Visual Literacy

"The Greatest Movie Ever Sold"   "The Greatest Movie Ever Sold" is a thought-provoking documentary directed by Morgan Spurlock that dives into the complex system of marketing in the film industry. The movie was released in 2011 and the film follows Spurlock's attempt to fund the production completely through corporate sponsorship.  Throughout the documentary, Spurlock engages with various companies and advertising executives to secure sponsorships, providing audiences with an insider's look into the details of commercialization in filmmaking. The film sheds light on the huge influence of advertising on content creation, showing how brands often shape the narratives of movies in exchange for financial support.   As Spurlock shows the complexities of corporate partnerships, he also dives into the ethical implications of these agreements. He raises questions about the integrity of film makers when commercial interest is also involved. This causes viewers to con...

 Guest Speaker- Carter Bowden This week we had another guest speaker in our visual literacy class. Carter Bowden is a director and producer best known for his work on Snowflake (2023) and Buffoon (2023). During our time together on zoom, Bowden and our class mainly discussed his work on the movie Snowflake. Many of the same questions were the same ones we asked the star of the film, Lily C Hansen. Some answers 

 Art Gallery      This week in visual literacy we took a trio to our art gallery. Students over the years have added their own art pieces to the collection right outside the atrium at Clarke University. Many of the pieces represent the many traits of visual literacy. My favorite is titled Breaking Bread and is a combination of the popular Tv show Breaking Bad and Christianity. The poster most vividly depicts a contrast because the two subjects couldn't be any more different. The show breaking bad is about a very over qualified chemistry teacher who has cancer and makes a last resort effort to provide for his family after his death by cooking and selling methamphetamine. This piece is my favorite because I love both of the things it encompasses. I am Christian and believe in the gospel but I have also watch and enjoyed the show. I found the art the most interesting to look at because it involves a juxtaposition of elements with differing qualities to create visual int...

 "Real Beauty"      The Dove company is one of the most well known body care brands in the world. They are most commonly known for manufacturing skin and hair products. Dove recently aired a commercial, pleading for people to express their true and natural beauty. Their goal was to boost the confidence of those to compare themselves to models and actors they see on tv, magazines and commercials. It is also shown that much of what we call "beautiful" is fake. Dove shows a time lapse video of a model getting her make up done professionally, then the photo she takes is altered by photoshop and edited to look almost nothing like real life. Dove exposes many companies and tries t protect the self extreme of many, especially women to actively use social media. I agree with their cause. I think that much of the beauty we see and strive to look like is fake and/or altered. I think it is very important to be comfortable in your own skin and be confident in who you are and ho...