Link Week 12 – Speculative Futures (Tamara Vaughan)

Tamara Vaughan:  https://blogs.ubc.ca/vaughan/2020/07/30/task-12-speculative-features/

Patricia McLean:  https://blogs.ubc.ca/course9fa832d3ed5e9bc0e2a4b9d769b3ff09f6e98b71/wp-admin/post.php?post=149&action=edit

In Week 12, I chose Tamara Vaughan’s dark narrative entitled “Dystopia” to link to my dark speculative narrative entitled “July 1, 2050” because the tone was so similar to mine.  Our views as to a dark future was illustrated in a common dark, dystopian speculative view of the future.  (It was interesting to note, that this week a number of students posted speculative futures that were dark including:  Tanya Weder and Rebecca Hydamacka ).  One has to wonder, is that a normal response to this assignment (if it has been done in prior classes) or is the possibility of a dark and foreboding future as result of the current work disorder as a result of Covid-19?

Tamara’s Dystopia video was presented using Videoscribe.  It is a video program that easily integrates images and music.  The program also allows for easy “handwritten” text messages to pop-up throughout the video.  I chose to make a video using iMovie.  It has the same features, video, ability to insert still photos and music;  but it does not (or does not obviously or easily) allow for handwritten type test on the screen created by the app.  The presentations were quite similar.

Tamara’s post for Dystopia provided some in-context narrative that explained the authoring tool she chose and decisions she made to create the video – in particular, intentionally choosing not to use voice.  My post entitled July 1, 2050 did not provide any narrative to describe or put into context the video.

Tamara’s architecture is founded on a video (with enhancements).  As noted above, Tamara noted in her post that she had intentionally chose not to use voice.  In contrast, is fundamentally a voice presentation.  My video is all black – in the video I note, in character, that it is shot without video, just audio, to “save power” in the problematic power grid of 2050.