At the beginning of the year, I would have never guessed what the Tim Burton Seminar entailed (other than what I could guess from reading the syllabus of course). I guess I thought it would be something along the lines of just watching the movie and lightly analyzing Burton's style. Instead, reading Gothic Fantasy, the articles from Blackboard, and participating in class discussions has allowed me to gain so much more.
The underlying theme that runs in all of Burton's movies, which are usually isolation and abandonment, all relate back to Burton's childhood as well as his young adult years working at Disney. I would not have known to look for autobiographical information within his movies if I did not at first know some background on his life. Like the father in Big Fish, Burton tells his stories with fantasy, exaggerations, and eccentric characters all to express himself through his art. The biographical information and class discussions not only helped to analyze the plot within his movies, but they also aided in the mise en scene analyses.
Every time I look at a movie, I can't help but notice now what the director is trying to do. I have noticed that other directors use mise en scene, or some form of scene composition, to create each frame as though it were a work of art. They interweave symbolism as well as visual clues as to how the scene should be interpreted. I believe Tim Burton does a fabulous job of making each scene look artistic and aesthetically pleasing while simultaneously making the scenes mildly conspicuous compared to all the others.
Finally, by analyzing Tim Burton's films, I have gained valuable writing skills that are not completely formulaic. It is refreshing for me to think about a different kind of writing style because analyzing movies does not follow the typical essay format, which was a relief. The movie review forced me to think outside of the box a bit relative to how the typical essay usually sounds. The research behind the paper was not very tedious because for me it was considerably enjoyable.
As for the rest:
College has been stressful. I have yet to see the reward in it, but I know it's just a long waiting process filled with work. This view may seem overtly negative, but that's just how this semester has gone. I've honestly felt more alone this semester than I have in a while but that's also because I'm away from home and friends etc. The fact that everyone else here pretty much feels the same way too, whether or not they verbalize it, does make me fell a little better.
I'm really enjoying my time here at Loyola and especially New Orleans. It's a city where you can't see everything there is to see even if you live here your whole life, and I've just arrived. The concept is exciting and intimidating but we all fell like little fish in a big pond. By the end of the next four years, I'm sure we'll feel as claustrophobic as ever, and we'll be ready to leave. But for now, no one should stress too much. We're just getting into the swing of things.
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