Arts Recommend: Winter photography, an opportunity to work alongside industry professionals, and more …

Every week we bring you our special selection of all things arty. From interesting websites to highly anticipated performances for your diary, there is something to spark all kinds of creative interest.

1. Twenty stunning Winter wonderland photos

Marcin Ryczek via Demilked

This article on Demilked gathers 20 inspiring winter landscapes; “even if you hate the cold, you’ve got to admit that winter is a stunningly beautiful season.” All the photographs are breathtaking, and we particularly like the snowy deer and the three geese. View all of the photos and the full article here on Demilked.

2. Shortlist revealed for Artes Mundi Prize

Omer Fast ‘explores the ways in which a memory is recounted’
Image credit: Omer Fast via BBC Arts and Culture

The Artes Mundi is a Cardiff-based prize for contemporary arts which is awarded every two years. The £40,000 prize will be awarded on January 22 2015 midway through a 17 week exhibition at Wales’ National Museum of Art. Read more here in the BBC article.

3. Opportunity to work as an actor or backstage alongside industry professionals in ‘Jerusalem’

Image credit: Common Players

Common Players in association with Exeter Northcott Theatre are seeking new and aspiring professionals and skilled amateurs alike to perform in Jez Butterworths’ play Jerusalem in Devon, May and June 2014.

“It’s an opportunity for new and aspiring professionals and skilled amateurs alike. The lively characters in the play are mostly in their 20’s and 50’s. And this offer is not just for actors, we are also offering people keen to work backstage and in other supporting roles, the chance to hone their skills working alongside industry professionals.”

“All participants will get significant exposure to professional practice and a real developmental challenge.We are now accepting interest and applications from people of all walks of life to take up voluntary roles that include Actors, Wardrobe Assistants, an Assistant Director, Assistant Stage Managers, Set Construction Assistants, and Technical Assistants.”

Details about all of these roles and how to apply can be found here on the project website. Make sure you do not miss the deadline of Monday January 13 2014.

Contact Sophie McCormack at S.M.McCormack@exeter.ac.uk with any questions about how to take part and come along to the Exeter Northcott Theatre on Thursday 9 January at 7pm for more information and to meet the creative team.

4. The Salvador Dali Elimination game

Enjoying your much needed relaxation time from essay deadlines and term-time rush? Do something unproductive for once, and play this fun Salvador Dali elimination game. It’s pretty simple, but really addictive.

“Move Salvador Dali paintings via free paths to make horizontal, vertical or diagonal rows of the same painting. Rows of five or more of the same painting are eliminated and increase your score. Each move lowers your score one point, and each remaining painting lowers your score 10 points.”

Click here to play.

5. Beautiful time-lapse winter video

This video depicts the interaction of the wildlife with Winter, and the effect of Winter upon the landscape. It was shot in the Dutch nature reserve ‘the Oostvaardersplassen’ during one of the coldest Winters in Holland.

Winter from Paul Klaver on Vimeo.

 

 

Giverny Masso and Bryony James

 

Click here for last week’s Arts Recommend.

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Visit the University of Exeter Arts and Culture website here.

Best Games I Never Finished: L.A. Noire

I loved this game. The aesthetics, the music, the gameplay; everything about it is so thoughtfully conceived and well done. L.A. Noire, developed by Rockstar Games, is a crime thriller, and was evolutionary in that it is one of the first console games to utilise performance capture technology to enhance gameplay.

Before this, motion capture, which involves tracking and digitally reproducing an actor’s whole body using CGI, such as in Avatar, had been used in console games before. Performance capture on the other hand, which focuses on the digital reproduction of minute movements of the face, had only really been used in film, originally for single CGI characters such as Gollum in The Lord of the Rings and more recently to create entire casts in Tin Tin and The Secret of the Unicorn.

Rockstar used the performance capture technology to try and create the most realistic detective crime game they could. While they could have focused solely on the technology, they choose to also focus on the gameplay and narrative. The game is heavily plot driven, influenced by classic crime drama and film noir, with the story good enough to at least merit a TV series.

Without giving away too much of the plot, you play as Cole Phelps, an incorruptible police officer working for the LAPD in 1940s Los Angeles. During the course of the game, you work your way up through the different departments in the LAPD, including traffic and homicide, by solving crimes spread out around the city. The game is divided into episodes, each with a separate crime that you, and you NPC partner, are to solve.

At the beginning of each case, you are required to search the interactive crime scene, where there is a helpful bell noise whenever you move close to a clue, and gather evidence. Using this evidence, you can then question witnesses, slowly building up your evidence until you have enough to charge a suspect. Here is where the performance capture comes in, as the characters respond realistically in reaction to your questions. You then have to decide to accuse them of lying or accept their answer as the truth; get it right and they will give you more evidence, get it wrong and you may get sent down the wrong path. You also have a third choice, doubt, which unfortunately doesn’t always mean ‘I don’t know’.

I have to say at the beginning of the game it can be obvious, with the actors clearing exaggerating their movements in order for it to be conveyed in their digital counterpart. For example, if a suspect is lying, they will start looking around the room, not making eye contact and biting their lip, so 9 times out of 10 you will get it right and carry on smoothly.

Later on in the game, it does get more challenging, to the point where I have to admit I did submit temptation and consult a walkthrough. After every time you guess whether the witness is lying or not, you are told whether you have gotten it right or not, meaning if you get it wrong you always know you may have missed out on important information. And once you got it wrong, there is no going back, unless you choose to replay the episode. There have been multiple times during the game when I probably choose the wrong guy to arrest, but overall it doesn’t’ effect the narrative, rather your own conscience.

Aside from the main missions, the game is huge, with at least 40 side quests alongside the main missions spread throughout the city that can be explored by foot or by vehicle, any of which can be commandeered using your handy LAPD badge.

So why did I stop playing. Because of its structure, I wouldn’t say this is a game you can just dip into. When you start playing, you get incredibly absorbed. You do need to be dedicated to it, which is why my gameplay suffered, as when I bought it I didn’t have enough time to finish it.  But with this game you definitely get your money’s worth. L.A.Noire represents a huge advancement in gameplay technology, and it is worth playing just to experience this.

 

Rosie Howard

Arts Recommend: 27 stunning underground houses, become an extra and more …

Every week we bring you our special selection of all things arty. From interesting websites to highly anticipated performances for your diary, there is something to spark all kinds of creative interest.

1. Unexpected Exeter (15-22nd Sept)

If you fancy exploring the city during Freshers Week then you might come across Unexpected Exeter, a festival bringing arts and performance to unexpected locations across the city. From circus performances at Princesshay to sports and music at the Quay, this is the perfect way to venture away from campus and see what Exeter has to offer.  To download a programme of events click here.

2. 27 Absolutely Stunning Underground Homes

Cave homes, Cappadocia, Turkey

This fascinating collection of quirky homes built into caves, hillsides, and other beautiful natural areas may leave you feeling slightly envious. Our particular favourites include the hillside home in Vals, Switzerland and the hogan in Arizona, although we’d also love to have a swim in the cave pool in Santorini, Greece.

To explore these unconventional dwellings yourself click here for the full BuzzFeed article.

3. Uni-versal Extras

Is being an extra in a film something you want to tick off your bucket list? Uni-versal Extras is a site targeted specifically towards students. “This is the opportunity of a lifetime for students to earn extra cash while they study in an exciting & well-paid industry.” The great thing about Uni-versal extras is that, unlike other “extras” sites, they do not charge you any fees.

Visit their website here for more information and to sign up.

4. Sworn Virgins of Albania Portraits

Photographer Jill Peters travelled to remote Albanian villages for her recent project, to capture portraits of women who have lived their lives as men. These ‘Sworn Virgins’ have assumed male identities in order for them to benefit from an elevated status, and to avoid becoming the property of men. The stunning portraits capture a tradition which is beginning to fade, and give an insight of the incredible sacrifice of the Sworn Virgins. To see the portraits click here.

5. “Grinding the Crack” – phenomenal base jumping video

This video is absolutely breathtaking and more than worth a watch. It shows Jeb Corliss, base jumper and extreme risk taker, literally flying through a canyon at over 100 miles per hour using multiple camera angles.

Bryony James and Giverny Masso, Online Arts Editors

Follow @exeposearts on Twitter and like us on Facebook here.

XTV Roundup 5/5/2013: News and Crew Calls

Your regular guide to what those busy bees over at XTV have been doing, and how you can get involved in future projects.

News

News being the operative word, as the XTV News show has been busy reporting on the decision to move the Music department from the beloved Knightley to new headquarters in Cornwall House. Check out their report below:

Opportunities

CREW CALL –

Crew and extras required between the 12th and 21st May for a new comedy screenplay called Secret Lives of Lecturers.

SLoL is a comedy screenplay about the private lives of four very strange, very different and very funny professors, shot in documentary style. They’re looking for anyone who wants to help out with a boom or a camera, no expertise required.

EMAIL: ds360@exeter.ac.uk

To get involved with XTV, you must be a member. Sign up via the Students’ Guild website!

For more info, like XTV on Facebook, follow them on Twitter, or view their YouTube channel here.

 

 

Ambitious Amadeus production a success

Lifestyle Editor Kitty Howie talks us through the highs and lows of EUTCo’s big production, ultimately a triumph.

 

The University’s presence has really been felt within the Northcott this term. After the success of Copacabana, it was soon time for EUTCo to follow suit and prove their prowess.

You can’t knock Director Josh Lucas for his ambition and confidence. Choosing to direct Amadeus, where there’s as much emphasis on the music of the characters as there is on their acting, definitely required balls. Throw into the mix the fact you have to work to a budget, present the show for four consecutive nights to a highly expectant audience and maintain the prestige that EUTCo and the Northcott carry, and you’ve certainly not got an easy walk in the park!

Told from the view point of an ageing Salieri, renowned composer and (hugely jealous) competitor of Mozart, the play charts how the perception and conception of Mozart and his music was subject to Salieri’s dominant influence. With his integrity and popularity put in danger as a result of Mozart’s brilliance, it doesn’t take a genius to work out that over the course of the production, Salieri inevitably seeks to bring down Mozart and alleviate the threat he represents.

Photo by Joshua Irwandi

The visual exclusion of Mozart on the stage from other characters, especially when combined with audible blasts of his most famous pieces, succinctly conveyed the plot’s complex motive of expressing that Mozart hasn’t always been considered the genius that he is today.

However, disappointingly, I feel this potent combination had more potential and could have been better. Perhaps it was second night blues and bloopers, but sometimes it was a challenge to hear the actors above the accompanying music. Thankfully these tech hiccups were mostly sorted by the second half.

Photo by Joshua Irwandi

The inclusion of a live orchestra and a choir should be applauded, but I couldn’t help but feel they needed more rehearsal time – particularly frustrating if you can’t hear the action on stage too.

The orchestra didn’t play the whole time, in fact for the most part the tech crew piped in a pre-recording. Not only was this a weird mix, but playing a professional recording alongside the orchestra’s efforts only seemed to make their timing issues more obvious. I feel the production would have been better if a more rigid decision had been made – either the band or the CD, but not both.

Nevertheless, in spite of these technical hiccups, the strength of the principal actors proudly carried the production and held it high.

Photo by Joshua Irwandi

George Watkins brilliantly metamorphosed between aged, wheelchair-restricted Salieri and the youthful Salieri determined to ruin Mozart. He mastered his longer speeches. I haven’t seen a production of Amadeus before, but I found that Watkins’s treatment of the psychological implications of his actions was particularly resonant, reminding me of Burton’s portrayal of Dysart, another principal Shaffer character from Equus.

As the main man Mozart himself, Ryan Whittle was instantly likeable. His endearing laugh was a joy that let us enjoy his character as much as he did.

The depth of Felicity Gardener Cant’s Constanze was of a high standard and equally effective throughout the production.

Photo by Joshua Irwandi

Stage management and props were another triumph, both used cleverly and effectively to maximise the dramatic space. In particular, the wheelchair and simple blanket used to signal the aged Salieri carried emotional depth.The system of waiters / servants who carried however many chairs (from the well loved Bowling Green – did you recognise them?) on and off the stage however many times was slick and professional.

Without scenery, flashes and darts of colour came from the costuming, which was also to a high standard.

Photo by Joshua Irwandi

Speaking exclusively to Exeposé, assistant producer Timothy Bradbeer said of the experience, “It was a bumpy ride trying to costume everyone – keeping to the budget was a real challenge at times!”

However, when asked whether the stress was all worth it and if he was proud of the show, he beamed and said, “Of course! As soon as the audience hear the first two chords blast out at the beginning of the show where the cast waltz on, it’s all worth it.”

I certainly agree. Staging Amadeus was always going to be challenging, but EUTCo can be assured that their big production was a success.