Observing sound in the shower

I first turn on the bathroom fan which has a consistent, loud drone. The faucet handles let out a high pitch, metallic screech of metal grinding on metal. As the water leaves the shower head it emits a slightly squeal-like noise. The water hitting the bottom of the tub reminds me of a constant rain hitting a window. It has a lower pitch than water as it leaves the shower head, but the water hitting the shower curtain is slightly higher. A small puddle forms around the drain. The water dripping into the puddle is much higher pitched and more sporadic than the water directly hitting the tub. Standing in the shower, the water noises seem just as loud as the fan. As I turn the water off the faucet handles make the same squeaking noise. The few remaining drops of water from the shower head make a quick metallic plink when they hit the tub faucet. As that rolls off the faucet and hits the tub it becomes a slightly deeper thunk. Sliding the shower curtain open on the metal pole creates a tinny ring. The curtain makes a woosh sound. Pulling the towel off the bar and patting myself dry ia so soft and quiet I can barely hear it because of how loud the fan is.

Camper: Avant-Garde and Experimental

I like Camper's approach to characterize these films instead of giving them a hard and fast name. What it's called ultimately doesn't matter. It's those qualities that separate them from the mainstream, that make them subversive and deviant. Of the qualities mentioned, drawing attention to the medium is the one that most interests me. Hollywood editing's goal is be invisible. It's goal is continuity and to not disrupt the audience's immersion into the film. Tossing those rules aside and making bizarre edits across shots that lack continuity completely separates that work from the mainstream. Using actually celluloid film itself would seem to make it easier to call attention to the medium. You can do so many things to a piece of film that have nothing to do with exposing it to light to create an image. You can paint on it, cut it, tape stuff to it like Stan Brakhage's Mothlight. There's no narrative. Just a creator testing the limits of the medium. This is something I'm personally looking forward to exploring. Just raining down on a piece of celluloid and see what happens. I can't wait to see what happens when I break the rules.

EDIT Media

I absolutely loved what this said about diversity in production and in on-screen representation. I'm pansexual and non-binary. There aren't a lot of characters in mainstream film or television that are like me in those respects. Though not explicitly open in the movies, I think the only character I know identifies as pansexual is Deadpool. He's hilarious, but certainly not representative of the community. (I'd prefer if people didn't associate my sexuality with mental illness. Though I happen to have that, too...) Anyway, I would always hope that my unique perspective would be respected on set and I strive to show that respect to fell crew mates. Mainstream film is so insanely white, straight, cisgender, and male. Progress is being made, but we still have a long way to go.

I also agreed with their point that it's important to expose yourself to all varieties of film. I know that's something I can get better at. I particularly feel the need to explore more international film and experimental film. Those are what I was least exposed to growing up. In fact I don't think I ever saw anything in those two categories. Unless you count Harry Potter? My point being I want to see and explore modes of production outside of Hollywood. I don't know that I'd like working there anyway, so it works out, I guess.

Another thing I need to work on that they mention is just making stuff without fear of failure. Everyone wants their all of their work to be a masterpiece. That is insanely unrealistic. In fact, I think most people in the industry know that not all of their work is a masterpiece. I doubt the people making Syfy channel movies think of their films as masterworks. It doesn't mean they can't enjoy it or the process in making them. They're incredibly fun movies in their own way, but they're not winning any Emmy's anytime soon. That doesn't mean it's not worth making.

Amateur

I've read Maya Deren's, "Amateur vs. Professional," before. It continues to give me a kick in the pants about creating. It reminds me that I don't have to wait to have x, y, z equipment or resources to make a film. It doesn't have to be complicated. If you have anything you can use to create, film or otherwise, then use it to create! I have a camera on my phone and computer that I neglect to utilize because I keep fantasizing about having some kind of handheld camera for photography and filming. I have all that I need already! Will it be of Hollywood "caliber"? Of course not. Does that mean it's not worth making? Obviously not. I get so many ideas and then hold myself up by waiting to have a specific tool to express it. I have a specific vision that I feel just can't be executed with out this one specific thing. But I can make something just as worthwhile, even if it's just for myself, with what I have. My passion for making film should not be limited by my insecurities about technology. If I have something to film with, I can make a movie. And I should make movies. And I should stop sitting here writing about it and actually go and do it....

Something resembling a manifesto?

My name is Rory. As a small child I knew I wanted to be an artist when I grew up. It is thanks to the advent of DVDs and their making-of documentaries that I decided I wanted to participate in the magic of movie making. In middle and high school I tried to get into tech theater and computer graphic classes to work towards that goal, but it never worked with my schedule. I fell into foreign languages classes studying Spanish and Mandarin Chinese. I started college studying Chinese. Then I went to massage school. Then I studied business. Then I got an A.A. in general studies. Now I'm here at UNCW finally finishing my bachelor's degree in what I've always wanted to do: film. I want to make work that is cathartic and fun for me, and hopefully at least visually appealing to an audience. Having them experience fun or catharsis is nice, too. I'm learning how to set the "narrative mindset" aside to just let stuff happen as I make film. I want to work independently or with small crews.

I also hope to one day be remembered for my body of work, as well as some prominent bodily feature. Like Man Ray and his eyebrows.