Submitted by Lauren Bailey on Sunday, April 2, 2006 - 17:36

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I went to Youtube, and I found this anime music video which I thought was really interesting. As we all know, anime is really big in contemporary culture, and despite the fact that I have never liked it (or any other cartoons for that matter) this video was really rather well done. The person took clips and shots from some anime film or maybe several, and blended them so nicely to go perfectly with the song "Live for More" by Switchfoot. Not only do the scenes often depict the words the song is talking about (like when they talk about flying, there is an anime bird flying off into the distance) but scenes are also spliced so that when the music is faster the frames are in quicker succession. Also, when the song is more intense, the scenes are more intense. I have never seen a music video like this - in many ways it is very innovative because real music videos could not capture so much at once, and obviously, with cartoons, anything is possible to depict. For someone who has never enjoyed the cartoons, I was quite impressed with this video. I do not think it represents the dumbing-down of American culture. The emotions of the characters are very real and I think it is a brilliant way of depicting human circumstances without having to show real dead people, blood, etc. Also, you visualize human emotions with real people (i.e.- you can not show a picture of jubilation) where with this anime music video, you can depict emotion artistically by having the character rise up into the air and have bright light all around him.

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Submitted by Andrew Macdonald on Wednesday, March 29, 2006 - 00:55

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Portfolio:

Film Essay: I have attached my revision of my essay to the bottom of the portfolio. For the revisions I decided to focus on the similarities of Hitchcock's style in the films and then the difference in the films themes and how they both were successful. I enjoyed both films "Psycho" and "North by Northwest" and I had never seen a Hitchcock film before and he proved to me that many of the old films are as good if not better than today's movies. After watching the films I can see how modern films evolved from these classics. For example, James Bond seems eerily similar to "North by Northwest." I also found it interesting that some of these classic films had been remade such as "Psycho" which shows their popularity. These were probably the oldest movies that I had ever watched on DVD but the plots were extremely interesting which made up for the lack of special effects which was expected.

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Submitted by iamdan on Thursday, March 23, 2006 - 15:53

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Here is the assignment to be completed by April 11th. Enjoy the films and writing.

Paper Assignment
Due Tuesday April 11th
Compose a four or more page paper exploring two films by either the Coen brothers or by Alfred Hitchcock. Discuss technical aspects of the films as well as themes and controversies the films take up. Concentrate on explaining how the films represent the style of the directors and also on how each conveys a unique message.
Choose two films by either Hitchcock or the Coen brothers and explore the relationships between them. Are there distinct qualities present in both of the films? What might be their significance? What might account for any differences between the films? What can you say about the filmmaker’s style and how does it help us understand the films you are discussing. What thematic elements occur in both films and what can you say about them.

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Submitted by iamdan on Thursday, March 23, 2006 - 15:50

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Here is the online assignment for April 6th. Follow the instructions below:

Online Assignment for April 6th

This assignment asks you to explore amateur videos online and identify two videos that tell us something about current communication practices and contemporary culture and then to take a position on the value of these videos. You will explore the videos online. Some sites you might use are,

Youtube (http://www.youtube.com/)
IFilm (http://www.ifilm.com/)
Ourmedia (http://www.ourmedia.org/)

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Submitted by iamdan on Thursday, March 23, 2006 - 15:48

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Here is the assignment for April 4th. You will work online and follow the instructions below:

Online Assignment for April 4th

This assignment asks you to learn more about a filmmaking technique that plays a large part in one or both of the films you are discussing in your paper. You can begin in either two ways:

1.) If you already have a sense of one of the techniques you want to discuss in your film, you can research online to learn more about the term. For instance, you might know you want to talk about the soundtrack in O’ Brother Where Art Thou? You can research more about soundtracks to get started. Be sure to find out more about soundtracks (or another technique) in general rather than looking for information related to that particular film.

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Submitted by Lauren Bailey on Wednesday, May 3, 2006 - 01:03

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OK, so apparently I spelled my last name wrong in the link to my video collage. hahahaha Well, it should definately work now!

~Lauren

Lauren Bailey's blog

Submitted by uttara on Tuesday, May 2, 2006 - 17:11

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my video

a larger version

uttara's blog

Submitted by rayfinkle on Tuesday, May 2, 2006 - 16:49

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I wrote my paper on film techniques that Alfred Hitchcock used in Psycho and North by Northwest. There were alot of similarities as well as a lot of differences to each movie. It was cool to see how he shaped the films around what he desired audience to get out of watching it.

rayfinkle's blog

Submitted by lindseyd on Tuesday, May 2, 2006 - 15:25

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Here is my video collage. It is kind of an awareness/makes-you-think ensemble of pictures about homelessness in our society. I'm not exactly sure what inspired me to make a collage about this topic, but it is something I really don't know that much about and something I feel we often overlook.

Homelessness Video Collage .

It is not the happiest video collage, but it really reminds you how much we, middle-class Americans, take so many things for granted. Can you imagine living on the streets? Not ever having enough to eat, and no where to sleep in the winter? Homelessness is of course a product of poverty, and unfortunately the "poverty" problem in this world has not been solved yet. In fact, it probably never will be solved. But there are things that we can do to help people in need, people with out homes. I find so often that we scorn and judge and ignore these people. In boundaries of safety of course, I think we should be compassionate toward those who have a very difficult living situation. Also, we should never forget how blessed we are...to be here at Carolina, to have a place to live, to have food...the list goes on and on.

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Submitted by loiseinhorn on Tuesday, May 2, 2006 - 13:51

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For my film essay I focused on Hitchcock. I looked at the similarities and differences in his films North By Northwest and Psycho. It was interesting to see how all of his films, while very different, contain his trademark filmmaking techniques and styles. They also share many common themes, even if their plots are very different. I really enjoyed watching both North By Northwest and Psycho and it was neat to see what two seemingly different films had in common when I explored deeper.

loiseinhorn's blog

Submitted by edithh on Tuesday, May 2, 2006 - 12:51

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Analysis of Alfred Hitchcock’s Filming Techniques

Alfred Hitchcock is an ingenious director who has entertained his audiences for ages with his daring and clever thrillers as well as other masterpieces. Two particular movies he directed, North By Northwest and Spellbound are very different in their stories but they both fit the general category of his works and inhibit many of his typical filming techniques and styles. Each is a unique and fascinating work of art that keeps audiences enthralled until the very end when the plots are resolved.
North by Northwest was made in 1959 and it is a typical suspenseful thriller that Hitchcock is known for. This film is one of Hitchcock’s most famous suspense stories of his entire career. The film starred Cary Grant and Eva Marie Saint; Cary Grant collaborated with Hitchcock in Suspicion, Notorious, and To Catch a Thief in addition to North by Northwest. This film contains many themes typical of Hitchcock’s other suspense films such as mistaken identity for the innocent, ordinary ‘Wrong Man’ hero, false pretenses, and survival in 20th Century during the Cold War. The Leo G. Carroll character in the film that was the head of the American Intelligence Agency was probably modeled after two 1950s real-life figures: Secretary of State John Foster Dulles and his brother Allen W. Dulles, head of the CIA.

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Submitted by rayfinkle on Tuesday, May 2, 2006 - 03:01

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My sister just recently went on a trip to Africa and she came back with alot of information that I found important. She told me about the happenings in Darfur, Sudan. There are literally millions of displaced people, hundreds of thousands of people have died, and most of their animals have been slaughtered. The Janjaweed, supported by the Sudan government, are responsible for this. They have been raping women, pillaging villages, and killing many innocent people for quite some time now. Alot of people are trying to stop this. However, they need military enforcement. The thing that struck me the most was that many people in America do not even know about this. They either ignore the newspapers or are just apathetic and this needs to stop. I wanted to make this video collage to spread the word. I wanted to show the true horrors of the crisis in Darfur and hopefully, people will either make a donation to www.savedarfur.com or they will atleast tell others about it. I feel that we are a very priviledged country and we should do our part to help.

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Submitted by chelseal on Monday, May 1, 2006 - 22:35

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Video Collage - This final project, the video collage, was created by Leigh Ellen and me. This project was sort-of a combination of all the previous projects. It incorporated music (the playlist), pictures (the collage and photoessay), and text (the photoessay and film essay). Our specific video collage was entitled "World Poverty and Hunger." We are both in an Anthropology and Social Problems class in which we have studied both poverty and hunger around the world. Therefore, this pressing issue is one I feel strongly about and believe others should be aware of the shocking facts related to the two topics.

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Submitted by rodalex on Monday, May 1, 2006 - 14:24

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Playlist

This was an excellent opportunity to see how musical themes tell stories. Details of my particular theme of money are explained in the above link.

Podcast: Dead Poet's Society

This was a great assignment because prior to it, I had no knowledge of podcasts. I did not even know that podcasts were internet radio broadcasts. This particular podcast discussed the life of Edgar Allen Poe. I am pleased with the information we were able to relay about Poe. The music aided in portraying his gloomy life. I would have enjoyed doing a remake to fix our technical errors such as voice decibel level, but schedule conflicts prevented the group from getting together. Overall, I am appreciative of my new comprehension of podcasts.

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Submitted by loiseinhorn on Monday, May 1, 2006 - 05:12

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My video collage is about how soccer, or football as it is called around the world, brings people together. Players and spectators share a passion for this beautifully simple game. Many Americans, however, have never experienced the love for "the beautiful game" that is so popular in the rest of the world. My video is meant to relay the passion, creativity, and sense of unification with the rest of humanity that the game brings to every life it touches.

If you look at the eyes and body language of the great players you will see the intense emotion that soccer can bring out. But what truly makes the sport so amazing is its universal ability to bring joy to so many people, from the beaches of Brazil to the streets of France, to a dusty makeshift field in Africa.

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