Digital Portfolio (2019-2020)

You know exactly what this is. Even people that haven't seen Pulp Fiction know what this is. The mysterious briefcase. Nothing more than a prop, but isn't a prop essential to a scene? Without props, old westerns don't have six-shootin cowboys, Captain America doesn't have his shield, and a scene lacks depth. I want to break this up into a few parts, Functionality, Depth, and Atmosphere. Essentially, breaking down this photo, but explaining why it's all necessary in order to make the scene whole. All from one single image from a 178 minute movie made in 1994. Functionality I won't put too much detail into this, since honestly it's a pretty self explanatory part of the props. The revolver, a hold up, a robbery. This is a diner, so of course it has nice roundabout seating, little utensils on the table behind Jackson, and the wall to show that yes, this is indeed a diner. Clothing an obvious bit since they are in public. Functionality is rather obviousl...

What is a voice over (or V/O)? A voice over can be a lot of things, the main character voicing their thoughts in a more organic way than an external monologue, a narrator doing an exposition drop, or a piece of dramatic irony. They give us access to a lot of things we normally wouldn't have, but using them at the wrong time can really pull the viewer out of the immersion. I want to explore voice overs and think of how I can use them in my film. Popular Examples The easiest example is looking at most mafia or crime drama movies. At some point there's normally a breakdown of the master plan, or an inner exploration into the mind of these criminal underlords. In Fight Club voice over work is done by the main character, The Narrator (played by Edward Norton) so we get to see the inner workings of his mind as well as play deeper into the idea that the character is really messed up in the head, which climaxes at the end of the movie when, spoiler alert, Tyler, the character pl...

Just for a little be of pretext for why I chose to do this as my topic for this week, I recently watched a video on Neo-Westerns, and honestly it was a very interesting topic that mentioned Tarantino breaking down the different "eras" of Westerns. It was also a topic I thought I could realistically spend 90 minutes on without getting bored. If you're interested in the video I'll be embeding it. (p.s Screened is an incredible channel that is very informative, I'd recommend them for any of your classes!) What is a Western? First I'd like a definition of what a Western is. At it's core, Westerns are about a few things. The grey area in the law, a protagonist protecting something or someone, and deal with the themes of either survival or a change in the times, based on which form of Western you're looking at. They contain shootouts and gunslingers/outlaws. With this very loose set of rules I want to go back and looks at the different eras of Wes...

Intention Definition & Exploration of Ideas: I don't know if I am sticking to my original plan, making films about going against the wrong doings the governments of the world inflict on its people. Personally, I think I just enjoy writing stories, exploring characters, and just having themes under them. In the first film of mine that never really came to fruition, it was about not allowing yourself as a citizen to become a mindless drone for your country, however so far in this film I'm working on now, it feels more like I'm working with what it is to be a part of a national identity, how it is to be a patriot for your country. I think this is mostly due to my exploration of the video game series Metal Gear, most specifically Snake Eater, which explores how soldiers are just pawns for their country, and sends a heavy anti-war message. I don't enjoy the idea of limiting myself to one theme or idea, and prefer to just explore human experience and psyche. Planning...

To be frankly honest I haven't done much having been out before the Corona outbreak and being mistold that we didn't have any school work over the course of the virus outbreak, but I do have photos of what I do have done so far and I will continue working on the script and finishing pre-production so I can finish filming once school opens back up. I wanted to make it really easy to look up who it was, what side they're on, and any other information that would be necessary for me to recount these events with as much historically accurate as possible. You can't see it cause I didn't crop these images correctly but on the left side of the screen all the different categories are kept up so I can easily navigate through my admittedly clunky notes. Another little bit of costuming as well as a look at some of the music I plan on including in my film. I'll have to hope my actors are good at singing. I know that I have a lot of characters, and there'...

Alasdair Mac Colla Precursor This isn't actually THAT important but this Highlanders full name is Sir  Alasdair MacColla   MacDonald of Colonsay. His English name is Alexander MacDonnel, and he actually died before the end of the Irish Confederate Wars (November 13th, 1647).  MacColla was the third son of  Col MacGillespie and Mary MacDonald, his father being the main chieftain of  the  MacDonald clan, who were mostly fragmented due to Clan Campbells conquer of their lands in the early 17th century. MacColla was forced into exile in Ireland with most of his family after the Earl of Argyll (chieftain of the Campbells clan) imprisoned his father and brothers in 1638. Military History When the Irish rebellion started in October of 1641, MacColla enlisted as captain of a regiment in Antrim raised against the Irish resistance. However, in January 1642 he defected to the side of the Catholic rebels. Scottish Covenanter forces from Scotland grabbed the at...