Please post your reactions to the design and effect of the video. If you fill in a story canvas for this narrative, which components stand out?
What stands out for me is how Anisa uses her voice to tell the story -- it is low and steady, almost emotionless. And she is sparse with details, relying instead on images and music to set the mood of the hospital. This allows her to focus the listeners on the story, yet give them space to be thoughtful about her message.
Hi, Nancy. Thanks for posting! I agree that the spare narration is really effective in communicating how an already horrible family tragedy was made so much worse because of racist ignorance. Just as powerfully economical as the words are, I think the visuals reinforce that style. The disjointed lights at the beginning, the fragmented views of the security guards, the empty hospital corridor devoid of life. You definitely get the double resonance of the meaning of "still" as quiet and unmoving and the sense of "still" as a perpetuation, in this case of racism.
Great job in filling out the temporal story canvas. Does anyone else want to try one of the other canvasses?
What I found intriguing about the video is the images Anisa used to portray the story. These images didn't reflect the incident but rather what one would remember if they had been in it. Anisa starts the video with blurry lights as she describes heading to the hospital and I imagine that if I were in the same situation that would be all I remember from it. Anisa also intentionally chose to portray an eerie feeling which accurately presented her emotions and circumstances.
Thanks, Rania. I agree! There is something also impressionistic about Anisa's style. Another interesting facet is how she uses silence and black at key moments of her story. What effect does the final smiling image at the end of the video have? It's the one time where we see a person's face.
I really liked the idea of using images that weren't necessarily from the actual incidence, but that came close to it. I thought it was visually appealing and kind of did the job of transporting me to the scene, while I listened to her narration of the incidence.