Balloons in environmental films

The use of balloons seems to be a common theme in a couple of the clips that I downloaded. The first from my previous post, Change - People's Choice winner from FOE one minute film competition. The film uses red and green balloons to represent the difference between positive green actions and red balloons for negative actions. The film cleverly portrays the transition of turning towards living greener lives by using the balloons as a metaphor.

This clip uses a similar balloon metaphor in that the black balloons are the negative effect that our over use of energy in the home is having on the environment.

Black and red are seen in these cases as negative colours. Red for stop or danger and black as a dirty or deathly.

One minute films

I've been engaging with a number of environmental video campaigns. FOE each year run a one minute film competition where people from all walks of life are given the opportunity to submit a one minute piece of video using an environmental them. This year they are using the theme of 'Which bit of the Earth are you a Friend of?'

Here are some links to a few of the submissions from last year. The rough, home made filming style is widely used by environmental organisations like Friends of the Earth. Shot by real people they give off a very real and powerful message capturing events in peoples every day lives that those who view it can generally relate to. Because of this the very slick commercial style isn't always the most effective way of visually communicating an environmental message.




The Plastic Battle - Best Green One-minute film
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJaI-Ohggd4

Polar Bears
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDIP71Lviys

Morph - Looking ahead to 2008's one-minute film competition
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQl8MahN9fk

Friends of the Earth's One-minute film competition 2008
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ebXJC4SCIjs&feature=user

Green Film Competition: Call for entries
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-q2exNdrwA&feature=user

Typographic Inspiration

I've started looking at some typographic moving images on YouTube for inspiration and ideas that I might be able to use within my own moving images. I came across a number of inspiring pieces of moving typographic sequences (see below links). I love how the type follows the pace of the narration and cleverly reflects the atmosphere and emphasis of the words being spoken. I found that the pieces gave those narrated sequences that I was already familiar with a new exciting dynamic. I think they are fairly impactive and pack quite a punch, especially where tension is being emphasised with big bold lettering which fills the screen. Each of the sequences below have certain qualities that I could use in my own sequence. With time being of the essence I'm not sure how much I will be able to acheive in after effects which would be ideal for this approach but could experiment with flash as some of the examples below do have a vector feel to them yet still contain the excitement.

PULP FICTION
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=syf8olcM0z4&feature=related

FUCK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mu0dS7xJbZ4&NR=1

NICK THE GREEK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mnvvVi4HaI&feature=related

TYPOLUTION
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zVPfTlpCKaw&feature=related

PHONE BOOTH
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIjCEETGpOo&NR=1

FIGHT CLUB
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbMa4MGFCOg&feature=related

BIG LEBOWSKI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rsucK43_DoM&feature=related

THE HUSH SOUND – LIONS ROAR
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXxouXt5dz4&feature=related

Saul Williams - Type Motion, Part 1: Amplitude
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSDSge9-yR0&feature=related

FULL METAL JACKET
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tW78mR5DyNQ&feature=related

DEXTER TRIBUTE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSmSvZ1UYhA&feature=related

WHAT IS GRAPHIC DESIGN
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_CvAPBQL_0Y&NR=1

TRAMP TYPOGRAPHY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3vaxlJ86vk&feature=related

Engaging with the needs of different target audiences

To develop the sequence ideas further I think I need to consider that there are many reasons why people do an environmentally friendly acts, here’s just a few.

- Guilt trip - Play on the emotions
- Money savings
- Keeping up appearances – the neighbours have a got a solar panel so will I
- Trendy – It’s cool to be green
- Peer pressure – Everyone else is doing it so why aren’t you
- Fines – Forced to pay the price, poorer people
- A safer future – Those who are conscious of the scientific consequences

I think if I bear these in mind I can use one of them to give me an angle when appealing to a specific target audience. For instance, the guilt trip would work better when trying to engage with home owners with children. Trendy would appeal to the twenty somethings. Keeping up appearances might appeal to the more lucrative individual who can afford to buy a solar panel to match that of his neighbour.

Moving image test 2 - Energy saving light bulbs

To continue the theme of greener living and lifestyle changes I based the next sequence on switching from standard light bulbs to energy saving light bulbs. This time I've tried my hand integrating some sound. It is still a bit basic but the sound does give the sequence a bit more interest and helps give the images some reality. I'm not sure about the stock photography images as they don't hold any narrative and look a bit random. Again, it would be great to include some moving people images but I feel a bit limited by my capabilities in this area.

I've started to think about some form of sign off to sum up the sequence.

Moving image test - Standby

Developing the idea further of images contained within the text I decided to look at using chunkier type to make the images more legible. Still experimenting with the moving image I decided to try a slightly different angle to the 'Feeling the heat' images of the beautiful people images and tried to be a bit more focused with the message, this time looking at several story board ideas of some of the small lifestyle change we can make in our day to day lives to help reduce our CO2 emissions which are assisting global warming. I think this theme might appeal to a slightly wider target audience than just the twenty somethings.

I enjoyed compiling the sequence but it still seems quite basic. It would help if I put some sound to it to hang the sequence off and give it more pace and context. It's a starting point at least. I'd like to try and create some form of viral piece which might persuade home owners to change their attitudes towards doing a number of small things in their daily routines which could have a significant effect on reducing climate change. Making people think about their daily habits and behaviours in a more environmentally friendly way.

People are beginning to do more such as recycling been the main but there is still more that can be done in the home such as.

• Switching to energy saving light bulbs
• Leaving the car at home
• Turning off rather than leaving appliances on standby
• Products brought from the supermarket which rely on the destruction of the rainforest to create their ingredients
• Going on holiday nationally rather than internationally.

Moving image test

Taking the image and type a step further I've experimented with creating a sequential image to see the effect and feasibility of the idea. I think it looks a bit amateurish with the still images. Would work better with moving imagery but feel a bit limited by my technical knowledge to implement this. I could see this idea working to promote a climate change festival of music aimed again at the twenty somethings.

Type and image combined

An experiment to see what effect is created by containing the images within a couple of the type ideas. I like the cleanness and simplicity of the white space around the text and but the images aren't easy to see within.

Hot and steamy typographic ideas

Some more type ideas playing on the hot and steamy theme.

Skin samples

Some skin deteriorated tests to give emphasis to the fact that we can't go about our lives by ignoring the issues and continueing with our usual day to day lives. If we don't make a few simple changes then the consequences will be devastating and effect us all.

Following on from the initial lifestyle images I decided to take a couple of the ideas and combine them with some typographic ideas. The words used I tried to reflect a double meaning, using the idea of 'Hot' for example as hot for the global warming message and hot for the model(s) looking hot or making out. I tried signing this off with a web link to a made up website such as www.feelingtheheat.org.uk or www.thebeautifulplanet.com to get a feel for tbhe images working as a promotional campaign for a climate change website. If perused I could create a series of related images using male and female images in hot surroundings to give climate change issues a bit of a trendy face lift.

The girl in the arctic using 'cool it' or 'chill out' is an based on the other side of the coin of trying to keep the temperature cool and laying off carbon emissions.

I've presented this idea to a couple of people to get some quick feedback and it doesn't really appeal to the older female genration, is a bit too saucy. I think this sort of idea wold appeal to a much younger audience of twenty somethings, those who are setting up home for the first time maybe who are still going out and enjoying a young trendy lifestyle.

Lifestyle transitional images

I started by putting together some comparative imagery with straight forward transitions. Thinking about lifestyle type activities which a cross section of every day people could relate to which could become effected by climate change from sunbathing to shopping. The theme at this point was playing on the statement 'Quicker than you think'. The idea being that climate change is happening quicker than you think. Not sure about the tortoise idea, I was thinking about animal habitats and how humans have always interfered with their environmental habitat hence the surveillance camera.

At this point I wasn't too sure how they would be used other than as part of some sort of campaign entitled 'Quicker than you think' or such like. Need to define more how to link them together better. The montage images are made up of several stock photos. I was trying to get them too look appealing to different audiences.

Bits and pieces

With only a couple of months to go I don't feel as though I'm making much progress. Lots of bits and pieces all over the place. Need to somehow start trying to pull everything together.