For this extra credit assignment, you will go to the following film event screening this coming Thursday 4/21 at 4pm in the Ferg Theater. It is going to be a great event and shouldn't be missed. These extra credit points should just be added incentive.
http://art.ua.edu/news/international-short-films-to-be-screened-at-ua/
After the screening, write a blog post about one of the films you saw at the screening.
For those who complete this, you will receive 2 bonus points to your final grade for the class.
I hope to see you there!
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B-Roll with Andre. The film itself seems like a documentary but also an action piece as well. We start off with a hoodie figure being interviewed about Andre when he was in prison and how he wanted to start a film called "Eboyz" about these crooks/thieves who go around and steal art. He goes on to talk about how Andre had magic powers and could walk through walls and that's how he broke out of prison. The character of Andre is mysterious yet relatable from what the speaker is saying. How he loved Gone Girl with how complex it is and to how he lives his life in HD, whereas the speaker wanted to live a good life with a "lower case" g. Overall great film that really pulls the audience in.
ReplyDeleteI would like to comment on all three films, if that is permissible.
ReplyDeleteThe first film screened at the even was Dag’aa by Shadi Habib Allah. This subtitled film (set in the Middle East, I didn’t catch where) is a documentary-like look at the underground illegal trade of that region. We were treated to several incredible shots of the desert with a dusty pick up truck barreling through the terrain. They employed the use of several shots from within the car to capture that very realistic motion of the vehicle. The film captured the dirt, grime, and pure heat of the region. The deep voice over was ominous and disturbing as it described the various illegal trades that occurred in these uninhabited zones. His chilling voice gave context to some stunning scenes. The filmmaker use available lighting to great effect in Dag’aa. There were a handful of scenes that were only lit by firelight and car headlights. Sound was also used to create a tense atmosphere. The score was always in the background, heightening the alertness of both the audience and the carriers of the contraband. Everything about this film was vague, almost to a point of annoyance. However, when the narrator described specific images (like the meat rotting in the back of the truck with flies, or 5 men packed in the heat) they were always striking. While the plot never advanced past the idea of the illegal trading, it was a very real and gritty look at the industry. There was one image that sticks with me hours after the screening. I was beginning to zone-out (sorry, but I’m being honest) and I saw a scene lit completely by fire and I heard footsteps marching. I saw a line of shirtless men (their sweaty bodies shining in the amber light), linking arms and marching away. For some reason that sent chills through my back. This was a very interesting (if not a bit too long) film.
Up next was B-Roll With Andre by James Wilkins. This film was built around the personality of the narrator. His wit and outlook gave the film a bolt of energy, and made us want to keep listening to his story. As this mysterious figure talked to the camera, we saw shots of GoPro “b-roll” that showed the story of eBoyz (a crack team of eBay art thieves). However, we then moved on to see shots of what I can assume to be Andre exploring a film convention. The film took the idea of b-roll to a very interesting philosophical place. Andre talked about how he hated the B-Roll of life, while the narrator enjoyed the routine of it all. It was a very interesting look at how an obsession to capture the world in a perfect form can be self destructive. The most impressive aspect by far was how this film was created. It was crafted almost completely out of stock footage. The filmmaker was able to create a compelling story from elements that he did not own. Combined with the score from Gone Girl, Wilkins’ work felt like an entirely new experience, not simply a recombination. The film challenges me to be creative with the medium of storytelling and to know that there are very few limitations if you know how to frame your story. While this was by far my favorite film of the evening, it had a few flaws. One, was the audio of the voice. While it was good, it almost seemed to have two settings: deep, and then SUPER deep. It seemed to fluctuate without reason and was a tad distracting. Another problem was how it ended. The story was very interesting on its own, but I would have loved to see another beat to the story, a “twist” that wraps the story and keeps you talking after the film is over. However, B-Roll seemed to go out on a whimper and failed to leave a strong impression after it ended. Overall, B-Roll With Andre was an intriguing film that still has more potential for expansion.
And last but CERTAINLY least we have Night Soil / Fake Paradise by Melanie Bonajo. So when I review films on the blog, I ATTEMPT to look at things objectively. I attempt to keep my emotions regarding the film to a minimum. However, this film was so atrocious that I cannot help but show my true colors. Night Soil started promisingly with a very creative title sequence. And I was NOT opposed to the idea of the film: a collection of voices that seek this place of psychedelic ecstasy. And I bought it…but then I choked on the crap it tried to shove into this film. The visuals were so trippy and nonsensical. A underwear-clad women “scanning” a goat with an iPad is considered an interpretation of the collision of the digital and the physical. A man in drag with bubble wrap and a broom in a bathtub. A talking potted plant sitting atop a nude women assures us that it is human and infinitely more complex. A women gropes a tree and a goat nibbles on her backside while we hear some narration about how the leaf is a majestic part of nature. Then we see a naked man attempting to revive a dead women with a handful of powder and what appears to be a spray bottle of weed-killer. And I could go on and on and on and on and… (get the picture?). And some of the narration was generally interesting. It told a few interesting stories of drug-induced experiences. But then it went to this really strange “preachy” place that just refused to stop spouting the most ridiculous things. And while I can tolerate people in a story having opinions that are opposite of mine (after all thats how stories and life works) when the entire film is all opinion and no emotional buy-in for me to hook onto, I begin to get rather annoyed. So I very much disliked this film (if that wasn’t already painfully apparent). Anyway, sorry for my rant! :)
ReplyDeleteSo easily my favorite film out of the bunch was B-Roll With Andre by James Wilkins. It started off with a strange hooded figure that was intentionally censored by backlight. He led the viewer through many comedic comments and slowly built up a narrative about his friend Andre, who apparently killed someone. This pseudo-documentary was filled with random B-roll from a GoPro to fill in some of the things he was saying. What fascinated me was that the hooded picture was stock footage, and the filmmaker just randomly pieced all the clips together to form a narrative. So the only thing he truly filmed was B-roll. I don't fully understand the film, but I appreciate the notion that with the right editing, you can create something out of absolutely nothing. Overall, this viewing was a cool experience.
ReplyDeleteI had much fun by watching those three short films. It is an excellent experience for me. Those films are seems filmed in a hard conditions.Some of the scenes are very meaningful and audience need to take bit of time to understand that. There were three films showed on the event. Dag’aa, B-Roll with Andre and the night soil. The Dag'aa seems hard for audience to understand and many of the shots are seems not consistent. However, I think that is the purpose of the director. That may create a chaos environment and let us feel the exactly to be in that environment. It shows the journey are not very safe. And the political make the film background more complex. That is my favorite film in this event.I like it.
ReplyDeleteI just want to say that three films were very unique and intriguing to the eye. I learned that it's okay not to have a traditional film or a traditional set up. Someone is bound to like it. However, the main film that caught my attention (& everyone else) is Night Soil/Fake Paradise. It wasn't my favorite video, but it was the most interesting one. It definitely was the most trippiest films I've ever seen, yet it goes well with the topic. In addition, the uniqueness of the film makes people want to keep watching. Even though I had the "WTF" face half the time, I could see the art of it. I learned that documentaries can be creative. You don't always need structure, typical b-roll shots, or standard interview shots sometimes it's good to step out the box. The most important thing I've noticed is to have a good narrative or topic that will create a lot of emotion regardless of its negative or positive.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure where to begin with these three films. There was a great mix of themes and genres in the three shorts that were screened. I was frightened by the idea of living with those people from the first film, and the landscape photography was stunning throughout. The second one was insightful in many metaphorical ways and had plenty of comic relief. The final film screened of the three was definitely the most memorable with both "narrative" and style. I would love to see the other films in this series. The entire film was like an extremely weird trip from some bad drugs some guy at a music festival gives you for free. It was hypnotizing and strangely insightful.
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