Historical Script

Historical Script PDF Link

This week we made a script based off a certain aspect of the Mexican Revolution. The Mexican Revolution, started at about 1910 and affected almost every person in the country for the next 30 years. Almost every man was called up to fight for one of the factions within Mexico, and these men brought with them their wives and their children. Sadly, as the war went on, many of the older children, those upwards of 11 years old, were forced to participate in the conflict. The research we found showed that children were forced into confrontations between factions called levies (http://histclo.com/country/other/mex/hist/mh-rev.html, 2008). We wanted to bring one of these innocent children into our script as a ghost in order to tell the tragic story of these kids who were pushed into the Mexican conflict.

The part of the Ghost Kid in our script is probably the youngest a child could’ve been during the revolution.Based on photographs we found through an online blog post, the character is a 10-year old with a typical revolutionary outfit, complete with white shirt, ammo belts, and a rifle (https://jaisonhist580.wordpress.com/2014/08/03/children-of-the-mexican-revolution/, Hist, 2014). The ghost, juxtaposed with the 10 year old girl Kaissa, illustrates just how innocent these children were. Kaissa still plays make believe and hide and seek with the ghost, and it doesn’t register in her mind that she is interacting with someone from 100 years ago. To think that these children were forced to shoot guns at other people is a powerful and saddening picture.

The readings for this week also helped us to contextualize the interaction between Kaissa’s mother and the Ghost Kid. The comic strip After the Deluge broke down the barriers between the general story of Hurricane Katrina and connected it with the human lives that were affected. To readers’ minds, we usually hear about big current events as overarching statements about something, rather than stories with people behind them. Kaissa’s mom doesn’t even bat an eye at the story of the children revolutionaries until she sees one right in front of her eyes. Suddenly the revolution is so real, and we realize that human beings were behind each of the facts of the event given during the museum tour earlier that day.

Our script had the purpose of giving us a face behind the story of the children revolutionaries. We hope that this piece educates people on some of the more gruesome parts of the armed conflicts that made Mexico what is today in a entertaining and thrilling way.

My Partners were Luis Puente and Mandy Shepherd

Process Piece

Audio Clip (Sorry we had trouble with the file type so this is a place you can download it from)

    This week’s assignment had the two of us, Jared Wilkinson and Zachary Miller, document the preparation of cucumbers at BYU’s Culinary Support Center. We followed it from washing to cutting to shipping.

We selected this process because we both have background in food production--Jared actually once worked at BYU’s Culinary Support Center. Our part in the recording process was little more than observational for most of the process. One notable exception included having to manually roll one of the carts ourselves after we were unable to get an audible recording the first time.  Other than that, we were able to simply step in order to record the steps of the process. These employees don’t realize how unique their sounds are and how easy it is to create an audio clip that allows the viewers to mentally visualize what they are doing. We imagine that is just the case for many of the process that are behind all of the things commercially manufactured in this country. Recognizable actions with recognizable sounds that come together to make a complex product. From making crayons to building a makeshift guitar, all the things we may think are unreachable are really just a combination of simple, even mundane tasks.

Moreover, processes that deal with how food is made showcase a processes that are important, much like the salmon in the smokehouse clip. No one really appreciates the smoked salmon or the sliced cucumbers when the food is bought straight from the store. The hard work of employees and companies is manifest when one takes the time to observe the procedure. Also, individuals are able to see the efficiency that man has created by building machines and using natural resources to make our processes more streamlined.

           We drew connections between this piece and some of the most common and popular shows on television right now, like “Fixer Upper.” In this show, audiences are able to see into the guts of a house and how contractors take a rundown shack into a marketable, visually appealing home. Viewers enjoy the grand tour at the end, but they also appreciate seeing the way they make that swimming pool and how Chip and Joanna bust down the wall. These shows capitalize on the spectacle of the process, drawing us in by giving us convenient access into something we may never have seen otherwise.

We were able to observe great beauty in the processing of cucumbers right here on BYU campus and learn just how many processes influence the world around us.

Exquisite Text

For this week’s assignment we decided to create a fictional conversation between the Grimm Reaper and one of his victims through text. We decided to use this idea because it was original, and it fit within the requirements of the digital communication medium. We don’t think anyone has ever texted the messenger of the underworld, and especially hasn’t had him mix up his victims. Also, the distance between Andrew and the Reaper caused by the mode of communication was what made the whole conversation comical, allowing Andrew to “stall for time”.

We enjoyed planning the beginning and the end of the conversation, and allowing our responses to evolve throughout the time period. Similar to the idea the “Exquisite Corpse”, we were unsure as to what was going to happen. Without the necessary background information, we were kept in the dark, taking it one step at a time. Each step revealed specific character traits and aspects of the story that we ourselves did not know. Just like the art behind the “Exquisite Corpse” many of the artists unknowingly made something more interesting than they themselves individually could make. Along the same lines, we experienced the same idea with our writing. With that in mind, we both were able to focus on our characters and their specific traits. The result was a quirky conversation between a being who holds the keys to death and a man giving his best to get away.

Another platform that operates under the same idea of creativity is the popular social network known as Reddit. The site operates on user generated content merely restricted by ideas and themes organized in threads. The threads provide the topic, and thousands of users take their own spin on the theme, posting pictures, videos, and comments that subsequently create more discussion, responses, and threads. Reddit has become one of the most expansive social media networks, allowing for ideas to flourish and creativity to grow alongside. With over two hundred and thirty four million unique users, Reddit is an “Exquisite Corpse” of pop culture.

This process of building on the unknown, is a unique way to receive genuine ideas. A technique that can be used in a variety of fields, including film! Woot! Once bounds are set, individuals are allotted a space in which creativity is free to roam. From screenwriting, storyboarding, and camera work, there are a plethora of problems that can be solved with creative, cognitive thinking. This innovative school of thought is on that, if implemented correctly, can spur a new generation of creative minds that make the best ideas of the century.

My Partner was Colby Barrios

Music Mosaic

Reflection- Secret Garden

            My music mosaic was created for a song that is very dear to me. I use this song to calm me down, and to help me refocus on the most important things in life. This song, Reflection by Secret Garden, in a true source of peace for me. I didn’t really know why, but through this assignment I’ve truly come to discover why this song is so meaningful to me.

           

            The pictures I chose to take for this assignment are photographs I took that deal with actual reflections. I started out with the goal to find typical reflections that we have in our daily lives that we may or may not recognize. I soon realized, that for me, these things are very calming as well. From the reflections on campus buildings, to the altered perspective in a pool of standing water, I welcome those images in my life. Consequently, I looked for images that naturally calm the viewer, through their focus on orderly, organized subjects.

I enjoy seeing my world through different eyes, and reflections are a daily way to see the world I know in new light. The reading that we did this week focuses on the blessings that come from seeking to view the world in new ways. Annie Dillard said that it’s impossible to stop the raging river of images we receive every day, but if we allow them to rage, and look beyond them through nature’s lenses, we can see beautiful things. As I took my pictures, I tried to look past the obvious, and go out of my way to find a shot that maybe no one had noticed before.

I included pictures of a phone screen and a WiiU screen because many people find those devices their “reflection of choice”. Instagram is popular because people are able to see their lives through “filters” or alterations to photographs. While for some people this doesn’t come off as genuine, there is satisfaction in being able to communicate your personal experiences in a more complex visual experience.

While this collection of pictures isn’t comprehensive of my life, I feel like everyone can connect with at least one of these images. Reflections complement our lives, just like the music piece. The violin and piano consistently repeat groups of notes, alternating whether the notes go up at the end or down. If you were to put the phrases of notes on top of each other, you would literally see the reflection in the notes position on the page. I love that this music puts a visual phenomenon into music, illustrating the feelings that I feel about reflections into audio expression.

The final point about the mosaic is the fact that the last picture, the mirror pic, is the biggest one. This is, to me the most important reflection. Just as the song Reflection helps me think about my life and appreciate the beauty of the world, our personal reflection should be a source of gratitude and happiness.

Word Count: 504

Thinking and Writing

There are many things that draw people to music artists. The music (obviously), concerts, videos, and merchandise are all part of the equation. In this world of over 7 billion people, however, it is hard to think of a group as more than an unreachable, faraway icon. The way to erase that gap, to include the audience, and to do it safely, is by means of making the fans part of the final product. Maroon 5 in 2012 created a music video that consisted solely of video clips made by fans across the world, with the purpose of letting people express their feelings and desires related to the song “Daylight”. This video, and other media of the same nature from other artists, is what makes an artist famous. When a group reaches out to the audience and brings them in, and then shows that to the world, greatness is made.

“Maroon 5- Daylight” (the official name of the video on YouTube), is not the most popular video by the standard of digital views. In fact, in the Maroon5 VEVO channel it is ranked 26 and lacks about 1.4 billion views. This video doesn’t offer a cinematically beautiful or masterfully edited series of shots. The thing that this video does offer, however, is a chance for people to connect with the music. People, within the video, react to the words and the notes, confiding in us, the second audience, about their likes, dislikes, fears, and dreams. We see clips of love, emotional challenges, family, and success. Pictures are shown, crushes are confided, emotions are expressed, and hopes are illustrated through drawings and notes. Maroon 5 sacrifices the opportunity for a more traditional style music video to let these fans express their stories.

To everyone in the world, relationships are based on people communicating with each other through a two-way channel. Just as the college teacher who preaches to us for 2 hours every other day for 4 months is infinitely less memorable than the one who knows our name, the same applies to the artists we listen to. When we are given the chance to give something back, to reflect a little bit of what we have been given, that’s when a relationship is made. For artists looking for more people to listen to their music consistently, it is worth the effort to create die-hard fans who feel like they are connected somehow. “Maroon 5- Daylight” creates that relationship with hundreds of people, and extends that reach to even more who see the unique, intimate connections expressed in the video.

But, I mean, why does this kind of media matter to the big shots? Why sacrifice millions of views (that equals relationships right?) on a music video for something that doesn’t include the glitz and polish of professionally made videos when you could do it another way? Personal tweets, VIP concert experiences, and even fan letters create those relationships, but they don’t let the world know. I submit that there is absolutely nothing that can supplement the act of an artist intentionally creating publicly available media that shows interactions with fans. Whether this is print, audio, or video media doesn’t matter; what matters is that it is there for the world to see.

Now, to do this successfully there are no halfsies; no one foot in, one foot out. To create and share that vulnerability is something that requires a conscious effort, a decision to say “I do”, in a way. Artists can give attention to people in moments of solitude and retreat later behind the wall of press perfection, but that doesn’t change the people. That just produces the “I will never wash this hand again” scenario where the one person is joyful and everyone else is grossed out at the girl with One Direction temporary tattoos all over her arms. The artists that we remember through the ages, not just until their songs go off the radio, are those that create situations where we know and empathize with both hands that touch.

With this new age of increasing technological capabilities and evolving music and video streaming platforms, artists have more ability than ever to make their name immortal in the hearts and lives of their audiences. The talent is there, and the means of communicating with thousands and millions of people in intimate ways exists! Maroon 5 did it with a 9-minute music video, Taylor Swift did it by playing Santa, and Ben Rector did it by dancing in his living room and going to Six Flags. This may just turn out to be a shout out to these artists, as we are but merely students trying to make it through a semester of college, but I’d like to hope that our continued support of these legendary faces who care about us will motivate them to one day, with something, touch the hearts of everyone in the world.

Taylor Swift's Gift Giving

Ben Rector- Brand New