Dear Festividder:
Oct. 16th, 2010 04:26 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
joyoDear Festividder:
You are lovely. Just gonna throw that out there now. Whoever you are, and whatever else you may be, you are a person who has volunteered to do a thing that will take hours and days out of your life to bring somebody some joy--somebody who is probably a stranger.
You get points in Column: Makes World a Nicer Place to Live
Also you volunteered things I like, which means you have excellent taste. That is basically enough in terms of strict "prompts", because what is listed below are thing I'd love to see any vids for, really. The rest is gravy. Consider this letter, then, as an opportunity for me to blab at you about why I've asked for what I have.
Why? Because if it were me (and it's going to be), I'd find the insight into why something was selected very interesting and possibly helpful, especially if the recipient did something so unhelpful as to say "what is listed below are things I'd love to see any vids for, really." ::coughs::
The Fisher King and The Imaginarium of Dr Parnassus
The films of Terry Gilliam have been formative experiences for me as a media watcher for basically as long as I can remember: from early childhood (being utterly haunted by Time Bandits), through Junior High (being utterly haunted by Brazil) through high school (ditto 12 Monkeys, Fisher King) through to adulthood (Tideland).
I saw the Fisher King for the first time when I was 14 or 15, 6-7 years recovered from my obsession with Robin Williams and about 6 years before I became utterly sick with protagonists like Jack (Jeff Bridges). This was a good thing, I think.
Dr Parnassus I saw like two months ago. It was pretty. That may have been the best thing going for it.
One element that keeps bringing me back to Gilliam's work is how he explores the role of fantasy in people's lives: whether it's children escaping into literal fantasy worlds or children/adults using fantasy as a means of coping with their dull or more frequently grim realities. He frequently uses Real Problems (drug use, mental illness, totalitarianism, parental neglect,losing the soul of your first born to Satan in a bet), but make no mistake: He is in the fairy tale business, and as such you cannot rely on him to create or even pursue Real Characters. His characters are achetypes and representations rather than fully realized people, and this lends itself to the detatched otherworldliness of even those settings which are presented as Our World. For various reasons, most of which are *embarrassing* (or just boring) this really worked for me as a kid/young adult.
As, I would argue, a better rounded adult, sometimes this works, sometimes it really doesn't and sometimes I find it outright distasteful. Dr Parnassus did a bit of all three. As for the Fisher King? To be honest...I can't actually say. I haven't seen it in about 7 years. I had to look up the character's names (i struggle with names at the best of times). I'm kind of afraid to rewatch it. I'm worried that the cracks will show, and it will ruin the memory I have of this movie feeling so utterly sweet despite the situations it throws at its characters.
That's the main element of Fisher King: The Triumph of the Human spirit, *sparklerainbow*. This is not something that Gilliam usually indulges. Fisher King made me feel *really happy* at a time when I refused to acknowledge that so-called "feel-good films of the year" even deserved to exist.
The main element of Dr Parnassus: tbh, largely the spectacle. Some of the "are people mostly good or mostly evil" stuff was interesting, but I think the most interesting character interplay was between Parnassus and the Devil. But mostly, there is pretty footage here, and there is probably a much better film if condensed into 3-5 mins. If this grabs you, I look forward to what you'll make.
SO, Dear Festividder, you may be asking yourself just what-in-the-hell you are meant to take away from that.
Simply put: I like the spectacle of Dr Parnassus, I like the emotional payoff of Fisher King. The latter is not without its own spectacle, because hello, it's Terry Gilliam.
The Funeral Okay, if you're familiar with Japanese cinema you are probably familiar, whether you realized it or not, with the frequently stark differences in how space and sound tend to be used, especially in films of this era (the extent to which this is characteristic of Eastern cinema I don't have the familiarity to speak to, so I am staying within a comfort zone that I have at least a moderate grasp of). This is a comedy, and I haven't seen it since the Japanese Film class I took in my first year of college and dearie me that was a while ago. But it sticks in my head as one of the first films that took all of the pacing, setting and sequencing elements discussed and demonstrated in the class and managed to penatrate my brain with *comprehension*, and more importantly, appreciation.
As that paragraph was remarkably up-itself, let me say it another way: This movie helped me start to really appreciate Japanese cinema, and the approaches used by Japanese filmmakers to bring their stories to film. There is some beautiful imagery, and it's generally quite a soulful film, but doesn't have very much motion.
Go for it.
La Belle Et La Bete This is one of those things where I'm 90% sure if you've offered it, you're familiar with it. I saw this in college, taking advantage of the free screening nights on the campus theatre for the students in Film Studies classes.
I'm not actually knowledgeable about French cinema in any real way, but I saw this with The Blood of a Poet during what must have been the Jean Cocteau unit in the film studies class.
I don't know what about it struck me, but it just really grabbed a hold and has stayed with me ever since. It's also 60+ years old.
So, in this instance when I say "I'm interested to see what you do with" I really do mean just that.
The Quiet Family I'm massively less familiar with Korean cinema, so you'll be spared my struggling to recall academic-sounding snatches from classes I took nearly a decade ago.
This is the original film that Happiness of the Katakuris was based on. I saw this instead, because I heard it was better, and since this came from an avid Takashi Miike fan, I listened to them. It's about a family coming together to triumph over adversity, and run a charming country inn and people try to spoil it by rather rudely going there to die. But nevermind that, because: Families coming together to triumph over adversity?
Positive messages! I'm all about that.
What struck me was how remarkably understated it managed to be, considering the entire plot, and really quite memorable, and between this and Tale of Two Sisters I am asking myself why I have failed to seek out more Korean films (answer: I seem to be allergic to doing things that I enjoy).
For the record, I still haven't seen Takashi Miike's version (despite owning it), but I'll put cash money on "understated" not being an adjective anyone would use to describe it in at least a million years. Possibly 12 million.
Shall We Dansu?
Stuffy Japanese salaryman learns to dance, enjoys his life more, connects to his family more because of it.
This movie is lovely. That's almost all there is to it. It's the first Japanese comedy I ever saw, and I loved it and it no doubt contributed to my on-again off-again scholarship of Japanese language/culture. It's just utterly...lovely. I draw <3s around it. I'd probalby still draw hearts around it
Triplets of Belleville I saw this 3 times in the theatre, once again, when I was in college. Apparently I don't watch movies anymore.
Anyway, I love animation. I have always loved animation, and I was thrilled to see a Western feature-length animated movie that was still in 2-D, that relies on elements other than dialogue to tell the story.
This brings me to my only *specific* request in all of these items:
I recall now that there are some racial caricatures in the opening flash-back to the Triplett's 1920s Stage Show. I understand what was attempted: it was "harking back to a simpler time" of variety-show sensibilities and antics, and I also get that every body that appears in the film is caricatured as a matter of style (even moreso in this segment), but 1) the particular tropes the caricatures borrow from do *not* make this less problematic, and 2) this is also the only time i can recall that bodies of colour appear in the film, and it's generally speaking, just not on. And since when does the "simpler time" argument ever hold water, anyway?
If you pick Triplets to vid, it's a bouncy-boppy goofy little flick, that lends itself to a celebratory vid (as does Festivids itself). My request is: please do not celebrate the particular footage I've mentioned. I don't celebrate it, and it would make me very sad to think that someone would watch it expecting a fun bouncy celebration and get smacked in the face by a hurtful portrayal of POC presented as "festive". Obviously not as sad/hurt/angry as the POC who would be confronted with it, but as this vid is a gift to me, I guess consider that part of your gift to me is a vid that won't harm other people, esp in the name of fun. Because that is not fun!
That will kill my Festibuzz. And that's like, the total opposite point of Festivids. Anyway, there is enough fun that won't harm. I believe in you!
Captain Harlock As stated in the prompt I submitted: I am 98% certain that if you have signed up for this one, you are familiar with Captain Harlock and he Arcadia, and possibly with the Mastumotoverse in general. I cannot trust the AMV community to handle this one, because AMVers do not vid old source. This is a fact. Absolute Destiny told me and people know who he is and so I think I believe him! (also I checked animemusicvideos.org
I trust you...do what is in your heart.
No, I'm serious. You're into the Harlock Universe. Do you know how many people I've met and known who are? Zero. That's how many. I am *alone* in the inky black sea of stars that is Harlock fandom with just the guys at Corn Pone Flicks and a bunch of sites in French. And I took Spanish.
...okay and two years of Japanese but seriously I can remember like 80 kanji. Let's not pretend my reading comprehension can cope with like, anything.
I'm totally serious, htough, you could vid a 4-minute AU where Blue Arcadia dates Green Arcadia and they're actually Mayu's real parents, or Mii-Kun/Tori-san and I am not kidding you it would make my year.
Did you just laugh at that joke? Then we are in love.
And Mayu doesn't even really exist anyway. But, you knew this already!
If you want more help, then:
1. Tochiro and Emeraldas, however you want to try and tackle that.
2. The crew of the Arcadia: Yattran, Kei, I don't know who they are in the French version, and what draws them to the Arcadia and to Harlock.
3. Harlock's epic space angst.
3. Something more meta about the wonderful lack of continuity in the Harlock universe. I am not being sarcastic when I say "wonderful". But you already knew that! If you want a handy tool to keep the various threads straight, then this site after more than a decade remains the best source in English for Capt Harlock information/speculation...and with its original site design intact!
So, dear Dear Festividder, I leave things in your hands.
Go on. I believe in you.
::internet hugs::
You are lovely. Just gonna throw that out there now. Whoever you are, and whatever else you may be, you are a person who has volunteered to do a thing that will take hours and days out of your life to bring somebody some joy--somebody who is probably a stranger.
You get points in Column: Makes World a Nicer Place to Live
Also you volunteered things I like, which means you have excellent taste. That is basically enough in terms of strict "prompts", because what is listed below are thing I'd love to see any vids for, really. The rest is gravy. Consider this letter, then, as an opportunity for me to blab at you about why I've asked for what I have.
Why? Because if it were me (and it's going to be), I'd find the insight into why something was selected very interesting and possibly helpful, especially if the recipient did something so unhelpful as to say "what is listed below are things I'd love to see any vids for, really." ::coughs::
The Fisher King and The Imaginarium of Dr Parnassus
The films of Terry Gilliam have been formative experiences for me as a media watcher for basically as long as I can remember: from early childhood (being utterly haunted by Time Bandits), through Junior High (being utterly haunted by Brazil) through high school (ditto 12 Monkeys, Fisher King) through to adulthood (Tideland).
I saw the Fisher King for the first time when I was 14 or 15, 6-7 years recovered from my obsession with Robin Williams and about 6 years before I became utterly sick with protagonists like Jack (Jeff Bridges). This was a good thing, I think.
Dr Parnassus I saw like two months ago. It was pretty. That may have been the best thing going for it.
One element that keeps bringing me back to Gilliam's work is how he explores the role of fantasy in people's lives: whether it's children escaping into literal fantasy worlds or children/adults using fantasy as a means of coping with their dull or more frequently grim realities. He frequently uses Real Problems (drug use, mental illness, totalitarianism, parental neglect,
As, I would argue, a better rounded adult, sometimes this works, sometimes it really doesn't and sometimes I find it outright distasteful. Dr Parnassus did a bit of all three. As for the Fisher King? To be honest...I can't actually say. I haven't seen it in about 7 years. I had to look up the character's names (i struggle with names at the best of times). I'm kind of afraid to rewatch it. I'm worried that the cracks will show, and it will ruin the memory I have of this movie feeling so utterly sweet despite the situations it throws at its characters.
That's the main element of Fisher King: The Triumph of the Human spirit, *sparklerainbow*. This is not something that Gilliam usually indulges. Fisher King made me feel *really happy* at a time when I refused to acknowledge that so-called "feel-good films of the year" even deserved to exist.
The main element of Dr Parnassus: tbh, largely the spectacle. Some of the "are people mostly good or mostly evil" stuff was interesting, but I think the most interesting character interplay was between Parnassus and the Devil. But mostly, there is pretty footage here, and there is probably a much better film if condensed into 3-5 mins. If this grabs you, I look forward to what you'll make.
SO, Dear Festividder, you may be asking yourself just what-in-the-hell you are meant to take away from that.
Simply put: I like the spectacle of Dr Parnassus, I like the emotional payoff of Fisher King. The latter is not without its own spectacle, because hello, it's Terry Gilliam.
The Funeral Okay, if you're familiar with Japanese cinema you are probably familiar, whether you realized it or not, with the frequently stark differences in how space and sound tend to be used, especially in films of this era (the extent to which this is characteristic of Eastern cinema I don't have the familiarity to speak to, so I am staying within a comfort zone that I have at least a moderate grasp of). This is a comedy, and I haven't seen it since the Japanese Film class I took in my first year of college and dearie me that was a while ago. But it sticks in my head as one of the first films that took all of the pacing, setting and sequencing elements discussed and demonstrated in the class and managed to penatrate my brain with *comprehension*, and more importantly, appreciation.
As that paragraph was remarkably up-itself, let me say it another way: This movie helped me start to really appreciate Japanese cinema, and the approaches used by Japanese filmmakers to bring their stories to film. There is some beautiful imagery, and it's generally quite a soulful film, but doesn't have very much motion.
Go for it.
La Belle Et La Bete This is one of those things where I'm 90% sure if you've offered it, you're familiar with it. I saw this in college, taking advantage of the free screening nights on the campus theatre for the students in Film Studies classes.
I'm not actually knowledgeable about French cinema in any real way, but I saw this with The Blood of a Poet during what must have been the Jean Cocteau unit in the film studies class.
I don't know what about it struck me, but it just really grabbed a hold and has stayed with me ever since. It's also 60+ years old.
So, in this instance when I say "I'm interested to see what you do with" I really do mean just that.
The Quiet Family I'm massively less familiar with Korean cinema, so you'll be spared my struggling to recall academic-sounding snatches from classes I took nearly a decade ago.
This is the original film that Happiness of the Katakuris was based on. I saw this instead, because I heard it was better, and since this came from an avid Takashi Miike fan, I listened to them. It's about a family coming together to triumph over adversity, and run a charming country inn and people try to spoil it by rather rudely going there to die. But nevermind that, because: Families coming together to triumph over adversity?
Positive messages! I'm all about that.
What struck me was how remarkably understated it managed to be, considering the entire plot, and really quite memorable, and between this and Tale of Two Sisters I am asking myself why I have failed to seek out more Korean films (answer: I seem to be allergic to doing things that I enjoy).
For the record, I still haven't seen Takashi Miike's version (despite owning it), but I'll put cash money on "understated" not being an adjective anyone would use to describe it in at least a million years. Possibly 12 million.
Shall We Dansu?
Stuffy Japanese salaryman learns to dance, enjoys his life more, connects to his family more because of it.
This movie is lovely. That's almost all there is to it. It's the first Japanese comedy I ever saw, and I loved it and it no doubt contributed to my on-again off-again scholarship of Japanese language/culture. It's just utterly...lovely. I draw <3s around it. I'd probalby still draw hearts around it
Triplets of Belleville I saw this 3 times in the theatre, once again, when I was in college. Apparently I don't watch movies anymore.
Anyway, I love animation. I have always loved animation, and I was thrilled to see a Western feature-length animated movie that was still in 2-D, that relies on elements other than dialogue to tell the story.
This brings me to my only *specific* request in all of these items:
I recall now that there are some racial caricatures in the opening flash-back to the Triplett's 1920s Stage Show. I understand what was attempted: it was "harking back to a simpler time" of variety-show sensibilities and antics, and I also get that every body that appears in the film is caricatured as a matter of style (even moreso in this segment), but 1) the particular tropes the caricatures borrow from do *not* make this less problematic, and 2) this is also the only time i can recall that bodies of colour appear in the film, and it's generally speaking, just not on. And since when does the "simpler time" argument ever hold water, anyway?
If you pick Triplets to vid, it's a bouncy-boppy goofy little flick, that lends itself to a celebratory vid (as does Festivids itself). My request is: please do not celebrate the particular footage I've mentioned. I don't celebrate it, and it would make me very sad to think that someone would watch it expecting a fun bouncy celebration and get smacked in the face by a hurtful portrayal of POC presented as "festive". Obviously not as sad/hurt/angry as the POC who would be confronted with it, but as this vid is a gift to me, I guess consider that part of your gift to me is a vid that won't harm other people, esp in the name of fun. Because that is not fun!
That will kill my Festibuzz. And that's like, the total opposite point of Festivids. Anyway, there is enough fun that won't harm. I believe in you!
Captain Harlock As stated in the prompt I submitted: I am 98% certain that if you have signed up for this one, you are familiar with Captain Harlock and he Arcadia, and possibly with the Mastumotoverse in general. I cannot trust the AMV community to handle this one, because AMVers do not vid old source. This is a fact. Absolute Destiny told me and people know who he is and so I think I believe him! (also I checked animemusicvideos.org
I trust you...do what is in your heart.
No, I'm serious. You're into the Harlock Universe. Do you know how many people I've met and known who are? Zero. That's how many. I am *alone* in the inky black sea of stars that is Harlock fandom with just the guys at Corn Pone Flicks and a bunch of sites in French. And I took Spanish.
...okay and two years of Japanese but seriously I can remember like 80 kanji. Let's not pretend my reading comprehension can cope with like, anything.
I'm totally serious, htough, you could vid a 4-minute AU where Blue Arcadia dates Green Arcadia and they're actually Mayu's real parents, or Mii-Kun/Tori-san and I am not kidding you it would make my year.
Did you just laugh at that joke? Then we are in love.
And Mayu doesn't even really exist anyway. But, you knew this already!
If you want more help, then:
1. Tochiro and Emeraldas, however you want to try and tackle that.
2. The crew of the Arcadia: Yattran, Kei, I don't know who they are in the French version, and what draws them to the Arcadia and to Harlock.
3. Harlock's epic space angst.
3. Something more meta about the wonderful lack of continuity in the Harlock universe. I am not being sarcastic when I say "wonderful". But you already knew that! If you want a handy tool to keep the various threads straight, then this site after more than a decade remains the best source in English for Capt Harlock information/speculation...and with its original site design intact!
So, dear Dear Festividder, I leave things in your hands.
Go on. I believe in you.
::internet hugs::
