I am a BYU Counselor

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Last Post: Final Project

This final project helped me reflect on my goals as a Mormon Artist. One of the main reasons I love film is because film is such a wonderful and unique way to get a message across whether it be an innocent story or a lesson to be learned. All invoke some sort of emotion and it is beautiful what imagination and creativity can do.

As a Mormon artist I want to share messages to those around me. What this project has allowed me to do is to understand an individual and see what is special about that person. I was able to see that person and the story behind how he became a psychologist for BYU. Not only that but the collaborative process allowed me to capture his story in a very simple way and allow it to be visible for my classmates to see it. This in turn allows for the word of this simple BYU psychologist to be spread with a message that if you need help there is place on campus that you can find it. That was the intent and that is intent was reached in my opinion. The piece of work may not be entirely entertaining and/or funny however, there is something to be learned by that. Kelly deals with students who are going through rough patches and need help such as students with depression. As such, depression is not something to be entertained with and it is not a funny comedy. On the contrary, it’s a very serious matter. One that should be helped with professionally, such is the documentary on Kelly, serious and professional.  

SO what have I learned from this collaborative process about my own need for growth in the BYU film program? Well, I learned that in order to be successful there is a great deal of organization, communication, and teamwork involved. If my team and I had not organized the project in advanced there would have been a lot of confusion and stress. If there had not been communication nothing would have gotten done. As for teamwork, we each had our specialties that we could rely on each other for. At first I was to be the main editor. However, as technological issues arose, I had to turn to my peers and receive support and help from them and I’m grateful for that. We each pulled in our efforts which in turn helped create a project. What I need to learn is the technological part of the program so that I can be a little more independent on my part where I don’t feel stressed or overwhelmed because I can’t fix something. I have a lot to learn and I am ready to learn it all. 

Feedback is awesome.

I never quite analyzed feedback and the type of system that it is. However, upon pondering on feedback methods, manners, goals and such, I believe that feedback is instituted to help make something good even better or something bad into something good. I suggest that my goal in feedback is to be effective and positive at the same time not only to me but to everyone involved. I feel that in order to accomplish that goal, of improving something something, that having a sense of an optimistic atmosphere is absolutely crucial. There shouldn't be room for rude remarks and the like. Although, there is room for frustration sometimes especially when there is miscommunication but in the end a productive positive atmosphere is needed. Some other things I like to do as someone with feedback is listen to what is being said and find out what inspired certain ideas so I can feel an inspiration as well and see their vision. By doing that, I am invested in the ideas and therefore can say maybe this will be better if you did this or that. Another feedback technique worth mentioning is recognizing that time is valuable. As such I feel that feedback should aim to be short and not lengthy to the point where I am 'feedbacking' in cirlces, talking someone's ear off, or being boring. All those aspects are not effective at all if you ask me. My one disclaimer to that is that is the feedback is about something that requires great detail, such as something heartfelt and important, such as an ideological message that has to be sent across, then more time should be devoted to it. Lastly, I love being able to listen and taking down notes, impressions, and thoughts, just like I do in classes or general conference. This allows me to be specific when I state my feedback and as such, being positive, being invested, being straight to the point, and overall effective and helpful. I love feedback. We need feedback.

Representing Belief

Marilynne Robinson’s article was long however, it had some insightful thoughts about representing belief. I like when she discussed how everything she took from her studies whether it be subjects taken from anthropology to economics did not comply with how she made sense of the world around her. There are a lot of times in lectures and such, especially in high school, where lessons taught did not hit home or send mixed messages. For example, in health class in high school, we had a guest speaker. We had a local police officer come in and talk to the class about drinking. He asked the students why it was so bad to drink. Students responded with: because you do stupid things, because someone can get hurt, because it’s against the law, and the classic, I don’t know, I don’t really care… it’s fun! For me however, it was much more than that. I knew that alcohol was not made for the bellies of man but rather for cleaning and healing of wounds. I knew that alcohol was an addicting substance and when one is addicting, one’s free agency is virtually gone because one can make their choices. I knew that alcohol was not part of a healthy lifestyle and against the Word of Wisdom. All these things I would have loved to say that day however, I knew that my classmates would not have understood what I was saying.
What I am trying to say is that much of what I learn through secular lenses often are not absorbed and misunderstood by me, and if that’s the case for me, I’m sure the same for others and as such beliefs should be represented, whether secularly for those who don’t associate with religious means or spiritually for those that do. By keeping that in mind that everyone has different beliefs we can engage belief in a respectful way. We can introduce ideas and thus people can think about those ideas and construct, carve, and complete their beliefs (this is starting to sound more and more like inception, but I assure that that’s not where I am going).
So it is that introducing ideas/beliefs should be encouraged. However, forcing ideas/beliefs should be avoided. In the “Meet Your Farmer” films, we were able to look at what it’s like to have the lifestyle of a farmer, family life, struggles, etc. By exposing us to that we were able to form a simple belief about farmers, such as the belief that farmers work. Marilynne said that we can know about characters and know characters. I think the farmer videos allowed for the getting to know of the characters and thus creating a personal connection to them and therefore, creating beliefs about them. Belief is all around us and we have to attentive to how we share those beliefs, how we represent them, and how not to force them down people’s throats.

Unique Challenges of Mormon Artists

     As Mormon artists, there are unique challenges that are placed before our paths. One of the most unique challenge is holding on to the iron rod while holding on to our art. We need to be especially careful to express ourselves, get messages across, have people feel something all the while holding on to our values regardless of the values of the world. Some may say that that is a difficult task to accomplish. To some it may legitimately be so and for others it may not be. I believe that there is no gray line in this gospel. I either stand on the black or the white side. I choose to stand on either side. 

     Everything I do either brings me closer to Heavenly Father or farther away. By saying those words another unique challenge is invited to the party, the challenge of choosing what to set our hearts on. This means, as Mormon artists, will we choose to have our hearts set on putting Heavenly Father first or will we choose to have our hearts set on putting our art first? If we place our hearts on putting our art first we mistakably put ourselves in an area of danger subject to slip and take us farther away from where we as children of God are supposed to be. However, if we set our hearts on putting Heavenly Father first, then we are safer and our art can then come into the picture. 

     It is so profound to me that God is the ultimate creator. As artists, we can be like Him through our creations (if they can even be called ours). With that the unique challenge of using the creativity that Heavenly Father has given us in a way that would be pleasing to Heavenly Father is another challenge that we face as Mormon artists. However, if we place our trust and faith in God and ask Him for help, I’m positive He can and will help us through that challenge. We can find compelling stories of light all around us. 

     The very first place is the gospel. The stories of the scriptures have compelling light to all that read of them and even more to all that understand them. We find stories in church magazines, the lives of our prophets, apostles, and leaders of the church. We find them among each other. Anywhere we look we can find compelling stories of light, including the nature around us, an act of kindness that we witness, and in the lives of children. Compelling stories of light are all around us and I think that if we so choose to put Heavenly Father first, our eyes will be opened to recognize those stories whereas otherwise we may be blinded by them.

Mormon Audio Podcast on Terra Allen; Illustrator

Click here to hear audio podcast.

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    What are your project’s strengths and weaknesses as a podcast?

My project's strength was pulling out the information that was needed pertaining to Terra's relationship between her and her art. There are some good audio recordings with clear sound and a mean's by which Terra could express her love for art simply through speaking out it. Her voice is animated, especially when she speaks about Tim, her recurring character. Along with this, this podcast captured a well rounded excerpt of different tones which express more emotions than a mere interview would usually contain. As for weaknesses, there are a few as well. The main one for me being wordiness of the interviewee which could cause someone listening to it to zone out. However, to others, it may be sought after. Another weakness is the change of volume at one point of the interview where the microphone was placed in a different location causing a difference in sound volume. One last weakness I found was the length, the audio podcast could have been a bit shorter. 

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

I learned that there is a traceable relationship between art and what people belief. As for me, I find the human body a magnificent creation and I love figure drawing for many reasons. One being that I love to observe and with figure drawing there is the opportunity to observe lines, shapes, and contours of the body which would be really strange to observe in any other situation. Unlike Terra who does not look at figure drawing as necessary. The intent of the figure drawing is much different from other forms of nudity. I learned that these differences are okay. 

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

It means quite a bit to be a Mormon artist. As Mormon artists we can influence so many to think, act, and learn more responsibly. To be a Mormon artist is to be powerful. There is skill or a talent that is activated within each of us and to use that skill or talent to share the gospel in either subtle or unsubtle ways is a great blessing and allows me to take what I am good at and really fine tune it just as President Gordon B. Hinckley counseled members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

Islamic Art Exhibit

Last year I had a friend who is from the Islamic part of the world. He attends BYU because his uncle and aunt did and testified that BYU is a great university to attend. They also said that this university would be a safe place for him to be. As such he traveled for countless hours to the United States for an education. When he found out that the Islamic art exhibit would be here he was one of the first to view the exhibit. His excitement to the exhibit opened my eyes to the reality that this exhibit is a piece of his culture and as such I had a peaked interest in attending the exhibit.

I really loved going through the MOA. What felt foreign to me was all the calligraphy. Islamic art tends to use words as art whereas a lot of art outside of Islamic art is done with images that bring words to mind. Also, the use of images within images was presented and that was also foreign. I loved how sometimes you had to step back and take a look at the full picture and sometimes you had to step closer to see the little details. However, most of the time, you had to keep twelve inches away from the artwork. I know that because a security guard had to advise me not to be so close to the artwork, silly me. What felt very familiar was the belief of God which was advocated in all its pieces of art, whether it be through calligraphy, symbols, carpets, or doors. Everything that was exhibited was representative of God. This was familiar to me since we believe that everything we do should glorify our Father in Heaven.

By glorifying God through art in the Islamic faith it is the same as Christian art. However what makes it different is that Islamic art uses for geometry and patterns. Christian art uses more images of the life of Christ. These images include Christ, colors, and a definite image. Islamic art uses simple shapes and sizes. This can be an expression of reverence by not exploiting the image of God. 

Inspired by Magazine Article Headlines

Mary was 17 years old but the world made her at least 23 years old. Just like any other normal 17 year old girl she made sure to have amazing hair, clear skin, and used tummy tips that with good effort and a dazed mind, gave the impression of a flat tummy. She did all this so she could look cute every day and be the first to get in the know of love and sex secrets that no one really tells you. Mary was well on her to becoming the woman that will win the attention of almost every carnal-eyed male- or female.

Steven was older, 30. The world was small compared to him. Every morning he would put on his money making suit and made sure to let everyone know who’s boss, him. He had found his calling in life, the business of money making. As long as the green was rolling in, he had nothing to lose. Let’s not forget his charming persona when it came to the ladies. They called him a “tempting treat.”

They were both out for a jog one day. Mary caught Steven’s eye and he found a way to catch hers. A few days later they met in a coffee shop. Mary was excited because she never met anyone older and so attractive. Steven played his cards right keeping the prize in sight. Before long Mary couldn’t help but be impressed and after a couple more dates, she was falling in love with Steven.

After a few more dates, Steven took Mary to his home for the night. She felt blissful and loved. The next day she woke to a note on the table. It said, “I’ve gone to work. Catch a cab, on me. Bye.” She never heard from him again. 

"Words"

PART 1:

Audio stories are different to what I am used to. I tend to rely on visuals to help me fully take in what I am being exposed to whether it be entertainment, art, a complicated situation, or even math. Without any visuals to accompany an audio visual there are some major elements that need to be included to make an interesting audio story.

                The first element is narration. With a narration the listener has the ability to feel orientated instead of disorientated. It allows for a more natural and logic to be structured and pieced together by the listener instead of having the listener struggle with confusion as to what they are really listening to.

The second element is music. I find music to be the attention grabber.  Music has the ability to give the listener power to attract sounds that work well with each other. This in turn keeps the listener attentive. On the down side it can be a distraction from what is being said if the listener gives more or all attention to the music.

The third element is interview. An interview is needed because then there is some evidence that listeners can grip. It backs up the narration of the audio story and it benefits audio stories by adding some personality.

 The next element is archival/existing material. An example of this may be an audio clip of an old Boston Red Sox verses New York Yankees baseball game.

Last but not least is the element of scenes and sounds. If an audio story creates a scene with sounds for the listener to create and imagine, then it has succeeded in being interesting. This is because all of a sudden the listener made the audio story theirs by creating what the story may be. The listener has then participated in the story therefore, making it about them, pertaining to them personally.

As I move forward with my audio story I hope to incorporate many of these elements.  I hope to keep listeners entertained and interested in what is being said by using appropriate sounds to allow listeners the opportunity to create that scene. I also hope that my audio story will also have some meaning to listeners and that they will take away something of value.  Stories that resonate with me are stories with issues that have been present in my life at one point or another.

PART 2:

This audio story is interesting. It uses many elements that make an interesting audio story. Elements included are narration, music, interviews, scenes and sounds. All of these put together create a successful audio story. I admire how interview is molded into a story. There are creative audio cuts between the interview and the narration which literally makes it a story. Also, random comments from the interviewer are kept in the audio story that are logical reactions to what the interviewee was saying. It did a splendid job at captivating emotion. This story is about what life is like without words. A concept and reality that is interesting to wrap our minds around. All this plus a hint of humor makes this an interesting audio story. 

http://www.radiolab.org/popup_player/

30 Seconds of Love

30 Seconds of Love


^^Click on the link to see 30 sec. video project.

Melody Camacho and Sam Featherstone

Person Photo Essay

This photo essay is dedicated to my roommate from my freshman year attending BYU. I absolutely love my half Asian half American roommate and what I learned from her is that there are very few things in life worth living for. These few things include; being Asian, eating junk food, drinking orange juice, daily jam sessions on the piano, indulging in Harry Potter themed activities like the game Quidditch, spending a little bit of time with friends, breaking rules like using restrooms when they are closed, and eating some more junk food.

This assignment and creating this photo essay helped me engage with my community in a new way. As a current Resident Assistant living in the freshmen dorms I am looked up to and I help out my residents through their first year at this university. By putting together this photo essay I was able to remind myself of what it is like to live the life of a care-free freshman again instead of a mentor and extremely busy college student. As such, I was able to be more playful with my hallway community and relate better to my residents. A simple assignment like this really helped me engage with my residents and find better ways to communicate with them.

It took special effort to retrieve my old roommate’s favorite Panda hat to represent her person (not because she is Asian but rather because it’s what she wears all the time). However, once I did, remembering her habitual daily routine left me and smiling and realizing that despite our differences, she was not just a wonderful roommate but a really good friend. As such, creating this photo essay helped me remember to look for the good in everyone because the good is there.

It’s surprising what laid back and different people can teach you! 

Oh you know, just some ORDINARY stuff...

Digital media might be particularly suited to observe the ordinary because it captures the ordinary so that the ordinary can be viewed once, twice, thrice… just over and over again. A great example of this reasoning is a personal photo. Whether it be a photo of friends, family, pets, or random appliances. These ordinary everyday things which are captured are there for a long time. When one looks at that photo he or she will see it, and if a good observer, can relate it to themselves. They can remember their good memories with their friends, their personal relationships with family, the warm and fuzzy comfort of a beloved pet, or the familiar blessings of those appliances that helped make a delicious meal! And then, once he or she remembers, the ordinary doesn’t seem so ordinary but rather special and sublime. Someone who I think uses digital media platforms well to observe the ordinary is my mom. She uses online scrapbooking and then shares it with family members. Sometimes the simplest photos are scrapbooked and when I see them I am surprised and realize that the memory my mom just preserved was not just an ordinary memory, but one that I remembered and looking back on it, wasn’t just an ordinary memory, but a life lesson.

Ode to Memories

My memories are memories.

Memories are recollections of past events.

These memories mean something to me.

All memories help me grow.

For as long as I have been alive.

For as long as I have lived.

For as long as I will live.

For as long as eternity survives.

I will always remember the people

In my life that helped me through

I will always remember those

That taught me a lesson.

I love my memories,

Even the ones that hurt,

Because my memories teach,

And look at what I’ve learned.

Here is Melody Camacho and David Houghton's Social Media Assignment

http://ascarletblog.blogspot.com/