a proposal

My original interest in pursuing this class was the development of a new language for myself, one that communicates visually, through sounds, and emotion, rather than through words. For 453, I propose a return to this interest which will come about through a rigorous documentation and deciphering of my internal language and symbology, which can then be employed in my work in a way that makes sense to others. In addition, I would like to develop a much stronger camera language by dialing in on cinematography. Finally, I need to become educated, meaning: watch lots more films, read everything I can get my hands on, and refresh what I learned in art history.

So, how to go about this?

I have been enamored lately with the idea of settling down and going back to what first interested me in school: language. Having new and different words by which to express oneself causes a change in thinking, and thinking in one language lends a different perspective than does thinking in another: our internal language determines our mind's output because of the modes in which they can be communicated or not, and each language has its own nuances and syntax, elements that can be lost in translation. This can take many forms, whether we are referring to actual language (so, English versus Spanish causes a perceptual shift) but what about thinking in terms of images, sounds, music, tactility? What is the underlying logic of my internal language and symbology?
Once I can translate and interpret my own internal language, then the fact that I think in images does not pose the problem that it did last quarter: I had images in my head that mean something to me, and that I know are powerful, but why? I had a hard time articulating the meaning on my own because I did not know my own vocabulary. My inspiration technique needs to be refined, and I need to take a more active and informed role in constructing my ideas. This can be accomplished through two modes. The first is to explore my own symbology so that I can translate it into a language in which I can communicate universally (and articulate) what my images and films mean, how they make me feel and should make the audience feels. It comes down to semantics: I need to construct a visual language that is unique to me, but that can still communicate with a broader and diverse audience (ie, which isn't me). The second way to go about creating a vocabulary is to watch a lot more films as well as read about or see a lot of art, so that I know how others have communicated visually/aurally as well.
And in regards to an audience which isn't me: I also need actors which aren't me. I need to get out of my films and behind the camera. Part of my fear of relinquishing control of the acting is that I know exactly what kind of performance I want, but since I don't have a strong language internally, I cannot communicate how I want someone else to perform. But I am not an actor, and I think that my films will be much stronger if I can be behind that camera, constructing the mise en scene, and able to articulate direction to someone else, rather than in front of the camera constantly because "no one else could do it the way I could."
Script writing. I want to make a talkie. My interest is in languages and linguistics, and yet I have shied away from having any sort of dialogue in my films because I don't know my characters at all, and so I don't know what to make them say. In making a film with dialogue, I will need to understand the characters I construct on a much deeper level, instead of attributing meaning after the fact, in editing.
And cinematography. I need a stronger camera language too, not just a visual language. I want to make the camera a more active character. I want to make it move. And first, I think, I need to grasp a better understanding of camera language in general, since technology frightens me and I don't even know what is possible.
Hand in hand with cinematography comes greater experimentation. I want to construct something to aid me in camera movement (a rig? steadicam? dolly?) Eventually I want to work with real film... but the prospect is scary and I think for now dialing in on possibilities with DV or HD gives me enough work to do in one quarter.

So what format will my films take?

This is the hardest question for me to answer, since I have been wanting to make longer films, but I don't want to content to suffer because of the increased length. Right now I am thinking of making a series of short films that could potentially form a suite, although a focus on scripting and working towards dialogue might increase duration naturally. I am open to suggestions as to what types of films will best help me achieve and explore my goals.