Soccer Visual Narrative

So i used Techno and fastbeat music to enhance the background of my highlights of Soccer from 2010.
Soccer is extremely influential to me and i think the music gives it a very edgy feel.

Enjoy:

Commercial critic, comprende?

Probably one of the most popular commercials in the UK in the last 10-15 years,this Cadbury advertisement actually shows no chocolate, no wrapper, no milk and in fact it shows no people even. Just a great 80's track from one Phil Collins and a Gorilla who seems to know how to hit drums!

So what was the phenomenon behind this commercial. Well for one it has the very essence of simplicity. It doesn't boggle your mind with facts or alternate scene changing time and time again. It's just 30 seconds of one scene and although it may confuse you at first it really couldnt be simpler.

Another reason this silly commercial went so far was down to the pure ridiculous nature of it. Mainly because it had nothing to do with Cadburys or chocolate. This actually happened to be in a series of commercials that much like this one did not feature anything to do with Cadburys or chocolate. The tag line that followed these commercials from a Cadbury official was "its just to promote simpleness, like Cadburys chocolate. Just plain and simple good chocolate."

As you can see it was a brave marketing move but i think one that probably paid off.

Marvelous Movie....

Pleasing visuals and astounding action. The Departed truly is one of the most well produced film i have witnessed in the last decade. Jack Nicholson's portrayal  of the mob boss and eventual FBI informant Frank Costello was spine chilling and kept me guessing as to what he would do.

Matt Damon as the mole in the Special Investigation Unit of the Boston Police department. On the same premise the BPD put a "rat" in Costello's crew. Leonardo Di Caprio slowly loses his sanity as he gets deeper and deeper into the underworld of Boston's crime ring.

My favourite scene in the movie is the thrilling scene at a drug drop-off. Both moles in both camps are constantly updating their employers and helping them in their own way. It got incredibly tense and Billy Costigan (Di Caprio) was dicing with death by texting back to the chief of the SIU.

Martin Scorsese stepped out of his comfort zone with The Departed but it paid off in a big way.

Heroic

Recently i have started to pursue and accomplish the opportunity to play soccer in the summer and stay in the country rather than go home and come back in August. So i contact a few friends and looked at playing in Knoxville, a few things worked out here and there and as it happens i am now moving to Knoxville in the summer to play for Knoxville Force. (www.knoxvilleforce.com) But it was whilst i was here that i met a truly inspiring man. His name was Jeff and he came all the way from Colorado. Born and raised as a soccer fan, Jeff knew nothing else as a sport and he was crazy about it. Jeff was 34 years old and had played soccer for 12 years until the summer of 2004. Jeff was playing a pick-up game of soccer with some friends and was heading home to see his family straight after when he was struck by a 2-ton truck from his rear and sent his Chevrolet into a ditch and Jeff through the front window which ejected him 30 feet. Jeff was left paralyzed from the waist down and had severe brain damage along with several other horrible injuries.

Needless to say Jeff was inconsolable after his learning of his condition. But Jeff but his realization into these words;
"It was like a train had hit me or the truck all over again except this time i had to think and realize that this cannot be the end of me. I am still human."
5 months after his release from hospital, Jeff started his soccer craze again. He tried to join in pick-up games with his friends even in his wheelchair and play in wheelchair sports. He described it as "vigilante thinking" that got him through. Like the injuries and disability are the enemy and they will not beat me. Jeff enjoyed his time thoroughly learning to play disabled. It brought him a sense of belief again and that is where his journey into my life began. Jeff coordinated funding for a nationwide trip in association with DSUSA (Disabled Sports USA) and started his trip to spread the word of his story and how disabled people should not be held back from sports.

Jeff was truly an exceptional man. His story affected me deeply and although he was not trying out that day, it seemed he had a lasting effect on the whole team already.

One for the books....

Journalism has been the number one profession for writing since writing was invented. Every morning when you pick up that newspaper and read the days events and happenings that has all been compiled and structured by a professional team of expert Journalists. People who have dedicated time and money and research into the development of their profession. Years of schooling and thousands of articles help perfect each future piece that is written. It is not without flaws but the journalism business is one that is an long-time sufferer of the "New Media" generation. The internet journalist is becoming more popular and that is developing as a whole different business.

Along with well written articles backed with research and examples, the journalist must use the correct pictures and illustrations to couple the point that is being proven. That emphasis must be worked at with hours of selection and careful consideration.

This week....

I'm not a big fan of news or current affairs. I'm more of a man who likes to see what is really important in life. I recently saw a fantastic movie that shattered my emotions. Blindsight. A blind man who reaches the peak of Everest. That in itself and in its entirety is one hell of an acheivement. Erik Weihenmayer after his accomplishments, turns his attentions to the blind people of Tibet, who are seen as evil in thier country. Blindness is seen as punishment for a previous life, so they are abused and mocked. Honestly, i have nothing more to say, you really need to see this movie, its a fantastic watch. Here is the trailer:

You can watch the full 108 minute Documentary HERE.





Also, i have another experience to share with you. I recently discovere the Albino people of Tanzinia and more specifically, the Albino United Football Club (Soccer).
In Tanzania, where albinos are murdered and their body parts used for 'magic' potions, a brave group of albinos are using soccer to spread the message that they too are members of society.







Take a look at a small documentary here:

Class reflections: Realism

Going back to Wednesdays discussions and debate about Realism, it made me percieve realism as a more important subject in television. The example i used of Big Brother UK has obvious realism in that it is not scripted and is the monitoring of how 15 people live together confined. However, how much of that is realistic? Many of the people could be acting to the cameras? And how much of the real people do we see in that 1 hour that covers 24 hours of a day. Editing is a system that makes the program more enjoyable, but that doesnt mean they will tweek things in order to make them seem better or worse for better ratings.

However, we now have News and Documentary realism to look at. Traditionally, British broadcasters, for example, in this medium are supposed to be impartial and non-biased. They provide an authoritative and ‘truthful’ news service. This can be seen in the way that news and documentary programmes occupy prime-time slots on TV. Documentaries, too, are regarded as high-status programmes that represent ‘truth’.

In the 1930’s documentaries provided information, education and propaganda to the audience.
From the 1950’s the development of ‘cinéma verité’ (cinema truth) in France moved the representation of ‘reality’ on to the cinema screen.
In the 1960’s the TV became the principal medium for documentaries. The genre was (and to an extent, still is), typified by certain well-defined codes. 

• An authoritative presenter
• The use of ‘voice-over’ commentaries
• Recorded interviews
• Visual evidence via location shots or archive film 

(Val Pope, 2002, News of the World)

These things created (and still create) a sense of ‘truth’ or authenticity, but it must also be noted that editorial choices and values are still at work in the creation of the news or documentary texts. What looks like truth will almost certainly have been ‘filtered’ or ‘massaged’ or manipulated’ or (to use a current term) ‘spun’ by the editorial process. 

From the 1980’s came the ‘fly-on-the-wall’ type of documentary, which has well-defined rules:

• Events are filmed exactly as they happen
• Subjects agree in advance to be filmed
• Participants are shown edited versions of the filming

Sounds ‘fair’ but is it, really? The editorial process still happens and heavy editorial control is applied in post-production. 

Going back to Reality TV (The main staple of most of the output today, it seems!) 

This works in a number of ways:

• By allowing subjects to appear as ‘themselves’, for example the camera tracks professionals doing their jobs, perhaps with dramatic reconstructions of events or real video action sequences.
• The participants become subjects of humour or entertainment (programmes like ‘You’ve been Framed’ and so on)
• Participants are subjects within a ‘fly-on’the-wall’ or verité programme (Big Brother)
• Participants are amateur directors themselves, with personal documentaries of events.

So there is the main coverage of what percieving seperate realism subjects mainly in TV.