Short Film Starred by Luis Tosar

Luis Tosar was a student at our school, "Nosa Señora dos Ollos Grandes" and he always mentions he became an actor thanks to one of our teachers, Mavisa - read about that part of his life here. He left the school before I arrived but most teachers feel he is period of the history of our school and we feel very proud of his success.

The short film below is called "Cólera" - a word with two meanings in Spanish:  on the one hand, "anger / fury"; on the other hand,"an infectious disease which if often epidemic". Once you have seen the film, explain the choice of this noun for the title: what meaning of "cólera" does it refer to? why do you think so? is it a good title? (why (not)?)

 
Cólera from Sr.&Sra. on Vimeo.

I have decided to include one of the comments I read about this video; it was written by Adam Lerman. Read it to see how much you understand about its content and decide whether you agree with him or not - you may need to watch the film again to notice all the details he mentions:

A total work. The influence of blood red on the setting (purple skies, rust-brown earth), the raw sound design (mortally thematic circling of flies; that perfect sound of the rock hitting him in the head followed by the ringing), the seamless shift from camera fluidity to shakiness depending on the subject's level of confidence and fear, the cross formed in the doorway just before the hand emerges (a crossing over the threshold? a reference to the crucifixion of a do-gooder misunderstood?), the low light on the stunning makeup to emphasize the townspeople's lack of understanding, the circling repetition of the score (the disease repeating itself in cycles despite (or because of) their actions, everything in this film plays directly into the core of the film's themes. Love it.

What do you think about this short-film? Do you like it? Why (not)?

School Year 2013-14: Homework Assignment 4

Manuela Moreno won the award for the best screenplay and best director in the XI edition of Notodofilmfest with this short film "Pipas"(=sunflower seeds).

As a teacher, my feelings about this video are bittersweet: it is so funny and yet so true and,therefore, sad...

Here´s your homework: 

• switch off the sound and watch the video; as you read its subtitles in English, try to imagine what the conversation will sound like in Spanish. Pay attention to its slang and colloquial language
• write a new title for the film and explain why you think yours is better
• write a message to your class tutor explaining why you think you should/shouldn´t see and discuss this video in class
• turn the sound on and watch it again. Believe me, it is worth it!

Corto PIPAS from Manuela Moreno on Vimeo.

Start the weekend with a smile!

Note:  I first saw this video in Trafegando Ronseis, a blog that I truly recommend

A Glowing Future

Now you have all read Ruth Rendell´s story, A Glowing Future, you  may feel like watching this version for TV.

I think the story is better than the short film but you may not agree and, anyway, it will be a good listening exercise. Pay attention to the following:

• vocabulary: how much do you understand and remember from your list?
• the pronunciation of words you had to study
• the differences in the plot between the story and the short film
• the characters: did you expect them to look like this? how did you imagine them as you read the story?

Which do you like best, the written story or the short film? Why?

An Animated Short Film

We do not often get to hear people with Irish accents in our lessons; maybe that´s why we often find them hard to understand but that won´t be the case with this video here because the transcript is included in the lower part of the screen. Tony Donoghue made this Irish film which has just won an award for the best short animation at the Sundance Film Festival.

The video is 8 minutes long, it uses the stop-motion technique and it is about the restoration of traditional furniture, which can be a great opportunity for you to learn the names of some pieces of furniture - by the way, they are Irish but they could perfectly well be Galician, don´t you agree?

What Things in Your Life Make You Happy? 2

A few days ago I wrote about this topic, What Things in Your Life Make You Happy?, and here I am insisting on it - being happy is important, you know, and sometimes it is difficult to achieve but other times we just don´t know what it takes so let me give you some ideas.

This is a video about 88-year-old Johnny Barnes, a man from Bermuda, who considers himself a happy man and who devotes six hours every day to smile and wish a good day to people driving around in their cars (most of them on their way to work). 

This video, directed by Matt Morris, has won a few awards, the Audience Award for Best Short Film at the AFI/Discovery Silverdocs and the Best Documentary Short Film at the Sidewalk Film Festival, among others, so it may be worth giving it a try. From the point of view of English, it can be used to practise your listening (very rarely do we get the chance of hearing someone with his accent). To check how much you understand, click here to read the transcript.

Mr. Happy Man from Matt Morris Films on Vimeo.