what we frame, what we see 🧿
our artistic and human process
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A bit of a rawdog (sorry-not-sorry-i-did-it-again!) post from the moment, which starts off lightly swirling on processing the Succession finale. I’m getting into some references that don’t contain spoilers, but linking out to things which might, however i will reference any links that do, so you can avoid clicking on them!
Also: this post not only about Succession, but more about what and how we explore framing in our creative process via our lens’ of perspective and how this impacts what we and Others ‘see’, incorporating some recent developments and (as ever) pop culture tidbits. There’s also some questions for you at the end, as well as a peek at a case study/research moment as i take you along on a recent gallery visit in Paris (cause this is part of Paris Diaries 🥖 too!)
As always, i’d love to hear from you in hope of a swirl/conversation which isn’t one-way, so… meet me in the comments?
First off, i feel the last episode of Succession (and the entire series tbh) is a masterclass in the kind of creative productions i find most inspiring. i mean, it’s a show with writing and acting so squeamish and brilliant for so many reasons, but there’s much i admire about the making of this show.
Particularly the collaborative effort in which director (Mark Mylod) and series creator (Jesse Armstrong) are so generous with the entire crew, although ‘generous’ feels like it’s not quite the right word…perhaps trusting is more accurate, in that they trust people to do what they do best, honouring their process and expertise, from the lighting designer specialising in the particular in-flight-illumination of airborne scenes, to, very obviously, the actors who have a loose general guidance related to physical markers, but who are also left to intelligently interpret and respond to the space they’re in, in the moment. Proprioception, baybeeee!
This has an inevitable domino-effect on the camera operators, who are, in turn, responding, as we are, which adds a powerful feeling of movement and space and stillness and it’s such a symphony of sensory delights!
Check out this clip for a great dissection of Connor’s wedding day scene by director Mark Mylod. ⚠️ Contains massive spoilers for my Succession fans so proceed at your own risk! ⚠️
it’s personal…
I think a lot about framing and how we ‘see’, even more since i’ve been directing a multi-layered production since 2020 and learning a lot in the process. I studied film and majored in film and photography back in the day (along with development studies in case that tells you a story or two…)
mini sidenote: but also, don’t believe only studying something (especially art-related but also apply this to some other things!) makes you ‘qualified’ (whatever that means), cause i’m into honouring experiential learning and think it provides a richness you can’t be ‘taught’. also a shoutout to studying things totes unrelated to what you ‘do’. special interests, curiosities, daydreams +++ ftw! 🦋
Anyway,
i love collaborating with a team who are equally passionate about a project. It’s a delicate line of course, to have your own vision and to convey that clearly, with flexibility for the unexpected and room for the team and audience to also bring themselves to it. i believe in the value of freedom giving us a richness of what a creative project can be. The ‘success’ of this, of course, depends on the team you’re working with (!) and choosing this wisely is key (!) but/and also, it’s ever-unknown when you embark on a project just how things will pan out, so like creativity, an element of Planning And Preparing What You Can, then Surrendering Everything, is required. Ever-in-process.TM (lol)
Although i’m currently involved in directing VR/AR projects, they overlap with other mediums like (obviously) film and photography as well as (perhaps not so obviously?) embodiment (believe it or not, but at least for me this is true). I now think about some encouraging words from a meeting with a film director last week which struck a chord who said,
“you’re basically inventing a language which doesn’t exist yet”
which, is equally liberating and feels like a responsibility i don’t take lightly!
choices + consequences
(adding technological developments to the soup of how we frame and ‘see’)
I’d also, if i may, like to swirl on some very recent developments in AI over the past week, particularly through the lens of ‘direction’, specifically framing. I find it interesting as someone (like many of you, i expect) who has spent many long days and nights in Photoshop (or before that, hunched in darkrooms) in order to clarify a vision and share a story. And that’s after the long process of setting up and framing a photo or film in itself, which demands its own very specific processes (depending on the medium) and a heap of decisions.
Decision making, yes, is a crucial part of creativity, isn’t it?
We embark upon something, perhaps follow an idea down a rabbithole (a bit like what i’m doing here) but at some point we have to make choices.
Every choice has a consequence.
What will we include?
Cut out?
Why?
How?
And so on.
It can be a little dizzying if we become too ‘close’, or needing to ‘control’ microdetails all the time. We need perspective and space to feel and see.
Whatever creative medium of our choosing, be it writing, filmmaking, installation-making, weaving, knitting, painting, dancing, making music, teaching a yoga class: there are choices and requirements in order to have direction in what we’re doing.
So back to the AI component.
One interesting story (of many!) this week is the potential threat Photoshop serves (although some might breathe a sigh of relief, or whinny with worry…) since launching a new AI tool, Generative Fill. Here’s a screenshot of an interesting thread from Twitter this week, as well as the video demonstrating what this new tool can do.
There’s now, for example, the possibility to be able to ‘fill in’ a wider crop of a picture that’s been taken. Or to insert random items into scenes. Or remove whatever you need, via Generative Fill. I don’t know about you, but i find that WILD!!! Of course, it’s fascinating, but i’m also scared. We can hold multiple things at once, eh?
Some other Twitter links of interest related to this topic:
Of course, AI is an epic topic which is expanding by the hour and impacting our lives in so many ways….it’s really easy for me to go off on one here (i started studying AI at the turn of the millennium and been a special interest of mine over the years) but let’s continue swirling 💫
mobile considerations and how it changes what is ‘seen’
So at this point, i’m thinking about how we frame film, and this, of course, first depends on our intention, then the ‘camera’ or ‘capture tool’, along with method and how the film/artwork will be distributed.
The way we ‘watch’ film and tv has been forever-altered since the advent of streaming, the way we ‘see’ and arguably thus ‘understand’ has also transformed.
Take the mobile phone and the rise of vertical video. Or how video rendered on Instagram, before we could crop and choose the ratio. Do you remember when Instagram was an app originally using the confines of square photographs? (i remember the outrage by some photographers tbh…), but now, most instagram video is attempting to be driven by Reels, as a result of Instagrams knee-jerk reaction to TikTok’s capture of many eyeballs they crave for themselves…
…and at this point i’m going to stop talking about Instagram because we know they are a ‘responsive’ app, responding to needing to ‘keep up’ with what’s ‘popular’ or a ‘threat’ around them. Which doesn’t ping my pants, just in case you didn’t know where i might stand on that kind of approach to something…there’s room for all of us, cause there’s no competition baybee!
the impact of streaming services on how we frame and see + some ‘little nuggets of oop’!
So we have streaming services acquiring ‘older’ films as well as having a list of requirements for new productions under their banner (they stipulate things like what kind of camera the film/show should be shot on, how it should look and so on).
What’s really interesting is how we can see more than a director wanted us to see in some of the ‘older’ (lol they mean pre-2000) films/shows due to the differences in aspect ratios.
Here’s a Twitter thread from Todd Vaziri + co with screenshots of some examples:
consequences of how we ‘see’
I don’t know why this feels giddying, but i’m so interested in this. Because it raises questions like:
How does it feel to experience something with a different crop, what do we lose/gain?
What happens hen we have access to more information we were supposed to have?
Where do we stand with the integrity of experiencing a thing as it was intended, to some degree?
…Of course, everything is open to interpretation, and the latest series of Selling Sunset is a really good example in how we all come to things with our own stuff, loaded with experiences which are personal to us, and therefore have some kind of bias. Although, some are more biassed than others, and that’s often due to social conditioning, and capacity for empathy.
framing the gaze on a recent gallery visit
I’d also add here, i lean towards a bias which is concerned with how something i do might dilute the message of an artist i’m sharing, however well intentioned it might be. I think about it when, for example, i share on Instagram or right here in Substack. Or when i photograph a piece of art i like. I often hesitate before doing so, even if it’s only for me. But then if i’m sharing it, which i’m about to do here, i feel a concern about offering context to a thing. Context is my jam so perhaps that’s why. Or perhaps i’m overthinking it. The artist might enjoy something being shared, no matter the context. And there’s also the truth that is: when we make work, we can only do so much, then we hand it over to the world and we have to be ok with that. However awkward/terrifying that might be.
…Much like my process every time i send a Substack hehe. But seriously, please leave me a comment or something if you’re able, feels a bit less weird and one-dimensional a space!
case study/research moment
But here’s a mini picture essay from a visit to an exhibition i really enjoyed last week. It featured work from Robert Polidori at Galerie Karsten Greve.
The picture above shows the entire crop of the image - yet it’s still cropped as i’m taking a picture of a picture in a frame, right?
The two pictures just above this text are my own crops of the original image with details i found interesting…
…but at what cost? Because i am taking something away from the original image (yet also gaining a lot of pleasure to be able to look more closely at aspects of the photograph - i can feel the texture shivering through my spine ✨!)
Also, the images weren’t labeled or titled in the gallery so hope it’s ok to give you a taste!
why does this matter?
I suppose one point of this post is considering choice as part of our creative process, but also as consumers to a degree. Considering how we do these things, and recognising the responsibility of them. I’m not trying to be a wanker here, just a curious swirl. As well as (hopefully) an encouraging one. Cause the trick is not to get too attached and neurotic either way. Which is sort of impossible. And perhaps takes the pressure off?!
We make the choice. (do the thing / click send / take the picture / express that feeling)
We read / watch / gaze / consume (whose gaze? What context? How much? Which power dynamic? etc)
We can’t control it all (nor would we want to?!)
But i’m curious about your perspective.
Cause that’s what we’re discussing isn’t it?
How much we are choosing to include and/or crop out.
How much we’re taking in and how.
What do we lose? What do we gain? What remains?
…
some further questions for your consideration
please feel welcome and encouraged to answer all/one!
Are you watching Selling Sunset / Succession? Please share any threads of thought you have!
How much does it matter to consider the framing of something - will it always be a complicated nuance because there is so much ‘exchange’ at play when experiencing art?
Have you noticed any fun / funny / odd framings of ‘older’ films or shows on your travels? i find these little nuggets of oop so interesting!
meet me in the comments?
leave me a 🖼 or related ‘framing’ emoji! 🙌🏽 🎞 📐
Or drop a like and share this post if you simply enjoyed coming along for the ride!
…or am i just swirling on my own?!
If you’ve made it this far, thank you so much for reading! i deeply appreciate you!
love from Paris 🥖
dionne 💜
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