Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Archive for August, 2016

Saving Movies, including your own

Posted in Chapter 2, Chapter 5, tagged , , , , , , on August 28, 2016| Leave a Comment »

Yes, the title of the movie being projected here is "Cock of the Air," a rediscovered Howard Hughes production from 1932. (Photo: Emily Berl for The New York Times)

Yes, the title of the movie being projected here is “Cock of the Air,” a rediscovered Howard Hughes production from 1932. (Photo: Emily Berl for The New York Times)

In a series of articles on mediateacher.net, the importance of how, where, and why media artifacts are accessed and preserved has been discussed from a variety of angles, not only in terms of films from the early years of cinema (or more recent examples like Lawrence of Arabia or the efforts of Christopher Nolan) but also related to students today and their own productions.  An article in today’s New York Times —The Race to Save the Films We Love — provides a current update by Manohla Dargis on the state of film preservation, which includes topics related to economics, sound recording, chemistry, digital technologies, and a variety of other issues.

Read Full Post »

Of Inspirations and Pins and Needles

Posted in Chapter 1, Directors, tagged , , , , , , on August 12, 2016| Leave a Comment »

I am guessing that THIS will be the Seven Samurai reference (okay, it's six, but go with it) that will be remembered from this year.

I am guessing that THIS will be the Seven Samurai reference (okay, it’s six, but go with it) that will be remembered from this year.

The new trailer for Star Wars: Rogue One debuted during the Olympics coverage yesterday, and it looked pretty amazing.  (And it was even more enticing than the initial teaser, which already had fans energized.)  Just one point that I feel needs to be made for teachers gearing up for a new year of media literacy: Kurosawa.

The foremost acknowledged influence on Star Wars is Akira Kurosawa’s Hidden Fortress.  Any student of moving images or educators who wish to explore the vital contemporary Star Wars universe is well advised to explore the singular power of director Akira Kurosawa and his influence on George Lucas.  For me, there appears to be some major inspiration from the universe of the Japanese cinematic master in the trailer for Rogue One (directed by Gareth Edwards), except in this case the references are to The Seven Samurai.  Whatever the inspirations, things appear to be looking good for the realm of Jedi, Force, and Dark Side.

Read Full Post »

Politics & Media 3

Posted in Chapter 6, Media Literacy, Social Studies, tagged , , , , , on August 2, 2016| Leave a Comment »

KhizrkhanIn this Presidential election season (or perhaps we should start calling it “epoch” with the current length of campaigns in the U.S.), it is no surprise to return regularly to political topics through our posts following the recent “Ands” and “thes” and things like that and the earlier Politics, Satire, and Media as well as Politics & Media 2.  Meanwhile, the recent flurry of media-fueled moments in the current Presidential campaign has generated moments of visual communication that appear to have all the earmarks of major historical images in the making.  The appearance of the parents of Capt. Humayun Khan, killed in Iraq in 2004, at the Democratic National Convention has set off some of the most powerful political aftershocks seen in contemporary American politics.  There are many indications that the image of Mr. Khizr Khan pulling out a pocket-sized version of the American constitution from his jacket to punctuate a major point in his speech, with his wife Ghazala Khan standing stoically by his side, will stand as a striking image of our times.

UnknownAstonishingly, the Khans had already appeared in an acclaimed documentary from 2008 that featured families of slain American veterans: Section 60: Arlington National Cemetery.  In this piece appearing today on Democracy Now!, an excerpt from the film is shown which depicts the couple visiting their son’s grave and both Khizr and Ghazala Khan discussing the impact of his death and their visits to the cemetery on their lives.  There is also an interview with a co-director of the film, Jon Alpert.     

Read Full Post »