“Digital media put the tools of production into the hands of the everyday computer user making it incredibly easy to produce content. These creative skills used to be something that people worked to develop. Now it appears that amateurs can produce content of a fair standard within a relatively short period of time.”

Where does this leave ‘professionals’ and highly-skilled artists?

Course Convenor: Stephen Stockwell
Lecturer: Stephen Stockwell, Sir Adam Muir
Tutor: Mark Bahnisch

The arrival of digital video camera technology made the medium of film production widely available to most film enthusiasts. Amateur films can document domestic life, travel, work, and can be either fiction or non-fiction. However, the viewings are no longer limited to a small circle of family and friends. The introduction of video sharing web sites on the internet has made amateur films accessible to a world-wide audience. This making it a lot easier to get the artist name out in the film industry competing against the professionals that already exist. With the technology that already exits the consumer have several options for editing it becomes easier to produce a film on a low budget in today’s society. Apple’s iMovie comes bundled with the iLife application that is installed on most new Macintosh computers. This is one of the more simplistic and straightforward editing programs available. Apple Inc. also develops Final Cut Pro, a more advanced editing tool that allows for broader, non-linear reorganization of footage. All personal computers com with windows movie maker making it as easy as possible for the user to use. They may not be the high tech gear that the professionals use, however they still very reliable programs that the computer user can depend on.

Practicing a profession once was a long journey of tedious study but now that technology grows it gives more opportunities to all ages to create a film all on their own. This is how the world is evolving it is giving society a chance to become whatever and whoever they want to be. In some ways it does cause an effect on the professionals in the business that already exists due to the amateurs taking over. There are examples of this all over the internet, these armatures make spin off of movies that already exist, creating a cycle of consumers,
they sit,
they watch,
they create,
its they way the production world works and if its fun to do so they why not. Society doesn’t always have to take there job so seriously they have to have fun every now and then.
The expression amateur in the sense of loving film would probably be the most appropriate term but for the fact that it has negative implication and is often associates with dilettantism. If I had to choose between non-professional and non-commercial, I would prefer the latter despite the negative connotations of non.

To provide a basic definition of non-commercial film making means that you are not supposed to make any money with the films produced, be they made in Super-8mm, 35mm, VHS, Betacam SP or whatever. It should not mean, however, that no money is invested in the enterprise and it does not matter whether this money is the author’s or some sponsor’s which most armatures have problems with. Everyone has the right to spend their money as they wish some might invest in a non-commercial film; others might prefer to buy a new Mercedes. The point is that moviemakers should be aware of the limits. If only inexperienced actors are available for her/his fiction film the director must have the courage to abandon that approach and look for alternatives. But even if you can count on professional actors, lighting engineers and camera operators (who are prepared to work without a fee) the work is still not a professional film even if the screening does finish with an endless list of contributors. The equation of non-professional and without expertise does not apply at all. A competent amateur works with as strong a sense of commitment as possible: in other words she or he works in a professional manner. Should we, perhaps, understand the word “amateur” as a synonym for “dilettante” or even “untrained”? I would accept the idea that for such amateurs the standards attained by UNICA are just one step too high.

Should society now risk taking one or more steps back and set up new frontiers? Should we have separate standards for the producer who can afford to spend $4,000 every other year to buy new, sophisticated video equipment and for the producer working with simple Super8mm kit? What would the rising generation say about such distinctions? The young movie-makers, who most of the time view our activities as a testing ground before plunging into the professional world, could not carry out their projects without sponsorship.
Film making is no more and no less than film making, whatever the format used and however the films get made. The quality of a film is not determined by the amount of money invested in it but by the ideas, film language, editing and not least by the style. Many amateur film makers have not yet realised how lucky they are compared to professionals they enjoy complete freedom. Too often they spend so much energy in trying to emulate professionals by imitating their themes and techniques. That is futile and contrary to the UNESCO definition of film making.
The problem is that digital media and networked communications eliminate scarcity although not the need to filter which just gets shifted downstream. That elimination or shift directly challenges the role of the professional, leading to significant and well warranted wringing of hands among creative professionals. Society should actually rejoice at a UNICA competition when we have the privilege of watching a genuine masterpiece instead of finding fault with everything, applying discriminatory standards and finally discarding the whole thing.
I believe that is how the technology industry is working these days. They make everything easier for the up coming film makers to use and that includes film production. Once upon a time film enthuses had to work hard to achieve what is so little in the industry today, its just how society is evolving I still believe that there is creative minds out there and that those minds will work hard to achieve their goals its just a little bit easier then it once was. Professionals and highly skilled artists are still appreciated in the film industry today for there skills and knowledge. These people will help the young armatures to become a highly skilled artist that will once teach the next generation that get into the film industry.

References

Bordwell, D and Thompson, K (2004). Film Art. 7th ed. Von Hoffman Press: Chris Freitag. p37 – 59.

Fabe, M (2004). Closely Watched films an introduction to the art. california: University of California. p37-59.

Phillips, W.H (2002). Film . U.S.A: Bedford/St,Martins. p37 – 59.

Silver,A. and Ursini (1999). J. Film Noir Reader 2. New York: Limelight Edition.

Braudy, L and Cohen, M (2009). Film Theory and Criticism. 7th ed. New York: Oxford University Press, Inc. p37 – 59.

Open Hands/Open Hearts Campaign

Every day, 10,500 children are reported abused or neglected in America. That’s one child every 11 seconds.

Each day, 4 children will die as a result of child abuse or neglect in the U.S.

In Canada, between 1974 and 2001, 1,324 children under 18 were killed by family members.

Neglect is the most common form of reported child abuse cases, making up more than 40% of all reported cases.

Children and youth under the age of 18 represent only one-fifth of the population, but are victims in more than 60% of reported sexual offences.

Children and youth are victimized by acquaintances in over half of all reported physical assualts and sexual offences (52%), and another 23% are victimized by family members.

Physical assaults against children and youth have been on the rise since 1997.

Children with disabilities are two to five times more likely to be abused than those without disabilities.

Children who are disciplined with slapping or scolding are more likely to be involved in violent dating relationships during their teenage years.

31.4% of females and 44.8% of males who were sexually assaulted, reported their first sexual assualt as occuring before the age of 13.

44% of eating disorder expenditures and 50% of alcohol dependence expenditures can be attributed to child sexual abuse.

WE ARE CAN DO OUR PART AND STOP THIS NEEDLESS CRIMIE.. LETS JOIN TOGETHER TODAY..

Thank you

# Respond to a professional blogger at a major news site.

Travel Doctor

Dr Trish Batchelor is a travel medicine specialist who has worked in the Travel Doctor group and written for Lonely Planet. She works at Ho Chi Minh’s International SOS clinic.

Dealing with travel sickness

Unfortunately there is no magic cure for motion sickness – it is a matter of working through the options and finding one that suits you.

Many people find acupressure wrist bands helpful and they have no side effects. Ginger is another natural remedy that works for some people and is side-effect free.

In Australia there is limited over-the-counter medications – Kwells and some anti-histamine such as Phenergan and Avomine can be helpful. Anti-nausea drugs Stemetil or Maxolon are also useful. The Scopolamine patch (SCOP) was the favourite of many but this is no longer being manufactured.

The anti-histamines tend to make you drowsy, however, if you take them at night they can still provide some relief from motion sickness the next day with less drowsiness.

In the UK you can buy a medication called Stugeron (cinnarizine) over the counter. Many sailors swear by this but it is not available in Australia.

Have Your Say

when i was a young girl i sufered from travel sickness. we would drive 30mins to the next town and i would get dizzy, start vometing and feel terably weak. Then one year my family and i traveled from Lithgow N.S.W to Bundaburg QLD for a family holiday. It’s about a 1000km distance between the two city’s and that trip cured me. dont no how but i was very sick for half of the trip and then it just seemed to disappear. so maybe a long drive or flight would cure your sickness. =)

# What is Barak Obama up to today?

WASHINGTON – Trumpeting nurses’ support for a health care overhaul while lamenting a worsening toll of uninsured, President Barack Obama kept up the pressure Thursday for congressional action.

“We don’t need more partisan distractions,” Obama said in remarks at the White House, speaking again on the issue just 14 hours after his Wednesday night address to Congress and a national television audience. “We have talked this issue to death. … The time for talk is winding down.”

The White House event was organized with the American Nurses Association, to showcase the group’s backing for Obama’s drive to revamp the nation’s health care system. Obama says his plan would give people who have health insurance greater security, set up a marketplace for affordable access to coverage for those without and reduce health care costs for all.

Seeking to sweep away a summer of gridlock on his top domestic priority, Obama plans to remain in the spotlight on health care repeatedly over the coming days, appearing at a rally on Saturday in Minnesota and scheduling another speech for next Tuesday.

# Find out who your local, state and federal representatives are.

Local =
State = Anna Bligh
Federal = Kevin Rudd

# Look up the Queensland or Australian hansard to find the last time your local member spoke in parliament.

# Let your local member know what you think about their last speech.

# Read the lecture and the readings, pursue a couple of the topics that you find most interesting and then post your blog with your well-considered thoughts about the theory and practice of politics.

decide for yourself viewers…
would you trust Griffith University?
this is a true news story reported be Maegan Dukes herself.

P.S Don’t believe everything that you see =)

Don’t you hate it when you forget where you parked your car?
well this person had one hell of a time trying to find it.
poor darlin….