"DIY Disaster"

This is my first time watching DIY Disaster. In this episode, Bryan Baeumler (host), interviews Wesley who is disabled and in a wheelchair. It seems that he's an only child in a single-parent family, because his father wasn't mentioned. I'm also an only child raised in a single-parent family, so I can relate. Being the male in the family, you have to "be the man" who has more responsibility to help take care of the family. It's hard for Wesley because he's in wheelchair.

His mom, Donna tried to build a wheelchair-accessible washroom for him, but the bathtub is in one room and he has to go through the living room and kitchen in order to use the sink and the toilet in another. I felt it being difficult to be the single-parent because you have to play the roles of 2 (the mother and/or father). Brian was put into a wheelchair to feel how it's like in Wesley's shoes. Similar to how you think of the situation. For example, saying a joke. If you're the person saying the joke, you have to think of the people listening. Will they be laughing or be offended by it? You have to know the overall outcome. Watching this show, Bryan was in the role of the teacher and Donna was the student. She was learning how to use the tools and to professionally build a bathroom for her son.

This relates to college/university because our professors are teaching us the knowledge we need to gain for the working industry we want to pursue in. My overall outcome about the show wasn't what I expect it to be. I thought they would show people building something completely wrong and see who's the worst. My thought was Canada's Worst Driver. Instead, it shows how Donna have already made a mess in building a bathroom and Bryan is there with a team to show her how to built it correctly so that it is wheelchair accessible. Similar to any other show, the person (in this case Wesley) would love the overall result. You would never see someone at the end of the show saying, "I hate it, rebuild it, I don't like it, looks awful, what is this?" etc...


For more information: http://www.hgtv.ca/ontv/titledetails.aspx?titleid=112229

"Truth & Lies: The Last Days of Osama bin Laden"

Osama Bin Laden was the man who created fear all around the world. As footage plays back September 11, 2001, many are still in shock. 3000 people lost their lives that day. The entire world was watching the news as it covers live footage of the planes crashing and exploding in the twin towers. I will always remember this date because it was also my mother's birthday.

When the Navy Team, Team Six prepared for the raid, it reminded me of how we prepared for a shoot. We had to check and make sure that our equipment was fully functional before executing the project.

By the time they showed a picture of Osama Bin Laden dead, I was shocked. The following photo shows how the deceased picture on the right was manipulated/photoshopped with Bin Laden to show how he was killed. Which, in my opinion, I thought was an accurate image of how he died. In the documentary, it mentioned that one of the navy seals first shot was towards his chest and the second shot was towards his left eye.

'Til this date, we all suspect Bin Laden was killed and buried in the seas. Though there was no proven evidence, footage/images that he'd died. There was a photo shown in the documentary of Obama and the other important executives watching their screens off frame before it was announced that he was killed. This image reminded me of how we watch television series. Especially during the last episode, we pay very close attention to it. This ties in with Obama's speech that Bin Laden was killed. Many have tuned in the same way people tuned into 9/11. 

Would you want to see the final image of Bin Laden just to prove that he's been killed? 

Overall, this was one amazing documentary that I loved to watch. Although there's still some questions that are unanswered, the host of the show asked some excellent questions during the interviews to make it very interesting and effective.

For more information: http://www.cbc.ca/fifth/binladen/

"Exit Through The Gift Shop"

Graffiti is a type of art that is enjoyed by many around the world, though most graffiti are known to be illegal due to the "spray" on private property. The filmmaker of this documentary, Thierry Guetta, kind of reminds me of us students. At some point in our life, something has inspired us to choose the career path we follow today. Take me for example, I'm currently in this Broadcasting and Film program at Centennial. What inspired me was the roles I've played in my school, including extra-curricular activities and school-work. Photographer, Designer, Tech Crew leader, etc. Guetta wanted to become a filmmaker when he picked up he camcorder and started to shoot everything he sees, which in this case was his family and graffiti artists. Seeing how he had thousands of video tape footage in boxes relates to an assignment we had to do for class. Shooting our footage on film for the first time and learning the meaning of archiving. Digital copies such as DVDs and hard drives could corrupt or crash. Guetta then later successfully found Banksy for his documentary. Banksy is a well-known graffiti artist all around the world.

Being inspired by the art, risks and culture within graffiti, Guetta decides to become a graffiti artist. He was dedicated to get his name known around the city by putting this signature on buildings...

All he needed was an alias, which is very similar to a nickname that people know you by. I remember one of my friends in elementary school called me Baby K. Although it is rarely used now, it was great to be known and to "stand out" in the crowd. Guetta was known as, Mr. Brainwash. His exhibition of his art made more profit than he did when he was a filmmaker. It was interesting and rare to see someone who was filmmaker turned out to become a graffiti artist. This relates to another assignment in elementary school when the teacher asked, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" At the time, I remember I love to sing, it was one of my strongest passions and still is. I wanted to become a singer. Growing up, I learned all the difficulties to become one. There was not a lot of job opportunities to pursue this. Looking back now, I'm glad I made right path and decision. I now want to be part of the television production team.

For more information: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1587707/