FEATURED REMIX: Groundless by Jennifer Proctor

This remix by Jennifer Proctor illustrates how a critical remix can have something to say about media and raise our level of media literacy, without directly addressing any overt social or political target. The airplane disaster movie is the target here, and Jennifer draws our attention to the tropes and conventions of the genre using footage from several such disaster movies of the Sixties and Seventies. She maintains the rhythm and pacing of the original genre so that we can react in a similar way to their original audiences, seeing the footage in an appropriate context, while combining the most overused shots to intensify and make more conscious their purpose and meaning. In this way, we can come to a better understanding of how Hollywood manipulates our emotions to tell stories.

In Jennifer's own words, "It's really a piece about the formulae Hollywood uses in building suspense and conveying violence, which also draws upon one of the great American/human fears and a former phobia of my own: flying."

Watch to the end as the video finishes in a surprising and unusual way...

FEATURED REMIX: I Yam What I Yam by Bryan Konefsky

Appropriation Alliance is pleased to spotlight Bryan Konefsky and his remix I Yam What I Yam.

"In 1929 monocular vision was not limited to the gaze of telescopes (Edwin Hubble) or movie cameras (Dziga Vertov). 1929 was also the year that the one-eyed, “strong to the finish” sailor named Popeye was first introduced to the United States as a comic strip character. And, even after 75 years and 234 movies, Popeye’s rebel yell for the common good, “I yam what I yam” still resonates with the hope and conviction of his visionary colleagues." - Bryan Konefsky (2005)

Appropriation Alliance finds this work particularly interesting in regards to Remix for its technical approach---the hybridization of theoretical discourse through the audio overlay and coinciding pop culture video montages. This is a style unique to the better known remix categories such as vidding or mashups. The apparent effort to combine the historical rhetoric and remixed visuals compels viewers on a different level of scholarly engagement.

Bryan Konefsky of Basement Films, Albuquerque is also a leading curator of Experiments in Cinema.

"Experiments in Cinema is an annual, Albuquerque-based festival that celebrates recent trends in international, cinematic experimentation and offers a variety of ways in which attendees might think about the history of media representation and participate in shaping future trends in cultural representation. To this end we are deeply invested in year-long outreach efforts where we travel our festival to schools around New Mexico to inspire a new generation of home grown filmmakers to create movies in ways we might never have imagined possible."

They are currently still accepting submissions until Dec. 1st and promote Remix as a viable genre for submissions. Click here for submission details!

NEWS UPDATE: REMIX AGAINST CHEVRON

Chevron Thinks We're Stupid, is a new counteractive campaign launched by the Rainforest Action Network and The Yes Men to counteract Chevron's new "We Agree" campaign.

Encouraging video and graphic Remix, they are seeking submissions from everyone in protest of Chevron's damage to the environment. You can check out the video and print spoofs they have received at their spoof website: http://chevron-weagree.com

For more information, also see:
Chevron's $50 million ad campaign gets flushed

NEWS UPDATE: OPEN CALL -- CRITICAL REMIX

APPROPRIATION ALLIANCE | CRITICAL REMIX FESTIVAL | CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS


[Click on the images above to view larger, or download the full-resolution HERE. ]
APPROPRIATION ALLIANCE is pleased to announce the first Critical Remix Festival call for submissions. The Critical Remix Festival is a juried film festival that will serve as the kick-off event for the 2011 year at Gallery 25 in Fresno, CA. The opening screening will take place on Thursday, January 6, 2011 from 5 PM to 10 PM. The gallery will host screenings on each of the following weekends until January 30, 2011.

ENTRY DETAILS and ELIGIBILITY
The theme for this inaugural festival is "War and Oil." The call for submissions is open to all artists working with the medium of Critical Remix (commonly found on YouTube and also known as Political Remix Video or media stylos). The remix must use found footage: for example, corporate advertising, Hollywood films, TV shows, archive footage of war, etc. The remix you submit must have been created after January 2009, and we especially encourage new work. Our sponsors and the Appropriation Alliance will serve as jurors for the festival, and are interested in seeing each artist's perspective on the themes of War and Oil*. An award of $1000 USD will be given to the remix artist the jury finds to be most deserving.
*To illustrate, here is a link to a Critical Remix Video on the theme of War and Oil created by Diran Lyons:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVuh4AiZ-VY

SUBMISSION FORMAT
Submissions should be viewable on YouTube. The video should be 8 minutes or less. Please send the link to your video (one video per artist), along with your name, contact information, the official title of the work, and a brief statement (100 words) about the video to: appropriationalliance@gmail.com.

The deadline for submissions is: Monday, December 20, 2010 5:00PM PST. There is no entry fee; however we encourage a small donation to help us cover costs. You can donate through paypal at: http://centerfornonviolence.org/wp/contribute/ and note ‘remix festival’ under the special notes section when you confirm your donation, or by sending a check written to ‘FCNV’ with ‘remix festival’ in the memo section to Fresno Center For Nonviolence, 1584 Van Ness, Fresno, CA 93728. All donations are tax-deductible and appreciated.

NOTIFICATION
Artists will be notified of acceptance or decline no later than Tuesday, December 28, 2010. Individuals accepted will have their work shown at the event and posted on our site along with video from the opening. Additionally, remixers will be given permission to remix our festival and present it in a forum of their choice, needing only to notify us and let viewers know your event is a selection from the Appropriation Alliance Critical Remix Festival. Please note that your submission indicates your agreement to allow this to take place and for Appropriation Alliance to use images or excerpts from your remix for promotional purposes.

For more information on this open call for submissions, contact the Appropriation Alliance at appropriationalliance@gmail.com.

http://appropriationalliance.org
http://appropriationalliance.blogspot.com
http://www.youtube.com/AppropriationAllianc

FEATURED REMIX: Wanderland Mafia by Lindsay Scoggins

Appropriation Alliance is pleased to spotlight Lindsay Scoggins as the first Remix Artist to be featured and recognized under the Remix portion of the website.

Lindsay Scoggins is a BFA student from the University of South Florida with rising critical acclaim. The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, in collaboration with HP and Intel, launched a recent exhibition titled YouTube Play: A Biennial of Creative Video. Out of 25 announced artist, selected from over 23,000 online video submissions and 91 countries, Lindsay Scoggins placed amongst the top 4 finalists. The announcement was made at a special celebratory event at the Guggenheim Museum, “YouTube Play. Live from the Guggenheim,” with a corresponding global live stream at YouTube.com/play.

Marilyn Minter introduces the finalist Jury Selection in the following event excerpt:


Lindsay Scoggins' work selected, Wonderland Mafia, is featured in its entirety below, along with a corresponding statement from the artist herself:

"Wonderland Mafia is meant to illustrate a disjointed amalgamation of the media one encounters in adulthood versus childhood. Juxtaposition is presented between contrasting elements, referencing the phenomena of rapid textural encrustation in the world of new media. This marriage of appropriate content, both classical and modern, is intended to activate the viewer's associative memory, introducing personal reflection upon their collective media experience."

Lindsay Scoggins' Youtube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/waambat