Stream of Consciousness on Learning at the U

Boxed in:  That's how I feel a lot of the time when it comes to assignments and courses in general here at university.  It's just the same, old, repackaged gruel over and over and over again, no matter which course you take.  At first, one might offer something more interesting or stimulating than another, but, as it wears on and you juggle it with every other task that is set before you with every other class, it all blends together into the same tasteless sludge you've been gobbling up for the last four years (at least some course content can qualify as salt, giving some taste to the everyday potato porridge).  I'm sick of the structure of this place; it's not conducive to really learning.  All we're doing here is absorbing and regurgitating, again and again.  Yes, I know we learn things here...yes, I've learned things here... but how much of what we are taught do we actually retain and cherish and use.  What I have learned here is how to survive, how to get just the right amount of work done, how to stay under the radar, how to think in just the right way.  None of these are things that instructors taught me... I'm paying thousands of dollars to teach myself.  Sure, the instructors have been useful, they've been resources through which I have taught myself, but, except for a few superb examples, they don't directly influence my real learning process.  The subject matter -- what they actively teach me -- I could learn in books, probably easier and faster than I do in class.  It's the experience of how you do it, how you adapt and teach yourself, that is the really valuable stuff that university gives you.  If they really wanted to teach subject matter they'd condense it... make it fast, make it difficult, make it intense and focused.  Just do one or two course at a time at a highly accelerated rate, that's how to get people to engage and really learn, otherwise it's just a routine.  See, that little slip of paper we get that says "Bachelor of the Arts" doesn't mean we know any material, because we really don't.  As undergrads, we're not experts in anything but what we have actively pursued by ourselves.  What that slip of paper means is that we've gone through this experience and, hopefully, come out the other side wiser.  That's it.  Ten's of thousands of dollars for a a certificate of completion for a challenge that you may or may not have gleaned any useful wisdom from.  But, you have to have it, so here we are.  Maybe some of us still think we're here for certain subject matter, and in some majors, like the sciences or fine arts, we are.  But most of us are here to learn how to learn, and that's something you really have to teach yourself.  Get that through your head and you might actually get out of here without too much hassle and with something to show.  But if you're relying on trying to remember what that particular piece of subject matter was... well, good luck, but that won't take you much of anywhere.

Indiana, Elton, and the Dark Side

In watching the "Making of" documentary for Raiders of the Lost Ark, I was struck by some of the similarities in the creation process between such a blockbuster hit and our own films, Finals Week and Yo, Julio!, as well as our current project, Tempted by the Dark Side.  Like Finals Week, Raiders took shape out of a set of ideas.  Stephen Spielberg, George Lucas, and their screenwriter sat down for three days and tossed around ideas for what they wanted in the movie, after which the screenwriter built a script that could frame all of the individual pieces that they had come up with.  When we wrote Finals Week, it was very similar in terms of the process involved... we sat down and just pitched ideas, words, anything that we knew and could form a story from.  George Lucas, of course, had a far more collected idea of what he wanted before he ever set foot into that room; however, looking back at our own process, we had a clear cut idea of our main character all along, and the basic gist of the plot was formed very early on.  After that, it was a matter of adding in details and concepts and then building a script to fit it all.

The writers of Yo Julio! took a somewhat similar approach, with even less idea of what they really wanted.  I believe the only central component that founded the entire formation of that screenplay was a random text message about shoes.  Everything else seems to have been thrown in at random with only the loosest of plot and script devices to hold it all together.  We had to do some major revision work in order to get that story back on track.  When we finally started production, it was a rather hairy experience up until the day of shooting; then, it seemed like everything just fell into place.  In the piece on Raiders, Lucas and Spielberg talk about the process of casting the film and the trials that led to the selection of Harrison Ford.  Originally, Lucas had rejected the idea of using Ford because he had already had major roles in two of Lucas's other films.  After trying out several actors, Tom Selleck was the first choice for the part of Indiana Jones, and he likely would have had the part had his prior contract for Magnum P.I. not interfered suddenly and prevented him from taking the role.  After losing Selleck, Lucas and Spielberg took another look at Ford and decided that he was great for the part.  More troubles were had in casting the part of Sallah, who was originally supposed to be performed by Danny DeVito.  Again, TV contracts foiled the plan, and John Rhys-Davies was selected instead.

In the production of Yo, Julio!, we encountered similar troubles with our casting.  Originally we had several actors picked out who had agreed to play the roles; however, days before shooting, some of our actors, who were also involved in stage productions, found themselves unable to shoot because of interference with their rehearsal schedules.  The morning we started shooting, we made some last minute casting decisions, shifting parts around and grabbing any available bodies.  For the most part, this turned out really well; Jake played Elton more perfectly than I could have ever hoped for, and our Shady Character was fitted just-right for his part, despite what looked like a mean hangover.  The only one I was dissappointed with was the part of "Man."  He pulls off the awkward, but just doesn't get it right for the camera.

Another striking part of the story behind Raiders, is its connection with Lucas and, in turn, back to Star Wars.  Even though Raiders is so different from Lucas's space story, the two shared a lot of common "genetic material."  Lucas came up with the first ideas for both stories nearly simultaneously, though the Indy film was put on hold for years while Star Wars took up Lucas's time.  When it came time to shoot Raiders, it seems that Lucas and his production team stuck with the familiar in a lot of ways, using the same studios, soundstages, and even on-site locations that were used in Star Wars.  Working in these familiar environments gave Lucas and Spielberg a few advantages in terms of being able to anticipate challenges and utilize known assests for the production.

The team that shot Tempted by the Dark Side, while being first-time filmmakers, were able to utilize a similar strategy of employing the familiar.  Their entire film was shot in their residence hall and place of work, allowing them access to resources that would otherwise have been far more difficult to obtain.  While it didn't result in a problem-free production, it likely did save time so that the necessary reshoots could be accomplished.  Tempted had problems with microphones and Raiders had to deal with mass food poisoning in Tunisia, but the familiarity of the surroundings in both cases provided an environment where shooting quickly and making up time was far easier.

It seems that the story of filmmaking follows roughly similar patterns across different films, even if the story told by those films are completely dissimilar.  The common threads of urgency, innovation, and making-do appear in each of the stories.  Amateur or professional, the same basic problems have to be faced and dealt with in whatever ways creativity allows; the difference is all in the tools available and the experience from which to draw.  The basic plot of the "Making of" is going to very similar in almost every case; though the tales we tell are not so well thought out or pretty to look at, our own stories, as students, are not all that different from the 'heroes' behind some of our favorite Hollywood films.

Ross: The Man, The Myth, The Legend

It's a Tuesday evening, long after the rest of the creative team has left the building, but the lights are still burning in the editing lab.   An amiable looking man sits at a computer, his face fluctuating between consternation, thoughtful reflection, and flashes of brilliant inspiration.  It's been like this for the last five hours, during which time his hair has progressively gotten bigger and messier as his hands search through its curly strands to find the answers he is looking for.  Ross Swanson is man who knows there are answers; there is a 'best' way to put this film together.  It's not something you can just throw together in any halfway artful way; what would work just fine for most people is just not quite there for him.  He's like the sculptor who sees a pre-existing work in the stone, there before the first chip is chiseled away, waiting to be unveiled.  There is a right way to edit this film, and Ross will get it there, chip by chip, frame by frame until the final work is revealed.

Ross is a bit of an outsider in the community, not conforming to the norms of the cinematic elite.  He has the artistic vision, the appreciation for the deeper things in film, but his approach to movies and film also has a blue-collar air to it.  Unlike so many in his line of work, Ross doesn't sneer at the less erudite, less sophisticated, either in film or in life.  He is decidedly down-to-earth, and mocks the holier-than-thou film critics and connoisseurs for their "douchey" sensibilities.  But for all that, Ross has a complex and refined artistic vision, and the work ethic to tease it out of every work he creates.  Perhaps that is why he such a force in the community, acting, as only he can, as both a shotgun blast and a scalpel incision, a delightfully contradictory mixture of reckless inclusiveness and precise exclusivity that combine in his own work to find the 'right' form.

The Myth of Lucas

Rubin describes Lucas in his article a drifting, freedom oriented, tinkerer who just happened upon film nearly by chance.  Rubin's Lucas is a rebellious, rule-breaking, artistic man with a vision for the film itself and the forms it takes.  This contrasts with the public's general conception of George Lucas, the creator of Star Wars, the founder of Lucasfilm, etc.  What the public wants to see and hear about Lucas is that he is immersed in a highly technological, fantastical world, filled with Wookiees and droids; they see a man whose dream is Star Wars, with a little Indiana Jones thrown in as well.  Rubin's article begins to unravel that idea a little bit.  Lucas wasn't necessarily obsessed with the story of Star Wars or its worlds, rather he was obsessed by the process of filmmaking and the ways in which he could manipulate the physical parts of the process.  For him, it was about the story, yes, but it wasn't all about the story like some might suppose; the story was a medium through which he could edit and create, which was likely more important to him than ever was the details of every little alien floating around the galaxy of Star Wars.

Big Fish

I watched Tim Burton's Big Fish tonight for my master class assignment.  It was an excellent movie.  The story is one about, well, stories.  It is about the way we all tell our own stories, how our lives come to be narratives for someone else, and how there is always a little bit of adventure and magic behind some of the more mundane parts of life.  This movie is about that magic.  Burton highlights the distinction between the father, a story telling man who lives in his created world of intrigue and fairy tale adventure, and his son, a practical, no-nonsense man bitter with his father's compulsory elaboration.  It is interesting to note the difference in lighting between different segments of the movie, the flashbacks to the father's tales shown in a very surreal, soft, vividly colored light, while the scenes in the 'real world' are of a more muted, normal tone.  In a way, it gives the story scenes an almost heightened realism, giving them a depth and emotional character far greater than the normalcy of the other parts of the film.  This aids in blurring the line between story and real when approaching the question of importance or significance.  It attaches us closer to the stories, but grounds us in the reality, dividing our attention between the conflicting worlds until the reconciliation at the end, the son entering into the bright, fantasy-lighted world and understanding his father.  A somewhat in-between level rounds out the finish of the film, maintaining the brightness, but removing some of the softness, revealing a melding of story and reality, finally compatible, within the son's life.

Three Words Redux

As we enter the filmmaking phase, it again becomes time to revisit the three words chosen at the beginning of the semester to define my creative process:  Vivid, Detailed, Ideals.  The question now is how to apply these to the process of putting a story on film, especially for my specific duties of light and sound. I'm not quite sure how to transfer ideals through those mediums, however, I think both light and sound contribute much to creating the vividness and detailed appearance of any film.  Both light and sound, though far from the focus of the film, are absolutely vital to creating depth, intrigue, and believability.  The human mind is incredibly well tuned, subconsciously, to the variability in the way light plays off of objects and interacts with different things and to the subtleties of our audio surroundings.  The manipulation of these factors can covertly influence the emotional and mental state of the viewer.  Conversely, errors involving light and sound can predispose an audience against a film, giving it a simply 'wrong' feel.  Paying attention to detail will certainly aid in reducing these issues and aid in creating the proper feel.  Creating vividness will also aid in drawing the viewer in and connecting them with the story and the ideals it presents, if that is the film's aim.

Our Movie

Ok, I'm thinking we really need to have Elton find the people he's looking for.  It just doesn't sit well to have him have this anti-climactic sort-of connection with a fellow lonely person at the end.  All the current ending does is affirm Elton's lonely state.  He doesn't grow as a person and he doesn't develop any relation with anyone.  All the old man represents is a downward spiral of mutual enabling of the lonely lifestyle.  What we need is for Elton to find this Freddy, who he fears because throughout the film he has come to expect a tough-guy drug dealer or some such thing; but Freddy needs to turn out to be someone who can broaden Elton's horizons.  Additionally, we need to set up the rest of Elton's journey so that it's obvious that he is coming out of his shell and becoming more confident as he approaches people to enlist their aid in finding the originator of the text.  Furthermore, on the subject of the text, I really think the shoes thing has got to go.  We need something that more immediately creates intrigue and adventure, something that might actually entice Elton to want to find out what's really going on.  "Yo Julio, I got the goods... the show is on"  I don't know, something more interesting.  Is it a drug deal, is it a robbery, is it a murder... some crime of some sort.  As the story climaxes and Elton believes he's going to have to do something heroic and selfless, he discovers his quarry is actaully quite benign and has much to offer in friendship.  On a slight tangent, why is Elton lonely to begin with?  Is it because he is awkward socially, or perhaps he's a snob, or a an anti-social, or some other something where the root cause is his own deep desire not to be liked for some reason.  Maybe he goes out of his way to make sure no one likes him or remembers him and he discovers some self-worth and can allow himself to let people know him.  Sorry for rambling.  Specific Ideas aren't coming together too well at the moment.

Collaboration and the Process

In writing the screenplay, I was most struck with the relative ease of creating ideas quickly when working in a collaborative environment.  Until this point, almost all of my writing experiences have been rather solitary affairs.  Those few times I did work with a group rather tainted my view of group work, since I ended up having to pull most of the weight of the project.  This time, however, was different.  It is incredible to see how much more enjoyable group work is when you have a group of creative, smart people who are equally devoted to producing a top-notch product.  In the proper environment, with the proper selection of team members, the collaborative approach to writing has some very clear advantages:  it offers a blend of viewpoints and styles, avoiding the monotony of using only one set of ideas; it allows a system of checks and balances so that any person's contribution can be verified and approved, letting only the best material remain; it increases the total creative potential for whatever the project is involved.  It is important to note, however, that while this exercise was a creative endeavour, my primary writing experience, including prior groupwork, has been of an expository or argumentative character, so much of the difference I sense between prior work and this may be due to the highly different natures of the project at hand.

The Screenplay

Senior year is winding to a close for James Ladd, the no-nonsense MCB pre-Med and protagonist of our story.  The opening sequence of the film is a time-lapsed collage of different items and actions of his last four years here, giving us insight into his no-time-for-fun attitude and his ongoing friendship with Norah Johanson.  We are introduced to the characters through pictures and post-it notes before we get our first live-action shot of James, muddy, ragged, and sitting in a police interrogation room, not at all where we would expect to find him.  Quickly, however, the clock rewinds and we enter the scene a week before to find James studying hard at his desk, the last day of class near at hand.

As he studies, he is interrupted by Norah, who has taken the time to check up on him and make sure he gets a little break.  In the course of their conversation, with the irresistable wonder of Pokey Stix, it becomes apparent that James has completely missed the finer points of a college experience, neglecting the non-academic as a distraction.  Norah insists that he must learn to appreciate at least some of the necessary college joys before they reach graduation, about a week away.  She drags him off to a party, kicking off their adventures for the next week.

Most of their adventures over the next week will be explored in a montage of still photographs that highlight James's gradual enlightenment that school and life are to be enjoyed, not merely exploited for some nebulous idea of later "success."  This montage will take us up to the night before graduation; James and Norah go mudsliding on the quad, after which James recognizes his feelings for Norah moments before the pair are caught by the police. 

The next day, the scene is the same one we started with, in the police interrogation room, where James is pleading to be allowed to attend graduation.  The interviewing police officer is replaced by a higher ranking sergeant who takes the conversation on a different bent, asking James about his relationship with Norah.  James answers truthfully about his feelings, and the sergeant, who turns out to be Norah's father, decides to have leniency on James and lets him go.  As the credits roll, we see scenes of James rushing through campus to get to his place so he can clean up before the ceremony.

Scratching Post

As I was browsing pictures once more, searching for ideas, I found this one.  This photo just screams story!.  It is from Greece, where anti-riot police have had their hands full, however, my mind immediately takes me to a post-apocalyptic world instead.  A world of stark, beautiful brutality where the only currency is force and factions compete for control of precious resources.  The confident stride of the closest man, despite being covered head to toe in someone else's blood spatter just reinforces the idea that this is a way of life, not a rare or strange occurrence.  This is something he is used to.  I love the mystery that the smoke causes as well... where is he coming from?  What devestation did he leave behind him?  All we know is that he has taken care of some bloody business and that doesn't bother him at all.  For another day, the enemy won't take his food, his shelter, or his energy.  Today's work is done... until another enemy arises tomorrow.

Script Scene

Enter the scene just after mudsliding on the quad.  It is late, about 2:30 in the morning.  The sky is overcast, and the thin sliver of the moon barely shows its light through the clouds.  Our character, James Ladd spryly walks from the middle of the quad, accompanied by his female friend (for now, we'll call her Leah).  They are both covered from head to toe in mud, not too thick to obscure their features, but sufficiently dirty to let us know that they have had a rollicking good time.  They walk side by side, but not too closely.  They are joking and laughing loudly with each other.

JAMES:  How do people even come up with this stuff?! ... Your face [laughing] when you hit that dry spot...was priceless!  [He makes a face of confused terror, mocking her]  How did I not do this before?!  [laughing loudly again]

The pair continues to talk as the camera moves to a wide shot, silhouetting them against the illuminated Illini Union.  They reach the west edge of the quad and reach the eternal flame, where they sit.  The camera once again closes in.  The two are leaning back, looking up. 

LEAH:  Chalk another one off the list... Pokey Stix, frat parties, the bell tower, interrupting a Foellinger lecture! [chuckling] getting hammered at every bar on campus and belting it out from on top of the Alma Mater! [laughing louder this time]  What a week!  So, did ya get everything done for graduation tomorrow?  [turning her head to look at him]

JAMES:  [turning his head to look back at her, a look of realization coming into his eyes... hesitantly...]  Not... everything.

She looks at him curiously, but before she can ask, he begins to lean in for a kiss.  She is startled for a moment, but kisses him back.  They look at each other, realization creeping into their minds.  Suddenly their faces are briefly illuminated by the spillover beam of a flashlight.  The camera swivels quickly to reveal four or five flashlights searching over the area and examining the damaged turf.  A look of terror sweeps across James's face.  The cops have not yet noticed them, but it is only a matter of time.

JAMES:  [in an excitedly sharp whisper] Cops!  Run!

He takes Leah by the hand and hurriedly rushes from the quad with her.  As they run, his foot catches the edge of the sidewalk and twists violently; he falls and immediately tries to get back up, however he cannot support himself.

JAMES:  GO!  I'll be fine!  I'll stall them!

Leah begins to protest, but James insists.  She runs into the darkness.  As the camera swivels around, James stands in the foreground, silhouetted by the dancing lights of the police officers as they head towards him, alerted by the noise of the attempted escape.

Resonance

If Schubert is correct -- mere observation suggests that he probably is -- an artist of any type must capture and hold his audience's attention within seconds.  He must capture that which connects with poeple in a way that makes them both comfortable and excited, not an easy balance.  What this means for the filmmaking team is that within seconds of the start of the picture, their film must make a positive impression.  Accordingly, a great amount of thought must be put into the opening sequence of a film.  If there is dialogue, it must be immediately engaging, if there are visuals, they must be striking, if there is music, it should provoke feeling.  Schubert, in the realm of video games, talks about "play tests;" the equivalent in filmmaking I would assume would be mini-screenings to guage audience reaction to particular sequences.  It may then be a good idea to pitch an idea or an early cut of a film to a small group to determine their interest, especially in the opening sequence.  That way, if it needs tweaking, it is not so hard to go back and do.  I suppose one of the biggest lessons is to never neglect detail -- if an awkward jumping animation or funny names can tank a video game, then a wrong note, strange pause, or iffy camera angle can kill a film. 

Rewriting Trek

I think Star Trek:  Nemesis needs some work on its ending.  In fact, it's really only a very few minutes, with a corresponding change earlier in the movie to match, that needs the change.  At the climax of the film.  Data, the android, sacrifices himself to save his shipmates.  At the conclusion of the film, however, we see Captain Picard meeting with Data's brother, B4, who shows some glimmer of having inherited Data's personality through a memory transfer earlier in the film.  If I were going to have creative control of the film.  I don't think I would have included this.  It's far more powerful a sacrifice if it is final.  Having a copy of the deceased, even if it isn't fully realized just cheapens the act.  A much more fitting ending would have included a memorial service of some sort, and would not have included B4 at all, who should never have even existed in the film.  A full honors funeral would have been a more fitting tribute and a more final goodbye to the Next Generation cast.

Reading a Screenplay

After reading the first 10 pages of Joss Whedon's Serenity, I am struck by how little dialogue there is for 10 pages of story.  I've read -- and performed and directed -- stage plays in the past and, in comparison, they are far more dense with dialogue while stage direction is often left at a minimum.  The screenplay includes a lot of what might be termed as stage directions.  It is very detailed as far as what will actually be seen on the screen, down to and including angles of some of the shots.  I had not realized how much structure there was to the screenplay, translating to a far smaller creative role than I had originally concieved of for the director.  I assume the director still has the prerogative to depart from the scripted directions in some fashion at times, however, I had thought that much of the thought for the design of the set and the angles for the cameras would have been his job, whereas now it appears that he has a far more structured plan to work off of than I thought.

A Slightly Different Something

I wrote a little last week about a photograph I had found that I felt was incredibly moving.  I decided I wanted to create something out of that photograph.  I just wanted to share the resulting sketch.  I still feel like there is a story in this picture somewhere, though I'm not yet sure what it is.  The grieving soldier likely lost a comrade and friend, though there could be other stories to fit it as well... perhaps guilt over a first kill, or bad news from home.  I don't know.  What I do know is that the greiving soldier isn't really the focal point of the picture... It's his fellow soldier that really draws your attention.  The look in his face as he comforts his brother in arms is simply unforgettable.  This picture shows us heroes, human heroes, as subject to awful realites of the world as we are, who still stand up to do their duty every day, despite the sacrifices and the pain that beset them.  Men like these are more admirable than Hercules or Superman, because they can bleed and they can cry, and they still carry the weight of the world on their shoulders.

The Spectacular Mundane

Rant mode on.  I really despise the reliance on computer generated effects that has invaded and propagated through film today.  It has been used quite successfully in some films, allowing for a spectacular brand of storytelling; however, it is incredibly and horribly overused.  It has become so easy for anyone to insert special effects showing exactly what they want that some of the wonder of movies has been removed.  Special effects aren't special anymore.  They don't incite "Wow"s or gasps or anything other than, "Hey, that was pretty cool looking."  Now, special effects are not saved for the scenes that drive the plot and story forward, they are peppered throughtout films to no real storytelling effect.  They are the film equivalent of craft glitter:  at first, you can use them really well, highlighting something here, giving something an extra sparkle there.  But after a while, a seven year old gets a hold of the bottle and gets the stuff everywhere and it becomes an annoying and enduring pestilence with no cure.  It replaces everything else in the craft box and all you're left with is glitter, glitter and more glitter.  I want my real effects back.  Something that makes you gasp because, wow, somebody actually DID that or MADE that.  I want a time back when sometimes all you got was the implication of something and you're imagination got a little workout.  I'm not saying CGI/glitter shouldn't be used... I'm just saying there should be some adult supervision during its use.  Rant Mode Off.

Rinzler Reading Response

I find it quite interesting that Lucas really did not have any desire to do screenwriting himself.  Judging by his creativity and passion for the story -- and the tinge of arrogance -- that was highlighted in Empire of Dreams, I would not have guessed that Lucas felt he was inadequate as a writer.  Certainly, in the end, it worked out for him, but that lack of confidence just kind of surprised me.  Most interesting however, was the look at some of the developmental process for some of the elements that ended up in the final version of Star Wars.  It was fascinating to see those snippets of the original lists and story ideas that contained only barely recognizable kernels of what would eventually be incorporated into the released film.  It really highlights how much development and change goes into a story from its first genesis to its final draft.  Empire of Dreams did not elaborate much on this very early story creation, which really shows some of the root influences in Lucas's narrative.

The Scratching Post

From the sounds of Tharp's chapter, scratching can be just about anything you do with an awareness of the creative.  In that vein, I suppose I've done a couple of things that might qualify as scratching.  First of all, I went through my collections of pictures on various themes.  I like to collect pictures I find on the internet that look like they have a story or a meaning behind them.  Often, browsing through them can help me find topics and issues that I'd like to explore further through some other medium, be it words or sketches or actions.  After doing that for awhile, I decided that I needed some fresh air and some activity, so I went on a walk.  Now an average walk might not qualify as a scratching session, but when I walk, I like to talk to myself or sing, exploring not only the words flowing through my mind, but also the particular sounds I use to express them.  Sometimes it's gibberish and only the variety of sounds is what matters.  I also like to feel the world around me when I walk, touching light posts, walls, trees, the ground, etc. so that I can feel the textures that make up the world.  Now these explorations don't tend to produce as clear ideas as looking at pictures or reading books do, but they help me find a vivid representation of the sights, sounds, smells, and textures of the scenes the creative enterprises make use of.

As far as the particulars of tonight, I found pictures describing fear, determination, loneliness, power, love,  and absurdity.  One particular photo that struck me was of a soldier comforting another soldier on a barren, rocky backdrop.  I don't know the story behind it... I could easily make up a story about it... however, I think perhaps some of its power is in the fact that it is just raw emotion; it is a universal, speaking about many stories.  Later, on my walk, I walked around campus, just watching, narrating, scoring the world I saw.  The emergency phone box intrigued me... who are the people who might use it?  What might have befallen them?  This thing looks like some futuristic cryo-freezing tube, compact and a bit cramped, with utilitarian lines and a cool, industrial feel.  It is just big enough to fit my shoulders inside.  I moved on.  I walked past the cemetery, watching headlights glare off the polished headstones.  These are not old graves, they lack the character and variety of the stones in older sections of the cemetery.  They are large stones; the people buried here are... were wealthy.  I wonder if people visit these stones much... I've never seen anyone visiting the gravesites here.  Past the cemetery is Assembly hall.  The parking lot has a finality to it.  The lights are all on, illuminating the empty asphalt sea.  I stand on the cross of two yellow lines that meet at a right angle.  It feels strangely right, as though this spot were a designated point.  I walk along the line.  The straightness gives a sense of duty and precision.  What's that mean?  I don't know, but the feeling is one I can tap into later.  I think this scratching thing is less about what you do and more about how you see what you do.  Approaching it with the purpose of "scratching" just opens your eyes to gain the right perspective.

Concepts

1.  A motorcycle race on an aircraft carrier
2.  A suspense story about a group of spelunkers and an earthquake
3.  A lost child a circus performer with a pet hyena
4.  A story of insanity alone on a spacecraft delivering munitions into a war zone

Bliss

My bliss is... to be a good man.  There is no higher goal or satisfaction I can achieve in life than to adhere as closely as possible to the ideals of good and right.  This is not some vague, shallow notion of manhood as it is often presented to us through media and cultural norms today, but rather a strong template of a leader, a warrior, a provider, a comforter, a mentor, a wise counsel, a servant, a sacrifice.  The US population is about 300 million people; about half of them are males.  Of those 150 million men, I would not count it a stretch to say that over half of them are not Men.  They may be men, but the concept of Manhood has been so diluted and perverted that it has become all but extinct in popular society.  Instead there are the "macho men" and there are the "submissive men"  The submissive man is a sensitive, emotion baring, good guy, but he has no spine; he has given up the natural leadership, strength, and aggressive passion of the man's soul.   The macho man is a rebellion against the submissive man, praising the ultra-agressive, ultra-sexual, animal side of man without recognizing the other, more compassionate, sacrificial, provider roles of Man.  I think both archetypes are built out of some sense of selfishness and social insecurity, whereas the ideal of Manhood that I aspire to (though often poorly) should be founded upon a concern for others and the security of doing right rather than looking to social feedback for approval.  I might sound like an overgrown Boy Scout for this...and I am... but it is the ideal that I hold to, and it is, at its very core, my bliss.

EXTRA! EXTRA! Headlines that make you go "Wut?"

1. Bank insisted on thumbprint from armless manhttp://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32693746/ns/today-today_people/
Ummm, yeah, that'll work.

2.  Nearly quarter of Brits think Churchill a myth: poll
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/02/04/2153628.htm?section=world
Wow... just...wow.

3.  Most Major News Outlets Largely Ignore Van Jones Controversy
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/09/07/major-news-outlets-largely-ignore-van-jones-controversy/
You'd think it'd get more coverage

4.  Teenagers 'close to grandparents'
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8241914.stm
Thank you, Sherlock.
 
5.  Grandparenting 'should be paid'
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7960977.stm
So... $1.50 per cookie?

The Process Ritual: Tharp and Anzaldua Response

In reading both Tharp's and Anzaldua's pieces, I was struck by the fundamental difference between the two on the issue of habit and ritual.  While Tharp advocates a very structured, every day habit to get the creative juices flowing, Anzaldua seems to describe a process in which she engages in some repetitive behaviors over the course of her project but none that are a set part of her everyday doings.  In fact, she doesn't seem to have much a set structure at all.  Rather than, like Tharp, using a ritual to prepare for and jumpstart the creative juices, Anzaldua instead seems to have rituals that are jumpstarted by particular triggers during her process of creation.  For example, Tharp might use a taxi cab ride/workout to motivate her into her creative zone, whereas Anzaldua seems like she would instead sit down to right, and, in finding herself unable to produce, might decide to go on a walk along the water.  In a way, it seems that both support a certain level of repeated action, but differ on the timing and purpose of it.
When viewing these different approaches through my personal lens, I must confess that while Tharp's approach seems far superior, my process tends to end up looking more like Anzaldua's.  I don't really have any particular starting habit, though there are certain things that are always the same... my pencil for example.  Not a specific pencil mind you, but a particular model:  the Pentel P207 0.7mm mechanical drafting pencil.  I use it for everything, and I feel wrong without it.  A test without that pencil is far more stressful than it otherwise should be.  I write with it, I draw with it, I take notes with it.  It may not be the best tool for the job in some cases, but the right tool just doesn't feel right.  Otherwise, however, I just kind of jump right in to the creative pool and try to swim; if I can't produce with one stroke, I'll change something and try it another way.  Can't seem to write tonight?  I'll move to another room... or try writing upside down... or play music... or make it silent... or go for a walk.  Everything is a response to, not an impulse for, the creative process.  Perhaps I should try Tharp's approach?; it makes more sense; structure is good in every other part of life, so why not apply it here?  I say that, but I doubt I'll change.

Coming Home

As we talked about the hero's journey in class on Thursday, I brought up the idea that for the modern hero, there seems to be no triumphant return.  It's a theme that's kind of stuck in my head for the last few days...Why can't our heroes come home anymore?  Upon reflection, I think it goes back to the Korean and Vietnam wars.  In earlier wars, soldiers were welcomed home with ticker tape parades, brass bands, and praise, much like the heroes in the mythologies of old.  Now, these soldiers didn't come home all the way... they still left parts of their identity in the war, on the battlefields halfway across the world; but people at home made an attempt to understand.  But in Korea to an extent, and certainly in Vietnam, our soldiers returned home to a country that would not understand, partially because of political climate, partially because the modernization of society has taken us farther and farther away from the raw reality of life and death which becomes so apparent on the battlefield.  The gulf widens even further with each passing year, as "normal" people become ever more isolated from the brutal, tough nature of life.  Just as we can never really understand the misery and squalor of the poorest of the poor in third world countries, we can never quite grasp the world our heroes -- be they soldiers, firemen, police, etc. -- see when they come face to face with the ugly reality where life is separated from death by no more than a strand.  There seems to be some latent recognition of this fact that spills into our literary consciousness, and our storybook heroes become tortured, lonely people -- no less noble for it -- who are unable to connect with a world that cannot see them as they are.

Inspirational Words 3:10

     Looking back at my list of influences and then again to my three chosen words, I find that they are really quite consistent with each other.  All of my chosen influences tend to be important to me because of their detailed descriptions and depictions, their vividly portrayed settings and emotions, and their elevation of ideals and principles.  I chose my words carefully, and, as such, I am not suprised to see my list of influences so closely adhere in one or more ways to the concepts I have used to describe my creativity and myself. 

Readings Response -- Bazerman and Campbell

     Bazerman's discussion of intertextuality seemed somewhat elementary to me; it is hardly a new discovery to make note of the fact that most human communication relies heavily on the standards, precedents, and idiosyncrasies of prior communications.  The primary thing to take from the reading seemed to be the admonition to analyze such connections so as to gain a better critical understanding of the meaning of the passage.  Even then, we are simply making ourselves aware of a phenomenon that we already subconsciously understand and tap into.  Perhaps Bazerman's purpose was simply to raise awareness rather than present a new way of looking at texts, or maybe it was an attempt to provide a common set of terms to use in discussing intertextual relation; in either case the article was somewhat lackluster as a revelation of any new information.
     Campbell's article, on the other hand, was quite interesting.  It is intriguing to note the comparative structures of hero stories and their disconnect with the despair and hopelessness that Campbell ascribes to everyday life.  I have often thought that following a pattern similar to these classical hero narratives is one of the surest ways to gain readership as a writer.  People seem to automatically connect with the formula Campbell describes, simply because it is drilled into our minds from an early age in religious stories, fairy tales, and adventure entertainment.  It also connects with us in a deeper way as well; there seems to some drive or desire towards  the ideals contained within the hero tradition, something we want, and, I think, something we need.

Project Lead

I'd most prefer to be the project lead on the screenwriting portion of the project.  Stories are one of my passions, and the creation of a good story is something I would very much like to be more heavily involved with.  As opposed to some of the other units, I feel like I have more applicable experience to writing.  I have not worked with film, editing, or marketing before in any significant capacity, but I do have some experience in creative writing and script interpretation during my time in theatre productions, which will aid me in bringing effective leadership to the table in the screenwriting unit. 

Philosophia et Ars

I found it quite interesting, in Empire of Dreams, that George Lucas was so heavily influenced by various philosophical topics and writers. While it was certainly obvious that the Star Wars films were pieced together from a variety of religious and philosophical traditions, I had never realized that Lucas had spent a period so heavily engaged with such things. I feel that philosophical questions can often lead to some very thought-provoking storytelling. Questions and themes found in philosophy can really connect to people's intellect and their concerns, involving them in the movie instead of just making them a spectator. As a philosophy major, I have encountered a few different texts that would make some rather interesting components or bases for stories that I think I might like to tell. By injecting philosophical ideals into film, art, or literature, we can jump from sharing ideas and arguments with the academic types to engaging and enriching the masses with a more accessible medium.

Inglorious Basterds

Over the weekend, I made the trek to Savoy (involving a ride in the trunk of a car) to see Quentin Tarantino's latest offering, Inglorious Basterds. I loved this movie. First of all, it involved killing a whole mess of Nazi's, which I pretty much never tire of. But, in addition, the movie was, in typical Tarantino style, a masterful blend of a multitude of what would normally be considered conflicting elements. The anachronistic soundtrack, the bold (and suddenly shifting) credit text, the oddly placed voiceovers and textual overlays all combine with such an artful discord as to reach a uniquely grating harmony. My friends did feel that the first half was fairly slow, however, I did not find it at all that onerous. There isn't a whole lot to the film as far as theme or character development, but that's not the reason we watch such movies. For a visually interesting, fun, Nazi-killing ride, it's worth the $6.50.

Inspirations

1. Les Miserables by Victor Hugo -- Greatest story I've yet encountered
   
2. William Shakespeare -- His use of the language is simply unmatched
   
3. Immanuel Kant -- One of my favorite philosophers on ethics and liberty
4. Tom Clancy -- For a good story with great technical detail and accuracy, there are few better
5. Tom Hanks -- With few exceptions, if he's involved with it, I will like it
6. Firefly -- a real "could have been" that had some really intriguing details
7. Star Trek II and Star Trek VI -- Love the revenge themes in these
8. Indiana Jones -- The classic flawed action hero
9. The Last of the Mohicans -- One of my favorite movies, captures the romantic sentiment
10. The Princess Bride -- Classic adventure and serious themes conveyed through perfect comedy
    

Lucasfilm Page Analysis

Alright, let's just jump right in to this, shall we?

As it is the first in the assignment list, I figured it would be best to start out with the Lucasfilm page analysis. Navigating from the main screen (highly visually interesting in itself) to the "Divisions" section, I found my way to the intro page for Industrial Light & Magic found at http://www.lucasfilm.com/divisions/ilm/.

At first glance, the page presents itself immediately as spartan, clean, and futuristic. Grey, silver, and white dominate the page, the content sandwiched between large gray slabs on either side. The narrow view it creates focuses and condenses the fairly meager amount of information, giving it more apparent volume than a full landscape layout would. The body itself is shiny and new, reminiscent of the science fiction interiors one might encounter in Kubrick's 2001 or in the immaculate hallways of Star Wars' Cloud City.
The Lucasfilm logo is small and understated, black on white, with a faint shadow to give it depth; it is neighbored by simple black titles for each of the primary sections of the site. A light grey box sits below the top bar, with a bold, greyscale gradiated title proclaiming that I have found the Divisions section of the site. Below this heading are lightly contrasted headings leading to the various sub-organizations within the Lucasfilm entity. To the left is one of the few splashes of color on the page, a comic-book style illustration depicting an integrated visual montage of a dinosaur, Indiana Jones and friends, and a man jumping through an inferno, representing projects that the company has worked on. The same illustration can be found on the Lucasfilm main page, tying the the two together as a unit.
Set within the grey box, below the Divisions headings is a panel, brushed aluminum in appearance that displays a large Industrial Light & Magic logo on the far right, neighboring a brief description of ILM's accomplishments in a neutral sans-serif font. The right portion of the panel is curved, bordering an image of X-Wing fighters approaching the Death Star. The station itself in the picture fades from normal at the top to a faintly green grid skeleton at the bottom, calling attention to the computer graphics capabilities that ILM presents to its customers. The photo is captioned in white letters crediting ILM for the scene.
As a whole, the page comes across as professional and informational with only subtle hints to the colorful, creative worlds that Lucasfilm is responsible for. Everything about the page is sparse, from text to graphics. It contains only small suggestions for further exploration into the dedicated sites it links to. It is more a simple map than a guidebook, pointing the way to more detailed information, but presenting little solid knowledge of the subject.