Party In The UGA: Prepare to be judged!

I've tried not to be preachy on this BLOG for THE 136, but at this point, something must be said...and many of you have asked me to say it...so, I shall do so with your blessing...

Anyone who has taken a class with me has sat through the following diatribe on the first say of class:
"You cannot pretend that your work, whatever it is, will ONLY be viewed by your parents, your family, and your bestest friends. What you
make WILL be judged by those who do not know you, by those who wish to make fun of you, and by those who once they find out
YOU made it will hate your work just on principle. Like Mark Borschardt so aptly put it, 'You can't go around to every theatre and
say, "Sorry, folks! We tried!"' That is not professional, not logical, and simply not realistic."

Yes, we're all waiting to be judged on the "Party In The UGA" shown on numerous websites. We all know this was not a TELE ARTS project, but we all know that people will see it and immediately wonder how Grady College (or the Film Studies Program...we love them, too!) could allow this. Well, neither did, but we'll all take some heat for awhile on this...some already have.

So, why even bring this up? Because this is a good lesson in knowing your audience. I know (from a trusted and reliable source) this video was meant for a select group of people, and they enjoyed it. That's a good thing. Throwing this up on YOUTUBE and expecting people who were not a part of the same experience to judge this the same way: not the smartest move.

Once you put something out there for the world, you cannot expect the world to go, "Oh, wow! Well...they tried! Maybe it was supposed to be silly." Seriously? No one in TELE ARTS watches videos made by others that way, why should we think others watching our videos would?

Remember, 136, when WE create and distribute, WE know we will be judged on what we've created. WE will not provide excuses. What is on the screen is what people see. How they react, redistribute, and repurpose is something we can only control by making creative, professional works.

If you make something for just you and your friends, for the love of Myron...keep it between you and your friends.

Long Live The 136!