1. Why did I choose these pictures?
First off, the argument I'm trying to make (my claim) is that the world needs to stop using dirty, polluting energy sources, and start researching and using renewable energy sources such as solar power, hydropower, geothermal energy, wind power, and biomass energy. Some warrants related to my claim are that people would like to live in a world that they can breathe freely without a filter or more generally that people recognize that pollution is essentially "bad" and that people understand why. Based on my picture of the oil pollution with the dead fish, I'm assuming that people don't want animals such as the fish to die. These sound like obvious things, and really they should be. I'm trying to make it very clear that using these renewable energy sources is an obvious choice. The audience I'm directing this towards is mostly people who can do something about this issue, such as politicians and even voters more generally. I'm kind of directing it at scientists and people who can research renewable energy sources, but only as a way to encourage efforts, not to inform, as they would already know much more on the topic than the video allows. It is also directed at our class, not only because they will really be the audience, but also because the video could spark interest on the topic. If some of the pictures or the overall message is interesting to them, they can tell other people about it and make the issue more known. They could also become interested enough in the topic that they choose a related profession which could help immensely in the long run. My purpose for my work of art is mostly, like I said, to raise some awareness or instill a little motivation. Since the video has no facts or places to go for more information or specific actions one can take, it is meant only to spark some interest on the topic from the viewer.
2. I chose the first image mostly for it's color scheme. The way all of the colors were so mucky, and that the top had just a bunch of the rising smoke collected into one black, dirty bunch made it stick out to me when I first saw it and it really lacks any sort of happy or optimistic colors. The smog that is being emitted is an example of the pollution that is caused by burning coal, one of the four main types of non-renewable energy. It illustrated how dirty the process is, and the dark colors really create a contrast to the later pictures that illustrate renewable energy sources. The second image also has very grungy, gross colors, but the thing that first draws your attention is the difference between the size of the cooling towers and the houses. It represents how non-renewable energy sources are dominating all of the other energy sources. The smoke billowing out of the top also illustrates the pollution factor really obviously. In the third picture, there is about a third of a fish exposed at the surface of some water, however it is obvious by the rainbow pattern floating in this liquid that whatever is was has been contaminated by a lot of oil. The fact that the fish is floating on the top allows us to infer that it is dead, and the oil found around it implies that the pollution was a factor. The grayish/blackish shade of the liquid (which we can assume is water, because that's what fish usually live in) gives off the same gross, grungy feeling that the first too images did, which keeps the message flowing. The focus of the fourth picture is now so much the dark colors (though there are some in the background that contrast to the foreground), but rather the bright colors of the flame. This picture shows a downside of the fourth non-renewable resource: natural gas. It illustrates the dangers that this resource present and obviously why continuing constant use of this would not be a good idea, because fire is, obviously, bad. The fifth image isn't a photograph unlike the first four, but rather an illustration of the dangers of nuclear energy. The cooling towers closer to the background have smoke billowing from them, like in the second picture, but they now display the radiation symbol, which signals potential danger. This symbol is also found on the barrels in the foreground, one of which is laying on it's side, spilling it's contents. The leakage from the barrels has formed into the shape of a skull. If the viewer was unaware of the dangers that the radiation symbol warned of, the skull makes it obvious what could happen with this dangerous resource. The sixth image is a cartoon that depicts the earth surrounded by the same smog displayed in the first two images. The earth is coughing or choking of the grey smoke, as well, which is meant to show that the world is becoming "sick" or being destroyed by the non-renewable energy sources. The contrast between the pure, white background and the evilness of the grey illustrates again how undesirable these resources are. The seventh slide contains text saying "The change we nee is Green" which could potentially have been used for a candidates campaign, but says exactly what the video is trying to say. Being "green" has come to mean being environmentally-conscious, and by utilising renewable energy instead of polluting non-renewable energy, we become greener and demonstrate our care for the planet we live on. The eighth image is of one of the five renewable energy sources: wind power. The brilliant green of the grass creates a feeling of stability and life. The light blue of the sky behind the spotless windmills creates a feeling of peace and nature. Both of these colors (green and blue) are found on your stereotypical globe, so they illustrate how this energy source with help the word. The ninth image shows very clean-looking wood chips. These are actually the second renewable source of energy: biomass. The focus is on the wood chips being held in the persons had (which happens to have a green sleeve on it- very earthy). The wood chips have bits of green and brown with them, which are also very earthy and contribute to the "help-the-earth" message that this picture sends. The tenth image shows us a dam, which represents the third renewable energy source: hydropower. The varying shades of blue in this picture gives the viewer a sense of calm and tranquility, which are both very good feelings. They make the viewer agree with this part of the video, which is the obvious intention. The eleventh image is possibly my favorite in the whole video. It is a picture of a solar panel (which obviously represents solar energy) and even has a brilliant reflection of the sun coming from one of the panels. The white burst of sun allows the image to have a good, clean feeling in the viewer's mind. The rest of the image contains bright blues, which emits more feelings of peace and goodness. More positive connotations which convinces the viewer even more to want to agree with this part of the video. The final image shows all five of the main renewable energy sources, with their names written below them. They are all depicted in a fairly neat way, which continues the feeling of clean that these energy sources have compared to the non-renewable energy sources.
The images were put in this order for a very specific reason. The first six images showed the non-renewable energy sources and the downsides and risks of them. The seventh image (green change) presented a way to change our ways from these polluting resources. The eighth-eleventh images showed four of the five renewable energy sources that we can use to be cleaner and more efficient that the non-renewable resources (The only renewable resource that was not shown was geothermal energy, which is hard to find a good picture of, especially because the heat it gives off can look a lot like smoke, even though it definitely is not.). The final image is a way to wrap up the positives that this video had. It had an image of all of the renewable resources, which (since it's the last image) will hopefully stay in people's heads the longest, so they remember the key points.
3. The music I chose doesn't necessarily connect with a certain audience, which is why I chose it. It can really speak to everyone. The mood of the song is kind of mellow, so it remains a part of the background, so that the focus can remain on the images. It has a sad, yet hopeful feel, which fits because my aim is that the viewer will feel more or less sad about the damage that the non-renewable resources have caused, but hopeful because of all the opportunities we have to change our ways with the five renewable resources. There are no lyrics to the song, which again allows the focus to be on the images and the message they send. The song starts out with a simple progression that repeats four times, then has a brief almost pause where one note is held before changing to a much more forte dynamic, which is right before the "green change" slide to right at one of the most poignant moments in the song, the message really starts to take shape. There is very light drum set, and quiet guitar I think, but the focus is clearly on the strings, which gives the piece a more sophisticated feel. The only thing I would change if I had chosen a different selection would have been to choose one that had two very distinctly different moods; one more depressing to play at the beginning with the more sad and dark images and one to play with the more hopeful and bright images. This would have created more of a contrast, but I couldn't figure out how to manipulate Animoto to change the timing of the song, so this song worked really well.
SOURCES:
http://www.environment-green.com/Global_Pollution.html
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