1. In the lecture we screened a short film called ‘End of the Line’ – the film shot in Broken Hill. Please describe in 300 words or less if you think they achieved what they set out to do. You may not remember much detail, if so, it could be helpful to talk about your first impressions, after all this is what most of us are left with after one viewing. The treatment which we showed in the lecture is available here. Feel free to write to any categories you wish. eg. story, choice of participants, sound, camera, editing etc.
The treatment for ‘End of the Line’ is quite an interesting read as it is evident that the film progressed and changed once the filmmakers went out on location and filmed, resulting in a slightly different film that was screened in the lecture. While it appears as though the filmmakers decided to film in Broken Hill rather than at the Silverton mine and interviewed different participants rather than a married couple living on the mine, the same alien, isolated tone has been achieved.
While they didn’t show the life of a typical Australian family living in the outback and in isolation, they were still able to depict the perspectives and characteristics of the townspeople. They also achieved their mission to capture the incredible sky, sunrise and red earth that make up the ‘alien’ Broken Hill that they wished to portray.
The focus of “total isolation in a bizarre environment” is definitely achieved in the participants that they chose to speak to, in particular the older lady who decided to move to Broken Hill to die. Her story stuck with me after the film had ended, and her biblical, yet slightly bizarre outlook not only gave meaning to the theme of living in isolation but emphasized the alien landscape combined with the haunting non-diegetic sounds.
This case demonstrates how a film’s focus can change throughout production and while the idea outlined in the treatment is of investigating the happiness of a family living the quiet country life compared to the city tourists who stop by and would have been an interesting film, the film it became is probably even more so. They’re choices in editing demonstrated an alien, strange town that is Broken Hill by speaking to the locals and their listening to their stories. While it didn’t turn out exactly as they had planned, the film they made was very unique, sometimes uncomfortable to watch, haunting and provoking; proving that changing and letting the film take on its own shape works quite well.
2. Select from one of the readings and briefly describe two points that you have taken from it. Points that excite you, something that was completely new to you.
The reading that I chose to focus on was Curran’s ‘Documentary Storytelling for Film and Videomakers’ (pg 27-37). The text describes how important it is to choose a subject that you are passionate about and interested in as it means that you can bring a distinctive viewpoint to that particular topic. It will also ensure that when the idea of making the documentary becomes overwhelming or frustrating; your passion and interest in the topic will ensure that you continue and don’t get discouraged by challenges you face during production.
Researching not only your subject, but media (newspaper articles, other documentaries, etc) on your topic will give you an idea of the different perspectives that already exist for your subject. This will allow you to look for an alternative and unique angle to take for your particular topic.
Doing your research and honing in on what in particular about your subject interests you is important when setting off to speak to participants and collecting video and sound for your documentary. Doing multiple tests and editing what you have, deciding if you like the direction you are going in or finding the new interesting theme that has emerged will allow you to discover a new angle that you previously hadn’t thought of.
Being open to the subject and not being biased will also allow you to discover an interesting ‘gem’ that may give the project a unique and engaging angle. All of these points will help me in honing in on my own documentary ideas as well as working with the material during production and post-production.
This documentary about the rise in ‘Hactivism’ through the online group ‘Anonymous’ was very eye-opening. As I watched the film, I realised that I had heard some of the attacks that they made on corporations (Visa, Mastercard, PayPal, Sony) but at the time remember thinking that they were in the wrong as it was presented in the media. I gained a better understanding of why these individuals chose to use the internet as a form of protest and think that their actions demonstrate the amazing power of communities formed on the internet.
How does this documentary alter your understanding of Internet?
While I do think the Internet is a democratic place in which people voice their opinions quite freely, I was a bit surprised that it had such a power to gather people in a community to attack an organisation. It’s always been quite apparent that people can form communities based on causes they are interested in and form physical protests on the streets, but how Anonymous was able to take down websites and ‘troll’ organisations really is remarkable.
How is social media used to create a community of people who share a similar interest and politics?
In this case, the sites ‘4chan’ and ‘/b/’ already had communities based on weird and sometimes grotesque things available on the internet, creating the memes that we have all come to know. They all posted anonymously allowing them the freedom to be whoever they wanted on the internet, and not feeling ashamed of their interests. These sites allowed like-minded people to share their common interests when they may not have been able to find that in the real world. The idea of ‘Anonymous’ then came out of the idea of what if all of the people posting on these sites was actually just one person? The Anonymous group then went on to prank people and websites targeting groups whose priorities didn’t sit well with the Anonymous pranksters. When Hal Turner a neo-Nazi attacked someone on ‘4chan’, Anonymous protected their own and shut down Turner’s ability to voice his racism to the public. This then began a wave of online attacks and physical protests for different causes by the Anonymous group. The one thing they had in common was the belief that the internet shouldn’t be censored and went after organisations and even governments who denied the public this right.
What ideas does this documentary raise in regards to designing an event that asks people to participate and become part of a community?
The documentary raises the idea that people with common interests will want to participate in events that they believe strongly about, or because they wish to meet other members of the community (which occurred for Anonymous members during the Scientology protests). It also brings up the idea that a community can be formed under one pretense which may be quite informal, but may change its attention to a more serious cause/idea. It illustrates that if you can create a community of like-minded individuals with the same beliefs, you can create a group where you speak as one, rather than hearing individual voices. While there were leaders of Anonymous, the members all lead causes in their own way and the voices heard was one of the people and not of leaders of the group, which goes back to the idea of flash mobs as needing to be organised by a leader, but the members don’t look to a leader and have one common goal/cause. Anonymous used a video which asked its members to act as a part of a common mission, which could be a tool used for our own event.
Hinton & Hjorth discuss the change of media audiences from once being passive, to now being active and participating in and even creating media content through the rise of social media. They discuss two different types of content; User Generated Content (UGC) which refers to content made by others that is forwarded on by users, and User Created Content (UCC) which refers to content that is made by users for others to consume. They discuss the use of social media in online activism or ‘click-activism’, its role in crisis management and journalism.
They suggest that social media hasn’t caused political events, but has changed the way in which they are organised; the affect rather than effect. The idea that the internet is built to be democratic and thus used for activism is proposed by John Gilmore as he believes it “interprets censorship damage and routes around it”. This democratic notion has meant that many protests have been organised through mobile technology and social media. “Participation reinforces the importance of offline realities in online behaviour” illustrates how the internet in many ways has empowered the public to speak out on real injustices and band communities together to work towards change. Participation is however subject to what the local social & cultural aspects define ‘participation’ to be as internet censorship in some countries would to us seem like people aren’t able to fully participate.
These groups are called ‘smart mobs’; “large groups of people who use mobile technologies as a way of connecting, allowing a group to act with collective intelligence”. Examples of these include the Arab Springs revolution in which members of the public uploaded video of protests and violence online, forcing dictators to step down or flee their positions.
While social media and mobile technologies can be used for good, they are open to being used negatively. While the internet is in many ways democratic and give the average citizen a voice, it can also be used by people in power to influence the public, “undermines the contention that the digital media is fundamentally empowering – it can also be used to reinforce, strengthen and deepen existing power structures.” This demonstrates that the internet is not always democratic and can be used to swing political influence. An example is ‘Kony 2012’ which spread like wild fire but was deemed as having misleading information and questionable financing sources. This video went viral after it asked people to share it online with their friends with the term ‘Slacktivism’ coined as a result; people who use social media to make them feel good about taking a stand, but actually have done very little and could actually do harm if they don’t know the facts.
While social media campaigns can be organised very quickly and gather like-minded people for a cause, it can also be used to promote misinformation and misleading accounts.
The documentary discusses how there has been a recent shift in communication to consumers with the rise of social media platforms. The power of ‘like’ (like button on Facebook, or retweets) is giving companies a better understanding of their consumers and what they like, being able to cross-promote or get celebrities to promote their products. It is also allowing companies to let consumers do their marketing for them as kids retweet or like Facebook posts to win competitions, sharing their interests with their friends. One person shares something which then two of their friends share, and the momentum multiplies with each click.
It is described as ‘reeling in the fish’; you can’t pull them in too quickly, or be too slack on the line, you need to maintain a constant tug to reel in the consumers and get them to market for you. Kids aren’t necessarily aware of the power of the ‘like’ button and how companies are manipulating them to market their products to their friends. It’s about having an openness, and not giving the impression that you have something to hide or gain – it is beneficial for the consumer and they want to share, like and retweet for their benefit not yours. These new type of consumers don’t need to be chased down with marketing campaigns – they tell the world what they like and what they think is cool to enhance their online social media profile.
The social currency of ‘likes’ means that kids who have more likes on their Facebook profile picture, YouTube video, or Twitter and Instagram posts feel more popular and they feel ’empowered’. It’s about selling yourself and your online image; you can’t stand on the sidelines of social media in this day and age you need to participate in order to be heard. When brands jump on social causes, they attract a whole new audience as they are ‘famous by association’; for example Oreo took on Gay Pride week by creating a rainbow coloured biscuit and the fans or supporters of Gay Pride then associate themselves with Oreo because they support the same cause.
Companies study the analytics of their social media endeavors by tracking data of their fans and seeing what other brands, celebrities, films, etc they and their friends like, using that to create cross-promotion campaigns. YouTubers have also realised that in order to help themselves and gain more subscribers, they need to help each other out, regularly including YouTubers who have less followers in their videos to share their audience with theirs. It is becoming big business to understand how to create social media campaigns and many companies run them on behalf of celebrities, making big money off doing so.
The question of ‘is he famous?’ when talking about YouTubers or other young social media kids is interesting as the question used to be ‘is he an actor/singer’? These days its all about how many followers, likes, shares and retweets a person can generate and not necessarily about their talent. The desire to be famous is difficult to fulfill however as there are so many people online now competing for the attention of audiences.
To bring this to our social media event; the main points I would take is having a constant engagement with the audience (‘reeling in the fish’), trying to get our consumers to become our marketers, and creating an openness and sense of trust throughout our campaign. The main question I have is how do we get consumers to be our marketers?
How does this documentary alter your understanding of the way you use social media?
The documentary points out that every time we as social media users like, share or retweet something, we are working as marketers for the companies/products we like. Most people think that sharing something you like with your friends on social media is just that, but there is actually more to it. You are promoting it to your friends on behalf of the company and if your friends like it as well they will do the same.
What connections can you make with the role of a Social Media Producer?
There are whole teams of people working on behalf of ‘talent’ and making sure that they are always visible online, tracking how their fans are responding and what other things these fans like in the hopes of cross-promotion. These social media producers set up social media networks for talent to generate as much online attention as possible. The role of social media producer is to find a way to turn consumers into marketers.
What ideas does this documentary raise in regards to the event your group is planning and the task of achieving participatory engagement?
The documentary brings up the idea of creating competitions online or rewards for people to like, retweet or share so that they in turn can become marketers on our behalf. It also makes the point of being open with consumers so that they have a sense of trust and feel involved in the event.
In this week’s lecture, scenes from Scott Ruo’s ‘Four Images’, Brian Hill’s ‘Drinking for England’ and Chantal Akerman’s ‘D’Est’ were screened. Choose one of these, and consider, in a single paragraph, what might have intrigued, interested, displeased or repelled you.
In this week’s lecture, the screening I enjoyed the most and was intrigued by was Chantel Akerman’s ‘D’Est’. The film takes a look at life in Eastern Europe after the collapse of the Soviet Union. The particular scene that we watched shows people on the street going at dusk, going about their daily activities while the camera moves ever so slowly around in a circle. As the camera reaches the same group of people again, their reactions change, they become more intrigued with what the filmmakers are doing and become more accepting of them. From the scene screened the documentary seemed quite poetic in nature. The slow movement of the camera, the ambient sounds of the traffic and people in the market, combined with the exterior dusk lighting makes the scene interesting and intriguing. The slow pace and changing reactions of the surrounding crowd commands the audiences attention as they wonder what will be revealed next.
Listen to the first 10 minutes of Glenn Gould’s radio documentary, “The Idea of North”. The idea of North 10min.wav or Files are here (experimenting with different sizes and file types) If possible, use headphones. Record your impressions in a paragraph or two.
In the beginning of “The Idea of North”, the voice of a woman recounting an anecdote of her travelling north is first heard. This gave me the initial impression that the rest of the radio documentary would be quite straightforward. However, after a minute or two, the sound of a man talking is heard and his voice slowly overrides the woman’s in volume, making his voice more prominent. This continues when another man’s voice is added and the fantastic sound mixing is used to change the prominence of the different voices which are all competing for the audience’s attention. It is a bit confusing as you can’t keep up with the different anecdotes, however it then stops and Glenn Gould introduces himself. After this the documentary changes between different voices and anecdotes but with the background sound of train stations, bells and passengers providing a sense of atmosphere to the stories heard.
While I’m not sure why the beginning of the documentary features people speaking over one another, it is definitely a way to capture the audience’s attention and doesn’t drag out for too long so that the following portion of the documentary can be understood. The muddled voices almost provide a sense of importance to Gould as his voice doesn’t compete with anybody else’s unlike what we are used to hearing on the radio – a sole radio presenter. It means that the audience pay attention to what Gould is saying as he introduces his purpose for making the documentary. The atmospheric sounds in the background while the other men talk about their experiences makes you feel like you are there and includes the listener. I think the experimentation used benefits the documentary in making it unique and could definitely be a source of inspiration for our group documentary.
Listen to the audio you recorded in Tute #1. Here. Write a paragraph or two about your recording from a technical and/or “poetic” perspective. Consider: What these sounds evoke for you. What associations they have. Do any of your recordings suggest images? What might they be? Do any of your recordings suggest the possibility of other recordings?
For our sound exercise in our tutorial, Mark and I had a bit of technical trouble as it took us a while to understand how to use the zoom microphone – rather than pressing record again to stop recording, we needed to actually press the stop button. Another technical point I noticed after listening to our files back is that there is a lot of competing sounds when at the time it seemed like we were only getting a focal sound. This is a bit disappointing as we were trying not to pick up a lot of competing sounds but did anyway, so it would be good to keep experimenting and see how we could do that more effectively.
Some of the sounds we picked up gave a relaxing, summer’s day type of vibe with the sporadic clanging of the metal adding a new layer to the atmosphere. The metal clanging gives me the impression of a construction site or railway construction even though it was a street busker. The rustling branches sound quite aggressive and I had to try and remember what the source of that sound was. I think that some of the sounds we discovered were poetic and gave a sense of an interesting landscape, however we could’ve tried getting more interior sounds in comparison and sounds that are more distinct rather than blending into a soundscape.
In 200 words or less please outline your goals, desires – what you want to get out of this semester. You will review this later in the course. Many will rethink this dramatically by the end of the course – this is a good thing.
This semester I would like to continue to learn and practice the technical side of production by engaging more with the equipment and not being afraid to try new camera and sound kits. I would also like to be creative and lateral in the way I approach my documentary project, so rather than implementing traditional interview techniques, I want to think outside the box. I want to use complex and interesting soundscapes and music which often add a depth to documentary films and to think more about how sound can contribute to the audience’s feelings and perceptions. Being creative with the camera will also be something I strive to do this semester by thinking about the many different ways a particular shot can be covered. I also want to gain more confidence in using the camera as I was a bit reluctant to get involved last semester as others were more confident to use it. I also want to not only improve my editing skills but have a more positive attitude towards it, rather than getting overwhelmed by the problems that may occur. Overall, I would like to be involved in a project that interests me whole-heartedly and to develop a documentary in which passion and creativity is demonstrated.
USER-GENERATED CONTENT Martin Lister et al. New Media: A Critical Introduction. London: Routledge, 2009. Print.
This reading discusses how New Media has shown a shift from the audience being spectators to users who alter and create media. As a result there is now more than ever a blurred line between professional media producers to amateurs.
Lister cites the internet as being the driving force behind the shift in audience participation in media texts. As the UK Channel Four TV claimed in 2007 “the next generation of customers will be more active and creative in building content”. This is evident in the way TV shows have used forums and other social media platforms to engage their audiences and create fan culture.
Computer game fan culture has gone beyond that in giving feedback to video game creators, the creation of walkthroughs, fan art and other fan culture practices. Lister notes, “active play with text produces a tendency for player to refashion text in struggle to gain mastery over it.”
This convergence behaviour is allowing audiences to be active rather than passive spectators. Those sectors of the media industry that have embraced this change as an extension of their marketing power have received better feedback and incorporated them into their products.
In terms of organising our event, the question I have is how do we generate active users who have a “desire to be a part of it… to continue the moment of the text through constant reiteration and circulation.”? How do we create such a desire? Organising something that people will be appealed to is the key to creating a successful social media event.
Judith A. Nicholson.“Mobs in the Age of Mobile Connectivity” Fibreculture Journal 6 Mobility. (2005) Web.
This week’s reading discusses the phenomenon of flash mobs, how they originated, and how they were facilitated by mass mobile communication. The first flash mob (dubbed the ‘love rug’) occurred on the 17th of June 2003 in Manhattan when a group of 100 people converged in Macy’s furniture department asking about the same $10,000 rug. After 10 minutes, the group dispersed into the crowd. The event was organised by mass communication via text, email and blog posts.
The event was organised by Bill and the term ‘flash mob’ was then coined by Sean Savage (creator of blog cheesebikini?) who defined the new phenomenon as, “a leaderless group of like-minded people who organise using technologies such as cellphones, email and the Web”. The element of the “leaderless group” is vital to the flash mob as they are non-political and “perform a pointless act”. This issue is raised in the reading as Nicholson points out that there is somebody behind the distribution of information to organise the flash mob.
Nicholson focuses on how the shift of mobile phone use facilitated the formation of flash mobs. The mobile phone was initially used for personal or one-to-one communication (1980s and early 1990s) but then shifted to a more collective or one-to-many communication via text messaging (late 1990s and early 2000s). These messages were sent with the message of passing them on to other people and creating momentum so that the flash mob could be formed.
The large convergence of people in a public space did provide security concerns, even though the events weren’t political in nature in comparison to “smart mobs” who use mobile technology to organise protests.
In terms of our event for this semester, a flash mob is an option however it isn’t the only one either. While a flash mob isn’t political, the event we organise can be if we wish. There are so many options that it can be a bit overwhelming. The main question I have for organising our event in comparison to flash mobs is how anonymous should the organisers be in the creation of the social media event?
After researching the renovation of the Argus building by Melbourne Institute of Technology for Goldeneye Media, I then had the opportunity to help out on the shoot of the building which is still under construction. Helping set up the dolly and tracks throughout the day, here is the finished product.
One of my goals for the mid-year break was to finally attack the growing list of movies and TV shows on my watchlist. Going through the 400+ list I realised that there was one movie in particular that I never got around to watching. Maybe it was because it wasn’t a Hollywood blockbuster with all the bells and whistles and I didn’t know whether I would like the particular comedic style of the film. Asking my brother, he said he couldn’t really remember it but thought it was more of a “guy film” and might be a bit crude for my liking. Disregarding his comments, I thought “what the hell” and put it on.
And boy was I glad I decided to watch it. ’50/50′ is the most surprising, touching and warm-hearted 90 minutes of film I’ve ever enjoyed. Certainly not a typical “guys movie” as I was misled to believe, the film which is based on a true story, centers around 27 year old Adam who is told he has very aggressive spinal cancer. Screenwriter Will Reiser penned his own experience with the encouragement of his good friend Seth Rogen (who also stars in the film).
Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s performance is truly the standout of the film; his ability to portray Adam’s emotional roller coaster ride and the daily struggles he faces is remarkable. The film approaches the delicate issue in a comedic way as Adam’s best friend Kyle (Seth Rogen) believes his cancer could work as a pick-up line. The comedy continues with Adam’s sessions with the young psychologist Katherine (Anna Kendrick) who admits Adam is her third ever patient. Anjelica Houston perfectly portrays Adam’s mother who is struggling to care for her dementia-ridden husband, and now her son.
The film finds the perfect balance between comedy and tear-jerking moments through a clear lens that can only come with Reiser’s own experience. This perspective means that it connects with the 20-something audience who can relate to Adam’s lifestyle, forcing them to consider just how different their life would be if they were in the same position. The message that ‘life is too short to not do what you want’ is portrayed as the experience forces Adam to reevaluate his own happiness; where the diagnosis actually provides an opportunity to change his life for the better.
Between laughing out loud at Adam and Kyle’s antics, to having tears stream down my face, this film exceeded beyond my expectations – their odds are definitely in their favour.
Please reflect on how you feel about the course. What surprised you, what excited you, what disappointed you. What we could have done better. What you could have done better.
My Goals/Desires response from Week 1:
For the first semester of Film-TV 1 I hope to gain a better understanding of the production process of films, from the pre-production stage right through to post-production. I hope to gain an understanding of industry practices which will help me feel better equipped to conduct my own productions in the future.
I want to challenge myself by taking on roles that I’m not used to in production such as trying my hand at cinematography or technical adviser. By pushing myself to learn how to best serve the production from a technical stand point I believe I will become a better filmmaker by not letting fear of technology stand in my way.
I hope to learn from the other students not only in my group but in the other film groups as well. I would like to learn how to be a better editor and to learn skills in lighting and sound, which if I’m not in charge of I still hope to learn these skills by watching and helping other students.
By the end of the semester I hope to be a more well-rounded filmmaker who is ready to take on any aspect of filmmaking.
And Now:
This semester of Film/TV 1 has been the best I’ve ever had in terms of setting out to achieve, learn, and grow from the experience. I feel like I have gained so much from just one semester of film production that I can’t wait to continue studying, working and learning.
I set out to gain knowledge in production practices, lighting and sound, and editing and I have come away feeling more confident in my ability than ever before. I’ve always felt confident in my writing, producing and organisation skills but I’ve always taken a step back when it came to the technical side of things. I feel really proud that I can now take the lead in any of the production roles, which I never would’ve had the confidence to do before this course. I certainly never thought I would be confident, let alone enjoy editing but I really did. I used to always ask my brother for technical help but now he is asking me for advice and I even colour graded a video for him just today, which I never thought I’d be able to do before this semester.
I really feel like I took myself out of my comfort zone this semester and gained so much for it. Before this semester, I was hesitant to put my hand up for production roles for experience, but now I feel like I can take on any role and that my production experience/knowledge no longer holds me back. I just want to keep making content and now I feel like I can do it without needing a whole team of people to rely on.
This course is fantastic, and I don’t have any criticisms at all. The only thing that surprised me was the lack of attendance at the lectures. Before this semester I’d never had lectures and have heard that people tend to not go. It was a bit disappointing as I gained a lot from the lectures and feel like others (even those in my group) would’ve benefited a lot from them.
I really loved how everyone came together to help one another despite whether we were from the same tute or not, just because we all understood what we were going through. It was great that all of the students could lean on one another for advice and support and the teachers are just superb. The teachers’ commitment to the students, their approachable nature, knowledge and dedication outside of class is amazing. I can’t fault this course. I feel like I learned and gained the most from it than any other subject or even my previous course.