BLOG QUESTION: EARLY FILMS IN 60FPS

What is your opinion regarding this new trend in restoring, colorizing, and raising the frame rate to 60fps? Does it help make people interested in the past? Is it unethical? Is it lying to the viewer? What do you feel when you watch them?

I think it’s interesting to see the restoration of these films, and for regular people it helps them immerse themselves in into the past and gives them a better understanding of what life was like (or what life could've been like if you lived in that era). I do believe it makes it more interesting for people, but I don’t think its unethical or lying to the viewer, as long as they know that it’s a restoration and not the original piece. Personally, I don’t really like the colorized or higher frame rate restored films, just because it doesn’t look natural to me (especially if it’s done by AI). I do like the films that are restored, but when it has its original coloring and frame rate. For example, the “IMAX” 65mm films we watched looked very similar to how films look today (in terms of quality and frame rate), but it didn’t look unnatural.

BLOG QUESTION: WHO REALLY WAS FIRST?

Who was Louis Le Prince? What was his contribution to cinema? After reading about him, what surprises you about reading this article?

Louis Le Prince was a french inventor who was actually the first person to project a motion picture. He created the Le Prince Single-lens Cine Camera, which pre-dated Edison and the Lumiere's invention. However, on a trip to Paris, France, he disappeared along with his invention and wasn't given the recognition he deserved. One thing that surprised me was that he knew Jacques Daguerre during his youth. I also didn't know that he established his own school, which was the Leeds Technical School of Art.

BLOG QUESTION EVE: VERTICAL VIDEO

Why is vertical video a bad idea? Have you taken one? Why?

A vertical video is a bad idea because most devices that allow you to watch videos are horizontal (such as computers, the television, and movie screen). A vertical format limits the amount of information you can put on the screen and it makes it more difficult for you to tell a story. If vertical videos were to become the new norm, the devices that we watch videos on would have to change. I've taken a vertical video for social media because the format for most of the videos on them is vertical, and they're typically viewed on a phone screen which is a vertical device.

BLOG QUESTION: EARLY FILM SCAVENGER HUNT P.1

Take a few minutes online to search out and find one early short silent film you like that was made before 1910. Embed the video in your blog.

Why do you like this early silent film? What is so interesting about it? What are two common things you noticed about the movie you saw while searching for your video on YouTube?

I liked this silent film because it's a blend of stop-motion with real-life film, and it's a holiday movie. It's a creative idea because it takes you inside the mind of a child who's dreaming about a toy he just bought, and I can see how it would be a funny film back in the day. I'm curious about how long it took to film the stop-motion part as there seems to be a lot of moving parts and characters. One common thing I noticed about all the silent films that i skimmed through was that all of them were in black and white, and they followed the same composition, varying in shot sizes but not very much the angles. I also noticed that the transition between scenes were pretty simple and consisted of fade to blacks or superimposition. 

BLOG QUESTION: THE LUMIERE BROTHERS

What was their major contribution to cinema? How was their device different than Edison's?

Their major contribution to cinema was the Cinématographe. It was the first satisfactory technology made for taking and projecting films, and its claw mechanism became the basis for most cine cameras. The claw mechanism was created based on the mechanism for the sewing machine. What made it different from Edison’s was the fact that it was compact and didn’t require electricity. You could take it anywhere and all you needed was a magic lantern lamphouse with a gas or limelight illuminant.

BLOG QUESTION: EARLIEST FILMS REFLECTION

 What qualities do these early films share? Why do you think the filmmakers shot these? How do they differ from modern movies?

A lot of these films have a jittery quality to them and the camera has little to no movement in most of the shots. A lot of them show people performing, going through their daily lives, or interesting events. I believe the filmmakers shot these to document these interesting people (such as the strong man or the Native Americans) for future use, but also to document what life was like back then (for example, the football game or the automobile video). These differ from most modern movies because they don't have many cuts or unique camera angles and movements. there also isn't a clear storyline to them.

BLOG QUESTION: MUYBRIDGE

What were Muybridge's contributions to motion pictures? What breakthroughs did he make? Why are they significant? What part of the story did you find the most interesting? Why?

His work laid the foundation for the development of cinematography by proving that motion could be captured and studied. One of his more major breakthroughs was his Horse Gallop experiment. He wanted to prove whether or not all four hooves of a horse left the ground while galloping. It was significant because he did manage to photograph a horse in motion and he proved that all four hooves do leave the ground. The part I found most interesting about the story was the publics reaction to his discoveries, as they did not believe him. I think that the debate was intense and its interesting to see what kind of scientific controversies were happening during that era.

BLOG QUESTION: CHRONOPHOTOGRAPHY

After reading this article and viewing the images that Marey captured, write a reflection on what you think Marey's motion studies contributed to the development of the motion picture. What makes his work so interesting?

by using the chronophotography technique, Marey played a huge role in the development of motion pictures. He would capture successive images on a single print, which showed how motion could be broken down and analyzed. His photographic gun, which was able to take 12 frames per second, inspired the motion studies of Harold Edgerton, and influenced the motion picture camera. He would mostly use animals such as birds, horses, and also people in motion. He would try to take all angles of the subjects. Based on the images he would get; he would make bronzes that showed the three dimensions of their movement.

BLOG QUESTION: THE DIORAMA THEATRE

What was a Diorama Theatre? Why do you think it was a precursor to cinema?

The Diorama Theatre is a multimedia spectacle. it was an immersive experience in a specially made building. It was projected in a darkened room, with transparent and opaque images. It would slowly transform itself from night to day, from winter to summer, often with music and other sound effects. It was a precursor to cinema because it replicated modern day movie theaters where people would come to watch a film in a room built for screenings.

BLOG QUESTION: INVENTION OF PHOTOGRAPHY

Why do you think we wouldn't have filmmaking without the invention of photography? Pick three of these innovations on this list and explain their historical importance and why you think it led to the invention of motion pictures.

The technology used to create photography was the basis for the technology that creates film. If you think about it objectively, film is basically a series of images taken repeatedly to create the illusion of motion. I believe Dry Plates was an important innovation for photography and later contributed to the invention of film because it allowed for much quicker exposures, and you didn't need the knowledge of basic chemistry to know how to use it. I also believe the Calotype was an important innovation because it allowed for multiple copies of a single negative to be made.

BLOG QUESTION: THE PHANTASMAGORIA

What was the Phantasmagoria? After reading this article, write a reflection on what elements of the Phantasmagoria became adopted into the development of movies.

The Phantasmagoria created illusions of the dead through a device called the Fantoscope (which was basically a magic lantern on wheels), which allowed him to project images and create the illusion that they were moving closer to the audience. He also used practical effects such as smoke to further scare his audiences. Phantasmagoria reminds me of 3D or even 4D movie experiences. Through illusions, he's able to immerse the audiences into the experience, similarly how 3D movies use different images layered onto the screen and glasses to create the illusion of the screen being 3D. 4D movies also use practical effects in theater such as smoke, water, air, etc. to immerse the audience, which reminds me of the Phantasmagoria experience.