Thursday, March 25, 2010

Blog 8-MOMI

1. How many names are typically on the credit roll?
2. Who was the makeup artist who invented a thinner greasepaint for movies?
3. What did Greg Cannom use to inject the molds from “Cocoon”?
4. What music played while a silent film was going on?
5. What camera made home filmmaking possible?
6. Who pioneered the close up?
7. What was the first step in transferring sound to video or film?
8. Sounds were first recorded on films by using?
9. What part of the picture elements can be manipulated?
10. What is a director of photography called?
11. What were photographic devices originally made for?
12. What did the Mitchell 35mm camera do to breakthrough?
13. What does a green screen combine?
14. What was the first hand held 35mm camera to be widely accepted?
15. What was handy looky?
16. What bit microprocessor is in the Genesis?
17. What was the first sound film?
18. When did it open?
19. Who created the telephone?
20. ----In what year?
21. The first lantern was built in?
22. What are the benefits of using foam latex for special effects makeup?
23. New York’s 500 Nickelodeons entertained how many people circa 1907?
24. Who were some of the first entrepreneurs to acquire legitimate theaters for chains and movie houses?
25. Why were studios forced to sell their theaters in 1948?
26. Which movies are shown in the 2 microscopes?
27. What are some of the camera options for the video flipbook exhibit?
28. How many of Bill Cosby’s sweaters from the Cosby Show are on display?
29. How many suits worn by Richard Gere in Chicago are on display?
30. Whose body suit is on display, and from what movie?
31. How many frames are needed to make a 10 second animation?
32. Which movie can you put your voice over in the soundroom?
33. How many head sculptures from from Starman?

Kenneth Stockwell, Helen Alzate, Seung Yon (Jenny) Oh, Fernando Torres, Ashley Turzio

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Blog 7

So far I am a few weeks into the semester and this class is one of my favorites. Unlike a class that I will not mention everything is online and very easily accessible from anywhere. I hate when teachers have a syllabus and revise it constantly throughout the semester because I feel like it is pointless to have made it in the first place. Thankfully this class seems like it is going to avoid that.
Also this class is the only 2 hour and 15 minute class where I do not find myself staring at the clock because everything moves so slowly. In this class I can go at my own pace and I always have something else I could be doing. There is a lot of writing but that is what I expected from an English class in the first place so I am not so overwhelmed. My only complaint so far is that I don’t want to continue writing blogs or papers the way I do if they are wrong. While everyone elses criticism and support helps me they are not the ones grading my paper. I want to know your criticism so that I don’t have to end up with a bad set of grades for the first blogs.
This class is much better than I anticipated and the cluster is interesting as well. I do not really understand though how some teachers can handle their entire class on blackboard or another site while others do not even give you an email address. In my book, it should be all or nothing, having it both ways is almost more aggravating than not having the computer to help me at all.

Semester Plan

This semester I choose to take the Film and Media Cluster. It consists of several classes that are related in certain ways and not in others. The cluster is a nice change because it allows the assignments to be related and written work and projects are spaced out accordingly. This will allow me ample time to get my projects complete as opposed to last semester where I had three 4-5 pg papers due in one day.

The Matrix

The film “The Matrix” answers and explains many questions of the futute, reality, and man vs machine. In the Matrix people do not have any individuality, they all generally look the same and act the same. Things like sexuality and race do not exist becaue it is not programmed into them to exist. In a world like a computer where you could just upload any information you wanted the poor and weak qualities could be done away with entirely.

Mainly, “The Matrix: tries to evaluate a futuristic world where humans are computers who can gain information with the push of a button. It is realistic because humans constantly are depending on computers for their everyday tasks. Additionally I feel that the situation it displays is real since humans have too many weaknesses. A computer you can upload information to, download information to, skip from program to program, is just easier. Things like emotion and stress could be eliminated because you could choose to not upload individuals with this info.

Another reason why the human mind should be computerized is so that every individual could have a personality and be successful. By programming humans you could give everyone specifically a career. There would be less competition and ultimately more predictability so you could apply a specific number of people to each profession. No one would dislike his or her job because everyone would be programmed without any type of weakness. The only weakness the individuals are confronted with is the virus’ infecting their system.

However they have a system for this too. An electric wave that eliminates all viruses within a certain area is used. When a human gets a virus they may get sick for a week, or a month, some live and some die but there is no way to upload a solution to the viruses. Our immune system is our defense against viruses, and since there is always human error naturally our immune system will have its errors. A world where you could solve any problem by writing a code to a program and entering into your body, is a much easier world with much less problems.

The film “The Matrix” explains a lot but it does not explain my main question. Are we in the Matrix? If you have never experienced something else you are the same as Truman deciding whether to go off the set of The Truman Show or Plato’s Allegory of the Cave. Ultimately we don’t know what the definition of reality or anything for that matter really is. Sometimes I feel like I am in the Matrix, I just go through this schedule day after like a robot. And if I feel like a robot I look at my parents who are more formatted than me. It is almost as if we are already in the Matrix, and have already been programmed into this world I have never thought about before this movie. All I want to know is if I have lived in the Matrix for 18 years, what is on the other side?

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Blog 4- Truman Syndrome

If you search “Truman Syndrome” on yahoo the first link to come up is CNN.com. The article is about people who believe that they are in a reality television show similar to Truman’s situation in “The Truman Show”. Amazingly enough this disorder has affected hundreds of people worldwide, who actually go to psychiatric practices and complain of being followed and filmed for the entertainment of television.

This seems completely crazy but it actually is driving people crazy. Some have threatened to commit suicide if the series surrounding their life isn’t stop and others pride themselves on being an imaginary hero to millions of viewers. I think the point of the Truman Syndrome is really that reality television if not television in general is far too influential on everyone’s lives. People watch so much television that they want to be a part of it. Then it ultimately becomes so important to them that they manage to convince themselves that they are part of it.

Truman Syndrome is sad but I do not think that it should be considered a specific syndrome. It effects individuals who already have personality disorders such as schizophrenia and if they were not trapped in a television series they would be in some other unrealistic situation.

Monday, March 15, 2010

The Allegory

Plato’s The Allegory of the cave is a theory where men are all chained to a wall and forced to look at a wall of shadows their entire lives. When one of the men escapes and finds sunlight he is in shock and has no idea what to think or feel about this new environment. The point of Plato’s theory is that knowledge is based on experience. If all you know is darkness and shadows and you think that there is nothing else you have no need to know anything else.

When the prisoner is exposed to the sunlight he does not know how to handle it because he has never experienced and light other than that of a fire. The next proposed idea is what if the prisoner now returns to the cave to try to tell the fellow prisoners of his findings. The fellow prisoners would not accept this man because they have not witnessed the new sightings and would ultimately rebel against him if he pursued breaking them out.

Knowledge is based on experience and if you know all of your surroundings there is no need for further exploration of search of knowledge. The Allegory of the cave also can easily relate to “The Truman Show” where Truman is trapped in a TV set which he believes is his real life.

The Truman Show

The Truman Show has no similarities with a reality television show. Shows on television like Survivor or The Real World have knowing participants not just a random selection. Truman is born into a world he believes is real and is never given a choice as to whether he would like to live there or not. Reality television shows have willing participants who sign up for the environment they are put it. Christof claims in the movie that Truman has a choice and if he wanted to leave it would be inevitable to keep him there. Since people sign up for reality television I view that as moral, but in Truman’s case he knows nothing other than the enviorment he is put in. He is in the same situation as a prisoner in Plato’s Allegory of the Cave.

As Truman begins to investigate everything and see it as it really is, his views are severely altered. He approaches everything a different way then he would go about approaching it normally. This happens to anyone when they come in contact with a new experience. When you get into a car accident, you drive differently, or when you meet people for the first time you tend to act more reserved.

Put in Truman’s position, I would want to pursue exploring life outside of Seahaven even though I had no knowledge of what I would confront. Everyone is curious and once even slightly exposed to a new environment anyone is going to naturally feel compelled to find answer their questions about it. However it would be difficult to know that a guaranteed perfect life with no uncomfortable situations would be left behind.

When Truman exits Seahaven he does not know what to expect. He knows nothing of the world that exists on the other side, and will be in shock when comes into different circumstances. The idea of The Truman Show is completely immoral. The entire world is being entertained by a prisoner with no idea what his life, family, morals or anything is. He exists in a completely fake world, thinking its real, forming real relationships and going through tragic losses. It is not right that Christof can try to condone Truman’s existence by claiming he has choices and he could easily escape. Truman is almost killed and even still Christof is more worried about his ratings than another human life.

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

BLOG 1- I am not a cyborg.

Looking today at society, one might think that most humans are cyborgs, part man part
machine. You get on a subway and unlike thirty years ago everyone is not reading a
newspaper, but instead listening to an iPod or texting on their cell phone. The majority
of the people I run into have some form of technology that they just cannot be without. I
admit to using this current technology but would not label myself a cyborg, since unlike
most people, my life will not change if they are taken away.
Technology is a great thing and simplifies certain tasks to the point where the
“old way” of doing things can be eliminated. I moved into an apartment about 6 months
ago and debated whether to get a house phone. After much deliberation I just figured it
was something I needed to have. My parents had a house phone since I was born and
they still use it, but now that I have mine it has rang about twice. There is no need for a
phone that can only go a certain distance when you have one that can store numbers,
send pictures, and text messages. Plus why would I hand out a number to a phone I
am most likely not going to answer because I am out.
This might label me as a cyborg to some but I knew it could not be about two
weeks ago. I accidentally dropped my phone into a cup of coffee, frying the screen to
the point where it could no longer be used. I wanted to get a new phone but was more
interested to see how I would be able to survive without one. I have not had a cell
phone in my pocket for two weeks now and it is a lot easier that it would have at first
seemed. I find that I just get more things done when I do not have to reach into my
pocket every minute or two to reply to some text message that I really could have
covered in a one minute conversation. Additionally I managed to receive any pertinent
information I needed to, and got bothered a lot less by things that made no difference. I
have survived thus far, and do not believe that my life has been altered in any way at
this point due to the loss of a major technology that I have been using for five years.
However the iPod addiction I feel is worse than the cell phone epidemic. The few
times I do end up riding the subway 8 out of 10 people have their iPod on. I like music
and although it took me a while to upgrade to an iPod from my single compact disc
player I found this made it significantly easier to have all of my music on one source.
But after going through 3 iPods every 4-6 months, not from my mistreatment of them,
but from their lack of reliability, this was another technology that my life would be a lot
less stressful and cheaper without. Since I got rid of it I find myself having a lot more
extra time and a lot more money not spent on iPods.
While I believe that the majority of the human race is turning into cyborgs, I would
not label myself as one, as I do not need any of these technologies to continue my
existence. Too many people become too dependent on items like this to the point
where they cannot live on without them. For me, a life without technology is not a life
that cannot go on, but instead a life with more emphasis put on the simpler, less
advanced forms of communication and entertainment.