SW+13+-+Video

Video Part 1 media type="youtube" key="BVof0HUELfo?rel=0" height="315" width="560" align="center" Media: Canon SLR, Adobe After Effects Size: 720p Date completed: December 2012 **Description:** This studio work is the first part of a two part video. Although the subject looks depressed, she still manages to repress her emotions. In the second part, she will loses that repression and expresses her emotions through breaking surrounding funiture. This is my first attempt in video-making, thus, I asked for help from a peer that has experience with video-making as well as Adobe After Effects. I used his advice as well as research to make this video. Although, incomplete, since there still remains a second part to this video, the first part symbolizes repression of emotions. The faded effect as well as the white overlay gives it a sense of shallowness. In the other part of the video, the main theme will be dark and gloomy, juxtaposing the video that I have made now, with depth and lugubriousness. **Analysis:** **What were the artistic and/or cultural influences for this project?** **Who/what influenced either the composition and/or the style.** The artistic influence of this piece is Ron Fricke, who directed Baraka. Baraka was a video that excluded dialogue and told a story through the subjects within the video and the music, therefore making it represent a visual art piece. My piece will have no dialogue and is understood without music, however, I will still add music to increase the effect of uneasiness. The song that will be used is "Beetlebum" by the English band Blur. Barak also influence the composition of this piece. In Baraka, Fricke juxtaposed two contradicting ideas repeatedly throughout the video. The same will happen in the final piece (both parts of the video) where within the video there are constant shifts between the first part of the video and the second part.

**What materials/media/processes did you use and or experiment with, and how?** I used a Canon SLR camera. To exclude the subject from the background, i used a green screen. The lighting in the green screen made it difficult to key out the subject, because of this, I used 4 100 Watt lights and one 500 Watt light. To edit the video, I used Adobe After Effects. I was able to key out the green screen using Key Light, however, because of the lighting and the color of the green screen, more technicality was needed. Therefore, I asked my peer for help on how to reduce noise further. He suggested that I should use a time lapse of the sky to make the noise less apparent. I found that the effect "Grain Reduction" also reduced noise. My peer also helped me with masking frame by frame, which I used in the footages of the eye and to further reduce noise in the footages. Because the materials were not in the best quality, it was difficult to remove the noise entirely.

I used an immense amount of advice from one of my peers, who has experience with filming and Adobe After Effects. As mentioned before, he helped in reducing noise by adding the time lapse of the sky as well as explaining how to mask frame by frame. I also sought advice from the teacher. She mentioned that one of the footages of the eye is too long and the interesting footage, which is the footage of the dilating pupil, should be extended. I found her criticism useful and I will edit the video to improve that weakness.
 * How do you think you have responded to advice and criticism during this project (and during the term), both from fellow students and the teacher. Did you actively seek advice? If so, was it useful?**

**Clearly explain the weaknesses/areas for improvement -** The quality of the video is low because I needed to zoom in at the eye. However, because one of these videos' quality is more evident that the others, this particular footage will be shorter and the interesting and higher quality will be extended. Also, I cannot do anything about the noise because the green screen was glossy as well as a shade of green that made it difficult to key out the subject. Key Chrome green would result in the best quality and this was unavailable.

**Clearly explain the strengths of the piece –** It clearly illustrates repression and the effects aid in adding shallowness to the footages.This will allow the second part of the video to contrast with the first part of the video since I am intending of adding depth to the second part of the video by making it generally darker. The first part of the video accurately represented the my initial intentions in regards to the ominous mood.

**What could you take through to the next project and develop further? This could be anything, from a technique to an idea, not neccessarily just the theme.** I will have a second part to this video and add it in between the uncomfortable transitions. This will allow for smoother shifts. The second part of the video will be of the same subject, however, instead of repressing her emotions, she will be exaggeratedly expressing her emotions by breaking furniture and other acting out other actions that would make her look angry and frustrated. I will not be using sound such as screams or dialogue because, if that were to occur in the video, the audience would not be focusing on the visual aspect only, but also sounds that would seem otherwise important. I will be using the broken furniture and decorating a room to fit the mood of the video to create an installation for my pieces. The installation will be a piece.

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