Reflection and Reflecting: The Reflect on the Past

The past semester has brought me into a realm of painting, mixing, shooting, and editing in ways that I was not used to. The 6x1 class has shown me how to look at things differently, from a separate vantage point as before. Seeing the last five films I created, I feel like my knowledge of the overall field of film has been significantly increased. I even enjoyed the readings we were assigned because they captivated my urge to learn more about film.
The various ways you can create now seem limitless in filmmaking, with the film manipulate the only thing one need was paint and a couple of sharp objects. After that, you just need the patience to create a theme and something you find aesthetically pleasing. The Rhythmic editing assignment showed me the value of patience in the editing lab. Using a bare minimal amount of footage, I was able to make something intriguing and over everything, a project I was proud to show other people.
Shooting on the Bolex 16mm camera was my favorite experience for the entire course of the semester. I love cinematography and the black and white images were something I never thought I would have the opportunity to make. The main reason I got into filmmaking was for the simple reason of shooting on actual film; I was so used to the present shooting on digital video camera. It was fun, but did not feel satisfying, when I got to hear the clicks of the film running and know that each frame was being exposed, I finally felt captivated by the entire process. Each step in finishing the project brought me closer to what in wanted to do. Developing the film had some pressure because there was no other blame but on your self if it did not come out well. Luckily, our final picture came out beautifully and we were ecstatic about showing it on the big screen through the projector.
Another aspect of the 6x1 class I enjoyed was watching the projects other people created as the year went by. Everyone’s films were different and all used the mediums in unique ways. After watching your film and seeing it play after someone else’s, it becomes obvious that in this medium, anything can be accomplished. Even the shorts that Andre showed us were awesome. I was able to get a feel of the next project we were going into by viewing the similar projects that were created within the same means. Also, seeing that most of the films and shorts could be accessed online, I saw the worth of using the Internet to showcase my films to the world.
In the future I hope to start making a good portion of shorts to hopefully accent my other work. Placing it online for everyone’s eyes is an exciting thought. I am still looking forward to the final project in 6x1 being the 48hr. video race, because it seems like the most challenging project so far, pushing our minds to the extreme. Lets see what happens!