This is a Reflection on Maya Deren

I feel like every film enthusiast knows who Maya Deren is and is aware of her influence in experimental cinema. I will say, I was not an initial fan of her work, but after this presentation I have come to appreciate it a lot more. I didn't know she had done films as beautiful as The Very Eye of Night, which I think is my favorite piece of hers. While I haven't always liked her work, I feel like I can now cite her as a influencer in mine simply because we are both women who like to make films simply because we can. She and I do not care about how famous our work gets, and I think more people need to be like that.

This is a Reflection on Harry Everett Smith

Harry seems like a cool dude to smoke a bowl with. I found it super interesting that he has an interest in Native American Ethnography and is respected by them. The story about him collecting folk records and then being involved in creating the Anthology of American Folk Music was super badass. His films are gorgeous. I think the combining of weed, painting, music, and his overall quirkiness is what makes his work so revolutionary. I wish we could have seen more of his work.

This is a Reflection on Jonas Mekas

I had been hearing Jonas Mekas's name in classes prior to this one not realizing how truly influential he was for independent/experimental filmmaking. I found it interesting that he had initially started making narrative films with his brother. The organizations he had a hand in creating, like The New American Cinema Group and the Filmmakers Co-Op, seem very far ahead of his time, and yet he did so while continuing to create his own films! He's truly an icon living.

This is a Response to "From Arthouse to Microcinema"

Reading this article has given me a desire to go back in time to experience these art house and microcinema experiences! I feel like people, especially some film students, tend to forget that smaller films as well as those created by an individual need to be showcased somehow, for they would never be considered in the bigger multiplexes of today. I won't lie, it had never occurred to me before taking this course that one could organize a screening like these on your own, and that one can play a film basically anywhere and have it be called microcinema. I hate that most cinema-goers are unaware of the opportunity to see great works that the microcinema offers, but I suppose the whole point is that not everyone has the chance to see them, which makes it that much more special to the viewer. I know that whenever I get the chance to see a smaller, less-known film, either in class or at film festivals, I get a sense of not just joy in their work, but pride that I got the opportunity to see it at all and have it as a part of me.

This is a Light Observation of Duck Donuts

One definitely expects a donut shop to be bright and full of light, which is exactly how the one I work at is. The bright florescent lights cascade over the entire building and leave sharp shadows over what is below, which is often the donut I am drizzling icing onto. While florescent lights are often associated with cleanliness, there are also smaller LED lamps that cast beams onto some of the walls and the menu, which give a sense of friendliness to an otherwise sterile environment. The front of the store is primarily windows, which are my favorite aspect of the place. The light shines through onto the ground in sharp beams and provide warmth to those who enter and exit the store. The light comes in at a diagonal and illuminates the wood pattern on the floor, and oftentimes the crumbs that are left by a child and their sprinkled donut.

This is a Light Observation of the Ferris Wheel at the NC State Fair

When I think about a fair, the first thing that comes to mind is the ferris wheel. The colorful, alternating lights cover almost every inch of the beams that support the ride and illuminate the grounds where people wait to ride this staple of the event. The lights reflect onto the faces of some of my favorite people, who are all in line with me. Sometimes the colors alternate so quickly that it feel like we are in a nightclub instead of outside at a fair. The vibrant reds, blues, greens, purples and basically every color of the rainbow are vibrant enough to show on my boyfriends dark skin and bounce off of my pale arm like I am a blank canvas being filled. The light also reflects off of his eyes and I find that I can't look away from them because they reflect not just the colors, but the beauty behind them.

This is a Response to Assignment 1B

Before this assignment, I was not very good at sound design. I knew some of the basic aspects of creating one, but had never successfully attempted one on my own. I learned that the sounds that are made available to you don't always have to sound the same in your finished product. I had a lot of fun playing with the sounds provided, and I realized that I really like slowing down sounds. Working with Ashley was fun because we had similar ideas and worked well together. We both worked on some together and then did our own halves of the project on our own while combing them and making it work well together.  I definitely realized that less can be more when it comes to these things.