Spring Break Challenge

So for my next project which focuses on creating DIY prosthetics using a 3D printer, I decided to challenge myself to create a drawing without using my arms.  Instead, I used my feet and occasionally my mouth to hold a pen to draw a picture.  What I discovered during my research was that my feet cramp fairly easily which makes it hard for me to draw for long periods of time without becoming fatigued.  Also, it was very difficult to vary different kinds of pressure and lines.  It was almost impossible to make straight or accurate lines as well.  Another issue I had was how to sit and work on the drawing.  I found that clamping it onto a drawing pad made the process much easier and propping it up with pillows while I was seated on the couch was easier than working on the floor.  I also found it interesting that one foot was not easier to work with than the other, so I was able to switch off easily.  Though my drawing is incomplete, it still took hours and hours to do.  Overall, this was definitely more challenging than I thought it would be and if I had to do this over again, I probably would have picked an easier material to work with, like oil pastels, and I also would have worked larger so the little mistakes and inconsistencies wouldn't show up as much.

One awesome video and two mediocre ones

Here are my completed videos for my class' first project cluster.  I'm so relieved that they are all finally done!

This is my awesome Irish Dance video complete with explosions from DatMrRyan's channel:

This is my documentary on media addiction:

And last but not least, this is my awkward attempt at an oil pastel demo.  Enjoy!

My Process

Just a few of my pages researching ideas for the video projects.  Here you can see the mess that is my thinking process and my attempt at storyboarding the documentary.  Most of these pages are just research for the Elements video - different dance steps, dubstep music, etc.  

Elements Update and how Pinterest ruined everything

So I mentioned in the last post that I wanted to use an awesome dubstep song in my video and make it a remix of different Irish step dancers who represent each element.

Well now I have a different idea so I'm scrapping all of that.  I think the main reason behind the switch would have to be my obsession with Pinterest.  I got so caught up pinning tons of different dancers and song ideas that I felt lost in the project.  I felt like I was just an editor and not a creator of a video, so I wanted to take the project in a more personal direction.

For myself that meant me dancing, even though I am extremely self-conscious and shy, and to make it even more challenging, it will be an acapella piece (like this one).  Irish step Hard Shoe isn't my forte, as I have a lot of trouble getting a firm and steady set of taps and bangs.  I think due to the loud nature of the filming, I will do it in Smiley, that way the residents of my dorm don't kill me.  I could also play with the lighting more in Smiley, especially if I bring my own lamp and film in the night.

The most challenging part of the process for me will be layering since I have almost no experience using iMovie outside of my class.  I want different dance steps to go with different elements and I think if I repeat and layer them, I could get a nice rhythm going.  One of the biggest inspirations for me at this stage is the first Irish step dance song I ever heard - Riverdance's "Reel Around the Sun":

Elements Dubstep Initial Idea

Now that my documentary is finishing up (Connected Documentary)
I thought I might start working on my Elements VideofreeX project.  My original idea for this video was inspired by Lindsey Stirling's "Elements" music video and TapTronic's many Irish step/dubstep dance videos.

Since we had a discussion about copyright and free use, I got permission from AP3HAUS on youtube to use his Gaelic Storm Dubstep video.  I also decided early on that I wanted to remix different youtube dance videos and put them in my project.  For example, this one girl I found definitely looks like she's dancing on AIR, while this next guy's performance is more grounded and powerful, making me think of FIRE.  I think a compilation of dancers would be make a cool video, especially after discovering this fan-made video featuring Lindsey and TapTronic together:

Instructional Video Project Research

While I'm working on my documentary project, I have also been thinking about my instructional video that has to be under 10 minutes long.  Right now I am leaning towards making it on art, specifically working with oil pastels since I've heard a lot of negative criticism of them from professors at school.  I have been watching and critiquing videos to see how others approach this topic.

Recently I found this video on youtube:

Though it was a somewhat decent tutorial, there were several things wrong with the video.  One of the most distracting elements of the video for me was the setting.  You can hear airplanes, birds and wind which all distract from the artist's voice.  He also filmed under a tree, so the sun hitting the paper also causes a distraction since it is constantly moving around.  Overall, I give the artist a lot of credit for having such smooth blending with cray-pas oil pastels which are cheaply made and hard to work with.

I think my documentary will be broken up into different sections and I will have more vocabulary words/descriptions on screen.  I have a lot of different brands of oil pastel, so I might talk about differences between brands as well.  I find that a lot of the time, teachers dismiss them because they think I will use a cheap, waxy pastel that will look terrible.