Ashleigh's Blog

Today in our group Korskow project meeting we brainstormed a working title for our video piece. Here is the brainstorm so you can get an idea of what we are going for in our videos, the current working title is “DUET.”

Here is my groups weekly plan for out korsakow project. We met up for a meeting today and shared the videos we have recorded so far, everything is seeming to fit together really nicely and we are looking forward to seeing the end product!

Individual Korsakow Assessment Task

“A Glimpse”

My Korsakow project is entitled “A Glimpse.” It is a self-portrait, a multi-linear video sketch of me. I wanted the audience to get a glimpse into my world. It displays a compilation of my sketch videos to date, all which have been completed for Integrated Media 1.

I chose to present the user with various snippets into different aspects of my life. I feel that through the music, still imagery, and poetic use of video footage they can get a sense of my personality, interests, family, environment, and the way I operate creatively.
I chose to link and create meaning between the videos by following recurring themes that would appear in each 30-second film. Some of the videos are linked by their theme of shape, or colour, such as repetitive reds, blues, and yellows. Others are linked through their environmental surroundings, such as trees, the sun, or whether it is night or day. Videos that feature people will be linked to other videos showing people. If a girl is featured, you may find you are linked to another video featuring that same girl, if you are watching a video about a family, you may find the next suggested viewing will have some relation to family, and so on. I chose to use basic keywords that reflected the content of the videos such as babushka, blue, red, yellow, boy, girl, child, family, tree, in, out, sun, wheels, me, toy, round, square etc. Most links are fairly basic and self explanatory, however I do believe there will be some cases where the user may have to stop and really watch a video closely in order to make the connection between that video and the following. Just as I was made to think creatively in producing this interactive video piece, there will moments where my videos and the connections between them encourage the audience to also think creatively in order to gain understanding and link connections.

Whilst producing this Korsakow project, I found it a wonderful realisation that somehow a link can nearly always be created through each one of the videos, not simply the ones that have been intentionally created under the same theme. For example, I discovered that videos created in week one share similarities in themes to videos that were created in week five, even though they still stand as entirely different films created under entirely different themes and guidelines. It is a creative task in itself to find these links and connections, but one that I have found rewarding as it teaches you to further your ability and understanding to connect with an audience; with the users of this interactive video piece. It is a practice that integrates creativity, technological understanding, and a desire to connect with and speak to your audience.

I came across little technical errors whilst working in Korsakow. I conducted prior research about the software to enable me to have a better understanding of the program I would be working with, and to gain knowledge of technical errors that may arise. At first glance Korsakow seemed a bit daunting, to me it looked very complex, but once I was able to understand the Korsakow jargon and follow simple instructions found in my research of the program, as well as the assistance given to us during class, I could make my way around the program easily.

I believe that messages in film can be supported and often come across stronger when assisted by subtitles or text. Through the use of text tracks I have given the footage context, the audience can have a better understanding of how to receive the videos through me setting the context for them. Through the text tracks I have simply given them a little guidance and direction and steered them down the path of how I would like them to receive the video. It can sometimes be a challenge knowing what text to include in each video, however it is an important task to learn as it insists you to think more creatively. What I have noticed is that through the use of text I am giving a little less authority and power to the audience, as they have less ability to interpret what they see for themselves. This isn’t necessarily a positive or negative thing, purely an observation. I do, however, believe that the subtitles become a part of the film itself, therefore the audience may receive the same message or follow the same story or idea that I was aiming to deliver, or they may still think of something completely different. It can go either way depending on the user.

From a technical standpoint, the most valuable lesson I learnt whilst creating this Korsakow project was how to insert a text track. From a creative standpoint, the most valuable lesson I learnt was how to create creative links between the videos. I feel like a struggle a lot less when attempting to do this now. It is important to think simplistically, you don’t need complex connections, these can be great and can add a lot to your piece, but you can often find many connections through videos by just looking at the big picture and thinking basically.

I feel successful in what I embarked to achieve in this interactive Korsakow video piece. I feel that the audience will get a glimpse into my life; my world. I realised that everything we have learnt in Integrated Media has had some positive influence on our creation of this video task, we have been equipped with the knowledge and ability to produce this, whether we realised this beforehand or not.

Here is the online source