mdavisplace2019

[mdavisplace2019]

500 word statement

Overall, I think my piece was successful in terms of conceptual coherence and aesthetic consideration. My concept focused on the idea of nostalgia of a place during a time period I have not experienced.  Therefore, my piece is a fragmented representation of London in the 60s/70s and links with temporality and the relationship between people and place. My nostalgia is mostly positive and patriotic, which is emphasised by the uplifting music and the lighting in the shots being mainly in the sun.

I began by exploring how London looked during different era’s, settling on the 60’s as it was a highly influencial period for pop culture and Britain and I was drawn to the look of it. For visual references, I thoroughly researched trends of the 60s and viewed videos from archives to gain an understanding of the look and feel of London during that time period, with iconic features such as laundrettes, classic cars, black cabs, red bus’ and the fashion. I also looked at Westwood and watched ‘This Is England’, focusing on the punk aesthetic. I researched The Smithson architects who were part of the brutalism movement and encapsulated this in some of my shots. However, some of the buildings look bland visually so I overlayed another clip to add colour. I think I was successful regarding aesthetic consideration, as I used a colour scheme of mustard, pastel blue and greens which I saw frequently when researching this period. This style also links to Kubrick’s ‘A Clockwork Orange’. Moreover, the locations I scouted were a good representation of hot spots in the 60s such as Barbican, Borough Market, Brick Lane and Bethnal Green. These fit my concept as these locations still looked old however this was disrupted by modern features such as modern cars and people which makes it less believable. I also included shots of the Union Jack to emphasise a patriotic/indie feel within my nostalgia of the 60s.

Technical realisation is evident where I have trimmed, cropped, selected and edited footage. I used a range of camera angles but mainly long and wide shot for the static shots. I could’ve further explored camerawork by including pans to suggest variety. Furthermore, I’ve found that some shots are very shaky which weakens the quality of my overall piece. I experimented with assembling clips that fit together based on colouring and variety of movement. I created a grainy, yellow tinge filter which I feel worked well to mimic an old film look and acts as a nod to technicolor. Originally I planned to shoot with 16mm but I wanted freedom of being able to shoot without constraints, so I shot on the Black Magic 4k and edited my piece to resemble a film look. 

I implanted audio by using the song ‘Chelsea Dagger’, a classic uplifting British punk song, which is the exact feel I wanted to encapsulate in my piece. This audio is reminiscent of hooliganism culture, which was prominent in the 60’s. I tried to add reverb to make it the ending less of a sudden stop, however this was not successful. The music was used as a glue so that the clips would flow better together but next time I would edit the clips individually to fit the timings of the music.

I created an instillation using a big monitor which I liked as the bulkiness provides a retro feel. I also used a sofa as I wanted the viewers to feel like they are watching tv at a neighbours house, a common practice in the 60s. I think this was successful as its appropriate for my context but could be distracting and take away from the film.

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Editing

I researched how to create a 60′s film look 

- increase temperature to create yellow tinge, trial and error with contrast, exposure etc 

-colour grading

- Noise HLS for grain 

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Instillation test in dark - with audio

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Instillation test - light , unedited version

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The Smithsons were an architectural duo, around in the 60s. They were part of the brutalism movement. These types of buildings are evident in my film, especially the static shots - encapsulating a feel of the time. 

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When researching Laundrettes, I found the book: Launderama: London's Launderettes by Joshua Blackburn, and spotted Barbican Laundrette, with the blue and one in Shepards Bush with the pastel colours. I had my heart set on these as they were unique and colourful however when I arrived there it was apparent you had to pay to film due to the high demand. This meant I had to select and edit found footage of the locations,

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Edit - needs work on the colouring and smoother editing 

I tested the video with and without music and believe it works best with the music as it fits the patriotic feel and is used as a glue for all the clips. 

 I chose to use Chelsea Dagger - The Fratellis as it fits the indie/punk vibe of the 60s. 

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Exhibiting

Large/bulky monitor on podium - retro feel - fits concept

Sofa - audience to sit on and interact with - mimics idea of a nuclear family watching 60′s TV.

Possibly a table as a prop? - just to set the scene as a living room ?

I also plan to use speakers, to immerse the viewer, as if they were watching TV. These will probably stand either sides of the podium.

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Style

Regarding aesthetic, it has come to my attention that some of my shots have small elements of Kubrick films where there is strong use of primary colours and are aesthetically pleasing. A Clockwork Orange (70′s)  is also set in a dystopian, bleak London, linking to my idea of Place, however mine is slightly more positive.

Elements of Wes Anderson are also seen in the colour usage.

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TESTING A VERY ROUGH DRAFT

This bulky monitor is my favourite out of the selection I tested as it represents the concept as well as adding to the aesthetic. I believe it emphasises the intended nostalgia. The next thing I need to do is to finish my video and then see how it looks on this monitor.  

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Testing out different monitors. The LG flat screen TV is the most modern out of the selection, therefore works best with the modern London idea. 

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Stacking monitors - this is a nice idea but doesn’t work successfully for my particular idea. Furthermore these monitors were in black and white which is a contrast from my idea as I want to highlight the new technicolour world of the 60s.

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Instillation tests - I really like the way the colours look on this monitor as well as the thickness and bulkiness of the monitor and I think this enhances the retro/ old feel.

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I think this works well as the turn almost resembles a pan which emphasises the London skyline and skyscrapers.

HOWEVER, I have come to a conclusion that I do not wish to use any of the horse mask footage as I feel it does not truly fit with my theme of nostalgia and when trying to edit the clips in the film, it looked rather out of place. Therefore, I will be using footage from my previous trip to London.

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Long shot - experimenting with camera angles 

I think this shot adds a sense of mystery and intrigue, as we can’t see the front of the mask but we see an unusual silhouette.