Crowd-sourcing

Crowd-sourcing is a very creative way to make something such as an experimental film. It involves the collaboration of  many different people, allowing for a broad creative approach, as everyone has a different way of thinking and approaching an idea. It is usually a very affordable way of making an idea come to life, crowd-souring depends on the donation of artist work and a small crew for editing. Technology at large has opened many doors for communication and working collaboratively on projects. Wikipedia, and I had never thought about this fact is indeed one of the most successful and continuous example of a major crowd-sourcing project. It very straight forward, easy to follow guide lines on how to successfully make it through the process. I am very excited to see how our crowd-sourcing project turns out!

Experimental film project: uno

I took on the role of a mad artist posing as a scientist during the making of this project. I experimented with bleach, hydrogen procide, vinager, salt, paint and coffee all within my kitchen sink. Glad my roommate wasn't home all the while, he is a neat freak and would have had a conniption fit with the wonderful mess I made. Inks, sand paper, and sharpies were also used during my experiment with clear leader and old film stock. My brightest idea which failed... (A few of my experiments failed, just to let it be known, but my brightest idea) was to sprinkle salt and coffee along different sections of the film and then pour bleach over it, my assumption was that it would make sweet patterns, it did not. This project proved multiple times that my assumptions were plum wrong. Bleaching was my upmost favorite part of this project, instant gratification!

Sound

"Sound and Time"- Boyd expresses his love for music and various sounds. He records and mixes sounds, to create a conversation between material, sound and place- sound being the activating element connecting them. Multiple sounds to make one- natural and unnatural combined to create something new. He often mixes his recordings and creates a loop.
This video made me think of all the different sounds in the world, and the different ways in which they could possibly mix together. It is mind blowing to think about how many variations are possible.

"Listen"- This video really pointed out the different natural sounds, birds, traffic, metal pipes, a record, gloves going on a hand, a hat on the head, hay and snow crunching below feet, a zipper. This video made me aware of how many sounds I take for-granted and tune out on an average day.

"Listen up: Opening our Ears to Acoustic Ecology" This article broke down "acoustic ecology" as an umbrella term and the different ways sound is being studied. The main point- Sound affects humans and animals within their environment. City noise has been interfering with different species of birds- their mating calls have changed from a unique song to a generic chirp.  Sonar used by the Navy for underwater surveillance are affecting marine life- Migration patterns changed for whales- Some beached themselves, autopsies showed hemorrhages in or around ears- pointing to the cause being "intense acoustic pressure." Technology has added to us selectively listening. That being present and really listing is of up-most importance.

"The Father of Acoustic Ecology"- "Society is in need of a big old Q-tip. Our senses are clogged with too much." This article begins- It expresses the importance of listening to what is around you and how technology has lead to us zoning out sound, due to the lack of important information its natural drone makes. It goes on to speak of how humans make destructive sounds and even go so far as to attack others with it. That long distance hearing isn't as possible anymore- overpopulation of sound has taken over. That sounds and nature are connected- If an instrument is played or a song is sung, birds will sing back.

All of the above material promoted the importance of listening- and suggested that we have become so accustom to ambient and other noises we have forgotten the importance of really listening. That to really experience the world and not stay stuck inside yourself- it is necessary to really listen and let the sounds slowly unfold and layer around you. That sounds are important- not only to listen to, but encouraged thoughtfulness when expelling your own noise. Also the difference between distortion, broadband noise and natural, rich sounds.  

As I was reading the articles I begin to realize how little I really listen to the different sounds around me. My ears had defiantly become jaded to sounds of the world. After turning my ears back on, so to speak I really noticed how much noise is humming in the air at any given time.

A lot of questions and things to consider came to mind: What makes two sounds work together and why. What makes a sound pleasant, and on the flip what makes a sound abrasive or annoying. I never thought to think this much about sound.

A unique perspective and visual sound

Synesthesia- Two or more senses linked. There are two main forms that people experience projective and associative. Projective- Visuals: colors, shapes or forms. Associative: Feeling. There are many sub categories in which someone can experience the two forms: Colors, tints or tones associated with numbers and letters. Colors with music or sounds- colored hearing, seeing the perfect pitch, talk about the best music major ever! Numbers as points in a spacial sequence.  Numbers as a mental map. Sounds trigger a bodily sensation- Let's hope one's not linked to the urge to pee! Numbers and letters in an ordered sequence as a gender or personality. Negative emotions triggered by a sound. Spoken words that have a taste!- The word "wallpaper" taste like snozzberries, how wonderful! Time represented as a mental map with objects- time as a mental spacial construction.

The two main types are color coded- numbers and letters or sounds. Most people with synesthesia find it to be enjoyable. How can I get this you say? Unfortunately, you can't. One is either born with Synesthesia, or it is developed during childhood when being taught abstract concepts.

Synesthesia is not a completely new concept for me, but I had no idea of the many variations- that any of the two senses can mix in any way! I feel like having a form of synesthesia would be an awesome creative experience and a great learning aid.

Cymatics- Visualizing sound- vibrating a medium such as sand or water using sound- medium creates pattern. Higher freqency= more complex patterns.
I need to experiment.