Project 5: Tactical Media

The Original Website

I try not to be confrontational and I mostly go with the flow of things. This project was tough because, although I feel strongly about a lot of things and do possess strong opinions, I try not to shove them in anyone's face. But I guess that is also what is easy about this project; you can get your point across in ways people can understand without (hopefully) doing much damage. I recently saw a post online that was calling our government "Worse Than the Galactic Empire." I thought to myself, "Now, that's a bit much" but thanked that looney that posted it for the inspiration to do this website. In a sad attempt to be a creative activist I chose the most confrontational site at the time: HealthCare.Org. I had fun photoshoping Obama Wan Kenobi and revisiting my Star Wars nerdom. I decided to call it RebelCare as I view the Rebel Alliance to be similar to Single Payer advocates. It was a lot of work but I am hoping I got the point across. The New Hope plan is based on the Marketplace, an area that essentially educates the masses on universal healthcare (RebelCare) and walks you through the process of what to do. Seeing as many seem to be 'at war' with insurance companies (the Galactic Empire) over this, I thought Star Wars was an appropriate choice. Enjoy!

Project 4: Video Reenactment

I'm sorry to disappoint anyone when I say I just did not have the cojones to do my time lapses in an abandoned building although it really helped Takashi Ito. I also, lacking major equipment, failed to capture his amazing moving time lapses. However, I tried to capture his essence through the time lapses, light manipulation and bulb shutters, all definitely as time consuming when you don't have a really nice, expensive camera. I used a Canon Rebel T3ii and shot and AV Bulb for the night shots and TV Manual for the sunset, the 5 f/s and always changing ISO. Each clip is dissected in to respecting photos and I can safely say I underestimated this technique. I mainly worked in Adobe After Effects and brought that product into Adobe Premiere to add the audio. Enjoy!

http://www.ubu.com/film/takashi_ghost.html

Director Takashi Ito's "Ghost" (1984)
Music: Yosuke Inagaki

In "Ghost," Takashi Ito explores some of the most basic dimensions of cinematic illusion, such as space depth, lightning and movement to create a visual feast that seems to touch on the horror genre. But it's not quite so, for the "Ghost" we are allowed to see is not designed to frighten but to mesmerize the spectators. Bulb shutters, long exposures and time-lapse are used to dazzle perception and insinuate the presence of floating life-forms in a closed space. Inagaki's soundtrack kicks off with a steady electronic ambiance but soon descends into a hellish world of rhythmical distortion and mutli-dimensional lo-fi mayhem. I don't think your children will be scared with this extraordinary piece, but if you do have them, please make them watch this in a closed dark room and report the results. -- Eye of Sound