Short of the Week - EXTRA CREDIT - Due 4/29/16
For this extra credit assignment, you will go to the following film event screening this coming Tuesday 4/26, 7pm at the Bama Theater in downtown Tuscaloosa. This is a yearly event that shouldn't be missed. These extra credit points should just be added incentive.
The film screening will be the culmination of a year’s work by non-film students who have come together for a two-semester interdisciplinary course. Focusing on stories of justice and injustice in Alabama, Documenting Justice students learn how to use film to document and analyze culture, social experiences, and issues of concern to our state.
This will be a good opportunity for you to see some of the documentary work being created on this campus. I hope some of you eventually take this amazing course.
After the screening, write a blog post about one of the films you saw at the screening. You'll have until Friday 4/29 to write the post. For those who complete this, you will receive up to 2 bonus points to your final grade for the class.
I hope to see you there!
N
Grist, Alabama. This film really spoke to me. How the interviewees spoke about the state park as a community and a small family was very touching. The film touches on this at the end, about how a few state parks were closed in 2014 due to budget cuts however this one was re-opened via the county. It really says something about how the state doesn't really preserve or care about the state parks and what effect it would have on people who don't have much and uses those parks as an escape sometimes. The stories that were told were very funny, about how the ducks would "talk" to the one gentleman while was getting dressed and the second story about the man with a baby who had gotten stuck and he walked up to the older man's trailer with a baby asking if he wanted the baby. The film shows how these people have a love affair with the park itself and again has a sense of community.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the film series a lot more than I thought I would. All of the films spoke to me and touched my heart, but I think the one I liked the most was Grist, Alabama. Its up beat nature put a smile on my face throughout the entire film and made me feel nostalgic for a place I had never been before. As someone who grew up constantly traveling to parks with their family, I understand the sentimental value people hold with the park and their love for the beauty of nature. The stories they told amazed me, especially with the ducks. I was laughing out loud at that part. I adored the sense of community everyone felt, it made the place feel special. I'm very happy that the park was reopened, it made for a perfect ending for me.
ReplyDeleteThe film I liked the most was Demolition by Neglect. It just reminded me of how my hometown is deteriorating due to white flight. The situation was well covered from the inception of the community, its turn for the worse, and then its abandonment altogether. The interviews were really natural and the whole film came together extremely well. While all the others were also exceptional, this particular one spoke to me, thus being my favorite.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed Demolition by Neglect and Grist. However, the one that caught my interest the most was Ma cille's museum miscellanea. It was a well put together documentary about a corky and unique woman. I believe that the subject of the documentary really made the film. The woman Ma'Cille made me wonder about how I will be remembered on this earth, once I pass away. The way they developed the story really allowed the audience to get to know who Ma'Cille was. Towards the end of the film I felt like I knew her. I enjoyed watching the archival videos of her on the talk show and her interacting with her family. The short documentary was structured so well, it was easy to follow the story even with the different broll shots, archival video, and interviews.
ReplyDeleteThe film "Ma'Cille's Museum of Miscellania" was so great. It caught me off guard because most of the other films were very serious and I did not know what to expect. The film was full of so much character and emotion that it really pulled you in. The archived footage of Ma'Cille was so great because it really let the viewers understand why all of these people were talking about her and loved her so much. It really was very cool how the story was told due to the way the interviews flowed so well, and then the b-roll broke up the interviews to keep the story moving. The film was amazing and I just wanted to keep watching it.
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