Authentic Self Visual

Here is the video I made for the visual portion of the authentic self project. Sorry for the low quality video, I don't know how that happened seeing as all my videos are shot in 1080p and my preset in Premiere Pro was the highest quality possible, but oh well. I hope it gets the point across none the less.


             

If for some reason the video above doesn't play, here is the link to the video on Youtube.

Negotiating the Meaning of Music in Film

I think that the song First Day of My Life by Bright Eyes thoroughly develops the feelings of happiness, nostalgia and romance. It has a happy upbeat tempo, and is written in a major key, so that alone creates a happy atmosphere around the song. The lyrics describe the writer's deeply romantic and loving feeling toward a third party, and they also mention past events, that are happy memories for the couple, which brings in the feeling of nostalgia. I think that this song would be perfect for a quirky love story film, like Juno for example.

American Society &The Military

The constant glorified depiction of war in American movies influences the American society greatly, socially and politically. First of all, socially; with the media's glorification of war and soldiers, depicting them as epic heroes, and also the idea of the American military as the ultimate "good guy" influences American society to be not only dangerously patriotic, but also pro-violence. It's obvious, especially with the recent controversy over gun rights in the United States, that Americans are very attached to guns and "self defence" and that many are more passionate about protecting their "rights" than they are about public safety. This, no doubt, is related to the media's depiction of the military, and more so, the idea of violence as a solution. These social implications will impact political decisions, as that is the nature of democracy. People are more likely to support a party or a candidate that is pro-war (even for pointless reasons- ex. the Bush administration) because of the ideology that this glorification in the media is imposing on them. In conclusions, because of the constant idealization of war in American media, American society and government has become far too pro-violence.

Titanic Film Rating

The film Titanic (1997) was rated PG by the Ontario Film Review Board, which I disagree with. I think that the film should have a higher rating, 14A. 

The reasons given on the OFRB website for the PG rating are that the film includes frightening scenes that are not recommended for children. Of course these exist in the film, but more disagreeable content is there too. 

To begin, the film follows the story of two individuals who both happen to be on the Titanic- Rose and Jack; the movie documents their love story. Language wise, this film should definitely fall under a 14A rating, it includes coarse language as well as obscene gestures (Rose gives her butler The Finger when her and Jack are escaping in the elevator.) There is not much in the way of violence and gore, but the physiological impacts far outweigh this. The story of the Titanic is clear, and we see a true historical portrayal of the event; including the mistreated third-class and the death of many people, men, women and children. This can have huge effects on everyone, young minds in particular. This is probably the biggest contributing factor to the 14A rating, though the sexual activity and nudity sections have an impact as well. 

In the film, we see female nudity, in the way of Rose posing for Jack to "draw her like one of his French girls." This of course is not suitable for children under the age of fourteen. Alongside this, there is an explicit sex scene between the two leads, complete with windows fogging up and all; it's very serious. 

In conclusion, because of the major discrepancies in the areas of language, nudity/sexual activity and psychological impact, I think that The Titanic should be rated 14A rather than the current rating of PG. 

Film Constrcuts Reality

The Stone of Destiny

This film, directed by Charles Martin Smith, documents the story of Ian Hamilton, a dedicated Scottish nationalist who is determined to return the stolen Stone of Destiny from Westminster Abbey to Scotland.
This film is a good construction of reality because it closely documents a real historical event (though the accuracy of the film's portrayal is debatable) that is very believable to the audience. Some viewers may even believe that the film is meant to be a true retelling of events, though it is only "based on" the actual story. Some technical elements that made the film more realistic are the well written script and well developed characters, which are both natural and believable to the audience. The seamless camera work and well edited scenes keep the viewer engaged, so much so that they forget they're watching a movie (though any good film should do this). Overall, I think that the fact that this film is "based on a true story" is what makes it so believable to viewers.

Mean Girls

Mean Girls, directed by Mark Waters and written by Tina Fey, though hilarious, cleverly written and extraordinarily quotable, is not a very good construction of reality. The entire film is hyperbole and completely exaggerated, and consequently humorous, but still, unrealistic. Also, the actors are far too old for the teenage characters they supposed to be playing, and every single person is way more funny and clever than their realistic counterpart would be. That is the nature of comedy, though. The exaggeration and unreality of the film is what makes its funny,- it's a satire- and consequently is not a reality construction. 

The Breakfast Club

The film, The Breakfast Club is a story of five, supposedly very different teenagers, who all happen to be serving detention on the same Saturday. They are each defined by different stereotypes, which, through the process of the film, they deconstruct to prove that they really aren't that different from each other. That aside, five definite stereotypes exist within the film, at least at the beginning, and they each send explicit and implicit messages about how each subgroup of people is supposed to behave, which, in general (as most stereotypes are) are contradictory to reality. 

"The Princess"

The character Claire is labeled throughout the film as "the princess". She is seen as a spoiled rich girl who is uncaring and rude to others, particularly those who she deems to be lower than herself on the social ladder. This stereotype is placed on her because she is a white, middle class girl who is friends with "the popular girls", or rather is one herself. This, as most stereotypes are, is generally untrue. From my personal experience, there are many girls that fit the description of Claire that are genuinely kind people. So, I would say that in most cases, this depiction does not fit my perception of reality.

"The Brain"

The character of Brian is labelled as "the brain"- he is the stereotypical nerd who likes school, gets along with his parents, and doesn't have many friends. He is seen as "totally uncool" and picked on by his fellow students who are also serving in detention. He is hopelessly awkward, and tragically uncool. He is also a very unrealistic character. In my experience, the majority of teenagers get along well enough with their parents, and aren't ashamed of being intelligent. Also, people are not mocked and ridiculed for being "a nerd", at least the people I know. So, again, I would say that the depiction of Brian does not fit my perception of reality.

"The Jock"

Andrew is characterized as "the jock" and is the typical popular, sporty guy. He is respected by his fellow "popular kids" and is detested by those less popular. Although he is athletic and well liked, he is also kind and sensitive. I think that this is a far more realistic depiction of a teenage boy than the stereotypical athlete;  his character is more complex than some of the others in the film, as well. Although my judgement may be lacking, since I don't have much experience with the "athletic types" I still think that the depiction of Andrew in the film fits my perception of reality more thoroughly.

"The Criminal"  

The character of John Bender is the stereotypical bad guy, or "the criminal" of the movie. He has a troubled family life, misbehaves in school, gets bad grades and "has no future" according to his teachers. Again, as most characters in teen films are, this is a stereotype. Though, similar to the previous case, I can't say I have much experience with the "bad kid" types, but I would still say that this depiction is contradictory to my perception of reality.

"The Basket Case"

Finally, the character of Allison Reynolds, who is labelled "the basket case" is seen as a crazy girl with issues, to use the most casual terms. She is quiet and reserved, and her peers don't know much about her. She has strange mannerisms and terrible social skills. This character is difficult to analyze, because I have literally never encountered such a person in real life. But, because of my previous conclusions, I must assume that she is also an unrealistic stereotype, that likely would not conform to my perception of reality.

Despite the extreme stereotypes in the film, the story that plays out is meant to deconstruct those stereotypes and show that each person is individual and that people cannot be categorized by interests, abilities or socio-economic class. The conclusion to the film- that stereotypes are constructions and generally untrue, more than anything else, fits with my perception of reality.

Hollywood Film Making in 8 Easy Steps

1. Acquire the rights to the story (which may be an existing novel). This may involve paying a large sum of money to an author or script writer to ensure they won't sell their rights to another production company.
2. Commission a screen writer to adapt the novel into a script. This may require a few tries-or a few different screen writers- until the "right" script is written
3. Hire the essential crew (director, casting director, cinematographer, assistant producers, editor and musical director), who will in turn, hire their own assistants and crew.
4. Determine shooting locations; on location (in this case, contact must be made with land or business owners to book time to use locations) or in studio (in this case, a contractor must be hired to build the sets), prepare housing for actors and sometimes crew, and if needed, hire stunt actors and work out insurance issues.
5. Shoot. This is the shortest step in the film making process.
6. Post-production. This will include the director working with editors and Foley artists, etc, to achieve the final product of the film.
7. The film is now turned over to the producer to be promoted and advertised and sold to cinemas where they will be played for the public. But, before the final cinema step, the films will premiere for influential reviewers and media outlets, where the actors must attend- and these events can occur all over the world.
8. Profit!