a demonstration of miscommunication

a demonstration of mis communication from tammy shell on Vimeo.

analysis and synthesis

My text within the animation demonstrates three distinct voices; the red-serifed (Caslon) text illustrates the conversation between the phones (as well as contains the story, for the visually compelling element). The italicized Garamond font illustrates the subjective narration (also a reference to the postcards) and the san-serifed Frutiger demonstrates the informative text to describe the communication model.
Above : first attempts at establishing hierarchy. In the top right example, the blue text was making people ill. In the top left example my vertical text was too difficult to read. For clarity, Jamie suggested adding a bar at the top to contain the voice of the narrator.

Below on the left, is another example of the formerly floundering narrator’s text, not to mention the terribly lack-luster background. I added a paper texture to the background and hand cut annotations to isolate the information as significant and to give the design a human touch. Text printed on paper seems to carry more authority, in comparison to the vector type of previous iterations.
below: a screenshots from the final animation.

synthesis in fragments. Applying the semiotic examples of rhetorical tropes and modes of communication are keys (and well kept secrets) to good graphic design—and any type of art for that matter. Indirectly persuading the viewer with clever imagery is more resonating than an intelligence-insulting, dry and literal claim. I've wondered in the past what it is that separates the banal from art that moves people to action. Well now I know why the lovely peregrine honig, nicole cawlfield, pipilotti rist, de bretteville and others i worship and adore from afar are able to captivate and immobilize a passerby to pause and consider core beliefs.

After comparing and analyzing several communication models, I now realize that even a simple message is not immune to becoming corrupt. (considering the previous project) Conner’s initial response to my postcard was, silence. In the first sequence of my personified phones’ conversation, I decided to reference the chill of silence. Under my interpretation of the communication model, silence is packed with explosive noise—or an interruption to the message. For a short while, I was left to consider how I must have confused Conner and what if he thought my original response was not worthy of a reply. A dreadful cloud of prediction and misunderstanding hovers during silence. It was likely that he just happened to go out dancing the night before could not get up in time or maybe he ate mexican the night before, you never know.

(Communication models are also a free counseling service. I have learned that maybe my mother will in fact never get me due to her conservative bend and I may never get her due to my bad attitude. Our diametrically opposed beliefs cause noise within our channel. To reduce the consequences of reflexive, ill-tempered feedback, a more successful channel for the two of us, would be a hand-written letter.)

statement for show opener

My show is about performance—of the mostly unpaid variety, the type of performance that might happen on the fly, while under the spell of a moment. Moments that most people would contain in their mind and shrug off with a chuckle, my show is about free spirits who must live life in the now to its fullest capacity.
I began with photographs of myself dancing. (Vanity disclaimer: Alter egos are a driving force in my life. Either film or video, I am able to will myself to do almost anything. I have found that photo directing other people takes as much skill and supreme commitment on their part as imagining the shot, in the first place.) My initial plan was to create a stop motion about a closet dancer—someone who is too shy to dance in public, but becomes a superstar behind closed doors. Then plan B went into effect. Over thanksgiving, my epiphany was to commit, random acts of dancing in public, and so I recruited a friend. The theme broadened to performance art.
above are shots of process: the fabricated stage and my cut out placed in it. I thought hand-written title text was appropriate to the unspoken anyone can be an artist of performance theme, but no, it failed; too sloppy, I agree.

the original storyboard below: (although during the creative process, plan b went into effect)The communication channels, I chose to apply to my show opener are image (video and still), music and text. The hierarchy is as follows: video absolutely drives this opener. Narrowing down the information to essentials from three separate performance scenes was difficult. The thirty-second time limit was both suffocating and helpful. I wanted to put in everything, but I have learned, a story becomes weak when too much repetitive information is given.

The music is strangely melancholy; a better description would be thoughtful. I wanted to avoid at all costs a mindless, superficial electronic dance beat. In some and maybe most cases, performance is something that originates within the fragile spirit and evolves into an expression previously possessed by the deep recesses—slightly melodramatic, but true. It’s fun and freeing, but absolutely not a superficial experience; that’s all I wanted to convey.

I chose to fabricate a stage with paper, drawings and fabric since the stage before me is only imaginary. My influence was the Science of Sleep sequences when the character, Stephane flashes back and forth, in and out of reality. To contain the text in a resonating manner, I placed it within the rays of colorful spot lights. My stop motion “me in a red dress” shots in the fabricated stage background are powerful and could have overtaken the hierarchy, but my need to allow the video to include intro shots to establish the scene (i.e. me walking into the laundromat) and crooked stares from each of my victims, reduced the space available.

performance art (of the mostly unpaid variety) from tammy shell on Vimeo.