English 3

She is Gaby, my family's pet. She is a mongrel or hunting female dog, I suppose, since I don't know much about dog breeds. More than fourteen years ago, Gaby –being a three-month-old puppy– arrived as a gift at home, tied to the birth of my little sister. I remember that it was I who baptized her, naming her as a character in the TV series 'BKN'. Until that moment, I did not know that Gaby corresponded also to the name of my godmother, which caused many confusions and jokes about it. Today, however, my family and I call her: "old woman". Gaby, obviously, is of an advanced age, has been the mother of three puppies and has a deal with cardiorespiratory disease. Years ago, on the contrary, Gaby could move with ease and speed, and was very active throughout the day. However, she maintains a characteristic from the first day: her bad mood with strangers. I suppose she does that because she loves us and protects us. I have valuable memories of my ch...

During this semester, my favorite subject has been “Fiction Workshop”*, because I’ve been able to hold a point of view and to create an own world, and that is in dialogue with both the audiovisual tradition as with the society in which it is produced. In “Fiction Workshop”, basically, I’ve done a filming practice and it has been easy and fun for me. The main content is only practice, nothing more than that: to make short films.  In classes, I've been able to put into practice: strategies and tools of staging fiction –learned in the AFA’s previous workshop–, connecting them now with direction of actors through of “Hiroshima, mon amour” and “Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?”. In addition, I have explored in depth and with a professional discussion the real possibilities of montage: comedy, drama and action; trailer and teaser of recorded material, etc.  I have enjoyed it, because I have learned new realization ways and that is the reason why I started studying thi...

Part 1- Calculate your carbon footprint! http://www.carbonfootprint.com/calculator.aspx Don’t forget to select English before starting the activity. Questions: What’s your carbon footprint? 7,96 tons of CO 2 per year. What’s the average carbon footprint of a person? 4 tons of CO 2 per year in Chile. Part 2 -Take these Recycling Quizzes http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/quiz-going-green/ http://www.quizmoz.com/quizzes/Science-Quizzes/r/Recycling-Quiz.asp Questions: Hand washing dishes can use up to 50 % more of water than using an efficient dishwasher. Only about 10 % of global energy comes from renewables. True or false? Appliances that are turned off don’t use any electricity. – False . Can you make paper out of hemp? Yes . Part 3- Video >>Top ten tips for recycling http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjbSEIOUp4w Watch the video and choose the best 3 tips in your opinion. 1. T o reuse bag about each...

Raúl Ruiz (1941-2011) was an experimental Chilean filmmaker, considered one of the best of the second half of the 20th century. A man with a disproportionate imagination and broad culture –influenced by Chilote mythology, high literature, western and “matinée”– and with a sense of humor, both irreverent and corrosive. A “difficult” filmmaker, who bequeathed a great work, as huge as eclectic, as pedantic as humorous, inevitably Chilean and exasperatingly cerebral –as if he were afraid of basic and simple emotions– and with a narrative style that shied away from the “central conflict theory” and truism. Years before becoming a filmmaker, he had tried to be a musician, priest and lawyer. However, he did not persevere in any of these activities. He was looking to create a hundred theater plays. After achieving it, he decided to study in Argentina: Film studies. After that, he would make a couple of iconic movies in Chile, such as “Three Sad Tigers” and “Little White Dove”. Aft...

My dreams in general are not so strange. However, I remember one particular kind of dream that has repeated several times in my life. Years ago, when I was under pressure for high school and I went to bed late around 4 a.m., I used to dream with my mom come in to my dark bedroom; in the meantime, I pleaded for help, because I was immobilized. Nevertheless, I felt wide-awake. I was terrified! Sometimes, this distressing situation was accompanied by a sense of death: my soul into the light. My heart rate was speeded up and I was thinking about how to save myself. This experience would not know how to interpret it. I suppose that it communicates a situation of stress and rearrangement of the content in the brain, since it happened after having studied and memorized large amounts of information. On the other hand, I understand that it is known as hypnogogic hallucination and exists reasons for that. I'm glad it does not happen anymore.

Four months ago, I lived a truly devastating experience. This picture –taken by an attendant to Javi's funeral– shows us some colored balloons with dedications to her, my ex-classmate. The image allows me to remember rite and gives me peace. In addition, it means death and rebirth in my life. In mid-July, I was celebrating my best academic semester. Also, "Winter Song", my short film, it was fascinated me. On the other hand, I was preparing for my holidays: I would meet up with my old friends and celebrate seven years with Sylvana, my girlfriend... However, in a matter of days, I received two sad news. On a snowy night, Javi dies in a car accident and four others are injured, including Manuel, my best friend. Then, in the midst of that whirlwind of emotions, Sylvana breaks up with me. Although all this was wrong, I appreciate the opportunity I had to experience it.