Story board (has now been re-uploaded including shoes)Proposal
For an identity strategy or way of “branding” myself I have chosen the name Camile, a combination of my first and surnames. The name incorporates a “cat” theme and plays with this idea using a paw print designed in illustrator by myself. The tag line is “paws for thought” sticking to the cat them but moreover suggesting what a consumer of my brand would do, which is pause and think or stop as the brand would encompass a range of media (performance, visual art, photography and manipulation) and encourage collaboration between them. The logo needed to be simplistic, able to work in without colour and be memorable.
The target audience for the stop motion will be anyone interested in dance performance and the various questions that still surround it. This can therefore be a variable age band as the piece will be involving a classical dance form (ballet) which is often enjoyed by a slightly older or more mature generation and in addition, contrasting this with a more urban style (such as hip hop or krumping). Therefore defining an age for my target audience, rather than a genre or “type” or person could be limiting as dance is a form which can appeal to people of any age since it is dominantly seen as visual, making it engaging for teenagers and adults alike and both groups will have a slightly different understanding of the message I am conveying in the piece through the collaboration of practical and theoretical input.
For the piece to work and be successful I will need to do background research into the areas which I want to explore in both theory and practice. Research into the media and dance theories (dominantly behind gender and race stereotypes of the dance industry) will be carried out through use of web based, literacy and visual material investigation. To complete the project I will be using resources such as my own photography and some information from the internet. I will also look at previous examples of stop motion and any further reading based on the two dance elements which will give more detailed understanding of the meaning behind the piece. Consequently, the equipment and software used will be a computer, digital camera, Microsoft word documents, Adobe Photoshop and Flash MX. The project will use photographs that I have taken, some of which will be edited in Adobe Photo shop or Illustrator. A combination of both the original and edited photos will then be used in Flash MX and After Effects to give movement and sound to the piece and make its message understandable.
The first stage of the project is to collect the information from the selected resources during which time the workshops will teach and expand of my knowledge of how to use the programmes for the final project; the research should be completed by the end of week five.
Images will be digitally captured on camera for use in the stop motion piece, these will be obtained according to the story board so it flows and keeps the narrative moving. Adaptation and manipulation of the images on Adobe Photoshop should be near completion by the end of week eight; including any necessary adjustments to the images such as adding parts, deleting parts, changing colours of the image and changing the contrast and so forth. This will ensure the images look as effective as possible. The images chosen need to not only be of high quality, but also need to link to the theories and allow the audience to respond to them and see clearly that it has been created though use of stop motion.
Overall, my project aim and outline is to combine media and dance together to create a collective stop motion piece and look at the theories of gender and race in relation to media and its links with dance. The stop motion should feature two male dancers and two female dancers as the main focus. These four dancers will be a mixture of two white dancers and two black dancers or possibly even four totally separate people for all different cultural backgrounds. These dancers will then perform a short individual dance routine which I will photograph. There will be one movement which is repeated throughout the piece which is a shrugging or confused gesture to convey the message that there are still questions being asked about how these stereotypes are changing. Other possible elements that will be subject to lighting, final choice of studio space and dancers used will be costume, audio and use of text. The final piece should have a message or meaning behind it and at the same time is visually engaging and appealing to my audience.
