Live! From the Internet!

Method

Mon, 31 Oct 2011 22:00:41 -0400

For this blog post, I’m going to look over the past classes I’ve been to, because I’d like to spend a little more time talking about Stanislavsky. He quickly became fascinating to me, especially because of where I stand on the outside of acting. What interested me the most was how he pieced his system together, structuring it internally within himself and continuously evaluating its results. From research, his creative process seems relatively similar to mine. I’m a very internal person by nature, and so much of my experience is felt emotionally. While sensitivity can be a very powerful block to overcome when I get hurt, the fact that the feelings stay so strongly with me bleeds into my writing. The same goes for acting, I can sense that the potential is there for me to really take it somewhere. As a writer, I understand how so much of that can be worked into my performing, too. I can take the social interactions, character dynamics, and re-create them in my writing, but there is something that I can’t quite transfer into my performance, and even my everyday conversation. I haven’t quite figured out how to control the critical part of myself, because it consistently exceeds its purpose and turns into simple insecurity. In closing, I have all the parts I need to method act, but the only thing I’m missing is the determination and the courage to overcome failure. Persistence is something I need to introduce into many aspects of my life.

Falling 101

Mon, 24 Oct 2011 21:48:00 -0400

At first, spending an entire class falling sounded like a really stupid idea to me. I warmed up to it, though.

It was strange, the most interesting class so far is actually the one I have the least experience in: acting/performance. In high school, I was very self conscious of myself as an actor. The culture of theater and how much students competed with one another made me shy away from it. I acted in only a couple of shows, none of which I felt like I did a good job in. But something hit a chord in me when I was asked to commit to the class. So my initial reactions to a class on falling were shortly betrayed by this strange urge to give it my best.

From the get-go I started experimenting with how flat I could fall down. The inspiration was drunk people, and though I wouldn’t have admitted it at the time, I was trying to imitate the standing-up pass-out. I got a big kick out of it. Come to find out that both of the assigned videos were about Chaplin (or Downey jr. as Chaplin) being completely smashed, I reveled in the irony afterward.

As we transitioned into introducing motivations, I tried to keep that same energy up. While I started to fall a lot more gracefully, I was starting to feel how emotions become a full body experience. By the last fall I had what it felt like internally down. I didn’t see my face, but I imagined I did a good job.

The first performance class for me made me feel unanimously good about acting for the first time in a long time. I feel like the only thing holding me back is my self-doubt. That seems to be a pretty common occurrence now-a-days.

Dimensions, 10/11 and 10/13

Tue, 18 Oct 2011 00:23:03 -0400

The image assignment was interesting, even if it was impossible to stay awake. Sitting on the ground for that long is tiring at that hour. Where I placed my images, especially how I drew them had a very personal touch. I just drew a smiley face for light, that’s the way it made sense to me. Most of the positive feelings come from my heart, so I took it in that direction. However, some of the images were pretty nonsensical. I drew the river going down my side like a gash in Lime green (Mountain Dew?) A very loose interpretation of it is that it’s a representation of the scar I have on my left side, but that’s really pushing it. Other sides of how I view myself came out with the traditional symbols interpretation. The Sun and Moon placement was pretty much a reflection of how I see myself, and my house was also involved symbolically in their placement. Kinda scary.

The lighting assignment was interesting, in a more subtle way. I was lukewarm going into the assignments, but seeing the contrasts changed my mind. It was a lot better seeing and being able to mess around with the color changes. It gave me a pretty good idea for my Festival performance.

Dimensions, 10/6

Mon, 10 Oct 2011 19:29:43 -0400

Definitely my favorite part from the first class was the sharpie film strip project. Immediately I was trying to speculate how what we made on the strip would transfer over. Experimenting with different designs, lines, and patterns became especially rewarding when they were shown on screen. I was surprised to find the parts I put the most detail in barely ever registered on the screen. The small intricate shapes can easily disappear inside the chaos. The big swooping lines, which became animated once put on the screen, were from mine the best success.

However my classmates took this assignment further than I did. There was as lot of simple animation that left me astounded. Everything in the film strip moved around, but it was primarily erratic and chaotic. The piece that stands out in my mind the most was the strip where a flowery looking line in the center of the screen curled into itself and disappeared. I wish I knew more about animation.

As far as the visualization board project, I’m not really sure what art focus I’m going to do. Possibly Surrealism. We looked into the Surrealists in my IN 135 class and they seem pretty interesting. Definitely out there.

Dimensions Sep. 27th and 29th

Mon, 03 Oct 2011 13:11:00 -0400

The most interesting thing for me between these two classes was definitely I am sitting in a Room. Though it started off slow, which was understandable, it became truly fascinating by the time the takes really started to stack up. It makes you think about how much of the sound we hear is actually the space in which it is transmitted.

The effect the aspects of sound have inside a room are interesting, but they are even more so when applied to speech. The scene from Twin Peaks was absolutely surreal, the actors were understandable but in such a bizarre way. David Lynch is a champion of the uncanny, and the reverse dialogue scene really hit the nail on the head. There are a lot of things about speech that we sub-consciously consider natural, and when those are broken down it has a very uncomfortable effect. Artificial speech programs like Microsoft Sam sound extremely similar to the reverse phonetics used in Twin Peaks, and the connection is derived from how specific our definition of normal speech is.

The monochord…. ahh the monochord. I got cocky while I was in class, and started tinkering with it a little too much. It drove me absolutely bonkers not being able to keep a tune with it, so I kept fiddling with it. And when I screwed up the wires, I tried to fix it in a creative way, only making more trouble for myself. What I have now is undeniably a total piece of crap. The bridges fall out when I walk down the street with it, and the cough drops I tried to use to replace it mute the strings. The only way I could improve the instrument now is if I got my dad’s tool kit and more wire. It is especially frustrating for me because I know that there’s definitely a way I can make it sound decent, because I had it in class, but there is no longer a way for me to get there. Oh well, I’ll stick to my guitar.

Audio Walk:

I did this assignment when I stopped back home to run some errands, so I walked through a bike path through the woods behind my house. Mostly what I heard on my walk was birds. A few crows, but mostly the last of the songbirds. There is a bird sanctuary down along this bike path so it was pretty much expected. Every once in a while the wind would ebb and flow, and possibly a squirrel or chipmunk would skitter off (They sure are shy outside of Boston Common), but for the most part I heard the birds sing and the trees sway. It was a pretty relaxing day.

Tapestry Debrief/The Sounds of Silence

Thu, 22 Sep 2011 20:07:18 -0400

Tuesday: Reseeing the 9/11 tapestry really required a jump of the imagination. It was made especially difficult seeing as the imagery to 9/11 is so specific to the event. We see Commercial Airliners differently now post 9/11, both as a mode of transportation and as an image. It also is difficult to un-see the twin towers. Creating something other than the terrorist attack out of repeated use of these images was resisting making those associations. They’re hard to avoid, they images of the event are unsettling in every way imaginable. But I took a shot at it. And even though I thought I sounded stupid, I was glad I tried. It wasn’t easy deconstructing and rebuilding such powerful imagery.

Thursday: Initial thoughts entering the Sound Proof room. I smell kitty litter. Second thoughts: Holy crap it’s quiet. It was a little bit of a shock at first. The only noises in the room were the ones I was making. All of the sudden the songs I had stuck in my head had the volume turned up. It was startling discomfort. But then all of the sudden I felt great. It really cleared my mind. Very zen. Absolutely no stimulus. It’s funny to think how rarely you experience that while awake. Also a perfect activity for the class time. I felt strangely rejuvenated afterward. Definitely would do it again if given the chance.

Dimmension, Inversion/9.11

Fri, 16 Sep 2011 00:17:08 -0400

Before the class, I did experiment with seeing things upside down. However, I did it in a way that was a little more comfortable to me. I would lay on my bed and let my head droop off the edge. This kept my weight distributed and comfortable. Doing a headstand put all the pressure into my arms, holding my head, and the sensation was a lot less comfortable. The head-rush was a lot less bearable when I didn’t have my body spread out evenly. It was an uncomfortable experience, but I’m glad I could do it. I’m also getting sick, so that might have something to do with it.

Today’s class was very uncomfortable for me for very different reasons. My views on 9/11 are extremely unpopular. I would be completely heartless to not empathize for the people lost, and the people who lost others that day. My opinions toward the tragedy as a whole would actually be very similar to the general consensus if the death of innocents ended after 9/11. Overlooking the long term aftermath while focusing on the severity of the tragedy is something I stoically refuse to do. I believe the death of something you did not personally know or have some social connection to should be treated equally no matter what country of origin. The loss of American life and the loss of Iraqi/Afghani life concerns me in the exact same way. The double standard that is required to be held as long as we have military presence in the middle east is something I’m not gonna buy into.

But today I knew I would have to restrain myself, because there are people who are emotionally impacted by it around me consistently. One of the things I wanted to stick with regardless is telling a different aspect of the story. I’ve heard time and time again the synopsis of the events of 9/11 from the morning up until they finally began to get control of ground zero. What people don’t talk about is why it happened, or whether or not it could have been avoided. Hearing the same telling of the story over and over drives me nuts, because there is so much more omitted in fear of offending people. If we don’t want to learn from mistakes then we will inevitably endanger ourselves again. There was a right way to move forward, and this certainly wasn’t it.

Dimensions, Day One

Tue, 06 Sep 2011 22:02:48 -0400

Initial Thoughts: I’ve never worked so hard in my life moving such a small distance. Slow racing is the new fast racing.

Dimensions of Creativity is exactly how I imagined starting my collegiate academic experience. Approaching the creative process in a structured, yet still non-constricting way is something I can definitely improve my artistic voice with. More-so, I am excited to be a student in the Guinea Pig class, as I feel like I’m truly on the cutting edge of Emerson’s academics. Emerson promoted its advanced technology for VMA majors, but for me the most important part is what is passed on from teacher to student. As a screenwriting major, one of my greatest fears was entering VM 120 with very little skill with cameras and editing software. My placement in Dimensions has dissolved those fears. A low-tech start to the class is exactly what I need to jump into honing my ideas and their presentation without getting lost in Final Cut or Aperture settings. Those aspects of film would have been difficult boundaries to overcome early on.

Besides how technology limits those who are new to it, I am also excited to hear that Dimensions intends to go beyond what is called traditional media. I can be easily discouraged by the call to go above and beyond, but I am always willing to step up to the plate for a creative test. Film as a medium suffers heavily from “Same old crap” syndrome, and there is nothing I would like to do more than work outside of that ideology. As the next generation of filmmakers to be, I believe we have a responsibility to further the evolution of what we define as pieces of film. The movies and TV shows I always was irritated by were the ones I could watch one episode or minute of and infer the rest of the body of work. The first step toward avoiding the pitfalls which so many pieces have fallen into is testing the boundaries on the creativity inside of us.

In short, I am ecstatic for Dimensions of Creativity because I am ready to see truly what I am capable of creatively.

Crest

Sun, 22 May 2011 21:00:06 -0400

vi V

my steps stay quiet through the night

vi V

always doubting, I’m right

and when they come to take my soul

I know inside that I’ve done wrong

I’ll smile and hope they’ll never know

all of me is already gone

but hey, what more can I

say

eyes piece me like a spear

words I choose not to hear

I’ve paid my time, I’ve paid my dues

freedom’s bitter and freedom’s sweet

I spent my days singing the blues

the crossroads where the devil meets

are nice, only cold as

ice

Evil always comes round

Temples falling underground

the seasons change upon a stump

adventure waits beyond the door

the courageous war drums thump

he’ll make our lives just like before

it’s fate, it’s just in his

traits

What happened yesterday

Forever alters the way

the present, past, it goes so fast

the blur as the years go by

it filters into dark contrast

and crumbles in the blink of an eye

it’s fine, it’s just fickle

time

I don’t know what’s behind the mask

I can, I cannot do this task

You got it wrong, I’m not this brave

three days is far far too soon

swamps, mountains, ocean waves

a dead canyon, inside the moon

be safe, kindle close your

faith

Winds of Fate

Sun, 22 May 2011 21:00:06 -0400

I IV I

Sea Breeze take me ‘way from my island, the ocean is for me

I IV I

My sail billowing is my treasured, my treasured liberty

ii I

When I’m gone, I’ll be missing

ii IV I

Everyone I could call my friend

ii I

I’ll return after my mission

V7 IV V

is done, when the day is won, the day is won

C:vi IV I

the winds that blow me forward are the winds of fate

vi IV I

If I don’t see her soon it might be too late

vi IV I VI I

cause who else would save her if not for I

V I

I need to try, oh I need to try

Moving into the horizon, all I see is waves

Mountain tips became the islands, their depths are the caves

My courage will be tested

Strong at heart is strong for all

My fears will be bested

I’m brave, I’ll rise to the call

My fate is tied to a gone world, I hold its sword in hand.

Scouring the sea for shattered gold, buried in ocean sand

The secrets are all revealed

Things have never been like they should

The day will come for evil

to leave my home, my home for good

Video

Wed, 02 Feb 2011 20:43:38 -0500

Video

Sat, 29 Jan 2011 18:08:19 -0500

When it's all gone

Sat, 29 Jan 2011 18:04:47 -0500

When it’s all gone, you’ll find me

at the place where we loved to be

cause life is a bitch, no doubt its true

when I wake up every morning

trying to forget you