Critical Review on How to Revolutionize Cinema without Really Trying
The speaker I had listened to for Interaction Future last week is Award-winning Canadian director and animator Munro Ferguson. Munro’s talk was concentrating on stereoscopic experimental filmmaking. He also presented a stereoscopic film he made recently in Yukon. This talk examined the progress made within the context of the history of film experimentation and the course of technical development up to the present day. In the film, there were many scenes where he captured in Yukon. From the beginning of the film, there was a stereoscopic girl dancing in the forest. Munro made her occurred a few times thought out the film as a spiritual guide of this image tours. The natural images were very appealing. Especially when you see it with a pair of stereoscopic glasses. When you see a daily object or landscape with the same angle but a different and interesting result, it is always explore yourself with a very different way to think those objects and landscapes you have seen before.
Munro also made several paradigm shifts comparison in motion picture history.The beginning of the film introduced the technique Munro has used as Cinema Verité. He used typical cinematic devices of editing way to combine with his camerawork. Then he set up a stage and then uses his digital device to provoke subjects. There was a scene when Munro was hiking on a mountain, he found there was a mountain he really enjoy, then he stopped to use his print brushes and pigments to capture the view. However, it suddenly started to rain. Munro immediately used some waterproof fabric to cover him and the printing. Then rain came with a big wind. All the equipments suddenly throw around the grounds. He said he was trying to capture the view as those maters did in the old time. And their patience and attitude should really be learned and studied. He wanted to point out how digital has changed the way artists have normally been used for producing arts. However, from this part of the film, I believe Munro also recorded the process of two ways of producing arts. And made dynamic example for those differences. This method also was treated as a provocative stance toward its topics.
Formatting arts work in a different scale and dimension was also a standing point on Munro’s talk. The example of the mountain printing produced from the digital camera to editing computer to the final 50 inch by 70-inch image is dynamic. How to keep the artwork soul in a original sprite is not only depends on the abilities of your art talent, but also depends on the abilities to use the new digital medium tool to bring the artwork go beyond. A same image could create a different feeling in a different scale, different format, and different medium. As the format of 3D film, really create more realistic view experience and interaction with the films. At the last part of Munro’s talk, he took the audience into some of his current projects he has involved with and the techniques and process he had produced. The intention of Munro’s talk and his works really made me have more thoughts on the methodology of how to use digital as a medium to create arts. Also, I believe the most important thing I gained a lot was to experience the working process of Munro’s digital creation and development from concept to actual objects. I really inspired by some of his ideas on using digital techniques to produce physical art pieces. Digital communication has influenced a lot on our lives, how to use those to communicate and express is crucial. Exploring the ways for those methods and share with people who all have the same will is also a great experience.
