As Unit1 Project1 Sense Of Place

Art and Design : Art Video Unit 1:

Portfolio of work

Theme: 1 of 2: ‘ Sense of Place’

Deadlines Timed Examination 5 Hours: Week 11 W/ C 9 Nov Week 4 (21/09/09): Present three concepts/ideas Week 6 (05/10/09): Presentation of final project idea to class Week 11 (09/11/09): Filming Deadline – Mock Exam Week 12 (20/11/09): Screening and hand in of finished film and supporting materials (Sketchbook)

The Assessment Objectives require you to show knowledge of:

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storyboards, scripting, camera angles, viewpoints, length of shot, cutting, composition, cropping and pacing which may include computer-generated ideas and developments qualities of lighting in both studio- and location-based work.

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various animation processes, such as stop-frame, rostrum and 3D modelling and associated hardware and software qualities and functions of various film and video formats, for example 16mm film, analogue video, digital video, .flv, .mov., wmv

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the use of sound, narration and storyline and their relation to moving images editing, including knowledge of the variety of ways in which images might be juxtaposed to create appropriate effects

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the work of others as a means of extending the film and video vocabulary of the student.

The Theme: ‘ Sense of Place’

The term sense of place has been defined and used in different ways by different people. To some, it is a characteristic that some geographic places have and some do not, while to others it is a feeling or perception held by people (not by the place itself). It is often used in relation to those characteristics that make a place special or unique, as well as to those that foster a sense of authentic human attachment and belonging.

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With modern technology it has become easier for us to locate ourselves and the places that we want to go to. Or has it? Now that we spend a large amount of our time in virtual spaces on the web, watching television, films and computer games, how easy is it for us to know where we are located?

A location can be

manufactured or real, in a city or a forest. The area or place where our stories and films are set, where artworks are located or installed is always an important factor in the way in which meaning is put across and artworks are received by their audiences. Use the theme of ‘Sense of Place’ to learn to look more deeply at the environment that surrounds you. For example City’s can be transformational spaces in which nature in the form of plants and trees vie for space with man-made structures. Over the next few weeks we will look at the formal aspects of film (mise-en-scene, lighting, framing, colour, sound, editing) as well as important film and artistic movements and innovations; consider how you can use these techniques and styles

to reflect on the theme.

How are we affected by the environments we live in? 

Create a story/narrative film that revolves around a particular location.

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Create a film that reflects on a location in a more abstract way using carefully composed shots and editing.

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Create a surreal fantasy that transforms perhaps an otherwise mundane space.

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At the end of the project you will need to create a 5 min film with accompanying sketchbook

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Use the examples and links in this booklet and the screenings and workshops over the next few weeks to develop a context for your responses to the theme.

6 PY01: Film and Video Possible starting points:

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Many artists, writers and filmmakers have taken to exploring our environments and cities, their history, architecture and the way in which they effect how we live and think. This approach

is often called Psychogeography It deals with

methods of re-imagining and experiencing the city, with resistance and protest to established orders, through experimental writing, novels, documentaries and film. The idea of urban wandering relates to the older concept of the flâneur, theorized by writer Charles Baudelaire. These ideas have regenerated in the work of modern artists, filmmakers and writers such as J.G.Ballard, Will Self, Ian Sinclair and filmmakers such as Patrick Keiller and Guy Maddin.

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The places and environments where we are born and grow up give us a strong sense of our identity. Directors and artists have often created works around the areas they grew up or the homes they live in. Director Terence Davies’ recent film Of Time and the City is both a love song and a

eulogy to Liverpool. It is also a response to memory, reflection and the experience of losing a sense of place as the skyline of the city changes and time takes it toll. 

Technology has allowed us to be instantly connected to distant countries and people. It has also allowed us to exist simultaneously in multiple virtual worlds. In the film No

Maps for these Territories writer William Gibson, father of Cyberpunk is filmed in a moving limousine fitted out with audio-visual technology as it travels across America. No Maps reflect and reflects on our mobile technology driven culture.

Reference Material

Bibliography/

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Film History – Kristin Thompson and David Bordwell Film Art: An Introduction Kristin Thompson and David Bordwell History of Art – Marcia Pointon A History of Experimental Film and Video – A L Rees Art and Film since 1945 – Kerry Brougher Ballard, J.G Concrete Island Figgis, Mike. Digital Film Making (Faber & Faber) Sinclair, Ian. London: City of Disappearances (Penguin) Solnit, Rebecca. Wanderlust: A History of Walking (Verso) Solnit, Rebecca. A Field Guide to Getting Lost (Cannongate) Sebald, W.G The Rings of Saturn Websites/ There will be a growing number of links on the Art Video site under Art Video AS Project Links: http://artvideo.edublogs.org/ Have a look at the Night Haunts Website http://www.nighthaunts.org.uk/ And the Dark Waters Site http://www.darkwaters.org.uk/ There are also some links on our Art Video Blog there is a link to it through our Youtube site http://youtube.com/artvideoas Filmography/ Films to look at. We will be watching the highlighted films in class/

Robinson Crusoe Dir. Luis Bunuel 1954 My Winnipeg Dir. Guy Maddin 2007 Ratcatcher Dir. Lynn Ramsey 1999

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William Gibson: No Maps for these Territories Dir. Mark Kneale 2000 London No One Knows Dir. Norman Kohen 1967 The Last Resort Dir. Pawil Pawlikowski 2000 True Stories Dir. David Byrne 1986 Ghost Story Dir. Willie Doherty 2007 London Dir. Patrick Keiller 1993 Robinson In Space Dir. Patrick Keiller 1997 The Black Tower Dir. John Smith 1985-87 Sans Soleil Dir. Chris Marker 1983 Crash Dir. Harry Cockliss 1971 Manhatten Dir. Woody Allen 1979 Man with a Movie Camera Dir. Dziga Vertov Mulholland Drive Dir. David Lynch 2001 A Room for Romeo Brass Dir. Shane Meadows 1999 Dead Man Shoes Dir. Shane Meadows 2004 My Summer of Love Dir. Pawil Pawlikowski 2004 Into the Wild Dir. Sean Penn 2007 Blow Up! Dir. Michelangelo Antonioni 1966 In America Dir. Jim Sheridan 2002 Wings of Desire Dir. Wim Wenders 1987 Trains of Winnipeg Dir. Clive Holden 2001-2006 Red Road Dir. Andrea Arnold 2006 Listen to Britain Dir. Humphrey Jennings 1942 Taxi Driver Dir. Martin Scorcese 1976 Mean Streets Dir. Martin Scorcese 1973 Photographers/ CITY DOCUMENTARISTS TO LOOK AT Diane Arbus

Lewis Baltz

Eugene Atget*

Henri Cartier Bresson

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Gabriele Basilico*

Helen Levitt

Eve Besnyo

Peter Marlow

Louise Jaques Daguerre LANDSCAPE NEW TOPOGRAPHY 1980 ’S

Marc Riboud

John Davies

Eugene Richards

Joe Deal

Sophie Ristelhueber

Francis Frith

Ed Ruscha* Art Sinsabaugh*

Robert Doisneau

Thomas Struth*

Weegee

Robert Walker

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