Reflection:
This weeks class was mainly focused around feedback on both my upcoming Borderline Personality project works, and finally laying out the foundation for my personal project. In class, I was able to show Jonno, the director of the project, my current animation work that I developed over the last two weeks, expanding upon the ideas of “through the cracks”, and creating more vivid, transformative imagery that could portray BPD in a more positive light.
Overall, the feedback was really positive! He was very receptive to the direction I took each of the animations in, more specifically, the use of my brighter colours, more intense imagery, and the general flow of how the animations transform into something else entirely. In particular, he really enjoyed the animations that flow into the corridors, and through that feedback, I will aim to expand upon that general feel throughout the rest of the animations.
In thinking about my own thoughts to the feedback, aside from being really happy with Jonno’s reaction, I feel I made the right decision with the aspect ratio this time, as upscaling or expanding upon these will prove to be significantly easier. I’ve made a very conscious effort after exploring and experimentation in the last few weeks to make sure that any future work I produce is adaptable and has flexibility in how I can transform or manipulate it, which has turned out for the better, especially now considering that my own independent project needed some pivoting based on my in-class feedback. I had a discussion with one of my tutors about a major hiccup in terms of the original project I made, where the aspect ratio was having issues being transitioned to occupy the full screen space to ensure maximum immersion, alongside on how I can introduce the audience to this AI generated world without the need for that original dramatic pose. I found the feedback to be quite constructive, such as trimming down the duration of the real-world introduction, and, that the thematic I developed prior to the break could be integrated to the original project to keep the audience engaged throughout the runtime by allowing them to be constantly surprised by the different landscapes they will be transported to. This prompted some deeper thinking; in that I gave some thought about the ways the aspect ratio can create immersion and create a different perspective through how much real-estate is most effective at drawing in the audience. Through some personal experimentation with the generation of basic images, I felt since my project is artistically driven through it’s aesthetics, it would be best experienced with the largest screen space possible, leading to me finalising my projects resolution as I further developed it this week.
Research:
For my research this week, I wanted to take a deeper approach to empathy, and understanding how to evoke it through the practice of immersing audiences in my works. To assist me with this, I read a research article by Sarah Jones, and Steve Dawkins, “Media Practice and Education Walking in someone else’s shoes: creating empathy in the practice of immersive film”. What I found was a fascinating discussion about how great cinema allows audiences to “understand a little bit more about what it’s like to be a different gender, a different race, adifferent age, a different economic class, a different nationality, a different profession,different hopes, aspirations, dreams and fears.” (Jones & Dawkins, 2018). The way that this is achieved is what I found most interesting in this paper, in that, throughout, it establishes that the director has to work with it’s audience to “‘choreograph a filmic experience that requires empathy” (Jones & Dawkins, 2018), through the use of “Narratives, characterisation, framing and composition of the image,”. This helped deepen my understanding of the previous projects I’ve discussed in the last several weeks, in emphasing how the directors of each of those projects established an empathetic relationship with their audience through their use of the techniques in the above quote. Across the use of narrative, and composition of the image, where I can draw my audiences attention in, along with the modes of motion, can create immersion with my audience in drawing them into feeling the surreal. In my further reading, the quote “‘how one relates to and absorbs objects into one’s own experience’(2017, 74), rather than an outward-facing process of relating to others outside of one’s own experience” (Jones & Dawkins, 2018), stood out to me, in that it discusses how audiences will utilise their own schemes and internal understanding to recontextualise or comprehend the experiences they are undertaking. This has given me the opportunity to think about the types of imagery that I will evoke, whether it be through violence, erotica, or a greater sense of wonder, to ensure that my audience can be immersed in the surreal, transformative landscapes I present to them in my project. This article has provided me the opportunity to more deeply explore the relationship between immersion and empathy within the context of film, in ensuring that as my project goes forward, I will focus on a feedback cycle with my peers to ensure that even if aspects of the project are familiar, that there is enough unfamiliarity with the visuals to maintain the feeling of surreal throughout the entire experience.
Sarah Jones & Steve Dawkins “Walking in Someone else’s shoes: creating empathy in the practice of immersive film”, 2018, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/330601770_Media_Practice_and_Education_Walking_in_someone_else’s_shoes_creating_empathy_in_the_practice_of_immersive_film
Progress:
So… Despite my plans during the Uni semester break to try and take the week off, I ended up deciding to focus on the BPD project because I was excited to test out some of the ideas Jonno and I had discussed. The result was… Quite a significant amount of progress actually! I had several days fully blocked out to work on developing animations, and the result was seven, rock solid videos that can, with minor adjustments, be looped throughout the experience (that can be discovered across this entire blog post!). Each of them came to about 240 frames, rendered at 24 frames per second to create some fascinating results, that Jonno really appreciated!
Throughout the week, I continued to make some course corrections and refinements, with most of the videos landing in a solid spot, with some room for adjustment, such as the “Through the Cracks” video having the gender of the character being neutralised. Luckily for me, I can do a Passover with a singular prompt across all frames to amend this, rather than creating everything from scratch again. (Text continues after embeded videos)
Due to making a significant amount of progress towards the BPD production, I am currently in the process of creating my major projects foundation, and, with some appropriate time management, I may be able to render out half of the entire project in the coming week. Due to the feedback I received, and my own decision, I have opted to create a more unified experience for my individual project, that utilises a stronger initial experience within the AI environment, rather than a transition between the real world to the AI world. I feel this will create a stronger opportunity for a surreal experience and provide me the best opportunity to occupy screen real estate. Hopefully by the end of this coming week, I should have made some significant progress towards the final project, and, based on the feedback I receive this week, I will be able to make any appropriate adjustments as I continue through to the final weeks of the semester.
Final Project Work in Progress:
Lighting Up Your week 