We used our storyboard to decide what we were shooting. Michael was out first model who was mainly going to be at the start of the video. Then we decided that Reuben was going to be the second model and be in the mid-final section of the video. We printed off a picture of vr goggles and taped it onto some sunglasses.
Shooting
We shot the video in an open green area and used Matthews drone to get some of the shots. We got a headshot video of Michael walking using the drone. After these shots we gathered some panning shots and some shots following him. Then we recorded Rueben and Michael meeting in real life.
Editing
Michael and Reuben also edited the video on Adobe Premier Pro. They added effects such as the loading screen, static sound effect and visual and mapped the video to the beat of the music.
The image above shows the video mapped out on Premier Pro. You can see in the bottom left, the different clips, sound effects and visual effects put together to make the video. Next to the clips is the layout which shows the time at which things change. You can see the sound track beneath the video track and where the video clip changes.
During the editing process for our short film, Tiago took screen shots at different stages to show our thought process behind the way in which we are piecing together the scenes from our film. For our film we obtained a soundtrack that we believed would match the mood of the film. We did this by searching for classical and cinematic music from websites that provided royalty free audios. Finally we managed to find a piece that we thought would work best which was named Sailing Away by Shane Ivers. When editing the film, Tiago first arranged the video clips in the order, showing the storyline, then went on to cutting these clips down and trimming them, in order to present the best part of the footage and cut to the beat. In addition to the audio of the music, we also have included a clip of a spoken Bible passage that quotes “Love thy Neighbour”, relating to the title of our film. This has been placed at the end of the film to conclude the message we are aiming to put across.
Here we chose to alternate the scenes of serenity and chaos to show the binary oppositions of faith and interpretation that are seen in religion, particularly Christianity. We obtained these clips of riots through searching for royalty free stock footage, as we believed using a real life documented event would be more impactful to the message of prejudice and homophobia that is presented through our film. In addition, we also thought that these clips in particular would work best, as they fit the colour grading in the film, with the fire replicating the sunset in the dream sequence and the warm tone of the church pews.
Accompanying the spoken Bible passage, we chose a scene of the couple reading and pointing at the Bible as the final shot as not only does it display the passage in which we are referring to, but it also links back to the idea that a strong faith is capable of withstanding the challenges and tribulations that are inflicted by the people who show hatred to others. Here Tiago added a cross fade in order to transition from the violence and chaos of the riots to the peaceful final scene smoothly.
Finally, Tiago added a credit scene at the end of our film, which displays the our names, the film title, the credits for the royalty free music and riot clips, the names of the actors and our school name. This was transitioned into with a crossfade also, as well as the end of the credits. He also faded out the music to give the film a gradual ending, using the constant gain audio effect.
For this NFT project we started by researching what exactly an NFT is (non-fungible token) and then continued our research by looking at examples of NFT’s and really trying to understand what they are. We then discussed as a group what the question, ‘What will the future of Jersey look like as a community in the Metaverse?’ means and how we will go about creating a 30 second animated video to link to the question. We started by creating mind maps of what a community is and what it means to be a community. We then created mind maps and mood boards on our chosen theme; which we decided to create a film based on fashion. After we made the mood boards we created a statement of intent to decide exactly what we were going to do and how we were going to do it. Within the group we decided on multiple different ideas which varied from using a projector to project different sort of patterns onto a model wearing plain and simple clothing to the model wearing clothes that replicate fashion trends over the years. Additionally we also spoke about how we may be able to use Photoshop or a similar software to edit over peoples original clothing, which may show that the digital world of fashion can be easily manipulated. Our last idea was to print out original photos which we have taken of our models and either collage or embroider over them to create different designs. We decided that we were going to have our model wearing clothes that best replicate fashion trends over the years. We then done a contextual study on NFT artists that link to our theme of fashion and researched NFT artist Toby Evans who focuses on digital fashion. After that we done a contextual study on the Bayeux Tapestry as it also links to the embroidery project we are also doing with Yulia, where we each made an individual embroidered piece that links to Jersey. After discussing more as a group how we were going to create the film we created a story board. We decided we’re going to start off with a wide shot and then zoom into a person wearing a 70’s inspired outfit (flares and a crop top), after that there would be an outfit change. Next, there will be another outfit change into a 80’s inspired outfit (mom jeans and a bomber jacket), then there will be a change into a 90’s inspired outfit (black dress). The clips will be shot with the model facing the camera and the clips will cut between outfits as the model walks forward towards the camera. The model will then change into a 2000’s inspired outfit (tracksuit) followed by an outfit inspired by current fashion (baggy jeans and a top). After deciding exactly how we were going to film it we brought in different pieces of clothing that we had at home to try to recreate old fashion trends. Making the outfits look as though they were from the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s was one of the biggest challenges we faced as we only had our own clothes to use. We decided on which clothes best fit each year and then booked out a space in the studio so we could start filming. We started by preparing the studio for filming by setting up all the lights and getting are model in the first outfit. We decided to film on our phones so that the videos would be portrait. We had our model walk towards the camera in the first outfit as we recorded her and then repeated this in all the other outfits. We then chose our favourite clips and started by importing all the videos onto Adobe premier. We then cut each clip at specific times to make it look as though she was walking towards the camera while her outfits changed. We then decided which music to use as a group and uploaded it to the video. After the video was filmed we made a digital image from the video. We decided to edit the images we took on the day of filming in photoshop to make them more interesting. To edit the images I duplicated the image and then used the FX tool on the duplicated layer to turn off the green and blue channels on the layer. I then moved the bottom layer slightly to the left to create a 3D effect. As well as the edited photoshop image we also created a Gif. We used all of our images and copied one image after another to make it look like stop motion and create an illusion that the image is moving. We copied each image over another and created a new animation layer in order to play them one after another and create a frame. This turned out well as it achieved our aim of showing the different changes in fashion through decades by creating a gif and making it look like its one big moving image. Once all of the layers were there we included all the images we wanted to use and created a timeline to create the final gif. We also done an embroidery workshop that links to the question about community in Jersey. For the workshop we took all of the individual pieces of embroidery we have done as a group and placed them together on a big piece of fabric. We sat around the table as a group and decided whether or not we liked the positioning of the individual pieces on the larger piece of fabric. As there wasn’t enough individual pieces to fill up the fabric we had to overlap some and leave some spaces in the fabric. Once we decided that we liked the placement we all chose thread colours that we like and started stitching the pieces onto the fabric.
Looking back at the progress we have made and the end product we have achieved I am really proud of myself and my group for the effort we have put in and end skills we have acquired. We ended up with a really great film that I genuinely think is a good film and have learnt a lot about NFTs although I am still unsure about their whole concept and the validity of the work as a monetary value. As a team we have worked well together, all contributing work towards our final piece, and I would happily work with this group again. The piece works well within is prompt to create an NFT based on the idea of jersey in the metaverse as we have explored the past to show us why the present looks the way it does as well as its potential to change in the future. If we were to make any changes to our film I would say that it could have been made more interesting if we had played around more with animation and special effects however, considering our limited skill set in that particular area, we could not have done anything else to improve it.
The concept of our NFT film is to explore the three major waves of feminism in the last 100 years and to celebrate the women who have fought for women in the present to have equal rights to men. The name of our film came from a play on words for Mankind, because as a society in general we are referred to in regards to men, by switching the prefix Man to Woman we are making a statement on the power of women collectively. We Capitalised the K in kind as an ironic reference to the stereotype of women as gentle and sweet-tempered as our film commemorates the strong and courageous women who allowed women their rights today.
Creators: Carmen Kirchner, Sophie Mariette, Karina Smith and Olivia Stoten
For this workshop we took all of the individual pieces of embroidery we have done as a group and placed them together on a big piece of fabric. We sat around the table as a group and decided whether or not we liked the positioning of the individual pieces on the larger piece of fabric. As there wasn’t enough individual pieces to fill up the fabric we had to overlap some and leave some spaces in the fabric. Once we decided that we liked the placement we all chose thread colours that we like and started stitching the pieces onto the fabric.
Matthew made the digital image and took a screen grab of one of the drone shots of Michael and took a section of the the video in which Matthew animated a character in different environments. He then mixed the two and made some cool text that give the feeling of old 3d glasses.
He also added a red and blue outline on the left and bottom of the left hand side of the image. He finally embossed and made the text 3d.
The image represents the idea of two lives but further links to the idea of endless amounts of lives that can be achieved on an online platform. It shows what can happen on the meta verse.
Evaluation
Overall, I believe that the digital image is very successful in telling the story of how the meta verse links to real life. It also references the idea of escapism and how people try and escape from real life in many different ways from film, tv, video games and many more.
Using the edited images from our still image shoot, Bethany has created a single piece of embroidery that incorporates all of these photographs. We are using images with different hues here to produce a deconstructed representation of the pride flag.
In order to do this, Bethany first laid oud these images in different formats and orders, seeing which arrangement worked best. After deciding on a layout, she then proceeded to stitch into the images separately creating patterns and designs on each, such as crossing out the negative words in the Bible passages displayed and creating dashed lines on the boarders and down the centre. In addition, Bethany also did this by using the same colour thread as the hue of each image, reinforcing the colours that represent the LGBTQ flag as some of the colours faded slightly as a result of the images being printed on a thicker paper, allowing embroidery without tearing. As well as this, she also used black for the images in their original colour. After this, she then went on to sewing the images onto a piece of a2 sized fabric, that acts as the background to the collage. As well as this she also glued some of the images onto the fabric, so that no further stitching on the image was required and that the photos could overlay. Once all the images were in place Bethany then assured the pieces all laid flat and then framed it in a window mount, so that the slightly frayed edges of the fabric were not visible and so that the image had a sturdy background.
This is our final image for our identity and community project, presenting the two communities of religion and LGBTQ+, combining them by presenting their differences and the way in which their can still be harmony between them despite this.
“Photograph is drawing with light, like embroidery is drawing with thread”
Recently, we participated in a workshop ran by an artist, Julia. Within this course, we experimented with different styles of threading and embroidering to add colour, texture, emotion and richness.
To start the workshop, I looked through the book ‘The intentional thread’ by Susan Brandeis which takes u through different techniques and expressions that can be used to demonstrate atmospheres, feelings and even weather. I especially liked the sections where Brandeis showed how to embryoid these techniques, using step by step instructions to show readers how to execute their desired looks.
Benitah is a French visual creator UN agency worked for 10 years as a dressmaker before turning to photography in 2001, exploring memory, family and therefore the passage of your time. usually pairing recent family photos with skilled worker accents, like embroidery, beads and ink paintings, Benitah seeks to reinterpret her own story as a girl, married woman and mother.
By activity totally different faces and options, the folks photographed are nearly stripped of their identity. I selected to check Benitah as a result of I believe his art best represents the construct I hope to capture during this project.
With beads, coloured thread and scissors, French photographer Carolle Benitah has altered her family photo albums to explore the memories of her childhood, and as a way to help her understand her current identity.
Carolle herself has said:
I started to be interested in my family pictures when I was leafing through a family album and found myself overwhelmed by an emotion of which I could not define the origin.
These photographs were taken 40 years earlier, and I could not even remember the moments they were shot, nor what preceded or followed those moments.
But the photos reawakened an anguish of something both familiar and totally unknown, the kind of disquieting strangeness that Freud spoke about. Those moments, fixed on paper, represented me, spoke about me and my family, told things about my identity, my place in the world, my family history and its secrets, the fears that constructed me, and many other things that contributed to who I am today.
I decided to explore the memories of my childhood to help me understand who I am and to define my current identity.
To begin, I carry out “excavations”. Like an archeologist, I dig out the pictures in which I appear from family albums and the shoe boxes full of photographs. I choose snapshots because they are related to memories and to loss.
These photographs are fragments of my past. I interpret them from a subjective perspective as confessions. I order them, classify them, scan them, then I print them. I don’t do anything directly on the original photo; I transpose this reality on a different paper. Sometimes I crop a detail that calls out to me, and I choose my format. The work of interpretation begins with these steps.
Once these choices of images are made, I start to tell my version of the story. I turn my attention to my own history, sometimes with 40 years of distance and the life experiences that changed my perception of events. The past of a human being, unlike the remains of an antique temple, is neither permanent nor finished, but reconstructed in the present time.
For the next step, I add needlework: embroidery and beads.
Embroidering is primarily a feminine activity. In the past, the embroiderer was seen as a paragon of virtue. Waiting was tied to this activity: women embroidered, hoping for the return of the man to the home. Embroidery is intimately linked to the milieu in which I grew up. Girls in a “good family” used to learn how to sew and embroider — essential activities for “perfect women”. My mother embroidered her trousseau.
There is nothing subversive about this activity, but I pervert it with my purpose. I use its decorative function to re-interpret my own history and to expose its failings. The two activities — interpretation and needlework — come together again in a kind of dispute: embroidery is the sign of a good education yet the words that I speak don’t show me to be what I was supposed to be: a well behaved girl, a wise spouse and a loving mother.
With each stitch I make a hole with a needle. Each hole is a putting to death of my demons. It’s like an exorcism. I make holes in paper until I am not hurting any more.
– Carolle Benitah
Benitah’s work is linked to ours as both share the nature of hand-stitching images to tell a story or present an idea through embroidery
