Blog ‹ Juliet Liu

Madonna, Minaj, M.I.A.

February 3rd, 2012 § 0 comments § permalink

Anyone who knows me knows that I’m a child of the 90s through and through, with a little bit of nostalgia for the 80s too (scrunchies are SO practical). Maybe that’s why, despite my better judgment, I sort of really like this music video. Not to mention that the set kind of looks like a Gregory Crewdson set if he were a 19-year-old cheerleader. I’ve read some critics (a.k.a. Internet commenters) who say this song is reductive. That is 100% true, but so what? Britney’s “Criminal” is one of the most cloying songs I’ve ever heard, but that doesn’t mean I don’t listen to it and get it stuck in my head for days on end.

And for kicks, the new music video from M.I.A.’s “Bad Girl”:

Women on the Verge

January 27th, 2012 § 0 comments § permalink

Last semester I started a photo series for my digital photography course. Here’s a cursory artist statement about the project:

With my love of Hollywood cinema in mind, I began this photo series to explore the mythology of female celebrity. The girls who were chosen were all intentionally unrecognizable faces, forced into the spotlight of the camera and subject to the gaze of the viewer. A strobe light — its use noticeable in the shadows and glares of certain photos — lends the images a heightened sense of artificiality and construction. The resulting series, I hope, raises questions about viewing and being viewed, public and private, artifice and authenticity.

The notion of performativity before — and indeed, because of — a camera also fascinated me, but that opens up a whole different can of worms. Ultimately I don’t think this series is fully resolved, which is why I call it a work in progress. And to be honest, since I was being graded on the project, it caused me a lot of anxiety… but the fun kicked in once I set out with the girls to shoot around campus — you’ll see Gourmet Heaven, the Morse/Stiles walkway opposite Thai Taste (where Demi is walking through a smoke cloud), the Calhoun and Silliman butteries, the Silliman laundry and common rooms, and Taft Cosmetics on Whitney Ave, where I got a lecture from the store owner on the moral corruption of Hollywood and celebrities.

Some technical details: I was using my good ole Canon 60D (hoping to upgrade to the 5D Mark III which apparently exists now) and a Sigma 30mm f/1.4 lens. I’m partial to shallow depth of field and was working in some low-light situations, so I stopped it down to 1.8 or 2.0 most of the time. The flash was a Canon Speedlite 580EX II, controlled remotely via the 60D’s wireless flash control so I could aim the flash at bizarre angles. I used mostly curves in Photoshop for editing. Still not totally convinced about the colors in the aisle-shopping photo, but I literally cannot look at it any more or I’ll get a cataract.

I have to thank Caroline, Jess, Demi, Jen, Xena, and Isadora for all the free time they gave up to help me with this project. Although I like to think that it was fun for them — Demi even befriended some guys while waiting in line at Toad’s and was asked if she models professionally! See what happens when you volunteer for your artsy friends? X

The Great in Great Britain

January 8th, 2012 § 0 comments § permalink

Let it be known that on the fourth day of January in the year 2012, I saw Meryl Streep, Yale School of Drama graduate. I could almost reach out and touch her, but I didn’t because I thought that might be a little too creepy. Any other year, I might have said, pish posh Meryl Streep (might have, but definitely would not have). I have high hopes, however, for her winning the Academy Award for Best Actress, so this is a really emotional time for Meryl and me right now.

I was walking home one day on Waterloo Bridge, casually listening to “Dedication to My Ex” by Lloyd featuring Andre 3000 (does anybody else really, really miss OutKast?), when I saw a large crowd surrounding a strip of tarp that was leading up to the BFI Southbank, which is only a few minutes away from where I live in London. I asked one of the security officers what the brouhaha was for, and he told me that it was the European premiere of The Iron Lady, the new film starring Meryl Streep and directed by Phyllida Lloyd. The Meryl and Phyllida duo have a special place in my heart because of a little movie called Mamma Mia! that is superbly cheesy but so terribly fun to watch. The karaoke version is even better, trust me. (Seriously, if ever given the option between karaoke and non-karaoke Mamma Mia, always opt for the former.)

At first I think I missed Meryl’s entrance but no matter because I saw Anthony Head, who stars in The Iron Lady but whom I recognize at Uther Pendragon from the TV series Merlin and better yet as GILES (!!!) from Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

The back of Meryl’s head! Hellooooo, Meryl! Meryl in action!

And then at the end of the premiere, people started to take the posters that were hanging along the red carpet. I thought this might have been illegal. But I took one too. I should mention that my apartment is quite small so I could only put the poster on the chair near the foot of my bed. So now, whenever I get up in the morning, I wake up to find Meryl/Margaret peering down at me. I have yet to figure out what to do with her.

Takes Me Right Back

October 29th, 2011 § 0 comments § permalink

On Friday I saw a scene from a Daniel Craig movie, “Flashbacks of a Fool,” which I had never heard of before. I’m almost finished with it now and it’s by no means a great movie, but this particular scene is without a doubt the standout of the entire film: a flashback to 1970′s Britain, with the blonde boy as the younger version of Daniel Craig’s character and with Felicity Jones, whose breakout performance in “Like Crazy” has been earning her a lot of critical acclaim recently.

The editing at 2:53 is just spot on (and makes sense given the director’s background in music videos). I wondered why I was so drawn to this scene — but then I realized it reminded me of another very similar scene in Tom Ford’s “A Single Man,” which I saw forever ago with two friends on a dreary weekend in Boston.

And the carpet shots:

Video Rodeo #1 // Child at Heart

October 23rd, 2011 § 0 comments § permalink

I spend hours each week on Vimeo and Youtube, jumping from video to video and recommendation to recommendation. I probably should be doing other things, other productive things, but it’s too addictive to stop. I figured it was time to share some of my favorite videos, week to week, in a new blog series that I’m going to call “Video Rodeo.” Real corny, I know. But bear with me and I hope you enjoy!

An experimental film from the 1960s — completely silent but so fast-paced that the rhythm of the film creates an urban soundtrack of its own.

A short film about a boy and puberty and love. Kind of like Billy Ellot, but porn instead of ballet. (Warning: not at all like Billy Elliot.)

Beautiful color grading, haunting film score provided by the Golden Filter, and some amazing shots that made my hair rise.

I’m always a sucker for those youthful “look at how much fun we’re having” videos set to some up-and-coming indie rock band. This one does the genre particularly well.