Evaluation

This has been the first project completed that there has been an opportunity to really test myself and see what my applied capabilities are at this point in time. Exponentially more ground has been covered here than in previous projects, and I feel this has been due to it being self-directed, as well as a complete shift in my attitude towards work generally. Nothing to hide behind and no one to blame, any shortfalls lay firmly on my shoulders. This so has never quite been the case before, although it should have been.

It has also been a project unhindered by the sort of external forces that were experienced earlier in the year. (Family, break-ins and Finance)

The first indication of this progression has been my ability to remain well within my time management program. I made a point at the end of each week of seeing were I was in relation to what was scheduled, and on all occasions the necessary tasks were completed, to a higher standard with days to spare. Usually, this would have meant a decrease in workflow and productivity. However, with this project I took it upon myself, as I should have done in the past, to push even harder, utilising spare time to research into industry or experiment with new techniques. Refining elements of existing motion graphics and audio to create something that far surpasses anything I have achieved so far. Some of this was due to having to learn new software, however, this was not an issue, more a creative challenge. It enabled me to view the negative aspects that can occur during a project, and transform them into positive ‘games’ for me to laterally approach, engage and work around. This has filled me with confidence for all future endeavours, but especially for the format of the BA Hons top up year, in which all aspects are self-directed.

In terms of research, I learned from previous projects that general research is used for ‘mental alignment’ with the area of interest, but should be kept as brief a process as possible. So much time can be wasted here, but this time, I was able to focus my research to contemporary practitioners. Due to private investigation, I already knew the fundamentals of or had seen live. (Anti VJ, Quayola, Ryoji Ikeda.) Enabling me to use these artists as a lever to investigate new, more localised practitioners, non-profit organisations and collectives such as Test Space, OneDotZero, CornerHouse, Lovebytes and Light Night etc. and really see what is out there in terms of current trends at the moment.

The optimism felt through finding that these organisations exist and are more than willing to offer industry level advice and assistance and are enthusiastic for new creative ventures. But also, that there is a thriving A/V scene in Leeds that is both proactive and inclusive.

I have been disappointed to not be able to enter both the OneDotZero and Light Night festivals/competitions due to the deadlines for submission not correlating with my current timetable for finishing work. However they are both firmly on the cards for next year, as well as many others covered in posts on the blog.

I have contacted Test Space Leeds about getting involved with some of their events over summer, and have recently been informed about Lovebytes and Jon Harrison, who Annabeth has contact with, suggesting getting in touch ASAP about a potential internship over summer. This could also be a potential avenue for attaining a mentor too, another facet of the BA Hons course that can help me proper as a designer. If this facility is taken advantage of early, it is only going to increase the odds of a job in industry and developing exponentially.

The awareness of industry and practitioners has increased, but I let myself down through being lazy in contacting these people and unfortunately, due to incompatible timetables, have been unable to engage fully with this avenue of enquiry. It has however opened my eyes to an industry standard of work and application of skills.

Making aesthetically minimal audio-visual content has been something I have wanted to do for a while and the reward for doing so has been tenfold.  This type of audio is something I have been creating so really though nothing of it. I am happy with the levels of production, quality of samples and expression through MIDI I have found manipulating the length and velocity of hits, as well as having a sample library anyone would be proud of to fall back on. The track was created, to the best of my ability, however I have viewed it as a vehicle to attempt MIDI controlled visuals. Doing the audio again, more reduction is needed. It is still too busy and has a lot going on, however the overall feel of the track is still charming and seductive.

Learning Node based visual programming has opened up an avenue I had not even considered before this year, and through investigation, have found that this is the software and methodology that practitioners of the moment are using. Kompact, Hawtin, Ikeda and Quayola all use variations on this theme. Whether it Max Msp, Max for Live, Jitter or Quartz, this appears to be the way to achieve my aesthetical, and most importantly, industry orientated goals. These are the areas I would like to investigate next year and beyond.

The learning of this new software/language has been the most time consuming factor in this project, and has had a lot more of an impact on its outcome than I anticipated. However this has to be allowed for given the time frame and nature of these shorter projects and has been approached as another creative challenge.

Although this is the best of my work to date, the piece has many floors, that if tackled again would be done differently. For instance being able to manipulate the camera, especially along the z axis would have completely changed its dynamic and feel. I have seen this technique used before to great effect, but this lay beyond the limits of my capabilities at this point. This will be my next challenge with learning Quartz.

Members Kineme.net forums suggest that there is something within their ‘GL Tools Patch’ (£36) that enables this facility, but I had to forgo this as time became a factor towards the end of construction.

Another thing that I would do differently is reducing the number of artefacts that comprise the piece. The screen is too busy to be considered ‘Minimal.’ However I do feel that this is a piece of reductionist work, with a minimal aesthetic. The main aspect of minimalism that exists within the piece is the rules and guidelines it responds to, and the audio somewhat resembles an ‘on-trend’ Minimal Techno Track. Stricter rules and a more ruthless approach to composition is what’s needed to refine these ideas.

The only other major issue that I haven’t been able to solve due to financial issues has been exporting content from Quartz. Trying screen capture software, there were to many frames per second dropped, and upon filming an HD screen, it was difficulty to get the right colour balance on the camera and important detail was still lost in the translation. This meant remaining flexible, and re positioning so that the final outcome would be performed as a live installation piece.  (Viewed Thurs 2^nd June) Although this was not ideal, I feel the piece works really well live, as the dynamic in the audio and the effect of the visuals have a far greater impact when ‘experienced’ live, on the correct speakers or headphones. (More control over directing the observer’s experience).

Export issues will be tackled more thoroughly over summer for future projects.

Therefore, through this project I have firmly identified a specialist area of study, including software and equipment, informed myself of Industry practitioners and engaged them via email to extort as much information as possible out of them, implemented and executed an effective time management program that has actually worked and produced a piece of work I am proud of.