Final Self-Assessment

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Anuli Duru

Self-Assessment

Final Project:

“Revisiting the Body”

            Throughout the semester, I have focused my work in elements of anatomy and structured my compositions around this central theme of zooming in on parts of the body as well as its everyday actions so as to make minute things more important. What our body does for us everyday is important, as it is amazing, yet we hardly pay attention to the significance of these everyday functions. The core theme of my final work is again to zoom in on parts of the body and comprise in such a way that it generates a sort of “beautiful composition, just as our bodies are beautiful compositions. What drove me to create this piece was my fascination for the human body and anatomical elements and their vast array of functions. My inspiration came from an anatomy class I had taken over the summer. I had already been fascinated by the subject matter before I came into the class, but afterwards, I was mesmerized by the many layers, properties, physical, and chemical elements of the body that I hadn’t known before.  I was especially captivated by the functions of the brain and dreams. I really wanted to delve further into the concept, so upon creating this piece, I intended to explore parts of the body as well as the mind with a dream like feel.

            The process for creating this work was definitely one of the most challenging trials I have ever had to face. It involved working with and figuring out a whole new program—Adobe After Effects—while at the same time trying new forms of video editing such as green screening, or, in this case, blue screening. After Effects in general is an amazing yet incredibly advanced program that one can either love or hate. At first I hated it. Yet when I took the time to do some background research, watching hundreds of YouTube videos and readings forums after forus, I found that After Effects allows you to do some incredible things. In fact, I never thought I could generate my own particles or even begin to work with blue screening and key lighting. I learned so much just from playing around with different effects, timing and positions, and values. With the blue screening, I had an easier time working with it, yet I also learned that there are so many ways to edit and work with blue screen. In all, working with After Effects and blue screening was simply a matter of doing some research, playing around with different settings, and finding a method that works best for me.

            In creating my work, I would have to say that my work habits could have been a little more consistent. Some days I would work for 2 hours and then some days I wouldn’t work at all because of how frustrated I was with After Effects. Yet what I was consistent with was my research. I would watch videos from start to finish and then replay them as I worked and mimicked the tutorials. Based on this, my work ethics were in some ways efficient yet not sufficient. I could have been more consistent with my working stages so that I could learn even more about After Effects and utilize more tools to create a better video.

            Stepping back from the finished product, I would perceive this work as a type of intense, mesmerizing composition that does zoom in on parts of the body such as the eyes, lips, and hands. Yet I wouldn’t perceive it as an ode to anatomy, but rather an intense, dramatic and appealing musical composition. The formal elements of hue, saturation, and stark contrast are applied which creates this dramatic, edgy atmosphere while the overlaying of imagery and particle interfaces makes for a dream-like atmosphere. In effect, the message then needs to be more clearly articulated, perhaps by showing actual anatomical elements like the bones or skin or even cells. Yet overall the piece is visually appealing and captivating with the use of blue screening techniques, stark contrast, dramatic music, overlays, and particle interfaces.

            Based on all of this, if I were to give myself a grade it would rest between an A- to a B+, because my message needs to be more present so that the viewer knows it is clearly about the wonders of the body. However, I would grade myself with an A- to B+ because of the challenging material I overcame and my manipulation of these challenges.