Jeannie Marie – Page 8

Showdown: TV vs. Internet

October 15, 2014September 27, 2016 Jeannie Marie Leave a comment

So I opened my Facebook today and got my daily dose of news vis-à-vis my “trending” sidebar (like I always do, what, do I look like I have enough money or time to subscribe to NYT?) and combed through the articles. Of course, a few interesting topics caught my eye including Nick Jonas releasing more new songs (yay?) and some other junk I don’t remember. But then I saw an article about HBO that could change the way television works, quite possibly forever.

Starting in 2015, HBO will be offering a (paid) subscription to their web content (i.e. their TV shows) that is separate from your cable subscription.

Pause. Wait for it. You can watch HBO online, free, without having cable????

As someone who has lived without cable for some time now and has had to rely on, ah, “other” means to consume her favorite television content, this is fantastic news. Now, it still costs money so I mean I’m not screaming into the abyss in joy over this new development. Again, do I look like someone who can afford to pay for HBO? My mom pays for our Netflix and that’s already pushing it.

But for other people who don’t want to pay for the 1000+ (sometimes like 8000??? why????) channels but still want to get their weekly dose of Game of Thrones, this is great. And actually revolutionary.

Netflix was the pioneer, creating a way for TV to be accessible through the internet. Then Hulu decided to step it up, creating a way for people to not only view old seasons of popular TV shows, but for a way to view the current season in case you have that one last discussion Wednesday nights and miss Modern Family every week. And now you have HBO, creating another avenue for you to consume television content on the internet.

This may seem somewhat irrelevant to the topic of art, other than the obvious fact that TV shows are a piece of film art and this relates to TV, but I think that the way that a culture consumes its art is equally important to what it consumes. The internet has been changing the game since it started, and in the past two years we’ve seen an overhaul of how our lives work – we shape our lives around the internet now. It’s not something that I’m saying is bad, but it’s a fact. Just this summer the popular to some show Legend of Korra made the somewhat controversial switch from television to internet. Even though it seems illogical – a made for TV show goes completely digital like it’s a cheap YouTube series – it’s actually the smartest move for the show. Kids weren’t watching Korra like the teens were. Korra, as a sequel series to Avatar: The Last Airbender, was made for the kids who liked Avatar and grew up. Now, they aren’t watching Nick every Saturday morning – they’re on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and watching their shows on Netflix and Hulu between cramming for finals.

And that’s only one example. But now, this huge move for HBO points in that same direction. TV is packing its bags with only one destination in mind: the internet.

Whether that’s a good move is up to you to decide. But like it or not, it’s happening, and the way that we think of television is changing.

Come At Me, Patriarchy

October 9, 2014September 27, 2016 Jeannie Marie 4 Comments

So, I’m on Youtube. I’m getting ready to watch some sort of video, possibly even just listen to a song while I’m doing my homework, heck, I don’t remember. But of course there was an Ad blocking my way.

Youtube ads are not always a curse to me. Sometimes they’re actual videos, and I like it when they make the “ads” a trailer for a movie. That’s not so bad – it’s not commercialism shoving it’s big ugly face at me in a constant attempt to get me to spend my money on worthless crap. I like movies, and even though they do represent a certain section of commercialism that thrives off of people like me who love to be entertained, I think they still have something to offer.

This, however, was not a movie ad. Darn.

The music started up. It was good music, I noticed. Some pop artist? Maybe. When i jiggled my mouse over the screen, the title came up at the top.

Stuart Weitzman | #ROCKROLLRIDE

Uh…okay. I still have no idea what this is, but hey, still marginally better than a Febreze commercial.

And then I noticed the shots. The angles of the camera. The filters stolen directly from a high schooler’s instagram. This was meant to be “artsy.”

And, of course, objectively I can say that it was creative. It did some cool things with the camera, and the editing was pretty neat with some frame effects. But something was wrong. Oh, so wrong.

The subject of this short film? music video? thing? was in fact two beautiful women. Flowing blonde hair, legs that went on for miles and miles and miles, and some gorgeous trees all around them. Perfect for the film, right?

But instead of presenting these women as women, as people who deserve respect, as people who have opinions and voices and are allowed to think and speak and act however they want – these women were dehumanized. Shots of legs and butts were in front of my screen and I just wanted to go onto the set and yank the camera out of the directors hands and shout YOU ARE RUINING DECADES WORTH OF WOMEN’S RIGHTS. Until the very end of the video I didn’t even get a good look at the faces of these beautiful women. The material itself wasn’t all too bad – it showed the women getting dressed in cute outfits, riding bikes on a trail, driving a flashy cool red car, and, the kicker, riding a motorcycle.

These things in themselves aren’t dehumanizing. Some of them, such as the motorcycle and the expensive car, are things typically attributed to men. But by shooting the women’s butts, by not showing their face, putting an extreme emphasis on their bodies and the way they looked next to these props, it made them seem like objects – like they were just toys that the director was playing with.

You may ask at this moment how this even remotely relates to art. “You’re just an angry feminist ranting about something you happened to come across.” You bet I am. But the fact that the director wanted this to be taken as art, as something to be critically analyzed and thoughtfully considered is a joke. This isn’t art – it’s objectifying women. And what’s worse is that it’s an ad on Youtube, going out to thousands upon millions of people who click on their favorite cat video. This ad-disguised-as-art isn’t art.

It’s a joke. A joke that isn’t funny anymore and needs to end.

For reference, I’m not including a link to the video because I’d rather not promote something that shouldn’t be getting any views at all. Instead, enjoy this lovely video of kittens who love Star Wars a bit too much.

Why I’m an English Major

October 1, 2014September 27, 2016 Jeannie Marie Leave a comment

In terms of my blog, this will probably be my shortest post to date (and possibly ever). While my Wednesdays are usually free, I have a paper due tonight that I’m very concerned about.

And I’m not concerned because I haven’t started or I don’t know what I’m writing – I’m concerned because this topic is important to me and I don’t want to screw it up. While I have written papers like this before, this is the first time in a while where this has happened to me. Last night I got to page 6 of my assigned 4 page essay – I have a lot to say about this particular poem.

Thankfully my professor said it’s okay if you go over the page count – while it gives him more to read, he says he’ll enjoy it if you’re “in the zone.” And what a zone I’m in.

I don’t know why, but doing justice to this beautiful, tragic poem is important to me. Written by W. B. Yeats, “No Second Troy” is a 10 line poem, yet its complexity compels me to tell its story, about this woman that Yeats believes is Helen of Troy reincarnated. I feel as though if I don’t write this paper to the best of my ability, I will let Yeats down. He gave me this wonderful work of art for me to mess with, to twist and to mold into an argument about why anyone should care about a 10 line poem, and I have to return the favor and write that argument in an eloquent and beautiful way.

This is why I’m an English major. It’s not that I like to read, it’s not that I like to write. It’s not that my mind automatically turns to analysis of character and syntax when I read a work such as this one. It’s the joy I get when I can finally tease apart the complexities of a piece and then reconstruct it into my own argument. Even though the poem was Yeats’, the argument is mine. And that joy is something I might have lost, writing paper after paper. Sure, I don’t often come across a subject I’m this passionate about. But as I write more papers than I ever have this year, I hope that I inject that same amount of passion into every one of them – and that my teacher can see that passion I have.

“No Second Troy”

from The Green Helmet and Other Poems, 1912

Why should I blame her that she filled my days

With misery, or that she would of late

Have taught to ignorant men most violent ways,

Or hurled the little streets upon the great.

Had they but courage equal to desire?

What could have made her peaceful with a mind

That nobleness made simple as a fire,

With beauty like a tightened bow, a kind

That is not natural in an age like this,

Being high and solitary and most stern?

Why, what could she have done, being what she is?

Was there another Troy for her to burn?

Go Away, I’m Trying To Write Here

September 25, 2014September 27, 2016 Jeannie Marie Leave a comment

I don’t think I’ve encountered anything more frustrating than writer’s block. I mean, it’s called writer’s block for a reason. But for me, writer’s block is so much more than not being able to write.

You see, I don’t get normal writer’s block. It’s not like I just sit in front of a computer for an hour trying to think of the next thing Matt from Story C would say to his best friend John. If it were that simple, I would have done NaNoWriMo every year and just put out crappy stories that no one really cares about because they’re so horrible. I mean, that is what NaNoWriMo is about.

For me, writer’s block is so much more personal. I don’t think this applies to most people because I don’t think most writers approach their writing like I do (but I could be wrong). You see, when I get writer’s block, it’s not usually about not being able to write. I’m always able to write. I’m always able to put words on a page and read them and make them sound grammatically correct. But being able to put them down well, being able to enchant people with just words on a page, and being able to say yes I made this and be proud of it terrifies me.

Because for me, writing isn’t just something I enjoy. Sure, it may have started out that way, but now that I’m in 323, now that I’m telling people I’m going to be a CW Concentrator (different than a major people), I feel the pressure not only to put out work but put out work that says I deserve to be a writer. If I don’t put out that work, I feel judged, vulnerable, like I’m just one baby step behind everyone else, like I should have learned how to use “sophisticated” instead of “fancy” already.

But most importantly, the reason why writer’s block is so frustrating, why I just want to scream and pound on the walls and rip ideas straight from my head is something so simple that most people probably don’t even realize it. I hate writer’s block because it blocks my primary form of creative expression. I don’t sing, I don’t have great fashion sense, I can’t dance to save my life, but writing, writing is mine. And when I’m so scared that I can’t even do that, can’t put my heart on a page and let the blood run down into ink, I’m angry.

But you know, that’s why I write for this blog. That’s why I’m taking three ULWR, why I push myself to take classes that I know are gonna be hard. This Shakespeare class isn’t kicking my butt for nothing. And every time I make a victory, get my grade back and get comments on it that say good job, the frustration is totally worth it.

Because for me, writer’s block pushes me to be better. And in return, I am better.

(this post brought to you by Jeannie’s anxiety over not posting on Wednesday)

(also maybe that paper on Yeats that’s due next week)

(probably more the Yeats paper)

The Staying Power

September 17, 2014September 27, 2016 Jeannie Marie Leave a comment

This week, one of my favorite bands released a music video. Well, not really a music video. It was a filmed performance of a song at one of their concerts from their last tour which, sadly, I was unable to attend. And just a few days ago, this video made big news.

Why, you may ask? Because it was Panic! At The Disco singing Bohemian Rhapsody.

Now I will be the first to say that my mom raised me right when it comes to music. Even though I pretty much missed the whole “Backstreet Boys” craze thing of the 90s (but hey, I still know almost every word to “I Want It That Way” so I’m not a total loser, right?), my mom raised me on The Eagles, The Beatles, The Four Tops, Duran Duran, Steppenwolf…the list goes on. When I was 8 I could probably sing every word to “I Wanna Hold Your Hand” and “A Hard Day’s Night”, and at the time I didn’t think this was a big deal; I didn’t know why my mom would make me listen to these old bands when all my friends were singing Christina Aguilera at me. But as I got older, I realized that my eternal love for classics was a really, really good thing.

I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with our current pop music. Believe me, I will be the first to admit that I’m that one girl screaming SHAKE IT OFF, JUST SHAKE IT OFF in her room while she’s changing her sheets (but only when my roommate isn’t around, of course). Last year Katy Perry’s “Roar” was my ultimate anthem. Pop music is vital to a country’s culture; it defines how the country feels at the moment, whether it be eternally sick of I’m so happyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy, or falling in love with Sia’s latest brilliance (â”Chandeliers” is seriously gorgeous). People can connect instantly by just mentioning a song they heard on the radio an hour ago.

But then where does that leave Panic! At The Disco? And where did Queen come from, and how did they get so popular? I think one of my favorite conversations revolving around music, especially when you make friends with people who like classic rock, is the “who will stay” conversation.

Starting around the 50s and 60s, brilliant artists emerged who decided to do things with music that had never been done before. Elvis swung his hips and Bob Dylan started a movement, and we remember those artists for their contribution to the art of music, even if we don’t listen to them. You’d be hard pressed to find someone who doesn’t recognize an Aerosmith song, or has never heard of Led Zepplin. But it’s a lot harder now to find artists who are breaking boundaries like these guys did because…well, these guys paved the way.

And the fact is, bands just aren’t popular anymore. Sure, you can lash out at me with about a dozen bands who put music on the radio consistently, but the majority of artists creating music are solo, which starkly contrasts with how it was from 1964 onwards.

So here you have Panic! At The Disco, a marginally popular but by no means explosive alt-pop band, covering Queen’s classic anthem? eulogy? I don’t even know how to classify the epic-ness that is “Bohemian Rhapsody”, but as I watched I seriously doubted if Brenden had the chops to perform such a heavily revered piece of art. I was pleasantly surprised that I did in fact enjoy it, but it made me wonder if my children will like Panic! At The Disco like I liked Queen. Of course, they’ll listen to it – even though I do admit to being a lover of pop I spend more time in the indie realm of music, and that’s where my children will be.

But when I introduce Death Cab for Cutie to them, will they instead be talking about that one Australian girl who tried to rap? I don’t know the answer to most of the questions I’ve asked, but I hope that the artists who work hard, who pour their blood and sweat and tears and soul into crafting lyrical and musical art, that they’ll be the ones that will be remembered – whether they come from a pop background or whether they hardly make the Billboard Top 100.

Right now, a song called “All About That Bass” is number one on the Top 100 chart. So I wonder – in ten years, will I be laughing at someone who covers it, or will I be clapping?

Special shoutout to the Billboard Top 100 for helping with some of the research…I mean really, how would I know that “All About That Bass” is number one right now?

Obligatory Year-End Reflection Time

April 22, 2014September 27, 2016 Jeannie Marie Leave a comment

So I’m going to be completely honest and say that I don’t really have a topic in mind for this blog post. It’s probably my last of the year and I should probably make it something important or special but finals are creeping in and my imminent departure 1000 miles away from Michigan and away from all my friends here is looming ever closer. So not only do I have to study for finals and get ready to pack up all of my belongings, but also spend as much time as possible with the friends I won’t get to see for another three months.

But even with that, I need to write this post. All I can think about right now is the fact that I’m writing this right now. That I got this job, that someone liked my writing enough to hire me to write once a week. And the fact that I’ve done it, that I’ve kept up all last semester and this is even more astounding. The deadline helped, but more than that, it’s pushed me to try and be a better writer. My friends and family read these, as well as people I don’t know. I’ve gotten comments from people from Illinois and Hong Kong who liked my post.

At the beginning of the year when I had “orientation” for this job, the people who had done it in years past said they felt like their writing had gotten stronger, that the weekly posts were challenging and made them think about their writing. I believed them, but I also didn’t think it would apply to me. I thought I would have plenty to write about, so much to say about art and how it affects my life.

But it was harder than I thought. My arrogance caught up with me, and some weeks I found myself grasping at straws to fulfill my weekly requirement.

Honestly though, I wouldn’t trade this experience for anything in the world. I’m so excited for arts, ink next year and for all the things I’m going to write about. This year, writing for this blog, has been such a payoff. I still remember when I saw that Michigan Pops shared my article on their Facebook page, that the members had read it and that the concertmaster whom I had acknowledged liked the status, signifying that he possibly read my writing. To me, that is insane. When I got 6 comments on my post about Khalil Fong, I about cried from happiness – it was the most comments I’ve gotten on a post.

And even beyond this blog I’ve learned so much about art and how it affects my life. Art has always been something that I’ve loved and recognized as a big part of my life, but seeing it while living on a college campus has been absolutely mind blowing. I grew up as the outcast, as the one who liked the weird things, but here I feel like there’s a community that’s made for people just for me. It may not be as popular as football, but when I found out Musket’s performance of Rent was almost completely sold out I was astounded. I barely had half of the audience filled at my performances at my small private high school, and there were only parents and teachers at my chorus concerts. No one seemed to care about arts at home except for a few of my friends, and yet here I could barely get a ticket to see a musical. The fact that the arts community here is so strong, and permeates so much of the campus makes me incredibly happy.

Art is everywhere. I’ve made connections to art in so many different ways that it seems impossible, but it’s such a vital part of our lives. And this blog has taught me how to find it, and how to express how it makes me feel and wanting to imprint that on others. It’s a feeling I can’t describe. It’s a feeling I want to keep forever.