As I rushed from Chemistry recitation over to Rathus Hall, which was incredibly hard for me to find, I wondered what Ralph would look like up close, and I was even more curious as to what he had to say regarding his own piece. Running down the stairs, I was stopped in the hallway because of a few people blocking the hallway. But, wait! They weren’t just any ordinary person! It was Ralph Lemon himself, as well as two of his dancers and Professor Profetta. I acted as though he was a true, famous celebrity and I felt my heart racing as I followed him into the dance studio, 101A.
When he took his shoes off, as well as the other dancers, I wondered if I was supposed to take mine off too, but I figured that it was just some weird dancer routine that I was unaware of, so I kept mine on. One of the first questions that came to my mind was, why is Professor Profetta not letting him speak? I was so eager to hear from Lemon himself. His piece left me in a “what the ****” state of mind, and I thought I would just leave it alone, but the piece wouldn’t leave me alone. I needed to understand what Lemon was attempting to show me, and I hoped to find that during the talk-session with him.
In the beginning of the talk, I noticed that many of my classmates were shuffling around a little, and that is probably because Professor Profetta, the dancers, and Ralph Lemon were all basically restating what we had already known from previous discussions on the piece. This made me want to get up and leave, but I didn’t want to be rude. I thought that I was giving up my free hour, where I could be eating and finishing up my chemistry labs just to restate the obvious. I thought that it wouldn’t be beneficial and it was just a waste of my time being there. But, my mind quickly changed.
When the audience sitting around Lemon and the others were asked to propose any questions, no matter the topic, to Lemon or his dancers, the talk became really interesting, in my opinion.
There were two professors in the audience and one of them continuously referred to Lemon’s piece as an “experiment,” which Lemon gladly accepted. His piece was indeed an experiment, an experiment between form and non form, the human body and its movements, as well as the possibilities and limits to which he could take this piece. Lemon really wanted to show what he was feeling, his grief, and this moment in his life. This piece was based on everything Lemon had been experimenting on in the past few years, and he thought it would be a good idea to put it together. Lemon even chuckled at the idea of calling “How Can You Stay in the House…” a piece because he felt as though it was unfinished and his experiment wasn’t really over. He even laughed at the idea of making his dancers do this nonstop because he still didn’t really achieve his goal.
One of the girls in our class mentioned that the dance was made without a structure. Okwui quickly responded to her comment by making it known that their dance, or whatever you wanna call it, was indeed structured. The dancers knew their timing: how long they must spin, how much time should elapse before they jump, when they had to “meet up” with each other again. So, the dance was indeed structured even though we thought that the majority of it was just improvised.
Another question that was brought up, which seemed to stunt our class’s minds, was: why put animals on the screen? I expected a really long response from Lemon with very intricate and detailed descriptions, but his answer was extremely simple. “The animals showed grace.” One question that I really was burning to ask is, why did he choose those animals in particular, but I felt that maybe I would be a little too repetitive. This idea of a moment of grace was really my favorite portion of the talk because he revealed something that I would have never thought about. The animals were indeed very graceful, after looking at chaos and listening to eight minutes of crying, they were peaceful.
Okwui also spoke about her crying book, and told us more about what it included like letters from Lemon’s deceased partner, news clippings, images, and poems. I found it to be amazing that she could just look at sad images and cry for eight minutes. She said that when she thought about crying, it was impossible for her to actually do it, but when she focused on the book itself and its contents, she found that place inside of her that helped her to let it all out.
One last thing that I found to be interesting was that Lemon mentioned that the dancers’ performances did not depend upon the audience’s reactions. The audience could have loved it, liked it, or hated it, but the performers weren’t trying to make them feel any sort of way so all of their responses were valid.
Ralph Lemon was extremely down to earth and he was really fun to talk to. The talk helped me to really get into Lemon’s mind and understand the meaning behind his work. I am extremely happy that I was able to meet Lemon in person, and I really hope that he uses children in his next piece. I finally understand…sorta.
I had just written a six page paper on NYC’s obesity epidemic. This week I had decided to track all the food eaten outside of home. Not bad, if I say so myself.
version 1: lighthouse
version 2: teleportation
Got Unicorn?
RALLY/ MARCH TO RESTORE SANITY AND/ OR FEAR
HONORS 125 FALL 2010 HEALEY
MULTIMEDIA FINAL PROJECT ASSIGNMENT AND GUIDELINES
In this project you will be the artist, and decide what role/roles you think your piece should attempt- Social Critic? Preserving your culture? Political Voice? You will use the text source material to create an original film. You will work in groups of four, and you will be evaluated for your work as a group and as an individual for your specific role within the group.
PART I: FILM/THEATER COMPONENT
Using the source text as your script, you must create a short film of the source material. Each of the group members should take on one of the assigned roles:
• Director- Acts as director of the film, works with the designer to choose a palette and artistic scheme for the film, works with the Dramaturg to turn the source material into a screenplay, chooses the shots with the Cinematographer.
• Production Designer- Chooses locations for the film, leads the group in putting together costumes and props, leads the group in transforming whatever space or spaces you choose for your film, works with Director to choose an aesthetic for the piece, helps cinematographer to choose shots at the location, does visual research to supplement the Dramaturg.
• Cinematographer- The person who will be responsible for shooting the footage (meaning they will control the camera during the shoot, this is a good role if you do not want to perform in the film), this person will lead the editing of the film, works with the director to transform the storyboard of the film into life, works with the designer to create the film’s aesthetic, works with the Dramaturg to create the script.
• Dramaturg- This person does research on the background information for the script, works with the Designer to choose visual research, works with the Director to help shape the script, is the primary force in shaping the script into a screenplay.
COMPONENTS OF THE ASSIGNMENT:
1. CHOOSE YOUR GROUP
a. Choosing your group is an important part of the assignment. The best groups will not just be friends joining together, you should try to be in a group with individuals who balance each others strengths and weaknesses.
b. Once your group is chosen, assign roles within the group. If more than one person wants a role, try compromise or discussion, and if that fails try taking a vote. If you cannot come to an agreement then I will help you to decide.
2. READ YOUR SOURCE MATERIAL
a. You have been given a piece of text from Metamorphosis by Mary Zimmerman. The first step in the process is reading it and brainstorming ideas on how to use it.
3. SCRIPT and STORYBOARD
a. Your script and your storyboard are the first part of your project, and they are DUE ON 11/29. These are group components, so you need to work on them together, and you need to divide up the work equally. The script should be reformulated as a screenplay, and then it should be laid out visually as a storyboard.
i. STORYBOARDS
1. Your storyboard is almost like a comic book or graphic novel, laying out the shots and the story visually so that you can all look at and agree to your plan of action. You don’t need to lay out every single moment of the film, just the major action.
2. Your storyboard can be hand drawn, created through photography, animated, or created on photoshop. Examine the skills of those in your group to determine the best method. Make sure that you all participate in creating the storyboard, in one way or another. For example, someone who likes to draw could draw the plates, someone else could photoshop them, someone else could take location photos to add to the storyboard, and another person can make sure that they follow the script.
3. You will be asked to specify each person’s role in the creation of the storyboard.
4. You may find that your finished film is different than your storyboard, and this is okay. Part of the creative process is discovering that what you thought would work doesn’t and adjusting to that process.
4. CASTING AND SHOOTING YOUR FILM
a. You will receive feedback on your storyboard, and then you can start shooting your film.
b. Make sure that you work out your shooting schedule in advance. You do not need to wait for storyboard feedback to cast and arrange your location or to start shooting the film.
c. You can cast other people in your film who are not group members. At least 2 group members must appear in some way in the film.
d. You are allowed to have an animated film, or to use puppets to create the film if you choose.
e. There must be some sort of music in your film. It does not have to be a soundtrack.
f. You can have the same people play multiple roles, or you can find other people to be in the film. Make sure you think about this when choosing your project and brainstorming your concept.
g. You are not being judged on the acting ability of your performers, I will be mostly interested in the overall quality of the ideas and the originality and clarity of the expression.
h. Make sure that if you need Tsai Shiou to assist you in learning how to edit the footage on your Mac that you make a meeting with her ahead of time. Please don’t ALL start asking her the week before finals or she will not be able to help you. Working with her and experimenting with iMovie or other programs can be done well in advance.
i. You can also choose to shoot your movie in one continuous shot, if that is the easiest method based on the skills in your group. IF you do this, you’ll have to be creative and think of other ways to create movement and interest in your film.
5. FINISHING YOUR FILM
a. The finished films will be presented on the date and time of our final exam in our usual classroom
b. We need at least one group member to have a copy of the film on their Mac, as well as the cable that connects your Mac to the smartpodium so that we can view your film. Again, check with Tsai Shiou to make sure you have the right set up or to test your film in advance.
c. I would be happy to watch early cuts of the film and give feedback on the film. This should be a good incentive to get it done early.
d. Your film will be given one grade for the whole group.
e. Make sure your film is done at least a week in advance so you have time to look it over and tweak it.
f. If you do not have a copy of your film at the exam you will receive a 0 grade.
PART II: DOCUMENTING YOUR FILM
• Each group member should document the filmmaking process through photos. Take behind the scenes photos of your shoot, and the work you did creating the film. This is the second component of the project and will be graded individually. Please burn these photos to a CD or flashdrive expressly for this purpose. It will be handed in at the final exam.
PART III: BLOG! OF COURSE!
• Create either a verbal or a video blog where you discuss your feelings about the filmmaking process. This is ONE blog, not a series, and it should sum up what you liked and didn’t like about your experience. What did the film mean to you? What was the most difficult task? What was your favorite moment in the process? You can post this on your blog under the heading “FINAL PROJECT BLOG” This must be posted before the start of the exam.
GRADING GUIDELINES:
FILM- 50 pts.
STORYBOARD- 20 PTS.
PARTICIPATION IN YOUR GROUP- 15 PTS.
DOCUMENTING YOUR FILM- 10 PTS.
FINAL BLOG- 5 PTS.
Your multimedia project is 20% of your FINAL grade in this course
NYTimes Arts
