Wednesday, November 12, 2008

(2:33min) Videopoetry: Magnolia Stellata, an attempt...

Claire Elek wrote:

"You're from another time Brenda..the time of troubadours, "mad" women, the Lady of Shallott, Ophelia.. I don't mean to suggest.. I just love your drama, your temperament, your authenticity.. Your poetry.. It should be in a beautiful box with flowers on it tied with a purple ribbon.. You made my day as I set out to teach small children.. You're a drop of fresh water in this world of hum drum.. thank you for being you..."

Blessings,
Claire

I love what you wrote, Claire! Ah, yes, let's be "mad" creative women, Sarah Bernhards & Isadora Duncans... through the weeks of taping this poem the versions just got sillier until this late one night.

_______
Nov 12th

For weeks I have been trying to record a poem, Magnolia Stellata, in various outfits at various times of the day using either the built-in Webcam (as in this clip) or my older Canon GL2 video DV camera. I promised myself to post something, anything since I purchased equipment to produce videopoetry. Hence loading this little hilarious clip to Blogger. It's taken hours to produce, and there was no editing since I used a clip as is! Sigh. Probably I have a better clip, but NaNoWriMo awaits and it's already almost tomorrow.

Mostly the time was taken up with trying to deal with the background issues, which I resolved with a still worked on in Photoshop Elements and imported into Final Cut Express, and then the video made slightly transparent and cropped inside of. I chopped and cooked a chili, ginger, vegetable and pork stir-fry for my son during the time it took to render, and then render again.

The jammies? Oh, sigh. You know, and this isn't by way of excuse, I've lived in or near Chinese communities for many years, and in Vancouver how many dear Chinese folk were out in their pajamas after 9pm at night?

Look, there was the white nightgown Butoh-based dance video. Maybe I have a thing about sleep attire?

I share an enclave with a Chinese woman who's always in her pajamas. And my daughter (who's vegan) lives in hers, putting them on as soon as she comes home.

I got in the habit...

4 comments:

  1. Wow

    I must agree with Claire Elek in response to the immediate impact of this piece.

    And I am struck in particular by the insight of love so oft being seen through the lens of renunciation. That is destined to follow my thoughts through the course of my days, I think. Oh my, oh my.

    These videos you have made do seem to step out from another realm. This is what makes them not only brilliant (by Poetry, by Creation), but they give to one a deep pause of reflection. Something illumined, almost, such as what comes to one in dreams.

    Blessings,
    Myna

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  2. Thanks, Myna! This video is only part of the poem, which I've recorded so many times unsuccessfully! It's quite a learning curve, but I am determined to explore making videopoetry however I am capable. I find this video silly and can therefore view it without as much of the embarrassment as I do the other times I taped recordings of Magnolia Stellata. You are most kind in your comments, and I thank you my dear friend. Gratefully, with blessings, Brenda

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous2:23 AM

    i can't listen to the poem at the moment Brenda as I am at an internet cafe so I will have to do that later but I did want to say that I do love the jammies ( as we call pyjamas here ) and that, like your daughter, I am also a vegan.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hey Boris, you're the first man to venture a comment of any kind, and I sent a link to it in an email list to a few friends. It's quite wacky, I think.

    But, but. Anything approaching 'watch-able' is impossible, yet I swore I would post a videopoem every 2 weeks, hence this.

    Wacky's okay,

    Vegan is a challenging diet - my daughter's now living on raw almonds & other nuts, tofu, veggie burgers, vegetables, and rice. Haven't even managed to convince her to try Quinoa yet. She won't eat beans or lentils, doesn't like tofurkey products, and I worry about her nutrition, naturally and of course.

    Enjoy your holidays, Boris! Vegan in the wilds...

    ReplyDelete

A Pulsing Imagination - Ray Clews' Paintings

A video of some of my late brother Ray's paintings and poems I wrote for them. Direct link: https://youtu.be/V8iZyORoU9E ___