Upon revisiting the goals of this studio, I have been prompted to consider two questions – has the overall experiment of observational writing been at all successful or instructive? And has our practise of observational writing had any other benefits?

I wish to address the latter first. I’ve been intrigued throughout the course of this semester by how much one has to be open to the experience of an observation in order for a worthwhile observation to be experienced. This openness does not necessarily require one to actively seek out a subject of interest, nor does it demand that someone falsify points of interest for oneself in things observed so that otherwise ordinary experiences may be transformed into inspiration for possible engaging writing. Rather it requires one to be more aware of their surroundings so that they may be more susceptible to potential observations. In turn, observational writing has become a practise of mindfulness and present-mindedness in day-to-day life. The more active engagement in ones surroundings and the disengagement from sources of distraction, including phones and music, which may inhibit someone’s ability to be and remain engaged in their experience of the world is mandated. I have found this to be a worthwhile exercise as an aspect of the practise of observational writing. This increased presence has reminded me of the rich possibility for inspiration which is available in everyday life and the beauty of normal. It has invited me to shift my perception of beauty away from being purely based upon the aesthetic qualities of the world and its photographic potential, and towards a more diverse and well-rounded appreciation for beauty in life that is inclusive of also behavioural and non-visual forms of beauty, such as human interactions. In this, I feel that I have had both personal growth in my general perspective of the world and an artistic growth in the creative sensibilities with which this personal growth is associated. 

Although I am strongly inclined to perceive the effects of this practise as being beneficial, I feel as though I can not label the experiment as being successful on account of the fact that I do not find the observational writing practise which I have developed to be applicable to my film-making practise in a fashion that is I find to be meaningful at this stage. While there are elements to my approach to film-making and my sourcing of inspiration for video work which may be deemed to have an observational quality to them, such as my preference to allow talent to self-direct and behave as they feel most comfortable when photographed and filmed, I feel that my approach to observational writing has little pertinence to my approach to film making. This arises as a consequence of the fact that what is of note to me as an observation typically occurs organically and meaninglessly, while in constructing a film piece I am concerned with the construction of imagery and the meaning which may be ingrained in the construction process. While I acknowledge that making a short film that relates to an observation or has an observational style an exact realism is not mandated and the process is not lacking in the construction of imagery, however I consider the process of writing and the visualisations of my own written pieces to be discordant with my preferred approach to constructing an image. What inspires me to write does not inspire me to film and what inspires me to film is not my own perspective in writing. Thus, the processes of image construction and translating observation into film through writing are essentially mutually exclusive to me at this time. I hope they may be able to assume a more meaningful relationship in the future. I feel that the practise of observational writing is of value to a film-maker, however the path of development which my own practise has assumed over the past months does not facilitate a valuable relationship. 

In the process of developing a film based on an observational piece of writing, or developing a film with an approach that is inspired/underpinned by practices learned from observational writing, research into the form and observational-style film, while of potential value, exists upon a fine line between detriment to artistic integrity and benefit to the stylistic character. 

Upon the latter possible mode of influence, research into the potential methods by which aspects of the observational writing process may be concurrent with film-making may have a considerable role in terms of reducing the necessity for wide experimentation and therefore increasing efficiency of production and enhancing the visual literacy of the product. This may derive from the opportunity for the refinement of one’s own taste and preferences which research readily allows; in being exposed to a diverse range of pieces of similar taxa, examples are provided of the potential stylistic avenues and methods to production. These examples provide a background knowledge of the form that contextualises the practise and informs one’s taste. In light of this, where exploration of the potential avenues for the translation of observational writing is integral to the practise, by exploring taste and methods without having to do so in self-production, research allows for the refinement of aspirations in practise that informs decision making processes in production and therefore enhances the efficiency and enables the more effective adoption of stylistic features.

However, where inspirational influence is typically very closely associated with imitation, research may draw into question or otherwise negatively impact one’s artistic integrity. It is difficult to assess the potential relevance of this to artistic practices as a whole as one can only assume the degree to which ideas are original and/or influenced by another individual, however the issue of artistic integrity arises from the fact that the employment of inspiration derivative from other creatives may lead to unintentional imitation in practise and lack of complete authenticity in artistic expression. Expression instead occurs through vehicles and precedents which are established by other creators. In many cases, particularly in mainstream art and media, such serves to enhance the communicative qualities of a piece as recognisable features, symbols and approaches may already have well-formed modes of interpretation. But this expression is no longer individual. In light of this, should one adhere too closely or too truthfully to their inspiration as is made known by research, their work may become a vehicle for the exploration of their inspiring work as opposed to the exploration of their own ideas.

In consideration of feedback from assignment 2, I have been led towards further consideration of my practical exercise component and my overall satisfaction with such. It was pointed out to me that the most important vehicle for progression and thus audience engagement was the subject/actress selected. Although her demeanour is generally ordinary, the natural pace and ease of her behaviour came across as a highlight to the piece and thus divergence from her as a subject subtracted from the engagement of the audience and the perceived quality of the image presented. 

It is fair to say that the exercise is exhibiting little attempt to experiment with cinematic and/or production methods and concepts. This was exactly the case. However, such is also the reason for which this exercise was important as a first step towards finding pathways for the effective translation of my writing practise. It is for the reason of interest in the behaviour and movements of the individuals initially observed that I chose to write about them and I did so without any thought as to how my written representation of the event would then be recreated as a cinematic piece. I am interested in the ‘standard’ perception and understanding of human behaviour and demeanour and fascinated by how certain behaviours are normalised to the extent that they go unnoticed. There is a lost appreciation for beauty in these pure and overlooked events of everyday life. 

That said, I am concerned by my own belief in the lack of interest in such for the general public. Although I find these events to be captivating when noticed, I am aware that such may not be the case for others and am therefore hesitant to explore these events in full or in isolation of additional points of interest. As a consequence of this, I feel inclined to supplement these moments with further information, such as additional shots of the scene/setting. While this is somewhat discordant with previously described thoughts relating to lack of desire to pamper to an audience’s expectations, I feel that as I am still seeking out the most effective approach rendering an observation in a video form, in these early stages it is somewhat necessary to adopt more conventional approaches that address potential expectations of the audience, despite the fact that such may come at a compromise of artistic integrity.