Good Morning/Afternoon Mr. Strathdee and fellow English scholars, today we take a journey into the world of ballroom dancing. Ballroom dancing, although not a dance of individualism, it also rebels against the label of conformity often thrown at it.
Our task was to compare the documentary ‘Absolutely Ballroom’, and the movie ‘Strictly Ballroom’. To properly undertake our task we were compelled to lose ourselves in the plots, music and techniques used in both films.
Both show us the highs and lows of songs, elaborate dance routines, lavish costumes, and outlandish characters. We watch as the plot weaves between drama and romance, while demanding the audience understand the importance of freedom and defying all bonds to achieve your dreams and ultimately victory in the face of all that opposes you.
The plot of “Absolutely Ballroom” is admittedly a little boring; however it has some relevant points that we find ourselves being able to relate to within the documentary, holding our attention throughout the half an hour it ran for.
“Absolutely Ballroom” was based in the town of Ystrad fawr, population
10 000, where ballroom dancing is lame and disco is the in thing. Within this quaint little town there is thirty-two female ballroom dancers; none with a male partner. A group of eight courageous young teens set out to find eight male partners. They succeed. The question is which ones would stay?
Be who you are; not who someonelse tries to make you. This is the theme of “Strictly Ballroom”. It’s a story of two young people, Scott and Fran, and their fight to be individuals and free to do and be who they feel they truly are. They forsake tradition and family to dance their own steps together at the Pan-Pacific Grand Pix.
In the documentary ‘Absolutely Ballroom’, many techniques are used to entice the audience to continue to watch their presentation of reality television. The first aspect is the songs they use. To be truly effective, as this documentary was, the songs must fit perfectly so that the audience subconsciously is listening, but consciously is observing the images on screen and don’t missing out on any important information which may detract from the story – line.
A documentary technique obviously favored in this production was real life action footage, or unobtrusive camera. In all the interviews staged, you don’t see the camera or hear the questions being asked.
A lot of the footage filmed is of the dancers’ feet, floor shots and aerial shots.
The first thing that we will look at is the Irish demographics. The Irish population had fluctuated tremendously over the years. When looking at where they came from, the highest group seems to have been coming from Dublin and Nothern Ireland, along with Kerry County, Ireland as well. Previous to the the 1840's, there were two other waves of Irish immigration in the US. According to the Colombia Guide to Irish American History, the first of the Irish immigrants came in the 1500's due to Sir Walter Raleigh's expedition and the population has continued to grow even since. The third wave began in the 1840's. From census data from US during the Gilded Age, in the 1860's the total number of Irish born immigrants were 22,926. Throughout this time, until around 1910, that number decreased. The number of I...
The Irish began immigrating to North America in the 1820s, when the lack of jobs and poverty forced them to seek better opportunities elsewhere after the end of the major European wars. When the Europeans could finally stop depending on the Irish for food during war, the investment in Irish agricultural products reduced and the boom was over. After an economic boom, there comes a bust and unemployment was the result. Two-thirds of the people of Ireland depended on potato harvests as a main source of income and, more importantly, food. Then between the years of 1845 and 1847, a terrible disease struck the potato crops. The plague left acre after acre of Irish farmland covered with black rot. The failure of the potato yields caused the prices of food to rise rapidly. With no income coming from potato harvests, families dependent on potato crops could not afford to pay rent to their dominantly British and Protestant landlords and were evicted only to be crowded into disease-infested workhouses. Peasants who were desperate for food found themselves eating the rotten potatoes only to develop and spread horrible diseases. ¡§Entire villages were quickly homeless, starving, and diagnosed with either cholera or typhus.¡¨(Interpreting¡K,online) The lack of food and increased incidents of death forced incredible numbers of people to leave Ireland for some place which offered more suitable living conditions. Some landlords paid for the emigration of their tenants because it made more economic sense to rid farms of residents who were not paying their rent. Nevertheless, emigration did not prove to be an antidote for the Famine. The ships were overcrowded and by the time they reached their destination, approximately one third of its passengers had been lost to disease, hunger and other complications. However, many passengers did survive the journey and, as a result, approximately ¡§1.5 million Irish people immigrated to North America during the 1840¡¦s and 1850¡¦s.¡¨(Bladley, online) As a consequence of famine, disease (starvation and disease took as many as one million lives) and emigration, ¡§Ireland¡¦s population dropped from 8 million to 5 million over a matter of years.¡¨(Bladley, online) Although Britain came to the aid of the starving, many Irish blamed Britain for their delayed response and for centuries of political hardship as basi...
In A Different Mirror by Ronald Takaki's sixth chapter Fleeing “The Tyrant’s Heel”, he describes the experience of the Irish immigrants who came to America during the Jackson era. They left their homeland to escape the harsh conditions and famine, but ended up struggling just as much in America. Their plan was to find jobs, a mode of survival, and an overall better life. The Irish were going through a hard time back home, due to the increase in British occupation and the horrible famine that was a result of a disease that wiped out their crops that was their main food source for the Irish. When they arrived, they were forced to compete with many of the African and Chinese laborers that were already in America.
" We are almost a nation of dancers, musicians, and poets. Every great event, such as a triumphant return from battle, or other cause of public rejoicing, is celebrated in public dances, which are accompanied with songs and music suited to the occasion. The assembly is separated into four divisions, which dance either apart or in succession, and each with a character peculiar to itself. The first division contains the married men who in their dances frequently exhibit feats of arms, and the representation of a battle. To these succeed the married women who dance in the second division. The young men occupy the third; and the maidens the fourth. Each represents some interesting scene of real life, such as a great achievement, domestic employment, a pathetic story, or some rural sport. This gives our dances a spirit and variety which I have scarcely seen elsewhere."
These two movies show how two girls, by learning to dance, also learn to overcome discrimination and simply be themselves. They don’t listen to others around them when they say what they are doing is wrong. They do what they know is right and in the end find themselves through the love of their partners and their new love of dancing.
It is surprising that tap began as a necessity for survival before it was an art form. It began during the slave trade when slave-holders found out that Africans were communicating coded messages through their traditional instruments and drums. The slave-holders had the use of these rhythm instruments banned to try and stop communication (Holmes par. 3).The Africans, desperate to make contact with other slaves, transferred the rhythms to their feet and tap dancing was born (Holmes par. 4).
The story explores many vital concepts accompanied by beautiful illustrations. I felt a strong sense of cultural understanding, spirituality and connection to family and land as though I was on this journey too. I could sense an underlying meaning in each dance, holding great importance to Bertie’s family and a strong connection to their culture. Pryor has attempted to fuse the then and now, by speaking of changes in the land, from a once spiritual gathering place, to a now busy town street where through food, they keep the culture alive (Pryor, 2010).
Film techniques are used extremely effectively in Strictly Ballroom by the director Baz Luhrman. Costume and makeup, camera angles and lighting and also character behaviours were used to influence the portrayal and development of all of the main characters. Without these film techniques, Strictly Ballroom could not have been made into a film as entertaining as it is and the characters personalities and development would not have been portrayed.
Throughout the research that Zimring provided, he was not able to explain any single type of theory that explains the crime decline in the 1990s. (Placeholder1) Inspector Zimring’s investigation indicates that many factors could have caused this phenomena. In conclusion, it is apparent that in order to understand crime rate increases and decreases, there needs to be expanded, ongoing research and gathering of statistics to explain the causes of past, current and future crime trends.
As an audience we are manipulated from the moment a film begins. In this essay I wish to explore how The Conversation’s use of sound design has directly controlled our perceptions and emotional responses as well as how it can change the meaning of the image. I would also like to discover how the soundtrack guides the audience’s attention with the use of diegetic and nondiegetic sounds.
The accuracy and reliability of criminal statistics is something that has been of great discussion through criminology for decades. Whilst some believe that crime statistics are a misuse of time and resources, others believe that there is some use for them within the criminological community. The inaccuracies of criminal statistics are highlighted in abundance within academic articles and research, many of which highlight the main source as the dark figure of crime. Many also suggest other inconsistencies within official statistics to be influenced by law enforcement agencies and society. But whilst there is much research to suggest that criminal statistics are unreliable and of no use, there are some that suggest that this may not be entirely
‘Billy Elliot’ is a classic story, set in 1984 in Northern England. It is about a boy who discovers a passion for dancing. The film brings out a strong message of being true to yourself and overcoming conflict but ultimately it is also a story of persistence. The film techniques in ‘Billy Elliot’ enhance the audiences view on Billy’s story by using a variety of techniques such as sound, lighting, acting and editing.
One of the biggest struggle in society is the difficulty of growing into an adult. It becomes necessary to find out what your life's significance is, learn how to live with people you wouldn’t want to live your life around and become a fair, responsible, and reasonable grown man. Ballroom dancing can be seen as a symbol of an outlet from the struggles of the real world and also a metaphor for life.
To many, dance is only an art. In reality, dance is much more. It 's an art, a sport, a way to express one’s self, a way to exercise, a way to get feelings out. Since the beginning of time, humans have used different types of dance to express themselves. There are many advantages to dancing, however there are also some disadvantages. Dance is one of the most physically and cognitively demanding sports.
The dances and movements of todays is influenced by the evolution of dance. Likewise, culture has played a significant role in dance. There are various reasons to dance, and dance is incorporated in numerous functions. For years, people have dance at weddings, religious ceremonies, professional, clubs, and just for fun. On the other hand, the dance forms have changed over time. Some of the same techniques and styles are common in today’s dancing, but still many changes. Each generation introduces something new to the industry of dance. Dance is an art that continues to grow. One of the great aspects of dance is taking a style of dance and adding your own personal flavor. In other words, dance is not a cut and dry art form. We will discuss hip hop, and Baltimore club dance. Seen at the hush party