Sorting and Interpreting

Along with everyone else, I have also recently learned the crucial impact that valuable feedback can have upon creative projects. Part of the challenge of receiving feedback is interpreting it in such a way that will improve your work rather than destroying your spirit.

Often only negative feedback prevails because people easily notice what isn't working, while the elements of the piece that do succeed don't call attention to themselves. This is probably why we start with positive comments rather than negative in 185, because it is much easier to remember the things that rub the audience the wrong way. When receiving feedback in an unstructured setting it's extremely important to remember this so that the negative comments don't leave you feeling defeated. Unless the individual is skilled at giving feedback (pointing out the good but unafraid of addressing the bad), you'll probably only hear about the problems, and that's okay. Find what elements are causing these problems, think of a way to fix them and move on.

I have learned that some of the most painful, scathing criticisms can be the most beneficial. Positive feedback can be beneficial in helping you recognize your strengths, but recognizing the problems and fixing them will lead to a better piece of work. Most recently, this applies to my fiction rehearsal cut for 185. My best friend, who I love and respect dearly, absolutely hated it. This hurt, but her specific comments helped me pinpoint the precise moments that ruined the piece and also helped me understand several abstract comments I received from everyone in 185. This experience also let me trust her opinion more, because now I know that she is being completely honest when she claims to like my work.

All in all, I think it's also important to remember that you will never please everyone nor should you try. You have to objectively decide if your audience's complaints are valid and if addressing them will improve your project. Not everyone has the same aesthetic and they may just never enjoy your work no matter how much you improve it and that's okay. This is why so many genres, movies, and books exist because (to reference Steve Carell in Dan in Real Life) we'll never find it all through one piece of work.

Compassionate Communication

In "Reclaiming a Sense of the Sacred" Marilynne Robinson defines the way interpretations of religion and science impact each other in relation to literature. We've all heard this argument many times before, but I like her perspective as a creative writing perspective because her support was based on the importance of being well read and understanding the implications and reasons for religious texts. She uses what is familiar and dear to her in order to represent her belief and reconciliation with God in a world that wants to ignore Him. I thought this was an effective article and it caused me to reflect on the fact that just as there are countless religious perspectives and denominations, there are likewise disagreements in the scientific world. Science, just like religion, is the search for truth. Humanity has a difficult time agreeing on the exact definitions of truth, so just because something is "science" does not automatically mean it is fact.

In engaging about beliefs, I think that it may be important to establish your own beliefs. For example, I could quickly tell that Robinson is Christian, but I am not sure which denomination, which would have been helpful for me to more fully understand her perspective. In a conversation, it is equally important to listen to and understand the other's position and beliefs so that you're not shooting in the dark either. Anger and righteous indignation should be avoided. No matter how "right" you may be, no one will want to even consider accepting your beliefs if you beat your audience over the head without stopping to listen to their concerns. I've experienced this several times with my oldest well-meaning but over-protective sister who didn't want me to make certain decisions, but because she so forcefully told me my only option, I resisted even though part of me knew she was right. And then she rubs in the "I told you so"s when things go wrong and that makes me resist even more (just to make things clear, I love my sister with all my heart and I know that she only does this because she loves me so much. Like all family relationships, it's just complicated). This is why humility, compassion, and an even-keeled demeanor are crucial to exploring differences and representing personal beliefs.

A film that I believe explores personal religious beliefs with sophisticated compassion would be Terence Malick's The Tree of Life. He basically presents his Catholic view of the Plan of Salvation but without arrogance or heavy-handedness. None of his characters are vilified but simply presented as human, with all the complexities, virtues, and imperfections this condition creates. This compassionate treatment of his characters allows for a more compassionate and humble analysis of the meaning of the film. In my opinion, this film is a pretty darn good representation of personal belief.

Finding Meaning

One of the challenges of being a Mormon anything, not just an artist, is that people, members and non-members alike, assume that you have a certain bias before they learn your true biases. This creates the opportunity to either affirm or restructure these biases, but people will often judge you and your work from a certain perspective. For example, I'm obviously Mormon, but I'm also a feminist. These are two words that people often don't associate (at BYU the term "feminist" is often regarded as a dirty word and people think they'll cause offense by assigning me this label) and I often have to find a way to reconcile the two words in people's minds (I think being an LDS feminist is just having common sense, but I won't delve too deep into that here). I think the most important thing one can do as a Mormon or just as a human being is to stay true to what you know to be true. People are more likely to take you and all of your biases seriously when you're genuinely doing your best to portray truth. The challenge is in doing this with reverence to your subject and respect to your entire audience.

Just as we're surrounded by degrading and detrimental stories, we're literally surrounded by stories of light. Literature, films, television, YouTube, you name it, uplifting stories are only a glance away when you're actively seeking significant meaning. Having eyes to see and ears to hear is the most crucial component in finding these stories, because if you're just going through the motions, even the most powerful piece of scripture or doctrine will be to no avail to the listener who isn't in tune to its medium and message.

Behind the Costumes

Click here for my podcast!

What are your projects strengths and weaknesses as a podcast?

Rory was the perfect interviewee because he speaks with so much inflection and he was full of interesting anecdotes and philosophies that he didn't mind discussing. So I think I lucked out in choosing the perfect subject for a podcast. Unfortunately, my recording cut out in the middle of the interview, so we weren't able to hear him completely describe his costume design of the Mad Hatter. It probably would have been a bit more interesting with music or a narration, but I don't mind the simplicity of it, so I guess whether this is a strength or a weakness is completely subjective.

What did you learn about yourself as an artist while you did this project?

I learned that I'm interested in other's artists' stories and learning the motivation behind their work, since I know my own motivations so well. I really love when DVDs include behind-the-scenes features because afterwards I just feel a closer connection to the movie. I guess people are like this; once I discover their "behind-the-scenes," I relate to and understand their work on a new level.

What does it mean to you to be a Mormon artist?

As we've discussed before, I don't think this means depicting Mormon scenes or specific Mormon doctrine didactically, but rather, holding yourself and your work to a certain standard. To me, this means conveying hope through my work. Whenever I'm in a tight spot, although it sucks, I always see the light at the end of the tunnel and I want to portray that in my work. That doesn't mean that I'll hold anyone else to that standard, but that's just what having knowledge of the Gospel of Jesus Christ requires of me.

Converting to Islam

As you can see from the title, this exhibit made me want to convert to Islam. Not really (I would probably go crazy in regards to their views towards women), but in all seriousness, this display had a spiritual effect on me. I don't feel any guilt or discomfort in recognizing the truth that exists within the Islamic religion and I have no doubt that although their concept of God is different than mine, the same God answers both of our prayers. This hearkens back to our conversation about the Spirit being manifest in works that are not strictly LDS; God, truth, and the Spirit is everywhere and anywhere when anyone has faith in Him (kind of like Dumbledore. Was that an irreverent Harry Potter reference? I think not, it proves my point entirely).

The way that Islamic art praises God is absolutely fascinating. My favorite part of the exhibit was probably the room that displayed several forms of architecture with "the Word" written on it. Muslims engrave calligraphy into everyday objects and places so that they will constantly be surrounded by the God. In that part of the exhibit, I felt just that, that God was everywhere and was surrounding me with His love. Even though I couldn't read the language, I knew that the calligraphy was depicting spiritual truth. I also loved the motif of intricate detail, pattern, and repetition and how these aspects of the art also related back to worship. It's the small details, the difficult, wearing everyday tasks like prayer and scripture study that ultimately strengthen our relationship with God. This concept is manifest in the labor intensive but beautiful patterns and details typical of Islamic art.

What I take away from this is that I tend to love subtle representations of spirituality. If you aren't looking for the religious symbolism in these art pieces, you probably won't find them. I guess this is what I would like to mimic in my own work. I don't want to blatantly and tastelessly proclaim my testimony through my work, rather I would like it to be present but still enjoyable for those who don't share the same beliefs. This was a really cool assignment and I'm glad that the exhibit was rich enough to inspire all of these thoughts.

Golden Radio

Like all stories, an interesting audio story requires not only interesting content but interesting characters. Specific to the medium, the character should have an interesting voice or the creator should find a way to distract from this unfortunate quality (through narration or using scenes, asking the right questions, etc.) My mom often listens to MPR in the car (which confuses my dad because she's rigidly conservative) so whenever I drive with her, I listen to the podcasts with her. My dad loves to parody them (sound effects and all) as a joke so I have noticed that podcasts have the potential to be rather pretentious. That's obviously a pitfall I'd like to avoid, along with a dragging pace and shallow conversations. The audio stories that tend to resonate with me have layers. For example, I really liked how the in the example we heard twice in class, the storyteller related the radio station to herself. I feel like that personal connection just makes the whole story much more rewarding.

Although this was apart of our homework, I think I was the only one who actually listened to it and it totally applies for this assignment. This American Life: 24 Hours at the Golden Apple features one day spent at a restaurant bar in Chicago and all of the eccentric people who circuit the establishment in twenty-four hours. It may seem long at an hour long, but I like how different interviewers covered different shifts and add their own take on the results of their interviews. I liked the ambient noise of the restaurant played in the background since it helps give the listener a picture of the location. The podcast succeeded the most in just allowing real people to be real, I enjoyed the use of just straight interviews so we could understand exactly who the customers and waitress are.

A watch that doesn't tell time...

I rarely purchase jewelry for myself. Most of the jewelry I wear belonged to my Grandmother Castle (on my mom’s side) or my Great-Grandmother Meeks and were passed down to my mother who has given me several priceless antiques.

However, this huge, clunky, tarnished silver pocket watch that doesn’t tell time stands apart from the rest of my jewelry. Instead of being handed down from relatives, this pocket watch belongs to my father. Interestingly enough, he didn’t purchase this for himself either (he’s not what you would call an “accessory kind of guy”); it was a gift from his parents when he graduated from law school.

Why does this object represent conflict, you may ask. Like many people, my father has a complicated relationship with his parents. During World War II, my grandpa enlisted in the navy. Once my father graduated from law school, he joined the Marine Corps as an officer (for those who are unaware, there’s been a long-standing rivalry between the two military organizations). Aside from differing political opinions, my grandpa has been known to make comments like, “Well, Jeff, you really could have gone somewhere if you’d stuck with football,” even though my dad is currently a fairly successful criminal lawyer (and he loves his job).

Despite the irksome comments and difficult past, my father and grandfather love each other very much. They share a common love for reciting poetry and quoting classic literature. And despite the fact that my dad always knows an offensive comment will be made, he always visits my grandparents’ house when his path crosses theirs.

So when I wear this pocket watch, I imagine all of these beautifully conflicting feelings of annoyance and affection, which, as I’m sure is the case with my dad, strangely brings me closer to my family.

Dance is the hardest profession in the world

If you got the reference in the title, you're awesome!

Here are Jacy and my 30 1 second films centered on dance. Enjoy!

30 Second Video - Dance

Erin and I did our video on dance.

http://youtu.be/3XytEQCQnrQ

The Seventh Wonder of BYU Campus

This semester I have had to come to terms with the fact that I basically live in the dearly beloved HFAC. Although I wish this was an understatement, I have realized that the HFAC is not a bad building to have to "live" in. Since I spend every day of the week here, I have noticed that this building is its own community from the music majors who sit by the entrance staircase to the TMA students who work at the far staircase (when you study there every day, you realize that we've separated ourselves accordingly). Additionally, after seeing several friends, acquaintances, and faculty members run around the building and constantly go up and down the stairs, the feeling that this building is alive with creativity struck me and has not left me since. Similarly, when you spend hours on end and day after day here, it becomes pretty obvious that many interesting events in this larger-than-life building go unnoticed. So with my photo essay, I tried to give a voice to artists who could be viewed (or at least I view them) as the unsung heroes of the HFAC.

This assignment helped me realize exactly what parts of my life are included in my community. As a result, I've been able to understand this community and interact with it on a more personal and less passive level. Taking pictures really prompts a different connection or perception of your subjects. The music students I photographed were more than willing to rehearse as my camera clicked obnoxiously. I also noticed how courteous HFAC students and faculty members are about photography -- many passersby were afraid to ruin my shots (maybe this trait isn't limited to HFAC attendees, but I like to think that they just understand art). I really enjoyed taking a building I reside in every day and allowing it to become something more than just a place.

Enter the Harris Fine Arts Center, a building on BYU campus that looks just as typical as its other buildings.

The hallways and classrooms appear like any other building's rooms...

But the main open corridor of the HFAC hints at the creativity contained within its walls. Not sure why this text decided to be all linky.

It's not unusual to see dedicated music students practice together on their own time.

But the underbelly of the HFAC holds many secrets. What kind of secrets, you ask?

Take this scenic design, for example.

Or this advanced make up student who made a life cast of her sister.

Or even these costumes created by the costume shop.

However, no matter the medium, there is always some kind of performance waiting to be appreciated.

Social Media Storytelling

https://twitter.com/#!/lindsayatwood/anne-of-green-gables-3

An Interesting Ordinary

While digital media allows us to create amazingly believable illusions (like elaborate stop-motion videos or explosions using After Effects), it is obviously perfect for observing the ordinary. Before digital media, the only way of knowing the daily routines of other people was through photographs, which may have traveled by newspaper or letters, or by common interaction. But people on opposite sides of the globe would never have known in the everyday happenings of other nation's lives, simply because they didn't have the means to do so. Now common people in America can network, view, and collaborate with people in Australia, and so forth and so on. Although this generation is often (justly) accused of narcissistic obsession with their average lives, it's truly amazing that we have the means to record the ordinary doings of our lives. And when presented tastefully, digital media allows for significant meaningful pieces that edify the common person.

So I tried really hard not to use Wong Fu Productions again, but this video just fits the prompt too wonderfully. It may seem a bit long at 10 minutes, but it is totally worth your time. The events, objects, and people of this film are all completely ordinary but the camera transforms these ordinary objects and actions into something completely new and different. The screenplay is a bit like a Brian Doyle "proem" but the words adopt a completely new meaning when combined with the seemingly inanimate objects. I absolutely love this simple, beautiful piece that glorifies the ordinary and an ordinary relationship with a fresh take.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSrXMFcQ4dY

Last but not least (well maybe), here's a "proem" about walking to school in the morning:

It's usually a rush out the door.

But when I've given myself time, I can slowly walk over the cracking sidewalks

and notice the way the snow has fallen on the trees, rather than trying to walk faster than everyone near me. When I'm hurrying, it seems like that blasted HFAC is just always too far away, but when I leave home early, no matter how slowly I walk the building comes too soon.

It's the difference between a frazzled procrastination and a beautiful, quiet appreciation.

The Joy of Subtlety

Often artists write stories without the intention of actively advocating a specific cause. However, no matter the intention, every artist's society, the events occurring during his or her lifetime, and his or her own social situation/life story, inevitably affects the type of work that artist will create. As a result, the work that appears to have been made purely from a desire to create suddenly becomes a social comment. By merely creating and naturally belonging to a society, the artist indirectly submits acts of civic participation, whether he or she accepts this perspective or not.

The reading seems to suggest that due to this fact, an artist must be knowledgeable about the social issues of the time. The reading also demands that the artist be responsible to his or her craft in order to maintain its credibilityt for future artists. This is all well and good, but it seemed to me that the reading chose not to address fiction as a means for social activism. I believe that I noticed this because subtle advocacy seems to resonate more with me than emotionally manipulative (which seems to be a trend in political or social campaigns) advertisements. As a counterexample, Jane Austen's work perpetually satirizes the artificiality of the English upper class and society's unjust treatment of women, but does so in an entertaining and moderately subtle way that allows for the exploration of other topics and themes as well. So, as hippy-ish as this may sound, I believe that an artist's role in society is merely to create. If the artist is passionate about promoting a cause, they will find a way to do so, and even if they aren't, their work will ultimately reflect the issues of the time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SKVcQnyEIT8&list=FL-p8XXj5kQjdQc2qDXK0uvw&index=4&feature=plpp_video

This couple (obviously avid book lovers) decided to make a stop-motion video of books coming to life in the bookstore at night. While this narrative may not blatantly take a stand on a social cause, I believe there are some social implications when this story is analyzed in context with our society. We live in an age where the joy of books can easily be pushed aside and ignored. Many people do not enjoy reading and even more people do not have time to read in this increasingly busy world even if they wanted to. Indeed, with the creation of Nooks and Kindles, physical copies of books could easily become obsolete. This short film serves as a metaphor for the beauty book, reading, and literacy can bring into our lives. So essentially, this couple advocates literacy and takes a stand in this distracted world through a creative and unobtrusive medium. Ah, the joy of subtlety.

Shell

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VSkYbgxl93Y

One day during last semester my brother decided to showed me this short film and as a result, converted me to Wong Fu Productions' work. I appreciate that they are capable of creating quality work that is intellectually meaningful with only a three-person production team and minimal resources. This film definitely demonstrates their ability to do so.

` This story allows the characters to explore and develop their imaginations while simultaneously developing a more meaningful relationship with each other. Obviously, the two are incredibly different, but their opposite natures actually complement each other in the sense that one can dream romantically while the other's pragmatic nature can bring these dreams into reality. By combining each person's strengths and differences, together, the characters create a new and better reality. I strongly believe that creativity and imagination should not exclude others from our lives, but rather, should allow us to form more significant connections with others. I didn't realize how much this film impacted me until I wrote this post, as my creative sample for the film application explored a similar theme. It's always interesting how the things we watch can subconsciously influence us.

The medium allows for the contrast between reality and the "fake memory," or fantasy. Obviously, the cold, dark colors and the industrial background of the reality scenes juxtaposed against the intimacy of the warm, whimsical landscape of the man's imagination signify the discrepancies between his perceptions. However, the editing at the end suggests that through effort on both characters' ends, "fiction [is able] to become reality" because of the girl's insistence on discovering this memory and the man's revealing of these feelings.

Although this obviously is not an extremely realistic conversation, this film suggests that "it's the feeling that matters." So I would assume that the director wants his viewers to pursue those ideas and dreams that create significant emotions and/or develop relationships with people who allow these feelings and dreams to be possible.