C-Stands and C-47's: SONG! 2.2

C-Stands and C-47's: SONG! 2.2: "I finally figured out the kinks! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X9MjFFoXm9M"

I like how your rhythm is consistent pretty much throughout your song. The speed, pitch, and timbre help give it this dance hall feel that makes you want to move you body as soon as you hear it. All of the instruments have a very reverberant shape to them which adds to this dance hall feel. I also like the timbre in the beginning and the end when you play the radio static. It sets the mood for this dance hall number.

MDIA 203: MDIA 203 song

MDIA 203: MDIA 203 song

I really enjoy how you keep the RHYTHM consistent in the very beginning with the initial synth which we come back to repeatedly throughout the song. It seems like you experiment with the timbre of that track throughout the song. I thought that playing with the loudness affected the intensity of you piece very well. Using the turntable scractches was a great way to transition between the different synth parts. As I listened, I realized that the consistent rhythm gets thrown out the window because of how you manipulate the track. We're left with a very chaotically organized song.

Artist Guy MDIA 203: MDIA 203- Music Song

Artist Guy MDIA 203: MDIA 203- Music Song: "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJLF57NWU_s&feature=channel_video_title"

The chaos of this song is what caught me upon my first listen. There is so much going on here. So many different sound effects, and then you have the robotic voice that comes in. The use of timbre here really comes through because you must've put some heavy distortion to make your voice sound like that. The speed is very fast and adding the speed to the chaotic structuring only emphasizes the intensity of this song.

Nice job.

Comparing Led Zeppelin and Robert Johnson

Robert Johnson was an American blues singer/musician born in Mississippi. His prominent recordings are from 1936-1937. Although he only lived until the age of 27 (died on August 16, 1938), he is a legend for his blues playing and has influenced many musicians, especially Eric Clapton. Robert Johnson is considered a master of blues particularly in the Delta blues style. It is said that Robert Johnson went to the crossroads (also one of his songs) and played the guitar. He met the Devil, then the Devil tuned his guitar and played a few songs. In exchange for his soul, the Devil taught Robert Johnson to play the blues.

One, of many, classic rock groups who had much influence from Robert Johnson was Led Zeppelin. Led Zeppelin played heavy, guitar-driven blues-rock. Their band consisted of guitar player Jimmy Page, singer, Robert Plant, drummer John Bonham, and bass player/keyboardist John Paul Jones. The band was together from 1968-1980. They disbanded after John Bonham’s death. Led Zeppelin’s music has influenced many musicians and their music remains very popular today.

The song I am choosing to compare and contrast is “Traveling Riverside Blues”, originally done by Robert Johnson and covered by Led Zeppelin. Robert Johnson’s version was recorded in 1937. On the other hand, Led Zeppelin’s version was recorded in 1969 but was not released until 1990. Both versions are unique, yet still hold similar characteristics.

Their are several characteristics of Led Zeppelin’s version of the song that CONTRAST Robert Johnson's original. The three most noticeable traits are the LYRICS, INTENSITY, and SPEED. Right away, you will notice how Led Zeppelin’s version reflects their blues-rock style. Its more in your face, louder, and faster paced. It sounds pretty ballsy and heavy. However, the lyrics are different in Led Zeppelin’s version. Its as though they paid more of a tribute to Robert Johnson. They use different TEXT from several of Johnson’s songs. For example, they use lyrics straight from “Traveling Riverside Blues”, but also incorporate lyrics from another one of his songs, “Kind Hearted Woman Blues”. By doing this, Led Zeppelin completely rearranged the order of his original song, added bits and pieces of other songs, and completely changed itsSUBTEXT to put their own two cents into the song. Which is pretty cool when done right, which Led Zeppelin definitely did.

The AFFINITY of the two songs lies in the ORGANIZATION and RHYTHM. Both songs are in order and well structured. Once the songs start to get going, the rhythm stays consistent throughout the songs. Robert Johnson’s song is only guitar and Led Zeppelin’s version is a full band. However, the pattern of the songs remain the same throughout, other than the time Jimmy Page plays a fairly modest solo.

Overall, I think its interesting how Robert Johnson’s music has influenced other very well-known musicians. Robert Johnson is a legend and has laid down the grounding for blues.

C-Stands and C-47's: Soundscape

C-Stands and C-47's: Soundscape

This soundscape was probably the most interesting one I listened too. I felt like you did a really good job of playing with the timbre to get your desired affect. I could hear a lot of distortion on the synth in the background. The percussion also had an interesting timbre. I think the speed of the soundscape contributed to the intensity of the whole thing. All in all I think this piece did a good job of conveying the emotion: curious loathing.

Artist Guy MDIA 203: MDIA 203- Audio Reflection

Artist Guy MDIA 203: MDIA 203- Audio Reflection: "Soundscape Project: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dYeN9ofo4uE"

Very cool soundscape. I enjoyed the song. However, I'm not sure if this was actually what we were going for with this project. I didn't hear much when it came to the listening modes. I guess you could say you explored space in terms of how you organized the instrumentation of your song. The pitch allows the songs to explore height and some of the tracks sound like they're louder on the left than right speakers so width is explored as well. If you could have incorporated more sound effects rather than insruments I think we would have been able to understand what you were going for a lot easier.

The Lair of da Gamer: Me and Brynnie's soundscape, emotion was frustrati...

The Lair of da Gamer: Me and Brynnie's soundscape, emotion was frustrati...: "Me and Brynnie's soundscape, emotion was frustrating love Soundscape My critiques Amanda http://mediarox203.blogspot.com/2011/06/sounds..."

I thought it was interesting listening to your soundscape. You did a good job of using the different guitars to portray the emotion of frustrating love. The organization and instrumentation provided that feeling of frustration well. There's also a fairly simple example of a causal sound at the end when you hear someone say, "I love you." Overall, I felt like you were able to get your emotion across fairly well.

Ditkoff's 14 Ways

Mitch Ditkoff’s “14 Ways to Get Breakthrough Ideas” is a motivational way to help you organize your thoughts and ideas. He teaches you the mathematics of creativity. Thinking all the time and trying to be creative can be incredibly stressful. From the moment you wake up until the time you sleep, and sometimes even while sleeping, ideas are running through your head. Ditkoff explains how to control the stress of idea-making by taking breaks or trying different techniques. What I like most about Ditkoff’s suggestions, is how he reinforces the trial and error aspects of creating. The three prompts I found most appealing are prompts eleven, ten, and seven.


Prompt # 11 - Brainstorm

Prompt #11 really stood out to me. I’m not a ‘rugged individualist’ but when it comes to creating, I like to have total control and full responsibility of the project. However, I think this is because the only time I’ve worked on group projects is in school. The groups are assigned, people are shy, some people aren’t committed and by the time you get comfortable with each other, the project is already being graded. Its a total clash. I am particularly shy in groups without really having any reason to be. I never fully surface my ideas to the group and I feel most members do the same. If groups were able to be chosen on our own, collaboration would be much more enjoyable and constructive because group members would be honest with each other. Unfortunately, the business world does not work like that and when it comes down to it, you will be placed to work with other creatives you may not get along with. For that reason, it is critical to be outgoing, constructive, and enthusiastic because one person escorted by these traits can make all the difference.

Prompt # 10 - Hang Out WIth Diverse Groups of People

I was really excited to see prompt ten. I agree with this prompt completely. It is very beneficial meeting and hanging out with diverse groups of people. One, it makes you a well-rounded human being. Two, it changes up your weekly routines. For instance, when you see the same people everyday, you start talking about the same things and start sharing similar opinions, eventually influencing each other for better or for worse. Three, you make connections. Being in a field that has a lot to do with who you know, its significant to be able to get along with, and relate, to all walks of life. Transferring from community college, it was easy to think of how many people you will meet, how everyone gets along, and everyone is down to hang. Well, its not like that. Most people get in there steady groups of friends and stay in their comfort zones until they graduate, and thats totally cool. However, I’m not really like that and never have been. Most college students here usually view “townies” as weird people. Two of the coolest dudes I’ve met here so far grew up and live in Athens, I celebrated New Years with them. Its really important to stretch your boundaries and branch out. Meet new people, its good for you.

Prompt # 7 - Listen to Your Subconscious

Listening to your subconscious. It seems way harder to tap into your subconscious than it sounds. I spend a large part of the day just thinking. My favorite time to think and go over my day is when I’m in the shower. Hot water and white walls, perfect conditions for thinking. The subconscious is a huge part of your actions, like why you decided to respond so negatively, why you responded so politely, why you always take a left instead of a right even though you will get there at the same time. Why? Well its our job as people to understand ourselves to our fullest amount, it just depends how far you want to go, or if you even want to try. Carl Jung believes that when you understand your conscious mind just as well as your unconscious mind, you will discover The Self. He also believes most people will never achieve The Self. Personally, I believe I have a pretty good grasp on how or why I react the way I do in most situations. I try to study my behavior and how I got there. Have I always reacted this way, has someone influenced me to think twice about it, has someone influenced me to think negatively about it? Analyzing is like a chisel that starts the crack on your ten foot self portrait. You’re the sculptor. At your own pace, you chisel away. The more you chisel, the more you realize that a huge rock can be broken down to create a pretty wicked piece of art.

Prompt question #11

What is the topic of your next group brainstorm? Who will you invite? Who will facilitate? When?

The next group brainstorm I'll be a part of is at the meeting for my buddies video production company. All of the people who are involved in Cremedia Production will be involved. My friend Max will facilitate the brainstorm. We're meeting next week.

Who Influences Me

Wes Anderson is one of my biggest influences. His films are very beautiful. One of my favorites is "The Life Acquatic with Steve Zissou". Wes has a knack for making very emotional yet dryly sarcastic comedies. He's made such films as "Rushmore", "The Royal Tennebaums", and "The Darjeeling Limited".

There's a great use of CONTRAST when we see the exterior establishing shot of the submarine underwater. The yellow versus the dark, black abyss of the ocean provides for an interesting SUBJECTIVE interpretation of this scene. The dark of the ocean represents the unknown in life. The yellow of the submarine and the brightness inside it contatining all of our main characters representing the people we have around us. The AFFINITY of how all the characters are dressed also supports this notion. This scene suggests that we cannot take on life alone. We must not isolate ourselves from those around us. We need our family, friends, loved ones, or any other support system to tackle the obstacles life hands us.

Led Zeppelin is probably one of my favorite bands. They revolutionized rock and roll and influenced almost every band that has come after them. The song "Black Dog" is a great example of the band utilizing TENSION and RELEASE.

Tension is built up very fast by the initial a capella sung by Robert Plant. Once he says the word, "groove", the rest of the band comes in and Jimmy Page's heavy guitar riff help release that tension with a jam that you can't help, but bob your head too.

Todd Haynes is another filmmaker who is very influential to me. His film "I'm not there." is in my top ten favorite movie lists for sure. Check out this trailer.

This film uses TEXT and SUBTEXT. The obvious text is each individual plot line that unfolds in a non-linear fashion onscreen. The subtext is what explains this non-linear storytelling. There are literally hundreds of references in this movie to Bob Dylan and his career. Whether the audience catches on to them is solely left up to the individual viewers knowledge of Dylan's career. However, understanding the subtext makes the text much more relelvant. It also explains the 6 different interweaving plot lines. This movie attempts to understand the projected persona of Bob Dylan and maybe provide some insight into who the real Bob Dylan is by examining that outward persona.

Soundscape

Emotion: Joyless Laugh

Utilizes two Listening Modes:

CASUAL:

- The sound of the door opening and the footsteps are examples of literal sounds.

SEMATIC:

- The soundscape features a number of different cliche comedic sounds. The drum roll, comedic boing, and comedic horns represent those typical moments in a cartoon, sitcom, or movie where some slapstick gag or bit has come to the punchline. We are

hearing sounds that most of us relate to comedy and laughter. They represent comedic

moments for us.

Exploration of Space:

LIMITED:

-restaurant chatter tried to provoke a feeling of being in a diner. trying to make listener feel like they're in a typical sitcom restaurant scene, i.e. Seinfeld

AMBIGUOUS:

-distorted, sitcom laugh tracks

-intro and outro music (synth bass and keyboard)

Affinity between visual and aural space:

-typical sitcom laugh track and comedic sounds share an affinity with the picture of what looks like could be a sitcom set.

Contrast between visual and aural space:

-the restaurant ambience contrasts with the living room scene in the picture

Aural Creation of Space:

-Hard to hear, but half of the comedic sounds are on the left speaker and the other half are on the right speaker. Tries to show movement and directionality in the source of what

sounds like visual sight gags.

Manipulated Timbre:

-Echo on the sitcom laugh tracks made them sound much more joyless, cliche

-reverb added to the joyless feeling as well

Gestalt Principle:

-attempted to tie all these sounds together to emulate the sound of a traditional sitcom. Wanted each individual sound clip to be a part of a bigger whole that could properly project the idea of the cliche, emotionless laugh tracks which would convey the "joyless laugh" theme.

Creative Manifesto

Creativity must be nurtured. There are many different factors that can help encourage creative thinking. However, I think that these factors are different for every person. Here are ten points that I think are essential to creativity:

1. You're only as good as the people around you.

-Surrounding yourself with creative minds can always help to encourage your own creative thinking. Being able to bounce ideas off someone else, and it can be helpful in motivating you to be more creative.

2. Never deny yourself the opportunity of new experiences.

-Life is all about the living and when you open yourself up to new experiences you open up your mind to all new possibilities.

3. Do creative things...and do them as often as possible.

-Think of creativity like a muscle. If you don't work it out then you can't make it stronger. Try and be creative everyday. Write, draw, doodle, play an instrument, take pictures, whatever. As long as you keep on trying to be creative, you'll continue to open up and expand your mind.

4. Don't be afraid of criticism

-no matter what happens, if you try to create, people will always be there to criticize. there's nothing you can do about it. and most of the time, the feedback you'll receive will allow you to look at yourself and your work in a new light.

5. Your environment can help or it can hinder.

-make sure your putting yourself in the best possible environment for nurturing your creative mind.

6. Everything is good in moderation. But too much of anything is usually a bad thing.

-I feel like a lot of people lose themselves in their vices. A lot of very famous artists have dabbled in vices for inspiration. While I'm sure it helped them to some degree, those same vices have hindered a lot more people than they have helped.

7. Don't just get your feet wet. Dive in.

-Nobody learns anything just watching from the sidelines or minding their business on the outskirts of what they want to be involved in. The best way for you to learn something and be able to flex your creative muscle in that particular area or field is to immerse yourself in whatever it might be. Pussyfooting around never got anybody anywhere.

8. Saying and doing are two separate things.

-I think I should start writing. I should take more picures. I'm going to try and start playing guitar more. This doesn't sound like someone whose actually doing anything now does it?

9. Life is short and time goes by fast.

-If your unhappy with how creative you're being or just unhappy with any aspect of your life, there's no better time to start the change than right now.

10. Don't think "what could have been". think "what will be".

-don't look back and regret anything. everything you've done up until this point has factored in to the person that you are now. accept yourself for who you are and look for how to better yourself in every possible way.

These are all rules that I can't even say I live by all the time. Everyone falls into ruts or gets blown off the trail. You have to regroup sometimes and remember who are and where you've come from and realize where you want to go. Being a creative person is an ongoing conversation with yourself. Don't ever stop talking if you want to be as creative as you possibly can. These blogs allowed me to reflect a lot on my own personal creative process and helped me to see changes that I need to make in my life so that I can further my creative abilities.

Gaming Presentation

What is nice about our game is the simplicity of it. I think that for our blog we could have done a better job of presenting the mechanics and objectives. It's hard to try and communicate your vision through a speech with a power point presentation. We were able to explain how you would control the character. What we didn't do a great job of was explaining what the main character of our game would do when you controlled him. We did attempt to show how the character would move when you commanded him to do certain actions, but I would have rather been able to show the actual movements. Instead, we had pictures of the main character that attempted to show those actions. If we had more time I would have liked to have been able to have video clips that could have been a better representation of how the character actually moved. It's easy to show what button will do what using a power point, but it can be hard to accurately describe main character's movement without a better visual aide. I also wish that we would have game up with a controller layout that would have made it possible for our game to be played on non-smart / touch screen phones.

I also felt like we could have been more in depth in terms of the games objectives. Obviously, with our game, you want to get as many points as possible, save the love interest, and avoid getting killed by the enemy. I wish we could have expanded on this just a bit more. It would have been cool to include one or two more objectives. I would have liked to have included an aspect of the game where the main character has to collect tokens or coins or anything really that would allow him to use some type of a special move. Or it could simply be a hidden item that gives him the special move ability. Other than that, I thought our objectives were covered fairly well. The game was meant to be simple so I think what we had was effective.

I think that the hardest aspect to present has to be mechanics. Everything else, you can explain verbally. With the mechanics, it can be easier to show someone than to tell someone. I can explain that in a game, the main character has to kill the enemy with a sword or whatever, but its hard for me to explain how I see the character killing the enemy. Whoever I'm presenting too could be seeing that action in a completely different way than what I had imagined.

Check out this site and listen to the podcast on superpowers![Image]Here's the link to my audio blog about what super power I'd like to have.

C-Stands and C-47's: Stop Motion Animation

C-Stands and C-47's: Stop Motion Animation: "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwpO44M7y8k"

This was by far the best stop motion that I saw. It was simple, but it was funny. And the stop motion was very effective. Your characters were straight to the point. You really utilized overlapping movements when the blue ball swallowed up the toy monster truck. You were able to show weight when the truck ran over the hero. I just really liked the mood and tone of your video. Nothing is too bright. I felt like the softness in terms of the hue of your characters made it very easy to cheer for the hero. The amount of saturation in the villain supports his role in the video.

The Source: The Cost

The Source: The Cost: " My Reviews of Peers http://mdiastudentou.blogspot.com/2011/07/stop-motion-animation.html?showComment=1311286691541#c28234319084334790..."

First off, I enjoyed the Ferris Bueller references. The jokes are effective because anyone who has seen Ferris Bueller understands the subtext of this video. Your able to utilize misdirection to put a twist on that story that might have been a lot more true to what really would have happened to Ferris Bueller. I thought that was pretty funny. In terms of your characters I thought that the use of color really helped distinguish between your hero and your villain. Having the boss be that large dinosaur looking action figure helped differentiate him from the main character Sean. What really helped tho was the use of hue, brightness, and saturation. Sean's shirt was totally black which is a good example of a completely saturated color. This contrasts extremely well with the boss's bright, white shirt. I think that the boss' tie and Sean's t-shirt's pot leaf are good examples of symbolism as well. Obviously, the tie helps make boss look more like the boss and the pot leaf helps distinguish Sean as a counter culture, rebel type of character.

Gaming Presentation

Media Rox: Stop Motion: Good vs. Evil

Media Rox: Stop Motion: Good vs. Evil

Amanda I really enjoyed both your video and your partners video. I wish I would have thought of as good of an idea. The pipe cleaners were a really good choice for making the characters as well. The hue of each character makes for easy differentiation between good and bad. The brightness of each character also helps them stand out in the peace. Naturally, white and red are colors that have a little symbolism. They're typically associated with angels and the devil. One criticism I did have was the choice of the backdrop and the shirt our main character is wearing. A different colored shirt, and a different colored backdrop here would have provided better contrast for the hero and villain. Because there's so much affinity between the villain, the main character's shirt, and the brick wall, the devil doesn't stand out nearly as much as the angel does.

My Hero

Steve's Villain

Video Assignment

Blog 3.3.

Blog 3.2

Visual Reframing

The original image I chose is by an artist named Sally Mann. Her original image and my reframing are similar and different in several ways. First, they are two different types of shots. The original piece is a two medium shot, meaning there are two characters and it is taken from the waist up. My reframing is a close-up shot because only the characters head and shoulders are in the shot. Second, both the original piece and my reframing have actual lines as compared to virtual because they are real lines that are created by the edge of an actual object being the boys bodies. Third, the rule of thirds applies to both images but the eye of the viewer is drawn to different objects. In the original piece, the rule of thirds draws the viewer’s eye into the boys grasping hands, which is in the center of the piece. In my reframing, the rule of thirds draws the viewer’s attention onto the blood dripping on the little boys face. In addition, the original piece has affinity between the boy’s shirts and contrast because one boy has blood on their face and one has nothing. Lastly, the objective and subjective of both images are different. The objectives of the original image could be the two boys themselves, their clasping hands, and/or the blood on the boys face. The subjective could be the reason behind why they are holding hands and why there is blood on the boys face. The clasping hands could mean that at one time these boys were connected and the blood on the boys face could mean that now there is something that separates them. In my reframing, the only objectives are the little boy and the blood on his face. The subjective could be that he just got into a fight of some sort and is bleeding from it.

I was drawn to the original image because of all the questions is poses about the young boys. You cannot look at this piece and not wonder, why? I chose to reframe the image the way I did because out of the entire picture, the young boy’s bloody face is what draws me in the most. I feel that the answer behind the bloody face is the most important out of the entire piece. Although I reframed the picture the way I did, I think that Mann originally framed the picture the way she did because it shows more. The artwork has more of an effect when you see both boys especially since they are holding hands. My reframing doesn’t need as much explanation as the original piece does. Sally Mann did a great job with getting her viewer to ask why, which is something I love most in many artists’ work.

Here's a link to Flaum's story and article, Find Your Howl.

This is a link to my take on the story and my reading of one my favorite poems, Stopping by Woods on Snowy Evening.

Here's a link to MacLeod's "How to Be Creative."

This is my reaction to that article.

This is just a video I think is really cool and I thought some of you might be interested in it. It's from the film I'm not there. by Todd Haynes. Its six interwoven stories concerning the life of Bob Dylan. Six seperate actors portray different "Dylans". It's a really cool movie, and I definitely have a bit of a bias here, but I suggest you check it out. This exercise on staying creative made me think of it.

Ditkoff's 14 Ways

Take a gander at Mike Ditkoff's article, "14 Ways to Get Breakthrough Ideas."

The article attempts to contemplate the ideas behind innovation. He suggests that there is more to thinking up big ideas then we might think. He then goes on to list 14 suggestions that all of us should consider if we'd like to encourage our own innovative thinking. Many of these suggestions have to do with altering one's environment and their general outlook on life.

For example, Ditkoff says that you should "Follow Your Fascination." He suggests that we dismiss new fascinations as trivial far too often. We need to wake up and realize that there is a reason we feel fascination. There is probably something meaningful behind this idea that you've become so enthralled by. So, why not pursue it?

I strongly agree with this assumption. I think that if you want to be an innovative person you're going to have to pursue things that fascinate you. That's exactly what I'm trying to do with my own life. Recently, I've been trying to figure out what kind of a video I want to make through my friends production website. I want to use the opportunity to gain experience and beef up my portfolio. I finally realized that I should try and do a short film that focuses on The Blue Eagle music shop on Court Street. Instruments and music are something I'm very interested in, and the aspect of selling and repairing instruments is a very fascinating. It's always easier to get motivated about things that your fascinated by so I think this could be a great focus for a video.

This kind of outside-the-box thinking is what Ditkoff recommends throughout the article. He also points to the environment around all of us as being very influential for innovative thinking. This is another point where I agree with Mr. Ditkoff. You're only as good as the people you surround yourself with. This is a lesson you can learn by looking all around you. When you hang out with diverse groups of people you're able to get a wider perspective on things, and this can open your mind up to a whole new realm of ideas you hadn't thought possible before. Also, being able to bounce your ideas off of other people is always vital in the creative process. I like to be very vocal about what I'm thinking about, and feedback is always able to give me a fresh look at an idea I might be turning over in my head.