2 Minute Movie Scene

One of the most captivating scenes is from Stanley Kubrick's 'Eyes Wide Shut'. The entire moving is fairly creepy and even makes the viewer look over their shoulder in fear. The director brilliantly instilled feelings of curiosity, fear, and guilt within there main character, exemplified by a variety of close up shots to convey meaning in the place of dialogue, coupled with a bizarre soundtrack made entirely out of church organs, and deep and solemn piano tones in congruence with high pitched keys.

One particular scene from 'Eyes Wide Shut' in which Kubrick captures the culmination of the main characters' fear is when Tom Cruise sneaks into a sex cult hosting a party in a mansion outside of the city and gets caught. All of the scenes from the party are strange as they mix ritualistic sexual practices and borderline dogmatic connotations that catch the viewer off guard. In addition, all of the actors, including Tom Cruise blend together as they are all wearing strange masks which serve as frightening on their own. The most superb two minutes of this film are when Tom Cruise is escorted by a masked butler to huge room in which he is interrogated by what appears to be the leader of the cult dressed in religious garments such as that of the pope in blood red. As Cruise makes his way toward the leader, the circle, which was once open, closes behind him. Cruise is literally swallowed hole by the black cloaks that engulf him as his stands alone over the blood red carpet. As the character walks deeper into the circle, his cloak looks blue as he stands under a spotlight. The spotlight not only further conveys the severity of the situation Cruise is in but now the viewer sees his blue cloak standing apart from the black cloaks behind him, emphasizing that Cruise is different and alone.

As Tom Cruise is questioned by the leader of the group, the camera pans back and forth between close up shots of one cult member to the next, all wearing creepy masks. The camera even stops and focuses on certain masks with protruding noses and strange human-like faces in somewhat of a worm hole angle to convey power and seriousness. Even better, as Tom Cruise is interrogated, the camera pans around the room behind the the black guises of the other members, making the main character look even smaller and helpless. Cruise is asked to remove his mask after he fails to remember the password for access to the house. As he lifts his hands up to touch his face and remove his white mask which differs from all of the ghoulish masks around him, the tempo of the piano gets faster and faster in anticipation, and suddenly stops as Cruise removes his mask, revealing his sweaty face and clammy palms.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_b-zpSnoHs

Final Project 3 Video

Final Project 3 video - Please click this link.

NY Doc Festival Review

           

            Several weeks ago I attended the NY Documentary Film Festival. There were so many documentaries showing in many theaters throughout the city but when I saw the announcement for the ‘Tough Love’ screening, I knew this would be a good documentary to go see. The synopsis was short and outlined the main focus of the film, which followed a couple in New York City and a man in Seattle, both trying to gain custody of their children who had been taken away from them for various reasons and placed in foster care.

            I knew this would be a difficult film to watch but I also thought the topic would be thought provoking. My mom is a guidance counselor in New York City and discusses her experiences with ACS (Administration for Children’s Services) and her students to me all the time. I wanted to learn more about ACS and the foster care system from a different point of view. I thought it was important to get educated and what better way than to watch a documentary where I was able to learn the painful truth.

            One of the main stars of the film was a man who had a little girl with his wife whom he was actively using drugs with. After his wife left, he was forced to take care of his daughter on his own which he was unable to do when he was deep in his addiction – he called ACS on himself and his daughter was taken away and put into foster care for three years. The film followed Patrick for an entire year as he struggled in the court system to meet the judges high expectations (which continuously changed), get sober, and create a healthy life for him and his daughter. Thankfully he eventually got her back at the end of the year and the child welfare court threw Patrick a graduation ceremony and party to celebrate gaining custody of his child.

            I think what was so painful about Patrick’s story was the fact that he was struggling with an alcohol and gambling addiction that went through highs and lows throughout the film – in addition, it was difficult to watch his personal life completely exposed in court in front of his therapists and child welfare counselors. The audience, however, could see how badly Patrick wanted his daughter back and how hard he was trying. Patrick’s story had a very happy ending.

            Hannah’s story was a little different. Hannah had had two children with her boyfriend whom she eventually left because of his anger issues. Hannah said that her ex boyfriend had called ACS on her for neglect (as she had her two children was she was very young and would go out at night and leave her kids alone). The filmmakers filmed Hannah several years after the kids had been taken into custody, with a baby on the way with her new husband. The two were living at her boyfriends mothers house while her boyfriend tried to make ends meet selling cheese and pastries out of a cart in little Italy. Hannah and her new husband were still both extremely young with a lot of responsibility on their shoulders. Hannah had been back and forth in court with her ex boyfriend and ACS trying to get custody of her children, a girl and a boy. Her court appointed lawyer was not up to date on Hannah’s case and barely answered her phone calls. Hannah sought out a volunteer organization that helps parents with children in foster care get them back.  It seemed that after Hannah did something the court had asked her to do, it was then not enough and she had to do something else. The expectations and requirements continued to change. What was even more so heart breaking was that when she eventually gave birth to her new daughter, ACS was suspicious of neglect on Hannah’s part of her new born child because of her previous experience with her two children. Both Hannah and her new husband struggled to find affordable housing that would provide enough room for the couple, their new baby, and Hannah’s two children, as it was required by the court. It was hard to watch Hannah’s husband struggle to make ends meet for the sake of Hannah and her children. Hannah eventually gained joint custody of her children and they were taken out of foster care.

The ending of both stories left me feeling very hopeful and if not more content in how both Patrick and Hannah’s situation turned out – I did find it interesting that even a documentary had a happy ending, sticking to that Hollywood-esque narrative.  I also left the film with a fresh perspective on ACS, particularly in New York City where it seems that it isn’t just one side that is wrong or has made a mistake. I am glad I saw this film.

Audio Portrait - The experience of a 20-something woman in Manhattan

https://soundcloud.com/adomanmedp/dating-and-sexuality

I decided to pull a friend aside in the middle of the day and ask them if they would allow me to interview them for this project. What's nice about talking a friend in a formal setting is that the dynamic is completely changed as our usual dialogue isn't planned, such as the questions in this interview. In a conversation, it really is a mutual exchange of thoughts and ideas. Since this was an interview, the dynamic between Karah and I completely changed, despite the personal questions I asked her, I did not add any personal commentary to this interview. I had already prepared questions but Karah's answers changed the direction of the conversation. I maintained my role as the interview and tried to maintain the focus of the interview.

What I enjoyed about it is that her answers completely caught me off guard-- you can't predict what the other person is going to say and I loved how comfortable Karah was. Yes she is a close friend but I had never really sat down with her and asked her these types of questions, our conversations on the matter only skim the surface when it seems relevant. Despite the fact that I asked Karah very personal questions, she was calm the entire time. Listening to an interview or a conversation between two people, we have no visual clues to look at. Listening to the tone and change in pitch and volume of the interviewee, the listener can grasp a keen understanding of the dynamic between Karah and I. We can't listen to this and see facial expressions, so by actively listening to interviewee, there is an active power exchange happening.

You can hear Karah comfortable as can be as she expressed herself on an intimate level. Her realistic approach, to answer these questions and consider herself in relation to others was surprising while also stimulating. Karah sought to explain how she felt and how she sees herself in relation to others. I detected confidence in the consistent volume of her voice -- not raising or lowering it once. Listening to someone's reaction to a question, one that is ordinary, a hard pressed question, a provocative question, even a question with a motive, someone's self awareness is evident in how they respond - not just what they say but the sound of their voice when they say it.

This experience has taught me that listening to someone's voice is a key indicator in how secure they are when pressed with questions regarding different topics - both neutral and intimate questions. I am truly amazed at how Karah answered each question with poise and confidence, which demonstrated her keen sense of self.

The Soundwalk

Whenever I'm in a new place for a short period of time I always try to save a moment of it by closing my eyes and basking in the natural sound. The last time I went to the beach I was in Antigua and before I left I went to the beach by myself and closed my eyes. I let the sun hit my face and I listened to the calm sound of the waves, people chatting around me, and the distant sound of the birds flying around. I tried to save some piece of tranquility in my head before I went home to the loud city. I find it difficult to find a tranquil place in the city that isn't my bedroom, and even there, I can hear the sounds of sirens and construction outside of my window from the 23rd floor.

I took a walk in the west village the other day. I decided to sit down on a stone bench in a small park and somehow try to capture that feeling of ease I had that day on the beach in Antigua. I closed my eyes. I heard the wind blowing and the rustling of the leaves on the trees above me. I heard the squeaking of the metal swings nearby at the play ground and the sounds of children giggling in joy. I could hear cars passing by me, the sound of a car when it breaks at a red light. The sizzling of the hot dogs roasting at the cart on the corner. I heard the sounds of people chatting excitedly as they waited online for cupcakes at magnolia bakery and the swinging of the door of the crowds walking into the bakery. I didn't hear any harsh or particularly loud or bothersome sounds. It was the sounds of the day going by around me as I sat there in that moment. It wasn't a peaceful moment but it was calm and I was able to grasp a small moment of ease that I felt so nostalgic for at the beach.

Space Video

For this project, I wanted to explore a given space and its relationship to natural light and sound. I shot in the basement level of Hunter College. While I didn't intentionally shoot in a creepy setting, the mix of strange images and knick knacks were aesthetically pleasing to me. Throughout the editing process, I thought "How can I make this video interesting without interjecting artificial music?"I intentionally edited so that clips ended abruptly and the transition from clip to clip was in no way seamless. My experience shooting in the basement was uncomfortable and every corner I turned I saw something completely odd and unexpected. I wanted to edit this video in such a way that the viewer might have the same experience I did. I left the basement feeling perplexed, a little scared, yet strangely excited. I hope you feel that way too.

Artist Statement

Artist Statement

One of my favorite things to do is put myself in extremely awkward positions in terms of my appearance - I find humor in making myself look as unattractive as possible and showcasing it as a 15 second skit. I can usually achieve this by not washing my hair and filming myself when I've just woken up. Rarely do I even speak, rather I use my facial expressions to make people uncomfortable. I enjoy making others laugh, even at my expense.
I find it difficult, however, to be funny or appealing without injecting myself in projects. How do I make something funny without intentionally being funny? Often one can witness a stranger doing something ridiculous on the street, rarely am I able to capture these events on camera in time.

I am fascinated by the events that happen every day on the street. I know that I cannot manipulate what strangers do. I prefer to have a laissez-faire approach. How do I capture the funny, quirky, and often random events that happen? Going out to shoot with intention I am often disappointed. I am interested in shooting people in their day to day life, capturing the mundane activities that take up our day and finding humor within them. I want to identify with the people I shoot. I want my viewers to identify with them.

I want to use my iphone to capture these videos rather than a camera that will capture video I am to edit on a computer. I am not interested in seamless editing because we are so used to seeing videos so well put together - commercials, interviews, previews etc. I am interested in taking clips that have nothing to do with each other and putting them together; may be against the backdrop of a song that in addition has nothing to do with clips either, not only to make the clips more stimulating to my viewers but because they will add even more humor to the videos. Perhaps adding music is a way of having control over my work - manipulating how viewers will feel about what they watch.

I will try to challenge myself not to use any external music or sounds in the videos that I shoot for the sake of being authentic and allowing my work to be organic. I want to implement the work I have been doing with the help of my peers in order to get outside of my comfort zone and apply my talent to a new way of seeing.