Author Archives: Juan Bravo

Occupational Proverb- Film Production

Nationality: American
Age: 27
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Performance Date: April 27, 2011
Primary Language: English
Language: Mandarin

The informant is a 27-year old grad student. He was born in Los Angeles, California, grew up in Seattle, Washington, was educated at UC Berkeley and now studying film production in Los Angeles. He’s worked as a freelance writer and filmmaker around Los Angeles and is a teaching assistant at the School of Cinematic Arts. He shall be referred to as NW.

“A movie is made three times: When it’s written, when it’s shot, and when it’s edited.”

This proverb is superficially about the filmmaking process. As those within the industry know, it’s possibly for a movie to be radically reinvented between the writing, filming, and editing of a film.  As NW explains, this is often done as a sign of reassurance for young filmmakers (from older, more experienced ones) who might not have gotten their way at some point in the production process: The writing, filming, or editing might have turned out poorly. However, because each of those steps is so critical, it give the project a chance at redemption. NW states that the use of the proverb is meant to be an optimistic look at the next step in the process.

I agree with NW’s analysis. The proverb certainly establishes that a film has a chance at reinvention at every major point in the process. At the same time, I feel that this also suggests the glorification of writers, directors, and editors. While the director is very involved in all three processes, the writer and editor have much more control over a project than others involved. Thus, this simple proverb reinforces the hierarchy on film crews, hierarchies that are rarely successfully challenged. Furthermore, those earlier down the line might feel resentment for those further down the line, as they have the potential to tamper with their initial vision. Thus, the proverb also reflects workplace anxiety when a project is taken out of one’s hands and handed over to someone who can potentially destroy or enhance the film.

Mexican Child Game- “Pon Pon Pata”

Nationality: Mexican
Age: 47
Occupation: Accountant
Residence: Sacramento, CA
Performance Date: March 15, 2011
Primary Language: Spanish
Language: English

The informant is a 47-year old accountant working in California, originally from Michoacán, Mexico. She lived a modest life as a young adult, having to take care of her family at a very young age while still finding success in management. She then moved to the United States with her husband to raise their family and now works in accounting. She primarily speaks Spanish with English as a second language.  He shall be referred to as MB.

“Pon pon pata, cola de la rata, pon pon pon, cola de ratón.”

“Pon pon pata, tail of the mouse, pon pon pon, tail of rat.”

“Pon pon pata, mouse tail, pon pon pon, rat tail.”

While “pata” translates to “foot,” it is not meant as an actual word. As with “pon pon pon,” it is simply a nonsense phrase that is easily rhymed.

This rhyme is used on children barely a few months old (as young as three months). This game is played by the adult taking the index finger of his or her dominant hand, then sticking it to the palm of the opposite hand. This is done to the beat of every syllable. The adult does this with an enthusiastically happy expression, trying to make the infant laugh. Eventually, the child is able to mimic this action and gains a sense of hand-eye coordination by taking his or her own index finger and jabbing into the opposite palm.

MB explains that this very simple game, made partly of nonsense words, is a simple way to engage children in a hand-eye coordination exercise. It only requires the most basic of motor ability at a time when the adult will get sheer joy out of the child learning. By mirroring, the child is actively engaging with an outside influence. Simultaneously, the references to the rat and mouse tails are used to create familiarity with these animals that are common sights in ranch life.

Mexican Child Game- “Aquí va un Gusanito”

Nationality: Mexican
Age: 47
Occupation: Accountant
Residence: Sacramento, CA
Performance Date: March 15, 2011
Primary Language: Spanish
Language: English

The informant is a 47-year old accountant working in California, originally from Michoacán, Mexico. She lived a modest life as a young adult, having to take care of her family at a very young age while still finding success in management. She then moved to the United States with her husband to raise their family and now works in accounting. She primarily speaks Spanish with English as a second language.  He shall be referred to as MB.

“Por aquí va un gusanito, no encuentra el hoyito, no encuentra el hoyito, y ya le encontró!”

“By here goes a worm, no finds the hole, no find the whole, and now it found!”

“Here goes a little worm, can’t find the little hole, can’t find the little hole, and now he found it!”

This game is played with slightly older children, about six months. The parent takes an outstretched arm in the non-dominant hand, then walks the index and ring finger of the other hand from the child’s hand toward the armpit, and on “y ya le encontró!”, the adult starts tickling the child in the armpit.

This game seems to serve both a physical and social purpose for children as they reach a certain age. As this game requires that the child be strong enough to support itself and supply an arm, it is not played until about six months of age. It is a very engaging activity for both involved, as the child might ask the parent to repeat this incessantly. With this game, the child’s repeated requests to repeat it take it a step beyond the simple mirroring of earlier child games. The worm looking for a hole could also be a basic introduction to types of animals (a worm looking for a hole), while the “-ito” suffix on “gusanito” is added to make it small and endearing.

Occupational Folklore- Origin of the term “C47”

Nationality: American
Age: 27
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Performance Date: April 27, 2011
Primary Language: English
Language: Mandarin

The informant is a 27-year old grad student. He was born in Los Angeles, California, grew up in Seattle, Washington, was educated at UC Berkeley and now studying film production in Los Angeles. He’s worked as a freelance writer and filmmaker around Los Angeles and is a teaching assistant at the School of Cinematic Arts. He shall be referred to as NW.

In the world of film production, clothespins are referred to as “C47s” (pronounced, “see fore-tee seh-vens). As NW explained, this is term used by the grips on a film set (those responsible for the physical labor of manning lights). They are used to pull scrims, which are tools for blocking light, out of a hot lighting kit and also useful for attaching colored gels to lights among other simple purposes.

NC explained that the origin of the term comes from the story of a production crew submitting a budget for a producer, which included five hundred clothespins. The producer did not see the importance of these clothespins, so he demanded they be removed from the budget because he didn’t see the value in them. Knowing how important they were for day-to-day work, the crew changed the name to “C47” to sound more technical and important. Upon looking at the revised budget, the producer approved and the crew was allowed to purchase the required clothespins. He told this story to a group of students in a class on film lighting for Film and Television Production majors. He could not remember specifically where he heard this story, but remembered that he was told it when he began working on film sets (as this was the first experience with film lights and equipment for many people in the class, we heard it in the same context he did). He did not provide too much historical context for his background story (such as the time and place), and he was not absolutely certain about five-hundred being the required number of clothespins.

While it didn’t seem that NW takes the story too seriously, he seemed eager to share this bit of knowledge for a group of people just cutting their teeth on film production. It seems to be a sign of acceptance into this field of work. The class immediately adopted the use of the term, rarely using the term “clothespins” but rather “C47.” NW believes that the story is about how even the most trivial items are important on a film set, even if they don’t seem that way to a producer. He said changing the name was  a big “eff you” directed at the studio on behalf of the crew against the “suits.” NW also explained that the use of this term is a simple indicator as to whether or not a person is knowledgeable about film production when starting out on set.

To me, this story expresses the kind of anxiety shared by those low on the film industry totem pole. This is not a story that involves elite directors or celebrated cinematographers. Rather, it is a story shared when young amateurs are starting out in low positions. At least in my experience with the class, everyone was very interested in demonstrating that they belonged in this environment. The story about the producer also illuminates the anxiety felt between those that produce a film and those that fund it. While filmmaking is a very technical craft, sometimes simple tools like clothespins are required. In the story, the name had to be changed to something credible for the crew to get what they needed to make their film. This portrayal of the producer as shallow and ignorant (immediately accepting the change to the term “C47” without further knowledge for their use) reflects the bitterness that can exist between the peons on a film set and the wealthy producers.

Mexican Lap Game- “Los maderos de San Juan”

Nationality: Mexican
Age: 47
Occupation: Accountant
Residence: Sacramento, CA
Performance Date: March 15, 2011
Primary Language: Spanish
Language: English

The informant is a 47-year old accountant working in California, originally from Michoacán, Mexico. She lived a modest life as a young adult, having to take care of her family at a very young age while still finding success in management. She then moved to the United States with her husband to raise their family and now works in accounting. She primarily speaks Spanish with English as a second language.  He shall be referred to as MB.

“Los maderos de San Juan piden pan, no les dan, piden queso, les dan hueso, ye se sientan a llorar en la puerta del zaguán!”

“The workers of San Juan beg bread, no them give, beg cheese, them give bone, and they sit to cry in the door of hallway!”

“The wood workers of San Juan beg for bread, they don’t give it to them, they beg for cheese, they give them bones, and they sit to cry in the door of the hallway!”

This is probably the most socially important of the child games that MB explained (for other Mexican child games, see the “aquí va un gusanito” and “Pon pon pata” entries in my collection). This one isn’t played until the child is about one year old. The child is seated on the lap facing the adult, and the adult places both hands to support the child’s back. The parent then slowly rocks the child back and forth (back on “San,” forward on “Juan,” back on “piden,” forward on “pan,” etc.). When they reach “en la puerta,” the adult begins tickling the child around the neck, much to the laughing delight of the child.

Notably, this is a very dark game, as it concerns poor workers who don’t have enough to eat. However, the game itself is very enjoyable for both the adult and the child. As MB explained, this game is usually played by members of the lower class who might have to deal with the reality of food shortage now and then. She compared it to slaves singing spirituals: Singing songs about your misfortunes often helps you deal with them, in the case of the parents. Turning their troubles into a silly game helps them deal with their lives. At the same time, the child is gaining exposure to the reality of the life they will probably live someday. Children might repeatedly request the game be played, often to the point where the child is barely able to fit on the adult’s lap.

I completely agree with MB’s analysis: This game seems to serve both a physical and social purpose for children as they reach a certain age. The “maderos” game not only involves the child being physically strong enough to be rocked back and forth, but also demands some social exposure. In a safe environment, the child is introduced to some of the harsh realities of poverty life, but does so in a way that brings joy. This prepares the child to cope with challenges in life that he or she will inevitably face.

Annotation:

Franco, Jean. Introduction to Spanish American Literature. Cambridge UP, 1995. Print

In this book on Spanish-American literature, poet José Asunción Silva includes a variant of the this rhyme (referred to as a nursery rhyme) as part of a longer poem titled “Los maderos de San Juan.” In the context of the poem, it is shared by a grandmother to her grandson as she rocks him on her knees. The poem itself is about remembering the hardship of the past and the continuity of stories.