Today I attended the 222.370 paper of Video 1.
It is a great and interesting course, but I felt immensely disappointed to discover that the course contents contained the exact same principles on which I graduated about 4 years ago.
The majority of the course involved outside filming. This means that it's a great course if you want to become a professional filmmaker!
But one should not forget that the main point of an exchange is to learn new skills and theory that apply to one's current education. Mine is game design. I use the film industries' theory and practice of storyboards, scening and scriptwriting for this quite freely because there are points where it is useful. Yet the only camera I've used since graduating has been the filming option on my digital photo-camera. The chance that I will use let alone come across a three star camera after my studies is nihil. Chances are bigger that when there's a need of such equipment, there's also need of someone who made filming their vocation.
We should expect to spend about 12 hours of extra study for each paper. If you go out filming, you're dealing with a course depending on a lot of factors such as weather, actors and locations.
For the reasons of already possessing the theory and being unwilling to endanger the focus on my other studies that contribute more to the study back home, I've withdrawn from this paper after discussing the situation with the teacher.
At this point in the semester, there are no consequences to such a thing.
maandag 28 februari 2011
vrijdag 25 februari 2011
Massey University Orientation week - Day # 5
Friday! Last day of these orientation days.
Featuring: IT and Subject briefings.
Subject briefings meant meeting the first-year lecturers for my studies. Not sure if we'll ever meet again after this day for the remainder of my time here... but nice to meet them anyway, right?
Didn't need anything else to attend, so guess where Eve went next? Right, IT department. They're really really nice up there! Offered to trade my laptop for a Mac, even.
All fun and giggles aside, the end result is that windows 7 64-bit provides an error somewhere. It's not the fault of my system, as more encounter it. Asked to come back a few weeks later to see if they resolved.
Bought a usb to solve my problem.
In the evening they had a freshers' party going on. You didn't think Kiwi's didn't party, right? They do.
The party was nice and a lot of fun.
Featuring: IT and Subject briefings.
Subject briefings meant meeting the first-year lecturers for my studies. Not sure if we'll ever meet again after this day for the remainder of my time here... but nice to meet them anyway, right?
Didn't need anything else to attend, so guess where Eve went next? Right, IT department. They're really really nice up there! Offered to trade my laptop for a Mac, even.
All fun and giggles aside, the end result is that windows 7 64-bit provides an error somewhere. It's not the fault of my system, as more encounter it. Asked to come back a few weeks later to see if they resolved.
Bought a usb to solve my problem.
In the evening they had a freshers' party going on. You didn't think Kiwi's didn't party, right? They do.
The party was nice and a lot of fun.
donderdag 24 februari 2011
Massey University Orientation week - Day # 4
Today meant more lectures about handy student stuff.
Not so new for me, so instead of sitting at an optional lecture telling you how to use a computer I hiked around the campus confirming papers, sorting timetables, getting evening access cards, get tickets for orientation-week related events for next week and much much more.
Halfway through the afternoon I got up to the IT department, and my laptop made such good friends with them. Seriously, it did. Every IT-technician gets happy from working at a laptop for about three hours straight and not getting it to use the browser, right? It uses internet for skype and msn and such, but browsers can't connect to the Massey server.
In the end, I was told to come back the next day to have another try.
Not so new for me, so instead of sitting at an optional lecture telling you how to use a computer I hiked around the campus confirming papers, sorting timetables, getting evening access cards, get tickets for orientation-week related events for next week and much much more.
Halfway through the afternoon I got up to the IT department, and my laptop made such good friends with them. Seriously, it did. Every IT-technician gets happy from working at a laptop for about three hours straight and not getting it to use the browser, right? It uses internet for skype and msn and such, but browsers can't connect to the Massey server.
In the end, I was told to come back the next day to have another try.
woensdag 23 februari 2011
Massey University Orientation week - Day # 3
Did I mention that orientation here is really aimed at getting students ready for their semesters? No? Well, by now this gets really obvious, with today starring all sorts of classes and lectures about how to handle your finances as a student, use the library, get set up with studylink and most important, how to study.
Massey likes to pack their students with lots of workload, announcing that for each paper, students would have to count for about 12 hours extra study time.
While they didn't cover things a third year USAT student wouldn't know already, these lectures allowed me to get in contact with other people and make friends. That's a good way to spend these hours.
In the evening there was a movie night for the international students, featuring a Maori movie called Whale Rider. It's a great movie featuring some of their traditions, go and see it if you're interested!
Massey likes to pack their students with lots of workload, announcing that for each paper, students would have to count for about 12 hours extra study time.
While they didn't cover things a third year USAT student wouldn't know already, these lectures allowed me to get in contact with other people and make friends. That's a good way to spend these hours.
In the evening there was a movie night for the international students, featuring a Maori movie called Whale Rider. It's a great movie featuring some of their traditions, go and see it if you're interested!
dinsdag 22 februari 2011
Massey University Orientation week - Day # 2
Today was the orientation day for the College of Creative arts.
We had several important persons of the college give a welcome speech to the new students, and after that we got a tour around the campus showing us where's where. Considering that the quick and easy route through Massey is now a construction site for a new building... this was very welcome.
Around 1 there was a traditional Maori Powhiri. It is a ceremony where one would be welcomed into the Marae, the Maori's meeting house. It involved a lot of singing in the native tongue, where leaders of our group would answer the calls of the Maori inviting us and then we'd shuffle in.
After everyone got seated in the main hall of Tokomaru, which is the name of the museum building, we got more speeches. Most of it was in Maori.
The language is very expressive in both tone and body language, with wide gestures and sharp deviations in how words sound. I couldn't understand most of it, but still it was very inspiring.
We had several important persons of the college give a welcome speech to the new students, and after that we got a tour around the campus showing us where's where. Considering that the quick and easy route through Massey is now a construction site for a new building... this was very welcome.
Around 1 there was a traditional Maori Powhiri. It is a ceremony where one would be welcomed into the Marae, the Maori's meeting house. It involved a lot of singing in the native tongue, where leaders of our group would answer the calls of the Maori inviting us and then we'd shuffle in.
After everyone got seated in the main hall of Tokomaru, which is the name of the museum building, we got more speeches. Most of it was in Maori.
The language is very expressive in both tone and body language, with wide gestures and sharp deviations in how words sound. I couldn't understand most of it, but still it was very inspiring.
zondag 20 februari 2011
Massey University Orientation week - Day # 1
So, today marks the start of Massey's first semester. Or at least orientation week kicked off.
It was quite the interesting and inspiring set of presentations in the morning, introducing us International Students to Massey and letting us know what's what and where.
Then we got a bus tour through Wellington city, which was very, very nice. I intend to go back to the Mt. Vic outlook sometime later during a day because the camera had stayed home.
On our return to the University grounds we had a little presentation regarding the apartments, who to go to and what the rules are.
I took the hour break between this Accommodation Orientation presentation and the presented dinner to hop by the College of Creative Art's office to check for my papers. Because a second one also started to disappear mysteriously.
I am now confirmed for the papers Drawing for Visual Communication Design, Computer Animation, Digital Video and Visual Communication Design Studies.
Would've timetabled them too at the library if it wasn't for the on-line network flipping out on me.
Tomorrow will be CoCa day, with an orientation and welcome from the college whose classes I'm attending, as well as a Maori welcome. Very excited for that!
Can't wait for these papers to start.
It was quite the interesting and inspiring set of presentations in the morning, introducing us International Students to Massey and letting us know what's what and where.
Then we got a bus tour through Wellington city, which was very, very nice. I intend to go back to the Mt. Vic outlook sometime later during a day because the camera had stayed home.
On our return to the University grounds we had a little presentation regarding the apartments, who to go to and what the rules are.
I took the hour break between this Accommodation Orientation presentation and the presented dinner to hop by the College of Creative Art's office to check for my papers. Because a second one also started to disappear mysteriously.
I am now confirmed for the papers Drawing for Visual Communication Design, Computer Animation, Digital Video and Visual Communication Design Studies.
Would've timetabled them too at the library if it wasn't for the on-line network flipping out on me.
Tomorrow will be CoCa day, with an orientation and welcome from the college whose classes I'm attending, as well as a Maori welcome. Very excited for that!
Can't wait for these papers to start.
donderdag 17 februari 2011
vrijdag 11 februari 2011
Te Papa Tongarewa
Visited the Te Papa Tongarewa Museum in Wellington today. Went to the Treaty of Waitangi exhibition which provides an indept overview of the history of British arrival to New Zealand and the agreement they made with the Maori.
Very interesting was how the Maori version of the treaty seems significantly different from the English version about the rights and entitlements of the Maori.
Also visited the Greenstone and Maori culture exhibitions. Greenstone or ' Pounamu' are apparantly Maori property at all times and included in traditions. The Maori Meeting House exhibited at the museum was incredibly pretty and immense.
No pictures of this as I normally don't photograph in musea. But the museam is a great place to visit and I will probably visit again sometime later.
Very interesting was how the Maori version of the treaty seems significantly different from the English version about the rights and entitlements of the Maori.
Also visited the Greenstone and Maori culture exhibitions. Greenstone or ' Pounamu' are apparantly Maori property at all times and included in traditions. The Maori Meeting House exhibited at the museum was incredibly pretty and immense.
No pictures of this as I normally don't photograph in musea. But the museam is a great place to visit and I will probably visit again sometime later.
dinsdag 8 februari 2011
New Zealand - Wellington - Day Two
Made a walk around Wellington today, but it eventually became more of a hike. Found: a nice little park me and Ingrid had lunch in, the railway station, Botanic gardens, the ocean, a curled up fern, a butterfly, a bank that wanted to change my dollars and euros to NZDs, an internet cafe, free wifi region on the pier, so many churches you can't help notice and much much more.
Gonna head home to the Cube for dinner now.
Lets hope someone's there to tell me how to get internet in my room.
Gonna head home to the Cube for dinner now.
Lets hope someone's there to tell me how to get internet in my room.
Travel from Amsterdam to Los Angeles to Auckland to Wellington
Travel summary:
Flight to Los Angeles from Schiphol: 11 hours
Departure: 10:50
Waiting time: 10 hours
Departure: 10:50
Waiting time: 10 hours
Flight to Auckland from LAX: 12 hours
Departure: 22:00
Departure: 22:00
Flight to Wellington from Auckland: 1 hour
Departure: 9:30
Departure: 9:30
Total travel time: 34 hours
The trip to Los Angeles International Airport was literally just sit and go, watching movies and playing a few DS games along the way. Space was a bit cramped, even for me, so there was little sleep to be had.
At Los Angeles I met up with a good friend of mine, and we visited the Aquarium of the Pacific. We had tons of fun there and saw wonderful critters. People know how much I like to photograph critters and nature.
After a good meal at a steakhouse (Australian, for laughs'n'giggles) it was back to LAX terminal 2 for the check in with Air New Zealand. Destination: Auckland.
I fell asleep as soon as we were in the air, completely exhausted after 21 hours of being awake.
I fell asleep as soon as we were in the air, completely exhausted after 21 hours of being awake.
The hardest part for me was the time spend at Auckland Airport, where I wanted nothing else but collapse and sleep more. Unfortunately, there was still an airplane being readied to take me to Wellington. Which is not funny.
Having arrived in Wellington, there was no-one waiting to collect me, while this should have been the case. A few phonecalls later and a shuttle took me to the Cube appartement building.
Having arrived in Wellington, there was no-one waiting to collect me, while this should have been the case. A few phonecalls later and a shuttle took me to the Cube appartement building.
I'm in New Zealand, Wellington. My appartement is on one of the main streets in the city.
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