Fireside Chat

You think you know people after a semester with them. You have seen their work, watched them fight each other to sound effects, and heard them reveal intimate and personal beliefs and stories in front of the class, but I learned after the fireside chat there was still much to know.

More than a simple bonding experience for the class, this final assignment of ours was very effective in teaching a number of lessons. First of all, I spent a large number of hours practicing, teaching, and orchestrating my song. For the entire week prior, I was a nervous wreck. When I got to the actual event, however, and saw the others perform as well, I realized we were all in this together. Though that realization didn’t get rid of all my nerves, it certainly took much of the load off my shoulders. I felt among friends. It really is interesting to see the transition we all went through, starting as sort of hostile to each other trying to show how good or smart we were. Now there is much more of a feeling of collaboration.

As far as my own personal process for preparing a fireside chat, this was the hardest I had worked on something in a good while. The nervous wreck mentioned above spent weeks putting the song together. The song meant very much to me, so I wanted to get it as near perfect as possible. Witnessing it all come together and being successful was very satisfying, but even more humbling.

The song is from the perspective of society personified. People today, including myself, are often self-absorbed with an exaggerated sense of self-entitlement. “America is the greatest country on earth!” and, “I’m an American, so I am the best!” are words often found on the tongues of today’s citizens of the United States of America. These same people often sit lazily doing nothing while talking about how great they are, or complaining about how it’s not fair that others are doing better than they are. This is a rut I have fallen into from time to time, and it is an embarrassing way of thinking. The song’s point is to remind everyone, from anywhere, that it doesn’t matter where you came from as long as you work hard and aim to please more than your own selfish desires. Focusing on others will make the world’s citizens truly great.

Another element that expressed a belief I have was the use of buckets and wine glasses over conventional instruments. The point of this was that music, or art in general, can be found anywhere; it doesn’t have to be created by experts to be beautiful. Half of the people I had helping had no musical experience or training, yet they still played beautiful and meaningful music. There is more music than what is on the Top 40. My favorite music has always come from those less known by the world because they are more free to do what they want. They don’t make much money, so their songs are full of passion and emotion. I want people to search for this type of music.

Overall, this experience was something I will unlikely ever forget. The emotions I felt and lessons I learned will stick with me throughout my life. Thanks, everyone, for an incredible evening and an incredible semester.

Concerned Citizen

Video Link:
https://youtu.be/64F419z8dZ4

There is a line from the article, “Human Rights and Culture: from Datastan to Storyland” that resonated throughout the creation of our documentary. The text reads, “The antidote to a culture that equates security with conquest and punishment is a culture that prizes connection and creativity.” Though the living conditions in Provo, Utah are not as extreme as some mentioned by the article, this is still an important statement.

Connection and creativity and how those elements can positively affect society, was the focus of out film. There are many small groups of subcultures that most do not even know, or at least think about. One such group is the BYU Y Serve Scenic View Team, and especially the group they help. Becoming a young adult when one has been a child their entire life is a difficult transition for anyone, but for those with autism, this is even more true. This group of BYU volunteers helps these young people by helping them, participating in activities, and simply being their friend.

This group is one that meets frequently -- it is not a simple annual service project, but those involved are committed to creating a connection between themselves and those they are serving. Having spoken with one of the program directors, we were able to get a sense of how driven the program is to helping these people and how much care and love there actually was for their service. Revisiting the quote mentioned in the introduction, life can be cold. People with autism can be misunderstood by the public and even family, and are at times met with harsh consequences. The friendships made by this groups efforts are a small service that is a wonderful example for the rest of the world when it comes to treating neighbors. With examples of creativity and connection such as this, the fight against the harsh nature of many societies.

“Serving doesn’t have to be a chore or a task. It doesn’t have to be one of those things your dad drags you to first thing in the morning to go rake someone’s leaves. It’s super fun.” This attitude from the group’s director is a great example of what sort of mindset can change the world. If entire societies were able to say, believe, and apply the ideas referred to in this quote, the world would be much more accepting. These service providers do not have to be there. They are not obligated to help at this service group, but they come anyway because they want to make a difference in the world.

Game for Change

http://philome.la/SchindlerFoReal/can-you-make-it-through-without-offending-anyone/play

As exemplified in the Twine game, “Depression Quest,” video games can be a platform for spreading useful information and sparking change. The game takes the player into the life of a depressed person, allowing them to better understand the struggles of that illness. Video games are often depicted as monsters in the media because they are all violent and full of gore, but such reports are misinformed. Video games, like any other art platform, can be a medium through which to provoke change.

We live in an age where society is trying to better itself through increase in equality. Once we no longer see race, gender, or any other physical difference, we will all be equal. Unfortunately, we are not perfect and still looking to find the right balance that will lead to the desired result. Some people still struggle to treat others equally, and others go too far in the other direction. The game I created focuses on the latter.

The article, “How fear of offending has trumped freedom of speech among today’s young people” by Jenny Bristow, (http://theconversation.com/how-fear-of-offending-has-trumped-freedom-of-speech-among-todays-young-people-36392) explains the point my game is attempting to make. “Can You Make It Through Without Offending Anyone?” is a self-explanatory title of a game that attempts to help the player understand just how far some people go not offend. It also exemplifies how easy it is to offend someone in this day and age. The aforementioned article delves into this subject admitting that youth are much more conscious of racial and cultural sensitivity, but are offended by the slightest of unsettling images or harsh words. People are growing soft and overly sensitive to the point that it is affecting our nation’s freedom of speech.

An opinion contrary to popular belief today is setting a stage for an angry audience. The world begins to miss out on some valuable new points of view because of fear of offending those who may disagree. They don’t want to show up as the next bigot on the next Huffington Post article. The New York Times article, “Trump, Obama, and the Assault on Political Correctness” contains a quote from President Obama that adds to this argument, “I’ve heard of some college campuses where they don’t want to have a guest speaker who is too conservative. Or they don’t want to read a book if it has language that is offensive... I don’t agree that you, when you become students at colleges, have to be coddled and protected from different points of view.” This is the exact point my game is trying to get across. The energy spent getting offended or trying not to offend shelters people from what could be a great learning experience.

The point of this game is not to argue that we should never strive to be politically correct or never worry about offending someone, quite the opposite. What we say should be uplifting and contribute something worthwhile to the conversation. The article, “Civilities: The current rage about ‘political correctness’ is both wrong and rude” offers a fair counterpoint to those completely against political correctness. It reminds again to be careful of extremes. Derogatory terms for any group of people should be avoided. People should not be able to say anything. If ruffling some feathers is what it takes to express one’s educated opinion, it should be done.

Once we stop worrying so much about who we offend, we will make a large stride toward society’s goal of equality. Only once we stop worrying so much about being equals and looking past differences, will we be able to actually achieve this goal.

World Building

Backstory: During our generation there was a nuclear war that devastated the planet and left the newly born affected with sickness and deformity, provoking society to turn its respects to its eldest generation. Old is a sign of health, prosperity, and beauty in this world. The elderly make the decisions and are glamorized like celebrities.

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Artist's Statement:

There is a lot to be learned from this assignment. First of all, (Dean Duncan would be proud of this observation) our environment caused us to come up with a back story. We had to understand our circumstances in order to understand the world that we are creating. It was very relatable to the movie we watched in class »La Jetee«. They created a world and an environment that drew us in and made us a part of it.

        We did make ourselves part of this world. While, yes, we were only able to create things that  we have seen or experienced, we were able to arrange them in a way that was new and tailored for our new environment. This, in a way really blurred the line between science fiction and science fact. We had to ask ourselves questions that sometimes we never asked before to enter into this new world. Questions such as: »If I was driving down the freeway, what would I see?« »Would they really wear that?« or the  occasional »would this be believable?«. What makes this even more interesting is that we all have our own vision on what this world would be like to us. We all might not be able to see things from the same angle as someone else however, it could be a wonderful thing.

        This project really stretched the imagination in this way by taking us out of this reality and thinking critically about the environment around this particular situation. What gave this world an even greater depth was the fact that it wasn't just one person's interpretation of the world, it was four collective imagination’s collective brain baby. This makes the world that we imagined complex. The complexity comes from a cumulation of ideas coming into a collective whole. It's just like movies and a quote that I’m pretty sure comes from Walter Murch which says that “each production element is someone’s artwork. If the scenic designer was having a bad day, it will show by things on the set ect. ect.”

        In Dean’s class we also learned about milieu narratives where a character is made round (or given depth) because of the environment. In this way what we are creating is a product of the Milieu. We are giving anyone who lives in this environment a story to tell. We are giving them a similar background at a particular time.

        Creativity, as a collective project, is a very interesting concept that, obviously shown here, shows that we can create worlds and new environments based on our own ideologies and circumstances. The payoff of which seems very rewarding.

Webspinna Battle

It’s an intimidating thing, going up in front of one’s entire class and their families and friends dressed as cartoon characters while pretending to fight with each other. This project was much different from anything else in the film program, and because of that we were able to develop some talents that we otherwise would have never been able to.

The project combined the use of sound effects, costume design, and acting to tell a story. Since these elements are not part of the norm as directing, cinematography, or screenwriting are, it forced us to be more creative. By using the lessons from this exercise, the creativity of the media we create in the future will be more rich and well rounded because we have learned to think about other elements as storytellers.

The webspinna battle also brought up questions in regards to plagiarism and its sometimes confusing lines. Every sound we used was created by someone else. The look of our costumes were arguably a rip off of Pokemon. If these sounds and costumes were used together as a way to create a new, original story, is it still plagiarism? After creating this battle and watching others, it seems they are a completely new work of art. Much like textual poaching, we used elements of other media to create something completely new. Our Pokemon battle used familiar and new characters while adding an original story. The example of Bob Dylan in the article, “The Ecstasy of Influence” by Jonathan Lethem describes this point well as he used lines and stories from other authors in order to create songs with deeper meaning.

Not only were the costumes and the sound originally created by other people, but elements of the story we acted out are also present in the Pokemon television series as well as the games. Disobedience is depicted in the show by the main character having a pokemon that doesn’t respect him. This leads to contention between the two. Our battle used elements from that story, but ultimately created something original by adding in modern elements with texting and putting in headphones to listen to music. The mixture of modernism with the popular show creates media that most people can connect with.

The Webspinna Battle itself is a creative media where our creations and combinations of other media make something original. The combination is something that shows how pokemon and other elements can mix together to create something fun and interesting.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/12A58FeV4kr0ogy-ZLHFhE5fc8DZ9mQmSSNKFDOQ-zGM/edit?usp=sharing

Fat White People

Lately, society has turned its focus to how different races, genders, and cultures are portrayed in media. Most of today’s people would argue the group they belong to has been sighted in some way regarding their portrayal in media. The Oscars’ lack of African American award nominees is the most recent example of this, as it quickly became the theme of the show. While breaking down stereotypes and striving for total equality among human beings is a fantastic and worthy goal that all should work toward, we need to stop being so oversensitive, or we’ll go too far in the other direction. My submission to the textual poaching assignment pokes a bit of fun at this idea.

I belong to the group of people who have the absolute least to complain about. That’s why my piece is a complaint. It is an argument for the demographic of the white, lazy, fat male, to which I belong. We have been misrepresented in media. White men in movies are almost always strong, confident, and with striking good looks. If an actor does not have these qualities, they will most likely be in a comedy. They will be the fat guys in little coats who flop their way to accidental victory. My drawings ask, why must this be? Why can’t our super heroes and romantic heart throbs be lethargic and unattractive? I bet a clumsy, overweight man would be much more likely to fall into a toxic waste spill than Ben Affleck anyway.

The answer to these questions, of course, is because that would be ridiculous. Overweight people should exercise, and white males have had no atrocity happen to them that any other person on Earth hasn’t had to deal with at 500 times the intensity. The point is, society is much better off than we have ever been, yet we complain more than ever. This was the long-winded way to explain the thought process behind my corpulent subjects. It is true that most white men in action or romantic films are beautiful people, so I went to the opposite extreme by taking famous characters: Captain America, Patrick Swayze from Ghost, and Neo from The Matrix, and making them obese. I highlight a stereotype of the white male group to which I belong.

Just like the examples in “How Texts Become Real,” I represent famous movie and comic book characters in a cartoonish, and extreme way because I believe seeing them as fat people would be funny. The people in the passage also rewrote episodes to Star Trek in the way they wanted because they liked it. The fact that I identify more with the drawings rather than the actual characters I portray makes it more personal, but I am not offended by their original forms. The “rewriters” of Star Trek were not doing so because of an issue, and most of the work I make is with the same mentality. These drawings stray from that norm and attempt to recommend the same mentality, at least for some artistic works.

We have made huge strides toward equality, and we continue to make them everyday. Of course there are still some wrinkles to iron out, but overall, life is much better in 2016 than it ever has been. I believe as long as we treat everyone else we meet as equals, we will be fighting inequality in the best way possible.

Medium Specificity

Comedy, A Comedy

Let’s see. What is the funniest way I could start this paper? I need something short, but hilarious or the rest is going to completely bomb. Should I try to be edgy? No, this is BYU. I could always start off with a Harry Potter joke. Everyone here goes crazy over those. I’m pretty sure you have to wait until people know who you are before you can start selling out, though.

Maybe I’ll check my phone. There has to be a good opening liner somewhere in this mess of the thousand jokes I’ve written. I don’t even remember writing half of these. “Cowboy poetry guy?” What does that even mean? “Blue Cheese paint?” Why? Ah! I just saw one, but I can’t find it anymore. Where is it?! It’s too late. It’s gone. Oh wait, there it is! Never mind, that isn’t any good either.

How can I expect to write a paper about comedy if I can’t even think of one good opening line? Maybe I should just write something serious, but that would be even harder. Too bad I’m awful at painting, or else I could just paint a bunch of shapes and call it abstract art, saying things in my artist statement like, “This purple rectangle represents taking a stand against society’s norms;” or “Together, each shape and color tells a story, yet each section of the canvas tells its own.” If I don’t feel like coming up with another BS story, I could just say, “Oh the green triangle? That represents something very personal to me and I don’t feel comfortable sharing it.” No one would even question me. Is that comma the correct punctuation to put in the title, or should that be a semicolon? Okay, focus.

I could start off sarcastically:

Since I’m hilarious, I figured I might as well write about my process of coming up with comedic genius.

That’s not very good.

Or I could take on a mock-serious, historical documentary-like tone:

In the harsh, unforgiving streets of modern Sandy, Utah, one must learn to survive or die. Every day is a fight, a struggle just to make it to the next day. This fight does not include guns nor knives, but rather wit. Daniel Schindler, born February 28th 1992, grew up in the heart of this brutal war, and after making it out alive, he must now share his comedy tactics to save the thousands of others in need.

That last sentence gave off a Lord of the Rings feel for some reason. Oh well; it isn’t bad. I’ll use it as a place holder until I think of something better. I’m also not a fan of “nor knives” in that third sentence. Feels awkward. I’ll figure it out. It’s been two hours and I still can’t decide on the opening line. I need to start moving on.

I really want to include that one joke about accidentally asking a deaf person if it was hard to learn Braille. That might not be funny either though. I could also include the screenplay ideas I have as examples. I could write about the one where a woman’s fear of Hawaiian pizza tears her relationship apart. Or I could write about the story of the two friends hanging out when a choking man bursts through their front door and immediately dies in their living room. Maybe I should just create a comedy screenplay about a comedy screenplay for the assignment.

This whole comedy paper idea might not be any good at all anyway. Won’t it seem cocky or pompous to claim myself good at writing comedy? If I start this paper, I had better make it tear-inducing, or all credentials as being funny will be gone and I’ll look like an idiot. Oh, Dad’s calling. Okay, I need to start writing. Kyle and Gabe are  probably waiting for me to start the movie though. I said I’d be done by six. I don’t really feel like watching Sharknado 3 again. I’ll just write this later. It isn’t due until next Tuesday anyway.

Artist Statement

The point of this written work is to comment on the writing process. In a very personal way, I attempt to explain what goes on in my mind while trying to write a good story or screenplay or any other form of writing, especially comedy.

Although the paper is written as a personal process, I believe the thoughts included are not unlike those many other comedy writers have when writing. Coming up with jokes can sometimes be assumed easy and that naturally funny people can crank them out at will. Professional comedians work hard for their jokes. Hours are spent thinking and observing in order to perform that one simple, three-second joke. This writing was meant to celebrate the hard work involved in making a person laugh.

Many comedians, even the successful ones, are very self-conscious. The thoughts I wrote down were meant to express that anxiety of wondering if people will think the hard worked lines were any good. This aspect of the writing was interesting to analyze. Through the assignment’s writing process, I included my actual thoughts throughout the paper. Many came across as self-conscious and unconfident, and it was interesting to see them on paper. They made the comedy less funny. I believe that is not an accident. It is most likely the reason comedians and comedy writers act confident and excited while performing or presenting their work. No one laughs at the sad clown. So the audience sees the confidence in the work, and assumes the naturally funny person simply came up with jokes from the top of his head.

This style of writing thoughts and thinking patterns, which act as the foundation for which ideas are born, pays an homage to the comic from class. The comic was about comics, all the different kinds, their history, and more, but all through a comic. This paper was meant to accomplish the same goal. Like the comic showed the real world of making comics in a different way, I attempt to demonstrate the real world of writing.

In order to express the fact that the words written were thoughts, they were written in italics. The words acting as what was being written in the “actual paper” were with normal font. The sentences written in the paper are also very scattered and unorganized. This was intentional because that’s how thoughts are. The actual organization arrives after being filtered onto the word processor.

Although the paper has its moments, it mostly lacks in humor, which may be surprising to the reader. If it were not written this way, and instead included a joke every other sentence, the writing would not have worked. It would not have been realistic nor a work of medium specificity. It was the best way I could think of to celebrate the realness and hard work that goes into writing comedy.

Historical Story

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Byac-xQoW-s1ZzdNZE9KWlFleVk/view?usp=sharing

The aftermath of the Civil War, referred to by historians as the Reconstruction era, is an often misunderstood part of American history. Our screenplay is a psychological narrative where two flawed individuals, a fictional protagonist named William Cromwell and the infamous John Wilkes Booth, reflect some of the darker ideals of both the North and South respectively as Reconstruction occurred. William Cromwell reflects extreme self-interest of the industrialized North while John Wilkes Booth reflects Southern romantic idealism. Due to shrewdness, Cromwell wins in the end and profits for himself while Booth meets his demise much like the Southern ideals he espouses. Much like Citizen Kane, we wanted the plot to center on complicated characters with whom we could sympathize with, but also criticize. Our story is not only critical of some of the North’s treatment of the South at the end of the Civil War, but it also stands as a caution to current society of the damaging effects of extreme self-interest on American society.

Additionally, we wanted our story to be a bit unrealistic in its presentation by incorporating a bit of humor and improbability much like what was portrayed in our class reading of The Veil, which slightly exaggerates reality and suggests a personal viewpoint of events through its animation style. We too did not try to fully present reality, but rather exaggerate the ideals of the two main characters in order to further establish our theme and caution. We wanted it to be obvious that our story was based heavily on personal opinions and attitudes, yet informed by objective historical events.

The attitudes and beliefs of our protagonist were based off an often forgotten group from the Civil War era--carpetbaggers. We forget that there was more going on than simply North vs South. According to our research, “...most carpetbaggers probably combine the desire for personal gain with a commitment to taking part in an effort “to substitute the civilization of freedom for that of slavery.”” (Eric Foner, Reconstruction: America’s Unfinished Revolution 1863-1877, (1988) p. 296) William Cromwell was based off of this group. Although he did not agree with the John Booth, he worked with the pro-southern man in order to make money. After he acquired such money, he quickly sold out John Booth to the Union soldiers, fighting for freedom in a dark and betraying way. Based on this context, the story stands as a criticism of the North’s treatment of the South post-Civil War, where many “carpetbaggers” took advantage of the South in order to gain personal profit. Cromwell became a microcosm for some Northern attitudes after the war, which were based on self-interest and moral justification.

The second part of our historical research went deeper into the events surrounding the Lincoln assassination and the motives (as history suggests) of John Wilkes Booth. We knew the Lincoln was killed at Ford’s Theater by a gunshot wound, but were surprised to find that Booth’s plan included conspiring with multiple individuals in order to cripple the U.S government beyond President Lincoln. A noted Civil War reporter, George Alfred Townsend, stated in regards to the co-conspirators, “Booth informed Powell, Herold, and Atzerodt of his intention to kill Lincoln. He assigned Powell to assassinate Secretary of State William H. Seward and Atzerodt to assassinate Vice President Andrew Johnson. Herold would assist in their escape into Virginia.” We also learned that another target was going to be Ulysses S. Grant, but he decided not to show up to the theater at the last moment. Given these facts, we were inspired to place our protagonist in the assassination scheme and have his target be Grant, as this would set up the opportunity for the protagonist to separate from and betray Booth in the aftermath of the assassination. Since our protagonist was fictional, it presented a nice “what if” scenario we could play with in order to further establish the theme of self-interest over ideals.

On this topic, we also looked into reports regarding Booth’s personal motives for assassinating Lincoln.  In his 2005 analysis of Lincoln's assassination, Thomas Goodrich wrote, "All the elements in Booth's nature came together at once – his hatred of tyranny, his love of liberty, his passion for the stage, his sense of drama, and his lifelong quest to become immortal." We thought that Booth should be a complicated character much like the protagonist. By making him a character with somewhat plausible reasoning behind his actions, and being betrayed by his ally, Cromwell, we wanted to portray Booth simply as a man with a strong credo. He believed in freedom and standing up for personal truth, which are both inherently American ideals. In the end, Booth and our protagonist both wanted to assert their individuality and achieve some personal end by their actions, but went about it in very different ways. The characters remind us to be careful with our own ambitions, as we too can be caught up with outside circumstances as we make our own history.

Process Piece

Initially, telling a story strictly through audio without the accompaniment of video, or any other element for that matter, might seem to be difficult and confusing. For us it certainly was. One of the elements we found most compelling about processes we watched before class such as “The Smokehouse” or “Five” were the visuals (especially of delicious food). However, upon completion of the audible sequence, the result was surprisingly beautiful.

For this project, we struggled finding the right process to present. Originally, we wanted depict what it is like trying to find something to watch on TV, but on our first attempt, we realized we wanted something a little more engaging. Certainly watching television is a common human labor, but besides the clicking of the remote and the sounds of the shows, there aren’t very many ways to go with it.

As we explored the idea, our original concept evolved into the process of going to the movie theater. Sounds of popcorn, tickets ripping, and friends and family enjoying themselves permeate the audio clip. Each sound invokes a memory, as all of us in this class have been to the movie theater. We decided to take that aspect of nostalgia one step further by creating the process of seeing a movie being shown on film. Because of this element, we had to create a composite of sounds from the past and present. Probably the most compelling aspect of the created piece hearing a film projector, giving the audio piece more of an authentic sound.

The piece follows the basic story model well. It was created as a sort of audio POV piece of the process of going to see a film at the movie theater. There are even different sounds in each ear, not unlike the “Virtual Barber Experience” found on YouTube. Our process starts with the ambiance of waiting in line to buy a ticket, then leads to ripping the ticket, buying popcorn, and finally arriving at the seats. With a distinct beginning, middle, and end, the story is able to be told without the use of dialogue.

It is interesting that a story actually can be told without a narrator holding the audience’s hand to guide through the tale, or even visuals. Instead, we experience a narrative simply through real life sound effects. The fact that the audio clip turned out realistic and rather easy to follow was a surprise because of the aforementioned beliefs on the subject.

The process of finding a process to record was the largest task. With digital films currently dominating the theater market, it is difficult to find a theater that even has a film projector anymore. After various phone calls and research, we were fortunate enough to get in touch with the one theater in Provo that still owns a film camera. They graciously gave us a tour. Possibly more enjoyable than actually creating the piece, learning about the old projector as well as taking a tour of the old SCERA Theater was an unforgettable experience. The kindness of the theater’s employees was what ultimately made this project possible.

Hopefully the audience of our process piece is able to further appreciate all that goes into screening a film, as well as reminisce on wonderful experiences of going to the pictures. We also aimed to reflect on the beautiful history of film’s progression to the point where it is now. Perhaps next time the listener goes to a movie, he will think more about the process after listening to this piece.

https://soundcloud.com/barrett-burgin/film-process-piece

Round Robin

It is fascinating that such deep stories can be told in a picture and 20 words. I feel like the round robin gives us an opportunity to have these collective, small bursts of creativity, that can turn out to be quite beautiful. It was interesting to see how the stories progressed as they went through each set of hands. I didn’t imagine where the story would end up, when the idea originated. The first idea seemed the most difficult, and the later rounds became easier to write. It was as if the first Idea was a little spark and once it caught, it was easy to put wood on the fire. The beauty of collaboration is that you have to give up control. Most of the best art is produced when it is created with restrictions because it causes the artist to think outside of the box. When several artists work together that's that much more box to think outside of.

One interesting result of this project was that upon sending off the latest story to the next person, it was rare that the next story would convey what the original author believed to be the important or interesting aspect of the story. Some stories meant to be taken literally were read by the next person as containing a deeper meaning. Other times, the story was meant to be deep, but the next author took the story at its surface. Regardless of the author’s original intent, the next story was often surprising and enjoyable. Each string of stories goes off in a direction the original author most likely did not imagine. These results exemplify the idea that stories are more creative when working as a team.

In the article about the Exquisite Corpse by DJ Spooky, he talks about how fragmented, varied puzzles reflect more accurately the collective memory of our culture and how we as a whole progress. Perhaps this idea could stand a few more test runs from us, but the point is valid. It is simply a silly thing to assume complete control over anything, let alone a creative process, and indeed when a person freely gives up what control they have they not only have an opportunity to be presented with new, interesting points of view, but also insight into other people.

Spooky compared the exquisite corpse and other similar methods of creation with Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein—as accurate as any comparison could be in two senses. Firstly, in the literal sense, it really is sort of a mismatched and vague representation of a story-isn thing, which is beautiful in its own right. It is also a figurative compilation of numerous consciousnesses, opinions, experiences, and interpretations. A “living” thing,” according to Spooky, as “‘text’ is never inanimate”—an entity of sorts built up from the minds of five independently thinking people.

While writing these blurbs, I felt that I was building up part of a community.  As a collective we have our own personal beliefs and experiences, but then putting it together is like a realization of how we fit together as people.  In a community, when new people come in contact, lives are changed and a person has a choice to take different paths in their life.  This process is similar to when a character beat is formed within story.  Now within this exercise, it as if we are introducing the characters developed in the stories to a new person, who has their own perspective and experience to change the life of this character forever.  Mimicking this natural process allows the story and characters develop more naturally.  Just as we do, the characters have the opportunity to be influenced by the introduction of new ideas.   Then the community grows the with the development of new characters and the introduction to new ideas to each of us as creators.  

Music Mosaic

 

 

 

 

The moon is a being of contradiction. It is a bright light, yet it only appears when all else is dark. It is the sole natural source of warmth, guidance, and vision when all else is cold, dark, and mysterious. Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata” mirrors this idea. The song is a blend of melancholy and hope, two completely contrasting ideas, yet they dissolve together into a beautiful, timeless piece of music. The images I captured attempt to embrace the song’s sense of mixing two contrasting ideas or objects into something more meaningful.

The first photo is of a high quality laptop. Computer innovators pride themselves on coming up with the ‘next big thing’ - more memory, faster processing, and picture quality are emphasized. On the screen, however, appears a simple, child-like, stick figure drawing of a man and a house. It takes high quality technology, and uses it to draw a simple picture. 

The second photo mirrors the moon as well as the song’s emotional patterns by contrasting darkness and light. Much like a person walking in the night, one can choose to focus on the darkness that surrounds them, or look into the distance toward the hope of the bright moon. Most of the space in the picture was meant to be dark to seem as if it were a surrounding force. Picture number three is similar to this idea. In a dark room, the only source of light comes from a lizard cage, which also happens to be the only life in the room.

Another contradiction in today’s world is between books and television. The fourth image is of a television held up by books.  Today, there seems to be a war going on between the two mediums, yet they make each other better when they work together, even though this is represented depressingly.

One way to look at the song’s message is to listen to the sadness and hope wrestling with each other, each trying to conquer the other. The photograph of the cloudy sky aims to capture that feeling. The dark clouds attempt to squeeze the light from the sky, yet the light penetrates through, creating a beautiful scene in nature.

Evergreen trees stand tall in defiance of snow-covered winters. As the ice engulfs the landscape, life vanishes, except for the evergreen tree. The sixth photo portrays an evergreen tree’s branch covering a snowy earth, reminding of its power over the cold. The battle between life and death makes for an extraordinary image.

Picture seven is of a tie hanging over a rugged band shirt. This represents the complexity of individuals. A well-balanced life is that of a happy person. Work and recreation are both essential to a fulfilling life. The photo attempts to capture the shirt by itself to emphasize its importance.

Lastly, is included a picture of a lemon bar. It contrasts the other images because it has no meaning, yet without it, the work is not complete.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nT7_IZPHHb0

A Universal Struggle

Religion has always been a controversial topic throughout the world. This truth is no different in the present. Members of religions tend to shun and criticize those whose ideals differ from their own. The situation is equal among those who do not claim a religion. It is often forgotten that one can learn much from those with different beliefs if an open mind is kept.

“(*Fin)” by the band, Anberlin is a long, eight minute song that illustrates this point effectively as it tells the story of one man’s struggle with God. Although the story is personal to the author, it contains issues and asks questions that most people end up asking themselves at some point in their lives. The song’s beginning verses contain four stories.

The first story relates to the song-writer’s childhood. Stephen Christian was eight-years-old at the time he began to struggle with God. He came to the conclusion that God and the Devil should “both just leave me alone.” It is interesting that the petty issues of a young child could be such an ongoing issue for many adults today. Personal morals are always tested. The iconic image of an angel on one shoulder and a devil on the other, each pulling their victim in opposite directions, has been the comical representation of the fight each person has with themselves daily. “I don’t feel like going to work today. Should I pretend I’m sick?” “I’m trying to diet, but one slice of cake won’t hurt, right?” “What do I do?” Small and large questions such as these are asked at least once every day regardless of religion or culture.

One of the defining moments in a person’s life is when one figures out what they believe. After a decision is made, the person is soon tested. In the song’s second story, Christian attended a congregation that begged for a miracle. They were then promised that miracle, but it never came to be. The emotionally charged lyric, “Sympathy’s better than having to tell you the truth,” allows the listener to hear both sides of the story. The congregation wondered why someone would lie about such an important promise, but the false promisers simply may not have had the strength to tell the truth. For the congregation, this was a defining test of faith. For the false promisers, this was one more of life’s difficult decisions.

Another universal issue is when someone highly esteemed by another makes a mistake that shatters their image in the eyes of those who looked up to him. In the song’s third story, a mentor of Christian’s destroyed his own family under the facade of missionary work. This experience shook Christian as it would any other human being. There are those who have waited years for their father to come back from the store. There are others who have been swindled by a friend. Such experiences can shatter the image of the betrayer as well as cause those afflicted to question other aspects of their lives.

The last story in the song is about a false healer who ruined Christian’s life and ultimately caused him to lose his faith. Being duped is a universally relatable hardship that can leave a person feeling angry, confused, and embarrassed. In this story’s case, it was enough to push the man over the edge and give up on God. Each person is affected differently by the same situations, but the case is omnipresent.

Each story in “(*Fin)” at its heart contains an issue every person faces in their lives at some point. None of the stories delve deep into specifics. Neither through the lyrics nor in Stephen Christian’s explanation of the song does the audience learn what exactly happened in each of his personal experiences. This may have been on purpose. The vagueness of each story leaves the consumer to decipher their meanings, allowing them to more easily relate to the material and draw their own conclusions. For Christian, this song was about God. For someone else, the song could be about a separate difficult decision he is currently wrestling with. For another, perhaps the words are solely a comfort to her during a depressing time in life. Regardless of each listener’s circumstances, they can all get something out of the song if they listen past the words.

In each chorus, Christian proclaims himself “the patron saint of lost causes,” because, “aren’t we all?” With this brief message of understanding, he consoles listeners who may be in pain or in their own struggle, letting them know he understands. He is acting as a voice for those who have or are suffering as he did, their patron saint. The message transforms a religious message into one that is universally relatable.

Lastly, the song’s message would not be nearly as effective without strong emotion coming through the music itself. The work’s haunting, but beautiful chords and powerful melody express more emotion than the lyrics. The song is full of crescendos and decrescendos allowing the feelings to move and blend with the words into a cohesive completion.

Of course, not every single person who hears the song will walk away with a profound experience or a changed life. Again, every person reacts differently to the same situations. However, it may take more than one listen, but with a receptive mind and a true desire, any person could potentially benefit or learn from this song, or any work of art.

“(*Fin)” is an example that art can help and teach any person a valuable lesson, or comfort them in a time where understanding is needed. Stephen Christian learned to eventually trust God even more through these experiences, but there are many other lessons found inside his words; lessons that do not discriminate religion or culture.

(*Fin) by Anberlin:
https://youtu.be/SvxD_toISIc