Jason Sabol - Five Obstructions

Jorgen Leth did not handle the obstructions very well initially but all of the projects were successful in the end.  The first project was not very successful in my opinion I think he had trouble with the twelve frames.  However, the cartoon project, which he “hated” the most the most, was the most successful in changing the perspective and idea of the original film, in my opinion.  I think after working through the previous obstructions helped Jorgen in the latter.

I think the obstructions were stumbling blocks during the creative process.  However, they were effective in the final project because it caused Leth to think out of the box and do things out of his normal comfort zone to make a creative finished product, the cartoon project is a perfect example.

Yes the film did help me when thinking about my project. After watching, my idea changed significantly, the second project when he could only use himself influenced my idea.  Influences from the style of the shot, him getting dressed and undressed, and using himself will be seen in my project.

5 obstructions...

I feel like all of the reproductions were successful from the viewers perspective. They were thought provoking in how they chose to address the obsttuctions and visually interesting as they changed based on the obstruction. However they maybe weren't totally successful in von Tier's perspective because at times Leth interprets the obstructions too loosely.
I think the obstructions provide a place to start, but are in general confining which hurt Let's natural creativity. The obstructions really change the process of creating the piece and since Lethbis already an established director, I feel like he shouldn't be forced into guidelines, they should just be used as inspiration.
After watching this film I will try to look at my work from multiple perspectives and brainstorm more on the multiple possibilities of form an assignment like ours can really take on.

The Five Obstructions

1. i believe he was successful in achieving it; he gets creative and expresses the same idea in different ways that are interesting and entertaining but still follows the guidelines.
2. i think the obstructions were very helpful in generating different creative approaches
3. i believe this film can help me with my work by helping me think of different scene cuts and different ways to show a film in creative ways, like having two scenes in one for example

The Five Obstructions

1. He was mostly successful with the given obstructions

2. They are helpful in making creative work because it help him to think outside of the box of what he is comfortable with

3. This is helpful for us to think about different ways to create our videos and maybe inspire us to think of obstacles to give ourselves.

The Five Obstructions

1. How successfully does Jørgen Leth handle the obstructions? (From viewing the first two obstructions) I believe that Jorgen was successful at handling the obstructions with the different ways of recreating "The Perfect Human" by using different themes and settings. The concept was similar but he shows different ways of approaching it.
2. Are the obstructions helpful in making creative work, or are they stumbling blocks? The obstructions was helpful in making creative work because it helps create ideas. It helps analyze the concept more.
3. How can this film help you make your own work? This film can help me with my own work by helping me come up with different ideas of how to create my film or how I'm going to present it. I can think of different ways to present my concept or how to approach it. This help show that there is not really any restriction as long as the concept it being followed. This film basically supports what have we been doing in class when we had to come up with different ways of how to approach the theme of our project.

The Five Obstructions

1. I believe Jorgen handled the obstructions in a successful way. I believe that he was successful, because he was very thoughtful and creative in every way he approached the restrictions. He definitely made them his own.
2. I believe that the obstructions can be helpful in making creative work as well as be stumbling blocks. I know that from experience, when Liam gives us "obstructions" or guidelines, it makes you come up with a creative work. On the other hand, I believe that it could be limiting yourself too much for being as creative as you want to be.
3. This film can help me make my own work in a lot of ways. To start, we were given a prompt from a randomized list on a website. From the get-go we were limited to what we were given. I believe that we can use obstructions to challenge ourselves and ask ourselves how "complete" our finished project is. Is it working well? If not, let's go back and add some restrictions to make it more interesting and less conventional.

The 5 Obsructions

1. I believe that Jorgen handled these obstructions successfully by creating the best scenes that he could using these restrictions. I think that he was successful because of how imaginative and creative he was by taking the restrictions to the next level. Also he said that he loved the film, so therefore, in my eyes if you love what you've created then it is successful.
2.At first, the obstructions were stumbling blocks, but in the end i really feel that Jorgen used them to his advantage and produced interesting scenes.
3. I think that the way that The Perfect Human 2002 is cut and put together will really help me generate good ideas with my own project. Even the sound has helped me so far. i especially think the scenes from the first obstruction will help me the most because of the how it was cut into this speed up process.

The Five Obstructions
1.) I believe that Jørgen Leth handles the obstructions in very creative ways.  He uses the obstructions as creative roundabouts rather than road blocks, which many wouldn't think to do if put in his position.  The first and second obstructions were interesting, and I do like the way he modernized them, however the third and fourth were in my opinion exceedingly alluring.  I loved the dual scenes that were in the third film, and it was a technique that completely took the obstructions and made them his own.  The cartoon was although, something both the artist and the obstructionist not being something they were too fond of, had one of the best outcomes.  It became more than just simply a cartoon, and revealed a film that delved into something human.
2.) I believe that the obstructions can be helpful, and can also be road blocks.  I think that sometimes, and in some pieces it is important to set rules for yourself to help you create in ways you wouldn't originally think of, and help you to stick to a certain idea.  As seen in the film it is really impressive what seemingly simple rules can do for a piece, and your creative mind.  It's interesting to push yourself to think around them.  However, I do believe that they can sometimes block creative interpretation which can be really important as well.
3.) I think this film can help me in my own work to push myself to not stay in my own creative comfort zone, and to make my mind really work outside of my own box.  I think that this was a really interesting idea, and it produced remarkably intriguing pieces by an extraordinarily talented film maker.  It was very interesting to watch him interpret these obstructions, and each time comment on the human condition.  

The Five obstructions

1: I think that John did well when handling the obstructions. I think that for me it would have been a hard task and i can appreciate the thought and time that he put into them and how he was willing to change things and accept a challenge that he thought was impossible and to do it anyway.
2: I think that this was helpful in making creative work because it forced Leith to think outside the box and to consider things he wouldn't which can sometimes be a stomping block but it can also encourage creative thinking because your expanding your mind to new things.
3:This video can help us with our prompts because even though they seem hard in the beginning if we just continue to work with them and really try to come up with a solid project it will feel rewarding in the end. It also helped me to start thinking about things that i can do with my project.

Homework

1. I think he was very successful and I really appreciated how much time, thought, and seriousness went into producing each obstruction.
2. I think they ended up being helpful as they gave Leth opportunities to problem solve.
3. This film helped me see that other artists are inspired by previous work, and the amount of brainstorming that can end up going into a certain work.

The five obstructions

1.) I think Jørgen Leth handles the obstructions the same way any one would handle them.  At first he deems them nearly impossible but once he is able to let his mind wrap around the ideas for a while his creative process is able to take over.  He thought the first one would be impossible but I believe it turned out to be great.  Once he is able to get over how challenging the obstruction is he is able to use it as a strength instead of a set back.
2.) I think the obstructions are very helpful because they give structure.  Some people are unable to work with no limits and that's too much power for them.  In my personal opinion I like to have some type of structure or guidelines to help to shape a creative idea.  Whereas, when I am given the sky and everything in it to create something I tend to encounter writers block.
3.) I think these obstructions can help us with our next project because they can give us some type of theme.  Sometimes I think projects that are too open ended become very unorganized and messy.  But when you set some ground rules and give yourself some borders I believe you can work with the challenges to create something incredible and organized.  It's similar to writing a paper the better and more in depth your pre-writing and foundations to the paper are the more organized and better presented the information is.

The Five Obstructions

1. I really believe that overall Jorgen Leth handles the obstructions very well, he kind of sees them as a ridiculous notion, especially at the beginning, but he still does it, and he does it successfully, creating intriguing and creative films based off of "The Perfect Man".

2. I think like anything that challenges us to reach outside our comfort zone will be a stumbling block, just like these obstructions. Jorgen expresses how difficult these are for him, but it forces him to think differently and become creative. So in the end, after he has gotten over these being stumbling blocks, he uses them to successfully make creative work.

3. With our upcoming project, the "prompts" that were on the website we looked at are similar to these obstructions. It forces us to take a different look at meaning behind some of these phrases, and think creatively in order to make a video that represents the phrase that we chose. Also, we are using found footage for our projects, and although this film isn't actually using the footage from "The Perfect Man", it is still based off of it, so seeing how they doctored that film inspires me with ways to doctor found footage for my project.

The Five Obstructions

1. Jorgen Leth handles some obstructions better than others. He successfully completes obstruction number 1 by going to Cuba to remake the film without using a set, using no more than 12 frames in a single edit, and answering the questions posed in the film. He fails to impress Von Trier with his completion of the second obstruction, however, and has to redo the process for the third obstruction but chooses to do it in Brussels. He is able to impress Von Trier with the fourth obstruction with the help of a cartoonist by remaking the film as a cartoon. For the fifth obstruction, Leth simply has to rend a narration written by Von Trier and he is credited as the director of the film.

2. I believe the obstructions are ultimately helpful in making a creative work. At the end of the film, Von Trier says the purpose of the film was to help Leth understand his true self, which both he and Leth believe was a success.

3. I think this film can help us with our own work by teaching us not to just accept a finished piece but to challenge the completion of it and ask ourselves what can make it better. After Leth completed the second obstruction, Von Trier didn't like it and asked for him to do it again, knowing it could be improved. I think this could be an example for us to strive for perfection and not just completion. Also, there were some really cool video editing techniques that I think could serve as examples for our video project.

Kyle Battle Sound Project

https://soundcloud.com/kyle-battle-2/sound-project-kdb

Sound Project

https://soundcloud.com/farce24/mind

Sounds of the Octagon - Jason Sabol

https://soundcloud.com/jsabes20/sounds-of-the-octagon

Biography of OTE and my house.

https://soundcloud.com/jacqueline-tiedens/jackie-101414-439-pm

sound project

https://soundcloud.com/chloesteverson/expanded-media-sound-project

Sound Project

https://soundcloud.com/wjohenning/final-basketball-project-101414-1120-am

https://soundcloud.com/zoe-myers-5/zoe-myers-10914-139-pm

Expanded Media Project2

https://soundcloud.com/adaobi-4/expandedmediap2aijomah-101414-1019-am

Singing in the Shower-Sound Project

https://soundcloud.com/chloesteverson/sound-project-10-14-14-1115-am

Sound Project

https://soundcloud.com/nickorr1/expanded-media-sound

Kitchen Sounds

https://soundcloud.com/hmargolis/kitchen-sounds

project 2

https://soundcloud.com/mary-farraj/finalart2200

Did You Draw That?

https://app.box.com/s/j5dpl04zr579pph0lcdx

Project #2 Painting Sounds

https://soundcloud.com/baileyrose89/final-painting-sounds-101314-229-pm

Project #2 - Sound Portrait

I struggle with the worldly culture we live in and how many messages, ideas, and beliefs are being thrown at us everyday. As a Christian, I want to be able to share the Good News with everyone, but I begin to believe that it won't be received well, and then I shy away.

This project is trying to depict how Christians sometimes give up on sharing the Gospel and slowly grow quiet, ceasing to share Jesus with people, because we become discouraged...

1. Insert headphones
2. Close eyes

3. Play Soundcloud link

https://soundcloud.com/sav-reed-1/romans-623