Monday, April 29, 2013

Staged Reality

"A hyperreal henceforth sheltered from the imaginary, and from any distinction between the real and the imaginary, leaving room for the orbital recurrence of models and the simulated generation of difference." 
~Jean Baudrillard, Simulations 

In response to Baudrillard's notions of "hyperreality," I chose to explore the crazy world of stage lighting; in particular, concert lighting.The need to further sensationalize live music's aesthetic with a staged light show has now become standard for concert performances. We have become accustomed to dramatized moments drenched in candy-colored lights.

My interest in concert lighting brought me to a bar where my friends in Porky's Groove Machine were playing. I only had my still camera with me that night, but the resulting images were fascinating. I found that the still images were able to capture the consistently exaggerated lighting into one, hypperreal moment.


In an effort to further explore, I brought a video camera with me to a different Porky's performance. The lighting that night was faced-paced, and borderline frantic. I found that the rush of lights detracted from the initial feeling I got from the still images. In Final Cut, I tried slowing the footage down to 15% of its original speed. See the result for yourself below.


3 comments:

  1. Slowing down the sound to alter the mood of the music from a jazzy upbeat-ness to a psychosis of melting sounds and vibrant colors was a good move. I dig it.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I am absolutely fascinated by how the image and sound turned out after slowing them down. It is so peaceful but at the same time funny. It makes me feel like I am drunk, in a great way. Loved the colors and the contrast of them with the black "background"

    ReplyDelete
  3. I really like what you did to change the beginning of your video. This works a lot better than what you originally had I think. The finished product is amazing!!

    ReplyDelete