Blue Velvet

I chose to watch, interact with and think about Blue Velvet, the piece about New Orleans and hurricane Katrina.

To start, I loved the loading screen because it reminded me of the many shades of the ocean, and although it was not a positive piece about water (and touched very little on the actual flooding) I thought the coupling of the opening screen, the rainfall of words and the waves created when the words fell, that the overall effect came through quite clearly and creatively.

From a factual standpoint, the project revealed a lot that was little known to the general public, and by presenting it in a non-traditional way, people stayed interested and the message was better conveyed. It was easier to get through and more intriguing as a project rather than the same old news story. Not only that, but this project showed more of the history behind the segregation and bad-intentioned government policies that kept the area down.

The thing that stood out most was likely the section discussing the "redlining" and the reason that New Orleans is the hidden soul of America.

On order for this piece to be powerful, the reader/viewer needs to come with an open mind and open expectations. It isn't just about the hurricane or the aid that did or did not come. It's about the nation's view of the afrea before and after. It's about the CNN reporter saying "they are so poor, so black." It's about the years of keeping New Orleans in the chaotic part of the mind; denying its part of America by always blaming its traditions on other cultures; other peoples.

The part I thought was so incredible was the music. I thought it was incredible that it created tension, excitement, ethnic thought and anxiety at the same time. It was awe-inspiring to page through the project, but without the music, it would merely be an odd article instead of a piece of art.

This had to be made in a new and special way because the material presented isn't just what we all know, it's brand new and also hard to deal with.