some general updates :]

So, this week, I finally watched New Moon. BUT I couldn't get into it. All I thought about was Ashely's commentary on suckish camera movements and Kalli's noticing of the characters being played as dull, emo and crazy. It's not that I didn't like it, it was just that, I couldn't help but feel that it could have been better. I mean, in the beginning, Edward's entrance- he looked like he was about to kill someone, him saying "I love you," and what not as if he was reciting an essay, the happiness Bella felt being around Edward/ becoming a vampire was as if she found out she got a C on a report- gloomy and depressing, the papercut's reaction on everyone's face was too still, her falling after Edward leaves her was acting- it didn't look real, her nightmares's affect on her was too dramatic, her being gloomy looked like her normal self, her adrenaline rushes were too mormal, etc. I thought the best part was probably Jacob- he was the one that brought the movie to "life."

I also watched some more movies, but I wanted to know everyone's perspective on the videos listed below; they are hindi songs, but I really liked not only the lyrics, but the way they worked the camera- do tell me if it's okay or not (in your opinion)!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4AsSfxXuVdQ 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Xt9nTn-oIo&feature=related

Monday with Joy!

So today, I don't know how, but Joy sensed a certain hesitancy in me going first in the past couple of sessions, so she made me go first. I thought I was gonna suck; forget all my lines, forget how to act, forget all that she has taught us lately. But, I didn't forget any of them- instead I learnt more from standing up without a paper and talking directly to my audience- somethings I have to work on are subtext, whom I am speaking to, etc. For instance, I realize that its okay to kinda play off of the monologue- you can create a bit before and afterwards to show who, what , when ,where and why- I have some ideas for next week' lets see if they work out or not. But I also I did something today that I never noticed myself doing before- my character, I feel is nervous/ scared (what a coincedence, dontcha think?), and so I fidegeted a lot- I polayed with my hands, id tis thing whith my feet, and took tons of breaths- I'm not sure if anyone noticed, but I felt better about this and portraying my message. Also, I need to decide on whom I am speaking to- its a crowd of my father's family, father's few friends, and our immediate family. BUT the best part was...I DIDN'T FEEL BAD AFTERWARDS- for some reason, afterwards, I felt better about myself/ acting abilities (whatever those are) that I have been during these past few weeks. I felt comfortable in my skin, and ready to absorb all that she would throw my way, and kind of ask questions freely. Like right now, for some reason, I cannot stop smiling in the inside. Joy seriously spread joy in my day!  Can't wait till next week...

The Dining Room

Man, that was one amazing experience! I have learnt so much about acting in general, its kinda scary. For instance....

• talk loudly- you need to project your voice so that people here you,
• become one with the character so you can get the emotions out right/ get scared if you really need to/ talk to the other character,
• enunciate whatever you say,
• doesn't matter what you feel - its only about the character,
• really learn the character/ their surroundings,
• and some more tips.

Plus, the warm-ups that we did really helped in the acting experience- magic oracle, that counting thing, speed runs, trying to count off, story, shaking it out, etc. I loved how Rob made the whole ordeal a fun experience, as well as something to learn from.

I also learnt a lot about plays; everything in a play is said fro a reason and its your job to just identify it. You need to rip it apart bit by bit so that youy can REALLY understand the message the play is trying to bring about it.

I'm gonna miss being busy- I'm the kind of person who needs their schedule to be the way it was these past few months- the kind where I sleep at like 2 or 3- I need more things to do! I used to feel so good seeing all my homework complete at the end of the day, my clothes ready for practice the next day, drinking coffee to stay awake, practing lines at random points of the day- so that people stare at you as if your scary, etc.   This was my first official play and so I want to give a heartfelt thanks to everyone associated with the play in any way.

Friday with Joy :]

With the show in a few hours, I was not ready to do any kind of monologue reading. As it turned out, I never got to go, but I definitely calmed my nerves.  The exercise that we started with released all my bad energy and made me focused and ready for whatever was thrown my way. The quotes by everyone, made me think about what all I have to say to people during this artistic journey, which as many of you might know was
"When you begin a journey of revenge, start by digging two graves- one for your enemy, and one for your yourself." And this wasn't random- my thought process behind it was basically that we should stop ourselves from getting sidetracked from a certain goal because to achieve something, that goal needs to be the one/ only thing that you ever think about. But anyways, I learnt from Joy, that when you are performing, don't care about what others think about because they would all perform something differently therefore follow your heart. And she also made it seem okay if we made a mistake- life was kind of about making mistakes, but its important if you learn from those mistakes. Friday was a kind of a yoga class before the show :).

Tuesday with Joy

It is such a joy to be with Joy! She brings this amazing, vibrant energy to the room that really helps you focus and bring out the best you have inside of you. I was a bit hesitant with the weird exercises that she would do, but I feel that makes you more comfortable with the space and people. And the quotes that she tells us, make us forget all about what had happened that day.

I usually don't like the way I act because I feel as if I am not doing anything right, but when we did the subtext exercise I felt the "right" emotions come out only because I was saying it, not any other person. And I was thankful for Becky because I felt then I could concentrate on getting my point across to her- she became my focal point.  And she gave some extremely helpful tips to all of us, which I felt I could use, and will put them up as a collective piece of work.

STAC Quarter One

Kadambari Suri
STAC Quarter One Overview: Revised
Okay, so for a fresh, new start, I want to write about the journey so far, which unfortunately, I don't think I have done very well in my previous blogs. So here goes...
1. Life is not what you think it is. We perceive it differently than others, but there is something more to it- like trees have purple in it, or orange, or red and when you stop to look at it, the colors seem to jump out at you. Or how when I go down the hallways, things look so much differently- like I pay attention to the small details of someone's hand or their shirt, and these shows a lot about the person; for instance, I started noticing what people do while acting, like I play with my hands or shuffle in my place, and another person (name to be left a secret) slightly moves his/ her leg up and down.
2. Everything has an artistic way to be looked at. You can look at a wall like a wall, or use your imagination to see it as something more than a wall- like a barrier between you and another world, or a black canvas waiting to be colored on. Now I go through life thinking, "Wow that is a scene worth taking a picture of!" and have decided that may just start carrying a camera along with me for documentation purposes.
3. If you keep yourself from putting up a wall between you and another person, you can reach the moon- may this be by keeping yourself from looking at someone's flaws by keeping in mind how imperfect you are, or trusting them with blind faith. When we did the "Be Kind, Rewind Protocol," our little group, became one mind without any assumptions (may they be doubts or statements made to express an awe towards something) about the other person's ability,
4. You need to be confident in yourself to achieve anything- maybe not over-confident, but just enough that you believe in yourself/ your capabilities. For instance, I've seen that the more you convince yourself on your capabilities, the better/ faster your goal will be achieved.
5. I have changed emotionally because of being in an entirely new atmosphere/ class and so changing me as person- I would rather not get into the details :].
Thanks for the wonderful experience!

Kontrol

God, this movie changed my life! I can't look at trains the same way anymore....There is this fear inside me that somebody may just "jump" in front of a train in an effort to take their life. And I seem to be looking at life with the same intensity that I did when watching Kontrol. I seem to notice people's actions towards themselves and others- whether they show signs like Bulscu of suffocation in their enviornment, or how like Sonia, they are comfortabel in their skin and feel free within themselves.
Somethings I noticed about the movie, where that Bulscu and the Pusher look similar in their physical structure, jacket/ sweater, and waking style, and that it can be noticed that while taking the tickets, Bulscu seems to be the only "sane" one among the others, and I realized that Sonia calls Bela an angel in the beginnning of the movie and she looks like an angel at the end, therefore they both are like the saviors of Bulscu and the pusher, becasue he is dressed in black, is the semon-kind of person.
And so based on all of this, I believe that Bulscu is the pusher, but sub-conciously and that is the part he is trying to kill/ run away from so that he can be free from this "hell."