Editing on Final Cut Pro...nevermind, iMovie...no wait let's do FCP...maybe

I have been editing since the beginning of the summer and I am not yet finished. For the record, it does not and should not take this long to edit 5 hours of raw footage. I've just been taking it in stride, sometimes going 2-3 weeks without looking at the footage, simply because I had other things to do or I just didn't feel like going through all of the interviews. Also, it took longer than expected for me to collaborate with Dr. Durington, a Towson professor and producer of Record Store. We had plans to use the department's iMac to utilize Final Cut Pro (iMovie's big brother) so the production and editing would be, for the lack of a better word, awesome. Basically, there are more options and the quality is better. Once we finally got together we had problems with the computer. To make a long story short I ended up finishing a rough cut on iMovie and we will be collaborating within the next week to close the editing process.

There is still much to discuss about the presentation of the movie (i.e., where it will be held, how should it be advertised, who is my audience, etc.). Ideally, I want it to be huge and I want it to impact a lot of people from different multicultural backgrounds. I decided that while I love academic material I want to go way outside of that box and engage in applied anthropology that has an effect on the lives of not just anthropologists and culture studies scholars, but also the average woman or man.

What if everyone had a camera?

I am kino-eye, I am a mechanical eye. I, a machine, show you the world as only I can see it. Now and forever, I free myself from human immobility, I am in constant motion, I draw near, then away from objects, I crawl under, I climb onto them. I move apace with the muzzle of a galloping horse. I plunge full speed into a crowd, I outstrip running soldiers, I fall on my back, I ascend with an airplane, I plunge and soar together with plunging and soaring bodies. Now, I, a camera, fling myself along their resultant, maneuvering in the chaos of movement composed of the most complex combinations.

- Vertov 1923

What's behind the camera?

Not only is there speculation and concern about reflexivity, but there is an equal amount of curiosity about the landscape, atmosphere, and depth perception of what the lens does not capture. Think about the first time you started driving. You had little to no perception of the parameters of the car. You feared backing up and hitting the car behind you, you raised your body to see where the front bumper ended, the right side of the car was a mystery when pulling alongside a curb, and to make it worse "Objects in mirror are closer than they appear." Although there were many things you were unsure of, you had somewhat of a vague idea of the car's body. The same goes for the parameters of the camera. The audience is aware of the activity that takes place within the frame, yet they only have a vague idea of what may be behind or to the sides of the camera. The filmmaker may pan to the left or to the right, and may even do a full 360º, but the environment is constantly changing as well as the expressions of the filmmaker. The Vertov quote above shows the extensive mobility a filmmaker possesses. This style of filming works to reveal as much as possible, but it does not reveal what is directly behind the camera.

Imagine being in an interview and having a camera recording you as you record the interviewee. There wouldn't be much need for reflexive methodology since the there is a camera from both cultures. This would be improbable to do with a larger group outside of 3-4 people, unless you are willing to spend the money to arm everyone with a camera. My thoughts are that it will alleviate the problems of representation and reflexivity, while fueling collaborative film. There is still a great amount to think about, but it is a start!

Musings about the Theft of Culture from Anthropology - good read

I didn't think I was going to have anything interesting I wanted to write about today until I checked my Twitter. @Ethnography61 posted something VERY interesting!

http://www.ethnography.com/2010/05/musings-about-the-theft-of-culture-from-anthropology/comment-page-1/#comment-5239

"Nigger" as a social condition

This video touches on a bit of what I speak about as far as "nigger" being a word that can be changed and transformed as people see fit. This particular scene doesn't focus on "nigger" as condition (although Adam does talk about that too).

The idea of nigger-as-condition never really occurred to me until I read a paper by Emily Yeh entitled, "Hip-hop gangsta or most deserving of victims? Transnational migrant identities and the paradox of Tibetan racialization in the USA." In this paper she speaks about the racialization, a way of designating generalized characteristics and attributing these behaviors to another ethnic group or race, of Tibetan-Americans. When young Tibetans embrace aspects/subcultures of black culture, they become (often negatively) associated with low class black Americans who listen to and create "gangsta rap." The appeal of gangsta rap comes from transnationalistic feelings of Chinese oppression and displacement from the Tibetan homeland. Although many black Americans would most likely disagree with Tibetan-Americans using the n-word, one should acknowledge the similar relationship of feelings of historical oppression and inequalities. This explains why "nigger" and all of its variations are used by a wide array of people from different backgrounds, but who share the same social status. This is also seen among Middle Easterns who may be called, or refer themselves as, "sand niggers". Also when speaking on social constraints, it is understandable why John Lennon referred to women as niggers of the world since they were oppressed by patriarchal systems of domination. Even racialized Tibetan-Americans may call each other "tiggas." In recognizing the word "nigger" as a condition, one can begin to see how "nigger" is perceived by other minority cultures and how they have dubbed this word into something they can relate to through lived experience. For the sake of addressing those who wish to argue that "nigger" is not just an explanation of a social conditon, I will say the following. "Nigger" has many other meanings and forms of expression, for example, the n-word can be used as an insult, it can be spoken in ignorance without knowing the implications, and a may be utilized without the attachment of low-class statuses (upper-class blacks saying "nigger"). However, I wish to concentrate on the idea that "nigger" relates to condition.

Digging through old files

This is really interesting because I was going through papers I had written Freshman year of college and I stumbled over this. As my interest in culture studies developed, I started thinking about doing an ehnography or research regarding the n-word. It is interesting to see how some of the same ideas and interview questions overlapped with that of my Racial Dynamics Project. In looking at this information I think that I may start working on an ethnography that solely focuses on the n-word. I will still finish the Racial Dynamics Project film for the Fall.

NOTES, OBSERVATIONS, & EPIPHANIES REGARDING THE INFAMOUS “N” WORD
- On Nov. 1 2008, I was riding in the back of the bus (irrelevant) when I heard a fellow band mate of European descent repeat lyrics she heard from a rap song of some sort using the “n” word. I was uncomfortable, furious, and sad all at the same time. I said nothing to her to avoid making a scene in front of her friends who encouraged her and let each articulation of nigga hit me like a blow to the gut. Whoever said sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me was an optimistic that lived in a fantasy world. I began to ponder the reason why this simple word did so much damage. I separated my attachment to the word and attempted to imagine how she viewed it. It became obvious that it was just a word to her, and to me it was a reminder of past sufferings by great grandparents and conflicts in my personal life. The attachment I have to the word is uniquely different than her attachment.

- As I write this I began to speculate the reasons she uses this word. A way to approach this was to observe the influencing factors in society’s media, which is a breeding ground for the “n” word. For example, rap and hip-hop music, YouTube videos, cartoon shows like The Boondocks, movies (American History X), etc.

- Among the black community, the word nigga and its variations can be a strong, unifying theme. Like nationalism between World War I and II in Germany, Italy, and other European countries, the word is so strong it gives a sense of unification, power, and a feeling of belonging. The question I would like to explore is “Do black americans say the “n” word solely (or partly) to feel like they need to belong, and branch out to others that say the “n” word because they feel misplaced in White America.

Questions to ask during informal and formal interviews to white americans:

- Have you ever said the “n” word? If so, why?
- If you have said the “n” word in a leisurely manner what is your justification for doing so?
- Have you ever said the “n” word to verbally abuse someone?
- In a general statement, what do you think about this word?

...to black americans:

- Have you ever said the “n” word? If so, why?
- If you have said the “n” word in a leisurely manner what is your justification for doing so?
- Have you ever said the “n” word to verbally abuse someone?
- Where did you learn/ hear the “n” word?
- What do you think about white people who say the “n” word?
- What does the “n” word mean to you?
- What do you think about non blacks and whites that say the “n” word?
- Are some people allowed to say the “n” word and others are not?

Racial Dynamics Project update

• I am currently watching and rewatching footage
• Taking notes on philosophies, perspectives, and experiences of the interviewees (I am not speculating or analyzing statements and ways of thinking yet. I am simply noting their views about racial issues)
• I have yet to take notes on the classroom discussion since I will have to analyze far more than individual perspectives, but also reactions to comments, particular ways of speaking, body language reactions, etc
• Beginning to notice correlations between interviewees and their views
• EVERYTHING they say is important data, even if it is incorrect/invalid or "different"

An argument against disturbing culture

Several anthropologists and ethnographers have stated that once you begin recording an event or person, you are interrupting, disturbing, or altering everyday life and culture (Pink 2007, Ruby 2000, & Rouch 1973). They state that a filmmaker cannot film based on the premise that he or she is invisible. In other words, the belief that you are filming what would normally happen without the presence of the camera is an incorrect notion. I agree to a degree. Yes, there are scenarios in which recording may be a social taboo/inappropriate or it may attract self-indulgence and 'acting.' This is likely to experienced when filming indigenous people, filming an event where people use cameras instead of video cameras, filming a group of people that may feel insecure about their looks, filming someone who wants to impress the camera, etc. However, this is not always the case. Americans, especially those who live in a large metropolis, are increasingly accepting to the presence of media and hypermedia. Of course this depends on the amount of exposure one has to media forms and other electronic capabilities. My argument is not that the camera now has the effect of being invisible in certain, rather it does not provoke a drastic behavior change among people who are 'hip' to technology. Once again, yes, there will always be the 'attention whore' (for lack of a better word) that may change his or her behavior to impress others, but this does not categorize most individuals who end up in front of a camera. Additionally, filmmakers have experimented with direct observation and other methods that allow the subjects to become indifferent to the presence of cameras and film crews. Obviously, this is not a sound argument, but my main reason for bringing this up is to criticize those who believe that the camera always changes one's behavior.