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Blog Post 15: That's a Wrap!

 Welcome to the Blogging Brooke, I would first like to start off by thanking each of my viewers, you made this blogging experience one to remember. I was so happy to see the interactions with my blog posts and the nice comments that made me want to keep posting. However, I am saddened to say that this will be my last blog post. My film class has come to an end, therefore, The Blogging Brooke must come to an end as well.  In this blog post, I will be talking about my experience taking my very first ever film class, and naming the different movies and short stories we watched as a class throughout the semester. This class taught me to recognize the little details that go into the making of a film, from the cinematography to the placement of the actors, and the makeup used to gain a feeling from the audience. I never realized before taking this class the entirety of what it takes to be an actor, director, videographer, editor etc. However, after taking this class, I am able to se...
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Blog Post 14: The Social Dilemma

 Welcome to the Blogging Brooke,  Today I would like to talk about the Netflix film called The Social Dilemma. I had already watched this documentary prior to this film class earlier on in the semester for my social media class.  In this blog post, I will define my key takeaways from the film. First I will start off with how many dilemmas I was able to count in the film.  At minute 6:40, Tristan Harris, a former Google design enthusiast and co-founder of the Center for Humane Technology, names 7 dilemmas. These seven include a cacophony of grievances and scandals, data stealing, tech addiction, fake news, political polarization, elections getting hacked. Cynthia Wong named a few more offline harm dilemmas including hate speech, manipulating public opinion, and inciting violence. There is also populism, mass chaos, and lack of trust.   In total, I counted thirteen dilemmas. One in detail would be fake news. Fake news is always harmful to society. It causes p...

Blog Post 13: JAWS

 Welcome to the Blogging Brooke, We had the opportunity to watch the cinematic masterpiece; Jaws . Jaws is a horror film that was released in the year 1975 and was directed by Steven Spielberg. I watched this movie for the first time when I was about twelve years old, and getting the chance to watch it at age twenty-one, I understood and appreciated the film and all that took place from a cinema graphic standpoint.  I would just like to vent and appreciate the camera angles, greenscreen use, CGI, and the actors. Throughout the film I felt as if I was living on Amity Island with everybody else. This film is different from other Horror films I watch. I am used to watching films like; Annabelle, The Conjuring, The Black Phone, IT, and The Visit , where the intensity of the movie does not start right at the beginning of the film. However, in Jaws, the film opens with an intensity grabbing scene because we see a woman run into the ocean away from her boyfriend, and gets eaten by a ...

Blog Post 12: The creating of Merner Mystery

 Welcome to the Blogging Brooke,      Today I would like to discuss the process in which my classmates and I went through to create our short film;   Merner Mystery . To recap, Merner Mystery is a crime/murder mystery film that takes place on the campus of North Central College. The volleyball coach had been found dead at the end of the stairway. An investigator is called to the scene and begins questioning the last people to see her alive. If you have not watched this short film, I recommend you give it a try. It is linked below a previous blog named; Blog Post 10: Merner Mystery Short Film.      Let me introduce my crew:  Brooke Duncan (me) : Director, Editor, Videographer Anna Gawron: Co-Director, Videographer Grace Toole: Videographer Ola Zugaj: Videographer      These three made filming such a blast and I could not have asked for a better group of actors. During filming, I was able to capture most of the shots in...

Blog Post 11: You, Me, and Everyone We Know

 Welcome to the Blogging Brooke, This week in class we watched the 2005 Drama/Romance film, You, Me, and Everyone We Know. I enjoyed watching this film. The biggest takeaway I got from this was the importance that human connection has in people's lives. It focuses on how separation has a bad impact on human connection. In this blog I talk about how humans' thirst for some sort of connection in their lives, both human and electronic.  In the beginning of the film, we are introduced to Richard Swersey. He has just gone through a breakup with the mother of his two children, Peter and Robby. He is now a single father who struggles in his job as a shoe-salesman to support and provide for his kids. He finds himself alone, stressed, and tired. However, he is doing everything he can to rebuild a connection with both Peter and Robby.  Then one day while Richard was working, a young lady walked into his shop in search of shoes. This young lady is introduced as Christine. She is a l...

Blog Post 10: Merner Mystery Short Film Summary

 Welcome to the Blogging Brooke,      This week in class we were able to be creative and use our skills to create a short film. It was interesting to be able to experience beginner film making at its finest. My group was able to use our knowledge of cinematography, lighting, and sound to create our short film called Merner Mystery .       Merner Mystery is a short film created by Brooke Duncan starring Ola Zugaj, Anna Gawron, and Grace Toole. This film is about a volleyball coach who was mysteriously murdered in Merner Field House.  Athletes Grace Toole and Anna Gawron were the last ones to see Coach Ola alive, so they become the prime suspects.     Investigator Brooke Duncan is called to the crime scene. She begins asking questions to both Anna and Grace and taking down notes to try and figure out what happened. She did her research and came to a conclusion after taking the statements from both suspects. Investigator Duncan came t...

Blog Post 9: What is Mise-en-scene?

 Welcome to The Blogging Brooke What is Mise-en-scene? Why is it important? I am here to answer those questions.  Today I would like to talk about what separates good films or shows from great ones. One tactic that elevates these films or shows is the use of mise-en-scene. This tactic helps get the viewers' attention by making the viewer feel as if they are actually part of the movie. One show that I watch regularly that is great at using mise-en-scene is Shameless .  The importance of detail in this show makes the audience feel as if they are in the set..if that makes sense. For example, Shameless is set in the Southside of Chicago and is about lower-class family doing everything they can to survive.  This video shows the behind the scenes of the making of one of the most used film sets, The Gallagher home. The details from the home decorations in the living room and kitchen to the bedroom decorations makes me feel like I have complete understanding o...