DEGREES UNEDITED

# 5 [6 May 2008]

I'm making more tables when I really should be finishing the ones I've got. A few have turned out to be the same height which looks a bit peculiar - if I'd have planned better I would've seen that coming, but one thing I've been told off for (ie. it has been suggested to me by my tutors) is planning too much. But if I'd followed my plans on this one then I would've made just one table. Swings and roundabouts. Tables.

I think I only have one more bit of filming to do and then my video is finished. I didn't really storyboard this domestic one so there's a few continuity errors that I've had to edit out, or re-film a certain section. It was all filmed out of order but I've managed so far. Stuff like picking up my cup of tea with the wrong hand, and in particular, I take the bin out and then leave the door wide open.

It's hard o decide what to concentrate on - we all get an assistant during the show, so I can let them paint walls and stuff like that. I need a lockable box and a hanging wooden board for my video projection, so I'm thinking about those, but also convincing myself to leave it for the assistant. I've had problems in the past being too precious about some of my pieces, and I ended up having a lot of work to do, so I'm conscious of that.

In other news, everyone is getting a bit stressed and depressed here, so there's lots of new haircuts about, people cheering themselves up. I, quite wisely, have long since abandoned the prospect of possessing good hair, and being a geek in his late twenties, the only sensible option is to go and watch Iron Man instead.

# 4 [2 May 2008]

The tables are coming along okay - I had loads of ideas at the start and then settled on a very simple design that said more than a lot of the complicated ones.

It's a similar idea to the video, about moving around a certain space, what activates the space and the thought process, and also what deactivates it. I'm trying to tap into the viewer's visualisation of a game's theory. Where things go, how it works, and then placing things to interrupt this thought process. These 'interrupts' are largely based on tactile responses and an inherent knowledge of simple games. Dice are to be thrown, tables have things on them, you sit up to the table to play, usually opposite someone,  the boards are usually square, a dice thrown on the floor is usually deemed void, out of play, green felt is a common playing surface...

All of these elements can be moved around and by altering them or placing them differently, I can 'upset' this intrinsic familiarity we all have and hopefully stimulate some sort of response.

I had a massive gap while I got folders together for assessment and concentrated on the videos, so I've only recently made this table. I had the materials and also had more ideas in the meantime, so I'm just making them all and seeing what works. I might have one piece of a group of 5 or 6, but it's good to have a choice.

# 3 [2 May 2008]

All footage for Phlebitis has essentially been scrapped, in favour of a completely new film, as yet untitled.

I have used the same method and some of the same techniques I developed in filming and editing the first set of footage. Phlebitis has become a largely technical exercise, and some issues has been raised regarding the suit. It is appropriate, but I understand the problems with it.

The editing techniques I'm using are based around numbers and ratios, and I've been able to flip between footage and get 2 of me on screen at once. By altering the number of frames given to each float sequence I can intensify one persona, and even make it move more slowly, which gives a really strong conflict on screen. However, while this is extremely interesting to me, it's not really translating through to the final film.

The new setting is domestic, there's no suits, and it's based around routine, but still carries through the original idea of disengagement, acting subconsciously. Moving without travelling?

# 2 [2 May 2008]

As well as moving round Newcastle centre I used the project space in the sculpture studios, a long room for communal use. By jumping in this space, I was then able to manipulate my movement using different editing techniques. By changing the number of frames from 3 to 1, I made a much faster, frantic movement.

Jump cutting also allowed for further possibilities, as well as mixing footage from different jump sequences.

I am using iMovie 08, which has been really useful for its 'skimming' technology. I can browse the footage by moving the cursor over the timeline for the raw footage, which makes picking 3 frames from maybe 10 seconds of footage really easy.The major problem is the sheer number of bugs in this version - it is designed primarily for trimming footage and putting it on YouTube. Family footage, basic films - not for intense, 24 fps art videos.

At 3 frames per jump, 1 second of footage takes 8 shots. A 3 minute video therefore requires over 1,300 separate jumps. Using single frames increases this number and basically crashes iMovie.

When using 1 frame shots, moving them around is also revealing serious bugs. Instead of the shot going where I place it, it moves 2 shots to the left. Using the keyboard shortcuts puts it 1 shot to the right.

Making this video has been an absolute pain in the arse. 

# 1 [2 May 2008]

The initial video work, "Phlebitis", featured me in a suit floating round Newcastle, using the dead spaces between buildings, areas used almost exclusively for getting from one point to another. This 'disengagement' (incorporating tunnel vision, completely ignoring one's surroundings, and using something architects refer to as a 'line of necessity) was of particular interest and I filmed a number of shots and used extensive editing to depict this.

I jump up and land, take a step forward and then repeat. During editing, I take the 3 frames that make up the apex of the jump and cut them together to give the effect of floating through a space.