One of the larger events in the Napa Valley is the Lighted Art Festival in the winters. My Digital Design Lab Class had the privilege of being one of the featured artists this year. We were tasked with creating a piece to be projected onto a 70-foot wall in the heart of downtown Napa. This production was generously sponsored by Adobe. The process for this was surprisingly complex. The first step was a class discussion about overall themes, we ended up landing on “Beyond Imagination”. From there, we prototyped and identified sub-themes/design styles to use. We chose Geometric Shapes, Dreamscapes, Pet Wars Storytelling and Cityscapes for the transitions. From there the styles were divided among the groups. Each group, with the exception of the Cityscapes, would create a clip around two minutes long. The amazing group I led was tasked with the Geometric Shapes. Once we were assigned this style we went into more prototyping. From there we narrowed down the specific look we wanted. After this, we went into brainstorming and started to form a storyboard. Looking back, the first storyboard compared to our finished video is complete opposites! I believe there is just one section that was planned from our original idea. Once we had our idea, we divided the sections and made a base design in Adobe Illustrator that we would all work off of in Adobe After Effects. A couple classes into that, we realized that our original storyboard was just not going to be able to get done within the month we had to finish. We got in what we could and improvised based on what we had to work with. Once the After Effects animations were finished we started piecing the clips together in Adobe Premiere. Within the first class of putting all of the clips into the program, we noticed some discrepancies. Some files were larger or smaller than the other or some were offset a couple of points. After going back and fixing them in After Effects and a large amount of effort, the clips flowed together as if they were never apart in the first place. Thought out this process, we were lucky enough to have been connected with a mentor from London who also had a piece in the Lighted Art Festival. Every other week we would have a check-in and feedback call. This was extremely helpful because it was nice to have goals to keep us on track. After we completed the final video with every group’s piece, submitted it to the festival and it had been running for a couple weekends we were invited to present a panel for the festival. For the panel, every group presented on their process and their takeaways. After we presented, our entire class went down to our projection. This was the perfect ending for a three-month project.
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Our next project in my Digital Design Lab class is based around HitRecord. HitRecord is an online collaborative production company founded by Joseph Gorden-Levitt. You are able to post or complete projects within your personal interests. You can choose projects based on writing, illustration, film, voice, photography and so much more. My interests took me to the Illustration/ Graphic Design/ Photography projects. From there I found a few tasks that I might want to be a part of. The first one I am interested in is for a book. The project entails creating a title for a book called The Lonely Flower. For this, I need to create a font and a layout. I believe it won't take long but it sounds interesting. The second one is creating a logo for a band. The band name is Space Pirates so from just that, I have some ideas. My plan is to create a simplistic illustration and I will have their band name surrounding it. This one shouldn’t take too long but it sounds relatively interesting. The third option is requesting concept art for drink coasters. The theme for the coaster set is for them to be motivational. This one might take a little longer because I want to create a few options. I am looking forward to playing with different programs and shapes for the coaster. Overall, I don't necessarily think it will take longer than a month to complete all three projects within class time. I hope to complete all three projects and then submitting them to HitRecord. However, I worry that I might lose motivation or interest half way through the process. I am very intrigued to see how this project will turn out in the end.
This past week my school had the privilege of hosting our first Create-a-thon. The Create-a-thon was essentially an all-school design challenge which my Digital Design Lab class put on. This event was generously sponsored by Adobe. This event was a student-run event with support from our teacher, Adobe and a film crew. My class designed the curriculum, agenda, signage, merchandise and provided tech support. A select group of students and I were able to drive down to the Adobe office in San Francisco to promote this event. There, we recruited employees to come up to help out for the day and participated in meetings. The Saturday before the big day, a few of us came into school for half the day in order to set up and prepare for the event. Hours and hours of preparation went into this event and personally, I believe it all paid off in the end. The Create-a-thon turned out to be a stressful but fun day in the end. There was a lot that had to be done in order to achieve the result we accomplished. I was one of the three head students in charge. I was able to see first hand what it is like to plan and run a 700 person event. I went into logistics, planning, making sure everything was working and helping participant’s and helper’s satisfaction. Saying that this was a challenge is an understatement. However, no matter how difficult it may have been, I wouldn’t have had it any other way. When thinking of how to personally define the American Dream, I keep coming up blank. I keep seeing the idyllic 1950s scene with the suburban houses, flamingo lawn decor, bright poofy dresses, and sunny skies. Back then I would define the dream and having a nice family, house, steady job, with not a worry in the world. On the other hand, the is most definitely not the case anymore. Sure, many aspects to it can be desirable but more pressing issues have shown. When researching other’s definitions, three, in particular, have stood aside from the rest. Webster’s Dictionary defines the American Dream as “a happy way of living that is thought of by many Americans as something that can be achieved by anyone in the U.S. especially by working hard and becoming successful”. This one is, by far, my favorite. This open-ended definition allows everyone to interpret it based on their prior history and goals for the future. In contrast, according to the New York Times, the general ideas of the dream have shifted. Back in the 1930s, the themes were primarily freedom, mutual respect, and equal opportunity. However, when talking with a few politicians in our government today, the themes have turned to “owning a beautiful home and a successful business”. The Times state that the 1930s definition “had more to do with morality than material success”. I find this extremely concerning. If the people who are leading our country have this material mindset, what does that mean for the rest of us? Investopedia’s defines it as “the belief that anyone, regardless of where they were born or what class they were born into, can attain their own version of success in a society where upward mobility is possible for everyone”. This definition is super important. My take is how they suggest that just because someone wasn’t born here, it doesn't mean that they shouldn't have the same opportunities and you and me. All of these definitions have the overall theme of success and just living the life that you want. If I actually had to define my idea “American Dream” it would simply be “a way of living your best life with the resources to do so at your fingertips”. I created this piece to embody some of the themes of my “American Dream”. I had posters show through the silhouette of the Statue of Liberty all in front of the American flag. I used vintage posters showcasing popular states and topics in our country. I placed them in the Statue of Liberty because I appreciate what it stands for. The torch on the statue represents enlightenment and showing the way to freedom. Freedom and equality are topics that I value a lot in life. I muted the flag because I don't necessarily feel strongly about what I associate it with. I feel that while patriotism can be a good thing, but it's just not one of my top priorities. Personally, I don’t like to identify just a single definition of the “American Dream”. However, I believe this piece showcases one of the many takes on the historically known ideals of anyone who lives in the United States. |
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