#NasDoc

[mediadesignspring2017]

This Documentary will always be a classic to me, it’s elite in regards to music documentaries. The way it was filmed and edited was just a perfect reflection of the theme of the documentary itself: this focus on creativity and art is exactly how the documentary portrayed itself.

I tried to screen-capture certain techniques that I loved the most, but it wasn’t working, so these pictures are from google.

What techniques I loved most:

1. Mixed Footage- there was SO much content and so much footage for the filmmakers to work with. From live action original B-Roll of New York city in the present ( Ariel Shots of the QueensBridge Project, shots of kids playing in the sprinklers in the projects, shots of people playing basketball in the projects etc.) , live action original footage of them following Nas as he prepares for a performance in the present, live action original interview footage, Photos from their childhood, photos of their family and friends, archival footage from Nas’ journey, archival news footage (present signing off a bill or giving a speech, or journalist coverage of the crack epidemic, etc)

2. How the interviews were film- the voices were so prominent in this film, they only really showed actual footage of the interviews from time to time, but the voices carried through all throughout. The way they blended the interviews/ stories from Nas, to his father to his brother with such perfect cohesion was brilliant. They were all telling different perspectives, but the same exact story. Also, the interviews were shot at different times, but all merge together precisely; for instance, Nas was speaking in a car at one point, then he was on a couch, then he was in his hood, but all interviews were expanding on the same story and the sound design was the exact same, so without even seeing the interviews you would've easily thought it was just one interview alone; and this same technique was used with his father and his brother’s interviews. 

3. The transition from interview to B-Roll- every topic that was being discussed had Broll that reflected it perfectly wether it was pictures or videos etc. I really loved the scene where Jungle was discussing his father’s love for books and begins listing the kinds of books he used to read and as they were being listed it went from just jungle listing them, to his father listing them also and back and forth and the images were of the exact books being referenced. I thought that was cool.

There’s so much more to speak about this documentary, but those were techniques that I really loved. The film created an excellent timeline and showed the real transition from Nas as a youth to where he is today. 

[mediadesignspring2016]

Nas: Time is Illmatic

I really enjoyed the storytelling; how he grew up, his family and the neighborhood; how everything relates to his music style.

I also liked how they used B-Roll to illustrate everything Nas was telling —like pictures or videos. I though the effect in the pictures (like blurring the background and bringing the subject to the front) really helped to emphasize the story. These effects made the story more vivid and interesting to follow.

Music plays an important role in this documentary, which I believe it makes it so intense and entertaining. Whether it is in the background or explicitly shown, it is present the hole time and goes along with the different moods or sensations during the film.

[mediadesignfall2015]

To me, Time is illmatic is a well-made documentary because it relies on three original and innovative techniques.

1. It uses the album’s soundtracks creatively by placing shots of Nas recording a song in the studio (very aesthetic set up with original use of light/darkness) before using the same song as background music, thus immersing us in the artist’s creative process.

2. It uses a wide range of footage from low-quality recordings of live performances to shots of Queensbridge and archival footage from the news (when they speak about the ravages of drug-related crimes in ghettos) as b-rolls for interviews, which are shot in a very ambitious way (close ups, original angles).

3. The documentary makes a great use of still imagery from Nas’s childhood and career, enhanced by innovative techniques like the Ken Burns effect (slow zooming and panning effect on the photo) and 2.5D perspective (layering the photograph in order to create depth), thus conveying the impression of animated still photographs.

[mediadesigns15]

I am in love with the environmental shots since they offer a more context-based understanding of the entire documentary and in an incredibly significant way they afford Nas the humanistic understanding he was often deprived of by the media and (white) public gaze. 

The first and last shots contextualizes that for me; that he was a child who grew up in systematic violence and this was how he was informed about the world around him.

The shots in the middle, in varying forms, offer those political panning shots that are usually absent from documentaries on issues like race, systematic brutality, endemic poverty, displacement and more. One of the best hip-hop documentaries I’ve ever seen.

[mediadesignspring2017]

I have loved Nas and Illmatic for many years and it was great to see all the work, hopes, dreams, work and pain that went in to the making of this iconic record. The insight and breaking down of the different pieces of the album and how it came together made was very good.

Visually this film juxtaposed images of hope ( Nas going back to QueensBridge, A bird flying over the projects, childhood pictures, Nas performing in front of giant crowds, etc.)  with stories and images of struggle ( Archival footage of NYC and police brutality, The story of Ill Will’s death, Nas’ brother discussing the group picture from Illmatic) This juxtaposition creates a very melancholic mood that mirrors Nas’ lyrics and Illmatic’s song content. Also, the effect on the 2D images in this film give them a very lively cinematic feel and enhances the story-telling in the film. 

The pacing of the imagery seems to be rhythmic and fast to go along with the music from the album. The movie’s pace moves quickly and inserts live concert footage between many of the interview scenes.  

[mediadesignspring2017]

As a lifelong Nas fan, it was a pleasure to sit through this.  Granted, the linear storytelling didn’t make for challenging viewing.  But I was glad One9 stuck with a snapshot tale of Nas’ upbringing to his critically acclaimed debut (with a fast forward to today’s Harvard Fellowship recognition). 

The images spoke for themselves.  Rarely did Nas crack a smile in those formative teenage years, which were an accurate reflection of his mentality and what drove his lyrical ambition.

That first image (Illmatic picture with guns for eyes) was a symmetrical view of what a young Nasir saw growing up.

Frank Larson (DP) did a great job of those aerial shots of Queensbridge.  A quick glimpse of how an entire neighborhood seemed identical in despair (through the projects landscape).

I liked the quick shot of the chessboard from old footage.  As Nas fans, my friends and I always loved dissecting his conscious lyricism and how it reflected the intellect he never got in school.  Nice touch.

But my two favorite shots were of Das and “Noah Nasir” (which.... seemed very staged) and the group shot of all the kids/teens that didn’t make it out of the ‘hood.  I dug how the screen changed to a grainy film aesthetic when Nas gave some fatherly advice to “Noah Nasir.”  It alluded to a pep talk he probably wished he (and his friends) had at that kid’s age more often.

Overall, while the storytelling was rather conventional, it was cool to gain some insight on how a precocious teen from Queens made it but never really left home.

[mediadesignspring2017]

[mediadesignspring2017]

I must first concede that this documentary shed so much light as it pertains to one of the greatest works in Hip Hop history, illmatic.

Loved the narrative by which the documentarian told the story, weaving in elements of the things that made the artist along with the artist himself.

Really great what they did with photos on this project, especially with effects of moving still images around. After watching they piece awhile back, Ive seen these techniques used quite often.

Strong close ups added to the feel of the film.

[mediadesignspring2017]

There are two moments that were particularly beautiful. The first was when we see a close up shot of a fence and then the lens switches its focus to the bridge far off in the distance past the fence. The patterns seemed to align in process. It almost seemed as if the fence became the bridge. Not only was it beautifully executed, it also stands as a stunning metaphor for Nas’ life trajectory from being stuck in the hood to attaining superstar status, from feeling imprisoned to a life rife with bridges out of the hood. The second moment that I found particularly beautiful was the b-roll during his Harvard visit. We look upward toward the edge of a stone fence and we see the leaves of the tree overhead as Nas waxes poetically about having made it to Harvard. It captured the mood very well. But apart from these two moments, I really enjoyed the director’s placement of Nas and his brother in the hood. In fact, we rarely get glimpses of his life now. I think it was exceedingly important to put Nas in the place where Illmatic took form, watching Nas and his brother’s live reactions as they walked through the hood and recounted stories from their childhood gave this film a sense of authenticity.

[mediadesignspring2017]

1. I dig the way that the editor cuts from the interview byte about “South Bronx” to the photo of KRS One and Scott La Rock, and then back to Nas as the music dies down a bit and plays in the background.

2. It is such an interesting choice to never show MC Serch’s sit down interview. Rather, the editor uses the shot of him driving and cuts the audio from the interview over the image. It makes it stand out from a talking head interview.

3. I don’t know if it is just me but it looks they did something to make Nas almost raised from the background. It is a very powerful image.

[mediadesignspring2017]

Unlike Cutie and the Boxer, this film is fast paced. The story is similar in the sense that there is struggle before a star is born, however, the narration style is different. In this film, the speakers (multiple stories and narrations as compared to Cutie and the Boxer) are a part of the film, being documented and aware of it. The dialogues seem more specific, directed, and intentional. There are shots where the speaker is sitting around cameras being recorded, as well as shots in their environment in addition to historical footage, footage of concerts, photos etc. There is also some powerful imagery accompanying the strong narrative- like the opening scene, the juxtaposition of images, scenes from the neighborhood.

All these techniques combined to give a very different feel from Cutie and the Boxer- fast paced and intentional documentation including multiple speakers and narrations

PS: Sorry about the image quality, had to take them from my phone because youtube did not let me take screenshots, they all turned out blank!

[mediadesignspring2016]

The director of Nas: Time is Illmatic, One9, used various interview styles to portray Nas’ amazing story of victory in the midst of struggle. From a structural perspective, One9 utilizes wide shot and close-up shot PBS style interviews throughout the film, both newly shot and archival (of Nas’ Dad at a younger age.) Further on that note, throughout the entire documentary there is a mix of new and archival footage, whether it be new interviews or recent performance footage or archival interviews of Nas’ parents and old performance footage of Nas’ come-up. When discussing Queensbridge and the struggles along with growing up/raising children in NYC, a lot of NYC landscape panning was used, mainly aerial shots of  the Queensbridge homes. Toward the end of the film, moving cinema verite was used to follow both Nas and his brother, Jungle, as they walked through Queensbridge today, reminiscing on the place they both once called home. The use of audio in the film is also relatively unique. From the opening credits, the use of sound effects in connection with the film's narration creates very palpable moments. In the beginning, when the film focused on Nas’ father, also a musician, his music was played behind the narration. All through the film, when Nas discusses old school rap, that he grew up on, and rap battles between the various NYC boroughs, the director uses a mix of live rapping (from Nas, while being interviewed), live performance footage from the group he’s talking about, as well as just the studio-audio while the camera is on present-day Nas (interview style) as he vibes out to the music. Nas: Time is Illmatic is one of my favorite music documentaries, through the use of music and the various bits of  footage and cinematography used to depict Nas’ struggle growing up in NYC (and specifically Queensbridge,) the viewer feels deeply connected to Nas’ story and ultimate victory.

[mediadesignspring2016]

What I liked the most about Time is Illmatic’s structure was that it set up the circumstances behind why the album and Nas’s career was the way that it was. The sound design was excellent. Instead of just using it as background music or to move scenes along, the music seamlessly worked with the narrative to help tell the story.

[mediadesignspring2016]

Illmatic was a very interesting. The side close up shots added a level of intimacy to the film. I liked how the film showed footage of the neighborhood as well as archival footage to accompany the lyrics to each song snippet. The level of storytelling and the heavy use of archival footage made connected to me in a way to where I felt like I was apart of the story. 

[mediadesignspring2016]

Time is Illmatic was an incredibly raw and poignant look inside the life of rapper Nas and how he rose above a childhood in an extremely rough neighborhood to ultimately become one of the most influential hip-hop artists of all time. What I loved most about the documentary and what I thought set it apart from others I’ve watched like it, was the use of lyrics and music throughout to drive the story and illustrate what was going on around him during different stages in his life. The creators allowed the music itself to be the storyteller and ultimately chronicle Nas’ rise to fame, while simultaneously illustrating the demise and deterioration of the neighborhood where he grew up. I loved how his music wasn’t ever a separate entity, but rather a reflection of his emotions, beliefs and observations and the way we got to see his style and musical influences change as they were shaped by his surroundings and what was most important to him at the time. One of my favorite parts of the film was when he collaborated with his father on an album, later on in his career, which to me, symbolized him coming full circle, as he was able to respect his father as a musician, regardless of whether he respected him as a man.

[mediadesignspring2016]

Time is Illmatic told the complete story of Nas’ life, Queensbridge life, and emerging hip hop in New York up until present day.  It was important to give background about life in the Queensbridge projects as the album Illmatic poetically illustrated life as it was.  From individual stories that shaped who Nas is to how he was able to “make it.”

There was music playing at all times, whether it was standalone or in the background as an interview was taking place.  The music was also edited to stress certain lines as the studio version would play, then a live version would play followed by commentary from others in the industry and how it affected them.  It really showed how individual lines affected the lives of others.