Over the Semester I took a class called Media in Convergence. Knowing nothing of what the specific goal of the class was, I walked into the class in the dark not knowing what to expect. However, what followed was a semester of new opinions, skills, and memories. This podcast will give an in depth look of what this class came to be.
In the end this class became more then I excepted and makes me very excited for the journey that I have set out on. But even the people who aren’t in this major should check out this class. It’s just an all around fun class.
Step by step instructions, tips, tricks, and formulas for sending content viral can’t help but seem a little too close to get rich quick seminars featuring self-made millionaires trying to sell you a DVD. While their advice may hold some credence to how they got to where they are today, the majority of their success can be accounted for by hard work and talent. Anything you do following along with a template to success will just be emulation hoping to replicate that bit of magic that worked for somebody else. The same goes for creating content, you can try to follow along with successful trends, or you can innovate and try to put something out there that nobody has ever seen. In the end we chose to emulate. We satirized the infamous Sarah McLachlan commercials, and ad so well known it has become satire in itself. In the place of damaged animals struggling in inhuman homes – unemployed liberal arts students looking for an outlet to their pent up creative potential. It’s very self- referential, we’re just liberal arts students ourselves, after all. So what else is there to do than to go out and create content. About ourselves. Parody, humor, and feigned sadness all contribute to the tone of this video. We hope the quality of the content alone will be the main contributing factor in it spreading.
The generation of the “Millenials” have been known to take a stand on many hard pressing topics. They find themselves in the center of arguments involving animal cruelty, the education system, and the very popular and heated gay rights movement. Among all these non can compare to the topic of the legalization of Marijuana
Marijuana
This drug can be found on most, if not all, college campus’. It gives users the ultimate relaxation feeling. Marijuana has caused zero, known, deaths around the world and in fact “only 9% of users become clinically dependent” (http://www.factslides.com/s-Marijuana#). In fact, you may even find marijuana to be a safe alternative to alcohol.
Alcohol! Alcohol for all things! Yet, Marijuana can lead to felony charges. (Good luck getting a job with that on your record)
Punishment
While the punishment varies from state to state some of the common penalties found are:
While most people these days are begging for weed to be decriminalized, it may not be that simple. With decriminalization a lot has to be thought out. They will need to figure out plans involving distribution, where it can and can’t be done, and how to deal with drivers under the influence. While these are things that have to thought about there is an easier way to go about with this issue. Not decriminalizing it as a whole but simply making the punishments less harsh.
In the end, there needs to be less punishment for those who are caught with Marijuana. Marijuana should be looked at like a parking violation. You wouldn’t decline to give someone a job because of a parking ticket they got in high school.
If punishments are reduced we will be taking a step to solving the problem of legalizing Marijuana.
Before I embarked on a journey to take movies and TV shows seriously I only knew of a few jobs in the industry; directing and acting. Once I started to pay attention to the credits at the beginning and endings of movies, I noticed there were positions that I never noticed nor knew anything about. The one the intrigued me the most was the producer. I decided to enlighten myself to see what was so important about this position, whether it be asking my dad or looking up the definition and duties on the internet. No matter how much research I did, I never truly understood what was so important about the producer. Until a few months ago when the movie “The Lazarus Effect” came out. That’s when it hit me, like two scientist who just figured out the meaning of life,
how truly important the producer is.
Producers are the queen bees of the movie. Watching over the hive carefully to make sure everything runs smoothly. On top of all the supervising they are also in charge of giving out all the main jobs (actors, directing, and even sometimes advertising) that help create the movie.
One of the top horror movie producers of this era is Jason Blum. Now Jason Blum has produced other genres other then horror, Whiplash was actually his most successful production. But Jason Blum has created his own production team for horror movies called “Blumhouse Productions”
His success in the horror business all started when he produced a low budget horror movie known as “Paranormal Activity”. The movie changed the genre entirely low budget horror films were now taken seriously. Blum used that success to help create some of our this eras top horror movies including: Insidious (not to mention both sequels), Dark Skies, The Purge, and Sinister.
But I don’t think people truly understood the importance of Blum’s producing until the movie “The Lazarus Effect” came out.
As you can see in the trailer the plot of the movie is honestly nothing special. In fact, I think some people may even say the idea has already been done. A group of scientist working to change life, something goes wrong and a member of the team turns into a superhuman and picks off his or her partners one by one.Yet, something intrigued an audience to see this movie. This is where Blum became an important piece to the puzzle.
He was able to sign on a all star cast for his movie. Well, all star cast may be a bit over dramatic. But in an era where we horror movies are rarely taken seriously and we can’t even recognize the top billed actors, it helped this movie stand out. Blum very careful chose actors that would stand out to all types of audiences.
Olivia Wilde
The top billed actress and main character, is already known to the world as the sexy doctor in House. Now you can see her take on a totally new role as she turns into a demonic scientist who decides to kill all of her friends.
Starring along side her are three famous TV actors
Mark Duplass
Duplass is known mostly for his role in FX’s The League, a comedy series about five friends in a fantasy football league, but this time he takes on a totally new role as a man fighting for his life as his sorta girlfriend, who has just come back from the dead, tries to kill him. Yikes, and some guys think their girlfriends give off mixed signals.
Evan Peters
Who stars in FX’s American Horror Story already brings a familiarity of the horror genre to the movie. Also brings a big name to the screen as his name has been advertised, to all of the horror genre fans, in AHS.
Donald Glover
Know mostly for his role in the show Community, Glover, attracts the audience of all those who are into network TV. Glover also brings a wide range of fans of his alter ego Childish Gabino. A famous hip- hop star who has enjoyed main stream success.
Amongst all these big names one more thing Blum adds to the table, credibility. On all of the posters and at the beginning of every movie trailer (for this movie), Blumhouse reminded the audience of their successful projects. Every to be seen was “Producer of Paranormal Activity, The Purge, And Insidious” remind fans of those movie everywhere that this one may be in the same ballpark.
In the end this movie didn’t get great reviews and many critics say that the movie was unoriginal. But the movie was able to haul in $25,000,000 since it’s release. Making it the 5th highest grossing movie that came out in the month of February. Blum turned an average horror movie into a box office success. Cheers to you Mr. Blum.
Think about something simple like planning to hang out with a close friend after you went on a long vacation abroad.
Not much comes to mind, does it? Now imagine doing the same thing in say… the eighties. Cellphones weren’t common place, so you couldn’t text them. You could call them, assuming you know their schedule and they’re in at the moment. You probably don’t have everyone’s number memorized, so there’s a chance you’ll have to flip through a tome of tissue paper to find it. If you miss them, you can leave a message but there’s a chance the time will have passed by the time they hear your message and also successfully return it.
The point of the above being that technology is a blessing. Tasks we see as simple today were actually much more frustrating before the time that every individual had a pocket sized computer on their person at all times. For example, in the past horror films used being stranded on the side of the road as a good plot setup. In a world with cellphones, not so much. Now they have to specifically eliminate them to prevent plot holes throughout the film.
These changes are all thanks to converged devices that function as a platform for applications. Apps have become woven into our lives so seamlessly because they have only two purposes. To accomplish one task or solve one problem in the simplest way possible. To show how integral these are to our daily lives, we did what any group of film majors would do, went and saw Cinderella.
Starting It
To get five college students together is a task, but Groupme solved this problem by being a perfect example of streamlining the planning process of any event. It can be used on any device with a connection to the internet, so no matter where you are you can communicate with multiple people in one setting. This application has made phone tag a thing of the past.
We worried about getting everyone together and plans falling through. Cinderella is sure to be the hottest ticket in town, but Fandango allows you to purchase and reserve your tickets in advance without even leaving the house. Arriving at the theatre to find the showing sold out shouldn’t ever be something to worry about again.
I’m sure anyone that paid for a ticket to see George Clooney as Batman is very familiar with Rotten Tomatoes. The feeling of wasting time and money on a terrible film is about as fun as a trip to the dentist for a root canal. As males looking to affirm our masculinity, we looked for any excuse NOT to see Cinderella. Despite our reservations, the numerous reviews available from Rotten Tomatoes and a “certified fresh” rating, we really found no excuse.
Getting To It
Google Maps and Apple Maps have had their ups and downs but I think any of us would rather be at the mercy of their cellphone’s GPS than printed MapQuest directions haphazardly stapled together and balanced on your knees as you try to navigate and drive at the same time.
Experiencing It
We went to a movie. Common courtesy would indicate that you put your phone away and watch the film. As film lovers we adamantly and sternly follow this code of ethics. We sat in the back row, and looked across the occupied seats of the packed house, all seven of them. They all had one thing in common throughout the duration of the film, a periodic glow from time to time of a smartphone illuminating their faces. With an hour and a half of Cinderella ahead of us and a project to complete, we pulled out our phones and followed suit. When in Rome.
Throughout the film, we saw many familiar faces. A quick visit to IMDB cleared up any doubts we had seeing some of our favorite performers in new roles.
Many applications allow you to immediately publish content as you experience an event. Snapchat, Twitter, Instagram, and Vine are all a perfect example of this.
Some of us weren’t in a hurry to see Cinderella.
Some of us weren’t too happy about the agreed upon film.
We all figured out something new when it came to the arrival of technology in our lives. This project was recorded in three different parts: preparing for an event, getting to an event, and experiencing an event. In the first two, applications helped tremendously. Nobody would or could gripe about the infinite information and ability to communicate we had access to.
The most poignant impression left on all of us; however, was how much technology detracted from the experience. Every retweet, every like, every social interaction online confirms our own existence to ourselves. This need for affirmation keeps us out of the moment, and plugged into our converged devices. Many of us loved how easy it was to plan a complicated project that required lots of communication and teamwork. But we all realized that each and every application designed to publish social content is one in the same, telling the same story on repeat. Rather than remain plugged into our phones to record every enjoyable second of our lives, we should look up and live in the moment.
What is a Millennial? Millennials are currently the largest generation around, outgrowing the boomers. Millennials have the luxury of being able to say what they want, when they want. Millennials have been given the opportunity to have all the information they need at the tip of their fingers.
So what is a Millennial? Millennials are some of the most advanced human beings the world has ever seen.
Why?
Freedom of Speech
And
Goofy, yet creative behavior
Check out my Podcast to learn more
So the next time someone asks you who a Millennial is don’t just assume they are only the largest generation around but they are a generation who wasn’t afraid to stick to the rule book. They are a generation of wild, yet hard working civilians.
Out of all my Birthdays I’ve had recently one sticks out. It was my 18th birthday, so along with excitement of officially becoming an adult, it was a day to remember.
The best part about my birthday is it falls exactly on the start of playoff hockey. For those who don’t know me I am one of the biggest hockey fans around. So the fact that playoff hockey starts on my birthday is just an added bonus. Now, on the day of my 18th birthday I had never been to a playoff hockey game. So lucky for me something magical was about to happen. My best friend, whose had seasons tickets his whole life, decided to take me along with him to the St. Louis Blues vs LA Kings playoff game. I nearly died of a excitement.
The atmosphere around the stadium was like non other. There was a booth where you could get your picture and they would Photoshop the Stanley cup in your picture.
The Game was going pretty smooth all night. The Blues scored and then the Kings got one right back. They played back and fourth for the all 60 minutes of the game. But by the end of the night, 60 minutes wasn’t going to do it. The game was going to go into overtime. The overtime rules are pretty simple 20 minutes whoever scores first wins. My heart was pounding, my palms were sweaty, I knew that whatever happened I was going to remember it the rest of my life.
So let me set up the situation. The game went the next 15 minutes without scoring. The Blues were gassed the LA Kings were out playing to the Blues, the crowd was growing skeptical that the Blues would come out on top. The Blues, playing rough, took a bad penalty in the closing minutes of the overtime period. Gassed I knew this was the end, the Blues were not going to be able to kill off this penalty. They were going to have to play 4 minutes being a man down. It had felt like they were already playing a man down that whole OT period. But then a miracle happened.
What ended up happening was so amazing that I couldn’t describe the feeling I got over text so I did it over a video
Unfortunately, that was only game one. The Blues ended up losing the series.
But it doesn’t matter, the moment I was able to enjoy with my friends on my birthday will be a moment I will remember forever.
The scoreboard of the game says 3-0 for the bad guys. The fans at the game are losing interest. But all of a sudden something happens. Two players come to the center of the ice, fist held high, they lock arms and begin throwing punches. The fight is over one player on the ground, the other skating to the penalty box. The crowd is going wild; teammates salute the fighter as he leaves the ice. The crowd is once again interested in the game; a spark has been lit under the team; a new life to the game. This is what hockey fights are all about; the adrenaline, the spirit, and the drive to win the game. But recently the fighting in the game has been at an all time low. Too pay tribute too some of the best fights in the game I have decided to create a list of the top 10 NHL fights. I’ve created the list based on a few things; how recently the fight took place, the intensity of the fight, and the players in the fight.
10. Vladimir Sobotka vs. Matt Duchene
The lightweight’s get to start things off on this list. Duchene and Sobotka aren’t known for their fighting but when they do man do they put on a show. Not to mention Sobotka being one tough customer. This makes the list because it’s not every day you see the lightweights go at it and the intensity of Sobotka’s fist has the crowd and announcers going nuts.
9. Krys Barch vs. Cam Janssen
Fights are normally short lived events. A few punches here a few punches there and then down someone goes. But when you venture into the heavyweight class this is not the case. This fight featured two of the best heavyweights in the game (at the time) and they did not take there little get together for granted enjoying every exhausting minute of the fight.
8. Chris Neil vs. Zdeno Chara
This fight may not be the most exciting fight but it makes the list because of the heart and determination Chris Neil has. Chris Neil is fighting a man whose 6’9. Neil has the clear disadvantage when it comes to height. But the intensity of the game gave Neil the adrenline to give the giant of a human being, that is Zdeno Chara, a fair fight
7. Ryan Reaves vs. Tim Jackman
In what may be one of my favorite fights of all time, Ryan Reaves absolutely destroy’s Tim Jackman. A fight clearly initiated by Jackman, he didn’t stand a chance. This fight brought the crowd to their feet and lifted the spirit’s of everyone on the Blues as they finished their final few games before the playoffs started. Some even say this is the fight that gave Reaves his reputation as one of the most feared fighters in the NHL.
6. John Erskine vs. Vincent Lecavalier
The best part about a fight is the intensity. So after a fight finishes and another one breaks out right after, it’s a treat. That’s the case in this fight. Things were heating up between the Capitals and Flyers but one fight wasn’t going to cut it. After round one (between Wilson and Schenn) wraps up the pushing and shoving continues and mayhem ensues. This is a common example of the teams letting each other know they don’t like each other and it’s going to be a long tough game.
5. Cam Janssen vs. Brain McGratten
Janssen has already entered our list for his ability to make fights last forever. This time however, he’s sporting a new jersey for New Jersey (hahaha get it?). While this fight falls under the same category as his earlier fight this one is far more intense. These two players would not give up, clearly by the end of the fight they were completely exhausted but that didn’t stop them. During the video you can see both of them even smiling at each other. The sinister smile on the face of Janssen to let McGratten know the fight wasn’t over and McGratten intensely grinning back so he knew they were both on the same page. This fight shows how fit you have to be to not only fight but balance themselves on the ice as well.
4. Ryan Miller vs. Jonathan Bernier
Whoever said goalies couldn’t fight? Sometimes the situation is so heated that the goalies can’t just sit back and watch their teammates fight, they have to get in on the action. That was the case for Bernier and Miller. While absolute mayhem was going on at center ice, these two weren’t going to walk away untouched. The goalie fight is so rare that you can tell in the announcers voice just how excited this event truly is.
3. Justin Braun vs. Roman Polak
Nothing is more intense or exciting then the playoffs. Teams going at it full force, not leaving a single ounce of energy on the ice. Even when the game is over you still have to fight for every second you’re on the ice and that’s the case for Polak and Braun. While every player paired up in the massive brawl, at the end of the game, Braun made the wrong choice of messing with one of Polak’s teammates. As the two stepped away from the brawl to settle their differences, Braun was given a whooping he will never forget. You can almost feel the rage in the fist of Polak as he beats down Braun. The Blues sent a message to the Sharks that they would not be messed with during the playoffs.
2. Joe Thornton vs. Jamie Benn
Nothing beats when two of the teams superstars have a go at it. But not just drop the gloves to fight but as the announcer would say it drop the golves for a “dance”. You can feel the emotion in their fight. Benn, a young superstar, letting his team know that he is up for any challenge and Thornton, a seasoned veteran, letting the youngster know this is still his league and he won’t be messed with. Besides how could you not love how excited the announcer is the whole fight?
1. Calgary Flames vs. Vancouver Canucks
There have been some pretty crazy fights on this list. But they cannot stand alone compared to this one. Two arch rivals the Flames and the Canucks battle as all five skaters drop the gloves. But yeah I guess you can say “Oh well the game was really intense” or what not. But this was 3 seconds into the start of the game. No one really knows what set the two teams off but thy clearly don’t like each other and it shows.
When you search your name what shows up? Did you find pictures of yourself you never thought anyone would have seen? What else did you find? What kind of advertisements do you see on a regular bases? Do you think that’s all by chance? Chances are the internet is not as private as your may think websites are selling your information to other companies so they can lure you to there product. I used myself as an example to search the web and see what the internet has to say about me and to see what the meaning is to some of the local advertisements I see on my everyday visits to pages around the web.
Upon this discovery I have realized that we are information on the internet is no longer private. We have reached a new age of technology. We shouldn’t fear this news. This shouldn’t effect what we do on the internet we should embrace the gift of the internet and continue to search all it has to offer. We need to accept the fact that this is just how advanced the internet has become
Waking up most people enjoy a cup of coffee, or taking a hot shower. Me, I like to immediately jump on my phone or lap top and view what the cyber world has to offer. There is so much to keep up with, sporting news, news around the world, and news involving your friends. And then once that’s over with I can enjoy starting my day by turning on some music with Spotify or enjoying a TV show at breakfast with Netflix. I’ve only started my day and the internet has more to offer then ever before.
But is it a problem?
A lot of people will tell you the internet is what’s wrong with this generation. They will tell you to go outside, read a book, or interact with people face to face then over a keyboard. But those people do not see the beauty in this gift we have.
The Gift
Netflix is a wonderful sight that lets us watch TV shows or movies from the past and present, and the best part is the shows don’t go anywhere. How many people on a daily basis cannot watch a show or even invest themselves in a series because they are simply too busy? Quite a few. Look at this in a different perspective. Think of all the hard work that goes into creating a TV show or movie. If you were apart of the crew that created this version of entertainment you would want people to watch them. Right? It would be a shame if the hard work went to waste because people were busy with other things and didn’t have time to watch these shows. But now with Netflix, entertainment is at our finger tips we can watch shows in 2015 that ended in 2010. This maximizes the amount of people who are able to view the shows or movies, which maximizes the amount of people who are able to view the hard work that someone put into their creation. This helps make sure the hard work does not go to waste.
Next time someone tells you the internet is the problem them of our generation tell them to take a step back in look at it in a different perspective. We have been given a gift that always to take trips through time. Life moves pretty fast and it’s almost impossible not to miss out on something because there is simply not enough time, but the internet always use to slow it down and relive what we have missed. Netflix is only one of many examples to show that the internet is a time capsule that we must not take for granted.
Swedish- Haarm 
