Oct 20, 2014

CRITIQUE
We will do a thorough critique of your video cut up/mash up projects, which are due today. Your names will be selected at random to determine order. For this critique, your mini groups from last week will serve as critique facilitators. Because these select members of class have seen and discussed your work with you prior to today, they should make for excellent facilitators. Be sure to talk about the decisions and changes made to the work, and the progress your classmates have made.




Artist Research Assignments
Due: Beginning Nov 3. 
At the end of class, each student will be assigned a contemporary artist to research over the next two weeks. Beginning in two weeks, you will each be responsible for a 10-15 minute presentation about your contemporary artist. The presentation should include:

A brief biography
What their work is about
The cultural and historical context for their work
Why their work is important in this present cultural and historical context
An example of their work that you will present/screen for us and discuss. This example should be represented of their practice as a whole, and you should be able to talk about how it relates to that practice or career. Be prepared to lead a short class discussion about it.

As far as resources, you must turn in a bibliography with at least 5 sources, and at least one of them must be non-internet based (ie: a book or something that has been published in print, or a video or film you watch from the library's collection). Physically go to the library. Use library resources, like ArtStor and Grove Art, which you can access through the library.

Many of the artists (though not all) have Art 21 documentaries or features, which are wonderful resources. I highly encourage you to use this resource. It can count as one of your five sources.

If anybody is unhappy with their artist, please speak to me as soon as possible and we will find you one that you can become excited about spending some time with.

Uploading to Vimeo and Blogger

1. Export file from Adobe Premiere Pro to Vimeo Specs: H.264, choose appropriate Vimeo Preset

2. Sign Up: https://vimeo.com/ (You will only need to do this once. After this, you will just log in).

3. Upload your Video. Follow the prompts and wait. 

4. Once upload is complete, go into settings. Under "Privacy," make your video available to be embedded.

5. Once your video loads, click on the "share" icon in the upper right hand corner of your video.

6. This window will pop up. Select and copy (command + c) the "Embed" code. 

6. Begin a new post on blogger.

7. Select the "HTML" tab in the top left corner of the composer. Paste your code here.

8. Publish. CONGRATULATIONS!

October 13, 2014

In Class:
Discuss Montage
Screen Select Clips
In-progress critiques with class of your work

Homework:
Complete your video for critique next week. Your video must be finished, exported, uploaded to vimeo, and embedded or linked on your blog. Plan ahead and be prepared.



__________________
Montage References:
Hitchcock on Montage:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ruoPT9JeYHA

SOVIET MONTAGE

A Dialectical Approach to Filmmaking

Metric: Measured number of frames, regardless of action in shot (mechanical):

example: Scene from Eisenstein's October

http://www.tcf.ua.edu/Classes/Jbutler/T112/EditingIllustrations02.htm

Rythmic: cutting for continuity (aesthetic, narrative)

example: Eisenstein's Odessa Steps Sequence, Battleship Potemkin, 1925

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ps-v-kZzfec

Tonal: taps into the emotional quality of the shots to create a complex emotional landscape

Overtonal/Associational: combination of all of the above, moving towards abstraction to illicit emotional reactions

example: from Pudovkin's Mother, 1926

http://www.tcf.ua.edu/Classes/Jbutler/T112/EditingIllustrations05.htm

Intellectual: when shots combined, viewer forms intellectual meaning

example: Eisenstein, Strike, 1925

http://www.tcf.ua.edu/Classes/Jbutler/T112/EditingIllustrations06StrikeBig.htm

Apocalypse Now,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HSWtc01BlqM

Man With a Movie Camera, Dziga Vertov

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z97Pa0ICpn8

SURREALIST MONTAGE

Metropolis, Fritz Lang, 1927

Maria's dance: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A0D4fHieW8o

Moloch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CPNaaogT8fs

Luis Bunuel and Salvador Dali,Un Chien Andalou, 1929,

https://vimeo.com/18540575

Maya Deren, Meshes of the Afternoon, 1943

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YSY0TA-ttMA (watch silent)

Vera Chytilova, Daisies (Sedmikrásky), 1966

https://vimeo.com/63689570

examples: opening credits, 53:30, 60:00, 65:00

ART VIDEO

Tracey Moffatt, OTHER, 2009

Dara Birnbaum, TECHNOLOGY TRANSFORMATION WONDER WOMAN, 1978-79

Bill Viola, Anthem, 1983

POP CULTURE

Team America: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JU9Uwhjlog8&feature=youtu.be

Forrest Gump: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QgnJ8GpsBG8

Ferris Beuler's Day Off: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubpRcZNJAnE

Snatch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mezD2j-R2Y

Footloose: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8XGmZ8HDIU

Trainspotting: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Naf_WiEb9Qs

Up: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UHMD_EqM61I

Clueless: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJQPpD4EN00

October 6, 2014

IN CLASS:
SCREENINGS:
Screen segment from Sonic Outlaws
Read/review William Burroughs, “The Cut Up Method”, listen to Burroughs audio clip
View selections from Elisa Kreisinger, popculturepirate.com 

DEMO:
Using Download Helper (see prior post or in class handout)
Intro to Premiere: The Basics (see handouts for basics)

WORK-TIME:
Create two sequences from the found footage that you researched, transcribed, and cut-up (on paper) for homework. One sequence should be based on at least one of your paper cut ups. One sequence should ignore it, following your intuition and chance.



HOMEWORK:
1) Finish your in-class project. Export these videos as H.264, to the appropriate Vimeo preset. Upload the videos to Vimeo and post to your blog. If you don't already have a vimeo account, sign up for one here.

2) Begin working on your final project, due for critiques beginning on October 20th. Your final project will consist of a cut-up/ mash-up made from 2-5 sources (no more that 2 video sources). It should run between 3-5 minutes in length. It must be a video edited in Adobe Premiere Pro. Your final project should land somewhere between the references we looked at in class, and your own unique vision and perspective.

For next week, I want you to begin working with the 5 sources that you began researching for this week. (If you want to change the, feel free).  Begin assembling these sources into sequences. You should have one main sequence, and two experimental sequences.  Think of these as experimental sequences as magical places where absolutely anything goes and nothing makes sense. GO WILD. ABANDON ALL LOGIC. 

Next week in class, we will do in progress screenings, and have some time to discuss things one-on one. Hopefully we will also have some work time. 

GENERAL NOTES: Be bold and experimental. You should choose things that you don't like, disagree with, wish were different, or want to change. Do not choose your favorite things, something you like very much, or something to which you feel close affection. There is much more potential to radically change something to which you have a bit of distance or distain. Consider using old (historical) footage. Speeches and talking heads are good places to start. Don't limit yourself here, gather options. But do not choose movie trailers. Do not choose the Emma Watson speech (mostly because so many of you love her), unless you want to try to radically alter her message-- or point out how messed up/broken/fractured it is. Remember: FORM IS FUNCTION. 

You may find it useful to plan your video before you make it, or not. Try out different methods of working and see what works for you. This is also why I want you to have multiple sequences, to try out different styles of editing. Be prepared to talk about your different working methods in critique. 

Some very helpful resources:

Internet Archive: https://archive.org/details/movies.  HIGHLY SUGGEST using the internet archive to find your source material. It is free and you can very easily download from the hundreds of thousands of moving image files on there. I recommend checking out the "Ephemeral Films" or the "cultural and academic films" sections. 

Download Helper: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/video-downloadhelper/. Download helper is a plug-in for the firefox browser that will help you appropriate video and audio from you-tube like sites. See the previous post for more info. 

Notes on Using Download Helper

Using Download Helper

Download download helper, a free firefox add-on, to help download videos from the web to edit educational and creative (not for profit) content. You have to use it in firefox. Download here: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/video-downloadhelper/

You can also use other programs or methods to acquire your content if you prefer. Always try looking for "official" videos, or sources that you recognize (UBU Web, Internet Archive, NASA, libraries, the government, arts institutions, archives, etc). These organizations will often go to great pains to make sure the highest possible quality is available, and often for free. Take advantage of these archives, as they will often have the best quality versions available. 

With digital files, you always want use the highest quality video file you can find. Quality is the most important thing, because while you can always degrade files, you can't upgrade them. (You can't make an SD file HD, but you can the other way around.) You want the largest possible dimensions, which will translate into a larger image and file size. Always get stereo audio if you can. All of the file sizes listed below will likely not be available for every file. 

Using Download Helper:

First, open firefox and go to youtube or other, similar site. Then, identify the "download helper" icon to the right of the url bar (where you see/type in the website address). It is a red, yellow, and blue glob. It will be animated when there is a file you can download. Then, click on the little down triangle next to the glob. It will tell you what file options you have. You will hover over the one you want, and select download. Be sure to save it in your class folder so you know where it is. 

First, try for a .mp4 or a .mov (which is apple specific) file. If possible, try to get something that is 4k, 1080p, or 720p. On youtube, your most common .mp4 files will be listed like this (in descending order of quality/file size):

[HQ 38] or 4k           (4096 x 3072), stereo

[HQ 37] or 1080p      (1920 x 1080), stereo

[HQ 22] or 720p        (1280 x 720), stereo

[HQ 84]                    (960 x 720), stereo

[HQ 85]                    (720 x 540), stereo

[HQ 82]                    (480 x 360), stereo

[HQ 18] or Medium   (360 x 270), stereo

[HQ 83]                    (360 x 240), stereo

you can also use FLV files:

[HQ 35] or 480p        (854 x 480), stereo

[HQ 34] or 360p        (640 x 360), stereo

[HQ 6]                      (360 x 270), mono

[HQ 5]                      (320 x 240), mono

Notice here the video size (in parentheses). Always get the highest quality you can. You can always use Adobe Media Encoder (included with your CC download) to convert files when you need to, but it is best to start with the highest quality. It is also important to note that in Premiere, you cannot use different file types in the same sequence. They must be the same, or else you will run into problems. We will talk more about what this means in the program. 

Sept 29: Class Cancelled

Dear Class, 

I am sick, so class is cancelled today. I am very sorry to miss you all today. PLEASE READ THIS ENTIRE EMAIL CAREFULLY. Below are instructions for your homework for this week, which includes 1) screening a movie and writing a reflection, 2) doing some research for your final project, and 3) watching a Lynda.com on Premiere Pro. 

1) Complete the homework assignment that was due in class today. Take a picture of it and post it to you your blog. We will return to this assignment next week during an in-class editing workshop. 

2).Watch the 1995 film Sonic Outlaws by Craig Bladwin (click here). It will provide you with some historical precedents for the mash up, give you an idea for the range and scale of what is possible (from a song to a feature length film and more), and give an example of the potential for artworks to push the boundaries of law and politics.  

After viewing the film, please write a short, thoughtful reflection on the film and post it to your blog. Email me the address to your blog if you haven't already. This is due before class next week, and will count as your participation grade for this week. Some things to think about in your response:

• What is this film about?
• What tactics is the filmmaker using in the making of this film? How is this similar and/ or different from other films you are familiar?
• How does this technical approach relate to the conceptual content of the work?
• Provide a specific example from the film and discuss it.

3) Your final project, which will be due for critique in a few weeks, will be an expansion of the homework assignment from this past week. You will be responsible for mashing-up/ cutting-up two, found sources in order to radically change their meaning. Your final product should be between 2-3 minutes in length. We will go over all of this in more detail in class next week. Please get started by researching your source material. 

For next week, I would like you to identify examples (at least 5) of sources that you would like to change through radical editing. Bring these files and laptops to class. You should choose things that you don't like, disagree with, wish was different, or want to change. Do not choose your favorite things, something you like very much, or something to which you feel close affection. There is much more potential to radically change something to which you have a bit of distance or distain. Consider using old (historical) footage. Speeches and talking heads are good places to start. Don't limit yourself here, gather options. But do not choose movie trailers. 

To edit your project, you will use a process very similar to what you did for homework. You will log, plan, and then edit your work into an edited video project using Adobe Premiere Pro. We will go over this in class, and you will watch a Lynda.com video for homework this week. 

Some very helpful resources:

Internet Archive: https://archive.org/details/movies.  HIGHLY SUGGEST using the internet archive to find your source material. It is free and you can very easily download from the hundreds of thousands of moving image files on there. I recommend checking out the "Ephemeral Films" or the "cultural and academic films" sections. 

Download Helper: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/video-downloadhelper/. Download helper is a plug-in for the firefox browser that will help you appropriate video and audio from you-tube like sites. 

3) Watch Lynda.com tutorial for Adobe Premiere Pro. We will be working in Premiere Pro next week in class, so I will expect to be already familiar with this platform. Please take good notes. I have attached hand-out guides for you.

Please watch this video:

Premiere Pro CC Essential Training with Ashley Kennedy:

http://www.lynda.com/Premiere-Pro-tutorials/Premiere-Pro-CC-Essential-Training/170630-2.html

Watch Chapters 1 (Getting to know the Premiere Pro Editing Environment), 2 (A Quick Introduction to the Basic Premiere Pro CC Workflow), and 8 (Basic Audio Editing). This is about an hour and a half of video to watch. We will be applying the techniques in class next week when we start editing in-class. Feel free to get a head start if you want to try it out. Feel free to watch more lessons and become experts.

See you in class next week. And please feel free to contact me with questions or concerns.