IMG_1265 from Blair Conway on Vimeo.

IMG_1265 from Blair Conway on Vimeo.

IMG_1265 from Blair Conway on Vimeo.

IMG_1265 from Blair Conway on Vimeo.

I felt my nostalgia churning heavily during last week’s screening of the Wizard of Oz. It was a delicious and memorable experience that suddenly lifted me back to childhood.

I spent many, many days after school watching this movie. To this day, I occasionally quote some lines with my brother. It is an incredibly fun movie; it is a delight of colour and movement and joy.

When the film first turns into colour as Dorothy enters the world, there was definitely an elated atmosphere in the room. It does seem almost trivial as colour in film is clearly not such a marvellous thing in this age.; however, the scene still feels magical and you can understand how effective this would be when it was released in 1939.

I have heard the discussion many times regarding the authenticity of ‘Internet friends’ and relations you have with people over the internet, when compared to real life and a face to face relationship. It does seem difficult to label each type without criticising the other indirectly.

Perhaps at a cursory glance, Internet friends and Facebook friends seem to be less authentic. It seems it is more difficult to know someone properly and to be fully involved in their life. There is time more time to calculate responses and manage a reply. Due to the use of text and the simplicity of it in casual form, there is seemingly less emotion involved and potentially less meaning.

It is, however, much easier to engage with someone – especially someone who is far away or difficult to contact – and to quickly form a bond or relationship with them. Indeed, it is very easy to contact people from different social circles and communities. Not to mention, you can do this from the confounds of your home and your room, wearing as much or as little as you want.

The beauty, I find, of the Internet is that anyone can be included and involved in communities. It is infinitely more efficient to create communities, especially for niche interests, over the digital medium than in real life. You have access to a significantly larger group of people, especially compared to regional and rural environments in the real world.

Every evening I find myself typing away on my computer or phone, talking to people I know in real life and people who I don’t. I feel that I am just as involved with people who I only know on-line to those who I know in both or just in real life. This is especially important to me, as I met my now girlfriend on-line. Who is to claim we have a less authentic relationship because we initially met in this fashion.

 

With the realities of globalisation, even people who meet in real life will spend a considerable amount of time talking through the internet. Does this diminish what their relationship is to previous generations who did not have this ability?

I had watched Scorsese’s film Casino last year at home on a random night and thoroughly enjoyed it. I was then surprised to watch a scene in class and analyse the editing that, on re-watching, was very strong and helped to form the framework of the scene.

Watching the scene today after the discussion of editing techniques and reasons to edit was very interesting. The juxtaposition between the energy and fury of the casino-goers, as well as Ginger, to the calm and calculated demeanour of De Niro’s character Ace was captivating. The slow cuts and between her and him, as well as the lingering shots on Ace were very captivating.

It helped to reflect the emotion of the scene as well as exemplify the personality of the characters. The stark contrast between the ferocity and rush of the gamblers when the chips were tossed into the air and the calm focussed look of Ace was very striking. Scorsese and Schoonmaker certainly created a strong atmosphere with the use of editing in this scene.

It was interesting to read about multi-tasking and the research conducted into it. The suggestion that people are half-heartedly doing multiple tasks in sequence rather than the same time resonated with me.

I have always found myself listening to music or being the internet as I hurried to finish assignments and homework at the same time. There is certainly a validity to the suggestion that I am only half-heartedly completing tasks in random sequence without dividing my full attention to the task.

It is almost impossible to concentrate at 4:00pm on a Friday. It is too hot and I am hungry, but I am trying my best to soak in as much as I can.

It has been a very hectic week. Early starts and hot weather have not helped the transition to university.

So far the classes have been interesting, if mainly administration and housekeeping this week. I like to imagine this blog post was short but sweet.