COM 207.3: The Creative Person: Steven Spielberg

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I came across a 1998 article written by Rogert Ebert for TIME Magazine's "TIME 100 Artists and Entertainers" and knew exactly that one of its shortlists, Steven Spielberg, would fit the category of a "creative person."

The name says it all. When we hear Steven Spielberg, we get transported to worlds that we never thought existed or we could be in. We become reminiscent of his movies we've seen when we were young.

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Tell me, did you not get scared of swimming in the beach knowing that at any moment, a shark can attack and pull your limbs off thanks to the horror/ thriller JAWS? Just to hear its musical score is enough to make the audience chill right? The Jaws phenomenon has been global in magnitude.

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I'm sure you've also fallen in love with E.T. and wished you also had an alien friend didn't you? How about Schindler's List? It compelled so many people's emotions about the fate of the Holocaust victims and how hard it was to survive the world war.

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I can go on with a list of Spielberg movies that may have had a definite impact on our lives but allow me to share what I have read from Ebert's TIME article.

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One night when Spielberg was young, his father suddenly woke him up from sleep, asked him to step on the car, and drove him to a place unbeknownst to him. Spielberg was very scared and his heart was beating fast for the night was very dark and the purpose of the travel was uncertain. Then, when they got out of the car, he saw many people lying on blankets. His dad soon laid their own and they both lied down. When he looked up the sky just like how the others did, he saw something that he didn't expect - a meteor shower. It was so spectacular that from then on, he never looked at the sky and thought it was a bad place.

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Certain experiences in life can really bring the best out of us. As with the case of Spielberg, this event of his life has changed his perspective of certain directorial standpoints. For example, many directors project darkness as a void that conceals mystery but not for Spielberg who rather conceals mystery thru light.

A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001) trailer

Furthermore, one of Spielberg's most important contribution to modern movies is his insight. His vision was that an enormous number of audience will be generated if low budget commercial movies (known as B movies) were made with A-level craftsmanship accompanied by enhanced technological/ special effects.

Indiana Jones: Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) trailer

Think of Raiders of the Lost Ark (Indiana Jones series), Close Encounters of the Third Kind, E.T., Jurassic Park, and so much more with themes, concepts and approaches that are all ahead of their generation but generally appeal to the public.

The Color Purple (1985) trailer

Ebert (1998) says "Spielberg's first films were made at a time when directors were the most important people in Hollywood, and his more recent ones at a time when marketing controls the industry." Hence, he has remained one of the most powerful and influential filmmakers in the world at both periods of time. When a talented and flexible entertainer and artist came together, Ebert says, "the result was... a remarkable fusion of mass appeal and stylistic."

Jurassic Park (1993) trailer

This reminds me of our previous lesson about intersection and how the merging of fields can produce creative insights and ideas that leap into new directions. This is further supported by Alfred Hitchcock praising Spielberg in his movie Jaws, saying "he's the first one of us who doesn't see the proscenium arch (he was the first mainstream director to think outside the visual dynamics of the theater)."



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The success of the Spielberg movies thru his creative ingenuity, vision and artistry, will not totally materialize had it not been for the people who supported or critiqued him all the way. This is definitely not a one-man show but someone's got to start the process and we've got Steven Spielberg entering the doorstep. The advancement of technology and convergence of science, have both been keys in transforming thoughts into things that are tangible and believable which Spielberg and the people he had or has been working with (another critical ingredient for success) had come to appreciate and fully-grasped of.

Steven Spielberg has innovated and improved the quality of films we watch; revolutionized the movie industry; paved the way for great new directors, producers, and etc.; and truly entertained us in a whole new level. The Academy awards, the box-office records, the high revenues, the prestige, the recognitions and so forth are all icings on the cake.

COM 207.3 Blog # 3: The Five Sniglets

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According to the book "The Story of English" by Robert McCrum William Cran, & Robert MacNeil, the "Oxford English Dictionary lists about 500,000 words; and a further half-million technical and scientific terms remain uncatalogued. " 

Johnny Ling in 2001 said that "today, more than 750 million people use the English language. An average educated person knows about 20,000 words and uses about 2,000 words in a week."

Despite its widespread use, I realized that there are still many words in this world that should find themselves an entry in the dictionary thanks to what we call SNIGLETS.

Acclaimed TV host Rich Hall, during his stint in the popular 1980s HBO series titled Not Necessarily the News, had a regular segment that featured sniglets which he describes as "any word that doesn't appear in the dictionary, but should." 

I was able to browse some sniglets at Bert Christensen's Truth & Humour Collection and let me share the top 5 sniglets that caught my attention:

Baldage (bald' aj) - n. The accumulation of hair in the drain after showering.

Flopcorn (flop' korn) - n. The unpopped kernels at the bottom of the cooker.

Grackles (grak' elz) - n. The wrinkles that appear on the body after staying in water too long.

Orogami (or oh ga' mee) - n. The miraculous folding process that allows Kleenexes to methodically emerge from the box one ate a time.

P-spot (pee' spaht) - n. The area directly above the urinal in public restrooms that men stare at, knowing a glance in any other direction would arouse suspicion.

If I may just share, if the definition of sniglets is that they are words that do not appear in the dictionary, but should, then I believe sniglets  are also present in the Filipino language, most prevalently in gay lingo.

The Filipino gay language, also known at present as beki lingo or bekimon (beki meaning bakla or gay) has been in existence for decades and has now evolved into almost a dictionary volume in number.

Gay lingos usually come in the form of swardspeak. According to Jose Javier Reyes' book Swardspeak: A Preliminary Study, swardspeak can be compared with street slang or "salitang kanto" but is rather spoken by a "sward" or "gay male/ bakla."

On the other hand, Cynthia Grace B. Suguitan, a professor in the University of the Philippines, wrote in her research A Semantic Look at Feminine Sex and Gender Terms in Philippine Gay Lingo that "gayspeak uses words that are part of mainstream language (e.g. Filipino or English), but applies them metaphorically. As a result, the words acquire core or sense meanings very different from that of their roots."

Though one trait of gay lingo is that it changes every-so-often that some words become obsolete, outdated or out-fashioned, there are still universal classic gay lingos that remain. Here are some gay lingo sniglets that I'm sure you have most probably heard of and has been commonly used by either straight or gays these days:

Charing (int.)- just kidding! joke only!

syn.: charot, choz, chenez, chika

Chaka (adj.) - ugly

syn. chuckie, shonget, kyonget

Getz? - understood?

Kalurkey (adj./ v) - go crazy

etym.: kaloka

Taruj (adj.) - taray, winner

etym.: taray, wagi

The commonalities between the sniglets earlier mentioned and the Filipino gay linggo is that (1) they are words not found in the dictionaries and (2) they depict objects, actions, events and etc. that are not defined formally.

Two of their ironies however, is that (1) sniglets formed in the 80's are still the sniglet words at present whereas the gay linggo formed in the 80's, though still the same in meaning, now comes in different spelling. (2) The English sniglets are not commonly used unlike gay lingo which many Filipinos use or encounter almost every time.

To those who are not familiar with the present gay lingo, I leave with you, a viral youtube video of Mr. Ben Josep Persia, popularly known as Nanay Bekimon, and one of the major stalwarts of the bekimon revolution. The title of the video is "ALPABETONG BEKIMON - The ALPHABEKS" Enjoy!

COM 207.3: The iPod Revolution

(Originally posted at http://georgiehoon.blogspot.com/2011/06/com-2571-ipod-revolution.html dated June 26, 2011)

For my second blog entry on our Creativity and Problem Awareness Class, I would reflect on Discovery Channel's documentary: "The iPod Revolution" and correlate "The Medici Effect" by Frans Johansson, along with Sir Ken Robinson's "The Arts and Education: Changing Track." 

First of all, I've never had an iPod (as of this writing). Whether it's shuffle, nano, classic or touch, I've never owned one. Most of my friends, classmates and colleagues have it. When I go to malls, I see many people from all walks of life, shapes and sizes, wearing white earbuds and listening to music from their colorful and stylish iPods that fit right into their pockets. When I watch TV, several celebrities look cool with it. It seems like iPod's the next best thing since Play Station.

The only time I'm able to use the iPod is when I'm with someone I know who has one. During get-togethers with friends, I sometimes borrow theirs and start exploring this tiny gadget. The three major things I've noticed are: 1.) when you're listening music from an iPod, it's like you have your own world - distinct, separate and uniquely yours at your own space and time; 2.) carrying and wearing the iPod gives you that feeling of being part of the "IT" crowd and you tend to act differently like you're in a higher social strata; and 3.) most iPod users I've known, like my friends, usually say that they can't live without an iPod (apart from their cell phones, netbooks and other gizmos).

As the eldest son, owning an iPod, and any expensive technological device for the matter, is not part of my shortlist of priorities. I was not born with a silver spoon on the mouth nor am I raking a huge salary on my present job. If I want to have one, I would have to work harder or spare extra money over a long period because as a sort-of breadwinner, one of my responsibilities is to support my family's financial needs. The good thing though is that I have high tolerance over the matter and do not easily succumb to peer pressure or envy. In my mind, I know that certain sacrifices have to be made in order to support the people important to you.

Okay, enough with the drama. Regardless of why I'm not buying an iPod, if you ask me if I still want an iPod, I'll quickly answer, "YES, I WANT TO HAVE AN IPOD!"

Sir Ken Robinson in his The Arts and Education: Changing Track says that "the world is engulfed in an economic revolution driven by two main forces: technology and demography." Furthermore, "children and teenagers are living now in a different world from their parents. They network, communicate, and create online in ways that many adults don't really understand and often fear..."

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And yes, as a young adult, I fear that I may not keep up with the times if I don't keep track of the trends and technology at present. Hence, even if buying an iPod is not my priority, I still plan to purchase one, maybe in the near future but not exactly now.

Awhile ago, I mentioned about three major things I've noticed with iPod users I know. Let me just recall the second and third one.

You see, carrying an iPod and showcasing it in public is like buying your own Starbucks coffee. It gives you a share on its intrinsic value. You're paying for the brand (much more I suppose than the actual use or benefit of the product). Clearly, commercialism and commoditization of values have creeped in with iPod users. This is supported by Robinson's claim that "this global revolution is not only economic: it is also cultural... it raises profound questions of identity, values and purposes."

Next, I was able to compare myself with my iPod user friends. When they said that they can't live without it, I say "come on! you were able to live before without an iPod... as if it's a God-given object that you were born with that you have only discovered lately."

Speaking of iPod and how it revolutionized our lives, I can't help but feel amazed and proud of  the creativity and innovativeness of its creator, Steve Jobs, Chairman and CEO of Apple Inc. His vision of the future and how the world will be are simply outstanding.

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Taking light from Frans Johansson's "The Medici Effect," I realized that we can, like Steve Jobs, be creative if we come up with an idea that is original, new, have relevance and valuable. To cap it off, the idea must be realized by making it happen.

For those who would be reading this that don't know what the "Medici Effect" means, Johansson says that it is "the explosion of new breakthrough ideas."

It goes something like this: there are several fields in the world like science, mathematics, arts and so forth. Under those general fields, surely, there are many other fields or sub-fields under such as business, law, psychology, linguistics and all other courses you may think of in college. Definitely, some have mastered their own respective fields in the course of history. Their goal is to "evolve an established idea by using refinements and adjustments" says Johansson.

However, Johansson states that when concepts between multiple fields are combined, it creates an intersection that generates ideas that leap in new directions.

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This is exactly what Steve Jobs did. We all know for a fact that music is a primal thing. It has been there for ages as a form of communication or entertainment among its many other uses or purposes. In "The iPod Revolution" documentary, Jeffrey S. Young, author of iCon, says "music was the perfect synthesis for Apple... Steve understood that music is part of our DNA..."

Music is a basic human need and Apple Inc. had the technology that would let people access it at any given place or time. What came out? No less than the revoultionary iPod! Indeed, the intersection of different fields have created a breakthrough product that has, since its launching, changed the cultural landscape of the world in ways we've never expected.

Remember, innovation can only be achieved if an idea has been implemented or realized. Steve Jobs had the vision on how to do so and remembering him in Malcolm Gladwell's highly-acclaimed book "The Tipping Point," the "Law of the Few" mentioned that "the success of any kind of social epidemic is heavily dependent on the involvement of people with a particular and rare set of social gifts."

If our dream or goal is not only to enjoy what is offered to us but to become innovators like Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerburg and etc., in our own little ways, perhaps Robinsson says it best that "we live in an interconnected world, but there is someone making the connections... it could be you."

COM 207.3 Blog Reflection # 1

(Originally posted at http://georgiehoon.blogspot.com/2011/06/com-2073-blog-reflection-1.html last June 19, 2011)

In Graduate School, almost all of my classmates are working in the field of media. They are either in broadcast, print, online, advertising, PR and so forth. Truthfully, that is the line of work where I wish I could see myself with in the future. That's why I took AB Journalism in the University of Santo Tomas and now studying MA Communication at the Ateneo de Manila University.

However, fate sometimes plays with us and in my case, I got swayed to other paths. As you know, I am currently a banker. To be a banker is something that I did my best to evade as I did not wish to be like my parents who were both bankers. They believe that working in a bank can give you stability and security in life especially in the long run - which is true in a sense (depending on how you look at it).

Well, I guess I had just granted my parents' wish... I am now working with Philippine Savings Bank (Head Office) at the Mortgage Banking Division. We are at the marketing and sales side of PSBank Home Loan. Basically, we help many people in several ways such as acquiring a residential property (house & lots, condominium units, townhouses, vacant lots or duplexes) thru PSBank Home Loan - Acquisition or help them build their dream house thru PSBank Home Loan - Construction or extend the use of their residential properties by using them as collateral to get extra cash thru PSBank Home Loan - Equity. We also help some clients transfer their existing loan(s) from other mortgagee institutions thru PSBank Home - Refinancing.

Working at a bank is truly a challenge because it is a service-oriented kind of job. Everyday, we deal with clients both local and international and each of them have their own kind of special handling. This is the industry where I saw different facets of life. The social strata of clients ranges from poor, middle-class, wealthy and the elite.  There are clients who are nice, respectful, patient, cooperative and easy to transact with, while there are those who are very demanding, tall-nosed, threatening and gets easily irate. If you are not physically, mentally and emotionally strong, you won't survive long in this kind of business. That's why we always look for creative solutions in  customer handling and improving our services and products to better serve our clients.

Image from http://www.psbank.com.ph/

Some of the positive aspects of working in a bank and offering Home Loan is that you become an essential tool or an instrument for others in achieving their dream house, or building a home for their families. When you see people that you don't even know smile and recognize your efforts in helping them reach their goals, it is truly rewarding and priceless...

When you get to appease irate or angry clients or make good friends (in a professional level) with those who are demanding or hard to transact with, it gives a feeling of triumph (like overcoming a huge obstacle). As the saying goes, "what does not kill you only makes you stronger." There are several avenues or techniques for handling difficult clients (some I have already tried and tested) such as simply lending them an ear or a helping hand instead of clashing with them. You can also find their soft spot or "kiliti" may it be thru a commonality or an interest. Definitely, you have to manage your clients expectations without over-promising or discouraging them. In truth, there are a thousand ways that you may apply. Some of them, I have learned the hard way, but we just have to be creative on the planning and execution and miracles can follow.

One of the things that I have taken note of from working in the banking industry is that customers, like us, would want to get the best service that could be given to us, whether in banks, restaurants, malls, schools and etc.

That is why we PSBankers have been embedded with the corporate philosophy that we are "Simple Lang and Maaasahan." We would like to let our stakeholders know that banking with us is simple and they can rely on us, our excellent service and our product.

Not that I am lifting a chair, but I am well-too aware that words are meaningless unless you translate them into action. It's a challenge to inculcate this motto to the public but as long as we put our best foot forward and stay true to our promise; become innovative and adapting to the changes of time; and listening well to the needs of the people, I am certain that any company who does so would have a greater chance of succeeding.

Let me just point out that effective communication plays a big role as well because regardless of how great the product or the service is; or how extensive and expensive the advertisements are; if we cannot properly send our messages across and address the needs of the clients, they would not appreciate us.

 

I may not be the best banker in town and should one day, I leave the industry and pursue my dream, I would be happy to settle on the fact that I have done my job at the best of my abilities and will forever remember that I have changed lives for the better in my own simple and maaasahan ways...



p.s. PSBank is one of the major sponsors of the University Athletics Association of the Philippines (UAAP).