American Beauty

                                     

This scene is from the film American Beauty. In this scene Lester (the dad played by Kevin Spacey) has just quit his job and feels liberated. He is having dinner with his wife (Carolyn) when his daughter (Jane) walks in to join them for dinner but instead ends up witnessing their argument. 

The film starts off with a wide shot of the dinner table and focuses on Jane as she walks in to join her parents. The camera goes back and forth between Lester and Carolyn arguing making the audience feel like Jane, caught in the middle of your parents domestic dispute; it shows them being at opposite ends of the table a symbolism of their "opposite" point of views. The room is dark and the only lighting is at the center of the dinner table, just enough light to see Lester and Carolyn argumentative speeches and only a dim viewed on Jane, once again representing the focus on Lester and Carolyn. The diegetic sound  is the background music which is a calm melody playing in the beginning that depicts the visual of the home very neat and proper. As the arguing rises the music is low almost faint. Until Lester reaches his patience and throws the plate of asparagus the loud break of the plate stop the background music and the camera focuses only on Lester and his voice, emphasizing his speech of liberation after quitting his job. The background music comes back on and its a friendlier melody playing symbolizing Lester new found happiness.

I love the simplicity of this film. The techniques used to emphasize the argument were done effortlessly and really got the point across its audience. I like how the cinematography techniques also helped depict the psychoanalysis behind the character's story line.

Asia Society- Nam June Paik

I wasn't sure what to expect from Paik as I never heard of him or any of his work. I am glad I went not expecting much because I was amazed by his Becoming Robot exhibition.

Paik combined the technology and body and culture all in one. His exhibit of the robot depicted exactly what society is becoming, a robot! Society is very dependent on technology ( I am guilty of this) to the point where one may not know how to function without it. Observing his work I recognized how technology is hindering the ability to stimulate the mind. It reminded me how most people in society depend on the internet for answers they don't bother to read or question it. It also reminded me of my younger cousins and how dependent they are on technology for entertainment.

Paik art gives the audience the essence of how technology has intertwined the body and culture. It also demonstrates how technology will control as the years go by. I liked that I went to an unusual exhibit and found it so engaging.

DOC NYC- Brothers of the Black List

I had the opportunity to attend DOC NYC and saw Brothers of the Black List. It was a documentary showcasing photos and videos from a civil rights case that took place in SUNY Oneonta College.

It is incredibly sad that the film depicted exactly what is happening now social injustice. In 1992 an elderly white woman  in upstate New York called the police that a black young man  attempted to rape her. The police went to the nearby college, SUNY Oneonta and the college administrators handed authorities a list of 125 black men. These black men were studying at SUNY Oneonta and were treated guilty until proven innocent. It was disturbing to see the police brutality they had to encounter and the racism they went through for simply being of color.

I like that the film was created using old photos and videos to tell a story. It captured the essence of the incident and .seeing the victims recount their stories made the audience connect with the story even more, as they were being honest and direct about the incident. It was an interesting film and it is needed to be seen by everyone, especially with the social injustice happening now between cops and minorities.

Modes and Codes

The film, The River of life, is the definition of real. The film was shot by one of the family members of the main character Yang.

The film gives a raw and honest visual to what life is like for Yang in China. There's a sense of sadness as the film demonstrates him searching for more income, maintaing a household, caring over his girlfriend who is expecting and his ill grandmother, as well as grieving over his dead father.

It is sad to see him struggle but it also gives a sense of hope that things will get better as he continues to try. It also reminded me that everyone has a struggle no matter what cultural background they are from. At times I wonder myself if I'm the only one who wears many hats and  still keeps going. Seeing Yang's life depicted on film demonstrates I am not alone. 

I enjoy watching  and producing content like Yang's life story and the audio project in which I talk about my grandmother's alzeheimer  disease because it gives of sense of honesty that is missing in today's film production.

Trip to MOMI

Visiting  the momi was a trip down memory lane. I kept comparing how things are now to how it was before. It is amazing how the advancement of the technology changes how an image can be seen. In the beginning of the semester at lecture the professors went over the history of camera and the development of film; seeing the actual equipment gave a new sense of admiration for the genre of film and how it continues to development through out the years. My favorite parts were seeing the old console video games, growing up my dad would teach me and buy all the "old school video games" to play and at times go to an arcade in Long Island where we can play them.  It was cool to relive that moment. Lastly, in honor of Sesame Street celebrating their 45th birthday it was so cute to see their exhibit. In my other media course I learned how public television is struggling to stay on and shows like Sesame Street which are educational (and needed in my opinion) may no longer be on air.  Let's hope in the end something can be worked out...my trip to the momi was a great learning experience, as I continue my journey in media studies I hope other courses are as interactive as this course.

What I Hear

I conducted the "What I Hear " experiment in my own neighborhood, Woodhaven located in the eastern part of Queens. Since I work and go to school (full time) I'm never home and decided this is the perfect opportunity to get reacquainted with the neighborhood. 

My home is located 1 block away from the park so I decided to start my journey there. Walking alongside the park all I heard were dogs barking and cars passing. I barely heard the sounds of people talking it was mostly the sounds of nature . I can hear the wind blowing sounding aggressive and the leaves falling sounded more calm. I can also hear the squirrels scattering from one place to another, and the pigeon flapping their wings in hunt for food. 

As I made my way towards the commercial street I heard cars honking, trains passing, kids shouting, music playing and an array of conversations spoken in English and in Spanish. The sounds were similar to the city very busy and a lot of commotion. 

The experiment was an interesting one because I'm always distracted by my phone I'm either listening to music, talking, or checking updates on social media. I realized how much sounds tell a story and how sound can remind one of a location and give meaning. 

Project 1:Define a space