Final Project-Hunter College's Own Superhero

Hunter College's Own Superhero from Brianna Faicco on Vimeo.

Museum of Moving Image-Blog post #4

The Museum of Moving Image is a great place to go and get to see up close and personal film artifacts. From the outside the museum is extremely cool looking, very futuristic. The building and decorations themselves were artsy and lobby was white and modern looking. I got to see the exhibit Behind the screen, which was pretty interesting. Getting to see artifacts from different films (some I have watched and others I haven't), was exciting seeing as you don't always get that chance. The exhibits main focus seemed to be on the various parts of movie making and how all those parts fit together to create on screen magic. I was able to see items that were either created by writers, customer designers, makeup artist, production teams and actors/actresses. My all time favorite part  was the Star Wars artifacts-they had figurines and vintage toys, which I wanted to steal from the museum and take home. They had a Yoda statue and Chewbacca's costume head from Star Wars Episode IV. I am a huge fan of these movies so for me that was super exciting to see. They were selling some Star Trek and Star Wars merchandise-if I wasn't a broke college student I would have actually purchased something. They had the costume head pieces form the movie Mask and (another favorite) Mrs. Doubt Fire. They had the mask from 2001:A Space Odyssey, I saw projection of The Great Train Robbery and used a voice over machine-you were able to place your voice in a movie, such as Marilyn Monroe form Some Like It Hot. They even had some old scripts on display for movies like Citizen Kane. I had watched most of these films in a film 101 class I had taken at Hunter, so it was cool to see. They had costumes such as Cosby's sweater, a dress from Chicago, and the red and silver spacesuit that Robin Williams wore in Mork. They also had a bunch of vintage cameras, projectors and televisions, which gave me a better understanding of what we learn about in class. I also saw a movie pamphlet from Amos n' Andy at Quincy theater-children paid 10 cents and adults 30.I hated the exorcist girl they had on display, I refuse to see that movie and I didn't need to see that creepy thing-there was also Freddy Kroger which I walked past quickly. There was a wall covered in record albums from movies like Grease, Jaws and The Beetles. They even had prototypes of King Kong from the original movies. Another cool artifact was a set model from the movie The Family Man, which is another favorite of mine. Overall, I was able to see a ton of cool artifacts from films I love watching. I'm glad I was able to visit this museum, it was a fun experience. I have been learning about the production of movies and the technology behind them, so it was fun to see firsthand what I have been learning so much about.

Project #2: Audio Portrait Robert Delices

Blog Post #3- Birdman

In the movie Birdman, I felt the editing of the film was wonderfully done and contributed greatly to the final outcome of the film. Each scene consisted of long shots which when incorporated together made the film seem to have a continuous flow.  To an audience member it felt as if the camera never stopped rolling. It seemed when the film was to have a cut they would pan to a poster on the wall or a drummer in order to make a seamless transition between scenes. This type of film makes the audience feel a part of the movie, you felt like you were running alongside the characters. I think they did a great job of capturing the actions in certain scene but also being able to keep that fluid movement of the camera. In the first scene I chose they were able to do just that. Music and sound is such an important part of this film. In the first scene there is dramatic music playing in the background, and in one part "Birdman's" voice almost drowns out the background noise. His voice is deep and  powerful. I love how when Riggan is walking down the Manhattan street "Birdman" is walking directly behind him, this is shot from a side view. Then the camera swings to a front view, "Birdman" is directly behind Riggan and he expands his wings and them seem to be  a part of Riggan. It was wonderfully done and for me metaphoric. This film  did a great job of making this movie flow continuously without it ever being obvious the difference between scenes. Without such  editing this film would not have been as successful.

Soundwalk-Blog #2

For my sound walk I spent an hour walking around my dorm building in upper Manhattan. I took my earphones out and was just present in the moment.  Usually I'm listening to music, not pay attention to the people or sounds around me. I did my sound walk during the day around 2 pm. The sunny was shining and there were a ton of people on the streets. One of the keynotes that I first noticed was the traffic. The squeak of the brakes on the bus, honking of horns, and the roar of car engines. There was the sizzle of food being prepared at the food truck, the chatter from pedestrians on the street, the cry of an infant and a plea from the homeless man on the corner of 86th street. The noise a bike makes as it passes by at a fast speed, the slamming of a car door, the sound of a empty bottle being thrown in the trash can, music blaring from someone's headphones and the sound of a dog barking in the distance. I pass the park and you can hear children's laughter and shouting, the swings swishing back and forth and the thump of feet beating against gravel. These are all sounds that are associated with the day time and are all noises I expected to hear. Nothing really struck me as out of the ordinary. 

Define a Space-Escapse Thomas Hunter

Define a space-Escape Thomas hunter from Brianna Faicco on Vimeo.

Artist Statment

Robert Bresson once said "Make visible what, without you, might perhaps never have been seen". As a child I would spend my free time sketching imaginary lands into my notebook, writing stories of make believe places and dreaming about the world outside my bedroom.

In school during history or science class my eyes would wonder to the windows and thoughts would rattle inside my head. But when I was seated in my art or english class, joy would seep into my skin and I couldn't wait to create a new piece of work. Today as a college student I still find myself drawn to the creative aspects of life and that is why I have chosen to major in media. I have a love for song lyrics, television shows and films. I believe this steams from my love of writing. I find the beauty in words and characters.

 I want to use my ability as a creator to bring about change in the world. Bring attention to issues that aren't talked about frequently. Such as poverty, mental health and human trafficking. I love so many things so it's hard to pick just one thing I'm passionate about. I feel studying media can help me bridge that gap and find something that incorporates all my passions.

I will admit being creative is a difficult thing as a whole to obtain, and I'm no where near close. I doubt myself too much and write pure nonsense and paint unrecognizable figures. But making these mistakes and still moving forward have helped me grow as a creator and a person.  I still am unable to explain what the essence of creativity is but I don't think anyone really does. I just know that being able to express myself in such a manner is a privilege.

My inspirations come from the world, from the people I pass down the street, the friends I have, the experiences I have faced and my ever increasing imagination. I get inspirations from a wide range of creative outlets. Authors such as Khaled Hosseini and Celeste Ng, bands and musicians like Nirvana, Guns N' Roses and James Bay, television shows such as Parks and recreations, New girl, and Game of Thrones, films like Harry Potter, Star Wars, and Birdman, artist like Jonas Gerard and Vincent van Gogh and organization such as Freedom for all, Care and NAMI. Inspiration surrounds me and is the fuel I need to create. I don't want to know what the world can do for me, I want to know what I can do for the world.