Medium Specificity

Art expresses emotions, thoughts, ideas, and principles through many different mediums. However, art itself is an idea or a discipline that can be displayed. Yes. Art can express or educate us about art. For example. Many films are created including instructions on how to make films. Many books teach how to write. But there’s something deeper than just art showing the tools within it’s medium. Each medium contains unique elements that can be toyed with in order to open our eyes to the significance of those elements. This project highlights one of the most powerful mediums we enjoy today. Film.

99% of the things we see in film today are not real. They are created either by acting or by post production technology. This video is a obviously fake example of how film can be manipulating. It’s purpose is to open the eyes of it’s viewers. I don’t think people thing when they see Harry Potter using spells that magic is real, or that there are huge robots being built after seeing Pacific Rim, but there are a lot of little details in films that can go unnoticed.

The first shot in this video is of a friend of mine throwing a football to himself. Now, obviously in real life, you could never be in two places at once. On film, it’s simple. You can just use layers. In an editing program, you can take another moving image and place it on top of a similar moving image filmed at a different time and make it look like it’s happening at the same time! Can you imagine if your eyes were capable of doing that? What a cool tool!

Also included in the film are shots of sounds that do not correspond with what we see on film. For example, Richard plays scales on the piano starting on the left side moving right on the piano. Pianos are built so that the further right on the keyboard you play, the higher the note, but in this video, the notes get lower as he progresses towards the right. Again, not only can film be visually deceiving, but it can also play with your ears. This segment is the most deceiving because even a experienced piano player might not notice the difference. The rest of the shots are pretty obvious in their ill-matched audio. This gives contrast to the other more convincing shots in order to better express this phenomenon.

While shooting and editing this piece, I thought a lot about The Parent Trap (1998). Editing and shooting two takes then slicing them together, ending up with two shots of the same person in one frame is not easy! I appreciate the post production in that film much more.

From now on, I hope I can be more appreciate of art in not only its overlying presentation, but also as a mastered discipline in it’s own medium. Touching on the topic of unintelligence in art, Edward F. Rothschild said, “The usual difficulty with the observer of modern art is that he does not inquire patiently and sincerely concerning the ‘meaning’ of a work of art which strikes him.” Being educated and thinking deeper within the constraints as well as the far reaching opportunities within each medium has created a new sense of reverence for art.