DMA Documentary

Here is my completed documentary for the term. Hope you enjoy. As a sidenote, you need to watch the video with captions in order to get the full experience of the video.http://youtu.be/2x-Q1ElqIPM

Generation Landslide

For my remix project I chose to contrast videos of both classical and contemporary 'pop' performers against a common song, which runs throughout, in order to show both the differences and the unique similarities as well. I am ultimately proud of the end result, and I hope those who happen upon it enjoy it as well.

The title of the song is "I Should Have Known" by the Foo Fighters, off of their album Wasting Light.

Project Brief- Montagnard Oppression

The Montagnard Dega people have been intensely persecuted by the current Vietnamese government since its victory over the South Vietnamese and American forces in 1975. I find this topic fascinating for a multitude of reasons, but particularly because of the lack of discussion by both the international community and media outlets. It still amazes me that in this day and age things such as this intentional, focused persecution can occur and mankind still insists that we are somehow 'better' than we were 100 years ago.

As stated on the Montagnard Human Rights Organization website, the Montagnard have been the subject of systematic persecution by the Hanoi-based government. This is due to combination of factors such as the fact that the Montagnards stood against Ho Chi Minh and the Communists on the sides of both the French and the Americans. Additionally, the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization has stated that it has been very difficult for persecuted Montagnard's to gain asylum in neighboring countries (particularly Cambodia) and they are in fact sent back to Vietnam to face further persecution and scrutiny. I feel it necessary to further research this ongoing problem further and more in depth.

Resources Used:
http://www.cal.org/co/montagnards/vpeop.html
http://www.mhro.org/
http://sites.google.com/site/mdagreensboronc/mission-culture-history
http://www.montagnard-foundation.org/news-04-0621.htm
http://www.deathinthehighlands.com/home.html
http://www.unpo.org/article/12280

This is a diagram 'connecting' my interest in music to my interest in the plight of the Montagnard people. A sort of interesting thought experiment.



In order to really get the information I want/need for this project to work, I believe that I would like to meet with members of Montagnard community who have directly experienced the persecution of the Vietnamese government in order to better understand this topic. I believe with this information I could present an engrossing product/presentation.

Shaping the World As We See Fit

The world is a different place than it was 100 years ago, 50 years ago, even 10 years ago. Compare 2011 to 2001: we've gone from an era where flip phones were the new craze to one in which our phones are effectively small computers, more powerful than desktops of that bygone era. And it's not just the technology that's changed. We as a people have adapted, evolved into a new form to fit this new and truly digital world.

Marshall McLuhan stated that we offload work onto machines and technology, in a very real sense 'amputating' a part of ourselves in exchange for greater efficiency and convenience. Professor Bruce Mazlish added to this thought, stating that man had in fact evolved alongside technology; in effect saying that mankind and his technological advances have always been and will continue to be codependent upon one another.

This evolution in technology, this new paradigm in human development, has changed the way in which we 'frame' our world. No longer are men and women content to sit in their homes, caring for only their small portion of the world. Like McLuhan said, technology serves as an extension of our natural capacities and in this day and age, technologies such as Twitter, Facebook, and internet-based news sources has extended (so to speak)  mankind's ability to observe and interact with the world to an unprecedented level. Whether we want to admit it or not, the human race has entered a brave new world. What we do with it however, is indeed completely up to us.

A Little Bit About Me

Hello, my name is James Crosbie. For those of you who know absolutely nothing about me, I am from the great city of Seattle, Washington and have lived for the last ten years. Before that, I primarily lived in Norcross, Georgia (where I was born) and White Rock, British Columbia (that's in Canada).

While mother's family has resided in the United States for well over 200 years, my father is currently the first and only member of his family with United States citizenship. The rest of my paternal lineage resides in the great and faraway nation of Canada, and as such I possess both American and Canadian citizenship. Before coming to the United States, both of my families originated from the British Isles with my father's family coming from the Scottish Highlands and my mother's family originating primarily in Northern Ireland. As one might imagine, family gatherings are an 'interesting' occurrence.

Having spent my teenage years growing up in Seattle, I have had a rather distinct version of the 'American Experience'. Within the Seattle area, there are distinct African-American, Latin American and Asian communities as well as a very unique regional culture which promotes outdoor activities (i.e. mountain climbing, biking, boating, etc.), independent cultural trends and just general Northwestern 'weirdness'.