Goals of final video project

The main goal of the final video project is to sort of break away the stereotypes of nerds. It is to also examine a bit as to how the term “nerd” has evolved over the years and the way modern culture lends to its definition. It’s not intended to make fun of nerds (explicitly), but rather to open up some new perspectives on how we tend to label people in our society today.

In-class writing November 17th

How does it feel to edit your material? Consider the ability to manipulate the material to say what you want and what it means. How is editing different than shooting? How do the two stages inform one another.

Editing is what I consider to be what makes the video what it is. Shooting is essential, as well, but if I could make the comparison of film making to baking a cake, the raw footage would be like the ingredients. While they are necessary to make the product, each piece alone cannot fulfill the role. You need to mix the ingredients in the right proportions, at the right time, in the right way for the cake to turn out correctly. It’s the same with videos. That’s how I feel about editing my material. Sure, it may be fun to collect and gather the needed components, but the real excitement is putting it all together in the way that you want!

The two stages however, do interact with each other greatly. Your finished video needs to have certain components filmed out as a necessity, and without it, the project cannot be complete despite wasting countless hours editing to make up for it. Likewise, it is during the editing stage that you can see clearly where your deficiencies lie in the film. While it is always better to be proactive and think about and remedy this before hand, it’s nigh impossible to think of everything in pre-production. Editing stage can cause you to adapt and adjust filming in order to complete the project properly.

2 questions

1) Should I focus on a nerd (or a few) and develop their characters or more general with more vague characters?

2) Would having humor (excessive) ruin the purpose of my film?

Nerds Make the Best Friend

Nerds; awkward, geeky, and shunned from popular social circles. People lacking social skills would seem to not make good friends. And yet this is what I believe, nerds make the best friends possible.
As a nerd growing up, being made fun of by the other school children was commonplace. Balked by the popular kids, I learned how to make friends with the other outcasts, appreciating what bonds we had together and relishing our time together. As I have grown up, I’ve come to realize how this deficiency in social acceptance has ironically transformed me to be the best kind of friend anyone would wish for.
For one, nerds are extremely loyal. “Those who have few know how to enjoy more,” or so the saying goes. And nerds with few friends learn to appreciate them more. I may not be the most popular person, have the most Facebook friends, or be the big man on campus, but I have it where it counts: I stick with my friends through thick and thin.
Secondly, nerds are very interesting people. I have, over the years, collected a random assortment of useless trivia that would never make a conversation dull. As I have nothing better to do with my time, I scour the internet learning about anything just to keep my mind busy. Did you know the average person laughs about 15 times a day?
Thirdly, nerds are resourceful people that can help you when you’re in a jam. As the world has become more technologically centered, having a nerd around is useful. Like all nerds, I have an innate sense to fix all things electrical and most other engineering-like problems. My vast amount of time spent learning about things online allows me to transfer the knowledge into real life uses.
Lastly, nerds tend to make a lot of money. As a nerd, I have a strong desire to excel at what I’m good at, which is usually engineering related. As a result, the job outlook in my life is pretty good. I won’t have to worry about my paycheck or struggle to make ends meet. Besides spending it on myself, who would I share my wealth with except with my friends; who doesn’t like getting cool gifts on Christmas or Birthdays?
Nerds make the best friends. Not because I know what to say at a party, not be awkward at a party, or can make you popular by association, but because I know how to care of my friends as who they are; my friends.

In-class writing 10/29

1. list 5-10 beliefs that you hold to be true. Your beliefs can range from broad philosophical thoughts such, “nature is more important than nurture,” to more specific instances such as “cats are better than dogs.” (give students about 10 minutes to contemplate)

There is a God who loves us.
People are inherently sinful and selfish (not good).
There is a hell and a heaven.
We have (and currently are) failing in our responsibilities to take care of this world.
There is a greater purpose in life than just making money or seeking for our own enjoyment.

2. Choose 2 or 3 of the above beliefs and answer the following questions:
(Give students 20-30 minutes to write)

There is a greater purpose in life than just making money or seeking for our own enjoyment.

How did this idea form?
Self-analysis, observation of the world, talking with other people, the Bible.
How firmly do I believe it?
I try to live it out everyday.
Why do I maintain it?
Living out your life the way it was intended is quite possibly the greatest way to live. No? If you knew there was a greater purpose intended for you and you weren’t living that purpose, would you be satisfied with your current life? I wouldn’t be. And that’s why I do what I do, or at least I try to.
What would make me change my belief?
I don’t believe anything would.

We have (and currently are) failing in our responsibilities to take care of this world.

How did this idea form?
Observations on the environment, the way we treat natural resources.
How firmly do I believe it?
Pretty firmly, it’s not hard to observe it in real life.
Why do I maintain it?
Because I believe it’s true.
What would make me change my belief?
If somehow (very highly unlikely), everyone in the world started caring more about the environment than about making money and getting rich. If people would stop wasting resources because they can afford it, and started to consider the long term ramifications of their actions.

Everything is an Argument

1. Can an argument really be any text that expresses a point of view? What kinds of arguments-if any-might be made by the following items?

the embossed leather cover of a prayer book
Must be important to have such a high quality cover.
a Boston Red Sox cap
Fan of a specific storied baseball team
a Livestrong bracelet
Support cancer patients and survivors
the label on a best-selling rap CD
I dunno, their ability to produce quality musicians?
the health warning on a package of cigarettes
They aren’t good for you.
a belated birthday card
At least they got a card, although they didn’t care enough to remember the day.
the nutrition label on a can of soup
What is in the soup that the picture tries to hide.
the cover of a science fiction novel
A preview of what the book is about.
a colored ribbon pinned to a shirt lapel
I don’t know.
a Rolex watch
The person wearing it cares about style and can afford it.

2. Write short paragraphs describing times in the recent past when you’ve used language to inform, to convince, to explore, to make decisions, and to meditate or pray. Be sure to write at least one paragraph for each of these purposes. Then decide whether each paragraph describes an act of argument, persuasion, or both, and offer some reasons in defense of your decisions. In class, trade paragraphs with a partner, and decide whether his or her descriptions accurately fit the categories to which they’ve been assigned. If they don’t, then work with your partner to figure out why. Is the problem with the descriptions?
The categories? Both? Neither?

Inform: Talked with friend about attitudes of the Middle East towards the U.S. pre-9/11. Addressed formation of an Israeli state after WWII, foreign policy of U.S. in the 80’s and 90’s. ** Definitely an argumentative discussion. Presented facts as a way to inform, not really persuade.

Convince: Spoke with a friend about buying a certain book from Amazon. Discussed the cost, the author’s reputation and the subject of the book. ** Definitely a persuasive discussion. Analyzed the cost of buying the book versus the benefits. Presented the positives of the book in such a way as to convince my friend it was worth buying.

Explore: Explored the world of ID students and how much they put into their work. Just how their creative ideas come to fruition and their opinions of their major. **Argumentative mostly because it was informative dialogue more so than persuading that one major was better than another.

Make Decisions: Spoke with a friend about her major and potential switch away. Analyzed the reasons behind why she wanted to change. Talked about her future goals and interests. ** The discussion was both argumentative and persuasive. I did not want her to quit because it would set her back a year from graduating, but I also wanted her to see if what she wanted to do was right.

Meditation and Prayer: Thought about different translations of the bible and how it affects the people, or me personally, by using different synonyms. The thought was mostly argumentative, to see what was the difference and how that would affect understanding.

3. In a recent newspaper or periodical, find three editorials-one that makes a ceremonial argument, one a deliberative argument, and one a forensic argument. Analyze the arguments by asking these questions: Who is arguing? What purposes are the writers trying to achieve? To whom are they directing their arguments? Then consider whether the arguments’ purposes have been achieved in each case. If they have, offer some reasons for the arguments’ success.

The Onion is as good a publication as any to look at!

http://www.theonion.com/content/news/microsoft_ad_campaign_crashing
Who is arguing?
A new ad placed by Microsoft (known for somewhat buggy PC operating system programs called) causes televisions across the country to crash.
What purposes are the writers trying to achieve?
Highlight the inexplicably incompetent way Microsoft does with any of its products.
To whom are they directing their arguments?
Consumers who are familiar with the company or its products.
Have they been achieved?
While the piece is satire, it does achieve the purpose of the article by presenting the information squarely to the reader. The facts along with the typical expected response from the Microsoft company serves to reinforce Microsoft’s image as a shoddy monopolistic company who cannot produce anything worthwhile without flaws.

http://www.theonion.com/content/news/swaggering_down_87
Who is arguing?
The author is analyzing the decrease in “swagger” exhibited by people walking in metropolitan cities.
What purposes are the writers trying to achieve?
To highlight an alarming decrease in a very American styled way of walking.
To whom are they directing their arguments?
The readers.
Have they been achieved?
Yes, to a certain extent, we now know more about this epidemic than before. It’s definitely cause for concern as provided by the historical evidence and expert testimony.

http://www.theonion.com/content/news/dollar_bill_on_floor_sends_wall
Who is arguing?
The author is highlighting a turn in the economic situation due to the finding of actual physical legal tender at Wall Street.
What purposes are the writers trying to achieve?
Inform readers about current market trends and improvements or projections about the future.
To whom are they directing their arguments?
People concerned with the market.
Have they been achieved?
The article addresses the recent upswing in the stock market and provides the reasons behind it. Does a fairly good job at communicating that goal.

4. What common experiences-if any-do the following objects, brand names, and symbols evoke, and for what audiences in particular?

a USDA organic label – Cleaner and better for you than “regular” food. Especially for the health conscious or paranoid.
the Nike swoosh – A good company that makes top notch sports equipment and clothing. Has many prominent sports players as spokesmen.
the golden arches – McDonald’s tends to evoke happiness to children, except for the health conscious ones (are there any?). It serves as a stable, expected place to buy “standard” food from which other restaurant foods are generally compared against.
the Sean John label as seen on its Web site – I don’t know what this is. But the logo seems very elegant and sophisticated, which I expect is reflected in its products.

In-class writing 10/27/2008

1. Think about three purchases you’ve made recently. These should range from larger ticket items like electronics, to trivial daily purchases like gum, coffee etc.

Three recent purchases:
Video Tripod
ESV Study Bible (Black Trutone)
The House of Leaves

2. Go online and look for advertisements for the items, or the product website.
3. For each item write a response to the following questions:
– Why did you choose to buy this specific product?
– Does the advertisement resonate with your own personal aesthetic? How?
– Does the way the product is marketed appeal to your beliefs?

Video Tripod: I bought it because I’ve gotten tired of coming all the way to the art building to borrow cameras. I did a quick google search for it, and found a decently cheap one. I don’t know if advertisements really affected my decision, but I did choose it over another similarly priced tripod because the one I bought came with a free carrying case and could hold slightly heavier weight.

ESV Study Bible: It’s awesome. End of story. Haha, I bought it because it just came out. It is the first study bible that was made directly for the ESV translation. Besides the fact that I was already looking for a study bible for a couple months, I found a bookstore online that had really good pricing for the books. Although I don’t think the way it was marketed affected me too greatly, it did make me feel better about my purchase. They listed even the most minute details about the bible such as paper thickness, type of paper, binding implementation, along with the specific resources found in the bible such as full color maps, articles from well known authors, in-depth commentaries, etc. I would have bought it anyways without the information, but it was nice.

House of Leaves: The book was actually a result of a parody from a webcomic (http://xkcd.com/472/). It piqued my interest and after reading a short summary of what the book was about, I decided to buy it. I guess the summary was a way of advertisement, but it was more the book itself that made me buy it.

4. Discuss how advertising’s effect on personal choices.
– What strategies do advertisers use to entice purchase of their product?
– Is advertising manipulative in adverse way?
– What ethical standards do you think advertising should adhere to?

Advertisers will use any means necessary to present their product in a positive light. As such, it is definitely maniuplative. Advertising by definition is to convince consumers (you) to want what they are selling. And that’s not necessarily wrong. If a product does have certain features, they have all the right to tell us about it. It’s when they deceptively lie about their products that is wrong.

In-class writing October 13

How does it feel now that you’ve started to edit your raw footage? How is editing different from shooting? How are the two stages relating to and informing one another in your project?

It’s much different when you are editing the footage instead of filming. While you can have a great scene, innovative idea, or whatever, if it’s not captured and translated onto the film, it doesn’t matter. The raw footage is all that you have, you can’t make it show something that isn’t there. While I have been going back and getting more footage, it was more so because of poor foresight and not enough attention to what I needed to film for the project. The two stages are very much related in this way; you have to shoot to get the footage, and you edit the footage to capture what you originally intended to shoot. It may not always work as I planned, especially if the interview brings up topics that I’m not expecting, but as long as the project as a whole remains true to your goal (which may change), it’s alright.

In class writing 10/8/2008

How do you see form and content interacting in your piece thus far?

Form and content interacting in my piece? Well obviously the content of my piece is heavily focused on the activities and perspective of Building Service Workers. How I plan on going about that is showing footage related to their perspective, in essence, highlighting what Hugh is talking about with video. The thing is people don’t usually notice cleanliness, neatness or orderliness, but rather the lack of those things. It’s when things are a mess, disorderly, and in chaos that it attracts our attention. Since we don’t see these things, we don’t notice the lack of them either. And because of that, we don’t notice the work of BSWs either. I think I’m getting off topic from the question, oh well. =]

Live from Shiva’s Dance Floor – quick write

The intent of the film was to address a sensitive topic (9/11) in a different light by analyzing the the history and culture of New York City and also to use New York City as an way to analyze humanistic desires and needs. By showing the “life” of New York City and the common perceptions of its inhabitants, the intrinsic needs of humanity is able to be seen.