Montagnard Documentary

After weeks of researching, gathering, and compiling information I've come to the step of publicizing what I have discovered. Below you'll find a video that summarizes some of the conflict that exists between the Montagnard and Vietnamese, and the action that the montagnard people have taken to escape persecution.




While my project may be over, the Montagnard's struggle is not. By bringing more awareness to their situation perhaps we can inspire those in power to stand up for the Montagnard's rights.

Is Digital Media Bad For Us?

As we move further into the digital age, many worry what effects new technology will have on society, and whether the changes will be for the better or the worse.

A large fear that people have revolves around the idea of privacy. With so much information at our fingertips, it's hard to keep anything private nowadays. Simply googling a person's name will bring up news articles, facebook pages, biographies -- literally anything and everything that could have information ranging from where they work, to their interests and contact information. This same detail of information is also largely available in regards to government agencies and operations, though on a slightly more refined scale. Since uploading information to the internet is largely anonymous, people can release "confidential" material without facing the same repercussions that they could have in years past. So it begs the quesion -- is the ability for anyone with a computer to obtain this information a bad thing?

In my opinion, no. Not at all. Sites such as Wikileaks provide the public with all kinds of information about government actions that some people believe should remain private for security purposes. However, in a democratic nation such as this one, people have the right to know what the government is doing -- how their own elected officials are acting, and whether or not they should be able to continue doing it.

As for personal information, if you don't want information about you public, don't post it. Many of the same people that complain about privacy are the same people tweeting every fifteen minutes, or logging where they are through Places on Facebook, or posting pictures or videos from every event they attend. People need to take acknowledgement of the fact that information posted on the internet is 100% public, whether privacy settings are turned on or not, and then act accordingly.

Another fear that consumes many members of society is that digital media will replace socialization for younger generations. I believe this fear is largely unfounded. Afterall, most of the things that people spend the most time doing with digital media involves other people. Social networking sites have boomed in the past decade -- Myspace, Facebook, Twitter -- all of which support the idea of talking and interacting with others via media. Instant messaging services, especially those that provide video-chat capabilities have made it possible to have virtual face-to-face interaction with people that would otherwise be uncontactable due to schedule or location conflicts.

A study was done in 2003 that examined the effect of media on social interaction and verified many of the ways in which digital media supports interaction -- citing that it allows users to build up social networks as well as stay in contact with the network they already have in place.

Some people believe that many in today's society suffer from internet addiction, where they spend far too much time on the internet, ignoring other relationships and responsibilities. However, this argument can literally be said about anything. When people are unhappy with certain aspects of their lives, many choose to simply avoid the part that is frustrating them. For years people achieved this by escaping into a book, movie, or television show -- escaping into the void of the internet is no different.

The idea that digital media is making us stupider is 100% incorrect. An argument that is virtually unfounded. A variety of reserach has been done and books have been writen denying this idea. Everything Good is Bad for You by Steven Johnson addresses the benefits of video games and televison on today's society, citing the ways in which the complexity of plotlines has increased to keep the attention of the public because we're actually getting smarter.

Of course, while digital media, in my opinion, is largely beneficial to us rather than harmful, it would also most likely be beneficial to be aware of what we're doing while involved in it. If you typically spend 12 hours a day in front of a computer screen, it would probably be a good idea to spend a day outside, rest your eyes, and stock up on some Vitamin D. Similarily, if you often spend your time playing online games, perhaps it would be a good idea to check out a news site and figure out what's actually going on in the world around you. Awareness of the informational benefits of the internet, knowing when it can help you, and when it's time to walk away for a while is what will make it into the wonderful tool that it is.

Traditional vs Contemporary Remix

In examining some of the differences between traditional and modern practices I decided to look at the juxtaposition of traditional to modern architecture.  If theatre didn't exist, I have a strong feeling that I would have gone into the field of architecture, and so looking at it as an art form as well also intrigues me.  I've collected a slew of still images as well as some video clips from a variety of source that depict work of Frank Lloyd Wright and John Lautner.  While originally I wanted to try to give both modern and traditional equal time, as the remix developed I found the modern influences to be much more intriguing and taking up a lot more time.   However, I think it turned out well.  It isn't a particularly informational documentary -- isn't full of statistics or facts -- but I believe it does speak towards artistic inspiration, as well as some of the passion that these modern architects put into their work.

Copyright Laws

In the digital age, copyright laws face a whole new set of problems.  With the internet making the ability to obtain information so much easier, it also makes it much harder to control who has the ability to redistribute said information.  Copyright laws are broken almost as often as traffic laws, and in that kind of environment people begin to question how the artists creating the material stand to make any money as technology progresses.

Some artists have put trust into their fans to solve this issue.  Instead of attempting to restrict access to their art even further, bands like Radiohead and Issa leave their music open to download, relying on the concept that the more exposure they have, the more they'll make on tour and from other ventures.  This has worked surprisingly well for them -- it seems as though people are indeed willing to pay for the material of artists who they respect, despite the fact that they aren't required to.

The idea of copyright infringement also brings back the question of where the line between stealing and inspiration lies.  Many "remix artists" configure parts of copyrighted media into new forms, creating their own works of art.  If these laws should become stricter and better enforced, should remixes of material also be banned?  This seems like it would be a great loss of good art for the world to endure.

New Media and the Digital Age

With the ease of gathering information that goes along with the digital age in which we live, there also comes a high degree of theft and plagiarism.  Content is so easily accessible through the internet that it has become near impossible to protect anything from becoming 100% public.   However, when it comes to creative ideas and innovations many argue that this ease of content is not always a bad thing.  To be inspired by the plethora of information and media that exists online is a benefit that our generation has over others.  And although in modern times the fear of plagiarism has increased tenfold, there are many instances before the digital age in which authors or musicians would be highly influenced by, either intentionally or unintentionally by another person's work.  There are only so many ideas, plot lines, musical harmonies, etc, that can be created, and everything after that could potentially be seen as mimicking the original.  Digital media by no means created plagiarism, despite the fact that it has made it significantly easier.  The real question is whether or not this is a bad thing.  Where is the line between inspiration and theft?

Project Breif

In learning about the Montagnards, a topic that continually strikes me as intriguing is the idea of their persecution.  In a world that constantly preaches of equality and justice it becomes mind-boggling to hear about the violence and prejudice that rules certain communities throughout the world.  I am eager to investigate the Montagnards' situation further to try to uncover original key events that turned others against them, the type of persecution that occurred, and what has been done to attempt to restore peace in the region. 

Almost anyone from the Montagnard community would probably be able to assist me with my goal, whether it be through stories of their personal experience or information gathered by simply being part of the Montagnard community.  It would be great to find out what were key motivating factors to leave the homeland -- whether it was simply fear of persecution, or whether they themselves escaped from dangerous situations.


As an artist I feel like issues like this naturally strike me in a more powerful way than others.  As a lot of my time and energy is spent attempting to effect the minds of other people through the use of creative medium,  learning about things that are going on in the world that I disagree with provokes the sense that perhaps there is something I could do to try to change it.  This may sound crazy since I'm not a politician or anyone of any legitimate power to change the world, but artistic influence can be a power in and of itself.

"Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not."  -- Dr. Seuss

 

In my minimal research thus far about the Montagnard people I have found several pieces of documentation about the persecution they have faced.   One resource that has been quite valuable is the website for the Montagnard Foundation whose goal is to attempt to restore the rights of the Degar people in the highland region.  With a single visit to their homepage, one can see many accounts of the persecution still going on today, primarily based upon religious orientation.

Framing

The concept of "framing," though it sounds rather foreign, is applicable to everyone.  It is equivalent to the context in which something is veiwed, or having a certain perspective, if you will.  Everyone frames their experiences based on other things in their lives, but it is done so quickly and effortlessly that people don't notice they're categorizing their lives.

If acknowledged, people can definitely use framing to their advantage -- either in changing the way they themselves frame things in order to be more positive, or by using how others frame things to their advantage.  The PBS Frontline program, "The Persuaders" discusses the ways in which advertisment companies manipulate veiwers by assessing how they think and creating adds that most successfully persuade consumers to purchase a product.  Instead of just saying, "buy this product" most ads target moral or emotional facets of the veiwer's mind, causing them to associate the positive of that moral or emotion with purchasing a product.

It is useful to be aware of framing in any occupation, but I believe it is especially relevant to a life in the arts.  To be successful in conveying a theme or emotion, it is pertinent that the artist undertstands how people think -- how different words, objects, and colors interact with one another and can create a story.