Transition to Portfolio (woo!)

 The biggest project of the year has come and it's one that I've kind of prepared myself for throughout the year since I knew people who took the course last year. I even helped two of them out with filming and I think that experience is definitely invaluable—my confidence is through the roof! This seems to be to be an unparalleled opportunity to really show my creative chops and even if the finished product isn't up to par with what I have in mind, I think this journey I am soon to undertake will be fun enough to justify it. With that acknowledgement in mind, it's time to talk about: 

Approach, inspirations (suggestions too!), plans, and feelings

My approach to this project is, at least hopefully, going to be very meticulous and planned. Throughout the year, we've learned about metacognition so of course, to not be cognizant of that for such a large scale project would be a travesty. I've gathered a cast of ready actors already and I'm beginning to weave together the narrative I want to develop, in fact, I have even more grandiose plans of finishing the film but of course, Cambridge will only see the opening. What a shame! 

As for inspirations, I can't lie, even if it does seem a little less "high art-y", I've always consumed...a great deal of anime. Which is NOT TO SAY I don't consume traditional media because I DO but I find that the online library of really niche anime is just so widely available, it's difficult not to find myself watching certain cultural centerpieces, at least to that form of media, that is less popular amongst Western audiences. Obviously everyone knows the super popular stuff but things like 

Tatami Galaxy 

Evangelion (okay, definitely better known in the West but still)

Maquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms 

(NO IDEA HOW THIS DIDN'T GET SUPER POPULAR)

And a TON of other titles are media that I feel get a low amount of recognition in the West due to extraneous circumstances that don't regard the work's qualities themselves. Anyway, I don't intend to turn this into a rant but basically, a lot, lot, lot of anime that isn't popular really does enter the territory of higher art if such a thing even exists. For example, Tatami Galaxy has a really huge color motif going on which is explained at the end and it is also filled to the brim with cultural references that while I don't completely understand, I can 100% appreciate for its unabashed nature. After all, these creators are making stories not just for others but for themselves and the above works display that concept perfectly. I think abrasive work always stands out to me because I know it derives from some part of the creator's mind and that their self expression is going to be an unique experience that can't be produced by any other human on Earth. 

That's what concerns me the most—how can I show off my stuff while keeping to conventions? How can I take inspiration from my favorite works while keeping my mind open to improvements and refinement? How can I make my mark on the viewer's mind, to let them know that this is MY story and that even if I'm not a good storyteller just yet that you can only get this story from me? That's what I'm trying to capture in my film and film opening.

As for planning, I of course have the classic storyboards ready but I've also been working on drawing and the visual arts which is exciting because I might be able to put it into practical use sooner than I could have imagined. Naturally, I'm writing the story out and planning locations too. Overall, I think I'm sufficiently planning things out!

Finally, how I feel. Well, as you might be able to tell, pretty darn good. Recently, actually, I've been on a little journalism craze with a friend on this server of ours. I write a deluge of reviews, analysis, and comedy pieces about the different types of media I consume and that time spent will hopefully translate into a higher level of media literacy. I know I'll need it if I want to capture my ambition in film. That is all for this post, excited, excited. 

And, excited. 

More Inspirations (because of course)

Crime and Punishment (what an incredible experience)

Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon (favorite psych/prog rock production ever, definitely PF's best studio album and yes, better than Animals)

Kanye's West's My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (awful individual but one of the greatest albums ever sonically, I love every song and wowowow the production but screw Kanye)

Chainsaw Man (definitely don't need to be familiar with anime/manga to watch/read this but it never hurts, certainly a large weakness of anime/manga is that many of the really great work are self-referential and end up making obscure odes to OTHER anime/manga that might be great but just aren't popular. Anyway, Tatsuki Fujimoto is crazy good. He watches a ton of movies and his panel layouts are incredibly cinematic, my personal prediction for the next renowned household name akin to a Miyazaki albeit with a reallyyyyyy bizarre and shrewd sense of humor and a proclivity for violence and other taboo topics!) 

See you in the next post! Maybe more inspirations will be unveiled as I go along...not a bad idea...