Lecture Notes 11: What is Research? Pt 1

• Context is everything.
• "Process is more important than outcome. When the outcome drives the process we only ever go to where we've already been. If process drives outcome we may not know where we're going, but we will know we want to be there."
• Process is more important than the outcome.
• Research into all different aspects of your creative practice.
• A creative practice that constantly develops as you move along, it can never stagnate.
• "Success comes from having brighter ideas closer together."
• You gotta fail before you can succeed.
• Ideas are the currency which you build and buy your future.
• Chance favours the connected mind.
• Integration of written and practical practices.
• There is a conscious or subconscious search for inspiration from external sources, from surroundings, media, discussions, libraries, etc.
• The main concern here is the development of analogies and associative approaches, which are then further developed into individual solutions.
• Brainstorming is about really making connections (Hence why we tend to start with mindmaps during the planning process)
• Stimulate the approach to ideas.
• Systematic Approach: By structuring and restructuring, enlarging and reducing, combing and extracting, replacing, adding, mirroring or reproducing.
• Intuitive Approach (What most of us have already):
  Development of thought process, which is primarily based on internalised perceptions and knowledge, that is to say an internal repertoire of ideas. This type of though process may occur spontaneously, without being evoked specially. This is actually a systematic process.
• Research is the process of finding facts, provable outcomes.
• The process of finding out how, why, what, who.. and maybe when?
• It involves collecting information from a variety of sources.
• The process taken into research will effect the outcomes of the project.
• There is also experimenting, discussing and analysing all that information.
• Primary Research:
  Research that is developed and collected for a specific end use, usually generated to help solve a specific problem. It involves the collection of data that does not yet exist.
• Secondary Research:
  Published or recorded data that have already been collected for some purpose other than the current study.
  The analysis of research that has been collected at an earlier time (For reasons unrelated to the current project)
• Quantitive Research:
  Deals with facts, figures, and measurements, and produces data which can be readily analysed. Measurably data is gathered from a wide range of sources, and it is the analysis and interpretations of the relationships across this data that gives the information researchers are looking for.
  Generates numerical data or data that can converted into numbers.
  Measurable data.
  Research that is objective and relies on statistical analysis, such as surveys.
• Qualitative Research:
  Explores and TRIES to understand people's beliefs, experiences, attitudes, behaviour and iterations. It generates non-numerical data. The best-known qualitative methods of inquiry include in-depth interviews, focus groups, documentary analysis and participant observation.
  Capturing people's thoughts and emotions as data.
  A way to study people or systems by interacting with and observing the subjects regularly.
• Information is the result of processing, manipulating and organizing data in a way that adds to the knowledge of the person receiving it.
• Info should be sufficient, competent, relevant, and useful.
• -> Assimilation <-> Development <-> Communication <-> General Study <->
• Phase 1 Assimilation
  The accumulation and ordering of general information and information specifically related to the problem in hand.
• Phase 2 General Study
  The investigation of the nature of the problem
  The investigation of possible solutions or means of solution.
• Phase 3 DevelopmentThe development and refinement of one or more of the tentative solutions isolated during phase 2.
• Phase 4 Communication
  The communication of one of more solutions to people either inside or outside the design team.
• <-> Assimilation <-> Development <-> Communication <-> General Study <->
• Identify background information
• <-> Analysis <-> Research <-> Evaluation <-> Solution <->
• Start anywhere, because, does it really matter where you start?

Seminar 6: Globalisation

Anime

In August 1996, Disney and Tokum Shoten Publishing agreed that Disney would international distribute Tokuma's Studio Ghibli animated films. Aside from the fact that english dubbing (With some of America's biggest and most well known celebrities) was done for these Western releases, the dubbing actually stayed really faithful to the original Ghibli films (From what I can see at least). In fact, this is a positive example on what international redistribution can do, seeing that the west wouldn't have known or come to appreciate Ghibli's works of art had it not been for Disney.

On a similar topic, a worse off example would have to be "Sailor Moon" and some of the weakest attempts at americanisation one would have the misfortune of laying their eyes upon. Sure, most of us have probably heard of the more childish (I am not going to say awful because it remains to this day a huge part of most people's childhoods) North American localising done by DiC and Cloverway, where a huge amount of the original content was heavily censored or changed completely (Such as changing a certain lesbian couple in cousins instead).

But... did you know that...

They were originally going to go from this.

To this?

This American remake was going to be a half live-action and half Western style animation (You can see here that it looks like any 80s cartoon at the time). Toon Makers produced a 17 minute proof of concept presentation as well as a two minute music video (Which I had wanted to post here had there been a decent quality of it without someone laughing in the background...) that they presented to Toei, whom turned it down as their concept would have cost significantly more than simply exporting and dubbing the anime adaptation.

TV Shows

I feel that the American adaptation of the original BBC series is another considerably positive example. While it initially appeared to be a mere copy of the English version for the first season or two, this version clearly began to grow into its own show as it progressed. As expected, the first season was met with mixed responses from critics, as it was seen as a pale imitation of the original. 

Later seasons however were soon better received by critics and viewers alike as the script began deviating from Gervais and Merchant's own, and when characters began to develop their own personalities that became far more fleshed out than their British counterparts (Though then again the original version only lasted for 12 episodes).

"After a rocky start, The Office improved immeasurably, instantly becoming one of TV's funniest, sharpest shows. The casting of Steve Carell in the Gervais role proved to be a masterstroke. The American Office is that rarest of anomalies: a remake of a classic show that both does right by its source and carves out its own strong identity."
~ .A.V. Club, Nathan Rabin

... I don't know.

Perhaps maybe the same could have happened for the American version of the "IT Crowd", but well, they were never given the chance to get past the pilot, so we will never know... (Frankly though, a shot by shot copy of the original is just never the wisest way to give your pitch for something... it probably wouldn't work as well as "The Office" did in my opinion, seeing how distinctly British the "IT Crowd" was in terms of humour)

Cultural Identity

And so, is there a threat to the loss of cultural identities when it comes to other animations throughout the world? Or do most people simply see America and Japan as the main distributors of animation? And that other countries are too afraid to step up to the plate? 

The opening for "The Triplets of Belleville" presented humorous caricatures of well known figures such as Josephine Baker, Django Reinhardt and Fred Astaire, and was parodying the Rubber hose animation style that became standardised in the American animation industry (Especially in really early Disney shorts back in the 20s). I wouldn't say that the opening is the best example into what a French animation would look like, as it was clearly parodying American animations and subjects at the time.

I believe that it is in the main story where we are truly able to get the distinct French feel of the film. Aside from the unique abstractness and grittiness seen throughout most of it, there is also a distinctly warm yellowish colour palette used throughout (Which seems to be present in a lot of other French animations). "Triplets of Belleville" can be considered a downright scary and weird film, but still retains an amazing amount of hilarity and beauty as well. "The Illusionist" also has a distinctly French feel despite its incredibly different tone and mood, and I think people should just watch these two and compare them after.

Frankly though, I call BS on this matter, because, most people just aren't looking that hard enough. For instance there have been an amazing amount of French animated films that have been nominated as Disney, Pixar and Ghibli films. French, Korean, Chinese, German, Russian animations all have their own unique identities and style (Even "The Simpsons" seems to notice that, seeing that they parody them now and then).

I suppose most people in my class might question then, what is considered to be a distinctly British animation? To me, that is a little hard to figure out (Even though Singapore had provided us with a wide selection of British animations on the local kids channel), as it seems to vary. Though I suppose most people will identify British animations through stop motion, such as the works of Aardman.

Lecture Notes 10: Censorship and Truth

Truth and Manipulation

• Ansel Adams was considered important as a photographer for his photos of the American landscape, and his skills in the dark room and abilities to alter the truth. He manipulates in the dark room the way he prints things to create something considerably different from the original.
• It's nothing sinister though, unless you think about it in a political context.

• Censorship and manipulation in photography goes way back to 1917.
• 9/11 photoshopped works are done seeing how well they are able to cause a react out of the intended audience

• Then there's the more superficial stuff, such as the photoshopping of models and celebrities on magazines. 
• British GQ messed up pretty badly when they slimmed down Kate Winslet in one of their cover shots... only to completely forget to alter her reflection too.

• Manipulation becomes a more impressionable and impactful thing.
• Is it real?

• Robert Capa, "Death of a Loyalist Soldier", 1936, queried for ages now over whether it was real or simply set up.
• "At that time (WWII), I fervently believed just about everything I was exposed to in school and in the media. For examples, I knew that all Germans were evil and that all Japanese were sneaky and treacherous, while all white Americans were clean-cut, honest, fair-minded, and trusting."
  ~ Elliot Aronson in Pratkanis and Aronson, 1992, Age of Propaganda, p. xii
• With lively step, breasting the wind, clenching their rifles, they ran down the slope covered with thick stubble. Suddenly their soaring was interrupted, a bullet whistled - a fatricidal bullet  - and their blood was drunk by their native soil" - caption accompanying the photograph in Vue magazine
• Persuasion - "a deliberate and successful attempt by one person to get another person by appeals to reason to freely accept beliefs, attitudes, values, intentions, or actions". ~ Tom L. Beauchamp, Manipulaive Advertising, 1984
• Simulacrum
  1. An image or representation of someone or something: a small-scale simulacrum of a skyscraper
  1.1 An unsatisfactory imitation or substitute: a bland simulacrum of American soul music

• "The Gulf War did not Take Place" by Jean Baudrillard
• Contrary to the title, the author believes hat the events and violence of the Gulf War actually took place (And expectedly such silly criticisms are made of the title alone by folks that didn't even read the book)
• Were the events that took place comparable to how they were presents, and could such events be called war?
• The title is actually a reference to the play "The Trojan war will not take place", in which characters attempt to prevent what the audience knows is inevitable
• Baudrillard argued that the Guld war was not really a war, but rather and atrocity which masqueraded as a war.
• The American military used overwhelming airpower for most part but otherwise did not directly engage in combat with the Iraqi army, and suffered few casualties.
• Thus, the fighting "did not really take place" from the point of view from the west.
• The closely watched media presentations made it impossible to distinguish betwen the experience of what truly happened in the conflict, and its stylised, selective misrepresentation through "simulacra"
• "It is a masquerade of Information: branded faces delivered over to the prostitution of the image" ~ Jean Baudrillard, p.40
• What is appropriate for the news? Despite its grimness and graphicness, do the viewers not have the right to see what truly unfolds?
• What is the news for then if such things are censored?
• An-My Le, who works alongisde the US army, has her work questioned over how much of it actually portrays the war?

Censorship

• Censorship:
  The practice or policy of censoring films, letters or publications.
• Censor:
  1. a person authorised to examine films, letters or publications, in order to ban or cut anything considered obscene or objectionable
  2. To ban or cut portions of (a film, letter or publication)
• Morals:
  Principles of behaviour in accordance with standards of right or wrong
• Ethics:
  1. Code of behaviour, especially of a particular group, profession or individual.
  2. The moral fitness of decision, course of action, etc.
  3. The study of the moral value of human contact

• ‘Suppose that a picture of a young woman inserting a chocolate bar into her mouth makes one person think of fellatio, but someone else says that this meaning says more about the observer than it does the picture. This kind of dispute, with its assumption that meaning resides in a text quite independently of individual and group preconceptions, is depressingly common in discussions on advertising as the picture does not in fact depict fellatio, but something else, what the dispute comes down to is whether everyone, a substantial number of people, a few obsessed individuals, or one particular person, understand it this way. Without an opinion poll, the dispute is unresolvable, but it is really quite improbable that such an interpretation will be individual’ ~ Cook, G. (1992), The Discourse of Advertising, London, Routiledge, Page 51 

• YES ON SO MANY LEVELS.
• United Colours of Benetton has always been known for their shocking, provocative ads that really don't have anything to do with their products, save for the unification of colours.
• "While the publicity generated by such campaigns [Benetton] is immense - and their globalised distribution protects them from the effects of a ban in any one country - it is also surely shocking that the shock effect wears off so quickly. Perhaps the overall driving motive of such campaigns is in fact nothing new - but simply an astute loyalty to one on the oldest adages in the business: there is no such thing as bad Publicity" 
• ~ Cook, G. (1992), The Discourse of Advertising, London, Routledge, Page 229

• "Dejeuner sur l'Herbe" sparked public notoriety and controversy, whilst prostitution was common knowledge in Paris, it was still considered a taboo subject unsuitable for painting

• This inspired Bow Wow Wow's album cover in 1981, which caused additional controversy seeing that the naked girl (lead singer Annabella Lwin) was only 14 at the time.
• The Miller Test in 1972 asks three questions to determine whether a given work should be labelled 'obscene' and hence denied constitutional protection.
• Whether 'the average person, applying contemporary community standards' would find that the work, taken as a whole, appeals to the prurient interest
• Whether the work depicts or describes, in a patently offensive way, sexual conduct
• Whether the work, taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value
• Who is to decide whether someone thinks something is of artistic value or worth?
• Obscenity Law:
  1. To protect art whilst prohibiting trash
  2. The dividing line between speed and non-speech
  3. The dividing line between prison and freedom
• Sally Mann is an American photographer best known for her large black and white photographs - at first of her young children, then later of landscapes suggesting death and decay

• Her third collection "Immediate Family" received controversy on its release, such as accusations of child pornography and of contrived fiction with constructed tableaux
• "selling photographs of children in their nakedness for profit is an exploitation of the parental role and I think it's wrong"
  ~ Pat Robertson of the Christian Broadcasting Network
• Just how much should we believe the 'truth' represented in the media?
• And should we be protected from it?
• Is the manipulation of the truth fair game in a Capitalist, consumer society?
• Should art sit outside of censorship laws exercised in other disciplines?
• Who should be protected, artist, viewer, or subject?