Group items tagged

The video "What is Postmodernism" begins by asking people on the street "what is postmodernism?" Many average people had no clue how to define it which is quite common. Later the video presents various scholars and their views on what postmodernism is which gives a great montage of definitions and perspectives. This video attempts to answer questions such as "how has postmodernism affected our culture?", "what is postmodernism?" And "how the turn of the century has affected our culture and in turn led to postmodernity?" The video also discusses the religious impacts of postmodernism, something that many articles fail to discuss although religion is always a pressing issue. Another interesting topic this video discusses is the topic of modern and postmodern medicine. All in all, despite being only 4 minutes and 7 seconds long, this video is very beneficial in gaining insight into what exactly postmodernity is by pointing out general characteristics and specific characteristics of the postmodern movement.

R.E.M. (2009, July 24). R.E.M - Orange Crush (Official Music Video) [Video file]. Retrieved from YouTube.com database. In 1989 and 1990 MTV awarded an artist with a Video Music Award for Best Post-Modern Video. R.E.M. won the award in 1989 for its "Orange Crush" video. The video is a very striking example of postmodernity because it depicts fragmentation, conflicting identities and a decentered self. This is in sharp contrast to the modern ideas of a unified identity and unified, centered self. The video shows two characters, one is a young boy and the other a young adult. The faces of the two are not shown until nearly the end of the video. The video is black and white. The scenes flash from one character to the other and it is unclear if the two characters are the same person, brothers or not related at all. It is very indistinct what the message of the video is, if there is one. Again, this is a perfect example of the fragmentation often apparent in postmodern works of art and the lack of explanation that often follows suit.

This "fail" video also displays characteristics of postmodernity. Most fail videos are of people falling down or hurting themselves, but this one shows a very private moment between a son and mother "discussing" god. Just as the video reaches a high point of intensity, and you think the mother is going to really get angry and maybe violent, the maker of the movie cuts away to a cat playing a peppy piano tune. This is very ironic and, as the Modern and Postmodern: Contrasting Tendencies chart would call it, a direct challenge "to official seriousness", or the discussion of "is there a god?". It could also be postmodern because the mother plays right into the idea of surface value over depth: she thinks telling her son that he can't get Christmas presents will some how change his mind. If you look below at the comments, this one video spurred a discussion between (one must assume) strangers who only know each other by there screen-names, but are having a calm discussion about religion themselves, compared to the heated discussion in the video.

This video starts by beginning the modern movement in art. It shows images that are recognizable pieces of art such as works by Picasso. It moves on to discuss Marx and socialism, capitalism and Freud and psychoanalytic theory. The build up to postmodernism becomes obvious as the voice over becomes faster and louder. As the video discusses postmodernism, rather than flashing images and giving explanations, mouths say names of processes, concepts, images, etc. that are postmodern. The video is fragmented and difficult to define, much like most things in the postmodern era. This video not only discusses how things have become or are postmodern, but is a postmodern video within itself.

Here, on Lady Gaga's official youtube channel, can be found all of her official music videos, as well as live performances, interviews, behind the scenes videos, and video messages from Gaga to her fans. A single viewing of any one of her music videos, and you will know you're watching something beyond that of your typical pop star. With her blending of performance art, intense theatrics, technology, wild fashion, futuristic elements, playfulness, fluid sexuality and sexual orientation, and with her rise as a pop culture phenomenon, Lady Gaga, as evidenced in her youtube videos, has become all things postmodern.

This video, most likely made by college students, is a very simple approach to postmodernism. Within the video concepts such as universal conflicts are brought up and then somewhat explained. This video is somewhat difficult to follow but that is part of what makes it so appropriate to represent the post modern era. This video is a satire, it is fragmented, ironic and the concepts are farsical. It simplifies the idea of postmodernity and shows what it means to be postmodern.

Dan Ackerman Greenberg is co-founder of the Commotion Group, a company that has found great success by promoting online videos in an effort to make them go "viral." Today, more and more people are seeking fame and recognition through online communities like YouTube. Dan Ackerman Greenberg provides a series of steps and advice to follow when creating and promoting a video. This online posting is very postmodern, because it exemplifies the breakdown of hierarchy. One used to rely on a publicist or agent to promote oneself. Now, anyone can do it themselves. The fact that a promotion company is offering advice to the masses on how to succeed alone own is particularly postmodern.

This group of videos was a play created by several students at the university of Michigan who wrote the musical based on and parodying the Harry Potter book series by J.K. Rowling. They then casted the parts and performed it for a 3 day period of time and 5 times in total at a local non-profit student-run theater company, but was video-taped and put on YouTube. The reason this video is post-modern because if it weren't for YouTube, the play would never have become as popular as it is today, where people around the country know of it. Due to the success of the video series on Youtube, the writers and producers are able to create more and more plays and musicals are becoming exponentially more famous they would have been had a site like Youtube not been created. Now the creators and actors in this musical are appearing on television and such fame would not be possible if the internet and current technology was available.

This site is one that sparks the postmodernist debate on issues such as copyright, intellectual property, etc. It is a video sharing/upload site for the masses by the masses. (Note: I have only included the homepage, any other page should be allowed.)

The youtube channel of the internet sensation Miranda. A fictional character created by a college theatre major searching for her big break, Miranda has become an internet celebrity seemingly overnight, with her outrageous performances of popular songs and delusional instructional singing videos. Since the character was created over a year ago, she has since booked concerts and appearances all over the world, thanks to the technology of youtube, facebook, twitter, and a lot of shameless self promotion. She's become a viral video phenomenon and an excellent example of the fifteen minutes of fame in the postmodern era.

Flashmob richtet Chaos in Supermarkt an [Video file]. (2009, October 1). Retrieved from YouTube.com database. This video depicts German supermarket workers staging a protest using a Flash Mob. In order to convey their wish to get free wages and better working conditions, the union members filled shopping carts full of products and left them in the aisles. They then passed out cards that stated what they desired from their employees. This is a great example of postmodernity because a group of people is taking something (Flash Mobs) and using it in a completely different way than it was intended. Flash Mobs were originally intended, or at least viewed as something fun and chaotic. They were by no means considered a serious form of expression when it came to real concerns. However, by turning a Flash Mob into a form of protest, the people involved are challenging official seriousness. There is no longer the modern solemnity of intention and purpose. These postmodern protests utilize unconventional means to get their messages across.

The MP3 Experiment is a mission designed by the group Improv Everywhere where participants all started in one location and listened to an MP3 track designed by the group. The participants were then told to perform tasks such as following around a german tourist or having a battle in the field of bats versus hammers. The idea of this mission created by Charlie Todd a graduate of the University of North Carolina- Chapel Hill, the creator of Improv Everywhere was to allow participants to have a unique and enjoyable experience. This video has ties to post modernity because it uses technology as a method of organization and communication, because the entire mission was set up online and there was no face-to-face individual interaction. Another aspect of this video that was postmodern was that the mission's art was in the creating of art and not the art itself like in modern works where only the viewers experienced it, but the participants experienced it as well.

The site is a postmodern form of communication. It charges nothing to use and its content is primarily user-generated. The site combines the best of e-mail, social networking, Instant Mesaging, video sharing etc. It is for the masses and largely controlled by the masses.

This video helps show how the view of fame has changed as it becomes part of the post modern era. It depicts how Richard Heany potentially used his six year old son to attempt to gain national recognition. It was rumored that this former Wife Swaps contestant planning to create a new reality show in which he and his scientific experiments would be the star. Heany did anything he could to attempt to gain the fleeting attention of today's population. He utilized the sympathetic and curious natures of people and manipulated them in an attempt to make himself a household name.

This is truly a symphony for the new millennium. YouTube, a global property, asked the musicians of its community, of which there were plenty, to send in videos of themselves playing a certain audition piece. The best from around the world were flown in to play a concert at Carnegie Hall. Submissions were received from every continent (except Antarctica), digitally, and the traditional hierarchy of trained and professional musicians was disrupted. The YSO: the Postmodern Symphony Orchestra.

A video documentation of the planning and execution of one of the most successful and famous flash mobs in history. The group Improv Everywhere, known for their flash mob stunts, rose to fame with this "mission"- having all the participants go into Grand Central Station in New York City and freeze for several minutes, then resume regular life without a blink. Using elements of performance art and postmodern theatre, as well as an extensive use of various technologies to pull it all off, this playful stunt is a prime example of the postmodern flash mob phenomenon.