stefhanie-alejandro

[stefhanie-alejandro]

Philippine media was swarmed with news of a virus threatening to enter around December 2019. Although there was yet to be an official statement confirming the statement, the Filipino citizens went on a panicked shopping spree looking for surgical masks to protect themselves from the contagion. Months later on March 2020, the Philippines began to take measures to prevent the spreading of the contagion that has already entered the country. Along with this came the repeat of what happened in December of 2019, but a tad bit more intense this time around. Surgical masks were bought in boxes and those who were late had to buy them threefold the price online. Not even three months into quarantine, strict lockdowns have been imposed to secure the citizens’ safety. Once the ban on going out was lifted, the news then became littered with endless reiterations of warnings, tips and advice on how to protect oneself against the highly contagious virus. Above are only some of the examples of how social media assisted in spreading information. However, they are not always helpful, considering the panic that the audience feels once they read the news in blunt wording. What did help are the following:

Daily updates on the spread of the virus and the efforts to finding the cure.

Spreading information about the contagion—the early signs, symptoms, the steps to take once suspected of being a carrier.

Dispersing advice and tips on staying virus-free when going out

People in need have easier access to being noticed with the help of other users sharing their story while those who are capable of helping are only a few clicks and hashtags away from giving aid

False news are much easier to squash

Knowledge about how other countries are fighting the virus became models for what to do

If this pandemic had happened in the distant past where people rely only on deejays on the radio, reporters on the TV and the ink on the newspapers, it’s not hard to imagine that the results could be worse. In addition to slow access to information, this said info could be false or somewhat incorrect. Either situations would result to panic or even more cases.

[stefhanie-alejandro]

Today's song out on the plate is Sia Furler's Elastic Heart.

It was released on January 8th of 2015. The music video quickly garnered more than ten million views and continued to grow. There was a pedophilia controvery that rose due to the actors, Maddie Ziegler (12) and Shia Labeouf (28), wearing minimal and nude clothing and appeared to be showing a romance between a child and a grown man. However, the 39-year old Australian singer apologized and then asserted that Labeouf and Ziegler are merely only her two warring mental states. The singer has talked about her being diagnosed with bipolar disorder; an extreme side-effect of depression, which Furler has also been through for a long time. The performance, all in all, is an embodiment of Furler's inner sturggles.

       The music video on its own features two actors in an interpretative lyrical dance that conveys meaning through movement and facial expression. There are also different camera angles or perspectives in the video. It shifts constantly from Labeouf's perspective, to Ziegler's, and then the outsider's or from outside the cage. It can be noticed that there is a shift from normal lens to a more distorted fish-eye lens when the outsider's perspective is brought into the cage. The colors in the video are mostly of muted colors: nude tones, greys and whites. The symbols presented are the cage, the older man, the younger girl, and their dirty appearance. In the dance itself, there are repetitive movements such as growling, snarling and screaming. The cage symbolizes the singer's mind and in it is her young and aggressive self, portrayed by Ziegler. Labeouf represents Furler's maturef and much stronger self. Both actors are wearing dirty clothing and have an uncouth appearance—this signifies that they have been fighting for a long time, just like how Sia has been struggling with her illness for years now. In the scene where Labeouf wakes a sleeping Ziegler, it shows that her mature self is trying to reconnect with her past self. This awakens Ziegler and becomes even more aggressive. This can be seen as symbolic for relapse, a common part of recovery. At duration 3:25, Shia's character is seen carrying Maddie by the ankles like a backpack. This further reinforces the idea of the journey to recovery. There is also the idea that her "warring self-states" alternate between periods of violence and peace; in bipolar disorders, sufferers experience extreme mood changes similar to this. 

        However, in the end, Ziegler easily slips through the spaces in the cage. This implies that her past self can easily slip through the cracks of her mind. The first time this happens (at 2:55), Labeouf is displeased, as if Sia's matured self is angered that her past gets the best of her. But in the second time that this happens, Ziegler attempts to lead Labeouf out of the cage but to no avail. This shows that Furler's matured self feels that she is not ready yet and is yet to feel satisfied with her control over herself, so she remains in the cage of her mind. In the lyrics, "I'm still fighting for peace" and "I want my life so bad, I'm doing everything I can", Furler is continuing her struggle to take control of her condition; this is also shown by Labeouf's character continuing his struggle against Ziegler's. The song is titled Elastic Heart because Furler wants to say that she is not easily broken but if it's "pulled too hard", she might snap and break.

        The song and lyrics on its own evokes emotions such as inspiration, sadness and even a feeling of strength to overcome. The actors' acting and overall performance inspires awe and makes the audience think. The song, coupled with with the artistic performance in the music video, Elastic Heart becomes a magnificent piece of art that can be interpreted in different ways.