satisfaction security stability

Let's see this world in our way

ABOUT THE WORK

Giving a war experience in television

war is never the same anymore. war comes in different shape and sizes. there are global wars, there are also urban wars, wars in an urban setting and form. Urban war is more cold and sinister, it also can be invisible. Urban war can be easily neglected by citizens, war act can be easily covered by fake news, entertainment of certain media. media can also act as a propaganda tool, a scare tactic to fear off opposers. In the 21st century, the most horrifying experience is that you sense something wrong happens but you don't know it's real or not.

in this work, i want people to experience and feel the terror of war through a living room. Audience will experience suspense and face uncertainty from advertisements, TV shows and even the hollow room.

HISTORY

first idea: mockumentary + dystopian town

original title: Town report documentary (episode 2278)

free will is an illusion of every day life

A city that is filled with planned every day schedule (the schedule has beginning, climax and ending) every day is planned like the editor is planned to edit an episode of a sitcom.

my idea is that to imagine a TV town report that is weird and strange due to the town has its budget cut on every day planning. Town Report (episode one ) is normal and utopian, everyone is happy and enjoys great amount of safety and freedom yet still can experience some minor problems like minor casualty of a car crash or a tv malfunction.

However, in episode 2247 of Town Report, the report started to get weird and cheesy, we can see the editing is raw and sketchy, people start to live very artificially. we may hear some sound from the editing room like phone calls, tv noise and chewing sound. also episode 2247 will explain every experience of every one in the town is planned by the town owner, which will never show his face in the video.

concept art

visual style

i want to use poor images from internet to make the video from the beginning

first, because of resources concern.

second, since i have an exercise that had been using poor images to edit, i want to explore more about the power of poor images. how images can be manipulated and used in my way.

third, i think the aesthetic of poor images and raw editing can bring up the absurdity of an urban life.

(also i have seen this type of raw commercials aired in television in 2020 which i found it's out of place and little bit surreal)

the setting

i want to use multiple screen to comprehend a town. each screen will play a part that represents the town. for example, there are commercials, news, tv show, CCTV footages and many more contents. it makes the audience the spectator and even ruler of the town.

however, this setting requires many pre-made footages, music and even animation because i need to cover many aspects of a town.

also i should consider the control of screens by the audience. how would audience engage with the screen. Can audience control what he or she is seeing? what is point only allowing "a ruler" to just "see" the screens.

Due to the massive workload of all the contents i mentioned above. i narrow them into two type of contents to continue my narrative. i chose TV show and advertisements. i chose them because they are more obscure to convey some ideology beneath a society. unlike News, CCTV footages and public announcements, ads and TV shows are more subjective and they bring a more emotional trip for the audience.

also, war is an interesting factor to explain the absurdity of a town/city

i think a TV station should hold a huge responsibility of covering up a war, therefore i made the logo of a fake tv station at the very beginning. all the narratives started with this logo.

this logo appeared in every ads. At the end of every ad will appear a message that stated that the ad is produced and approved by SSSTV. this creative choice is to explain the TV station has a huge influence since every products are used to sell their ideology. SSSTV's ideology is security, stability and satisfaction. it explains that the ads are all appeared to be fun and joyful. and at the same time, they are conveying message about war and crime to scare off citizens or the regime's enemy.

these propaganda messages can be seen in a shot that shows a missiles and a tv ad that shows a single eye.

Red Apple supermarket brand is a fictional brand created in my previous exercise. i found this apple clipart on the internet, and i found its eyes extremely haunting. this also explains the use of poor images, it can change the meaning if used in different context.

BAM is a fictional brand for bleach. it mainly is used for cleaning toilet, but it also can be used in a bathtub, to clean off evidence.

eye is an important metaphor in the work. eyes can be the metaphor of oneself soul and truth. the ads, on the hand, are invading our soul and removing us from the truth.

Teddy's is a fictional brand of a fast food joint.

the logo design pay homage to a classic scene of Shining which also contains a lot of symbolism and subtle horror.

fast food also created a strong sense of loneliness. also i make the living room as lonely as possible. because i want the audience sit in the sofa by himself in a dark room, he will be uncertain what will happen in the room. i took inspiration from my daily life. when i m sitting alone at midnight with no sound except the tv. but when the tv volume turn down or off, the silence will just creep me out.

except silence, loud sound are also suspenseful and unfamiliarly scary.

therefore, i add loud laugh track and music to gives a menacing scne