforward and dry, its delightful. I am constantly reminded of my mother who tells me its necessary to learn the ways of the kitchen in order to satisfy somebody else’s life. A knife isn’t just a knife and a ladle isn’t just a ladle, each object has a cultural and historical reading that has lasted for quite a while. I think to understand Martha Rosler’s language you need to be familiar with her subject matter or a socially aware woman/man.

Response to Cass's piece

I thought your film was very informative and you chose the parts of your interview very well to make the information concise. It was probably really difficult to cram all of your information into such a short amount of time but you did it very well, and I wanted to see much more! The video was really accessible to all audiences and geared toward people who weren’t familiar with the topic. There was background noise that was distracting at time, but that’s something that can be fixed. Good Job.

Response to Camilla's piece

I liked your film, especially the color and the shots that you had. I thought the extreme close-ups did a great job of obscuring the pain and confusion of the stories and sound. I loved the tone of the film and the darkness of all of your shots, they were very emotional. I think that if you varied your shots and diversified them a bit your video would be a bit more successful.

Joan does dynasty

I found this piece satiric and brilliant. At times, the presence of the woman on the screen was a bit confusing and distracting because I found myself trying to capture what she was saying and what was happening in the background (it was hard to follow both). However, that might also have been the goal of the filmmaker.
The voice over was very genuine and real and her performance was really amusing and funny. The places that she decided to position her body were very interesting and I liked the effects that she created by going on and off screen and pretending to be in the actual TV show. Moreover, if I think about the fact that this movie was done a while ago, without all the technical and digital support that exists right now, it is even more admirable.

Theme song

I’m still not sure on what I think about this piece. It is definitely a very innovative and sui generis piece; however, it was very hard for me to watch it and to appreciate it. I felt that it was very long and repetitive; I wasn’t very captured or interested in his ‘performance’ and I was annoyed by the repetition of his gestures.
However, the position of the camera is very interesting and direct; I liked the mode of addressing: who is he directing his words to: the audience, one specific person, the camera, himself? His very private space becomes public, through his way of addressing and of ‘moving towards’ the camera, building up a tension between himself and the other. His presence is predominant in the frame and intrusive in its acts. A not so enjoyable piece, but interesting.

Meshes of the Afternoon, Theme Song, Secret Daughter, Semiotics of the Kitchen

Meshes of the Afternoon:
Out of the handful of films/videos that sneak their way into every production class, every semester, Maya Deren's "Meshes of the Afternoon" is consistently moving and always relevant. If I was forced to choose three films that I wish I'd made, this film would definitely make the cut. The camera-work blows me away and after numerous viewings, I still can't explain how certain movements were pulled-off. I'm beginning to think that the secret lies in a choreography between Deren and the camera operator; both of them dancing through the house to the theme of something dizzying which, after a masterly edit, results in not only a disorientation within the space, but also a new orientation within the space. The film is experienced like a fun-house that defies what can be built; it is also like a dream that I'm sure I had years ago. In "Meshes of the Afternoon" Maya Deren touches upon something very special and ineffable about consciousness, perception and space as they interact with each other, and the fact that she accomplishes this through moving-image is a testament to the medium's power.

Theme Song:
Vito Acconci's "Theme Song" is difficult for me to think about. During class discussions, there's always a general agreement that the film is awkward, tedious, unsettling, and perhaps a bit pointless. Each time, I struggle to come up with the answer as to why this film continues to be taught in colleges; yet I remain convinced that there is a good answer. I understand that "Theme Song" has historical significance as a meditation on the tension between "I and you" or "artist and viewer", but after all is said and done and we've finished marveling at the medium of video, none of that stuff really matters to me.
Now, at the end of the semester, I feel that I've reached an understanding about "Theme Song". I think this understanding lies in the fact that it is awkward, tedious, unsettling, and pointless. It's all those things and yet we still watch it - some even worship it. "Theme Song" has the potential to teach beginning film/video students very important things about our own work and what's possible for us as artists. "Theme Song" can teach us not to take ourselves or our work too seriously. We can sit in our rooms giving monologues to the camera and that's OK. We can put together a crew of 20 and direct a 5 day production and that's OK, too. It's so easy to never be exposed to work like this, and many of us begin our studies in media production with both unrealistic and rigid understandings of the standards of expression and success. "Theme Song" doesn't merely represent an innovative work in the medium of video, but it also helps us to expand our range of what counts as expression, and what is honored as art.

Secret Daughter:
"Secret Daughter" is by all accounts, your standard documentary. It is, perhaps, longer than the story calls for, thus becoming repetitive, but the importance lies in the story and in the fact that the medium of video allowed June Cross to set out and make this movie (initially) on her own. "Secret Daughter" fits excellently into our class's focus on "unheard voices, heard" in a number of ways. First, as I already mentioned, is the fact that Cross was able to use video as a means of investigating a part of her life, and a part of American history that had been kept from her due to racism, culture, politics, shame and death. I think what I found most meaningful was the opportunity that June gave to her mother to finally speak candidly about her past, about her color-blind childhood, about her stepfather's racist influence, about her romance with a black man, and about the pressure that white society puts on other whites. It is remarkable how genuinely she speaks with her daughter about her respect and admiration for the black community and yet, she has no trouble making excuses for June's existence, denying their connection as if a mother is even allowed that option.
Overall, I felt that "Secret Daughter" was pretty watchable and courageously made.

Semiotics of the Kitchen:
Martha Rosler's "Semiotics of the Kitchen" is a great example of how video was originally put into use as a consumer product & creative tool. I find Rosler's piece especially interesting within the context of early public-access TV and the artists that sought to utilize that opportunity. Semiotics of the Kitchen is not anti-TV or above TV in any way; the audience must be aware of Julia Childs or cooking shows in general in order to understand the depth of Rosler's commentary. The image of Rosler in her kitchen feels more like a response, rather than an imitation of Childs. "Semiotics" is partly a response from the passive-aggressive and repressed robotic housewife that Childs has trained. Rosler's video sets the stage for how millions of people have come to use cheap audio/video technology to imitate the behavior of media personalities. I am reminded of YouTube videos made by people of all ages, sitting in their rooms and hosting televison-like shows with no apparent awareness of the way they imitate familiar behaviors and attitudes. One video includes a girl about 8 years old hosting a TRL-like show. Her voice, movements and ways of relating to the camera so naturally evoke the classic television personality that only her unintelligible dialogue reveals the gap in her transformation. There are plenty of videos like this, each performer less conscious of the models that have hijacked their personality. Fortunately, the message of "Semiotics" can also be found on YouTube as shown by videos of people who very knowingly imitate, for the purpose of commentary, the video-blog character. Similar examples include imitations of home-videos which, along with fake video-blogs, seem to assert that even our most casual uses of the video camera turn us into performers, going through the motions while struggling to keep our real-selves at bay.

Theme Song

Everything about this film (Theme Song, by Vito Acconci, from the very beginning just sets a very creepy mood. It seems as if the intention of the film is to make the viewer as uncomfortable as possible. The characters overall appearance, his hair, vocal tone, and chain smoking just as examples, simply add the his overly "creepy" demeanor. Other factors as well add to overall tense feeling of the setting as well, such as the close camera angle, and even the tacky couch in the background. I also felt myself getting bored quickly at some points.

Joan Does Dynasty

The film presents a series of critiques regarding several different aspects of mass media. The imagery of the film, a women matted over repeated mass media, allowed for an accessible critique to be examined. This juxtaposition made her argument interactive. Having said this, it did come across as a preachy argument, which dismisses much dissent around the issues she brings up. Thus the video came across as a piece with a social agenda to expose issues such as feminism and Reagan politics-in a strongly passionate and argumentative dialect.

Six in one

Six responses, one post :)
Sorry if this takes up a lot of room!

Theme Song (Vito Acconci) - Perhaps the intended audience for this film is people like me; I thought Acconci's camera angles--the ways he positioned himself in front of the screen--were quite striking and produced the desired effect (discomfiture on the viewer's part), BUT I kept getting distracted by the fact that I liked the songs in the background. At times I caught myself wishing that the guy on the floor would just get up and leave, so that I could concentrate more on the music. Obviously Acconci meant this video to be a critique of those very rock/pop songs--and with that in mind I find his approach really creative and definitely subversive. Guess I'm a little too conditioned to enjoy the kind of music he wants to deconstruct, to be able to experience the full effect Acconci seems to be going for.

Meshes of the Afternoon - I saw Maya Deren's "Meshes of the Afternoon" first last semester, during my film class at Smith. The first viewing didn't interest me as much as the second, because when I saw the piece again I was able to concentrate on the artistic symbolism behind the images instead of just how bizarre I found them. Then again, both times I found that I unconsciously tried to create a narrative from Deren's seemingly disconnected scenes, and that even when I concentrated more on the images themselves, I would instinctively invent a context for them. But what I like best about what I've seen of Maya Deren's filmmaking is how much I do have to work--to analyze and sometimes change my own way of viewing her art--to appreciate the works themselves.

Semiotics of the Kitchen - Martha Rosler's piece, I can say with emphasis, I *did* appreciate--I found it rather amusing, and somehow both subtle and in-your-face. Clearly, though, the video means to subvert the feminine "housewife" ideal, and does so by examining literally, piece by piece, the "workspace" of a suburban woman. Martha Rosler is great at remaining stoic, even while swinging knives through the air, and the parody of day-to-day expectations and uniform motions of the female is, to me, palpable.

Joan Does Dynasty - "Joan Does Dynasty" was, to my mind, a bit dated--but its point was well-taken. I realize that the fact that I've never actually seen an episode of "Dynasty" has no bearing on the film's effectivness; clearly, there are plenty of shows similar to it nowadays. A disruption of mindless, day-to-day TV-gawking is always welcome--especially now, when the American public does so much of it. I almost wished the critique of the show had gone further and had been even more constant, because the parts of the show that Joan let slip by undrowned made it tempting for a potential viewer to ignore her completely. Still, contemporary shows like American Idol and Project Runway don't seem to have a "Joan" at all, so this video was valuable in that her voice (the skeptic, the voice of dissent) was heard at least in one context.

Fast Trip Long Drop - Gregg Bordowitz's film was a fascinating exploration of the perspective and the circumstances of gay men living with AIDS in the United States. The way Bordowitz personalized his struggle--for instance, his focus on his religion, Judiasm--made the piece powerful in a way that he might not have been able to achieve had he approached the project from a more general standpoint. The attempted parody (if that was the function of the fake newscasts) made the issues seem more raw and, ironically, more real perhaps than would a bona fide news special about the same subject.

and finally... Mona Hatoum's piece, which was my personal favorite out of the six. I loved the synchronization of still photography with recorded readings of the mother and daughter's correspondence. The pictures took on a life of their own, aided by the daughter's voice--and the mother's voice, communicated through the daughter. The video struck a perfect balance between interesting images and interesting sound, so that one never really outweighed the other. I think that both the audio and the video in this piece could have stood alone, though each would have taken on an entirely different meaning and had an entirely different effect if separated from the other.

~ Cassie Jensen

Measures of distance

I found this movie very moving and deep. The images were layered with a hand-written letter, creating a sort of barbed wire fence, which evokes the theme of confinement. The body of the mother of the filmmaker is exposed in very domestic behaviors and reveals very intimate moments between mother and daughter. The themes of exile, refugee, war, fear, harshness of life, lack of hope and importance of one’s identity are very strongly developed through the voice over of the filmmaker. When the post office is bombed and the only way to communicate with the outside world vanishes, a bigger metaphor for incommunicability is brought up by the mother.
It was interesting to see the figure of the dad transversally coming in the movie through his feelings of being invaded in his property (the mother’s body). I didn’t see the body of the filmmaker but I could surely hear her voice and picture her total presence in the movie.
~camilla

Joan Does Dynasty

While this film deals with some very important issues relating to main-steam media and its twisted portrayal of reality, It almost seemed as the narrator was trying to argue instead of inform. I have always thought that in cases like this, the message can be much better presented in a "lighter" tone. When bringing up issues like the portrayal of women or drugs in the media it is important to incorporate at least a somewhat rounded view of the subject. I'm not saying I necessarily disagree with the material, In fact in this case I support the views taken, I just think the views come across a little harsh.

Response to Jova's Video

Wonderful video. I liked how the personal stories were spliced between the protest. I also thought that the voices you chose to speak in your film did so very eloquently. The pace, direction and steady revealing of information made your film very interesting to watch. You did a great job in playing to two different audiences, those at Hampshire who were familiar with the situation and those outside of the college who needed to know more about it. My one suggestion would be that the text was really fast and to slow it down.

Edward Yang- Yi Yi

I am not sure who the intended audience for this film was but I think that it would be people outside of Taiwan as a sort of insiders view. However, there does appear to be many traditions, tid bits and codes that make the movie very confusing at times, at which point the movie seems to be intended for audiences in Taiwan. He is playing to two kinds of people. I enjoyed that the movie kept on switching perspective and which family member it followed because it showed the generational difference. I also thought these approach seemed more personal; that as the viewer I got to know the inner workings of one character at time. I think my favorite character was Yang-Yang because his scenes lacked conversations and had wonderful visuals. The silence put me in his place. My favorite scene was when he was in the bath with all of the balloons, trying to fill one up with water. I could feel his confusion and excitement and then let down when there was only a small amount of water in the balloon. The shots were very simple but aesthetically pleasing and well constructed. A gracefully made film.

Gregg Bordowitz- Fast Trip, Long Drop

Seems in part like satire when the fake newscaster comes on, and the other roles that he plays. I like that the filmmaker takes on different roles instead of telling us the story because it makes our visual connections and own thoughts very important. He is handing us the visual tools to draw a conclusion. The use of found footage and imagery connects to memory and also makes it more playful. Memory also plays a key element when he is talking about his father. This work could also fuction as a memento mori—a reminder that death is always upon us. He has taken this thought and used it to insight social change in himself and others.

Vito Acconci- Theme Song

This film seems so silly to me, especially knowing who he is as an artist and what he is most famous for. However, I do think that Acconci does a really good job at breaking the boundary between the viewer and himself. To me it seems almost Impressionistic to aknoweldge the viewer in such a heavy-handed way; to be aware of their gaze. He makes it very playful though because as creepy and disturbing he makes us feel as viewers, he does the same thing back. I almost feel very flattered while watching it because he really wants me to like him. I think it is a very interesting way to use the medium of video because it is so personalized, yet because of its replicable characteristics, it is so personal.

Maya Dereden- Meshes in the Afternoon

This is a film that has stuck with me for a very long time. The dream sequence (or reality) is so creepy and memorable. Lately I have been having dreams where something just occurs or appears and it is startling. I think that this film was successful in large part to the music in it because it helps to create the suspense of whats next. I also like the use of close up shots because they create a limiting view while at the same time raising questions about the action, place and time. She uses visual deception to create interest in the viewer.

Daughters of the Dust

Daughters of the Dust was an incredibly beautiful movie. The pacing, color, technique and shots all came together in harmony. The movie moved slowly, the shots were long and drawn out however they were interesting and well composed so it was not dull. One of the things that fascinated me most was the use of color. Color provided a great symbol and contrast throughout the movie, dictating elements of culture as well as differentiating between the people on the island. For the most part, the island dwellers are dressed in white, although they occasionally wear blue, and the great-great-grandmother is always in blue. When the character from the mainland comes to the island, she’s wearing yellow, and their commentary about her clothing illustrates a cultural disapproval. In addition the shots are long and tend to give each character plenty of room in the shot. All of these elements contribute to an overall feeling of the film that tends to distance itself from the MTV fast-paced style that our eyes are used too.

Semiotics of the kitchen

This piece was very powerful and sharp. Rosler's movements are very firm and her performance communicates a sense of alienation and anger towards the space she is inhabiting and the objects she is holding. The critique is loud and strong. Those objects evoke the role given to women by the society, the confinement to the space of the house and of the locus of the kitchen. The repetition in her gestures creates a sort of melody that accompanies the piece until the end. Her work is inspiring and very effective. Also, the fact that she is standing in front of a static camera let the viewer to focus on her movements and on the objects. She builds a direct relation with and address to the audience.
~camilla

Yi Yi

When I first glanced at the movie's duration, I was shocked: almost three hours?!
In fact, Yi Yi was worth every minute of it. The colors in this film--particularly the returns to red, playing on the theme of good fortune--were gorgeous; many of the shots were magnificent--for instance, the low angle on the girl standing in front of the audio-visual presentation about thunder; and the issues contemplated were wonderful and intriguing. I absolutely adored the little boy, and his quest to truly "see" the world around him. I also noted the interesting use of American popular songs, inserted at odd moments--"Summertime," played on the piano by Ting-Ting, and "Mr. Tambourine Man" hummed absently by her father during his business trip. "Yi Yi" was masterfully made and, in my opinion, extremely successful in its analysis of human life.
~ Cassie Jensen

Secret Daughter

Speaking as a person with a background similar to June Cross's--black father, white mother--I found this film incredibly fascinating. Much of the shooting gave the impression that it was low-budget, which really added to "Secret Daughter" 's overall reflexivity (the shaky camera, the admission of mistakes--e.g., the botched interview with the filmmaker's mother). I don't think this film would have been as successful if June Cross had played down her own role in her family history, and had focused solely on her mother and father's individual pasts. Since she (the filmmaker) is a "racial mixing" incarnate, her constant presence in the video was very fitting. Her use of found footage was also effective, and helped enhance the character studies of her mother and father by revealing their public personae and well as their private ones.

My favorite moments: June Cross's recount of the mother's "silent interview" in sync with the lost sound--and her interview with Jerry Lewis, which was stunning and quite telling about the kind of white-on-black thievery that happened (and continues to happen) in show business.

~ Cassie Jensen

Jeffs Video

I really liked jeffs film. I think his ability to take a television show that is so commercialized and popular and turn it into something that is unique and almost a dark humor is brilliant. I liked the way he used light and sound to set the tone of the film for the viewer. and took me into a space of questioning growing up and what it means. I think jeffs style is truly original and i admire his ability to play with different camera angles and effects. This is a piece that really spoke out to me and is something that i have never seen done before. His work is brilliant.

Cass G.'s piece

Cassie, I really liked your short documentary on the farm. I think that it is a very good beginning for a longer project; it will be very interesting to explore and expand on this subject and maybe to create something to show to the entire community. You had some very beautiful, artistic and clean shots and I really liked your camera work. I think that with more interviews and maybe with a 'narrative' voice over, it can become something very interesting especially for the community here in the Valley. Good job!
~camilla

Cries and Whispers

Since this was, admittedly, the first Ingmar Bergman film I had ever seen, the incredible cinematography and devastating subject matter came as a pleasant shock. Looking at "Cries and Whispers" now, one would never dream it was made in the seventies - the images are unbelievably sharp, and the 19th-century costumes are utterly convincing.
I thought the fades to red between flashbacks were particularly effective. The color seems to bring out the pain the characters' memories evoke--as do the striking close-up shots of each character before and after she remembers.
The silence in the movie, of course, speaks louder than its words. When Agnes gasps and howls in pain, her suffering is rendered all the more awful and palpable by the aura of silence around her, symbolic of her sisters' coldness. In this film, a whisper is loud. Ticking clocks are deafening. But the expressions on the actors' faces, unsupported by dialogue, convey everything the sisters fail to speak.

~Cassie Jensen

Daughters of the Dust

I thought Daughters of the Dust, the story of the migration of three generations of women to mainland America from the Sea Islands, was interesting because it felt like a fiction story as well as a documentary. The presence of a fiction story was felt due to the film’s narrative structure, while a documentary sense was given off due to the film’s slower pace. The slow pace makes it seem as if its purpose is mainly informational, like a documentary, while Julie Dash uses a young girl (who is not born yet) voice to narrate. What also adds to the documentary feel is the extensive amount of scenic and landscape shots. These shots are also often reoccurring, such as the wooden figure in the river. The repetition of these images gives the viewer a true sense of the character’s surroundings that contribute to their lifestyles, as well as of the characters themselves.

-Sibba

Camilla's Video

I really enjoyed your video Camilla. I am actually glad your interviews and original idea didn't work out! I thought your piece was a good combination of documentary as well as an art piece. You also did a good job of combining text with the voices in order to relay a story. Although, it would have been nice to maybe hear one or two more specific stories with new voices. I thought the visuals were effective and conveyed a sense of discomfort and nervousness (which I assume many of the girls in the stories felt). Maybe you could have included other images and clips for variety. I also loved the part with the drawing and the erasing of the belly. Good job!

-Sibba