ReadArticle "Brainwashed - seven ways to reinvent yourself" byclicking here.
In this article, Seth Godin provides readers several ways to reinvent themselves. The first layer is “Connect”. As his saying, connecting with other peoples will help them open minds and get influences from outside. Interacting other people is a good way to crate art and ideas. This layer works to me. I opened a blog for media class in the beginning of this quarter; we posted our assignments and projects on blog every week. Also, we can get extra points if we read and make comments of our classmates’ blog posts. This is one way to connect with my classmates. We work for same project and share our work through blogging. Sometimes, my classmates’ ideal inspired me when I read their blog. It reminded me the weaknesses of my works and I would pay attention on that part when I do my next project.It helped me complete my projects better.
The second layer I want to discuss is “”Acknowledge The Lizard”. The author mentions the fear and worry from our brain is the resistance of our creativity. We need to break hesitate and get reward from the risks. I think lizard brain effects me a lot. I am the kind of person who wants peace and safe. The risks always let me worry about the perfect degree of my works.For example, I may just follow the direction and make sure I have done every requirement from our teacher when I am doing my blog assignments as usual. However, I looked some blog examples from students that took this class in previous quarters, I was inspired that my blog could be more individuation. For example, I like photographing so I can post my favorite photos on the blog that will not lower my grade, instead, it makes my blog looks more interesting and full of individuation. This is one chance that I break out my lizard brain and get reward form the risk.
In this project, I worked with Maddie Schneider and we created two song with 2 same instruments in different emotion.We chose instrumentation and arrangement from phase 2 as our identical elements of songs and we mede our song different by using different temple. The differences between these songs cause audiences' different emotion which are cheerful and heavier. I think I did a good job with Maddie! ThanksMaddie'sgreat helpof mypoorEnglishexpressingskill!! :)
In this assignment, I choose two versions of song “Can’t take my eyes off you” to analyze their melody and musical qualities. They come from Frankie Valli and Muse. Their melody is same but the harmony is quite different. From the Frankie’s version, I heard that he sings leisurely and express his emotion gently. Because his voice and the timbre are clear, Frankie’s version hears like he is romantic showing his love to the girl that he loves. However, Muse’s version hears more attractive and more passion because his virile voice and the rock elements. His voice makes me feel his love is deeper and exploding.
Then I will analyze these two versions through their musical quality. The rhythm from Frankie’s version is regular and the temple is soft because the regular and repeating beats as background. This song’s speed is andante. In this version, the band only uses saxophone and drum to create the whole song so I think the timbre is simple. This version has a clear organization because he is singing with a high pitch firstly and changes higher when the chorus comes. Moreover, only singer and drum’s sounds are playing in the first part of song and the saxophone is added in the beginning of chorus. This organization builds a kind of emotional architecture in order the make audience feel the singer’s emotion is becoming harder. On the other hand, the Muse’s rock version of “Can’t take my eyes off you” is quite different from the original one. I divide this version into two different parts. The rhythm of first part is faster than Frankie’s version. Muse sings softly firstly with low and hoarse voice in low pitch. The speed is moderate at that time. Also, the timbre is still simple now. This version’s organization is more obviously because everything changes in chorus. When the chorus comes, the intensity of song start changing to hard and heavy. The speed becomes fast and the timbre becomes complex. I can hear that the drums, electric guitar and bass are playing in the same time so the whole emotion changes. Muse also raises the pitch and sings with a little bit screaming. All rocking elements appear in the song. This organization of this version is easier to raise audience passion.
Even though these two versions of “Can’t take my eyes off you” have same melody and same rhythm in first part of song, the organization and timbre changes the feeling of them. The Frankie’s “Can’t take my eyes off you” hears a little bit old school to me. Also the temple is too slow hence it hears boring but I still love the meaning behind it. This version is too soft to express love. In stead, I like Muse’s version because I feel more from him. Muse’s screaming, the band’s playing and the lyric are working together tightly then bring me into a high and strong emotion. I feel I want to dump and scream with the band. I can feel I am exploring his love story with the change of his emotion. I like this version because the strong emotion from Muse and his band.
In the second part of Jonathon’s article, he tells us a story about a tiger that plans to escape from the cage of a zoo. However, it always lands on another cage of another zoo. The tiger continues his tragic with a wrong way to escape. Based on this story, Jonathon teaches his readers that they have to realize whether they on the correct way to find their howl or not. He reminds this reader do not do the same thing as the tiger did; they have to find through digging their own prison such as fear, living condition or other self reason firstly and face them then solve them.
This is a quote from the second part of Jonathon’s article, “This is the way for us- not to jump out of our pain, but to tunnel through it and find the center of life that is bigger than our little cage ever was and more benevolent than we can imagine. I don’t know what to call that center and there is really no point in naming it. What I do know is that it makes authentic expression of who we are possible.” This quote relates to my personal experience. I am used to be a person who was never watching TV shows before the second year of my middle school. I hated watching TV. I though it was boring and wasted of my time. I liked chatting with my friends and playing online games that age. However, my computer broke down and my parents refused me to fix it because they though I spent too much time on computer. I was so disappointing and I felt so boring at that period. I spent my all summer break without my computer! That’s too sad for me. In order to deal with my boring, I started watching television. Since I am forced to watch TV, I fond that I was so interested in the TV show. I even started curious about how this shows were being produced. I started paying attention on television. In my final year of high school, I decided to choose video production as my major because I found my real passion. It wasn’t about computer or Internet; instead, my real passion is about TV production. Exploring thing that I hate helps me find new creative ability, which I have never known. Those unfamiliar and non-interesting experiences help me know whom I really am and what exactly I want to do. It was my most meaningful howl.
This article “14 Ways to get Breakthrough Ideas” from Mitch Ditkoff guides readers to find things that will inspire themselves and provide them suggestions to find new ideas easier. People sometimes will miss their inspiration or do not ralize their inspiration. They need be pointed out where is the inspiration and how to get them. It depends their hoppy, the way they are thinking their living environment and etc. The author wants to let reader know the ideas exist in their life everywhere and they need to find way realize them and turn these potential ideas into real breakthrough ideas. Also, the author provides reader prompt to follow up, it help readers start finding their ideas right after reading this article.
In my own experience, the first tip, which is “follow your fascination”, is most useful method for me to get new ideas. More interest and hobbies provide more ways to thing and receive information. Hence, follow your curious and find out every thing you want to know or want to learn. For instance, I am an amateur photographer so I go out with my camera every day. Every new scenery or experiences can fascinate me because I like to record them by my camera. Hence I usually go over my all photo albums during I am thinking new ideas. It does work for me. Also the fascinating things usually capture my all attention in short time. I will concentrate on it and spend my all time to exploit it. I can find breakthrough ideas during my exploration of the fascinating things.
“Hang out with diverse groups of people” also a useful tip for me to find breakthrough ideas. I am in a team of one web radio station in my hometown. It was settled up by a group of my high school classmates. This web radio show comes once a month and the toughest thing of creation is thing the theme of the next show. Every time we have trouble to think an attractive theme, I will hang out with my other friends instead of my team partners. During the conversation with these diverse groups of people I am inspired by their school life, personal relationship or the hottest topic in their group. These out-side experiences help me to think a theme that more appropriate to our audience’ taste. If we always stay with people in the same field of us, our imaginative power will be limited in the small group. We need outside resource to enrich our imagination. Furthermore, hanging out with diverse groups of people can help you release your mind and take a break. Distracting from your work for a while can help you get over the stuck. I usually deal with my trouble in this way; too much concentrate will limit my inspiration. I need to relax and reopen mind to other things in order to gain breakthrough ideas.
I think “Listen to my subconscious” dose not work for me. It is a bad suggestion because our subconscious is too hard to record and find.
We have lots of subconscious for everything happened in our dairy life but when we decide to put them into a log, they will not be subconscious anymore. Sometimes, they disappear. I think subconscious just a feeling; it’s too emotional and subjective. It may not be able to give us a right direction to thinking ideas. Our breakthrough ideas of our projects need more feasibility. Also, I cannot remember my dreams at all so the dreams cannot became my breakthrough ideas.
I choose the prompt from the first suggestion, which is “What new idea is fascinating you? What new possibility has captured your attention? In what ways can you honor this inspiration today? ” Taking Polaroid photo to record my life every day is one thing fascinates me because I have heard a person keep taking Polaroid photo through his entire life and their family uploaded these photos after died. It lasts for more than 30 years. Some people can find what he was doing on their birthdays. I am interested in this story because it the spiciest way to record life that I have never seen. Beside, I think the online interesting news and some information from famous photographer can possible capture my attention because I love photographing. I keep tacking several well-known photo exhibitions for long time and sometimes the theme of exhibition is so interesting and special. Moreover, refreshing news on Internet and searching the relative news of my interest every day help me to get the inspiration.
I am an amateur photographer. I like traveling and seeing this world by my camera. I have visited some interesting photography exhibit and sometimes the meaning behind photos amazes me. Through pictures, I can see what the photographer’s understand of the world and what kind of perception that they want to show. I think it also works on movie directors. I am a super fan of documentary films, and my favorite movie director is Werner Herzog. He directed many winnings film such as Grizzly Man, The Wild Blue Yonder and Scream of Stone. His went through lots of extremely dangerous places to work for his movies. In his all productions, the movie Encounters At The End Of The World is my favorite. This movie is not only talking about the beings in Antarctic, it also includes a theme about dream. The main theme of the film is nature, penguin, language extinction and etc. However, the deeper mean of the film is the scientists, truck driver, welder and etc. They are professional dreamers. For example, in the end of penguin part in the film, a penguin is walking father and father. (EX1) The narrator says: "The rules for the humans are not disturb or hold up the penguin. Standing and let him go on his way, he is heading toward certain death." This text is describing the penguin, but the subtext is describing the scientists and working people in Antarctic for research. There is no way to disturb them or distract them from their dreams; they want to work here even though died here. The penguins are the symbol of these dreamers.
(EX1)
It is difficult to define a documentary movie is objective or subjective. However, in my opinion, this movie is subjective. In the beginning of this movie (EX1), the narrator is “Who wants to come to Antarctic？” . This question connects all parts of this film. According to this narrator, I can feel the director’s respect to the peoples that working in Antarctic for science. This movie is no as same as other sciences documentary movie, which describes a truth or a phenomenon of nature objectively. It contains director’s personal emotion. In my own view, I think Werner Herzog tries to use these scientists to represent himself. In an interview, he said that as a movie director, he was more interesting in producing documentary films because the adventure can bring his all passions. It was a kind of spirit for being a movie producer. He just likes the scientists that are completely addicted to their dreams. I think this movie is also an representation of his career life.
(EX2)
Thinking back to my childhood, the scariest movie that I saw were the series of Jurassic Park. I remember that was the fist time I cover my ears subconsciously during seeing a movie. I didn’t know why I would chose to turn off the sounds when I realize the Tyrannosaurus Rex might show up at that age. It was easy to understand the magic of sound because that experiences when I was young. The movies inspired me far before I get into media industry.
Let’s watch one scene of Jurassic Park as an example.(EX3) In the beginning of this scene, the violoncello is playing during the little boy finds the movement of the water in those cups. The sound with slow rhythm and creepy melody raises audiences’ tension about the dinosaur is coming. After that the Tyrannosaurus Rex shows up. The music turns to fierce with the fight between the dinosaur and characters. Then the characters start running, the sound changes to extremely nervous to let audiences worry they may be catches by the dinosaur.
(EX3)
This example illustrates my understanding of the musical magic, which I learnt from Jurassic Park in my young age. I think music is the second important concept of understanding a movie. It decides the tone of the movie auditory.
My understanding of the concepts from classes is the media production divides by kind, type, genre, sub-genre and approach. The artists show their theme of productions in many ways. They use color, music, temple and melody to show the mood of their production. In a move, they are writing text and subtext to show the mean of a movie. Using the contrast and affinity help audiences to determine the character’s personality. The tension and release of the movie catch audiences’ attention to follow the scrip. The artists use amount of elements to create their work and express their meaning to audiences.
I signed up for the 8-10 a.m. lab because I don't have class on Friday. Attending a lab on 8 am will push me to get my Friday start early instead of spending all day time on bed or doing something else. The classes I am taking this quarter have lots of reading and projects to do. Friday is my best time to go over that reading again and review the notes from all classes. Then I can have a lot of fun on weekend without guilty :)
This is the photo that I edited by iphoto in class today. I took it under the Liberty Status in New York last spring break.
