I'm Like A Lawyer With The Way I'm Always Trying To Get You Off

I've been thinking about Culture Jamming and I just thought of a great example of culture jamming by one of my favourite bands, Fall Out Boy. FOB released a song titled "I'm Like A Lawyer With The Way I'm Always Trying To Get You Off (Me & You)" in 2008 and their video focused on poverty and the situation in Uganda at the time. They took a stand and made a statement with that video, utilising the influence they have by telling a story through their music video and trying to educate people on the subject.

Here is the video:

5 - Response to Lecture

Unfortunately I was unable to attend the lecture this week but I looked at the content on Learning@Griffith and the lecture appeared to focus on customer consumption and production.

One thing in particular that stood out to me was the section on "Fan Films" as I've seen a lot of this online. Many people make fanvids of their favourite tv shows or movies that allow them to tell their own story using characters that they already love.

Tutespark - Culture Jamming

"Culture jamming is a form of disruption that plays on the emotions of viewers and bystanders. The reactions that most cultural jammers are hoping to evoke are behavioral change and political action. There are four emotions that activists often want viewers to feel. These emotions, shock, shame, fear, and anger, are believed to be the catalysts for social change. The term comes from the idea of radio jamming, in which public frequencies can be pirated and subverted for independant communication, or to disrupt dominant frequencies."

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_jamming

There is actually a film titled "Culture Jam: Hijacking Commercial Culture" which asks the questions, "is culture jamming civil disobedience? Senseless vandalism? The only form of self-defense left?"

I believe this is a culture jam that has a large affect on society as has the ability to be seen my large masses of people around the globe. It it a documentary that has been invited to over 20 film festivals and has been seen by many people since it's filming and release in 2001-2.

You can view the trailer for the film here.

One of the most damaging culture jamming was when two 16-year-old girls allegedly concealed over-the-counter, non-prescription tablets inside soft lollies and deliberately left them in the children's play area at McDonalds. I believe this is the most damaging as children taking tablets when thinking they are lollies, is a very serious thing to happen and can have significant affects on the children. They might have an allergic reaction to the medication and could possibly die, or at least get very ill.

Source

4 - Tutorial Task

1. Where and when did usable online video start?

The first youtube video was posted in 2005 which led to an onslaught of videos to show up online.

There is a brief history of online video of the past 6 or so years here.

2. In the lecture we heard about technological innovations that were used by the studios to lure audiences. (mostly to combat the popularity of TV)
What recent innovations are being used to lure us in the movies?
What are they luring us from?
Recent innovations that are being used to lure us into movies lately is this horrid trend known as "3D". Personally, I hate 3D as it is such a fad and takes away from the story and performances in films. My least favourite movie from the past 2 years is Avatar. It was a terrible movie with a horrid screenplay and story, however it made over 2 billion dollars because of the CGI and the fact that it was in 3D. It made so much money that they are rereleasing it into cinemas (after a DVD release which is pretty unheard of) with an extra 9 minutes of footage (as if it wasn't long and horrible enough as it was) that cost 9 million dollars to make. 3D like that which was seen in Avatar had not really been seen in cinemas before. Nowadays, there are many movies in 3D such as Toy Story 3D and Step Up 3D. I do not believe the 3D trend will last as it is a fad and something new will come along that will detract viewers from going to see a movie just because it is in 3D.

3. Are short films still being made? Why? Who pays for them to be made?
Short films are being made all the time and are more popular than ever. It is so easy for people to use their own camera at home and go and shoot something, upload it to youtube and gain notoriety for it. Many students participate in short filmmaking.

Shorts are the most accessible form of cinematic storytelling: they can be made on any gauge of film or video and they are by their very nature, free from the commercial constraints of feature films.

Source: isfc.com.au

4. The term viral is thrown about adhoc but what does it mean in film/movie arena? Give some examples.

Viral is a term that has seemed to be used a lot over the past few years but I think when people say it about film and television, it has a different meaning. Justin Bieber has recently become a significant figure in today's pop culture and he started by posting youtube videos, and he went viral online. Viral is a term that is thrown about a little bit too much these days but it is still relevant.

A video, image or text spread by "word of mouth" on the internet or by e-mail for humorous, political or marketing purposes.

Source

5. Online video distribution isn't limited to the short film format. We are now starting to see television styled shows made solely for internet release (webisodes). Find an example of this style of content and discuss how viewing television content in this way can positively and negatively affect the viewer's experience.

Webisodes have shown up a lot over the past few years. I personally do not think webisodes or web series can gain the same level of popularity as tv shows or films seen on regular commercial television because they don't have the same level of widespread mass marketing. A series feels more legit if it is seen on television and has DVD releases, rather than just being seen online. An example of webisodes is "Chasing Dorota", a Gossip Girl spin-off which I talked about in my last entry.

I think a viewer's experience when watching something is greatly dependant on whether they watch online or on their tv at home. I watch a lot of shows online that don't air here in Australia and you don't get the same viewing experience from doing so. It is more convenient as you can watch it whenever and wherever you want, but it doesn't have the same impact as watching something on your TV, at least for me.

4 - Response to Lecture and Tutespark

This week we went through a brief history of Cinema.

As a film student, I really like when the lectures revolve around Film.

Tutespark

1. 'Twilight' Parody by The Hillywood Show

I feel like this parody already had a built-in audience as Twilight is a immensely popular series and has a very large online community. The Hillywood Show does parodies of many other films such as The Runaways, The Dark Knight, Pirates of the Caribbean and Nightmare on Elm Street. They have built quite a large online fanbase and have over 10 million views on youtube.

2. Chasing Dorota - A 'Gossip Girl' spin-off (episode 1).

"Chasing Dorota" is a spin-off of the Gossip Girl series that had 6 short episodes (about 7 minutes each) that was created as a 'bonus' for Gossip Girl fans. At first, it was only available if you had a particular sort of phone that sponsored the show, but they put the webisodes on the season 2 DVD. Dorota was a very popular character among big fans of the show, but not so much the casual viewer.

3. Vampires Suck

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHkPJ1ACLrg

This is the trailer for a film that is now playing in theaters. "Vampires Suck is a comedy about the contemporary teen angst and romance movies." Again, vampires are a large part of pop culture today so they already have a built in audience.

3 - Response to Lecture, Tutespark and Tutorial Task

The week 3 lecture focused on the history of technologies.

The thing that stood out to me in the lecture, is when Jules said:

We need to know where we came from to know where we're going.

As someone who is not very interested in history, I've never understood this (maybe it's just because I wanted to avoid learning about history as much as possible) but this lecture did help me to understand it a little more. I do realise that we need to know about advances in technology throughout history to try to know where we w

ould possibly go from here.

Tutespark

The tutespark for week 3 is to find examples of digital devices that are not electronic as well as to define the terms digital, analogue, communication and electronic.

Digital Devices

• Typewriter
• Magnetic Casette Tape
• Telegraph

Definitions

Digital: displaying numbers rather than scale positions

Analogue: of a circuit or device having an output that is proportional to the input

Communication: something that is communicated by or to or between people or groups

Electronic: of or relating to electronics; concerned with or using devices that operate on principles governing the behaviour of electrons

Treasure Hunt Task

1. What is the weight of the world’s biggest machine? How much did it cost to build?

The world's largest machine is the V-CAT D8R. It

stands over 311 feet tall and 705 feet long and weighs over 45,500 tonnes! It cost $100 million to build and took 5 years to design and manufacture.

Source: http://edwindwianto.wordpress.com/2009/12/20/the-largest-machine-in-the-world-the-v-cat-d8r-awsome/

2. What is the best way (quickest and most reliable) to contact Ozzy Osbourne.

I believe the best way to contact Ozzy would be through his twitter (@OfficialOzzy) as sending email or going through an agent could take months or even years.

3. When and what was the first example of global digital communication?

The first example of global digital communication was through writing, books in particular as they could reach large audiences globally.

4. What is the cheapest form of travel from the Gold Coast to Melbourne?

BestFlights recommends Tiger Air as their one-way flight from the GC to Melbourne only costs $69. Flight is the cheapest method of travel.

5. Who is Hatsune Miku? What company does she belong to? What is her birthday?

Hatsune Miku is a virtual popstar was made by the Good Smile company. Her birthday is August 31, 2007.

6. Find a live webcam in Antarctica. Find a place to stay in Antarctica.

There is a live webcam available at http://www.antarctica.gov.au/webcams/mawson. Addictedtotravel.com recommends the Polar Star. The Polar Star is an ex Swedish icebreaker and was converted in 2000 for expedition cruising. The Polar Star can carry 100 whilst in the Antartic.

7. What song was top of the Australian pop charts this week in 1980?

According to Wapedia, "Funkytown" by Lipss Inc was the number one song.

8. How would you define the term 'nano technology'? In your own words, what does it really mean?

A basic definition: Nanotechnology is the engineering of functional systems at the molecular scale. This covers both current work and concepts that are more advanced. In its original sense, 'nanotechnology' refers to the projected ability to construct items from the bottom up, using techniques and tools being developed today to make complete, high performance products.

Source: http://www.crnano.org/whatis.htm

I believe that nanotechnology is using tiny designs and technology to enhance the technology we use today. Being small and nano allows us to use it more efficiently and in more effective ways. For example, nobody wants to carry a large computer around like the first one to exist, we all prefer laptops.

9. What type of camera is used to make ‘Google Street View’?
Google Street View was created using cameras that were mounted onto cars, to capture street images with 360 degree cameras. This is called the "immersive media" camera.

10. Translate these questions into Klingon.

1. nuq 'oH [the] [weight] vo' [the] [world’s] [biggest] [machine] chay' 'ar ta'ta' 'oH [cost] Daq chen
2. nuq 'oH [the] [best] [way] [quickest] HochHom [reliable] Daq [contact] [Ozzy] [Osborne]
3. ghorgh 'ej nuq ghaHta' [the] wa'DIch [example] vo' [global] [digital] [communication]
4. nuq 'oH [the] [cheapest] [form] vo' [travel] vo' [the] SuD baS [Coast] Daq [Melbourne]
5. 'Iv 'oH [Hatsune] [Miku] nuq [company] ta'taH ghaH [belong] Daq nuq 'oH Daj qoS
6. tu' [a] yIn [webcam] Daq [Antarctica] tu' [a] Daq Daq [stay] Daq [Antarctica]
7. nuq bom ghaHta' [top] vo' [the] [Australian] [pop] [charts] vam [week] Daq
8. chay' [would] SoH [define] [the] [term] ['nano] [technology'] Daq lIj ghaj mu'mey nuq ta'taH 'oH [really] [mean]
9. nuq [type] vo' [camera] 'oH [used] Daq chenmoH [‘Google] [Street] [View’]

Source: mrklingon.org/

The Great Race

Week 2 Tutorial Task

We got given the title "The Great Race".

Essentially, the story is of two people who are racing and one is on time, while the other is late. The symbolism of the clocks is that "time is ticking".

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z59qRreW0P8

2 - Response to Lecture

I really enjoyed the lecture this week! Apparently we were supposed to talk about the history of different technologies but the lecturer wasn't able to be there so instead we talked about different elements of film (and as I mentioned previously, that's what I want to do so I was so excited to be learning about it). We mostly talked about technical things such as positioning of the camera, different types of shots as well as why a particular shot is chosen.

I did know quite a lot about most of the things discussed as I am a pretty active viewer when watching films, television shows or even advertisements, but it was nice to gain even more knowledge on the subject of film.

For me, the most interesting part of the lecture was the concept of why a particular shot is chosen. Some people had different ideas as to why a filmmaker would choose one shot over another but I think it all has to do with emotion. By using a CS (close up) shot of an actor's facial expression, you get more insight into what the character is feeling at the time. By using a LS (long shot), you can portray the whereabouts of the character but you can also portay emotion (such as "they're in a sea full of people but are still alone"). A particular shot is chosen depending on which emotion needs to come across to the viewer.

Until next time..

- Erin