Wk 7 – Project Brief 3

I consider the most successful aspect of my work to be the way that it conveys my subject’s flamboyancy and passion. This is best exemplified in the montage where Richard states, “There’s a bit of a danger, the experimentation…” The bursts of colour that encompass the screen are derivative of The Dante Quartet and when interwoven with the images of the two girls kissing, reiterate Richard’s desire in exploring the human form in a sexualised and unashamed way. The audience receives glimpses of the human body – a torso, set of breasts, lips – and before they have time to fully grasp each portion, the clips cut to the average speed of the lovers or the unveiling nun so that one’s mind can draw the connection and observe the inspiration for Richard’s work. I do however feel that the least successful aspect of this film is the opening and the closing. Originally, the montage sequence was placed at the beginning, with Richard’s dialogue about his painted hearts used as narration, but it was not working as it seemed like too much cluttered information to process. I then opted to just have the corresponding clip play, which to me, is too much of a simple way to begin a piece. As for the closing sequence, perhaps using one more section of archive footage would have been more effective than three shots of his paintings.

Despite not being entirely content with this work, I am glad that we were given this project because it taught me to get out of my comfort zone. Kyla Brittle said, “Experience the uncomfortable,” and so I chose to step away from creating a convenient portrait of members of my family though they have some captivating stories. Having to contact Richard who I have only met once as a child was a daunting task for me since there was the possibility of rejection (luckily he is in love with the camera) and then there was the meeting him to consider and the inadequacy I might feel with regards to my own skill set. Nonetheless, it all proved to be a positive and interesting day.

I have come to realise that when creating portraits, it’s the ‘small’ aspects of the interview that shape the overall piece. This is so as most of the questions that I wrote, which I thought were just going to be nice links became significant to my telling of Richard. In the future, I need to keep this sense of effortless simplicity in mind.