4. La Maison en Petits Cubes - Kunio Kato
Profoundly beautiful Oscar winner.
Animation: Japan
5. Geri's Game
Genius Pixar animation, another Oscar winner.
Animation: USA
6. Okatpodi
Cuteness and creativity - octopi in love!
Animation: France
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Awesome world animation - Part 1
Part 1 of a series on my favorite short animations from different parts of the world.
1. "Good Morning" - Kanye West
A music video! It follows the journey of a little bear trying to get to his graduation despite numerous transportation obstacles. Good music and great animation.
Animation: Japan
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIiTmmMqNso
2. Kiwi! -Madeyeti47
Warning--tear-jerker. Are dreams worth everything?
Animation: USA (NY)
3. Hoy te Amo - Vinnie Veritas
Vinnie Veritas does lots of cool stuff, but I like this one for its simplicity and unity.
Animation: Veracruz, Mexico
4. There She Is - SamBakZa
Love forbidden by politics and custom - the eternal struggle, as told with rabbits and cats.
A 5 part series.
Animation: Korea
1. "Good Morning" - Kanye West
A music video! It follows the journey of a little bear trying to get to his graduation despite numerous transportation obstacles. Good music and great animation.
Animation: Japan
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIiTmmMqNso
2. Kiwi! -Madeyeti47
Warning--tear-jerker. Are dreams worth everything?
Animation: USA (NY)
3. Hoy te Amo - Vinnie Veritas
Vinnie Veritas does lots of cool stuff, but I like this one for its simplicity and unity.
Animation: Veracruz, Mexico
4. There She Is - SamBakZa
Love forbidden by politics and custom - the eternal struggle, as told with rabbits and cats.
A 5 part series.
Animation: Korea
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Mar 23 ML Ch 42
Again, this chapter of our book describes the plight of youth is their unenlightened naivete. It is the power struggle of knowledge. "Knowledge is power" is a major theme of the book. None of the chapters I read has an author who suggested that he or she might be shy of having adequate knowlege but make many assertions that others, particularly young people, do not have it. The metaphor of being "armed with information" is used.
Knowledge is violence in the university. To know something is to use it in intellectual battle. To win is to gain followers, allegiance and credibility. To claim to others that they need to know something that you already know and can teach is to attempt conquest. Imperialism is not dead or discouraged. It is the practice of the Western university to colonize--not the body, land or property but the mind.
A professor gains status by making new or better discoveries or originalities. He or she is in competition with peers by being more enlightened--the greater the gap, the more the distinction. To portray others as naive or stupid is to the credit of the speaker to create the distinction. Thus the argument and the spirit of debate is born--a battle for superiority based upon persuasion and knowledge.
Teachers make students soldiers in this battle. They are taught the essay, to compete for grades, money, position. Those who adopt the teachers' ways of thinking do better. It empowers the teacher with followers and the students with accolades.
I think this has to do with suicide because this battle contributes a student's feeling of isolation and sense of meaninglessness. If the academic world is treated like a capitalist construction, education can be viewed as capital or a commodity rather than a discipline or expression. This is the teacher's role and the truest, most beneficial form of critical thinking--what can be done that is best rather than better.
Knowledge is violence in the university. To know something is to use it in intellectual battle. To win is to gain followers, allegiance and credibility. To claim to others that they need to know something that you already know and can teach is to attempt conquest. Imperialism is not dead or discouraged. It is the practice of the Western university to colonize--not the body, land or property but the mind.
A professor gains status by making new or better discoveries or originalities. He or she is in competition with peers by being more enlightened--the greater the gap, the more the distinction. To portray others as naive or stupid is to the credit of the speaker to create the distinction. Thus the argument and the spirit of debate is born--a battle for superiority based upon persuasion and knowledge.
Teachers make students soldiers in this battle. They are taught the essay, to compete for grades, money, position. Those who adopt the teachers' ways of thinking do better. It empowers the teacher with followers and the students with accolades.
I think this has to do with suicide because this battle contributes a student's feeling of isolation and sense of meaninglessness. If the academic world is treated like a capitalist construction, education can be viewed as capital or a commodity rather than a discipline or expression. This is the teacher's role and the truest, most beneficial form of critical thinking--what can be done that is best rather than better.
Mar 9 ML 34, 35
Girls and media. This is a good topic if overdone. After all--is anyone more interesting to the modern human imagination than the young female?
Instead of TV, I'll talk about music and the evolution of girl power in the media that can be accurately traced through the career of one particular female: Britney Spears.
According to her Wikipedia entry, Britney Spears released her first single in 1999 when she was 17 years old, "Baby One More Time." Here is the link:
[embedding disabled: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_bsniYwSaWg]
In the video, you can see she is portrayed innocently as a pretty school girl. Her sexuality is mostly hinted at through showing her midriff. The lyrics of the song are about "loneliness" and "still believing"--basically, about lost love. The video is characterized by strong vocals, highly energetic but not suggestive dancing, and above all, coyness--at the end, the video is shown mostly as a daydream.
Following this single there was "Oops...I Did it Again" [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unBACOHFXes]. The music video for this song is supposed to take place on Mars in which an astronaut describes her as "cute." She wears a skin-tight suit and is more suggestive than "Baby one More time." This song also establishes a pattern of the girl's manipulation of male affection for attention. Although the video is again coy, the last line of the song goes "I'm not that innocent."
In 2001, she released "Slave 4 U" and in 2002 "I'm Not a Girl, not yet a Woman." Both seek to emphasize her innocent youthfulness anxious to break into adulthood--in the former, sexually, in the latter, emotionally. She echoes teen girls' yearning to be seen as adult while at the same time personifying their naivete about sexuality and maturity. Both give the sense that Britney is singing against control and oppression. In both videos, she is wearing little clothing on her torso, and in the "Slave 4 U," sexuality is highly suggested.
In 2004, her top release was "Toxic"--one of her first songs that seems to completely drop innocence as a theme. Rather than strong, belting vocals, Britney adopts a breathy, autotuned voice. In the video, she portrays an airline attendant in business class. Her dress is a highly festishized uniform. She seduces one of the passengers, a paunchy middle-aged male, in the airplane's lavatory--suggesting the video targets male fantasy. In segments of the video, she wears a sparkly nude leotard, hinting at total nudity.
In 2007, "Gimme More" was a top hit. The lyrics, like in "Toxic," aren't particularly romantic, but are about seduction. In the video for "Gimme More," Britney pole dances, dances against a mirror, and appears to be trying to seduce another version of herself who watches the dance. "Gimme More" also is the first major hit to do away with coyness--the song is about sex and sexual dancing.
In 2009, Spears released "If U Seek Amy." If U Seek Amy is poorly disguised code for "F-U-C-K me," and in case it was not understood the first time, the video includes two segments of a newswoman strongly hinting at the code. The video begins with Britney at the end of what appears to be some sort of scandalous gathering--the people are putting their clothes on and several are passed out on the floor. Britney sings about an "Amy" who makes no appearance, but the refrain sings "all of the boys, all of the girls want to F-U-C-K me." The second part of the video she unusually dons modest clothing and a short blond wig. She comes out of the house with a pie, two cute sons and a husband while meeting a crowd of paparazzi. The video suggests that picture-perfect celebrities lead a double life, doing things less publicly favorable in private.
Britney Spears' progression from innocent, heartbroken teenager to jaded, confident, casually sexual adult chronicles the sexual and emotional maturation of a contemporary young female, tracking first loves and first sexual experiences in high school. From the usual failure of these relationships, girls draw strength from their sexuality and use their sexual appeal to gain attention and power. As the girl ages, there is growing gap between sex and emotion and a closer relationship between sex and power.
Instead of TV, I'll talk about music and the evolution of girl power in the media that can be accurately traced through the career of one particular female: Britney Spears.
According to her Wikipedia entry, Britney Spears released her first single in 1999 when she was 17 years old, "Baby One More Time." Here is the link:
[embedding disabled: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_bsniYwSaWg]
In the video, you can see she is portrayed innocently as a pretty school girl. Her sexuality is mostly hinted at through showing her midriff. The lyrics of the song are about "loneliness" and "still believing"--basically, about lost love. The video is characterized by strong vocals, highly energetic but not suggestive dancing, and above all, coyness--at the end, the video is shown mostly as a daydream.
Following this single there was "Oops...I Did it Again" [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unBACOHFXes]. The music video for this song is supposed to take place on Mars in which an astronaut describes her as "cute." She wears a skin-tight suit and is more suggestive than "Baby one More time." This song also establishes a pattern of the girl's manipulation of male affection for attention. Although the video is again coy, the last line of the song goes "I'm not that innocent."
In 2001, she released "Slave 4 U" and in 2002 "I'm Not a Girl, not yet a Woman." Both seek to emphasize her innocent youthfulness anxious to break into adulthood--in the former, sexually, in the latter, emotionally. She echoes teen girls' yearning to be seen as adult while at the same time personifying their naivete about sexuality and maturity. Both give the sense that Britney is singing against control and oppression. In both videos, she is wearing little clothing on her torso, and in the "Slave 4 U," sexuality is highly suggested.
In 2004, her top release was "Toxic"--one of her first songs that seems to completely drop innocence as a theme. Rather than strong, belting vocals, Britney adopts a breathy, autotuned voice. In the video, she portrays an airline attendant in business class. Her dress is a highly festishized uniform. She seduces one of the passengers, a paunchy middle-aged male, in the airplane's lavatory--suggesting the video targets male fantasy. In segments of the video, she wears a sparkly nude leotard, hinting at total nudity.
In 2007, "Gimme More" was a top hit. The lyrics, like in "Toxic," aren't particularly romantic, but are about seduction. In the video for "Gimme More," Britney pole dances, dances against a mirror, and appears to be trying to seduce another version of herself who watches the dance. "Gimme More" also is the first major hit to do away with coyness--the song is about sex and sexual dancing.
In 2009, Spears released "If U Seek Amy." If U Seek Amy is poorly disguised code for "F-U-C-K me," and in case it was not understood the first time, the video includes two segments of a newswoman strongly hinting at the code. The video begins with Britney at the end of what appears to be some sort of scandalous gathering--the people are putting their clothes on and several are passed out on the floor. Britney sings about an "Amy" who makes no appearance, but the refrain sings "all of the boys, all of the girls want to F-U-C-K me." The second part of the video she unusually dons modest clothing and a short blond wig. She comes out of the house with a pie, two cute sons and a husband while meeting a crowd of paparazzi. The video suggests that picture-perfect celebrities lead a double life, doing things less publicly favorable in private.
Britney Spears' progression from innocent, heartbroken teenager to jaded, confident, casually sexual adult chronicles the sexual and emotional maturation of a contemporary young female, tracking first loves and first sexual experiences in high school. From the usual failure of these relationships, girls draw strength from their sexuality and use their sexual appeal to gain attention and power. As the girl ages, there is growing gap between sex and emotion and a closer relationship between sex and power.
O Saya vs. Jai Ho -- Slumdog Millionaire Music Remix
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eT0Q-B_FUHY
The embedding was disabled :(
The embedding was disabled :(
Mar 2 ML Ch.18, 28, 45, 52
I'll list which examples of TV shows I think tackle race issues well:
1. "Everybody Hates Chris"--this is a really cool show that wasn't mentioned in class. It's narrated by Chris Rock and is supposed to be based on his childhood growing up in New York. It's great because I find a lot of shows that portray an African American family sort of show them either in the context of the black sitcom (think UPN or BET) that is directed mostly toward African American audiences, or the family is basically trying to defy stereotypes by portraying characters as wealthy, highly educated and powerful (think Fresh Prince of Bel Air) which for the most part doesn't reflect reality. "Everybody Hates Chris" has characters that fit the statistical stereotype: a black family that is poor, lacking in tertiary education and working in difficult conditions. However, the show seeks justice to its characters by making them traditionally moral, frugal, conservative and genuinely funny--which I think does more for the power of representation that our books loves so much than just making black characters wealthy and educated.
2. "Lost" -- It has an uber multiracial, multinational cast. It has a huge cast in general but it's probably unprecedented in terms of tokenism. Although I'm not a big fan of tokenism (it usually isn't realistic or contribute artistically) but it works here. It makes a lot of sense for a group to come together on an island regardless of race or nationality, and that there would be a great diversity.
I think that's about it. I could only think of two. Here's an example of race done poorly:
"Twilight" -- I think this was a kind of weird movie in terms of race. There are the uberwhites--the two main characters, Bella and Edward, and the vampire clan. Then there was a vampire that was kind of randomly black but not really a main character. Then there were the teenage boys from the Native American tribe Quiluete--who in the books are werewolves and are subjects to a great deal of modern myth that is the ultimate enemy of the Native American "Disney's Pocahontas"-haters. In the high school, there are a smattering of different races that play friends of the main characters. Their personalities are so generic that it seems like their different races only serve to differentiate them visually for reference.
1. "Everybody Hates Chris"--this is a really cool show that wasn't mentioned in class. It's narrated by Chris Rock and is supposed to be based on his childhood growing up in New York. It's great because I find a lot of shows that portray an African American family sort of show them either in the context of the black sitcom (think UPN or BET) that is directed mostly toward African American audiences, or the family is basically trying to defy stereotypes by portraying characters as wealthy, highly educated and powerful (think Fresh Prince of Bel Air) which for the most part doesn't reflect reality. "Everybody Hates Chris" has characters that fit the statistical stereotype: a black family that is poor, lacking in tertiary education and working in difficult conditions. However, the show seeks justice to its characters by making them traditionally moral, frugal, conservative and genuinely funny--which I think does more for the power of representation that our books loves so much than just making black characters wealthy and educated.
2. "Lost" -- It has an uber multiracial, multinational cast. It has a huge cast in general but it's probably unprecedented in terms of tokenism. Although I'm not a big fan of tokenism (it usually isn't realistic or contribute artistically) but it works here. It makes a lot of sense for a group to come together on an island regardless of race or nationality, and that there would be a great diversity.
I think that's about it. I could only think of two. Here's an example of race done poorly:
"Twilight" -- I think this was a kind of weird movie in terms of race. There are the uberwhites--the two main characters, Bella and Edward, and the vampire clan. Then there was a vampire that was kind of randomly black but not really a main character. Then there were the teenage boys from the Native American tribe Quiluete--who in the books are werewolves and are subjects to a great deal of modern myth that is the ultimate enemy of the Native American "Disney's Pocahontas"-haters. In the high school, there are a smattering of different races that play friends of the main characters. Their personalities are so generic that it seems like their different races only serve to differentiate them visually for reference.
Feb 16 RTS Ch. 4, 5
The Powerpoint for this day separates Leadership vs. Administration--light falling favorably upon leadership. Although the biggest difference I see in the comparisons is that leadership is described vaguely with idealistic buzzwords and Administration is described with commonplace activities and normal systems. Pretty common crisis I guess.
Media ecology is a good concept to ponder. For my part, my "media ecological" environment includes in big ways the internet. I read the New York times online, the Onion, WebCT and watch lots of Youtube videos. I'm listening right now to a dj's remix of Rihanna's Disturbia (a quick digression--a great promotion for art and democracy is YouTube, which allows equal access to all artists who wish to be heard through visuals and audio). I watch a disgusting amount of DVDs from libraries. I sometimes pick up a newspaper in the metro.
Media ecology is probably a good way to define the difference between childhoods across time in relation to technology. I grew up with a Macintosh Apple computer in my house that was pretty adorable. It had a little bomb icon for shutting down and had some pretty cute games with big pixels. I watched Disney movies up the wazoo and watched snipits of the news when it was on, and lots of Saturday morning cartoons. I started using the internet when I was about 9 years old with Kid's AOL, a highly censored and guided browser.
One of my friend's little brother is 10 years old. He lives in Amman, Jordan and is exponentially better at using technology than I was at his age. He can use Blackberries, iPhones, has a Facebook profile (though he is underage), uses Skype and messengers, and is bilingual in Arabic and English. His favorite bands are English-speaking teen punk bands. His media ecology is vastly different than the one I grew up with, which was on the threshold of the information age. Mine is last generation to have a general insensitivity to interactive technology in early childhood.
Media ecology is a good concept to ponder. For my part, my "media ecological" environment includes in big ways the internet. I read the New York times online, the Onion, WebCT and watch lots of Youtube videos. I'm listening right now to a dj's remix of Rihanna's Disturbia (a quick digression--a great promotion for art and democracy is YouTube, which allows equal access to all artists who wish to be heard through visuals and audio). I watch a disgusting amount of DVDs from libraries. I sometimes pick up a newspaper in the metro.
Media ecology is probably a good way to define the difference between childhoods across time in relation to technology. I grew up with a Macintosh Apple computer in my house that was pretty adorable. It had a little bomb icon for shutting down and had some pretty cute games with big pixels. I watched Disney movies up the wazoo and watched snipits of the news when it was on, and lots of Saturday morning cartoons. I started using the internet when I was about 9 years old with Kid's AOL, a highly censored and guided browser.
One of my friend's little brother is 10 years old. He lives in Amman, Jordan and is exponentially better at using technology than I was at his age. He can use Blackberries, iPhones, has a Facebook profile (though he is underage), uses Skype and messengers, and is bilingual in Arabic and English. His favorite bands are English-speaking teen punk bands. His media ecology is vastly different than the one I grew up with, which was on the threshold of the information age. Mine is last generation to have a general insensitivity to interactive technology in early childhood.
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