Watch the first two episodes of Kirby Ferguson's Everything is a Remix. Then leave TWO takeaways/connections to Steal Like an Artist for each episode. Next, leave TWO reactions to takeaways/connections from your classmates. Again, do this for each episode.
Everything is a Remix: Music
Everything is a Remix: Film
Video 1: When I think of a remix, I automatically think about the song "Ice Ice Baby" who copied from Queen's hit "Under Pressure." The structure follows the same catchy bass line. It is hard to realize a song that became a nationwide sensation was copied from something that was already created. It makes you think that everything you love to listen to is actually a "remix." I like how the video uses Led Zeppelin as an example. An iconic band, but they too also copied from many good artists before them.
ReplyDeleteVideo 2: This video, I feel, explains how all movies are based on a few key principles. All movies follow one of those principles, which means that movie directors have to find ways to rearrange their plot line so it will be a whole different movie. The video exploits the Star War's franchise. Star Wars is a collection of 6 movies we have come to know and love, but all these movies are actually copies of several other movies. It real poses the question of how movies can show originality in its work. This video taught me that the movie industry is all about finding ways to copy great work without being noticed. A certain movie may or may not intend to copy, but in the end, everything ends up as a new remix.
I like what you said about having to think twice about the artists we love today and their work. Who knows what they've stole/copied from others. It's such a reality check to find out that everything you love is just a remix of something else.
DeleteRichard,
DeleteYou bring up an interesting point how movies are remixes. One of the most original movies of its day, Hitchcock's Psycho, I am sure was influenced by several other films that Hitchcock admired when he grew up and when his talents were taking shape.
But there is no denying that almost every single horror film made since Psycho debuted has ripped Psycho off in some way shape or form. I was reminded of this just last week when my kids were watching the Toy Story short: Toy Story of Terror. In it Jesse is in a shower and a menacing figure is lurking on the other side of the shower curtain. If you have ever seen Psycho, you know what is coming next as the shower scene in Psycho was one of the best scenes ever filmed. It's the director of the Toy Story short tipping his hat to Psycho.
I never thought about your point of directors just copying without being noticed. That is really interesting. Now that I think about it, that is exactly what they are doing. It never came to mind until you brought it up.
DeleteI believe fully in what you said about how everything tends to be apart of the group of remixes.
DeleteMusic
ReplyDelete1) Nothing is Original-André Gide said, "Everything that needs to be said has already been said. But, since no one was listening, everything must be said again." All this music being repeated/remixed is a direct example of Austin Kleon's point in Steal Like An Artist, that Nothing is Original. Even though it's a little disconcerting, it's also inspiring to see how many different artists took something that had previously influenced others and incorporated it in their own work.
2) The Genealogy of Ideas-Kleon says, "You are, in fact, a mashup of what you choose to let into your life. You are the sum of your influences." I think that this can be said about our work as well as about ourselves. Each of the songs that was mentioned, was influenced by another form of the same song. Each one was just a mashup of different influences that resulted in something "new".
Film
1) Creativity is Subtraction-With each film that's used, there are obvious moderations formed from a single idea or aspect that influenced the film. Kleon says, "The right constraints can lead to your very best work." I think that what makes these films interesting-what connects them, are specific symbols or actions that inspired other filmmakers. If these filmmakers had just been awed at the total production of each movie, it would've been impossible to build from their inspiration and make a movie that was both original and mocking.
2) The Not-So-Secret Formula-Every film was influenced by another film, another story, and it was the choice of the creator, writer, filmmaker, to share what the work that they had been inspired by in their own version. Kleon says that there are two steps to being discovered: "Step 1: Wonder at something. Step 2: Invite others to wonder with you." I think that what made the popular movies popular, was the fact that these artists took what they'd been influenced by, found a way to make it relevant to their own time or genre, and shared it with other people.
The Genealogy of Ideas is an interesting connection to the Kirby clips. Sometimes this happens in very, very unique and unexpected ways, such as when the drummer, Bill Ward, for the seminal heavy metal band, Black Sabbath, talked about how he grew up being influenced by jazz musicians before he began playing for Black Sabbath. This gave him an original style. Yet no one would ever think of the term "Jazz" when they hear a Black Sabbath song, but Ward swears that it's there.
DeleteAnother example from music is one of my favorite bands, Def Leppard. When they were young, they fell in love with Joan Jett's "I Love Rock and Roll." When you listen to some of the popular songs, such as "Pour Some Sugar on Me," you can hear the similarities in the loud choruses. Furthermore, one of their favorite bands when they were growing up was T. Rex, particularly their song "Get it On, Bang a Gong." That song is directly mirrored in Def Leppard's "Armageddon It."
Finally, an example from literature. There is a classic horror short story by W.W. Jacobs called "The Monkey's Paw." It so influenced Stephen King that he wrote a modern version of it that is called "The Word Processor of the Gods." It's the same plot but with different characters. This same idea resurfaced in what is one of King's best novels, Pet Sematary. In it, King is paying homage to the classic tale.
Yet another example from King concerns one of his modern stories, "N." In the intro to the story, King says that it is heavily influenced by the greatest horror story of all, "The Great God Pan" by Arthur Machen. If you read the two, they share the same basic ideas, but their characters are different. But King acknowledges that Machen had a large influence on him and his writing, which shows itself time and again (whether intentional or not) in his work.
I do like your connection to the genealogy chapter from Steal Like An Artist. I think that a person is greatly effected by influences around them whether it be peers, parents, environment, etc. However, I do disagree with your initial quote. This entire topic of remixes is based on the assumption that there are pieces to remix. But what did the very first singer remix? Granted they must have had influences however they had nothing to steal or remix. Would you say that they weren't original despite the fact that this said person was essentially the creator of music? Wouldn't this then imply that there has to be at least a few original ideas floating around out there?
DeleteVideo 1: I feel that it is almost impossible to come up with anything that is purely original. I feel like the things that you have seen and loved are what shapes you. Naturally your personality is going to be a mirror image of those things without you even realizing it. If you come up with something creative, you have probably been inspired by someone else's creative work to build that object. Causing it to be a remix of their work without you even realizing it because maybe you saw their work a long time ago.
ReplyDeleteVideo 2: I believe that some of these remixes are just coincidences. I feel like people are looking way harder into detail than they should. I think that just because you say something that was in another movie doesn't mean that you copied it. I'm talking with little phrases. Saying major lines that are exactly the same as another movie, yeah that is not a coincidence. The director or author probably did copy that.
Cole, I agree with your takeaway to the second video about just being a coincidence, I think people have too much time on their hands to spend hours trying to connect one scene from a movie to another. People still do come up with things themselves today and I don't think we give enough credit to them for that. Instead we just accuse them of coping it.
DeleteI agree with your statement that you are a mirror image of those things. There's a quote I love. It goes "You are a mirror image of the 5 people you most associate yourself with". I really believe that, because I catch myself saying phrases that I have never said before until I heard a friend say it over and over again.
DeleteIt is nice to hear that Cole has a differing opinion on copied movies. I believe that movie directors take memorable movies and make it their own, while you seem to believe they are coincidences. It is hard to say what a director is thinking in his mind when he films the movie, but it really gets you to think more about plagiarism and originality.
DeleteI also agree with Cole on this one! When people grow up watching certain movies they may even only watch it once! But the brain has a funny way of picking things up and that might be the cause of why some movies seemingly get remixed!
DeleteI disagree with your opinion on the second movie Cole, but I do still really like hearing the idea that it all might just be coincidences. I think there are occasional coincidences, but most things come from something else. One example I can give is in the old horror movie "The Shining." In one key scene where Jack Torrance (the killer) is attempting to break down a door so he can kill his wife. He manages to break open a hole, just big enough for his face. He then shows his creepy grin to her and says, "Here's Johnny!" which was clearly taken from the intro to the Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson (two hosts ago). A simple phrase that couldn't have been a coincidence because there wasn't a single character in the movie named Johnny.
DeleteCole,
DeleteI love the fact that you believe that some movies are just coincidences.
I agree with you saying it is impossible to come up with anything on your own, I have the same opinion also. Along with that on the movie end of things, the major lines copied from other sources, is also true. They were un-original and stole.
DeleteI agree with you saying it is impossible to come up with anything on your own, I have the same opinion also. Along with that on the movie end of things, the major lines copied from other sources, is also true. They were un-original and stole.
DeleteMusic:
ReplyDelete1. It's interesting to me how many songs have bits and pieces of different songs incorporated in. It is almost as, like he said, "everything is a remix". This hit me many times throughout both videos.
2. It had never occurred to me that the Led Zeppelin song, "Bring it on Home" had a similar tune and name to Willie Nixon's "Bring it on Home".
Film:
1. It was very eye opening that 74/100 of the highest grossing films in the last 10 years were remixes of one kind or another.
2. It was also very interesting that most movies that came to my and when watching this video all fit into the genres.
I agree it was strange to see how similar so many things are. I never would've thought about how that one bass line has been used so many times, or how specific rhythms have been repeated with different songs, but it's a constant occurrence in everyday artistry.
DeleteI like your second comment to the first video on how it didn't occur to you how something as popular as "Bring It On Home" is really a remix of an older guys song with coincidentally the same title "Bring It On Home"
DeleteIt's so crazy to think that the songs we adore and listen to on repeat today are all just remixes of older day songs. It makes me almost want to look deeper into my favorite artists and see where their inspirations came from and where they got their ideas/work from. Who knows maybe I will end up even liking the older more 'original song better. (although I highly doubt it)
Your second comment brings to mind all the examples of musicians taking things from other artists. In this video I believe we only saw Led Zeppelin stealing songs and rhythms, but modern songs do it all the time. A few that come to mind are: "Holy Grail" by Jay Z (where the last part of the chorus comes from Nirvana's "Smells like Teen Spirt") and "Bezerk" by Eminem (where the backup singer's voice and all guitar parts come directly from a recording of Billy Squire's "The Stroke"). Interestingly enough, Billy Squire got a lot of his inspiration from the bands Queen and... wait for it... Lead Zeppelin!
DeleteI also found it interesting that 74/100 of the top grossing movies were remixes of one kind or another. It leads you to wonder what the other 26 movies are?
DeleteMusic
ReplyDeleteMy favorite artist is The Weeknd, and a lot of his songs have the same beat and rhythm as the rest, yet they are all different. Since he already knows the people love the rhythm he's putting out now, why not keep that same rhythm and just tweak it to be better for the next one. Now I can't imagine he came up with the beat and rhythm by himself, but whomever he got it from had some good taste.
When I thought of the word "remix" before watching this video, I would think of all the craptacular songs that people took and changed the sounds, or added something, or sung it themselves. Now I realize that really, everything is a remix. That gets me wondering who was the first person or band that really did create each genre. I wonder what the original songs sounded like, I can't imagine how different they would be from todays style of it.
Film
Watching this video I was so surprised at how much movies actually resemble other movies/books. I feel so isolated having not knowing that these movies 'stole' ideas from a handful of other movies. I find it so crazy that this 'million dollar box office movies' are really just bits and pieces put together from others.
I think some of the things Kirby pointed out about movies copying others movies almost directly is a bit coincidental. I mean have you know experienced when you and someone else come up with the same idea? It happens to everyone and I think that's what happened here. Yes, I do realize it was quite a few things that were remixes of the other, maybe the directors took some of the parts and thought of the others. He's stealing like an artist, taking only the good bits that he needs and leaving the rest.
Sara,
DeleteYou bring up a great point about the imitation being incidental, which it could well be. But I like that Kirby notes how many directors, such as Quentin Tarantino and George Lucas actually "borrow" from films that they love and admire. I see this as more of a "tip of the hat" or an acknowledgement to those other films rather than just ripping them off.
When directors (or authors or musicians) do this, it creates another layer of meaning and importance to the work than is usual.
I think you made a great point about the craptacular remixes of songs. I think of how most remixes of songs are not very good and how the original songs could actually be remixes of a different song. So who is to say what song is original and what song is a remix. Maybe the craptacular remix is actually a remix of the first remix of the original song. I agree with you, it really gets you wondering.
DeleteI have totally wondered where the first band/ genre of music started too! I mean someone had to do something that was kind of original.. Maybe it was a caveman who started hitting a rock with a stick or something. But I like the point you bring up about musicians sticking to the type of music that they have been successful in producing previously. Often times if an artist or band does decide to switch their style, their "loyal supporters" will get angry or stop listening to them.
DeleteOne thing I remember when I talked with my brother (12 years older than me) about the bands I loved was how he always revealed how my favorite bands were actually influence by his favorite bands.
ReplyDeleteI recall playing him Motley Crue's 1983 album "Shout at the Devil." The last song on the first side, Helter Skelter, was one of my favorites. Then he told me that it was actually a Beatles song. I couldn't believe it, but it was true.
Over the years, as I learned more about The Beatles, I became amazed at all of the songs I had loved by other artists that were originally Beatles' songs.
Now these bands were just "covering" Beatles' songs. They weren't actually ripping them off and passing them off as their own, as Led Zeppelin did, so this is an example of how Kleon encourages us to steal things from those that influence us and put our own unique spin on them to create something original, which is what happened with most of the bands who covered Beatles' sons as they tended to create something new and different rather than just imitating the same son that the Beatles made famous.
When I think of a remix, the first thing I think of is the different remixes of popular songs. You know, the kind where the song is mixed up with different techno music played? They actually steal the song, mix up verses, and add a beat to it. They don't even try to make it original, yet people like these remixes. However, they get upset when an artist takes a tune and uses it for his own song. I don't get it. Yeah, if you couldn't tell, I never liked these type of "remixes".
ReplyDeleteWhenever I would hear someone talking about how a beat or measure of a song sounded like another song, I alway thought it was coincidence. It never struck me that people got their inspirations from other songwriters. I don't know why it never occurred to me that people might have stolen measures. Guess who is never going to find that a coincidence again?
I was shocked at not only how much movies resembled each other (except for horror movies), but also that they literally are copies of other movies. I didn't realize until now that most of the movies I watch, I could tell you how it ends within 10-15 minutes of the movie. The exception to this unconsciousness is horror movies. Trust me, I know that horror movies are rip-offs of each other.
When I think of a remix of movies, I automatically think of horror movies. There is a reason that during almost every horror movie that I have ever watched, I have fallen asleep while watching it. From the first five minutes of watching, I could tell you the plot, who dies, and who is the murderer (if the culprit is unknown - a mystery/horror mix). I don't get scared by horror movies because they all seem the same. They all follow a similar plot. The twist occurs at the same moments, the scares occur at the same point of suspense, and most have either a happy or unfinished conclusion.
Dakota, I agree with you in that I was really shocked to find out almost all of the movie I like to watch are remixes of past movies. I like how you mention horror movies because they are so predictable because almost every horror movie ends in some way that we have all seen before.
DeleteTotally agree with you Dakota, almost every movie has the same kind of plot line. I always wonder why people enjoy romantic movies, they're all the same thing! They all have some hot dude with who falls in love with the chick and for some godforsaken reason they can't be together. Yet they find a way and live happily ever after. Load of junk to me but some people adore it. Guess it just depends on the person.
DeleteI agree with your horror movie comment as well. They all deal with the same thing and end the same way.
It would be so great to see a new and different movie come out that would throw us all for a spin. Something different and captivating, and REAL, no fantasy where the girl always gets the guy because that's not real.
I would have to say I agree with you a lot on your comments.
I think you make a really good point, Dakota. Copies are boring. It is ridiculous how horror films and the fad of remixing songs don't really do anything new with the work that they're supposedly influenced by. It's sad, when you look at the artists who stole things and then didn't do anything with the value of what they'd obtained.
DeleteDakota, I am curious about your thoughts on remixes on like say, digital music. Some DJ's whole job is to make remixes of popular songs. Do you consider this an art? Just because a DJ is taking an existing song, modify it to their like, and sell the record to millions, do they deserve the credit or no?
DeleteHorror movies are definitely predictable! But maybe thats why we consume them so much? People tend to like predictability because it feels safe! However how long do you think people will continue to like the predictability of these movies? I hope that there will soon be newer versions of horror movies with different plots and cooler twists! Something to actually get your heart racing!
DeleteI can agree with you, Dakota, on why you would be shocked. Perhaps it is because I am a bit of a film nut, but Alex is also right in her reaction saying that "People tend to like predictability because it feels safe!" Since there is such a variety in film genres, you would think that having crossovers would be much more common than it is. Think about having a modern era horror/steampunk film taken from the best of those types of movies. Now those would be some good horror films to watch.
Delete1- It's interesting how we can go day to day listening to music and maybe not even recognize the similarities! However it makes sense to have basically the same things being reproduced or remixed because that is what we consume. If we stopped consuming a type of music because it lacks a type of originality we might see a change. Also I think people take certain things from other artists in hopes to be as famous or as popular as that artist by just adding a touch of their own flare.
ReplyDelete2. Movies are so interesting when it comes to how they are remixed. Unless you are a movie guru and have watched a lot of movies you would never know what movies were just remixes (aside from horror films) unless someone pointed it out to you. I also think horror movies are pretty predictable but I still get into them and jump even though I know what is going to happen! So unless people,like me and many others, stop consuming these types of blatant remixes the cycle of remixes for horror movies. I'm sure many movie producers think along the lines of "as long as people continue to consume our movies, no matter how remixed they are why should we stop?". It's not going to be long before movies we are familiar with start being remixed!
I agree with one of the points that you make in regards to the music video. Some people might be copying other famous people in the hopes that they too will become famous. Take rapping for example. Every rapper as to have a beat, they just make their's unique by adding different words and at different intervals.
DeleteI also like the point you made in regards to movies. If companies continue to make billions of dollars off of a repeated plot line why even bother trying to come up with a one. It is kind of a wry tactic.
I couldn't agree more with this. I'm a big believer that movies have become all too predictable and boring. I shouldn't go into a movie expecting the outcome AND being right about that outcome. With horror movies, I can almost always predict the ending. When the movie industry starts to shake things up, movie goers will be forced to change how they think about movies.
DeleteI agree with you and Austin on your comments about how predictable movies are. The only movie that I have seen recently that wasn't completely predictable (it was still pretty predictable at some parts) was John Green's "Papertowns". I was surprised that, after all of the buildup of a high school boy looking for this girl and eventually finding her, they didn't get together. I wish that producers would incorporate more surprising elements like that into the movies that they are producing today.
DeleteMusic: Many songs have similarities. It's not realistic in this time to be completely, 100% original. Many lyrics are about similar events, some lyrics in songs are the exact same as others.
ReplyDeleteFilm: I feel as though it's almost impossible to be fully original. There are so many things that have already been done, even if you think you are doing something you've come up with, it's almost guaranteed that someone else has done something similar, if not the same exact thing. People will always find examples to prove that you're not original, but that doesn't mean it's not great. Arguably, some remixes are even better than the original. Just because it's not "original" doesn't mean it isn't amazing. (This applies to film as well as music, or almost anything else.)
Do you think that just because something is similar it was meant to be copied/'stolen'? Do you think that it can still be considered a remix when the author had no knowledge about the pre-existing product?
DeleteJordan, do you think that these artists are 'copying/stealing' on purpose or are doing it unconsciously?
DeleteVideo 1:
ReplyDeleteThere isn't a single person in the media today that hasn't been called a ripoff. Artists are going to listen to other artists and become inspired and influenced by their art. No one can help it, and it can't be stopped. You listen to other artists not only for inspiration, but to see how you can possibly improve. You're never going to meet a painter who has never looked at another painter's art and was inspired, and improved their own techniques based on the other person's art. However, it is true that music has become very repetitive, and incredibly similar. I can actually relate to this personally, only because of the mashup I made with Leah for homecoming. Every song we put into our mashup used the same 4 chord pattern, which was why it was so easy to put them all side by side without too much difficulty. Almost every American song is in 4/4 time now. I'm not exactly when that happened, but now it's very rare to find a song that's not in that time signature. Also, I think the bass riffs at the beginning of the video are so similar it's funny.
Video 2:
Ingredients for a good movie: a hero, a love interest, and a villain. I've just described 3/4 of the movies in the world. In fact, some of the more recent movies have gotten to the point where they aren't even creative enough to be remixes anymore. Disney is taking all of their classics and just adding a modern twist on it, using the exact same plot but using CGI. If I go out to watch a movie in the theaters with my friends, one of them will usually lean over to me and say "This reminds me of 'insert other movie name here'". It's sad, it's true, and it's just going to happen. Also, Claire always predicts the ending and spoils it for me, so there's that too. (She's almost always right.) I don't think we're losing creativity, but I do think that almost everything has been done. We learn from the past, becoming influenced from the past and eventually make decisions based on what happened in the past.
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DeleteI really like what you said about the same movie plots being used over and over again. Like you said it is sad, but true, and almost helpless. I think what makes a modern movie good, is that the repetitive plot is disguised enough so it isn't easily noticed. I also agree about what you had to say about Claire, she has done it a few times to me as well.
DeleteFirst of all, the ending of Thor where Thor "loses his arm" and Loki "dies", you could tell that something fishy was happening there. There was no way that they were going to hit that type of blow towards the fans and the franchise... Anyone could see that Loki was going to be alive at the end and the Thor was going to keep his arm. As I like to think, no one is truly dead until they're buried on screen in front of you- even then, don't be so sure. Lost has definitely prepped me with all of their "dead" characters...
DeleteBUT I do agree with the both of you on how a modern movies can be really good when they hide the things they've stolen from others. Though, I find it really interesting that Quentin Tarantino very blatantly copied his film maker role models, but did it a away to show his appreciation to their works.
With the basic hero, love interest, and villain movie foundation, the only movie I can think of that's avoided the hero and the apparent love interest combo is the Harry Potter series. (Though Harry ends up finding a love interest in Ron's sister later on.) It was really refreshing to have the popular series unfold without having Harry and Hermione smooching on the screen.
Music:
ReplyDeleteOne thing that I always enjoy finding out about is the artists that my favorite singer or band listens to. Because music is a bunch of remixes, the music they listen to influences their style and the music that they create. Most of the time famous singers will listen to other currently or formerly famous singers. Why is this? They listen to them because they are good, but also because they are the most talented people/person in the room. As Austin Kleon says, “You’re only going to be as good as the people you surround yourself with.” It only makes sense that good singers would listen to other good singers, singers that have and will influence their own work. Stealing is okay as long as you make it your own, more of your own than Led Zeppelin apparently did.
Movie:
I think that a great connection to movies and Steal Like An Artist can be made via chapter three. In this chapter the author says that you are supposed to go out and make the art, or a version of whatever, based on what you want to see. I think that this is what directors have to do. When given a script there are many holes and many grey areas that need to be ironed out. They have no choice but to make the decision, and it is based on what they want to see. This is one reason I find movies based off of books so interesting. It allows the viewer to see what the director sees and how they interpreted the book. Take The Hobbit as an example, in the book there is very little said about the ending battle. However, in the third hobbit movie a majority of the film is the battle. This is evidence that Peter Jackson may have read the book and wanted more things said about the last part, a better conclusion to the story. So what did he do, he made most of the movie about what the book merely glanced at. He created the movie that he wanted to see.
Alyce,
DeleteI'm glad you made the connection of surrounding yourself with people better than you to this video. I didn't think of it until I read your paragraph. I totally agree with it. I a person wants to make good music they need to surrounded by good musicians.
Hobbit Nerd,
DeleteEven though you've guided me on my LOTR and Hobbit journey, I'm very surprised that you left out the difference in the battle from book to the movie. Though, as you explained, Jackson took what he wanted to see- blood, death, etc- and made it one of the main focuses of the film. I wonder if the other successful filmmakers he associated with were making/made movies that focused heavily on the battle in their movie. Maybe Jackson was influenced by their success when he made the decision for the third movie.
Video One: I feel like creating something that is completely original is nearly impossible. Something that you create could have first been created years before by someone else without you knowing. It's a coincidence in this case. In other cases, music artists will take old things and put some of their own style into it. They use material from the musicians who were they admire, and then they change it to fit their needs and styles. A musician will "emulate" another musician. I think this ties directly into the "Imitation is not Flattery" section of chapter 2 in "Steal Like an Artist."
ReplyDeleteVideo 2: This video talks a lot more about the different archetypes that movies follow (meaning the plot line follows a certain sequence and fits under a certain category). This means that movies will tend have very similar plot lines. Along with this, movies take things from all sorts of material (other movies, books, blogs, articles, video games, etc) and tie them into the story. The Star Wars movie series, for example, takes scenes, from countless movies, and mashes them together with an outer space twist. Because of all the sources it steals from, it is very uncommon for people to see it as just a massive remix. Austin Kleon once quoted the cartoonist Gary Panter saying, "If yo have one person you're influenced by, everyone will say you're the next whoever. But if you rip off a hundred people, everyone will say you're so original!" True originality is hard to come by, that's why I think it's better to just accept that everything is a remix, and live your life accordingly.
Jace, I have to agree that creating something that is completely original is nearly impossible. There are so many things out that there can influence you and your ideas, so even if you don't realize you're being influenced, you still could be.
DeleteI like that you tied in the part about musicians emulating one another because so many do! I like to think about jazz solos for older bands (not rock and roll bands :P) and so many try to pull off sounds like Louis Armstrong, yet they make it have a slight twist so they can be their own performer. I think we are starting to head more and more into a day of straight up plagiarism if we aren't careful. Careful, even on the subconscious level.
DeleteVideo 1.
ReplyDeleteLed Zeppelin stealing songs from multiple artists like Willie Dixon, Howlin' Wolf, Bert Jansch, Jake Holmes, and Spirit. In the book right away in the book it states "start copying". In Led Zeppelin's case they did, and stole several songs without giving credit to the original artists.
"Skip ahead to the present... and anybody can remix anything." In this part of the video he says people don't need skills to remix things. That is because they have all the material they need to create a remix right from the songs they are using. This brings me to the part in the book called Nothing is Original. They are using other people's songs to create a remix, but they themselves did not come up with the original songs.
Video 2.
In the beginning of the video it shows how every movie is a spin off of something. People are un-original with their ideas and usually take credit for themselves. Not saying that movies are bad (I happen to love movies) but finding out a lot of my favorites are rip offs of something or another is slightly disappointing. For example, Star Wars is basically a mash up of a bunch of different movies. I haven't seen Star Wars in a few years, and as a kid it used to be my favorite movie series. I already knew it sort of ripped off one movie, but I never knew about all the others.
Kira,
DeleteI agree with that we all have material to remake songs. All of us have garageband on our laptaps and could be making remixes whenever we feel like. Also if you want to spend $800 on a sound board you could maybe make remixing songs your career.
Kira, I have to agree that finding out most movies are rip-offs makes me kind of sad. It was really surprising to find out that filmmakers were just ripping off other, older films and stories.
DeleteI agree that people usually aren't original anymore, but in our day and age, it is hard to be original anymore when so many things have already been created. So many things are out there that you can hardly write a paper without "ripping someone off"
DeleteFilm #1
ReplyDeleteBefore this video when I first thought of remixes I would've described it as a song that has been altered in one way or another to kind of make it your own. This video connects greatly to chapter 1 in Steal like an Artist. On the first page he asks all artist where they get their ideas from. He says the honest answer would be that they are all stolen. Just like it says in the video how almost all songs are remixes.
This video made me think of a band called Pentatonix an acapella group of five singers who come up with great remixes of today's newer songs.
Film #2
I think that film makers remake the old hit movies into new ones because they now what a movie needs to be successful. So why change a strategy that works?
Ever have a friend who seems like they can always call what is going to happen through out a movie or tv show? I know I have a couple and sometimes consider myself one of those people. I've watched so many movies, I feel like I almost have the outline for every movie memorized.
Riley, I like how you brought up the idea that film makers remake the old movies because they know what a movie needs to be successful. I also think that filmmakers take bits and pieces from other movies because they do know what works and what doesn't.
DeleteRiley, I loved your comment on that one friend. Although movies (usually) have their own twist, I would argue that movies have become far too predictable. I believe that a good movie surprises you, changes how you think about a certain genre, and forget everything you thought you knew about movies.
DeleteYou watch so many movies because you herm at your house. I do agree with you though that most movies do usually have a pretty similar plot
DeleteVideo One:
ReplyDeleteI think it's really interesting to hear that a lot of bands rip-off older music that preceded them. Granted, I don't listen to Led Zeppelin and I had never heard any of the other people or songs before, but it makes sense that people would use songs to help them model their own. Led Zeppelin just happened to do a crappy job concealing the fact that they stole a lot of what the sang.Those who do a good job of stealing and revamping are the one's who come across as original, even though they aren't.
Video Two
It shocks me that 74/100 of the highest grossing films from the past 10 years were remakes, adaptations, or remixes of some sort. Wow. And with the other 26, they all had some sort of genre and sub-genre that they were molded to fit into. It makes sense that directors would take pieces from other movies, because obviously you're going to steal ideas that work. It surprised me even more that "Avatar" was basically a remodel of "Dances with Wolves", because I love that movie so much, but had never realized it was a remix until it was pointed out to me.
In "Steal Like an Artist", the author says its okay to steal ideas from other people, and revamp them to make them your own. I think its okay for people to steal ideas, because nothing is original, and no matter what you read, watch, or listen to, those people got their ideas from someone else who stole it from someone else.
Near the end you mention that nothing is original. I disagree, because people can have original ideas, they're just influenced by other creations. If a two songs have the same bass line, is it the same song? Is it unoriginal? I don't think it is, they've only been influenced by one another.
Delete
ReplyDeleteVideo 1
To piggyback off of Sam on how they made a mashup, I went on a search to see what wacky combinations of songs used the same chords. I found that Imagine Dragons’ song Demons, Coldplay’s the Scientist, Bon Jovi’s Summertime, and the Monster Mash all used the sequence of chords G, D, Em, then C. I couldn’t help but laugh when I was listening to these songs! It really made me think about how no song was sacred or original. It definitely made me wonder about how artists come up with their songs. Was the Imagine Dragons lead singer jamming out to the Monster Mash when he came up with their next hit?
Video 2
I wasn’t blown away to find out that movies copied and pasted other filmmakers work to better their own, but it was surprising to find out about the larger known movies doing this. After class, I googled to see if my beloved Indiana Jones was one of these movies. Unfortunately, they copied scenes and even the character from the Secrets of the Incas. The movie wasn't very popular due to the lack of action and the fact that Harry Steele- the Indiana Jones of the movie- was a complete jerk. Harry’s outfit and hat were completely taken and molded into the Indiana Jones that I love today. Talk about disappointing! Indiana Jones was made better by adding as much action as possible and a charming, hero-like disposition to Dr. Jones. The only reason this isn’t more well known was the fact that Paramount, the company that produced both movies, never released the Secret of the Incas on home video… Shame on you, Paramount.
Bear,
DeleteActually a really great example of the music chords is a youtube video by Axis of Awesome called 4 Chords, which is actually what Leah and I based our 80s mashup on. Also, your point on Indiana Jones makes me wonder what "classic" movie could actually be considered an original classic. Is there any out there, or do they just rip off on one another?
Claire, I also have heard about modern day bands all using the same base chords, and it amazes me how they still can come up with different things to do with those same chords.
DeleteDid somebody say 4 Chords????? Throwback to middle school, amiright @ Elle
DeleteMusic:
ReplyDelete1) When I think of a remix, I automatically think of the song "Anaconda" by Nicki Minaj. In the song, she totally rips off "Baby Got Back." Even though I'm really not into rap, I can tell that this was a complete rip off. This seems to be common with rap music as good rap songs tend to be played years after they come out. In Steal Like an Artist, Austin Kleon states that nothing is original. This is very evident in the music industry.
2) Kleon makes the connection between genetics and a remix as we are all mashups of our parents and ancestors, like a remix. In the video, every band/artist seemed to be connected in some way. Led Zeppelin "stole" others work as a sort of "flattering" technique. The connection between certain songs isn't hard to make. Although the connection is sensed, I see it more as inspiration than a cheap rip off.
Film:
1)At first, I was incredibly surprised by how many movies are "rip offs" of books, other movies, toys, etc. Then, I realized that the best movies fall into this category. Star wars was anything but "original" on paper. The creators stole lots of parts from other movies instead of coming up with something different. By paying attention to what movie goers like, the creators of Star Wars were able to create something "original" and industry changing.
2) This video really made me think of the Harry Potter movies. Obviously, the movies aren't "original." They are "rip off" of the book. Although books are almost always better than the movies, I would argue that the movies put their own spin on the books. By doing this, the film makers took a risk. This risk, however, paid off and made the movies (and the books) incredibly popular. Sometimes taking a risk is the only thing that can deliver the best results.
Video 1. It's quite amazing how many of todays great music makers have ripped off older, less popular songs. Or at least that is how it seems. They may not necessarily be doing it on purpose, but the beats and lyrics sound so much alike in some of led zepplyns songs for example. So many great songs today have been "ripped off" by older songs. To me, its a genius idea really because they already did most of the work making the song, so all the newer bands had to do was tweek a few things here and there, and they end up making a number one hit. Brilliant
ReplyDeleteVideo 2. 74/100 top grossing films were some sort of remake or knock off of older films. That is such a huge number of great films that wouldn't have happened if it weren't for some older movies. It's crazy to think how many great films we have today that wouldn't have been made if it weren't for hte directors "ripping off" an earlier film. But then again, it is hard to come up with something original in this day in age since so many things have already been invented or done. It is hard to be original with so many things already out there.
Video 1.)
ReplyDeleteIt is really crazy to actually see how many people have intentionally or even unintentionally copied someone else's beat, lyrics, or even small fragments of both. Remixes are everywhere, in almost every aspect of life that we see, and it really is a great idea. That is, if they can get away with it. For instance, it mentions Led Zeppelin ripping off so many older artists, but when they take huge chunks of songs like he and his band did, someone is bound to notice and make a fuss about it.
Video 2.)
Holy crap, along with everyone else, I am very shocked to see that almost 75% of the top grossing films were a remake, a knock off, or "stole" a lot of ideas from other older movies is crazy. Seeing Avatar being compared to Dances With Wolves is amazing. I watched Dances With Wolves yesterday and now that I know about the similarities between the two movies, I don't think that I will be able to watch them in the same way again. Even Star Wars has ripped someone off, thats insane.
What can I say that hasn't been said? My own words about these videos will be remixes of what I take away.
ReplyDeleteVideo 1: Much of the music I listen to all sounds the same, maybe because it is really old (try sixties doo-wop), or maybe because they were all taking bits and pieces from each other to make up their own songs. Even now, I can find faint traces of those old songs in newer R&B music. In the mentioning of Stairway to Heaven, I always find it fun to see which version does a better job. The fact that Stairway to Heaven is known as one of the best rock and roll songs is quite something considering it is taken from others. These kinds of songs that have basically the same melodies what NOT remixes in my opinions if they aren't changed quite a bit. I can go and pull out all the lyrics to my favorite songs and create something new out of it, but if I barely change it, I'm just doing nothing. It is closer to a cover, which is basically the same thing as the actual performance.
In summary, the two pull-aways are 1) many musicians take bits and pieces to make their own, which is very normal and 2) if too big of chunks are taken away without huge modifications, is it really a remix? or is it a poor version of a cover?
Video 2: I once read an article that stated that most stories are remakes of Hamlet, stories from the Bible (in particular, revolving around Jesus), and the last I believe was one of the conquerors. Since I cannot find the actual link to it, here is a similar article. http://lenwilson.us/seven-stories/ There are only oh so many stories in the world. It is impossible to add all new elements to these stories. Many film directors, and video game designers, love to take what they know and what the audience loves. It is not a surprise with only seven stories in the world that these guys have to work with other movie elements. Take Hitchcock for example. He took his work all the time straight out of the newspaper. If there was an intriguing murder, there you go! Now you have his film, The Wrong Man, which follows the story of a man falsely accused of murder from his point of view in the prison.
I actually am not going to watch the rest of this video because I know it will only upset me (even though I do rip people off with their writing. In fact, I took a character from the novel, Incarceron, and completely made him my own. Horrible to say, but I've worked his character so much that I can't even tell it was even the other author's.) If you manage to put enough twists and changes, the bits you took eventually start to become yours.
In summary, the two key points were 1) there are only so many stories in the world people can work with and 2) work with the bits until they become your own
Not quite sure if all my take aways are directly in line with what Kleon states in Steal Like an Artist, and I know I did bring a few new points to it such as "there are only seven stories in the world."
DeleteHowever, if I must state directly what my take aways are in line with:
Music 1) start copying, 2) bad theft
Film 1) relate it back to building your own world, 2) stand next to talent (such as finding whose work you can find to try and see how you can better yourself by learning/stealing from it)
Music
ReplyDelete1) I find that it's really hard for myself to tell when a song is influenced off of another just because I'm just in it for the entertainment. I can't really listen to a song and go "Yessss this bass line" unless I'm very familiar with the artist, so I think it's very interesting that Kirby was able to pinpoint a whole bunch of Led Zepplin's remixes that I never would have caught.
2) Ok, so I'm a fan of One Direction. Sue me. I was listening to one of their songs' intros with my mom and at the same time we started singing, but they were two completely different songs. Of course, I looked at her like she was crazy while she looked at me like I was a sinner for listening to "some terrible remix of an already iconic song." I find it really cool how generations could go on listening to music they think is good and not even know it's a complete rip off of something else. Either way, I'm still listening to 1D.
Film
1) I'm completely rattled that 74 our of 100 films were remakes or adaptations of something else. Only 26 movies were "original!" SHOCKING. It makes me wonder how the film industry gets their ideas and how they decided if they want to go for an original or a remake. Or is that even an influence at all??? Do they just look at what would get them the most sales???
2)
Whoops, forgot to add a second thought. Anyway, I noticed how Disney is kind of taking this remake approach. They're taking their classic animations and making them into live action. First Cinderella, then the Jungle Book, now Beauty and the Beast. I mean, whatever they do to get money. I'll probably still be sitting front row anyway.
DeleteMusic:
ReplyDelete1) As soon as I watched this video, I immediately was reminded of something that I saw on facebook. It was a video showing how every hit country song uses the same rhythm or chords or something. Anyways, they played all of the songs together and they sounded like the same exact song. I thought.. "Wow, good thing I hate country music! The stuff I listen to is so much more original!" This video totally proved me wrong on that.
2) Maybe this is so hard for me to understand because I'm not a musician, but I think it is incredible how people can collectively be inspired from different artists, and then combine the different styles/ takeaways into their own song. Or, as Led Zeppelin did, totally not change the song at all.
Film:
1) Something that struck me as odd was how producers can get inspiration from such abstract things. For example, how was such a massively successful movie series, Pirates of the Caribbean, based on an amusement park ride?! Or how was an entire series of transformers movies based off of a toy?! I mean, plot lines and dialogue have to come from somewhere right?
2. As soon as he started talking about how vampires have transformed in the movie industry over the years, I immediately knew what he was going to reference. Twilight. I read all of the twilight books, and was a super huge fangirl of the Cullen family. It seems weird that these creatures have pretty much become romanticized, to the point of having 6th grade fangirls, whereas the terrifying, evil vampires such as Dracula probably did not have little girls wanting to marry them.