APD Week 1- Play and Self

Theme

Play and Self

Method

I think it can be quite challenging to create an idea that expresses the real me. Sometimes the idea of ‘self’ can be quite contradictory: if I am afraid of showing myself, does that mean that I am really showing myself when I am showing myself?

That’s being said, I am sure that my room is probably  the only place that makes me feel safe and free to express myself, no need to worry about what other people think about me.

I created a series of images using the camera on my phone and turn them into a short sequence. I arranged items I use everyday in a specific order to represent myself and tells a story.  The perspective also switches between first person and third person, with some interesting transitions and repeated frames. The idea was inspired by my recent experience, I was required to stay in my room for a week.  The first few days was fine, until I ran out of daily supplies and things started to go out of order. I was trapped inside a loop of doing nothing and become anxious.

(Interesting enough, the process of creating this work is also quite repetitive so I also include the WIP shots into this short film)

Context

The inspiration comes from the opening of Dark(Netflix series). The ‘mirror’ effect creates a weird feeling to the audience. The music ‘in the Hall of the Mountain King’ was composed by Amadeo Mariscal Lopez and Edvard Grieg. I really like the way things start to go out of order with the music. In the video, I uses  stop motion technic to  inanimate objects and figures the impression of movement.

In the video, I use independent play to express my idea. Independent play(aka solitary play) is when child plays on its own without parents interfering(Mama Miri, 2021). During the production ,I entertained myself by putting objects around to tell a story which can only be explained by me, without interference/input from other people. An interesting fact pointed out by (Mahak Arora,2018) is that independent play aids in teaches children how to enjoy their own company. In turn, they will not depend on anyone for anything no matter what the situation. What she mentions is what I was experiencing, that is, to overcome loneliness.

Reflection

Ｉthink some of the transitions can be better, adding more shots also helps. The challenge of this film is figuring out a way to tell a story about me but without me.  Making the camera stable is also a challenge.　Ｉam not sure where the idea of ‘making things look black and white’ comes from. Perhaps I just want the short film to look a little bit handmade and experimental. Therefore, adding a reference to it could make the work meaningful. Besides that, I really like the idea of using  repeated frames to tell a story. For example, the moving water from the shower scene is represented by only two frames, and this reminds me of some hand-drawn animations. Another example is how the clothes were hanged on the door; those frames played backwards later in the video to indicate that someone has finished showering.

Response

https://youtu.be/zqZq4Iy5Fx0

References

What is stop motion?(Talena Lanie,2020)

Why independent play is important for cognitive skills and health (Mama Miri, 2021)

Solitary (Independent) Play – Benefits and Why It Is Good for Kids (Mahak Arora ,2018)