Posted on March 26, 2019
Meeting Richard Sowada and Thoughts on Film Spa (2015, Miroslav Janek)
Festival Experience Studio blog post #2
So, for our first week of this studio, we were very lucky to meet Richard Sowada, an incredible Festival Director with so much wisdom to share. Some of the key points I took away from his lecture was the extreme passion that these film enthusiasts have for film culture, so much that they put an immense amount of effort and ingenuity into creating these huge festivals for the whole community to enjoy. Sowada began with such humble beginnings, possessing the film reels and calling in for screenings, only to get rejected countless times. He definitely had a thick skin and lots of determination, which is a trait I’m slowly but surely developing through the years as a media practitioner. What I found particularly fascinating and indeed a valuable learning experience was Sowada’s idea to screen films at local pubs. An easy way to bring in an audience, and from this experience, he explained how he made sure to observe and work with the viewers, understand what they liked and disliked. I could clearly see Sowada’s incredible connection and understanding of audience, and I believe that this key skill of his – among many other professional qualities – is what made him the successful Film Director he is today. This particular element has become one of the key principles that I’ve been extracting and focusing on the readings and lectures in the past couple of weeks.
The week after, we watched Film Spa (2015, Miroslav Janek), a documentary film that celebrates the journey of the Karlovy Vary Internation Film Festival (KVIFF) which was founded in 1946. The film illustrates the tensions and effects of the ruling government regime over the festival, particular how the decisions of whatever ruling government at the time affected what films were screened, and what films were censored. I am no way near an expert in the politics of Czech Republic, but the key point that I was able to take away from the film was the absolute importance of the audience, which connects with Sowada’s lecture, as well as the readings. In particular, Mark Peranson’s article, “First You Get the Power, Then You Get the Money: Two Models of Film Festivals“, he highlights two types of film festivals that “coexist in an essentially core-periphery relationship”: the business festival, and the audience festival. What Peranson expresses is that these two models, although contrasting, exist together in a dialectical climate that ultimately creates film festivals with varying degrees of profitability and scale. The similarities that I understood with Sowada’s lecture and Film Spa is that to have a successful film festival, the organizers need to understand how to provide for the audience and then utilize the audiences’ needs to generate sales. Hence, Peranson further dissects the necessity of sales agents for festivals. Thus, reflecting back over the years of the KVIFF, fundamentally it is having a relationship with the audience, the filmmakers and the festival directors that create an enjoyable and successful festival. And without getting too much into the politics, when one decides to censor and control the distribution of films without taking into consideration the voice of the public, that is what will sabotage the essence of a film festival.
References:
Mark Peranson, “First You Get the Power, Then You Get the Money: Two Models of Film Festivals (Links to an external site.)“, Cinéaste, 1 July 2008, Vol.33(3), pp. 37-43.
Posted on March 25, 2019
My First Film Festival Experience
Festival Experience Studio blog post #1
Before I get into the nitty-gritty of what I’ve been learning about film festivals, I firstly want to express how excited I am for the upcoming weeks of this studio. I have always been fascinated with the concept of film festivals; there have been so many festivals in the past I’ve wished to attend, but never really had the time, money or people to go with. So this studio is honestly a blessing, I now have a good excuse to drag friends along, and I’m very excited to dissect and embrace the very essence of what makes a successful film festival experience.
So, last Friday, I got the chance to go to the opening night of the Indonesian Film Festival 2019 (IFF), called “Under the Stars”, where they screened the film Filosofi Kopi (2015, Angga Dwimas Sasongko). In the days leading up to the opening night, a particular part of the readings stood out to me, and I knew that attending the IFF would answer my anxious queries. In K. Stevens’ 7th Chapter of his novel, Australian Film Festivals, he identifies that “the health of Australia’s urban festival-scape is tied directly to the diverse nature of the emerging events”, to which he elaborates that film festivals in Melbourne were thought to have reached a point of saturation, but instead has flourished due to “the expansion of thematic and tailored events” for the many diverse cultures within our community. I’ve always been very proud of being a Melbournian because of our multiculturalism, and it was truly humbling to see this come to life before me on the night “Under the Stars”.
My grandfather is Indonesian but I’ve rarely gotten the chance to be in touch with this side of my heritage. So attending the opening night of IFF was a marvelous mix of my identities, colliding my Melbourne pride with my Indonesian roots, and of course, merged together through my love for cinema. With a cozy and inviting atmosphere, I could really sense the pride and identity at the festival, even though it was small and informal. If anything, I loved that the IFF was casual and homey and lacked this prestige that’s usually associated with larger film festivals like Festival de Cannes. There was this lovely Indonesian grandma serving food out of her rice cooker to the hungry young adults, a beautiful intimate outdoor setting with fairy lights, the volunteers were so welcoming with big smiles and they didn’t make my friend (who is of Chinese nationality) and I feel in any way like outsiders to this Indonesian event. Moments throughout the night sent me over waters, back to Jakarta with all my cousins, aunties, uncles and grandparents, and I believe this nostalgia only scrapes the surface of how those who had lived and grown up in Indonesia, now living apart from their families must’ve really felt that night. Going to the IFF was such a wholesome experience for me, especially after a difficult first few weeks back to uni. In addition to that, it has opened my eyes up to so many possibilities of running a film festival and have given me many new ideas that I will bring to the table for the development of our own film festival at the end of the semester.
Such an exciting couple months ahead; so many festivals, such little time.
References:
“A Festival for Every Occasion: Niche Programming, Event Culture, and Vertically Integrated Film Festivals” in Kirsten Stevens, Australian Film Festivals: Audience, Place, and Exhibition Culture (Links to an external site.), Palgrave Macmillan US, New York, 2016, pp. 183
For blog post #2: Meeting Richard Sowada and Thoughts on Film Spa (2015, Miroslav Janek)
Posted on March 25, 2019
What Makes a Bad Design?
Networked Media 2019 Week 3
This week was all about affordances, which is defined as the relationship between an object and the user. (I get the feeling I will be repeating this like a mantra throughout the course.) Anyway, during the lecture, we were shown a hilarious image of a kettle with its spout and handle on the same side which opened up the discussion on the idea of the affordances and constraints of the design of everyday objects. Immediately, the subreddit, “Crappy Design” came to mind, where people post all these ridiculously bad designs they find out and about around the world. Have a look at this video of a terribly designed toilet door lock.
As so eloquently explained by Donald Norman in his book, The Design of Everyday Things, “The thoughtful use of affordances and constraints together in design lets a user determine readily the proper course of action,” in particular, what he calls the “mapping” of the design. In the above video, unfortunately, whoever imbecile (although bless his or her soul for making me laugh) obviously installed the locks without carefully considering the affordances of the locks in relation to constraining the door from being opened on the other side. The constraints of the locks are designed to prevent the door from swinging forward or backward, however as the door’s affordances are to slide left and right, the two simply do not function properly together, thus resulting in a very pointless system. This mindset of applying affordances and constraints to everyday objects, and understanding how the two aspects function together have become the central pillar of thinking to this course.
Further, in his book, Norman breaks down design constraints into four categories: physical, semantic, cultural and logical. Physical is explained as the literal physical limitations that prevent particular operations. For example, the three holes of a bowling ball allow the user to understand that you have to put three fingers in each hole in order to hold it and bowl. Semantic constraints function in accordance with our knowledge of the situation, thus are often learned constraints from experience. Norman gives the example of riding a motorcycle, where we acknowledge that the driver must sit facing forward in order to properly drive the vehicle. Next is cultural constraints, also known as conventions, and they rely upon what is accepted socioculturally in the world. This constraint can be applied to cultural behaviour, where conventions allow us to understand the correct way to behave in certain social situations, such as at a party, or at a funeral. Lastly, logical constraints are defined as making sure that each component of the object is utilized and functions correctly and in sync with the rest of the object. Thus, now taking into account the video linked above, the builder did not follow the logical constraints of the door and lock as the components do not function together in order to achieve the desired outcome of properly locking the door. And the user is frustrated because he cannot conventionally lock the door to ensure privacy when doing his business.
Every day, we are surrounded by crappy designs, hence the Reddit page. Thus, if a designer wishes to be successful, it is fundamental to understand how to create a properly functioning design by understanding the relationship of affordances with their constraints. And as expressed by Norman in his essay, Affordances, Conventions, and Design, designers should not “confuse affordances with perceived affordances” and understand each “real affordance” a design can offer, because a “skilled design makes use of all”. And with that thought in mind, I am very excited to apply these concepts to the New Media, and see how one can push the limits of its full affordances.
Posted on March 18, 2019
An Interview with my Dad
Networked Media 2019 Week 2
Hey friends, meet Paul.
This goofball is my beloved father and I’m writing about him today because I believe he has some interesting wisdom to share about networking. My dad has been working as an electronic engineer for over 30 years now, and currently has partnerships with companies based in Hong Kong and China. So, every fortnight or so he’s on a plane flying over waters. However, lucky for me, he’s been in Melbourne the past week, so I sat down with him with a bottle of wine and two glasses, and grilled him on what he has learned about the internet through his years of work, and what his thoughts are on how networking has benefitted his craft.
*Disclaimer: My dad is not an expert in social media or networking in media, these are strictly his opinions and experience in his field of engineering.
“Online networking has broken the physical barrier from one place to the other. So, for instance, I can write a software program and email it to the other side; communicate through Skype or video conference; I don’t have to physically be there. Even for emergency help, I can offer support through the internet while I’m at home in Melbourne.”
To this, I replied, “Yeah, so you can stay home with me.” To which he rolled his eyes.
:'(
Anyway… I think this affordance of networking applies to many individuals, and not just for business entrepreneurs like my dad. The creation of the internet has opened up so many means of communication, that compared to centuries ago, it’s incredible how the methods of communication have evolved at such an exponential rate. From literal hand-written messages that would take weeks to deliver, to now group video calls from anyone and anywhere around the globe. The internet, or what some call “Web 2.0” has fewer limitations that therefore allow individuals to expand more freely and more conveniently, whether for their work like my dad or even just as a means of keeping in touch with friends and families around the world.
Apple’s YouTube advertisement for the iPhone’s new feature, the Group FaceTime shows the capabilities of communicating with as many people as you want, whenever you want, and from wherever you want.
What do you hope for the internet in the future?
“I hope for the internet to be faster, effective and more convenient to use. [I want] more information sharing – that creates today’s “cloud” – and I hope for the cloud to become more powerful, with more storage, so it’s more convenient. Unfortunately, [currently] there are limitations to the cloud: it costs too much to access, and at the moment, too slow to access it… So, 5G is coming up to overcome that… Technology, the link, is all about the A to B communication linked through data; the throughput (the number of information that goes through the pipe)…
…I don’t mind paying for valued service. I don’t believe in the idea of “free software”. Free software tries to get you in, but then it’s no longer free because they make you pay later and basically, they use your name for advertising. So, they bring in the numbers and then when they have enough people, they charge you. Now, there are so many companies doing this, the concept is diluted, so it’s not worth that much anymore. So to find income, they sell you junk and crap, i.e. advertisements on facebook and youtube.
I like the concept of Wikipedia, which is purely no advertisements. I donated $100 to them because I believe in their system. I don’t want all this crap on Facebook and YouTube. (me: Wait, really? Why did you donate so much?) I benefit from Wikipedia, so without hesitation, I will donate to them and support them. When I go to Google, there’s junk everywhere, and it’s clear to see the big companies trying to plug and sell their stuff… they’re sellouts.”
Although there are some aspects of my dad’s ramblings that I disagree with, his support for a community and for a socialism-esque network definitely resonates with me and I believe also with the essence of this week’s readings, and fundamentally this whole course. My dad expresses his approval of the way Wikipedia works in a community aspect, and believes that people who work in such a network deserve his money and time. Whereas, platforms that plug advertisements and try to entice you with “free” subscriptions and such feel like “sellouts” to him, therefore he will refuse to buy into their marketing schemes. Whether these marketing tactics are necessary, successful or even morally correct is perhaps another blog post for another day, however, the lesson to take from here is that the evolution of the internet, the rise of Web 2.0, has opened up a whole new discussion on how our society should thrive in this network.
This signifies a tension in new media studies itself – as the media objects of our attention transform and mutate in conditions of digital interconectedness we need to call upon other disciplines to explain what is occurring.
Lister. M, “New Media: A Critical Introduction. (Section: Networks, users and economics. Pg. 168)
Posted on March 13, 2019
Teach Me How Networking Works ASAP
Networked Media 2019 Week 1
Oh hey
Long time no see
I have just made it out alive from my first week back at uni. And despite the typical moaning and groaning of how exhausted I already am, I am genuinely excited and revved up for my classes, especially for my elective ‘Networked Media’. The tutors for this course are incredibly engaging (hey there Nash, sorry for posting this late) and the content is so intriguing, but also challenging… and I have quickly realized how little I know and understand about this age of digital media we live in.
The ideas of collaboration and networking on a global scale kind of seemed obvious, however for me, an ignorant young adult, it felt unattainable. I remember back in first year, my friend and I would daydream about opening up our own art studios around the world. She loves travelling to South Korea so she’ll start her main office there, I’ll begin my business in Japan and every year or so, we can visit each other anywhere around the world where we can bring our skills together and create whatever art we want.
We would usually laugh about it and then sigh as we sit back in our seats to slave away at our assignments, of course still daydreaming about this future we didn’t know how to achieve.
Fast forward a couple years later, I stumbled upon this lovely restaurant establishment in Fitzroy known as CIBI. I was absolutely blown away by this place, because not only was it a delicious cafe restaurant, it had an extended shop selling all sorts of Japanese food and snacks, CIBI merchandise, prints, and also shared the warehouse space with a plant store.
CIBI Cook Book Launch Video from James Cameron on Vimeo.
I thought this business was so innovative and I was immediately inspired to strive to create something with its similar essence of collaboration and integration. Now, that little daydream of networking studios around the world didn’t seem so out of reach… Though I do not doubt I still have so much to learn.
Collaboration is the key to success…
Nash, 2019
Even just from this week’s reading, “Networked Images: Visual methodologies for the digital age” by Dr. Sabine Niederer, I have learned that I have so much to learn if I even want to attempt at creating a business like CIBI. However, what I found very encouraging was the discussion on ‘pictorial turn’, which Dr. Niederer describes as not a “theoretical shift from text to image, but rather a practice driven by users and faciliated by platforms, in which more and more users increasingly share visual content and engage with it.” What I take away from this is that the evolution of media is naturally moving towards sharing and collaborating. Long ago were the days when a company would publish the news and the mass audience have to take its word for it. It’s exciting to realize that I’m living in the digital age where discussions matter and the sharing of opinions is encouraged, thus allowing this ebb and flow of information, criticisms, and feedback between creators to forever grow and evolve our art. I don’t know about you, but that sounds like a pretty neat environment to create and share art in.
The reading mainly focused on the networked content of images online, but I believe the discussion is applicable to the wider scope of media networking itself. I particularly love how Dr. Nieberer describes that “for image research, a focus on the digital means considering images as networked content, thereby treating the image not as a solitary object, but as part of a network of other images, users and platforms.” Is it not fascinating that a single image in this day and age already has so many connections? Whether it be with other images, forms of media and even with individuals and their interpretations, this is how I believe the world is ought to function; collaborating and connecting with others.
So, if I manage to really tap into the understanding of media networking, perhaps my mid-assignment daydreams may actually become a reality. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see…
Posted on December 20, 2017
My thoughts on the final product of Bloom MV
This Spring studio has been an amazing experience of many firsts in my works in media. It was my first time producing a music video, my first time (in a long time) working in a team where each member puts in as much work as myself, and the first time I was designated with a role and ended up stuck with it. To elaborate, I’m often the camera operator and director in film projects, but have also needed to work on the editing as well. So I’d stress over the project from start to finish, which isn’t such a bad thing but it can get really overwhelming and often clouds my ability to make good decisions with the production. Thus, with Bloom’s production, it was little bit different, but ultimately was a sigh of relief to have Sophia take charge of the project once I was done with my part as the director of cinematography. I wasn’t completely hands off with the post production stage; it was still essential for me to stick around and be there for Sophia when she needed a second opinion, and in having us all together but with Sophia’s fresh set of eyes to complete the edit, I believe we have created a really good quality music video. Furthermore, with Rohan’s expert help and advice, I believe from rough cut, to fine cut, to final cut, we have created a tight, well edited piece that I’m proud to be apart of.
The final product definitely was not what we had planned for precisely during the pitching stages. Initially cutting down to a few visual concepts on the pitch, we ended up cutting down even more in the final edit for many reasons. Some were due to the fact that we didn’t have enough time to film certain concepts such as burning flowers and dance sequences, but in experimenting with the placement of the shots and adding just the time reversal effects, we realised it was already a strong enough visual idea that’s simple yet communicates deeply to the viewer. If we added anymore effects such as our initial kaleidoscope idea, the video would just be too visually overwhelming and would not suit the simplicity of the music style. The effects of the reversing water droplets are such mesmerising visuals, accompanied with how I framed the shots with the natural lighting as well as Sophia’s editing to the music made the concept really strong and deep that I hope our music artists and many other viewers will be able to appreciate the hard work we put into this.
Overall, I am so happy with the final product. I’m proud of myself that it is evident that my cinematography skills are improving and that I’m slowly establishing my own style of visual art. I’m also so grateful to work with such awesome, respectable teammates, San and Sophia, who share the same motivation and drive as me. I really look forward to creating many more projects with them in the near future.
Posted on December 17, 2017
Fine Cut Feedback
I was rather nervous leading up to the day of the fine cut viewing. Sophia has been doing a fantastic job editing, but I still couldn’t help get the jitters knowing that that was the last time we were going to get feedback before final submission. Though, upon approaching the day, we were in a good state for feedback; we had all the concepts and elements there, we had prepared questions for Rohan about the cut, and we only needed minor tweaking to do that was easy to get done in the week before submission.
Rohan’s feedback was both flattering and constructive. I was grateful that he focused on making very detailed adjustments, such as specific cuts on cue and the visuals that are presented in continuity with each other. He also relieved some of our doubts on certain sections that we thought weren’t working, such as the continuity of the cut scene at the lake. Conversely, he brought our attention to certain parts that needed fixing that we hadn’t noticed. One particular comment that I’ll definitely use for future productions is his comment on shadows along curved surfaces such as a person’s arm. He pointed out that the shadow had a rather hard line and that it’d be a good fix to smooth out the shadow and make it more gradient. Such a small detail, yet could make so much difference to the visuals.
Anyway, as it’s only a few days till submission, I think we’re all ready to finish this production and this semester. It’s been a intense journey, but I’m so excited to see what Rohan thinks of the final cut as well as everyone else’s works.
Posted on December 11, 2017
Reading || Race and Femininity
I never thought that one day when my parents would ask what I’ve got for homework, I would reply with “Oh, I have to read about butts.”
Anyway, this fourth and final reading was another very insightful read into representations of women in music videos, more specifically of African American background, and more specifically about their “protruding black butt”s. The reading lists many music videos featuring said protruding butts, however, I was reminded of a more recent music video that really celebrates a black woman’s “big booty”, and that’s Nicki Minaj’s Anaconda MV.
Three major aspects of the music video and the lyrics’ meanings stood out to me the most:
- Celebration of curvy women with big booties,
- The disapproval of “skinny b*tches”, and
- The power these curvy women have over men.
As mentioned in the reading, Sander Gilman argues that black female bodies were of a more “uncontrollable, animalistic sexuality,” which Minaj emphasises in the music video where they perform rather provocative dance movements amongst a bamboo playground in the jungle. As well as posing in very tigress-like stances, gazing at the camera, Minaj seems to embrace this “animalistic sexuality” from her curvy physique and condemns those of a smaller, thinner body type as a way to encourage larger women to also embrace and feel comfortable in their bodies. However, this doesn’t necessarily suggest that Minaj is attacking white women in particular, many caucasian females with “big booties” dance along side Minaj, thus implying that she wishes thick women of all colour to embrace their bodies and feel sexy in them the way she does.
Many may comment that this music video is derogatory to women, not only by sexually objectifying women by showing off their bodies in provocative ways, but also in highlighting old Patriarchal values of women belonging as housewives. The scenes where Minaj plays with cream and cuts phallic objects in a kitchen wearing a skimpy French maid outfit can be seen to represent these traditional sexist values, however, those scenes quickly cut to Minaj approaching Drake seated in a chair – a symbolism of the male gaze – and then performing a lap dance for him to enjoy. However, just at the last minute when Drake thinks he’s got her, she slaps him away and walks off, leaving him utterly blue balled.
Anaconda has become such a stirring pot of conversation in the representation of women, black women especially. It brings up the questions such as, yes, it’s great to embrace your bodies, but is it okay to degrade women of a skinnier physique? And yes, it’s great that women are free with their sexual femininity, but is it okay to flaunt that in ways that encourage female objectivity?
Posted on December 11, 2017
Reading || Between Feminism and Popular Culture
This chapter was a big read, but a very insightful read. Having studied about second-wave feminism back in high school, it was interesting to hear more about postfeminism and what people have to say about what we have done as a society after the second wave. There’s a lot I’d like to reflect on from the reading, but I chose to pick out a particular section that is highlighted by the exact scene above from P!NK’s Stupid Girls MV. The chapter mentions three critics, Shulamith Firestone, Germaine Greer and Susan Brownmiller who comment on the the consequences brought upon by the “myth of femininity”. In particular, Firestone’s book, The Dialectic of Sex, expresses that femininity to our society is “the beauty ideal”, in which any political function of any society’s idea of being beautiful is unreasonably attainable.
The result is that women are “left scrambling”, in the “rush to squeeze into the glass slipper, forcing and mutilating their bodies with diets and beauty programmes, clothes and make-up.”
Most importantly, Firestone emphasises that these extreme standards are clearly defined by what men desire from women and their implied values that women need to feel compelled to be wanted by men.
P!NK’s Stupid Girls MV certainly highlights these observations of women trying to obtain ideal beauty. Firstly, in the gif above, P!NK is stuck on an operating table, wired up and marked all over her body to show where alterations are “needed”, an example of a more dire self-mutilation a woman can put upon herself. The MV presents all types of examples women have gone through “stupid” measures to change themselves to achieve ideal beauty for men. From something as simple as getting a much too orange fake tan, wearing skimpy clothing at gyms, to actions such as forced vomiting because, as quoted from the video, girls “will be skinny.”
P!NK expresses her concerns on this “epidemic”, yes, in a comedic way in her fails to keep sexy poses on a soap car, but the video doesn’t had the darker side to how these girls mutilate themselves all for the need to achieve ideal beauty. In the end, P!NK shows what she wishes for the younger generation of girls growing up with these “Stupid Girls” represented on popular culture: for individuals to make the most of their lives through sports, arts, education rather than the superficiality of pretty clothes and makeup.
Posted on December 11, 2017
Production Reflection Podcast
In this podcast, San and I reflect on the two shooting days we had for our production. As it’s a little later in the semester, our places are definitely all over the head, but we somehow managed to get our thoughts out in this episode.