http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKbet4RdSo4
Freakanomics Graphics, (Brian Oakes):
http://brianoakes.com/#/Film/
What Barry Says, (Knife-Party):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qO_8RwXMMwI
Monday, September 26, 2011
ABSTRACT TO CONCRETE
The Best Gift I Ever Survived, (Stacey Kramer)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKbet4RdSo4
Freakanomics Graphics, (Brian Oakes):
http://brianoakes.com/#/Film/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKbet4RdSo4
Freakanomics Graphics, (Brian Oakes):
http://brianoakes.com/#/Film/
METHODS OF PROPAGANDA
Now that you've gained a good handle on basic narrative skills, let's see if they can be applied in a more commercial manner to promote a product or message.
Below are a few commonly used propaganda techniques used in everyday advertising. For even more techniques, check out Mainstream Media's Style Guide of Propaganda Techniques.
For a .pdf of the below list click here:
“Name Calling”, or Negative Comparison:
Suggesting one product is better by putting the competition down, ex: Pepsi vs. Coke.
"Keeping up with the Jones' ", or Status Symbol:
A product, usually an otherwise unnecessary item, made to seem completely necessary because everyone else has it. How have you lived until now without "X"? He has it, she has it, even yo' mama's dog has it. What about you? Do you have "X”?... Don't be caught without "X"..., etc...
"Mo' Better":
An old product made to seem "New and Improved!", ex. "Super-Fabulous-Wetter Water - now with Extra h2o!".
Testimonial:
"Real people" talking directly into the camera about their "real-life" experiences (how "X" changed their lives for the better/worse). "Before I discovered "X", my life was a mess...". Testimonials feel like candid, intimate advise from real people, rather than deliberate hard-sell from advertising marketers.
Card Stacking:
Listing tons of virtues about a product to convince the viewer just HOW good "X" is. This technique can also be done in the negative.
"Knight in Shining Armor", or Fear Tactic:
Like in the Truth.com campaign, the Fear technique begins with "card stacking" the evils of the tobacco industry, detailing statistics of cigarette smoking, all the ways the tobacco industry lies to us...essentially building a heightened sense of fear in the viewer, THEN, when the audience is sufficiently vulnerable or frightened, come to the rescue with a solution.
ex. "You've just heard the truth [fear]. Now go to Truth.com [solution]". "Most vacuum cleaners clog up and loose suction...leaving billions of dust mites behind! [fear] - All that is, Except Dyson [solution]".
Nostalgia/Escape:
Appeals our longing for a kinder, gentler time (old timey country lanes... when life was oh so simple...) Pepperidge Farm Cookies [sweet old man driving a horse drawn carriage], Country Time Lemonade [two old geezers on rocking chairs on a country porch, drinking lemonade, passing the time]. This technique invokes a deep sense of longing for a bygone era - therefore suggesting we can bring that time back if we had the product. This technique can also be used to invoke relaxation, escape... "Come to Jamaica and feel alright...", "Calgon [bath salts], Take Me Away..."
Sex/Appetite:
Appeals to the viewer's primal instincts for sex and food. Jessica Simpson's Pizza Hut Poppers [Jessica "popping" out of skimpy T-shirt and shorts associated with pizza hut's new "pizza poppers", or, Axe Cologne campaign, "How The Dirty Boys Get Clean...".
Celebrity Association:
Michael Jordan wears Nike, so you can be just as fly if you wore his shoes.
Lifestyle / Vibe / Aura / Attitude:
Selling a lifestyle or vibe that seems cool or ideal. IKEA, the GAP. Nike's "Just Do It".
Honest Every Man Approach:
Everyday, ordinary people (just like you) using a particular product. iPod silhouette campaign (plug your own face on that silhouette). Volkswagen (literally, "wagon for the people". Their commercials tend to be "family friendly", featuring plotlines about people who care about their families' safety while driving.
Jingle/Slogan:
Using catchy music or memorable tag line. "Got Milk?", "AFLAC !", "Can you hear me now?", or Yahoo's "Yaaaa hoooooo eee oooo~"
Humor/Awe Inspiring:
Creating a narrative that becomes so memorable by the concept, storytelling, and/or sheer gorgeousness of production value. Ridley Scott's commercial for MacIntosh invoking George Orwell's "1984". worth youtubing if you've never seen it.
Voice of Reason/Authority:
Usually as voice-over, but not necessarily. Trustworthy voice assures us that we should trust whatever they are saying.
Some examples of propaganda techniques in action:
Truth in Advertising:
http://youtu.be/Go_VtqtxCHY
Below are a few commonly used propaganda techniques used in everyday advertising. For even more techniques, check out Mainstream Media's Style Guide of Propaganda Techniques.
For a .pdf of the below list click here:
“Name Calling”, or Negative Comparison:
Suggesting one product is better by putting the competition down, ex: Pepsi vs. Coke.
"Keeping up with the Jones' ", or Status Symbol:
A product, usually an otherwise unnecessary item, made to seem completely necessary because everyone else has it. How have you lived until now without "X"? He has it, she has it, even yo' mama's dog has it. What about you? Do you have "X”?... Don't be caught without "X"..., etc...
"Mo' Better":
An old product made to seem "New and Improved!", ex. "Super-Fabulous-Wetter Water - now with Extra h2o!".
Testimonial:
"Real people" talking directly into the camera about their "real-life" experiences (how "X" changed their lives for the better/worse). "Before I discovered "X", my life was a mess...". Testimonials feel like candid, intimate advise from real people, rather than deliberate hard-sell from advertising marketers.
Card Stacking:
Listing tons of virtues about a product to convince the viewer just HOW good "X" is. This technique can also be done in the negative.
"Knight in Shining Armor", or Fear Tactic:
Like in the Truth.com campaign, the Fear technique begins with "card stacking" the evils of the tobacco industry, detailing statistics of cigarette smoking, all the ways the tobacco industry lies to us...essentially building a heightened sense of fear in the viewer, THEN, when the audience is sufficiently vulnerable or frightened, come to the rescue with a solution.
ex. "You've just heard the truth [fear]. Now go to Truth.com [solution]". "Most vacuum cleaners clog up and loose suction...leaving billions of dust mites behind! [fear] - All that is, Except Dyson [solution]".
Nostalgia/Escape:
Appeals our longing for a kinder, gentler time (old timey country lanes... when life was oh so simple...) Pepperidge Farm Cookies [sweet old man driving a horse drawn carriage], Country Time Lemonade [two old geezers on rocking chairs on a country porch, drinking lemonade, passing the time]. This technique invokes a deep sense of longing for a bygone era - therefore suggesting we can bring that time back if we had the product. This technique can also be used to invoke relaxation, escape... "Come to Jamaica and feel alright...", "Calgon [bath salts], Take Me Away..."
Sex/Appetite:
Appeals to the viewer's primal instincts for sex and food. Jessica Simpson's Pizza Hut Poppers [Jessica "popping" out of skimpy T-shirt and shorts associated with pizza hut's new "pizza poppers", or, Axe Cologne campaign, "How The Dirty Boys Get Clean...".
Celebrity Association:
Michael Jordan wears Nike, so you can be just as fly if you wore his shoes.
Lifestyle / Vibe / Aura / Attitude:
Selling a lifestyle or vibe that seems cool or ideal. IKEA, the GAP. Nike's "Just Do It".
Honest Every Man Approach:
Everyday, ordinary people (just like you) using a particular product. iPod silhouette campaign (plug your own face on that silhouette). Volkswagen (literally, "wagon for the people". Their commercials tend to be "family friendly", featuring plotlines about people who care about their families' safety while driving.
Jingle/Slogan:
Using catchy music or memorable tag line. "Got Milk?", "AFLAC !", "Can you hear me now?", or Yahoo's "Yaaaa hoooooo eee oooo~"
Humor/Awe Inspiring:
Creating a narrative that becomes so memorable by the concept, storytelling, and/or sheer gorgeousness of production value. Ridley Scott's commercial for MacIntosh invoking George Orwell's "1984". worth youtubing if you've never seen it.
Voice of Reason/Authority:
Usually as voice-over, but not necessarily. Trustworthy voice assures us that we should trust whatever they are saying.
Some examples of propaganda techniques in action:
Truth in Advertising:
http://youtu.be/Go_VtqtxCHY
George Clooney Gets Married:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sfrt2L09PpM
Think Before You Post:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4w4_Hrwh2XI
http://youtu.be/1afM6W1Tj1s
MTV "Shot" AIDS PSA:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4ZBzMOV9Js
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
NARRATIVE VOICE
First person: "I "
"I woke up in a pool of sweat...".
- usually the main character's voice.
Pros:
- we have a direct connection to the narrator's emotional state, which provides a sense of immediacy, intimacy.
- narrator can be "reliable" or "unreliable".
- an "unreliable" narrator may be drunk, insane, otherwise warped w/ a distorted perception of things. He may have ulterior motives, an ax to grind, or too emotional to think clearly.
Cons:
- limited by the fact that narrator can't enter the heads of other characters.
- cannot relay what he doesn't know, cannot describe scenes he's not in.
Second person: "You"
"You go to the corner store...."
Pros:
- the reader feels like a character in the story.
- feels like a "choose-your-own-adventure" - very effective in interactive, user driven narrative.
- can be a difficult voice to use. the trick to using it effectively is to be abstract in description, so reader can associate their own experiences more readily.
Cons:
- some readers are turned off because it feels like they are being bossed around by the narrator.
Third person: "He, she, it, they"
"He was down to his last dime..."
- writer speaking as narrator, a bit like playing God.
Pros:
- no limitations to this point of view. narrator has the potential to go anywhere, including into the minds of other characters.
- feels objective. narrator does not have to be a character in the story.
- narrator's authority comes across more readily in this point of view.
- complex tones, such as the gravity of a situation, are easier to convey in 3rd person.
Cons:
- you often loose the urgency and intimacy compared with 1st person voice.
- there's a layer of insulation between the characters and the reader. You can bridge this gap by getting deep into characters' motivations and making them as vivid as possible.
Still other Points of View...
Stream of consciousness:
- internal ramblings, as they come streaming from the mind.
- usually sounds unedited.
example: Jack Kerouac's On The Road
Monologue:
- basically giving a speech, like an actor alone on stage with spotlight.
example: Edgar Allen Poe's The Pit and the Pendulum
Diary or journal:
- as though narrator is writing directly into their diary.
- potential to be more intimate than the monologue.
example: Helen Fielding's Bridget Jones's Diary
Epistolary: ("epistle" means "letter", as in a "dear john" letter)
- takes the form of a letter from one person to another or correspondence between parties.
- was popular back in the old days when people wrote letters, but can be updated to take the form of emails or text messages.
example: Nick Bantock's Griffin and Sabine
"I woke up in a pool of sweat...".
- usually the main character's voice.
Pros:
- we have a direct connection to the narrator's emotional state, which provides a sense of immediacy, intimacy.
- narrator can be "reliable" or "unreliable".
- an "unreliable" narrator may be drunk, insane, otherwise warped w/ a distorted perception of things. He may have ulterior motives, an ax to grind, or too emotional to think clearly.
Cons:
- limited by the fact that narrator can't enter the heads of other characters.
- cannot relay what he doesn't know, cannot describe scenes he's not in.
Second person: "You"
"You go to the corner store...."
Pros:
- the reader feels like a character in the story.
- feels like a "choose-your-own-adventure" - very effective in interactive, user driven narrative.
- can be a difficult voice to use. the trick to using it effectively is to be abstract in description, so reader can associate their own experiences more readily.
Cons:
- some readers are turned off because it feels like they are being bossed around by the narrator.
Third person: "He, she, it, they"
"He was down to his last dime..."
- writer speaking as narrator, a bit like playing God.
Pros:
- no limitations to this point of view. narrator has the potential to go anywhere, including into the minds of other characters.
- feels objective. narrator does not have to be a character in the story.
- narrator's authority comes across more readily in this point of view.
- complex tones, such as the gravity of a situation, are easier to convey in 3rd person.
Cons:
- you often loose the urgency and intimacy compared with 1st person voice.
- there's a layer of insulation between the characters and the reader. You can bridge this gap by getting deep into characters' motivations and making them as vivid as possible.
Still other Points of View...
Stream of consciousness:
- internal ramblings, as they come streaming from the mind.
- usually sounds unedited.
example: Jack Kerouac's On The Road
Monologue:
- basically giving a speech, like an actor alone on stage with spotlight.
example: Edgar Allen Poe's The Pit and the Pendulum
Diary or journal:
- as though narrator is writing directly into their diary.
- potential to be more intimate than the monologue.
example: Helen Fielding's Bridget Jones's Diary
Epistolary: ("epistle" means "letter", as in a "dear john" letter)
- takes the form of a letter from one person to another or correspondence between parties.
- was popular back in the old days when people wrote letters, but can be updated to take the form of emails or text messages.
example: Nick Bantock's Griffin and Sabine
Saturday, September 10, 2011
WEEKLY BREAKDOWN:
WK 1 /// AUG 30 + SEP 1
Tues: What is narrative? How are good narratives useful to us in real world situations?
What are some of the genres of different narratives?
Backstory (in class exercise):
Looking beneath the surface to the “backstory”.
Read: Gorillaz Backstory:
http://www.gorillaz-unofficial.com/news/
(“Biography” tab > "Biographies of the Band and Band Members" link).
HW: Backstory: Write the backstory about anything of your choice - a photograph perhaps or a personal
object that hold special significance to you. Bring the object/image of your backstory for your presentation..
Thurs: Present Backstory assignment.
Remember to bring the object/image of your backstory to class for your presentation..
Reductive storytelling:
Gregory Crewdson Artist Profiles:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQy4uiS6iKw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdfUCQjYPCQ
HW: Bare Essentials: Take a proverb, fairy tale, perhaps a newspaper article, or even your backstory
assignment and convey the essence in one visual composition.
Read: How to Write a Short Story: Chapter 5 "Beginnings and Endings" or Storycraft: Chapter 2 "Structure"
WEEK 2 /// SEP 6 + 8
Tues: Present Bare Essentials assignment.
5 Part Narrative Structure. Analyze the core structure of a narrative.
Exposition - Conflict - Climax – Falling Action – Denouement.
Internal vs. External conflict.
HW: 5 Part Narrative: Write a narrative incorporating all the criteria of a 5 part narrative structure.
Part 1: Write the whole story in text format, (just as you did with the Backstory exercise).
Part 2: Summarize the 5 parts of your narrative: Exposition, Rising Action, Climax, Falling Action, Resolution.
Be concise as possible, one or two sentences for each section should be sufficient).
Thurs: Present 5 Part Narrative assignment.
Discuss strengths/weaknesses - suggest revisions.
HW: STORYBOARD your 5 Part Narrative (revise your narrative first if necessary).
WEEK 3 /// SEP 13 + 15
Tues: Manipulating Structure: Variations on the straightforward narrative.
Radiohead’s “Karma Police”.
Michel Gondry’s video for Cibo Matto “Sugar Water”.
Present: 5 Part Narrative STORYBOARDS
Consider the following as we look at each narrative:
* Start chipping away from the top to find the “true” beginning. How does this impact the story?
* Try it the other way, from the ending. Does it leave a different impression?
* Throw in a twist - change the climax, or flip the ending. What effect does it have?
* Reverse the entire narrative sequence. How does this change the story?
* What happens if you tell it as a mystery?
Which methods improved or did not improve the original narrative?
HW: Apply any of the methods discussed in class to improve your narrative.
Read: How to Write a Short Story: Chapter 4 "Point of View" or Storycraft: Chapter 4 "Voice"
Thurs: Voice – First Person, Second Person, Third Person
First Person – what are the benefits, limitations of this voice?
Unreliable First Person Narrator – how does this affect the telling of the story?
Second Person Narrative – what are the benefits, limitations of this voice?
Third Person Narrative – what are the benefits, limitations of this voice?
Internal Dialogue, Aspect Shots
Points of View
Omnipotent, Bird’s Eye, Worm’s Eye, Close Up, Protagonist, Antagonist, etc…
5 point perspective (in class exercise): Dramatic narrative sequencing.
Hitchcock’s “Psycho” shower scene was pre-visualized using this exact technique.
HW: 5 Point Perspective: Convert a scene from your narrative into 5 point perspective.
Photograph or sketch 25 stills (5 points in time @ 5 perspectives each).
Lay out all 25 stills (time x perspective) and choose your best shot sequence.
Prepare as individual photos or index cards that can be moved around next class.
Read: Shot by Shot: Chapter 14 "Camera Angles" + Chapter 16 "Point of View"
WK 4 /// SEP 20 + 22
Tues: Present 5 Point Perspective stills
Lay out all 25 stills in sequence. With everybody’s input, select the strongest shot sequence.
HW: 5 Point Perspective Sequence: Arrange the best perspective sequence for your narrative.
Thurs: Present FINAL 5 Point Perspective sequences.
Concrete ideas - Ways of making abstract concepts more memorable.
Propaganda techniques - Methods of audience manipulation.
thetruth.com campaign http://www.thetruth.com/
Good example of concrete and propaganda techniques.
HW: Concrete/Propaganda: Take an abstract idea and explain it in concrete, memorable terms.
For instance, how many rolls of toilet paper does it takes to span the distance from the Earth to the Sun?
Or go deeper and add a propaganda technique - what does the saturated fat used to pop movie theatre
popcorn really do to your arteries?
Prepare your concept in digital storyboard format.
Read: Made to Stick: Chapter "Concrete" + Propaganda techniques hand-out
WEEK 5 /// SEP 27 + 29 (NO CLASS)
Tues: Present INITIAL Concrete/Propaganda STORYBOARDS
Are they concrete enough? Develop ideas further as a class.
How can we make each others’ ideas more concrete, more memorable?
HW: Revise Concrete/Propaganda STORYBOARDS
Read: Made to Stick: Chapters "Simple", "Unexpected"
Thurs: NO CLASS
WEEK 6 /// OCT 4 + 6
REVISED Concrete/Propaganda STORYBOARDS
Tues: Groups A + B
Thurs: NO CLASS ROSH HASHANAH
WEEK 7 /// OCT 11 + 13
FINAL Concrete/Propaganda STORYBOARDS
Tues: Group A (we'll try to get thru some of Group B so there's more time on Thurs to discuss Final Project).
Thurs: Group B
HW: FINAL PROJECT // THEORETICAL SYNTHESIS
Let’s apply what you’ve learned to a real world scenario.
Design an effective narrative of any genre in any format of your choice.
For instance, you may want to create a broadcast narrative in the form of a PSA (like the truth.com campaign),
applying propaganda techniques and concrete visual messages to get your message across. Others may want
to craft a traditional narrative, like a children’s story, but translate it to an interactive format where the user is
lured by "gap theory" or mystery to engage deeper into the experience. Perhaps, a physical computing format
where the story is told through soft sculpture effigies with recorded audio triggered by the user in some fashion.
Even a music video visually expressing the lyrics in a memorable way - experiment with all kinds of animation
video techniques - stop motion, split screen, experimental mixed media. A title sequence for a film would
require suggesting the essence of the larger narrative, using the reductive storytelling techniques. You can
even cross-pollinate several formats and come up with your own hybrid. Sky's the limit - test-drive your new
narrative wings.
Prepare a formal PITCH PRESENTATION
How to write a proper Pitch Statement:
Pitch Statement: [1] sentence stating your project.
Paragraph 1: [1] short paragraph - Brief synopsis of story.
Paragraph 2: [1] short paragraph - Isolate the important theme(s) of the story.
Paragraph 3: Define design approach with relation to paragraphs 1+2.
ALSO prepare all pertinent research, references, precedents in digital format to support your presentation.
WEEK 8 /// OCT 18 + 20
FINAL PROJECT PITCH PRESENTATION
Include all supportive research, references, precedents.
Be sure to define your format - broadcast, interactive, physical computing, hybrid, etc…
Tues: Group A
Thurs: Group B
WK 9 /// OCT 25 + 27
INITIAL STORYBOARDS
Discussion, discussion, discussion.Use all of the techniques we covered to strengthen each other's concepts.
Tues: Group A
Thurs: Group B
WK 10 /// NOV 1 + 3
FINAL (REVISED) STORYBOARDS
Begin production if you were given the greenlight last week.
Make your own production schedule. Include equipment reservations if necessary.
Tues: Group A
Thurs: Group B
WK 11 /// NOV 8 + 10
1st Pass Animation (25% done)
Tues: Group A
Thurs: Group B
WK 12 /// NOV 15 + 17
2nd Pass Animation (50% done)
Tues: Group A
Thurs: Group B
* * * * /// NOV 22 + 24 THANKSGIVING BREAK WEEK * * * *
Tues: TBA
Thurs: NO CLASS - Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!!!
WK 13 /// NOV 29 + DEC 1
3rd Pass Animation (75% done - should be close to finished).
Tues: Group A
Thurs: Group B
WK 14 /// DEC 6+ 8
4th Pass Animation (100% done - aim to complete by this week for next week's final presentations)
Tues: Group A
Thurs: Group B
HW: Prepare material for upcoming FINAL thesis presentations and all deliverables for final submission.
WK 15 /// DEC 13 + 15
FINAL PRESENTATION
Tues: Group A
Thurs: Group B
Hand in all FINAL DELIVERABLES on data DVD.
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