You Know It's Wes Anderson If...

Here are some Wes Anderson videos:

A good one breaking down the visual elements of TGBH:



For fun! Does this make him seem more or less postmodern?



 And this one also provides a good overview of his style in a fun and humorous way:



 And this one? Well, I couldn't help myself. Have you seen Isle of Dogs yet?!

Where can I find Digipaks to analyse?

Answer: discogs.com.

Search an artist or album:

In the list presented, search for ‘gat' or ‘dig'.

Hopefully, you will find that the entire packaging has been scanned and added.

A2 Coursework: B324 Deadlines (2017-18)

28th August: x30 research tasks:

• 10 short films
• 10 posters
• 10 film reviews

Or the equivalent texts, dependent on your chosen brief. 

25th September: All research tasks completed:

• 30 set
• 10 independent
• Target audience research

16th October: All Planning documents:

• Script
• Storyboard
• Animatic

11th December: First complete draft:

• Main video
• Ancillary 1
• Ancillary 2

5th February: Final drafts:

• Main video
• Ancillary 1
• Ancillary 2

5th March: Evaluation & Blog complete

Steven Spielberg: Opening Shots 1971-1991

Interesting video collection of Steven Spielberg's opening shots from 1971-1991.

Useful for A2 Short Film and Trailer students and AS Opening students.

What should I be doing?

Music Video:

1. Research in to Music Video styles: Concept, Performance, Narrative, Hybrid.
2. Research into existing media: 10 x Music Videos; 10 x Digi Packs (4 and 6 panel); 10 x Adverts

Short Film:

1. Research into existing media: 10 x Short Films; 10 x Reviews; 10 Websites or Posters
2. Detailed research into Genre.

Trailer:

1. Research into existing media: 10 x Trailers; 10 x Film Posters; 10 x Film Magazine covers
2. Detailed research into Genre.

There should never be an idle moment.

Mr. M.

#PostmodernMedia #FilterBubble

From this Rolling Stone article on the late Roger Ailes:

What most of us are buying when we tune in to this or that channel or read this or that newspaper is a reassuring take on the changes in the world that most frighten us. We buy the version of the world that pleases us and live in little bubbles where we get to nurse resentments all day long and no one ever tells us we're wrong about anything. 

~ Taibbi, Matt - 2017.

 Sounds familiar... keep revising!

Mr. M.

HyperNormalisation and Fake News

Ex-student George Turner emailed me and suggested that we would find the programme: HyperNormalisation by Adam Curtis, both relevant and interesting. Having watched the first 30 minutes, so far, I am inclined to agree.

Please watch the programme on BBC iPlayer and make notes. It is quite long, so you might want to break it up into sections. This Wikipedia article has a good synopsis of the different chapters.

In reading about the show and watching it, it also got me thinking about Fake News and misinformation. Please read through the following articles and make notes. This will add to your understanding of hyperreality and provide you with a current and evolving case study for your essays.

• Fake News (Wikipedia)
• What is Fake News? (The Guardian)
• Wikipedia bans Daily Mail (The Guardian)

Wes Anderson - #Pomo or not #Pomo?

As we are going to be looking at the concepts of 'quirky sensibility' and 'new sincerity' through the work of Wes Anderson, this video (once again shared via 'FilmSchoolRejects') was very timely:

You can see more videos about Wes Anderson's films here, here and here.

We will be asking the question: Is Wes Anderson's work postmodern or does his work represent something that might be considered post-postmodernism, metamodernism or is it not postmodern at all?

Under the Influence: Barry Jenkins on Wong Kar-Wai

It is always interesting to see how one director influences another...

In this video, Barry Jenkins discusses the influence that Wong Kar-Wai had on his work.

Here is a side by side comparison of shots from 'Moonlight' and various Wong Kar-Wai films.

Wong Kar-Wai is one of my favourite directors. Every film student must watch 'In the Mood for Love'. It is a masterpiece of cinematography, mise-en-scene, sound and editing working in unison to make a true work of art.

Both videos were found via: FilmSchoolRejects, which is a fantastic site that regularly shares interesting articles and videos about film. Consider following them on Twitter or Facebook.

Kubrick

A look at the cinematic experience of Stanley Kubrick. His work is a tour-de-force of symbolism, narrative exposition and cinematography. His attention to detail may only be matched by Wes Anderson and his editing is without a doubt meticulous.

Much can be learned here, both in terms of your own production work but also in terms of Postmodern Media. Enjoy!

Learn Cinematography and Composition by following @comp_cam

To learn more about cinematography and composition, follow Composition Cam on Twitter (@comp_cam) and Instagram.

You don't want to go down this hallway. #TheShining #StanleyKubrick pic.twitter.com/EXltbkP9gx

— Composition Cam (@comp_cam) June 1, 2016

A2 Revision: Intertextuality

Another nicely timed video that is useful for revision. In this case, The NerdWriter discusses 'intertextuality' and there are some great examples in the video. Watch, make notes and enjoy.

There are more great film and media related videos on his Tumblr; go check 'em out!

Everything is a Remix: The Force Awakens

This is a fab caveat to your Ferguson/Matrix/Blade Runner case study, brining it bang up to date. Check out his original post for more info and links.

This post by Austin Kleon also posits some useful thoughts and additional links/resources (scroll down!).

A2: 'Star Wars Is A Postmodern Masterpiece'

Detailed article by Forrest Wickman, exploring the postmodern make-up of Star Wars.

It will further your understanding of pastiche and bricolage. If you know the original trilogy well it could also serve as an additional case study.

'May the force be with you, always.' ;-)

Everything is a Remix - Remastered (2015)

Kirby Ferguson has remastered his seminal series 'Everything is a Remix' as one single video. This continues to be the starting point for our study into Postmodern Media.

Please watch and make detailed notes. We will begin our study of Postmodern Media on Thursday 1st October.

Article: 'Reading Rihanna: the burden of representation'

Interesting article by David Buckingham re: Rhianna, her music video for the song 'Bitch Better Have My Money' and representation.

Link: http://davidbuckingham.net/2015/07/14/reading-rihanna-the-burden-of-representation/

Genre: Film Noir

Useful article looking at the use of low-key lighting and black and white in the Film Noir genre.

http://petapixel.com/2015/07/04/a-look-at-the-striking-low-key-black-and-white-style-of-film-noir-cinema/

Most Sampled Songs of All Time.

This list shows the most sampled songs of all time, and displays the ideas of Everything is a Remix. You can listen to the songs and then hear the other tracks that have sampled the sounds and ideas. The top song has been sampled 1351 times; take a look see if you can add anything to the list or search for your favourite song and see if it has been sampled.

Click Here to start listening.

Martin Scorsese - The Art of Silence

Postmodernism and The Media