MEDI 323 - Individual Practice

WORKBOOK

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This work book shows the development of my project from its initial conception. It also shows experiments, test shots, research and similar material which all contributed in the development process.

MODULE BRIEF! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 3

INITIAL PROPOSAL! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 4

RESEARCH - TRACKING SHOTS! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 5

RESEARCH - STEADY CAMS! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 8

DEVELOPMENT - STOP MOTION ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 9

REVISED INITIAL PROPOSAL!! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 10

DEVELOPMENT - ABSOLUTE & RELATIVE TIME! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 11

DEVELOPMENT - ELEMENTS!! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 13

RESEARCH - SLOW MOTION ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 14

RESEARCH -TIME LASPE! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 16

RESEARCH - ARTIST’S AND PRACTITIONERS ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 17

REALISTATION - FILMING IN SLOW MOTIONS! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 19

REALISTATION - CREATING THE SLOW MOTION! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 20

REALISATION - TESTING & EXPERIMENTS! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 21

REALISATION - CREATING THE MUSIC! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 22

REALISATION - STRUCTURE!! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 24

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 25

Contents

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INTRODUCTION

This is the point in the course when you have the opportunity to develop an individually focused programme of work to harness the skills, understandings

and experiences you have gained. This module aims to support to a high level the development through experiment practice and research of an agreed self

determined project. Your objectives should be defined within an appropriate critical and historical context. When your final project is completed and

presented it could be exhibited or screened or handed in as a portfolio/show reel/ DVD etc.

The project will be developed in consultation with tutors. Firstly you need to begin to define and state the perimeters of your ideas. It may be that you use

this module to explore more fully different media forms and or use the module as an opportunity to explore themes issues or concepts that may have come

to the surface previously on the course. This project can certainly embrace career ambitions.

Whatever way that you approach the module there is no prescribed formula. Staff will aid and assist you with the complexities of formulating and developing

your project. With the opportunity to address a very wide range of form and content the biggest problem can be in pairing down your idea to a workable

format. An interesting starting point could be to look at previous projects and workbooks and pick up on any ideas that you feel that you could now develop

in more depth.

Initially your development of ideas to form a project will focus on the process of research, experiment and exploration. The immediate concern will be

problem solving finding out what is possible and how best to convey your aims. If you are thinking of working in a new field you will need to expand your

knowledge both in terms of research and practice. If you are introducing for example a new element such as sound you will need to consider the technology

available and master that technology. At the same time you would need to be looking at relevant examples of other media practitioners in the field and the

new context that you would be working in.

In the latter part the emphasis will change. You will be developing your project to a state of conclusion that will clearly communicate your aims to the

appropriate/chosen audience. At this stage research should still continue; it may become more focused and detailed, it should also take in to account new

problems which you need to consider such as audience address and of different forms of presentation. As well as viewing work in books it is important to

visit and look at original pieces of work, particularly work that includes elements of sound or instillation where documentation is not sufficient. It is

important to see work that is of a different scale and/or site specific. Where and how you present your work affects the reading/response to the work as will

the effective application of appropriate production skills

Module Brief

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Summary: I would like to create a short ‘tracking shot’ style film which will mix animation with filming.

Objective: I would like to use the tracking shot as a way to represent a journey. This will take the form of time passing and also evolution. By starting the film

with a basic animation it and developing into regular film I hope to convey a sense of development. I would also like to use this as an opportunity to

experiment with animation methods, such as stop motion. Tracking shots are often used to illustrate time passing which is an idea I want to explore further.

Target Audience: I would like the audience for my piece to be fairly broad, the aesthetics of the peace I hope will be strong so it should appeal to people

across the board and also the subtext of the peace can be more closely read into.

The Medium: My piece will take the form of a short video. I will combine a number of techniques, including various forms of animation and conventional film

to create a ‘journey’ for the viewer. I want to combine animation with regular footage in order to create a surreal looking film.

Initial Proposal

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Examples of similar work:

Fat Boy Slim : Right Here, Right Now (1998)

This video follows the evolution of the

human race from single celled

organisms to a fully developed

modern human. The camera follows

the action side-on as the environment

seamlessly changes around the action.

This is a very stylized peace with bold

colors and larger than life settings.

What Is a Tracking Shot?A tracking shot is a method of getting pictures on video or film for television or the movies. Unlike a typical shot where the action passes by a stationary

camera, a tracking shot uses a moving camera that follows along with the action. The effect is that viewers feel like they are part of the action. Since their

perspective is constantly changing they are active participants instead of static observers.

HistoryThe man credited with developing the tracking shot is D.W. Griffith. The legendary producer and director employed the then innovative technique in his

controversial landmark film "Birth of a Nation" in 1915. Griffith used tracking shots to draw the audience in so they could feel like they were in the moment.

No filmmaker had ever done anything like that before. He viewed the camera as the audience. Moving the camera, moved them.

FunctionTraditionally, tracking shots in films were done on a dolly or some other contraption with wheels. It was rolled along the ground or a train track so the

camera could slide smoothly along a path. In recent years, the development of "steady cams" has made smooth tracking shots even easier. Filmmakers do

not need to build expensive and time consuming tracks. A steady cam operator can merely walk along a path and get a shake free shot.

TypesThere are several types of tracking shots. The moving camera can focus on an object standing still. This action tells a story in itself. Tracking toward a

stationary object communicates zeroing in or finding something. Tracking away from a stationary object conveys abandonment or solitude. A tracking shot

along side a moving object gives the viewer the same perspective. Tracking faster than the object communicates passing while tracking slower leaves the

impression of being left behind. Tracking shots can travel in every direction at any speed. They can be horizontal, vertical, diagonal, circular or in random

directions. When the camera is placed on a crane, tracking shots can be moved in three dimensions on the same shot.

FeaturesIn television news, tracking shots are commonly used for "walk and talk" interviews. This is where several people are talking and moving while the camera

follows them. The camera is usually in front of them with the photographer walking backwards. The idea is to give the illusion of natural interaction. The

audience feels like they are just another person walking along with the reporter and interview subject.

Potential

Research|Tracking Shots

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Motorolla RIZR Z8 Advert (2007)

This advert follows a journey of a

horse through different time periods.

It starts by showing us a basic

animation and progresses to show us

the horse in the wild west, medieval times, and a modern bank robbery. I

particularly like the use of different effects, such as the mix of animation

and normal footage in this film.

Touch of Evil (1958)This shot follows a couple as they walk

through the streets with the looming

suspense of an armed bomb ticking.

The focus often shifts amongst the

characters giving a sense of scale to

There is a lot of potential in a tracking shot. They can be used in conjunction with pans, tilts, zooms, pulls or rack focus to create complex effects. Creative

directors are coming up with increasingly innovative techniques involving the tracking shot.

Methods of Tracking Shots:

Movement

The camera dolly may be used as a shooting platform on any surface but is often raised onto a track, to create smooth movement on a horizontal axis.

Additionally, most professional studio dollies have a hydraulic arm that raises or lowers the camera on the vertical axis. When a dolly grip operates a dolly on

perpendicular axes simultaneously, it's known as a compound move.

Dolly moves may also be executed without track, giving more freedom on the horizontal plane and with it, a higher degree of difficulty. These are called

dance-floor moves and may either be done on the existing surface )if smooth enough( or on an overlay designed for dolly movement. The ground overlay

usually consists of thick plywood as a bottom layer and masonite on top.

Camera dollies have several steering mechanisms available to the dolly grip. The typical mode is rear-wheel steering, where the front wheels remain fixed,

while the wheels closest to the operating handle are used to turn. A second mode, round steering, causes the front wheels to turn in the opposite direction

from the rear wheels. This mode allows the dolly to move in smooth circles and is frequently used when the dolly is on curved track. A third mode, called crab

steering, where the front wheels turn in the same direction as the rear wheels. This allows the dolly to move in a direction diagonal to the front end of the

dolly.

Types

Studio dollies are large, stable and can feature hydraulics. These are the first choice for studio, backlot and location shoots when using professional

cameras. A studio dolly usually needs a specialized operator called a "dolly grip". Lightweight dolly systems are simpler, more affordable and are best used

with lighter-weight cameras. Lightweight systems are usually favored by independent filmmakers and students because they are easier to operate. There

are riding dollys and also dollys that support only the camera, so that the operator needs to walk alongside. Any dolly that is compact in size when set on

floor wheels is called a "doorway dolly." The best way to be able to replicate the same camera movement for multiple takes )which is important for editing( is

to use a dolly on track.

Research|Tracking Shots

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Dolly tracks used for heavy cameras have traditionally been constructed of steel or aluminum. Steel, although heavier than aluminum, is less expensive and

withstands heavier use. Longer track segments, while heavier to transport, allow track to be laid straighter with less effort. Curved track is also available.

Plastic versions of track have been used with lightweight dolly systems. In the 2000s, flexible rubber track allowed quicker set up and easier transportation

for use with light cameras.

Examples of Tracking Dollys:

Tracking Dollys can be very expensive and bulky to use, therefor I also look into ways you can replicate this camera movement and stability. These

often involve self building ‘steady cam’ style devices which enable the operator to walk with the camera, keep lateral movement to a minimum and be

able to follow a person to keep them in shot. Devices such as also offer greater freedom of movement than a tracking dolly set-up as the cameraman is

not restricted by the tracks when filming. The camera could be used to rotate around a person, or follow them for a longer duration from a number of

different angles.

Research|Tracking Shots

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Overview:

A steadicam essentially combines the stabilised steady footage of a conventional tripod mount with the

fluid motion of a dolly shot and the flexibility of hand-held camera work. While smoothly following the

operator's broad movements, the steadicam's armature absorbs any jerks, bumps, and shakes.

The steadicam was introduced to the industry in 1976 by inventor and cameraman Garret Brown, who

originally named the invention the "Brown Stabilizer". After completing the first working prototype, Brown

shot a 10-minute demo reel of the revolutionary moves this new device could produce. This reel was seen

by numerous directors, including Stanley Kubrick and John Avildsen. The Steadicam was subsequently

licensed to and manufactured by Cinema Products, which later diversified the brand into a consumer line

for DV cameras. The Steadicam was first used in the biopic Bound for Glory, but its breakthrough movies

are considered to be Avildsen's Rocky in 1976, and Kubrick's 1980 film The Shining.

Research|Steady Cams

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Fantasmagorie (1908)

This is a stop motion film made by

French animation artist Émile Cohl.

The film largely consists of a stick

figure moving about and encountering

all manner of morphing objects, such

as a wine bottle that transforms into a

flower. There were also sections of live

action where the animator’s hands

would enter the scene. The main

character is drawn by the artist's hand

on camera, and the main characters

are a clown and a gentleman.

The film, in all of its wild

transformations, is a direct tribute to

the by-then forgotten Incoherent

movement. The title is a reference to

the "fantasmograph", a mid-

Nineteenth Century variant of the

magic lantern that projected ghostly

images that floated across the walls.

Stop motion animation is a cinematic process, or technique used to makes static objects appear as if they were moving. This technique is commonly used in

claymation and puppet-based animation. The objects are brought to life by breaking up the figure's motion into increments and filming one frame of film

per increment.

Initially I had wanted to use stop motion animation in my film. Stop-motion is an animation technique which works well with time, as it allows a period

of time to be re-produced over a different time-scale. I believed this would fit in well with my project as I wanted to explore the theme of time. I also

thought it would be a good opportunity to use a different animation technique, an aim which I stated on my initial proposal.

My first stop motion animations )see stills above( centered around a ‘stick-man’ figure. The figure is drawn onto the paper, and then comes to life. He

then begins to walk along the paper, the cameral following him side-on. I thought that this would be a good to way to start my project as I would be

able to develop the ‘stick-mans’ journey. I also felt that it would allow me to ‘develop’ the journey... from a basic stickman animation to live footage of

a person. However, as I developed my project further, I began to look into the concept of perceptions of time. This made much of the stop motion work

I had done irrelevant.

Development|Stop-motion animation

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After I had conducted my initial research I found my ideas began to branch off in different ways. Through much of my research into tracking shots was

closely linked to time, which I felt was a subject which I could explore further. I decided that rather than base my film on the priceable of one long tracking

style shot, I would instead explore perceptions of time, a subject that tracking shots closely lend themselves to.

My new proposal was to create a short conceptual film which examines how we perceive events when watched at a different speed. I also wanted to explore

the concept that there is beauty in a moment when viewed slowed down that is invisible to the naked eye. I decided to look into theories of ‘Relative Time’

from philosophers such as Einstein who writes about how we all view time from a relative perspective, and their is no absolute way of measuring it.

I found a good quote which seemed to en-capture one of the themes I was trying to explore:

“Theres things that happen in-front of our own human eyes that we never see, that are totally invisible to us” - Shirley M. Tilghman, Princeton University

I also wanted to my film to have a set topic or subject which it uses to demonstrates the above point. I felt that using the classical elements would be

interesting as they are closely linked with time and nature, and also I believed that they have characteristics )in particular fire and water( which would react

well to. I felt that in order to progress this project I should look into the uses of slow motion and other artist who have done work based on time and

relativity.

Revised Proposal

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As my project developed, I began to get more interested in the concept of time. This had always been one of the main themes of my work, my original idea of

a ‘tracking shot’ style piece centered very much on the development of a situation and my stop-motion was also heavily linked with time. Therefor i decided

to use ‘time’ as the main theme of my work, but try to look at it from a different perspective. In order to this, decided to look at time from another

perspective.

TIME

Time is defined as the technique used to quantify rates of change between objects, as well as events and

intervals between them. However, there are a number of different theories and viewpoints on the subject

which can change peoples perceptions of time.

Einstein’s theories of relativity questions our conventional measurements of time, suggesting that Time

was no longer uniform and absolute. Furthermore, no longer could physics be understood as space by itself,

and time by itself. Instead, an added dimension had to be taken into account with curved spacetime. Time

now depended on velocity, and contraction became a fundamental consequence at appropriate speeds

This theory is essential to my work, the idea that we witness events depending on perceptions of time was

the theory which I wanted to explore. looking at objects at a much slower rate.

Perception of Time

The very expression ‘the perception of time’ invites objection. Insofar as time is something different from

events, we do not perceive time as such, but changes or events in time. But, arguably, we do not perceive

events only, but also their temporal relations. So, just as it is natural to say that we perceive spatial distances and other relations between objects )I see the

dragonfly as hovering above the surface of the water(, it seems natural to talk of perceiving one event following another )the thunderclap as following the

flash of lightning(, though even here there is a difficulty. For what we perceive, we perceive as present—as going on right now. Can we perceive a relation

between two events without also perceiving the events themselves? If not, then it seems we perceive both events as present, in which case we must perceive

them as simultaneous, and so not as successive after all. There is then a paradox in the notion of perceiving an event as occurring after another, though one

that perhaps admits of a straightforward solution. When we perceive B as coming after A, we have, surely, ceased to perceive A. In which case, A is merely an

Development|Absolute & Relative TimeTheory of Relativity

Physicists usually dichotomize the

Theory of Relativity into two parts.

The first is the Special Theory of Relativity, which essentially deals

with the question of whether rest and motion are relative or absolute, and with the

consequences of Einstein’s

conjecture that they are relative.

The second is the General Theory

of Relativity, which primarily

applies to particles as they

accelerate, particularly due to

gravitation, and acts as a radical revision of Newton’s theory, predicting important new results

for fast-moving and/or very

massive bodies. The General Theory of Relativity correctly

reproduces all validated

predictions of Newton’s theory, but expands on our understanding

of some of the key principles.

Newtonian physics had previously

hypothesised that gravity

operated through empty space, but the theory lacked explanatory

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item in our memory. Now if we wanted to construe ‘perceive’ narrowly, excluding any element of memory, then we would have to say that we do not, after all,

perceive B as following A. But in this article, we shall construe ‘perceive’ more broadly, to include a wide range of experiences of time that essentially involve

the senses. In this wide sense, we perceive a variety of temporal aspects of the world. We shall begin by enumerating these, and then consider accounts of

how such perception is possible.

Development|Absolute & Relative Timepower as far as how the distance

and mass of a given object could

be transmitted through space.

General relativity irons out this

paradox, for it shows that objects

continue to move in a straight line

in space-time, but we observe the

motion as acceleration because of the curved nature of space-time.

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In classical thought, the four elements Earth, Water, Air, and Fire frequently occur; sometimes

including a fifth element orquintessence )after "quint" meaning "fifth"( called Aether in ancient

Greece.

The concept of essentially the same five elements was similarly found in ancient India, where they

formed a basis of analysis in bothHinduism and Buddhism. In Hinduism, particularly in an esoteric

context, the four states-of-matter describe matter, and a fifth element describes that which was

beyond the material world. Similar lists existed in ancient China and Japan. In Buddhism the four

great elements, to which two others are sometimes added, are not viewed as substances, but as

categories of sensory experience.

)Paul Strathern )2000(. Mendeleyev’s Dream – the Quest for the Elements(

I wanted to incorporate the a natural theme in my work, and using the classical elements seemed like

a logical pathway. Water and Fire are regularly used in slow-motion work as the y produce some

remarkable visual effects. Therefor I decided to use them as the main topic for my film.

Development|Elements (fire&water)

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As my project developed, I began to get more interested in the concept of time. This had always been one of the main themes of my work, my original idea of

a ‘tracking shot’ style piece centered very much on the development of a situation and my stop-motion was also heavily linked with time. Therefor i decided

to use ‘time’ as the main theme of my work, but try to look at it from a different perspective. In order to this, decided to look at time from another

perspective.

In particular, I found slow motion work fascinating. I really like the way that when we view an event slowed down we notice all the intricate details which our

eyes miss. I began to look into material which explore this idea.

Tme Warp - (Discovery Channel, March 18, 2008 – October 28, 2009, http://dsc.discovery.com/tv/time-warp/time-warp.html)

Time warp is a Discovery Channel's series in which MIT scientist and teacher Jeff Lieberman -- along with digital-

imaging expert Matt Kearney -- uses new technologies to bring truly never-before-seen wonders into a form that

your body can actually process. Using the latest in high-speed photography, the Time Warp team takes some

natural events )a cat licking its paw, a champagne bottle being opened( — and some not-so-natural )a water

balloon to the face, a raw piece of chicken exploding( — and turns them into a thing of both beauty and learning.

This series really uses slow motion effectively. Although it looks more at the process as a scientific experiment

rather than art, it still creates some quite remarkable visuals. Watching some episodes from this series gave me a

lot of ideas about what to film in order to maximise the aesthetics when they are slowed down. However, the major

difference between this and my project is that this series uses 1000FPS cameras in order to capture all the tiny

details which make the events remarkable.

Google Chrome Speed Tests - (Google, May 3, 2010, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCgQDjiotG0)

‘Speed Tests’ is an advert produced by Google to promote their ‘Chrome’ internet browser. It puts the browser in various competitions against fast moving

objects and then shows the results in slow motion. The events happen to quickly for the naked eye to see, but when slowed down we a see a more

spectacular result.

Research|Slow-motion

Many high speed videos, such as

these examples, are filmed on

cameras which film incredibly high

frame rates. The ‘Pahntom V60

)above( is an example of a super high frame rate camera, shooting

up to 1500fps.

The v640’s high-resolution timing

system yields a timing resolution

of better than 20 nanoseconds.

Frame rate, frame synchronization

and exposure accuracy are all improved over previous

generations of high-speed

cameras. And, an external frame

synchronization signal is available

via a dedicated BNC for easier cabling and increased signal integrity. A GenLock input is

available for synchronizing the

playback of recorded cines to

other video gear.

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Here is a description of the events:

Chrome Browser vs. Sound:

The slowed down was paint placed on a speaker which was activated at the same time as the

browser. The paint shots in the air and hits the ear )see top right(. As the paint travels upwards we a

monitor in the background displays the web browsers speed at loading, beating the sound waves to

the ear.

Chrome Browser vs. Lightning:

The web page is loaded at the same time as a triggered lightning strike onto a boat. The lightning

shoots onto the boat, causing it to catch fire. When slowed down we see the browser just loads

before the lightning strikes )bottom right(.

I really liked the way this advert showed events that the human eye would normally miss, and the

way it glamorized them. A two second clip of paint simply shooting up onto a plastic ear appeared

completely different when viewed from a different perspective of time. This was defiantly

something which I wanted to realise in my work.

The Slow Mo Guys - (Web series, August 2010, http://www.youtube.com/user/theslowmoguys)

This is an online series of shows which show different events happening in slow motion. One week they experiment with popping water balloons, the next

week they destroy food types. This show again gave my ideas of what could be achievable given my resources, and also shows how we miss a lot of details

when we watch events at our normal time.

From most of my research, I noticed that there were many re-occurring subjects. Water was often featured. I decided to pursue the idea of slowing water

down in my work, something which appears to be featured frequently in my research mainly due to its strong aesthetic results.

Research|Slow-motion

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Time Lapse is another technique which involves an altered perception of time. I felt it would only be appropriate to conduct some research into time-lapse

techniques and work.

Time-lapse photography is a cinematography technique whereby the frequency at which film frames are captured )the frame rate( is much lower than that

which will be used to play the sequence back. When replayed at normal speed, time appears to be moving faster and thus lapsing. For example, an image of a

scene may be captured once every second, and then played back at 30 frames per second; the result would be an apparent increase of speed by 30 times.

Time-lapse photography can be considered to be the opposite of high speed photography.

Processes that would normally appear subtle to the human eye, such as the motion of the sun and stars in the sky, become very pronounced. Time-lapse is

the extreme version of the cinematography technique of under-cranking, and can be confused with stop motion animation.

Time lapse also follows a formula regarding its perception of time:

I looked into some practitioners and artists who have experimented with time-lapse techniques in their work!

Koyaanisqatsi (Godfrey Reggio, 1982)

Koyaanisqatsi is a film consisting mainly of of slow motion and time-lapse footage of cities and many natural

landscapes across the United States. The visual tone poem contains neither dialogue nor a vocalized narration: its

tone is set by the juxtaposition of images and music. The film is the first in the Qatsi trilogy of films: it is followed

by Powaqqatsi )1988( and Naqoyqatsi )2002(. The trilogy depicts different aspects of the relationship between

humans, nature, and technology.Koyaanisqatsi is the best known of the trilogy and is considered a cult film.

However, because of copyright issues, the film was out of print for most of the 1990s.

I looked at this to see how it used time-lapse techniques, I was especially found of the way they showed clouds

traveling across the sky, something which i looked to incorporate into my work

Research|Time-Lapse

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Researching Artist’s who have explored the idea of time and relativity was also an important part of the process. It was interesting to see how they

approached the subject and the techniques and methods they adopted in order to show communicate their messages. It also enabled me to consider how to

view the subject from a more artistic approach.

Christian Marclay: The Clock (Masons Yard, 15 Oct—13 Nov 2010)

The Clock' is constructed out of moments in cinema when time is expressed or when a

character interacts with a clock, watch or just a particular time of day. Marclay has

excerpted thousands of these fragments and edited them so that they flow in real time.

While 'The Clock' examines how time, plot and duration are depicted in cinema, the video

is also a working timepiece that is synchronised to the local time zone. At any moment,

the viewer can look at the work and use it to tell the time. Yet the audience watching 'The

Clock' experiences a vast range of narratives, settings and moods within the space of a

few minutes, making time unravel in countless directions at once. Even while 'The Clock'

tells the time, it ruptures any sense of chronological coherence.

'The Clock' plays with how audiences experience narrative in cinema, examining the

conventions and devices through which filmmakers create a persuasive illusion of

duration. When watching a film, an audience is removed from normal time and swept up in a new register that corresponds to the narrative at hand. 'The

Clock' transforms this condition of cinema: time, in this case, corresponds precisely to the actual time beyond the work. The audience will have the peculiar

awareness of experiencing a fictional event, or countless events, at what appears to be the same time as when they watch it in the gallery.

Using the medium of collage has been a recurring strategy for Christian Marclay since the late 1970s, when as a pioneering turntablist he began mixing

sounds and records, before turning to album covers, works on paper and video. 'Manga Scroll', Marclay's most recent collage-based work, was exhibited in

the ground-floor gallery. Included in Marclay's 'Festival', at the Whitney Museum of American Art, 'Manga Scroll' is a 20-metre long scroll featuring hundreds

of onomatopoeic words excerpted from Manga cartoons, collaged by Marclay to create a chain of words buzzing with aural energy.

)http://www.whitecube.com/exhibitions/cm/(

Research|Artists&Practitioners

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Secrets Trilogy (Reynold Reynolds,  2008-2011)

During the Last three years Reynold Reynolds has been working on The Secrets Trilogy; a cycle that explores the imperceptible conditions that frame life. In

Secret Life )2008(, a woman is trapped in an apartment filled with moving plants. Her mind is a clock whose hands pin the events of her life to the tapestry of

time. Her thoughts escape her and come to life inhabiting the space around her: living, breathing and dying. In Secret Machine )2009( Muybridge’s

photographic experiments form a bridge between art and science where the film camera is both a measurement tool and a means of artistic expression. Six

Easy Pieces )2010( is based on Six Easy Pieces: Essentials of physics explained by its most

brilliant teacher by Richard P. Feynman, and brings together the foundations of "Film is the

Seventh Art" )Ricciotto Canudo( and "Music is the pleasure the human mind experiences from

counting without being aware that it is counting." )Gottfried Leibniz(.

 

For Six Easy Pieces, Reynolds moved his entire studio into the art space, producing the film-

work live to an audience. The live construction of the image destroys the illusion of film,

revealing the studio process as art. In March 2011 Reynolds will film part of his new work as

film performances in the space of the HKW showing

that art can be made outside the artist’s studio.

 

At the time of writing ‘The Secrets Trilogy’ is currently part of the ongoing Labor Berlin series at the Haus der

Kulturen der Welt )HKW(, a project dedicated to the creativity and potential of international artists with the city as

their new home and focuses on Berlin and its production conditions for artistic creation.

 )http://www.transmediale.de/content/labor-berlin-4-secrets-trilogy(

Dr Harold Eugene Edgerton (April 6, 1903 - January 4, 1990)

Dr. Harold E. Edgerton devoted his career to recording what the unaided eye cannot see. His photographs

illustrate such moments as: a bullet seen the instant it explodes through an apple, a perfect coronet formed by a

milk-drop splash, and a football dented by the contact of Wes Fesler's booted foot. These images have become

classics of modern art and science. I really liked the way his photography captures moments the human eyes

misses.I looked at much of his work for aesthetic ideas.

Research|Artists&Practitioners

Milk Drop Coronet, 1957, Edgerton

19

CANON EOS 550DI choose to use the Canon 550 to shoot

this film. The high frame rate )up to

60fps( and the shallow depth of field

where the main reasons behind my

choice.

Key features of the Canon 550D

include:

IMAGE SENSOR:

Type: 22.3 x 14.9mm CMOS

Effective Pixels: 18.0 megapixels

Total Pixels: 18.7 megapixels

Aspect Ratio: 3:2

VIDEO MODES:

1080p @ 30, 25 or 24 fps

720p @ 50/60 fps

VGA @ 50/60 fps 

Movie crop function

External stereo mike

In order to capture events to slow-down I needed to careful consider the best equipment to work worth. Frame rate was the most important element

which I would have to consider when filming. Therefore I made the decision to use the ‘Cannon 550’ to shoot my film with. The camera allows a frame

rate of up to 60fps which is over double the conventional 25fps. This enabled me to slow the footage down in post production to a much higher rate

than if I had been working with 25fps. I used three post-production programs to create the slow-motion effect, Adobe After Effects, Apple Motion and

Final Cut Pro.

When filming there were a number of variables which could effect the footage I was shooting. Often I

would not know how the footage would be react when it was slowed down until post-production, therefor

a lot of time was spent taking test shots to experiment with what looks good, and what didn't work out so

well. Lighting was very important, if objects were well lit then when they where filmed it would results in a

high quality finish in post-production.

I made the decision to film much of my footage in the studio as

it would allow me to control as many of the variables as possible

)such as light, wind ect..( which I may encounter when shooting on location. I also wanted to try an include as

many tracking style shots as possible, as this was where much of my initial research was based, however I did

not not include as many of these shots in my final film as I would have liked as the results were not as suitable

as the static shots.

I also did however also experiment with filming on location, using a friend how was able to backflip and do

other acrobatics. The resulting footage was very good, however I could not ultimately justify using it in my

film as I felt it didn't fit in with the core principles of the film... fire, water and the classical elements.

Much of the slow-motion footage I had looked at for ideas and inspiration where shot on cameras with high

frame rates )up to 1000fps( which are very expensive. The Cannon camera I had at my disposal would not

technically be able to match the frame rate and therefor, even when slowed down, my footage would not be

at a slow enough speed to look as I would have liked. Therefor the post-production process would require

me to manipulate the footage I had to create the effect of 1000fps or similar using various different pieces of

software.

Realisation|Filming in ‘slow-motion’

20

100fps - Crumple Pop

Filmed on a Canon 6D, this short film

demonstrates the power of slow-

motion applied by Apple Motion. It is

mainly slow shots of a cyclist

performing skills and falling off. I

particularly liked the way quite normal

events appeared ‘extraordinary’ in this

film. When slowed down, simply

falling off the bike would look really

dramatic and interesting.

You Don't Know: Autozamm

This short fight sequence uses Twixtor

frequently, it is a relatively simple

concept but the careful uses of slow-

motion really extenuate the movement

in the actions scenes.

Once I had filmed the footage, the next step was use post-production to manipulate the footage in order to create the desired slow-motion effect. As I

mentioned earlier, this process required the use of several pieces post-production software - Adobe After Effect, Final Cut Pro and Apple Motion. Here

follows a description and justification for the software I used.

‘Twixtor’ is a plug-in for Adobe After Effects which enables the user to slow down footage dramatically. It achieves this by

synthesizing unique new frames by warping and interpolating frames of the original sequence, employing RE:Vision's proprietary

tracking technology that calculates motion for each individual pixel. The result allows the use to slow down footage to a dramatic

rate, but still retain a fluid motion, rather than becoming jumpy ) which can commonly occur when slowing footage down(.

Final Cut Pro provides non-linear, non-destructive editing of any QuickTime compatible video format. It supports a number of

simultaneously composited video tracks; up to 99 audio tracks; multi-camera editing for combining video from multiple

camera sources; as well as standard ripple, roll, slip, slide, scrub, razor blade and time remapping edit functions. It comes with

a range of video transitions and a range of video and audio filters such as keying tools, mattes and vocal de-poppers and de-

essers. It also has a manual 3-way color correction filter, videoscopes and a selection of generators, such as slugs, test cards

and noise. I used this for the basic editing of my film.

Adobe After Effects software is the industry-leading solution for creating sophisticated motion graphics and cinematic visual

effects. Transform moving images for delivery to theaters, living rooms, personal computers, and mobile devices. I used After

Effects for running the ‘Twixtor’ plug-in for slowing down my footage. This is a very powerful piece of software which produced

some great results.

Features of Motion include the ability to create custom particle effects )as well as using pre-built ones( and to add filters, effects and

animations in real time. It can also integrate with a MIDI keyboard, so that parameters can be controlled by keys or faders; this opens

up the possibility real time parameter input into Motion. In addition Motion also allows for complete 2D and 3D compositing in a

multiplane environment. I used motion for stabilization of my shots, as well as a slowing some of my footage down. I did find the

results not as impressive as After Effects or Twixtor.

Realisation|Creating the Slow-Motion

21

Once I had filmed, the next step was to begin the post-production process. This mainly consisted of experimenting with my footage in various post-

production programs to see which techniques worked best to slow them down, and also to see what looked the best aesthetically .

I did two location shoots, one on a beach showing the movement of the water in nature and on of my friend performing gymnastics. Although the

results of the footage looked of a reasonable standard I felt I could not justify their inclusion in the final work as they did not fit in with the rest of my

shots. I also filmed a juggler to experiment to trey and see if I juggling could be observed

differently depending on the time perspective. The software, however, struggled to alter the

footage and the resulting footage was not of a high enough standard.

Eventually I made the decision to concentrate just on the two classical elements of water and fire

and therefor did not feel that I could include some of the footage in film as it did not fit in with this

theme.

I also took some time to experiment with using ink in water in an attempt to see how water reacts.

The effects looked fairly good, however I did not include them in my final piece as I did not feel that

the event was made any more spectacular when it was slowed down.

Another technique I used to to create a slow motion effect was to combine a two or more shots

together, giving to create a new shot. I used this technique for a droplet falling into, which was

actually shot as two separate shots and then composed together is post production to get the

desired visual effect.

It was often a case of experimenting with the various software to see which slowed down the

footage best, as a general rule I found that Twixtor worked better for the erratic movement of the flames or water droplets and Motion has the best

effects on body parts and more static objects.

Another interesting observation I made was that I was not actually slowing the footage down, I was in fact using software to create more digital frames

which give the illusion that events are occurring at a slow speed. This was my only option as the high frame rate cameras )which I previously

mentioned( can cost £3000 or even more, which was not within my resources.

I have included a selection of footage on my hand-in disk which did not make the final film )see attached DVD(

Realisation|Testing & Experiments

22

Granular Synthesis

Granular synthesis can be seen as a

reflection of long-standing ideas about

the nature of sound. Quantum physics

has shown that sound can be

atomically reduced to physical particles

)Wiener 1964(. This physical form of

sound was first envisioned by the

Dutch scientist Isaac Beeckman )Cohen

1984(. He explained that sound travels

through the air as globules of sonic

data.

Later works evolved the particle theory

of sound into a synthesis method

whereby the natural sound particle is

imitated and magnified, referred to as a

grain. The grain is then layered with

other grain, either cloned or extracted

through a similar process as the

original to create different sounds and

sonic textures. The original intent of

the process described by Gabor was to

reduce the amount of data required to

convey an audio human

communication, necessitated by the

low band width, but rising usage of

telecommunication devices in the

1940s )Gabor 1946(.

Gabor's research came into the hands

of Xenakis, who recognised a musical

When I thought about composing music for my work, I had a clear concept of what I wanted to create. I wanted to create a conceptual sounding score,

which would supplement the on-screen visuals and also hold the films core values of relative time strongly. I also felt that rather than make a new

song from scratch for my work, I wanted to manipulate samples and my own audio work in order to create a unique new sound.

I began to experiment with creating simple basic track in ‘Logic Studio’ and then using a program called ‘Sound Stretch’ stretching the music out so it

was as much as 2500% slower than the original track. This created some quite startling and interesting effects. The notes which used to to take

seconds )or shorter( are now spread out over a much longer period, giving the music an ambient and ‘slow’ feeling. I particularly liked this method of

creating the music as I felt that not only worked well with my film but it was also an example of listening to music at a different speed and hearing

something completely different... and example of how our perceptions are relative to time.

Once I had my basic ambient track I began to experiment with different effects to add character to the music. I looked into granular synthesis as a

means to manipulate my work. This is another techniques which allows you to adjust speed, pitch and format of music. I felt that that this worked well

with the concept of my work as it was another practice which featured time at its core. I also sampled sounds of water and fire and then heavily layered

them with effects. I wanted the audience to find the sounds familiar, but not necessarily associate them with the obvious action on screen.

In my work I used two main tracks as the stimulus of the synthesized score I created, one which I created myself in Logic Studio, the other was a loyalty

free track obtained from ‘shockwave-sound.com’. Although my film is around 3 minuets long, it is interesting to note that only a very around two or

three seconds of music has been used to create the score, just slowed down and stretched out over a longer period.

I looked at various practitioners who have worked with granular synthesis and inspiration for my own work. One such peice was an installation piece

called ‘»Model 5«’, a sound art installation.

MODEL 5 - Granualr Sytnthesis (Kurt Hentschläger and Ulf Langheinrich)

Granular Synthesis is a joint project of Kurt Hentschläger and Ulf Langheinrich. Since 1992 they have been exploring the aesthetic potential of

audiovisual re-syntheticizing. For their performances and installations they granulate and manipulate fractions of sounds and images,

recomposing them to enormous visual and acoustic symphonies. Live in New York and Vienna.

Realisation|Creating a ‘slow’ score

23

application for this work )Xenakis

1971(. Xenakis' first works involving

granular synthesis were created by

splicing magnetic tape into tiny

segments, rearranging the segments,

and taping the new string of segments

together. After attending a seminar

conducted by Xenakis on this topic,

Roads began experimenting with this

idea on a computer. His first

experiments were extremely time

consuming, even when rendering just

a one minute mono sound )we are not

talking minutes here, nor hours, but

days, usually weeks, depending on

scheduling and transferring(. After

reading an article about granular

synthesis written by Roads in 1978,

Truax began developping a way to

create granular synthesis in real-time,

first realised in 1986. From this point

on, granular synthesis has slowly

become available to a growing number

of musicians and sound artists.

)1999-2009 Timothy Opiehttp://

www .g r a n u l a r s y n t h e s i s .c om/

guide.php(

Between 1994–96 Granular Synthesis focused on training their

machine/system on two different human models. For »MODELL

5« )butitled MotionControl( and «MODELL X» )subtitled

Sweetheart( Hentschläger and Langheinrich worked with the

head/face/voice of Akemi Takeya, a Japanese dancer, singer, and

performance artist. Their machine is primarily a device for

islolating or dislocating a model’s appearance and behaviour

from the cause and effect logic of cinemat, television, video,

music, and our perceptual experience of ‹full motion› life itself.

Through granulation, relentless repetition and the rolling,

enveloping or cyclical recombination and layering and

compression and with each of thousands of edit-point, high-

frequency staccato image and sound perforation.

I particularly liked the way that this piece manipulated samples using granular synthesis techniques, making them sound completely different

and altering our perceptions of the visual event. Work such as this was very influential when I composed my own music, I was wanted to give my

work a heavily distorted, synthesised feel.The final step was to match the sounds to the events which were occurring on the screen.

)source: Tom Sherman, »The development and applications of a perpetual moment machine«, in: Granular Synthesis, Noise Gate M6, MAK

Vienna a. o., 1998, pp. 29f.(

Realisation|Creating a ‘slow’ score

MODEL 5 - Kurt Hentschläger and Ulf Langheinrich

24

Montage Theory

The montage has been used in film for

a very   long time, it's place was not

always so well grounded though. In

the 1920's there was a dispute as to

how films considered what a montage

was. The Soviet film makers at the

time had a few different ideas about

weither or not using a certian editing

process was to be called a montage or

not. Sergei   Eisenstein had a theory

about what a montage was, it was

specificly that there are at least   6

types of montage to use in a film.

Montage is the grouping of two or

more images to create a

third.Meaning, two seperate images

that are not in sequence of eachother,

put together one after another would

create a third seperate meaning or

feeling that he viewer would infer.

in the beginning that is how it was

used, two images creating a third.

now monatge has evolved into more,

we can use multiple pictures, or even

clips of movement, to convey an

emotion or meaning that can't easily

be portrayed by a single actor.

)http://fs205.intodit.com/page/montage-

theory(

Once my footage had been edited had been completed, I began to think about

the structure of my film. I wanted my piece to be heavily conceptually based,

and not have a narrative to it. The main aim was to show the relationships of

fire and water as perceived through a relative time. I also wanted to show that

there are many details which we miss when we view events through our naked

eye, but when slowed down we can see much more.

I based the structure of my film on montage techniques )see right( using a

variety of different techniques in order to show how fire and water interact

when we view them from a different perspective. In particular I looked at

rhythmic and tonal montage when working in my film as I felt they worked best

to illustrate my vision.

I used some un-conventional cropping techniques of some shots, most

notable an oval shape with feathered out edges. The idea behind this was that the shape was representative of a human eye, representing the audinace

viewing the events on screen from a different time perspective.

The metronome is representive time passing, as this is an inanimate object which, unlike a clock, does not record a specific time )i.e.. 12.23pm(,

simply that time is passing.

I also managed to incorporate some of the time-lapse footage I shot into my film. I decided to open the film on a time-lapse of cloud movement in

order to give an indication of the themes that the film will explore.

Realisation|Structuring the film

25

Jamie Harris

Paul Hitchcock

Joël Kuhn

Simon Maurer

Jon Wirthner

Acknowledgments