So this is the new year...

So a new year starts with me looking for a new J-O-B. Things sounds like they're as slow in the biz as when I left, so I'm exploring my options and seeing what comes up. Doing a lot of searching on Idealist.org and also looking into Americorps positions. There's lots of competition everywhere I've heard, so I'm glad I can collect some unemployment checks for a bit while I find new work and then a new place to live.

Being back in the states is good. It's nice to come home just in time for the holidays and spend it with a critical mass of family. We had so many people staying over new years that I had to sleep in the family room!

Went and saw Avatar today in the theatre with my grandfather, and wow those effects were stunning! And it wasn't just the realism that got me, but the quality and style of the camera work in what were largely entirely digital scenes really impressed me. The camera movements, close-ups and panoramas, playing with the depth of field, sweeping shots that floated the main characters in and out of, it was all well done I thought.

The movie plot itself has been likened by many to Dances with Wolves and District 9 (the first for commonalities, the later for contrast). I thought it felt a bit like Ferngully with Steven Spielburg directing. What really intrigued me was the Na'vi (sp?) characters and the culture that was created by the writers and directors. They're a people in tune with the Earth Mother, able to communicate directly with her. You can observe the influences the animators and writers drew from when creating these characters, most obviously Native American and African tribal histories, possibly also Australian aboriginals. From the speech patterns and manhood rituals to clothing styles and fictional tribal relations it is simple to reverse engineer to the source material. And I wonder just how that affects how we perceive those cultures, and did they even go beyond their own built up ideas to for these characters? I mean, you don't have to look futher than the Lion King disney movie to find a tree of life! Granted, that really is a very common metaphor used in many stories, even in video games (Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time) so I can't really fault them for sticking with what works.

Not that Avatar doesn't make references to contemporary American culture. There are clear statements one materialism and captialism, as well as the Iraq war that are placed behind the thinnest of veils. There was one review I read that also made an intriguing, though perhaps not truly accurate leap towards “White Guilt.” It plays itself well on many levels and, though heavy handed perhaps with it's message, steers into a predictable and likable conclusion. I'd just rather have seen our hero, Jake Sully, make himself a martyr for both humans and Na'vi and through his death lay a foundation for reconciliation and harmony. The victory delivered in the ending is hollow and short-sighted, and large as that is, that seems to be the only real fault in the movie.

Back to prepping my resume and portfolio and writing cover letters. We'll see what comes in 2010. One thing has already come: a new phone! My old one was baptized in Spain (in the bottom of my bag with a leaky water bottle) and is now ready to be sent up to mobile phone heaven. To replace it, I bought a refurbed Blackberry Pearl Flip 8220! I love it, it looks great, has better reception and also has wifi, so now I can check my e-mail and stuff over free networks, which are everywhere these days, all without paying for a data plan! Woo Hoo!