World Building- Pokémon

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When it comes to building worlds, the film industry has to do a lot more than most other mediums. Learning this skill will become very valuable over the course of our careers. The one advantage that we had to create the world with real Pokémon, was that there already is a world established. However our goal was to create a world that would have realistic possibilities.

One of the key things we learned from the readings was about “thoughtful exploration.” When examining the possibilities of a world where Pokémon actually exist, we did not simply insert ourselves into the world that had already been created to enjoy the fun we would have as kids, but rather, we considered what would be the real issues. We thought about politics and education, pop culture etc. and which of those would involve or revolve around Pokémon. We decided on what we thought would be the key issues, created a few ideas of our own, and then considered how they would be represented or advertised in that world. Here’s what we came up with:

Recreation

For recreation we decided to show how in a world where Pokémon exist they play cards with animals from our world. I used the animal’s real name and changed a lot on the card. I chose to do this because I felt that a lot of people have fun playing Pokémon and I think they would have fun playing cards with animals.

Animal Rights

Or should I say Pokémon Rights. I thought of this because the idea of Pokémon battles is kind of barbaric. No doubt, in a world where Pokémon exist would be a Pokémon rights group. Pairing the two: Pokémon clips and Sarah McLachlan’s commercial was the perfect way of trying to show what I meant. When people just hear the music they think of that commercial right away.

Along that same vein I created a billboard ad that I modeled after some that I’ve seen from a very popular company called Domo. Although, this ad is geared towards the protection of Pokémon against poaching. With so many different species of Pokémon there is plethora of opportunity for poaching. This ad would be intended to generate awareness of Pokémon poaching and contains a website address that would allow people to help protect innocent Pokémon. Not only does it generate awareness, but it makes protecting Pokémon cool. At least, it’s supposed to.  

Magazine

When I was coming up with the concept of this world I thought about how I would show multiple things going on in a small space. There was no better place for that than a magazine. Complete with articles and advertisements that would expand the world. For the first advertisement I wanted to show a release for a new PokéBall. I used Photoshop to create everything by first creating the outline of a PokeBall then layering a galaxy and keeping only what fit inside, and then did the same with the silver bottom. When that was set I tried to make it look a bit more three-dimensional by adding a bit of a gradient shade. Then I just created a tag line and copy for the advertisement the same way apple would have. This was largely inspired by Apple advertisements because I pictured the eSiplh. Company to be a leading innovator in technology.

The second portion of the magazine was merely a news report about rising stars. I kind of treated this like a typical kids magazine because most Pokémon trainers are young. So I made sure the type was larger than normal and it was merely about simple stuff and their achievements. However I wanted to also make it informative and have a call back to Aralie’s video. This was all created in Adobe InDesign, I largely didn’t know what I was doing but had some good drive about how I wanted it to look. The Pictures I just took from the internet from some great Co-players That I felt had a good look about them for the world and Ideally if I were to create this world for a film I would have made a photo-shoot with actual people.

The last part was to show how Pokémon influenced the fashion world. This doesn’t quite fit into a teen magazine but I feel that it would help influence the kids to learn better fashion but more so If this were to be a real world there would be more street worthy clothes and not so bright or flamboyant as we see in the anime. However that goes without saying that some cultures might adopt that type of style. Yet from my perspective I felt that high fashion would drive the industry. This photo was made by merely inserting a Pokémon into the already taken photo from fashion magazines and with a selected Pokémon to show a possible influence of style.

Education

When Pokémon are the animals that inhabit your world, you’re going to have to study them. Considering that there are so many types, I started at the beginning. I created a page out of textbook that shows the anatomy of the Pokémon, Bulbasaur. It includes a picture of its exterior and also the interior anatomy of how it functions. The page also includes a physical description, some interesting parts of its personality, and its evolution forms.

Textual Poaching

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Remix of A Woman

I chose to do a remix of two songs that I really love. The first part that is played is “Fast Car” by Tracy Chapman and the second is “Blackbird” by The Beatles. I think that they are very different songs and that is why they make a great story. After we watched the remix of The Birth of a Nation I was inspired by how the DJ took two forms of art that were opposite and made them into something new. That is what I tried to do, but with a twist.

The reason why I think that these two songs are really different is because “Fast Car” is about a woman being oppressed by her life and “Black Bird” is about black women’s rights. Tracy Chapman is a black woman and so am I; I feel like I identify with both of these traits. Many women feel that they can do more so they try to break free. That is where “Blackbird” comes in. It is about freedom and setting free. I feel like in my rendition the woman is oppressed and then is set free. The Beatles sing about freedom and not being oppressed anymore:

Blackbird singing in the dead of night
Take these broken wings and learn to fly
All your life
You were only waiting for this moment to arise

In the end I go back to “Fast Car” because this woman had to come down to reality, but I do play it a bit stronger to say that she is content and not timid anymore. Even though she returns to her old life, it is a happy story, she finds the missing piece to her life: wings.

Medium Specificity

Watching

I watched as they forgot about you

I watched as you did wrong

I watched as he decided it wasn’t true

I watched as you did not belong

I watched as you did not make the team

I watched as you loved and lost

I watched as you turned to lean

I watched what loosing your parents might have cost

I watched things didn’t turn out fair

I watched as you said goodbye

I watched as you cut your hair

I watched everyone at the funeral cry

I watch so many of you

And all your problems I see

But here is one clue,

You should have been writing this poem about me

Artist Statement

I have always loved poetry and the simplicity of it. I think that it is a great medium to explore because of all the elements that you are given.

I chose to do a lyrical poem because of the freedom that it has, but I also chose it to rhyme because I wanted it to have a flow. I wanted the flow for one reason: it would be easier to read. If it is easier to read then the reader will be more engaged. (At least for what I was going for.) What I was going for was a kind of poem for everyone, middle schoolers, high schoolers, or anybody that feels out of place.

The medium I wanted to play with was not only the lyrical poem, but also morbid/depressing things in poetry. I almost think that is the root of many poets. I think that a lot of poets have dealt with heavy subjects, but are inclined not to make it dreadful to read. Edgar Allen Poe, one of my favorite poets, did just that. He has beautiful poetry that is not horrible to read, but it is weighed down by his depression and heavy subjects. I also was inspired to repeat by The Raven. It reiterates what the poet is trying to portray. Poe is where I got my inspiration from, he has influence how I go about poetry itself: with an open mind, and open spirit.

Celebrating a medium was more difficult than expected; it took a lot more brainpower than I thought. It was an exercise that tested my creativity along with my intelligence. 

Historical Story

Historical Artist Statement

Our story was based on the Dana Point Harbor. Not only was this beach one of the most beloved surfing spots, it was home to the hearts of most surfers. Dana Point Harbor started construction in the early 1960’s. This angered many locals and they tried to save Dana Point, but alas this did not work. The harbor was officially dedicated on July 31 1971.

We wanted to do something that represented the historical context, but also alter it to what we thought it was like. We talked about the turnout we would have liked to have and we decided that we would want to do a comedy. After watching the video in class, “My Grandmother Ironed the King’s Shirt” we definitely thought that history is not always serious and does not need to be portrayed seriously. That is the very reason why we wanted our characters to have certain characteristics of Patrick and SpongeBob. They represented someone who loved the ocean as much as our characters and they are kind of unintelligent. They also are very enthusiastic just like SpongeBob is when he goes to work. I think it was the best choice for a couple of surfer dudes.

We decided it would be best to have two surfers try and organize a protest, but in the end fail. We did this because we read and reviewed the facts that covered and we found out that there were not a lot of organized protests. Some tried, but in the end, surfers will be surfers.

This project was a fun learning experience. For me (Libby) I learned how to write a script. I had never done one before and it was very cool to see what you can show through writing. For me (Aralie) I learned that history in film doesn’t always have to be exactly what happened. I can make it my own; I can show what I want to show. I think that is the power of film, to show the extraordinary. This project taught us how to show the extraordinary.