This week in BCM115 we were introduced to the fundamentals of screen media. The Lumiere Brothers were one of the first to capture film with their invention of the Cinematograph. They used this machine to produce many “locked view” films that were created by keeping the camera perfectly still on a tripod so as to capture a scene unfolding.
Within this weeks tutorial we also analysed other forms of screen media, including multiple photographs taken with a variety of cameras. One such photo was Shanghai Falling captured by Greg Girard.
This photo is part of a book Phantom Shanghai, which includes a collection of similar captures that collectively expose the rapid “..process of dismantling its history to accommodate China’s new cosmopolitan vision of itself” (Greg Girard). He worked on the collection for 5 years, touring shanghai and capturing the the destruction. The book is an attempt to convey a powerful message through the art of photography.
Finally, we also explored poems and how they can be turned into screen media. George Ella Lyon’s poem Where I’m From, was structured using key words to describe where she came from. By picking my own key words, I was able to begin writing my own poem which I will pair with screen media later:
I am from silent streets
I’m from a stranger-less town with world-famous eats
I’m from forgotten places
I’m from cold seats
References
Law, J 2021, ‘Introduction to Screen Media’, online lecture, BCM115, University of Wollongong, viewed 3 March 2021
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