FST 553-800 Experimental - Meg Lansaw

I'm not sure if this worked! If my photo doesn't appear and only the link, that's my representation of myself... technologically impaired!

Meg Lansaw graduated from Ohio State with a BA in Photography. She relocated to Wilmington in 2001 and became involved with Cucalorus Film Festival (2001-2011), serving two terms as Secretary of The Board of Directors, and coordinator of outreach program, Cucalorus Kids. She launched Kissin' Cousins Productions LLC in 2003 and made 6 short films, including 80 Windows and wait... which screened at festivals including LA Shorts. She won Appalachian Film Festival's 2nd place Screenplay Award (2006) for feature, 11:11, currently in post production. Lansaw has worked on over 75 productions, including Secret Life of Bees, and Halloween Kills.

The word "amateur" has a negative connotation. An "amateur filmmaker" implicates the artist has little to no experience in their field. That's not necessarily the case. Success cannot be based on a paycheck. The quote below really resonated with me: Cameras donʼt make films; film-makers make films. Improve your films not by adding more equipment and personnel but by using what you have to its fullest capacity. The most important part of your equipment is yourself: your mobile body, your imaginative mind, and your freedom to use both. Make sure you do use them. Maya Deren Film Culture, Winter 1965

Fred Camper (Experimental) Fred Camper has been referenced in all of my film classes. The man seems a lover of all things film. Outside of classic story narratives, experimental films provide freedom to the artist. Generally, experimental films work with a small budget and small group of people, or are produced completely solo. There are no restrictions, so the genre is wide open to any form of execution. These exercises in media manipulation are not created as a means to an income, but an outlet for personal expression. Even if there was no intention behind a piece, the room for interpretation is vast.

I have seen Kustom Kar Kommandos four times and catch something new each watch! The color palatte with the pink and blue are visual representations of gender norms. The use of the soft sponge prop to polish hard, shiny objects heightens the homoerotic nature of this film. It's not until the man is inside the car that his face is shown. Sitting in the pristine driver's seat with vaginal shaped headrests, he moves the stickshift back and forth, remniscent of a sexual act. Being "faceless" for a good portion of the film demonstrated a "trapped in the closet" feel from 1965. For it's time, this film was brave and bold, which is likely why I've seen it in two classes!

I don't eat meat, but loved Meat Love! The imperfections of the stop motion animation, the color, and music were remniscint of that from a 1950's advertisement or a spread in Good Housekeeping magazine. What a dandy recipe for your husband's supper after a long day at work. The meat play on words with meet was clever (or cleaver:) and hopefully if they've not met, they didn't come from the same cow! Their first/last dance was hilarious, but the roll about in the flour was a bit disturbing. When the couple was finally tossed into the bubbling grease, I found myself wishing this pair would have met a different way.

Thrice I have watched this film and am glad I did so before offering commentary. Having made pictograms before, seeing so many images of the nails, I appreciated the amount of work that went into those few seconds. It's possible he used the same image(s), repeatedly moving them frame by frame in the same vein as stop motion animation... The hard lined linear objects rapidly shuttered and was interspliced with soft, circular objects slowing spinning 'round and 'round . The softness of the laced shadows on the woman's breasts along with slow turns of her body added a natural element to this film, supporting it's focus shadows, shapes and movement.

I often find I learn best by my mistakes. I unintentionally missed the 5pm deadline to set up my first blog here, thinking it was at midnight. Lesson = pay closer attention and read more thoroughly. If I were a doctor, my license would be suspended. I read within the syllabus the following: Topics to address are listed in the Weekly Modules. All blog entries must be posted the Tuesday before class by 5pm. When I clicked on Weekly Modules, it took me to the Syllabus Quiz.. Other than that, I don't see topics listed to address. If I'm missing something, please let me know! Since I didn't see a topic, I'm going to discuss the content of the quiz syllabus. It's odd to say I liked a quiz! The intention was to make sure everyone actually read the syllabus. I admit that I skimmed rather than studied the syllabus before taking the quiz the first time. The Joss Whedon question was a great way to encourage your students to navigate the blog. My failure to catch the r...