The Mòd is a Gaelic festival not much different from any other music festival except in its celebration of the whole culture surrounding the language, not just the music and poetry. So why mention it in my Reflective Performance Journal? Well, I competed this year in the Silver Pendant competition (for solo singers; the Silver pendant being the highest accolade for learners of the language) and to my delight I won (picture is me receiving the trophy for highest marks in the men’s competition). Though this may seem to have little to do with my studies in film and television it is nevertheless performance and, as I am now aware, this is a Performance Journal. There is a lot to be learned from standing up in front of an audience to communicate a song, especially if you yourself are not fluent in the language you are singing. It is a good insight into the actor’s process in terms of getting inside a character, and communicating that character, even if they themselves do not reflect that personality at all. I did also record a song for television (and I got to sit in the BBC studio for a bit to watch them work) which, again, was invaluable first-hand experience of what it’s like to perform for a camera, or in this case three or four. Moreover I think there is something in the communicating of a song in a language that I am not completely familiar with, but that in most cases my audience was, that directly reflects where I am as a filmmaker right now. I’m not going to pretend I am fluent in the language of film. I am definitely learning it, and am able to understand, interpret and speak it more and more, but as yet my knowledge as a filmmaker does not match that of the audience, who in most cases have been brought up with it. Yet, like my Gaelic singing this does not necessarily limit my ability to tell a story through the medium of film. I know neither my Gaelic nor my music was flawless in my songs but it wasn’t entirely because of technical ability that I won. I believe it was because I knew the message of the song and I put all my effort into communicating that with the audience. They engaged with the character, they felt the emotion and the slight technical problems didn’t even matter. The same is true of film. If the message and meaning is convincingly and wholeheartedly portrayed the audience will not worry that the filmmaker is not quite fluent in the language; they will sit back and enjoy the performance.
Friday, 16 October 2009
The Royal National Mòd 2009
The Mòd is a Gaelic festival not much different from any other music festival except in its celebration of the whole culture surrounding the language, not just the music and poetry. So why mention it in my Reflective Performance Journal? Well, I competed this year in the Silver Pendant competition (for solo singers; the Silver pendant being the highest accolade for learners of the language) and to my delight I won (picture is me receiving the trophy for highest marks in the men’s competition). Though this may seem to have little to do with my studies in film and television it is nevertheless performance and, as I am now aware, this is a Performance Journal. There is a lot to be learned from standing up in front of an audience to communicate a song, especially if you yourself are not fluent in the language you are singing. It is a good insight into the actor’s process in terms of getting inside a character, and communicating that character, even if they themselves do not reflect that personality at all. I did also record a song for television (and I got to sit in the BBC studio for a bit to watch them work) which, again, was invaluable first-hand experience of what it’s like to perform for a camera, or in this case three or four. Moreover I think there is something in the communicating of a song in a language that I am not completely familiar with, but that in most cases my audience was, that directly reflects where I am as a filmmaker right now. I’m not going to pretend I am fluent in the language of film. I am definitely learning it, and am able to understand, interpret and speak it more and more, but as yet my knowledge as a filmmaker does not match that of the audience, who in most cases have been brought up with it. Yet, like my Gaelic singing this does not necessarily limit my ability to tell a story through the medium of film. I know neither my Gaelic nor my music was flawless in my songs but it wasn’t entirely because of technical ability that I won. I believe it was because I knew the message of the song and I put all my effort into communicating that with the audience. They engaged with the character, they felt the emotion and the slight technical problems didn’t even matter. The same is true of film. If the message and meaning is convincingly and wholeheartedly portrayed the audience will not worry that the filmmaker is not quite fluent in the language; they will sit back and enjoy the performance.
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