I believe in order to change, and/or influence, the world we must start with the younger generations. They are the ones who will be impacted the most and can enforce the greatest change. Thus, I would like to focus on one of the topics where younger people are involved or can be involved in some way. The top stories I’d be interested in include, “Gifted Youngin’s”, “Southside Students”, “The Arts Valley”, and “Life in the Valley”. I believe, though each of these stories, there would be a way to reach out to the younger people.

The first thing I noticed when watching Johnson’s Field-Of-Vision, was a group of kids staring silently at a white blimp. I was surprised to hear only the sound of wind in the beginning scenes, where I was waiting in anticipation. Then to have that silence interrupted by the sound of a man mining gave it a nice, ambient feeling. Though, that feeling soon changed once I saw text stating that the blimp was a U.S. Army Surveillance Device, going around and monitoring the people in Kabul, Afghanistan. I felt some empathy for the villagers having to continue their daily lives, while constantly being surveyed in the sky. But once I saw that same white blimp above the green lawns of Aberdeen, Maryland, the parallel came out in an instant. We are being watched by our own government just as much as the villagers are in Afghanistan. The same issues that are being faced overseas regarding surveillance affect us just as well, and in my opinion, makes us more suspicious on what the government is doing. Now right after feeling this discomfort, I chuckled at the response of the U.S. military spokesperson in regards to this. To say that there are no cameras on the blimp and it is only being used to detect incoming missile strikes is hilarious; if that was the case then it would be just as effective to place a hot-weather balloon with the words “ARMY” on front and equip it with missile detectors on it? That way people can at least know where their tax dollars are going to. But even though I felt dismayed to see the government surveying both ends of the pond, I’m glad that Kirsten created this documentary. She puts a lot of care into each scene and makes the story flow smoothly from start to finish. From the video, she helped me see another connection between one culture to another.

In Kabul, Afghanistan: people in the market, people shopping, people building, people working, people riding rides, are all being watched by a white balloon. But why? For their protection? Or for mine?

In Kabul there is a white balloon that is owned by the United States military. In Maryland there is also a white balloon owned by the United States military. Both of these balloons are there for protection, but for whom?

Johnson documents a balloon that documents everything. A balloon that is above everyone and everything. A balloon that is god like. A balloon that strikes fear. A balloon that controls. It is ominous as it defies the winds and stands stationary surveying the civilians as they carry on with their everyday lives in the military occupied city of Kabul. At first you don’t know who is watching or why, but when you learn who it is documenting every moment it creates a sense of suspense. That at any moment something could go wrong, because the balloon’s presence tells you there is something wrong. That these people need to be watched and if they aren’t bad things will happen. The balloon is ire and evil, but it seems to be a necessary evil, in order for us to be safe. Johnson implies that the all seeing balloon will keep us safe because it is God like: “He sees the sky, the earth, and under the ground. God sees everything.” What safer feeling is there that as a soldier riding around in hostile territory than knowing that God is watching over you. The balloon will control them out of fear “insurgents and local nationals alike believe the blimp and see everything and will act differently when it is up.” The military strikes fear into the people and the balloon controls that fear, by making everyone know all through out the city that the United States military is always watching. I felt uneasy but I felt like it needed to be done to keep soldiers safe and the people calm.

But the short does not end there, it keeps going, and it goes to Maryland. That is when I felt uneasy. Why are they watching us? What have we done? But maybe it isn’t what we have done, but maybe it is what we might do. Johnson equates the military to the balloon and the balloon to God, making it so that the military is above everything. The military is even above God which Johnson emphasizes with a shot of the balloon over a church. That shot made me feel uneasy, it made me feel as if the military is everywhere at once and that they are doing it in the name of “protection” for America, but I don’t know if I feel safe anymore.

After watching The Above, I felt similar to how I did after reading Orwell’s 1984. I was uncomfortable and this US blimp feels like an intruder. I would hate to imagine how the Afghanis feel every day when they wake up. Everything that lies above the surface of the earth, the sky, is meant to be liberating. But in this case, it wasn’t.

I enjoyed how Kirsten captured shots of random carrots, people driving, kids playing on a hill, and more shots of objects and humans in relation to this hovering blimp. She plays with the distance between her, the camera, and this blimp. It follows her and everyone else in Kabul. People go about with their day to day lives, but the blimp remains up in the air, watching them and taking over their free space.

Her way of playing with distance between her and the blimp makes me think of the parallel relationship between a camera and a human being. When we take videos and pictures of a person or an animal, they’re aware that we’re in their sphere. We try to be as unseen as possible with our camera when trying to get a shot of the dog catching a bone or lady working on her sowing machine. Yet, they know that they’re being watched by 2 sets of eyes, ours and the camera lens. Even if we aren’t talking with a person, we are still interacting with them by standing right there. It is our choice, or KJ’s to decide whether we want to engage further with our subject and get to know them better or just stand in a corner and film from a distance. This reminds of when Mike and I filmed last Monday, KJ kept encouraging us to follow her instead of standing at the bottom of the steps and move the camera instead of our bodies to follow her. She didn’t want us to be the blimp. Just as how she engages with people, she wanted the camera to engage with her interaction of engagement (awkwardly phrased). The camera and the documentarian naturally builds a relationship with who they engage with, and it is our choice whether we choose to be the blimp or person.

This film was so thought provoking and interesting to watch.  It was powerful in addressing real issues, and revealed oppression while at the same time being a thrilling documentary.  Director Kristen Johnson does an outstanding job in using her skills to create a beautiful masterpiece.   The way the camera was first person throughout the entire film gave me a chance to endure a journey with the documentarian to explore different areas of the world and different types of struggles.

There were many memorable moments in the film that really pulled on my emotions and made me think deeply. Mainly the scene about the woman that was a single mom in clinic in Alabama, there for an abortion I believe. This scene was so emotional for me as I never seen the woman’s face, yet the sound of her voice in addition to the footage of focus on her hands was effective in making me feel the sorrow, saddness, and disappointment in the room. Here Johnson even includes her own voice in that moment and you almost feel as though you are there in the clinic with them. There is also a feeling of hope as she comforts the subject and new friend through this emotional connection.

I really enjoyed how Johnson was able to give credit to the documentarian role in demonstrating what is gone through to create a film. There were a few things included that I wish I knew a little more about. For example the kid with one eye, and the part where the location is withheld and it seemed as if a substance was being mixed or something was being made. The film was overall great and I loved it.

Going back and remembering the film, I realize it was one of the best documentary I’ve ever seen.  Now I’ve seen documentaries that delivered a powerful message and show a side of the world that was new to me, but I have never seen one that did more than emphasizing the rough realities of life. Johnson showed a whole range of emotions, from somber to joyful and everything in between. The film was captivating not just to see how people made it through their hardships, but to see the small delights in the day, things that bring out a smile. Whether that could be from watching an African dance ceremony, capturing the rapid motions of a man’s face as he moves to the beat, to pouring a glass of home-made grape juice, seen after the closeup of the multiple colors of grapes in a basket. It was balance between good times and hard times, and that’s something I thoroughly enjoyed from the documentary. It was also nice to see moments of total surprise, such as Johnson sneezing moments after lightning strikes and the sudden movement of snow after her friend vents out. These moments are never intended, but add a sense of wonder when captured on camera. A great film to watch.

Also, it was nice to see that Kirsten was so down-to-earth when answering questions. She made her responses interesting to hear, allowing us to know more about the process behind the documentary and give her own insight on it. A pleasure to view.

This film elicits emotion immediately. From the perspective of the people, you see the white balloon. What is it doing? Why is it not moving? Why is it unmarked? Is it watching us? Humans fear what they do not understand, and we do not know what the balloon is doing. I was apprehensive. Johnson then tells us that it is classified information. We will not learn the answers through the course of the film.

Action shots of the town below, cars and people moving around, contrast with the stationary unmarked white balloon. Through the shifting of shots from action in the town to the balloon, Johnson seems to be telling us that the balloon sees all. If you are in town, you always see the balloon above. The sound intensifies, adding to this contrast. Here, I recognized a shot included in Cameraperson.

Different shots all include one thing that is the same: the balloon. It was always present, always knowing everything. It seemed like some kind of divine power. This analogy was confirmed when Johnson included the quote from the man in town, about how God is all powerful; “God sees everything. Be aware that He will find out everything.” It was striking when the man said that God created the man who created the balloon. The boy’s bright balloons added another dimension to the film as well. These were colorful, fun, and moving, unlike the blimp.

The shift to Maryland shocked me. The man said there were no cameras on board in the United States; this did not happen in Kabul. Maryland and the shot of the American flag made me angry; why did the blimp seem to imply safety more in Maryland than in Kabul? The shot of the blimp above the church implied it was higher than God.

Then, Johnson allowed the viewer to know that even when cameras are not on the blimp in Kabul, they fly it in order to control the behavior of the people.

The title ‘The Above’ perfectly suits this film. It is vaguely encompassing of some presence perpetually hovering.

After seeing it just once, the feeling you are left with mostly is confusion. After watching it for a second the feeling is more uneasiness. Kirsten Johnson presents a very good parallel between the situation in Kabul and in Maryland. We would not think of making this parallel and yet she makes it and represents it for us in a way that makes it easier to understand. If just reading about it in a text, we might not understand well the comparison but having it on film with the exact same object and similar images, it works really well. When we see the blimp in Kabul, in some shots we almost forget that it is there because it is far in the background. By having much further away in the background makes it looks like it is almost normal that it is there and that it is not bothering anyone. We are also not told what its capacities are because it is classified so it gives us the feeling of “if we don’t know what it can do then we are not as afraid.” When going to the blimp in Maryland, we already have more information. One of the most powerful images from the film is when the blimp is in the background and then the american flag comes in the foreground, it tells it all about the meaning of it without using any words. It clearly shows us the origins of those devices, when the foreground is the church as well. One question I have when I watched it twice was: Why would they want to fly the surveillance system as much as possible if the camera is broken when it is in Afghanistan?

->is it to make people think there is always something/someone watching?

Kirsten Johnson is always able to create a meaningful piece and point of view without speaking at all, which makes it even more important that the audience comes to the conclusions she is putting in front of us without saying anything.

I really enjoyed watching “Cameraperson.” I think it was beautifully filmed and I love how Kirsten Johnson decided to cut the scenes and spread it out. For example, she mentions in the first image that what we are about to see are all the images that left her wondering but she does a great job with that to leave to audience wondering as well. The first segment I think of when I think of that is when she films the boxer. The first scene we see with him is him getting prepared but then it is cut and we do not see more. As the audience, all we want is to see what happens next, if he wins or not but Kirsten Johnson comes back to that much later in her film, therefore leaving the audience wondering for a while what might happen. Even with other scenes, it sometimes take a little while to fully understand what is going on in the frame or more what it means. For example, when she is in Afghanistan, it takes a while for us to be introduced to the fact that this is not some random landscape but where the soldiers are, in the prison. I think it makes it much more powerful that we find out about it a little bit later than right away when we are introduced to the scene. Overall, I really enjoyed the film and how it was created: the filmmaker did not think it needed a voice over and yet we understand everything she feels in those moments.

The most immediate feeling I noticed when watching The Above was a sense of anxiety. In almost every shot, the blimp exists silently and simply looming. The people below, under constant surveillance. The blimb is practically a staple in the sky, like sun or moon. Upon watching the documentary again, once the ending credits pointed out that the blimp would cause others to act differently, I was not anxious as I was the first time but uncomfortable. Uncomfortable with what the United States was doing to these people, almost in a way forcing them to behave with the simple allocation of a beacon in the sky.

I’m still trying to figure out the message, if anyone can point it out I would appreciate it, but the message I see is one of a kind of “big brother”-esque world where the United States has a hold on country half way around the world. I notice KJ’s choices to almost always have the blimp in view whether its far in the distance and hard to see, or clearly focused on. I could also sense the movement of the story. How at first, the blimp began in Kabul and it was constantly notice by the people. But as time went on, it became a staple in these people’s lives and instead of staring, they ignore it as best they can and go on with their lives. I left feeling uncomfortable.