Keep It Moving
I need to change gears for the moment and switch to another short story I want to explore. Came up with a new idea last night and I kept telling myself to write it down, which I knew I was going to work on, among all the other things I’m supposed to be revising. Quite frankly I have a lot on my plate I need to get down to business on that i haven’t. Need to make a list and prioritize of face getting little to none done today. On a good note, I did get my blog posts in, so i feel relived. I did put a lot of extra oomph in my personal blog, and CINEs get’s two posts. So what I need to do after I post is chill for a moment, make that list, and gets to writing.
Back To Black, or What’s Wrong With My Head?
Did I ever mention how difficult I thought it would be “the Black Cinema Studies” major? This is me thinking that I’m expected to exclusively write write Black themes/issues in my papers. My professors never stated nor did they imply this at all. I was so darned adamant about not being the go to guy for such reactions. Why? This stems from way back as an undergrad artist and being told that its expected of me to paint about themes that relate exclusively to being a person of color. Why I’m all about themes, in some ways I felt put upon, that I was predestined to do only one thing and address only some issues when life encompasses so much more. Perhaps back them I looked at things with a limited point of view. Also I loved being rebellious. When i drew and painted, my figures were colored every color but natural colors. Perhaps that was psychological. I processed this information, like so many other things at the time, poorly.
Now that I’m older and wiser, I need to peel back my own layers and accept a few things. Being a person of color does not limit me. Nor does it limit my expectations of the world. In studying films I’ve seen some pretty racist imagery and representation. Yes, I was offended at times, but I’m also empowered because I know that’s not me on the screen. In many cases, it was poor representation then and now. In many cases the imagery NEEDS to be discussed and contextualized. Addressing the image of the ignorant, buffoonery, and plain out racist image is more than worthy of discussion, it has been lacking, in my opinion. Can I write about it? Yes, I can with every bit of integrity as I give all my research papers. Will it be the ONLY topic of discussion you see from me? Absolutely not. It was a mistake on my part to assume this is all I could bring to the table. Just know there is a lot more for all us us to bring to the table.
Any of you who have ever read my blog posts know I love a variety of topics and the reoccurring topics include psychoanalysis and doppelgangers. It is clear that I never allowed people to limit me. I limited myself. Also it pays to listen, digest, and make your own determinations when it comes to self and world representation. I have yet to meet a Cinema Studies major who is exclusively “one way” in my program. My professors should be proud.
Thesis Fridays and the Saturday After
Promised myself to update my blog today. After all I do have the time, and I need to write more. I feel I’m cheating by not writing. Even if it’s a small paragraph. I have to get my writing going.
While I managed to add a few more pages to my thesis, and update my works cited page, there is still a lot more to do. I feel the need to hide myself away from the world and get things done. Zero disturbances and then I can make the best of this situation. I’m finding that in order to write I need to be away from others. This writer must forego all the social aspects of life to get things in order. I really need to edit what’s on the table.
I also did some research today, which meant reading more, which was good for the project. Getting more information helps me to focus the topic a lot stronger. At this moment I think I’m near the topic, but not feeling like my thesis topic has weight to it yet. I did jot down more notes and I am curious as to how things will shape up.
Thesis Fridays
I decided that before I go any further with pages I needed to narrow my focus much more significant;y than I did before. That meant addressing all the questions I’m supposed to ask during the preliminary research phase, which I did, but never clarified. This means I need to address the proposal stage of writing the research paper.
Needless to say I went to the computer lab and forgot my notebook, which had all my current ideas written down. That is what I get for not packing the night before. I still had several notes and info with me so I worked from there, and managed to bounce some ideas off of a friend since we meet up on Fridays.
What would be a simple page of information turned into two pages of me doing some fact finding and looking up some sources. Luckily I kept my Key Concepts book with me. Mind you the notes I took form this book were still at home. They had to be redone. So now I have a more clarified paper and can narrow my thoughts and research. \We call that scope and methodology.
So the revised proposal got a cooling off period while I played Dragon Age 2, and today I will look over my notes to see if anything can add to what’s been written. I have to watch t least one of the films in the paper, and take notes on it. Maybe today. No big plans outside of enjoying this day.
Thesis Fridays: It’s Almost Here
I’ll be working on more of my thesis paper tomorrow. The goal is to get two more fully cited pages, which will add to my seven and one half pages. It will bring me closer to ten, and I need to add my handwritten notes as well as review a few other items I put aside for my thesis. That will give me the ten I need for this week, because I want to repeat the process for the next week.
I do need to complete what I feel is a fully cited contextualization of the comedy genre. I also need to have solid definitions of satire and romance since these sub-genres overlap in the films I’m discussing, as well as horror. Yes I’m running a gamut here, but if the thesis were easy I may not want to do it at all.
Even more so I need to crack open a few more books and get more sources on the pages. I’m in strict need of making this process a lot more productive than last week. If I can get four fully cited pages tomorrow I feel I’ve achieved more positive than simply passing by. Thesis is tricky. I’m looking at clarifying what I need to make this pop. At the moment my paper feels fragmented without shape, and definitely unpresentable. I suppose that is the nature of a rough draft though.
Simply Six Pages of Thesis
A friend and I decided to use Friday to work on our thesis projects. He’s a Sequential Art major, and as most know, I am Cinema Studies. I need to refine my own artistic skills, however, that for another time. It’s all about getting work on my thesis. As I said in a previous post, I’ve changed my topic. At least to something that I feel I can get a lot more pleasure from writing. I have to say, Dr. Cox-Stanton was correct when she guessed my true thesis topic back in methodologies class.
Back to my thesis adventure. I knew I had to be on campus for other reasons, so my friend and I met up then went to a computer lab to work it out. I got two pages done, with full citiation. It was a slow progress, but I was happy that I worked on it. At this point I’m simply focusing on defining the genre of comedy and its history. It doesn’t sound so interesting at first, but it is one of the oldest genres in cinema history. It’s been through transformations, and often reflects/represents aspects of culture. There are some serious lacking in mainstream films with representation, and that means I find some flaws to discuss.
Yesterday was only two pages of work, however I already wrote three pages, and began working more on it today so I’m now at page six. it’s rough and ugly, but I wasn’t going for pretty at first. The polish doesn’t come till later. I gotta get it all down.
I’ve got a lot to work to do. My plate is full and I’m very content with this challenge. Excuse me while I devour this victory daiquiri.
Living in Slow Motion
I so need to update CINEs. I will begin with getting a new post this weekend. Was going to go see The Last Airbender, however, from those who saw it, they strongly suggested waiting for HBO. It’s not worth spending money on. Without seeing it, I’ve been told the acting and the story are horrible. I’m gonna confer with a couple more people before I wipe The Last Airbender off my list.
Worked on my thesis. Got my works cited page initiated. These things are never completed. I so need to get some terms and ideas committed or else I’m screwing myself out of some free time to write it. Besides it’ll be fun. Getting started is the hardest part.
Comprehensive Exams
For those not in the know, part of completing my Master of Arts degree requires a two part comprehensive exam. It was plenty of work, and forced me to put more than my usual efforts into completing the exam. I studied for a week for the first part, and for the second part (take home essay) I did a LOT of research. I admit that this was quite the challenge, AND I really pushed myself to work harder. I passed, and that was a great relief. I was very nervous, but I did put a lot of energy and efforts towards success.
Of course, now there is a review, and the thesis needs to get underway. Now that classes are over for the quarter, I can now get to revising a couple of papers, AND working on several pages of the thesis. It never ends. I’d love to see this to the end. That MA degree is right around the corner.
My CINES for Fall
Paper topics can be tricky and I still need an abstract for my World Cinema class. I got my Narratology paper topic (CINE 710) approved. I feel I can breath easier than I have been. For me, starting the paper gets a little rough. I liken the experience to that of sleeping on a worn out mattress.
For those not in the know, I created a presentation on the topic of “desire” for class that I thought I could expand upon. I made an abstract, and submitted it to my professor. After a quick revision, I got the topic approved. The films I will explore the topic of desire in will be, Elizabeth, V for Vendetta, and Interview with a Vampire.
The original class presentation included Batman Returns, but I wanted to use Interview after watching it last weekend.
I will discuss Pan’s Labyrinth for World CINE but I need my thoughts to gel properly.
CINEs Have Standards: Film Form
Have you ever been aware of film form? Well these are the elements of a film that cinema studies students look at when you’re analyzing a film. While I can’t break it all down for you without giving you pages of notes, I can tell you what they are, because going forward, and review I use for CINEs will contain these elements or variations of them.
The five components of film form:
- Narrative
- Mise-en-scene
- Cinematography
- Editing
- Sound
The length and amount of time you spend on each component is up to the writer. I know that it can change from film to film, as easy as it could change from writer to writer. This is only a fraction of what we do as cinema studies majors. We’re like detectives, looking at films, picking up clues, and giving our results.
I have a few films to discuss in the coming weeks. So I think we will have some enjoyment in discussing films. Furthermore, I may revise the older reviews on this page using the film forms.
