Pockets directed by James Lee - short documentary

The short documentary Pockets directed by James Lees is an abstract piece based purely around what members of the public obtain in their pockets, the subject matter hasn't been broadcast before (in my knowledge) so therefore it is a very fresh and new concept in trams of documentary style. This documentary deals with themes of identity and personality focussing directly on each individual person and reaching into their pockets which, in ordinary circumstances, would not be allowed. Along with their possessions the director decides to show their faces, some speak, a small amount only show their hands filled with their pocketed possessions. Throughout this the director likes to experiment with varying camera angles an occasionally experimenting with going in and out of focus, a close up on the individuals hands is used continuously however he also likes to use close ups, extreme close ups and slightly off angle shots of faces in order to obtain the interest of the viewers so that the content isn't all the same. There are no introductions to these people however, we are just presented with them, what they have in their pockets and sometimes they will describe what it is and where it came from, however this is not necessarily a bad thing as it allows us to merrily focus on the basis of this story which is what do people carry in their pockets?

Iris by Tom Le Surf-Hall, Jodie Lunn, Hannah Kilbourn and Connor March

Iris from SHU Film & Media Production on Vimeo.

Sound list and schedule

Sound list
- Peace Gardens quiet
- fountain
- loud city/town noise
- quiet city noise
- people chatter
- traffic
- quiet nature
- water drips
- loud people chatter

Equipment list
- Zoom H5
- Audio Technica AT8015 Rifle microphone

Recording Schedule
Recording for the audio took place over 2 days, the first day was for the initial audio for example the city noise, mainly the noise to act as a base for the sound piece. Then on the second day we went out to record smaller noises to add more depth to the piece for example the nature and the water drop sounds. To edit the sound piece we used Pro Tools which took around 2 days as well.

Star Guitar - The Chemical Brothers analysis

The music video ‘Star Guitar’ by The Chemical Brothers takes on an abstract form as the entire video consists of not so much the same images; more so the same type of images. This music video consists of a continuous journey along a train line through the train carriage window, not specifically from point of view however the beauty of this piece is that it can be interoperated this way given its simplistic nature. Due to its simplicity it may not be perceived as an abstract piece however because of its lack of narrative, given that it is a music video not a short film, it allows anyone to interpret the themes how they want. In addition to this the sound piece used is a sample from the David Bowie song Starman, this piece is used throughout giving as a background for the visuals as there are no lyrics or words throughout. In Bordwell and Thompson’s (1997) article it is said that “In opposition to dominant or mainstream cinema some filmmakers set out to create films that challenge orthodox notions of what a movie can show and how it can show it”. This is very true to this piece as it does not have to be bombarded with effects and loud sounds to convey a message, there are some things that need to be watched and interpreted by everyone in their own way. The directors intentions were to use the sound as a main element to accompany the visuals, with some of the beats and tones go in time with the visuals in the video.

The Space Around Me powerpoint

The Space Around Me - sound piece

https://soundcloud.com/jodie-lunn/audio-project-connor-and-jodie

The Space Around Me by Connor March and Jodie Lunn

The Space Around Me from Connor March on Vimeo.