Keeping It Real

Generally, in documentaries, the audience relies on the filmmaker to portray the truth and reality of an event. But sometimes, as a filmmaker, it is easy to want to manipulate and direct what is happening in front of the camera. Whether or not this is okay is up for debate. Some people think that you can manipulate events slightly as long as you're not changing the overall truth of the film. However, this turns a fine line into a very blurry line. How much manipulation is too much? How much can a filmmaker direct without effecting the integrity of the documentary?

Nanook of the North, by Robert Flaherty, is typically considered the first documentary film. At the time, people were fascinated by the inside look Flaherty provided on a culture that was foreign to them. However, it was later discovered that Flaherty lost all of his original film for the documentary in a fire, and went back and tried to recreate it all. In other words, he was telling Nanook what to do the entire time. Can we even consider this a documentary then?

This week, Evin and I went back to Buffalo to film with one of our subjects, Rubens Mukunzi. Rubens is the creator and editor of Karibu News, a multilingual newspaper in Buffalo. He used to be a media star when he was still living in Rwanda, so he is extremely comfortable in front of the camera. So much so that, while we were following him on his paper delivery, he started directing his customers and telling them what to do on camera. At one point, he staged an entire scene for us. So what do we do? The footage is great and gives solid insight on the paper, but does it ruin the integrity of the doc since it is directed?

We essentially have three options: use the directed scene, scrap the directed scene, or include the scene along with his directions. I would argue that it is okay to use the directed scene because using the footage does not discredit the doc; it does not change the overall truth of the documentary like Flaherty did. However, using the scene along with his directions could be interesting since it really shows his personality. We'll decide as we continue with the editing process, but I think that this provides and important lesson for documentary filmmakers. It can be tempting, and much easier, to direct your subjects, but it's extremely important to make sure that doing so does not ruin the integrity of the film.

Naked Dating?!

It’s no secret that sex is one of the biggest sellers in today’s world.  Because of this, nudity has become an increasing trend in broadcast television (this includes blurred or pixelated nudity).  Popular shows including Game of Thrones, Parks and Recreation, Modern Family, and Girls have all show shown nude or pixelated nude images. The Parents Television Council found that a majority of the shows displaying any kind of nudity are comedies.

Some networks have chosen to direct the trend a different way: nude reality shows.  Discovery Channel premiered Naked and Afraid in June 2013, and other shows like SyFy’s Naked Vegas and TLC’s Buying Naked have also been aired.  Now, VH1 has ordered a new reality dating show revolving around nakedness called Naked Dating. The series is meant to “explore the art of romance -- preconceived notions, stereotypes, and yes, clothing.”  It’s produced by Lighthearted Entertainment, the same company responsible for Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.

The reality show follows a naked man and a naked woman as they each go on dates with a naked partner.  At the end of the show, they’ll discuss their discoveries from the nakedness, and decide whether or not to pursue the partner.  It's definitely a strange concept, and I'm not too sure it'll last. They’re literally ‘stripping’ away all dating pretenses (ha ha).

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

I can honestly say my favorite movie of all time is Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. At first, the movie can seem very confusing but once you understand what it’s about it is a masterpiece. The screenwriter Charlie Kaufman also wrote Being John Malkovich another one of my all time favorites, so you can see what kind of movie this is. The film is about Joel and Clementine, a couple who decides to erase each other from their minds. Once Joel finds out Clementine did it, he decides to get the procedure done as well. Unfortunately halfway through these memories he realizes he wants to keep them, and doesn’t want to forget all the history they had together. 

Most of the film is the memories that he wants to keep. The movie travels back in time to the present, with Joel unconscious getting the procedure done. This movie takes time and space to the next level since he's essentially in his own mind back in time.  It can be very confusing what dimension they are in but the cinematography helps this confusion.

The camera work plays a major role in deciphering what is a memory and what is reality. The memory scenes are usually shot in hand held, and the faces become distorted and blurry. We’re also able to tell what time period it is by the color of Clementine’s hair, which she changes frequently. Although it seems to not be a big part of the plot, it plays a major role in deciphering what’s a memory and how far back into the relationship they are.

The big plot twist in the movie (spolier alert) is that the beginning of the film is actually in end the of the film. After watching it a few times, you start to understand. The beginning seems to be them meeting for the first time but it it is actually them meeting for a second time post memory deletion. This plays into one of the many themes, fate.  Another important factor for being able to tell what is just a memory is the soundtrack used. During some of the memory scenes, the music was fuzzy and sounded like it was broken or rewinding. During reality, normal music was played. I could watch this movie everyday, and still find it just as fascinating as the day before. 

Duck Dynasty

Duck Dynasty is a reality show that portrays the lives of the Robertson family.  The Robertsons are a family from Louisiana, who have become very wealthy due to the manufacturing of "Duck Calls" (small wooden whistles used by hunters because the sound they emit sounds like a duck call).

The show mostly follows Willie, the CEO of the company, who has to keep his family/employs in-line when all they want to do is hunt, blow stuff up, and not work.  The way the show is setup is very similar to the show Modern Family, if you have seen that.  During scenes they will cut to characters in an interview setting to elaborate or add extra context to the current situation.

And very similar to Modern Family, every episode always ends with the family resolving their differences and growing stronger together.  

As far as how it is assembled, it is a standard reality show.  Cameras are just stationed in the workplace and follow the family through the woods and hunt.  Most of the time, the show returns from commercial with a ridiculous slow motion shot, like the opening of a beer can.  Everything actually is used to make the family seem as ridiculous as possible.  Rich rednecks.  Thats the premise and thats what the show portrays.

The show returns for its second season October 10th on A&E.

The Sad Reality

I never really watch reality shows anymore, but I stumbled onto a link about a reality show suicide and was horrified to find out how many there have been over the last few years.
Gordan Ramsay from "Hell's Kitchen" and "Kitchen Nightmares" has had 2 of his contestants committ suicide in the last 5 years alone! Ok, now with how much Ramsay screams and degrades contestants, does that really surprise you? Maybe Ramsay really is from a kitchen in hell.

Other shows that have recently lost former contenstants include Bachelorette, American Idol , Wipeout (contestant suffered a stroke during an event), Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, Megan Wants a Millionaire and The Contender. Here's many more for anyone who isn't easily depressed by these sort of things.

Reality show suicides http://www.realityshowsuicides.com/

And before you blame the U.S. for crappy shows that people hate themselves enough to jump off a bridge for,  the United Kingdom's reality shows have suffered the same results.

So the question is: how does this happen? Are producers casting emotionally unstable people?  Is the pressure of instant tv stardom to blame? Or are the tv shows creating monsters out of contestants "on camera" that misrepresent who they really are?

Whatever the cause may be, it looks like the problem is snowballing recently, and that's very bad news for everyone.  I really hope this isn't the future for reality shows, cause it sounds like its getting too "real" for me.

Reality TV

     I really just feel like venting about reality TV for a bit.
          I understand that it is incredible popular and that millions of people watch it bringing in billions of dollars of revenue, but I still have issues with it.  The problem is two fold: One, it is not reality and two, it is cheap entertainment.
      Reality shows are not at all real.  If it were, no one would watch.  People will watch a show about a family with 18 kids or a bunch of twenty year olds in a house on Jersey Shore, but no one wants to watch a show about real people, a family of four with a minivan for example. Even shows that supposedly present some aspect of real life are fake.  "Teen Mom's" for example is about teen mothers trying to make ends meet.  But each of them are paid $60,000 per season, so all of them are pretty well of compared to most teen moms in America, in which three out of ten end up on welfare within a year of their child's birth.  Of course this is nothing compared to The Situation from "Jersey Shore" who makes $30,000 per episode.  These are the shows that are not completely planned out and they are still fake.  Shows like "The Bachelor" and "Survivor" are even more fake because all the drama is created by a producer.
 
  Reality shows are also cheap entertainment.  Not in the monetary sense of the word, since billions are spent on creating it, but in the quality of it's production.  There is no "real" story.  There was no writer crafting a tale.  There is not the same level of character development or story progress as in traditional shows.  There is no plot.  Reality shows are just feats of editing that make boring things seem to have dramatic and climatic moments.
    There has been a rise and fall of the creation of Reality TV.  I think most of that has to do with the fact that networks follow what is hot and reality is on the downward trend now.  I just hope that soon we will be back to the time when stories and plots are what fill primetime television.

Tired of Reality?

Stanford University is announcing a 2 week intensive training institute on immersive virtual reality. From September 8 to September 19 they will train you in the design and programming of virtual reality worlds.

The faculty is composed, among others by researcher Jeremy Bailenson, currently the director of Stanford's Virtual Human Interaction Lab, whose work in the field of cognitive psychology, telepresence and virtual environments, (funded by the National Science Foundation) is highly recognized.

In the The Avatar's Influence, The Chronicle of Higher Education
- What people do in virtual reality doesn't always stay in virtual reality he argues, and makes an excellent and compelling case that virtual representations of professors can be more effective than the real thing.

In Transformed Social Interaction in Immersive Virtual Reality Jeremy Bailenson discusses VHIL research projects in an extraordinary and fast paced Metaverse U presentation . I will try to show this in class because I think it will open (or close, there is always that possibility) a few eyes and raise awareness of what we have already discussed earlier in the class, that being as we are in the midst of a paradigm shift, it is difficult, sometimes impossible to perceive what is right in front of our eyes. Sometimes because it is very skilfully disguised.

Bailenson's main area of interest is the phenomenon of digital human representation, especially in the context of immersive virtual reality. He explores the manner in which people are able to represent themselves when the physical constraints of body and veridically-rendered behaviors are removed. Furthermore, he designs and studies collaborative virtual reality systems that allow physically remote individuals to meet in virtual space, and explores the manner in which these systems change the nature of verbal and nonverbal interaction.

You can apply at http://vhil.stanford.edu

To Advertise Life

"I like totally tried to get into First Life and those dudes were like, sorry man, you're totally not old enough. I was like, WTF! Then I found out about Teen FL, and everything's cool now." --Aaron, 15

Sarcastic as the website is I think it is making a very valid point.

The Corn Field

I know that the topic of law and order in SL is kind of a taboo but since there is a prison in Second Life with a one way teleport terminal, one should expect ,that there is a legal system that is separated from the legislative and executive systems; And since we know this is not the case I wonder if Linden Lab can maintain a stable social and economical environment that would encourage major "foreign" investments in Second Life.

VR vs. RL forum

You are not isolated in your concerns or simple curiosity about VR and the concept of "reality" as a whole. The global importance of the issue is evident when it becomes the subject of a forum at Davos (Davos is famous as the host to the annual meetings of the World Economic Forum (WEF), an annual meeting of global political and business elites, which is often referred to as simply Davos.)
The picture above gives you a clue about the level of this Forum.
Here is what will be happening as we study pretty much the same subject in our class:
Note the participants...
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Open Forum Davos 2008
24. - 26. January 2008

The Open Forum Davos will include a section on "Virtual Worlds - Fiction or Reality?", which will take place on Saturday 26 January at the Swiss Alpine High School (SAMD). The section will include:
- Rafael Capurro, Professor, Information management and information ethics, Stuttgart Media University, Germany
- Florence Develey, Pastor, Switzerland
- Reid Hoffman, Chairman and President, LinkedIn Corporation, USA
- Philip Rosedale, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Linden Lab, USA
- Joseph Weizenbaum, Former Professor of Computer Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA

More information on the Open Forum which is organized by the Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches (FSPC) and the World Economic Forum (WEF) can be found at:

http://www.openforumdavos.ch/en/home/home.html

More Information of the section is provided at:

http://www.openforumdavos.ch/en/programm/virtual-worlds.html

Welcome to our Virtual meeting!

Cénotaphe a Newton

And welcome to this interdisciplinary exploration of Virtual Worlds.

While Extropians wish for a better tomorrow and hope for their individual brains to one day be uploaded into the immortal being yet to come, reality has caught-up with them like a veritable unstoppable avalanche.

We are (you and me) uploading our consciousness, knowledge and experience, not as individuals but as a species every time we search for a word, an image, a concept. Every time we tag and bookmark the ‘cloud’ becomes more informed of our ways, thoughts and sensibilities or lack of them.

I thought appropriate to illustrate this first post for the class with Étienne-Louis Boullée's Cénotaphe a Newton, (1784). As one of the most interesting examples of "unbuilt architecture", it exemplifies what Katherine Hayles calls the "unfinish" nature of anything computer. And where else could the Cenotaphe exist but in the virtual world, itself an unfinished repository of illusion?