Final Project! w/ Saudia Yunus

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Late For Class: Media 160 Final Project from Simone Sylvester on Vimeo.

Blog 4: The Influential Shower Scene From "Psycho" (1960)

The shower scene in Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho" is widely known as the most influential scene of the horror genre.

In this scene we watch Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) get stabbed to death by.... a psycho. This scene is so pivotal because in 1960, sexuality, or nakedness and violence had not been portrayed on the big screen. According to Huffington Post, even toilet flushing at this time was considered risqué-- a laughable reality when we think about infamous movies like Monsters Ball (2001), Kill Bill (2003), and Blue is the Warmest Color (2013).

Anyway, the scene has a lot of shots.

Will Hodgkinson at The Guardian writes:

"Comprising over 70 shots, each lasting two or three seconds, it has become one of the most infamous moments in horror movie history."

The scene is just over three minutes, and we have a lot to cover, so let's break this into sections.

The Quietness

Crane is alone in a motel room. (Seems like a recipe for murder, doesn't it?) In a wide shot, we see Crane sitting at her desk writing something, but then she decides it's crappy so she rips it up. She then gets up and walks into the bathroom where she throws the bits of a paper into the toilet and flushes-- we get a close up for the toilet part. Then in medium shots we see Crane close the bathroom door and undress-- first the upper part of her body, then the bottom of her legs and feet. She steps into the shower and closes the curtain. These quick close/medium shots make a mundane thing like preparing for a shower more interesting. And with the creepy background music, the scene aids in sending a message of impending doom.

Getting in the Shower

Crane is really going to enjoy this shower, like you can see the excitement in her face. The camera, in a medium shot, shows Crane from the chest up. We hear her turn the knob, and the water pours onto her face. Then we get a close up on the shower head, angled as if we were standing directly under it. It's one of those great full shower heads that douse your whole body, like really fancy stuff. Then in close, medium shots we see various shots of Crane basking in the water and the shower head from a profile angle-- a great juxtaposition against what is about to happen.

The Murder

At this point you want to yell LOOK BEHIND YOU, GIRL! In a medium wide shot, we see Crane still really loving that shower she's having, but also, we as the audience can see something Crane can't-- we see a shadowy figure creep behind her. The psycho catches Crane by surprise when he pulls back the curtain, his hand raised above his head, knife in hand. We see quick shots of the struggle, her reaction, her trying to hold him back, his figure pinning her to the wall and stabbing her, her nude body. Then in quick shots it switches back and forth from his figure thrusting the knife toward her and her physical reaction to the pain. These quick action, reaction shots make the scene more real, more daunting, more relentless.

Her Death

In her dramatic death, Crane falls slowly with her back pressed to the bathroom tiles. We then see a close up of her hand grasping the wall, nails on a chalkboard style. She reaches out to grab for something, (life?) when she stretches forward to the curtains, which give way to her weight. She's on the floor dying. We see a tear in Crane's eye in an extreme close up, and then the camera zooms out to a close up of her face. It's a nice touch. It made me wonder about how many people cry knowing their life is coming to an end.

Then we see the water from the shower head fall into the open drain in a close up. Her life, too, is "going down the drain."

Hitchcock's motive...

Hitchcock wanted to build suspense, but he also wanted the events of the movie to be a surprise. According to The Guardian, Hitchcock bought out all copies of the book his movie was based on so know one would know how it ended.

Furthermore, this scene was also revolutionary in it killed its 'leading lady' within the first 30 minutes.

Hitchcock wanted to create "shock value,"so these elements of violence, nakedness, and blood combined with the quiet personal moment Crane has just before she is stabbed to death, creates a sense of 'anything can happen to anyone,' or 'murder can happen anywhere... even when you least expect it.' Even with all of the more realistic portrayals of death on the big screen, it is still entertaining to watch today. I understand why people didn't want to go in the shower alone after watching this movie in 1960 on.

Audio Profile: "Saudia: Honest Reflections"

New Project from Simone Sylvester on Vimeo.

The Most Interesting Part of MOMI Experience

The Museum of the Moving Image was a cool experience.

Besides seeing the Jim Carey "The Mask" replica, the most compelling part of the trip was seeing how post-production audio works.

(Tough act to follow, but audio took the cake for me.)

I was intrigued in class the previous week, where we learned that people behind the screen made the noises we hear that go along so perfectly with what we see. 

For instance, there was a scene where a woman scooped out the contents of a fruit that coincided with a baby dinosaur breaking out of the egg. It had never previously occurred to me that so much thought went into making accurate audio sounds. 

The textbook for Media 160 was right, I thought. When the audio is perfect, no one notices-- but when it's off, everyone realizes how awful and amateur the production is. 

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At MOMI, there was an arrangement where we could participate in laying over a voiceover for Jack Black and his students in "School of Rock."

It was shocking to see how tedious it is to make sure it looks like Jack Black is saying what you are saying. 

As Jack Black mouthed the words my classmates spoke, I was reminded of foreign films and the inaccurate mouthing to speech difference. 

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It was enlightening to learn that there is a lot that goes on behind the scenes that make the whole production make sense to the audience as a whole. 

Sub-par audio is easily detectable and having proficient people working behind the scenes are necessary to achieve the continuity desired in a production. 

Sound Walk: Flatbush, Brooklyn

I don't live in Flatbush, but I'm frequently there to spend time with family who live in the mostly Caribbean section of Brooklyn.

As I walk down Glenwood Road from Albany Avenue to Flatbush Junction, the same background noises, or keynotes, are present. Honks from frustrated drivers at 5pm, rush hour, echo throughout the neighborhood. The engines of b6 buses roar when in motion, but the bus screeches when the breaks are pressed at every stop. I hear the click-clack of women with short heels stomping off the steps and onto the pavement. I hear the scuff of rubber soles colliding with cement because many people, I noticed, don't pick up their feet when they walk. As I'm paying attention to noise in the neighborhood, these sounds I hear daily suddenly seem loud.

It's getting later and nearing dinnertime. Parents and siblings call the names of little ones out playing to come in and eat. "Shawnnnnnn," one woman coos and then later yells. Her sound signal reminds me of my mother calling me in after hours outside playing double-dutch in the street.

As I turn right on Flatbush Avenue, I hear the startling sirens of a fire truck. The fire station is only a few blocks away. Probably on their way to put out a fire; I hope no one is hurt.

Reggae, soca, calypso, and kompa music proves to be the sound marks of the neighborhood. The music playing accurately reflects the music from the islands people who live in the neighborhood originate from like St. Vincent, Jamaica, St. Lucia, Trinidad, or Haiti to name a few. I hear melodies from mellow Bob Marley tunes to upbeat carnival music coming from inside the different shops on Flatbush. People mouth the words as they walk, and sometimes I can hear them join in and sing every word. The sound is full and sometimes staticky if it’s being played from an old boom box.

The sounds of Flatbush, from kids playing to women strutting down the sidewalk with killer heels to the screeching of the city buses to the funky music, are both interesting and welcoming.  

[Silent Video] A Love Story: "Different Mornings"

Simone Different Mornings from Simone Sylvester on Vimeo.

Artist Statement

Words were my first love. Telling stories, capturing emotion, and sparking ideas has always been my primary goal as a creative person.

Topics that are continuously present in my writing include concepts of womanhood, love, relationships, race relations, freedom, and human rights. My goal is to create an open dialogue about race, class, sexuality, as well as other socioeconomic and biological factors that affect the human condition. If I make a positive change in someone's life through my writing, I'll know I'm successful. 

I’ve been heavily influenced by authors like Richard Wright, Walter Mosley, and Sister Soulja mainly because they all made me look at life in a more enlightened way while not making me feel alienated or ignorant—I both laughed and cried when I read their books, and I think that's what a lot of artists strive to do with their work. 

Moreover, I think it’s important to understand how people interact to create loving bonds as well as broken homes (like the one I came from), and I believe it’s imperative people realize that everyone deserves to make decisions about who they love and what they want to do with their bodies. Every time I write a blog post or article, I aim to stress autonomy. (Whether my topic is about why we all should care about government surveillance or about how to help a friend out of an abusive relationship.)

When I write, I think a lot about why I deserve to have “authority” on the things I discuss. Besides using facts, I employ the range of my identities and life experiences to add to the discussions. (Or in other words, I’m known as an “oversharer.” I seldom think about things coming back to haunt me years from now. I’m a fan of just owning it. 

And although it’s hard not to obsess over people’s comments on the controversial topics I favor, I don’t take myself too seriously, so I enjoy using humor and sarcasm, which I think is effective in not only crafting my voice but also being relatable. Writers like Cat Marnell and Lindy West have given me perspective on being fearless and (trying to be) funny when choosing to write about tough subjects like body issues, abortion, or views on politics.

My lifelong goal is to write a memoir, a novel, and to look fabulous while doing so.