The color scheme of the first picture is using complimentary color scheme.  There are many bright colors being used against each other to portray a lively environment.  The characters each have their own color scheme to identify with.  These colors are very typical for South Park, the simple hue’s match the very simple animation of the show.  The saturation of Stan’s hat compared to Cartman’s is greater, and this darker color can relay to his personality.  In the show Stan holds more of an adult personality over Cartman’s immature antics.  Kenny and Kyle hold the same orange hue keeping them at a similar neutral position in the show.  We also see the same blue against the wall as Cartman’s hat, thus making the environment match the boys.

               The second picture has different clothes on the boys, but we see the same hues and saturations’.  However the brightness is above normal, perhaps to enhance the excitement of the waterpark and to show the high temperature ouside, since South Park is always cold.  The background colors are also different than the usual South Park color scheme; this is signifying that they are out of South Park and for the audience to expect something different.

               The lighting in the first picture is almost absent along with shadows.  The simple animation relies mostly on colors to provoke a mood or certain personality within the environment or characters.  However, the newer South Park episodes play much more with these effects to take advantage of the strong influence they have over a scene.  The second picture is noticeably different in the aspects of lighting and shadow play.  One can just picture the sun hovering over these kids as they experience the sheer enjoyment of the waterpark.     

               The symbolism in South Park in my opinion is based on what clothes the boy’s would wear and the color of their clothes.  For example Kenny wears a coat and a hood that covers his mouth to muffle his words.  Perhaps Trey Parker and Matt stone are symbolically showing the ideas that are suppressed by those who have the bigger voices and sometimes those ideas are the solutions to problems, but yet they go unheard.   

blog # 5

               The directors of the Matrix followed each rule to avoid confusion and maintain a perfect picture.  My scene mainly focused around a conversation between Morpheus and Neo.  This is a pivotal scene in the movie; the pill to enter the matrix is presented to Neo. 

               The 180 degree rule was followed; the camera never crossed the imaginary line that split the room into two.  Since it was a conversation between two people it was important that the camera stayed on one side of the scene.  First we see Neo and Morpheus together sitting at a table from a side view.  We then get a glimpse of each face as the camera turns when they act their dialogue. 

               The rule of thirds was also followed; each character was either on one side of the screen or the other.  The only thing to grace the center third of the screen was Morpheus, but the reflection was what I felt was the focal point and that was on the side third of the film.  Everything from the pill to the two doors was presented on the left third side of the scene. 

               Each time the audience saw one face or the other, the camera moved 30 degrees or more.  When Morpheus placed his hand out with the pill we saw the camera move another 30 degrees or more.  There were no slight camera movements; each angle followed the rule of 30.

               Clearly the directors of the Matrix were experience directors.  They presented each new scene with the correct camera angle.  They never went over the 180 degree line when shooting Morpheus and Neo.  Obviously the talent in this movie was displayed on everything from the lines and shapes in the background to the precision and placement of each focal point on the scene.     

Blog assignment #4

The song I choose to deconstruct was "lanslide" by Lleetwood Mac, and the cover version by the Smashing Pumpkins.

“Landslide” is not a complex song on the surface; it is only driven by a voice and a single guitar.  Fleetwood Mac uses a very clean sound to produce a constant pitch and balance.  A continuous emotion is able to be picked from the song based on Stevie Nicks’s strong vocals.  Beyond the vocals lays a set of lyrics that reflect on one growing older and pondering if they are ready for the world. 

               The Smashing pumpkins present the lyrics in a completely new fashion.  With a voice that does not even compare to Nick’s, Billy Corgan harsh voice sounds as if he is staining to get the words out.  I feel his raspy voice adds more emotion to the song because of his average vocal quality.  Comparable to singers such as Johnny Cash and Bob Dylan, Billy Corgan even though he was not blessed with a voice of an angel, still projects his voice full of emotion to make up for the lack of pitch variation.

               The rhythms of both songs are driven by the acoustic picking of the guitar and the melody is carried by the vocals.  I feel the tempo for the Smashing Pumpkins cover is rushed just a bit over the original by Fleetwood Mac.  The organization of each song is similar along with the pattern.  However, the major difference between the two is the style of guitar picking on Corgan’s guitar.  His style is much quicker and he picks a few more notes than the original, thus I believe for the tempo picking up.  The intensity of the song is low, it is more of a thought provoking sound that one would sit down and enjoy rather than getting up and dancing.

               I admire both versions of the song; each has its own unique quality.  However, I prefer the Smashing Pumpkins cover over the Fleetwood Mac version.  Aside from the echo and delay affects that is in the Pumpkins cover I do enjoy the quicker tempo.  Also Corgan’s hoarse voice that is straining throughout, definably gives “Lanslide” more emotion to its lyrics and overall structure.        

LISTENING FRAMEWORK  (Original)

(SIMPLIFIED)

LISTENING PHASE 1

(Rhythm)

Tempo

[slow, medium, fast] - The tempo is inbetween medium and slow throughout the song

Source

[where is the rhythm coming from?] - the rhythm is coming from the guitar being picked through the song.

Groove

[describe how the personality of the rhythm] - the personality is deep and reflecting on various emotions

LISTENING PHASE 2

(Arrangement) - the pattern of the song goes chorus, verse, verse, guitar solo, verse, chorus, chorus.

Instrumentation

[which instruments drive the song?] - acoustic guitar

Structure/Organization

[how is the song built? Order, patterns, etc.] - the pattern of the song goes chorus, verse, verse, guitar solo, verse, chorus, chorus.

Emotional Architecture

[Draw how the song build and drop - the songs starts a middle point to be built up to a guitar solo, dropped, and then picked back up f or the final chorus.

LISTENING PHASE 3

(Sound Quality)

Balance

Height [high and low of frequency] - the song maintains a constant pitch except during the guitar break it drops to a noticably low pitch

Width [stereo panning left/right] - none

Depth [layers of instruments - via loudness] - the song is kept simple with a single voice and a guitar.

LISTENING FRAMEWORK (Cover)

(SIMPLIFIED)

LISTENING PHASE 1

(Rhythm)

Tempo

[slow, medium, fast] - medium

Source

[where is the rhythm coming from?] - the rhythm is coming from the guitar

Groove

[describe how the personality of the rhythm] - noticably more emotional than the original, voice feels like it is straining.

LISTENING PHASE 2

(Arrangement)

Instrumentation

[which instruments drive the song?] - acoustic guitar

Structure/Organization

[how is the song built? Order, patterns, etc.] - the songs starts a middle point to be built up to a guitar solo, dropped, and then picked back up f or the final chorus.

Emotional Architecture

[Draw how the song build and drop? - the song drives with a constant emotion and fades away at the end

LISTENING PHASE 3

(Sound Quality)

Balance

Height [high and low of frequency] - the song does not vary too much in frequency

Width [stereo panning left/right] - none

Depth [layers of instruments - via loudness] - only two layers; voice and guitar