Films, Global Issues and Miscellaneous Pointouts
T. Bruce Howie and Patrick Suiter
Why am I doing this?
I think a lot about films. So does Patrick Suiter. Some people say we think too much about films, and they would be correct.
So we have to get that information about films onto something. I've literally written hundreds of pages on film on my laptop to get that information out, I've watched tons of YouTube videos on film and I bring up obscure films whenever possible. But it is all normally without purpose.
So when at school, we were given an opportunity to be creative in our applications of our time under the IB program, I decided to start something talking about film. It was at first a YouTube channel, which failed spectacularly. It was then a book of reviews and random thoughts, which obviously wouldn't work. So I went with a blog. Seemed more accessible and easier.
I was laster joined by Patrick Suiter (couldn't find a suitably pretentious photo), who now writes music reviews for this site. I highly recommend and thank him for his contributions.
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-T. Bruce Howie
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To the right: Me attempting to be Pawel Pawlikowski with my self-portrait. Couldn't get a photo of Patrick.
Final CAS Reflection - Tom and Pat
The Full Story
So the main reason I did this blog was for CAS. I specifically wanted to address issues of global significance and show commitment in CAS experiences.Â
I initially wanted to explore issues explicitly, but I realised that simply discussing art with an informed context and mind was more successful at that than simply finding a new issue every week. I could broaden my mind in genre and style, not just themes, and I could enjoy my work more by doing so instead of analysing repetitive, depressing themes. This, I know now, is the motivation behind every critic - they don't just want to write about themes and the globe, but to write about enjoyment and genre for people to have a good time. And I feel that Pat has learned this too, as he's had a lot of fun despite the sheer magnitude of his work.
I feel that me and Pat have showed a lot of commitment to this blog over the past year, as we've written every week in that July-October time period except for exams (which is acceptable). Perseverance was important, as we needed it to continue in the face of tests and revision.
Pat's reflection
Since my previous reflection, I was able to achieve some of my goals. For example, recently, I published a review on the music of Minecraft, one of my favourite video games, and also a general discussion on the 'stealing' of film music. Therefore, I think I have been able to undertake challenges, and develop new skills in exploring music. In terms of video game music, I was very inexperienced, since I am personally not too familiar with this genre. I had to do a lot of research for this one, and it resulted in what was, in my opinion, one of my better reviews. Talking more generally about a specific topic allowed me to better express my general opinions on the film music process, something that I wanted to share with my audience from the beginning of the blog. With exams, my activity on the blog has become dormant for the moment, but I hope I will be able to contribute again soon. In my opinion, Tom and I have definitely demonstrated the skills and benefits of working collaboratively, as addressed in my previous reflection.
Films, Global Issues and Miscellaneous Pointouts Services
What do we actually do?
Movie Reviews
The brunt of my writings are going to be reviews of movies, and those reviews are going to be on films concerning global issues or brand new films. I'm completely open to requests about what I can review, so please, tell me of all of the obscure stuff you know that I can write about.
Musical Reviews
The brilliant Patrick Suiter will regularly contribute detailed music reviews of both grand epics and poison to the ears.
Recommendations and FU's.
If I can't think of a global issue to write about in a review, I'll just review a film that's either really, REALLY good or really terrible from my point of view. They are opinionated, but I'll keep external bias to a minimum. Usually, they will follow a theme that someone suggests or that I feel is relevant.
