Iconic Women

Kyle Labak's Ach Mein Gott


So I made a music video! Yay! 

I wanted to use the platform of the music video because it's already a space in which experimental film is widely consumed, so in theory if Kyle became a famous singer, the messages that I'm trying to convey here would become part of the dialogue of this 'global village' that McLuhan expresses. 

Betty Boop as the main subject just kind of happened - Kyle was adamant that she had to be a part of the project and I found that the material went very well rhythmically with the song. From there, everything kind of snowballed into iconic moments featuring women. I wanted to question whether or not those icons should be immortalized for the reasons that they are. For example, Disney's Cinderella represents the perfect form of femininity, the shower scene from Hitchcock's Psycho is known to be one of the most horrifying deaths in cinema history (with phallic imagery), and Superman, our hero of all lesser beings, triumphs over the opposing male. What I'm basically trying to get at is that women, in iconic moments of cinema, are always the people that have things done to them, instead of doing things. We just are, we don't do. 

I also wanted to call attention to the spectatorship associated with these icons, that's why there are so many repeated images of the audience clapping. As an audience we've been trained to want to see the violence, the horror, and then be saved from it by seemingly good man. It's something that's always bothered me about movies/music videos and the way they're made. 

I basically have a reason for why everything is where it is and why it's there, so if you have any specific question, feel free to ask or just come up with your own answers. It's yours to do with as you like! 

Comments

  1. Olivia RoweMarch 17, 2015 at 2:10 AM

    Even though some of the clips you used made me pretty uncomfortable (that Betty Boop cartoon is horrific), they made me uncomfortable in a good, thought provoking way. I really like the questions about how women are depicted and treated that your film asks, and I think it is important to show the world what kind of message female depictions like these in media are sending. Also, tell Kyle I think he has a wonderful singing voice!

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  2. Ridley TankersleyMarch 17, 2015 at 9:39 AM

    You did a great job of putting these two pieces together. Both the video and the song take some thinking to understand, but when you do, it's very effective. Your proficiency in editing is really apparent. I really enjoyed the links you made between different videos (my favorite was the Betty Boop clown / Superman back-and-forth). Congratulations and I hope you had a great term!

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  3. johnieMarch 17, 2015 at 10:47 AM

    The combination of the stripped-down performance and the carefully edited video really worked for me. Not sure i would be able to listen to this ballad so closely without the visuals driving the ideas along. This came along well in the time you had to work on it but of course could really turn into a slick piece with another 20 hours of editing.

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