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The Muggle Studies classroom is always a bit of a strange place in that every time the students walked in, there was some object or other at the front that didn’t belong in your average classroom. That morning was no different as Professor Leroy stood in front of an antique motion picture camera at the front of the room, a pair of red velvet curtains frame the blackboard, a “spotlight” focused on the drawn image of the Hollywood sign in the center. Professor Leroy’s arms were folded across his chest as he awaited the students' arrival.
Not one to enjoy keeping the mystery, it would be pretty obvious what that day’s lesson would be about and hopefully just enough to keep the intrigue. “Quickly, take your seats” he tapped his foot as the stragglers came in. “We have a lot to get through today.”
ooc: Welcome to Muggle Studies. Professor Leroy has been teaching at Hogwarts for the last couple of years so please play accordingly. If you need to, refresh yourself with the site and RP rules before posting. The lesson will begin in around 24 hours.
Wizarding World RPG Admin Minister for Magic Alley Proprietor
Romanian Longhorn
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: The Paths
Posts: 39,749
Hogwarts RPG Name: Anna Walles
Hufflepuff
Seventh Year
Hogwarts RPG Name: Sage Ransom-Kruus
Slytherin
Seventh Year
Ministry Department Head:
Charles Hollingberry
Minister's Office
Ministry Department Head:
Airey Flamsteed
Mysteries
Diagon Alley Proprietor:
Zachaël Lufkin
Owl Post
x12 x12
astronomizzle ♧ gryffinDORK | & the rest is drag ♣ #badluckDerf
If only self inking quills were acceptable in lessons. It was one of the many reasons why Anna struggled academically you see, the simply matter of not being able to keep up with information given and her wrist cramping up from her attempt to feverishly write. She certainly had not known that the, possible, first puzzle was a cartographers map but that also felt very fitting considering how the continents themselves were like a puzzle that could also fit together. "I'll draw a map of the world," Anna hummed to herself as she jotted down dates on her parchment with no explanation as to what they were representing. "Of lands unknown and untold..." But maybe she could see if the library had this Tale of Genji novel, which meant that Anna's gaze briefly flicked towards Ezra since it had been, initially, his suggestion of reading but soon had her eyes cast right back down at her parchment. "...I'm barely afloat...my sails are set..." Thankfully Solomon's voice both helped her refocus and stop singing to herself (and she really was singing to herself and not stage whisper singing this time) when he mentioned music BECAUSE...well...BECAUSE!
1927 and 1960 was next added to her parchments under the heading of Golden Eggs (sorry, Professor Leroy...her next assignment was going to be an absolute mess) before it was time to play a little word association...or words as was the case with some of her peers - it was nice to see enthusiasm, after all. It made her feel a tiny bit embarrassed, a feeling she was beginning to understand more and more these days to her displeasure, that her own thoughts on this subject were so finite. And, really, she ought to know a little bit more thanks to Aurora's coaching but right now all her balls of memory were rolling around in chaotic disarray. "..wands...professor," she offered meekly. "Holly space wood...it's, well, it's a wand wood...and sincerely the first thing that...came to mind..."
__________________
When you’re stuck in a moment and your spark has been stolen .................................................. ........... this is our time to own it, so own it..................................... baby we were born withfire and gold in our eyes
It wasn't often that Ezra was stuck for words in Muggle Studies – the subject of Hollywood just didn't pique his interest. He enjoyed the actual movies; he certainly enjoyed the technology, but he didn't know very much of anything about the place. What he really wanted to do was have a good look at that camera at the front of the classroom; see it in action; have a go at using it. He'd love to get a look inside and have a gander at the workings of it. His fingers twitched in anticipation so he made himself busy with a sketch of it in his notebook while the class began.
He remained quiet during the lesson so far, listening vaguely to the answers given around him. Puzzles, sports, concerts and many things wizards also enjoyed and not exclusive to the muggle population, he thought. Video games though, they were of great interest – he had played a game with animals at his great uncle's home, and he had seen plenty of films now.
The famous Hollywood sign was the first thing that sprang to mind when he thought about the place, but Solomon Duck had already given that answer, and it was up on the blackboard under a spotlight. The glitz and glamour was the next thing, but he didn't feel that reply was adequate so, once again, he kept it to himself. He wrote a few notes in an attempt to look like he was actively participating.
There were so many things Sydney could say about Hollywood, but she decided to leave the more obvious answers for others. She raised her hand and said, “One thing that comes to mind is censorship. The film industry has had some form of self-censorship since its early days. In the Golden Age, it was the Hays Code, a set of rules for what could and couldn’t be portrayed on screen which lasted from 1934 to 1968. Then it was replaced with the MPAA ratings system.”
Some kids had oddly specific interests that extended beyond his own knowledge. “That’s the first thing you think of?” He questioned, brow slightly raising at the young Slytherin. She was accurate in what she was saying down to specific dates and all. “Thank you for sharing Miss Masters, it seems my knowledge isn’t required here” he chuckled.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Charely Potter
At the next question, he thought about it. He probably should've did more reading on the subject of movies. Jan glanced at the mention of censorship and knew it had to be about rules. He pondered more on what else was significant about Hollywood before it was his turn to respond, "Well... it's sort of the go-to place for famous people who show up in movies and other entertainment. They're Celebrities. Kind of like the professional Quidditch players we have but... mainly actors." Not that he meant to imply athletes couldn't act it just... wasn't expected of them. Ahem.
If Mr Grunt was interested in vintage gaming consoles, Professor Leroy had amassed a small collection in the muggle hall of fame he had created next to his office he was welcome to come see. After the lesson however, there were more important things to be discussing right now. “Due to its close proximity to film studios and therefore directors, producers and studio heads, it is the ideal place to be for anyone wanting to be involved in the industry, particularly in the early days of film where talent wasn’t always at the forefront but it was more of a who knows who situation.” Relating their answers back to their own community was exactly how he liked to teach, so thank you for using the Quidditch players example.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Emzily
Apparently today wasn’t one of those days, as his hand leisurely went up, yet again. Solomon knew diddly-squat about Hollywood, other than, “The Hollywood sign.” He commented simply.
The Hollywood Sign. Professor Leroy was for sure expecting that answer to come up somewhere. The issue here was that the answer wasn’t wrong, obvious yes and lacking in the detail that the other students had offered but it WAS iconic and likely the first thing most people DID think about. “Right..” He paused, giving Mr Duck the opportunity to offer any further information should he feel compelled to. “The sign was constructed in 1923 as an advertisement for a real estate development called Hollywoodland. It got so much attention as a local landmark they removed the land part in the late 40s. It’s been rebuilt and repainted several times since now it is a national monument.”
Quote:
Originally Posted by FearlessLeader19
The fourth year was very much familiar with television shows, movies and all the other stuff that came with the television {the one in his bedroom had clearly been quite useful} so he didn’t really make notes on this aspect; he actually began by labelling the words ‘Golden Age’ neatly in his book and proceeded from there. As for the question? The Hollywood Sign. Yup, exactly as Solomon mentioned. For that reason, the Slytherin opted to remain silent. Why repeat the answer?
There was plenty more ‘useless knowledge’ (as it had been once described to him) to divulge whenever the occasion allowed. Sharing it with the students was perhaps his favorite thing about teaching, it definitely wasn’t grading papers that was for sure. The lack of answer from Mr Atreyu-Rehman was fine, they’d be there for hours if everyone presented a mini essay.
Quote:
Originally Posted by sweetpinkpixie
1927 and 1960 was next added to her parchments under the heading of Golden Eggs (sorry, Professor Leroy...her next assignment was going to be an absolute mess) before it was time to play a little word association...or words as was the case with some of her peers - it was nice to see enthusiasm, after all. It made her feel a tiny bit embarrassed, a feeling she was beginning to understand more and more these days to her displeasure, that her own thoughts on this subject were so finite. And, really, she ought to know a little bit more thanks to Aurora's coaching but right now all her balls of memory were rolling around in chaotic disarray. "..wands...professor," she offered meekly. "Holly space wood...it's, well, it's a wand wood...and sincerely the first thing that...came to mind..."
If it were any use to her, Professor Leroy would’ve accepted an ordinary pen being used in his lessons over the quill. He’d never really understood Hogwarts insistence on them anyway, such was the possibility of major spills from knocked over inkwells. What he wouldn’t accept, as tuneful as it was, was random singing whilst he was trying to educate. “Miss Walles, there is a time and a place for singing and my lesson is not it.” He shot the Hufflepuff a warning look.
Even more so when the singing had obviously been a distraction because the seventh year was going off-topic. “Not really what I meant. Hollywood is a location and it’s better known for its palm trees rather than Holly.” He responded. “But bring that knowledge to Wandlore and you’ll do great.”
Quote:
Originally Posted by HazelStone101
"Food. I think about the food. I've heard some great things about the fine dining options in Hollywood!"
*Gurgle*
Great...now she was hungry, her stomach was singing the song of it's people... and class had just barely even started.
Here Professor Leroy was expecting to be met with a barrage of random facts the students had read up about Hollywood and yet they were surprising him with alternatives. “I can’t comment on the accuracy of that statement but I’m sure the food is of excellent quality with the proportion of celebrities in their population. In fact, Hollywood producers used to have executive dining rooms where deals were often made. Many a contract was signed at the table of a fine dining establishment.”
Quote:
Originally Posted by noodles
The famous Hollywood sign was the first thing that sprang to mind when he thought about the place, but Solomon Duck had already given that answer, and it was up on the blackboard under a spotlight. The glitz and glamour was the next thing, but he didn't feel that reply was adequate so, once again, he kept it to himself. He wrote a few notes in an attempt to look like he was actively participating.
As he’d said before, the quiet ones were acceptable just so long as they were actually paying attention to his lesson and not off on some daydreaming tangent. Mr Greenwood was acknowledged for writing notes with a firm head nod.
“For the remainder of the lesson we will be focusing on this..” He slung his arm over the antique motion picture camera before removing one of the circular objects from its casing. “This is a film reel. The way that this works is by taking a rapid sequence of photographs of a moving object. When played back at a certain speed on a projector, these images appear to be moving without the need for magic.
To develop the film which will be invisible to the eye when it is first removed from the camera, the plastic film base is submerged in a particular concoction of chemicals much like a traditional photograph is. Initially films were mostly black and white due to the financial and time expenses associated with the much more complicated process of recording in full-color spectrum. It was never a case of it being impossible but rather limited budgets that meant even in the 1950’s and 60’s, black and white films were being produced en masse but we can see earlier examples of color films such as the Wizard of Oz in 1939.”
“On this piece of parchment you will find several stills from well-known movies from the later decades of the golden age of Hollywood. I have used a quick spell to convert these images to black and white. All I’d like you to do, whilst I prepare the next part of our lesson, is to figure out the name of each film.” He lazily flicked his wrist as the worksheets floated down in front of the students. “I know that these are VERY old movies but hopefully they are recognizable enough. You can work in pairs if you must.”
Text Cut: Worksheet
ooc: Thank you for participating thus far. Feel free to work with others or by yourself. You have around 24 hours for this task.
Rose was happy in silence that her entertainment answer had ben acceptable and correct. She wanted to remain on Professor Leroy's good side. The lesson moved on, and the next topic was Hollywood since they were all looking at the famous hollywood sign up front. Rose contemplated what to answer as her peers sprouted out their answers all around her. When she had been called on among the last ones Rose had added in 'Hollywood I think has a famous boardwalk that showcases famous actors and actresses from the past and present.'
Next up it was time for the mini activity of naming 6 films and Rose immediatly turned to Emma because she was totally clueless. In a hushed tone she asked "Emma, can we please work together on this? I'm not sure I've seen any of the films the stills are showcasing. Do you think they are films for children? Like Huckelberry Finn or something?"
Raspberry Jam | #ChocolateFrogFamous | Ultimate Fangirl
The ‘Right…’ WOUNDED him, and he felt like an idiot.
Of course Solomon didn’t have anything else to offer, so he just stared blankly as the Professor when he started spouting off facts about the sign. “Right,” he said very quietly, in a totally different tone to how the Professor had said it.
The next part of the lesson had him baffled, as he wasn’t a movie watcher. Especially muggle movies. OLD muggle movies. BOOOOORRRRING.
He scribbled down the words Greased Lightening, and that was that.
Merlin only knows why Solomon had watched that old muggle film of all films. One time, might I add.
Solomon sought Anna out when the professor mentioned partner work, because he just knew she would know something more than him. “Wanna be partners?” He was unaware of anyone she had sat beside, by the way.
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who could love me, I am out of my mind___________________________ _________________throwing a line out to sea to see if I can catch a dream
Ooh! This was Emma's TIME TO SHINE. At least for a moment.
Her Great-Great Aunt Emma had been an old school Muggle film FANATIC and had left some of those ancient oddities and their watching devices to her many years ago. They were items she truly cherished and were near and dear to her heart.
She scribbled down the top 3 she knew without a doubt:
The Sound of Music
Grease
The Wizard of Oz
The others she had faint recognition, but wasn't quite too sure of, but noted the still photo with the flying car as "Bang Bang Car Whistle??? just in case.
She noticed some others had begun to pair up, perhaps it was time to stop being so shy and make some new friends...
"Ummm.... anyone wanna partner up with me? I think I know at least three of these for certain!" She smiled brightly, tucking her hair behind her ear. She promised herself on the train that this was going to be the year she formed solid friendships, and she was holding herself to it.
~ Mrs. Steve Harrington ~ It be like that sometimes.
Aha. So that was how those old time-ish movie cameras worked. Fascinated, Ary continued making the relevant notes. He had come across a few black and white movies on those streaming channels {even if he never completely watched many of them} but he had seen the Wizard of Oz a few times. In its entirity. As for the activity? Ary hadn’t much hope that he’d know any of the movies, even if they were from Hollywood’s Golden Age.
Still, the third year picked up the parchment and studied the images. One jumped out at him immediately: Maria Von Trapp playing her guitar to the seven Von Trapp children. This happened to be one of the few scenes he knew from the movie - The Sound of Music, and this one had fascinated him because Dad Adi played the guitar too.
“Either of you want to work with me?” Ary asked Bry and Jan. “I only happen to know the name of one movie though.”
Toothless - Napoleon of Crime - Gryffinclaw - Owl Emissary - Pirate Auror - DoctorDonna
Quote:
Originally Posted by HazelStone101
Ooh! This was Emma's TIME TO SHINE. At least for a moment.
Her Great-Great Aunt Emma had been an old school Muggle film FANATIC and had left some of those ancient oddities and their watching devices to her many years ago. They were items she truly cherished and were near and dear to her heart.
She scribbled down the top 3 she knew without a doubt:
The Sound of Music
Grease
The Wizard of Oz
The others she had faint recognition, but wasn't quite too sure of, but noted the still photo with the flying car as "Bang Bang Car Whistle??? just in case.
She noticed some others had begun to pair up, perhaps it was time to stop being so shy and make some new friends...
"Ummm.... anyone wanna partner up with me? I think I know at least three of these for certain!" She smiled brightly, tucking her hair behind her ear. She promised herself on the train that this was going to be the year she formed solid friendships, and she was holding herself to it.
Right, not just watching sporting events. Nadia caught the addition to her own answer, wondering why she hadn’t thought to include them together. After all, she very much enjoyed and was entertained by playing quidditch herself. Oh well. At least it was mentioned. The Gryffindor listened to the next question that was raised, deciding this time see what her fellow students gave as responses, coping them down into her notes especially if Professor Leroy agreed with them on the matter. Some of them certainly were…interesting. She definitely had to bite back a chuckle at the direction Anna went with her thoughts on the matter.
But now they were moving on and the professor was talking about film reels and black and white versus color. Nadia copied it all in her notes before catching one of the worksheets they would need to decipher. Hmmm she definitely knew the Parent Trap…it was perhaps a side affect of being a twin. Alas she and Dy weren’t identical and couldn’t really swap places like in the movie. Certainly always sounded like fun. But the others kind of stumped her. Was that guy singing in the rain? She looked up as a young housemate who seemed to be faring far better asked about partners. “Why not…” she mused aloud before moving closer. “I’ll work with you. Though I’ve only got one I know for sure."
Wizarding World RPG Admin Minister for Magic Alley Proprietor
Romanian Longhorn
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: The Paths
Posts: 39,749
Hogwarts RPG Name: Anna Walles
Hufflepuff
Seventh Year
Hogwarts RPG Name: Sage Ransom-Kruus
Slytherin
Seventh Year
Ministry Department Head:
Charles Hollingberry
Minister's Office
Ministry Department Head:
Airey Flamsteed
Mysteries
Diagon Alley Proprietor:
Zachaël Lufkin
Owl Post
x12 x12
the physical pain I feel that Anna is clueless
astronomizzle ♧ gryffinDORK | & the rest is drag ♣ #badluckDerf
Anna was drifting away on some cloud or another when Professor Leroy's voice sliced through the air like a bolt of lightning. Jolting up in her seat, eyes refocusing ahead and posture straight like she had been struck with a Petrificus Totalus, Anna felt the heat gathering in her cheeks until she was certain her entire face must resemble a ripe tomato. "Sorry, professor," she whimpered in apology, not even realizing that she had been singing in the first place - but Professor Leroy had no reason to lie to her and embarrass her in front of the entire class so it had to be true. As if that had not been enough, her answer had elicited what she could only interpret as mild irritation at the seventh year. And, honestly, she couldn't fault him for it. So she simply bowed and nodded her head a few times as she wrote HOLLYWOOD IS NOT WANDLORE across the top of her parchment.
She managed a few notes between the self soothing gestures of rubbing her cheeks and flicking her nose ring next. A mention of film reels and plastic and chemical concoctions...but it was all a mess that she would have to sort through later at tutoring and try not to blush there as well. Wizard of Oz was something that she actually knew and thus the faintest of smiles appeared on her features once again just in time for the worksheet to float in front of her. The Hufflepuffle plucked it out of the air and was ready to turn to Nadia to see what she knew about these with Solomon sauntered on up to her other side. "Oh, sure!" she chirped as she hopped up out of her seat to stand with him. And since Nadia was working with one of her housemates that took care of her feeling bad about not working directly with her next to her seat partner too. Though...maybe they ought to be a group of four because Anna was not confident in most of these even though she sure she ought to know some of them. "Um...I actually really don't know what any of these are from though...so I won't make for the best partner maybe. But I sure can help come up with titles for the ones that we don't know! A picture, after all, is worth a thousand words." Her eyes looked down at the worksheet and the six images, though her eyes found themselves most drawn to the man standing on a lamp post in the rain. "It looks like he is in the middle of dancing, doesn't it?" she mused while pointing to it and looping her other arm around Solomon's so they could be a proper detective duo. "And singing. He must really like the rain to be singing in it. Actually, that sounds kind of nice...singing in the rain." She liked taking walks in the rain so maybe next time she would try singing in it too. "Um...but what about the one with the flying car? That looks fun too. Like...it's a family vacation and they are traveling with their flying car. I'd call it...Wings of Wonder or Way Up High or Heavenly Highway!"
__________________
When you’re stuck in a moment and your spark has been stolen .................................................. ........... this is our time to own it, so own it..................................... baby we were born withfire and gold in our eyes
Rhibear ~ Madam Solo ~ Dark Brooding Girl ~ Accio Jedi ~ Gryffinclaw ~ Just a doll
Technically no, that wasn't the first thing Sydney associated with Hollywood. That was simply the first thing she associated with it that was 1) not glaringly obvious; 2) unlikely to get her into trouble for saying and 3) actually relevant to the era mentioned. The professor's response got a slight smile from her, but she didn't dwell on it for long.
She listened intently to the lecture, her eyes glued to the camera the entire time. She was so engrossed in the camera that she nearly missed the instructions for the activity. She blinked, staring at the parchment in front of her. Hmm… why did Professor Leroy choose movies only from the later half of the Golden Age? She wondered. Did he not like early Hollywood movies? Perhaps he thought they would be easier to identify… Another potential reason popped into her head, one that reminded her of a question she'd been meaning to ask since the start of class.
“Excuse me, Professor. I have a question about film bases,” she said after raising her hand and being called on. “Did all Old Hollywood films use plastic film bases? I thought most of them, at least the ones made before 1951, used nitrate. Was that a type of plastic film base?”
While Sydney awaited an answer to her question, she turned her attention to the stills on the parchment. She identified the right column fairly quickly. She immediately recognized the car from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. She rather liked that movie, especially the villain character. The middle right still she recognized as West Side Story. That movie was a bit too romantic for her tastes, but she did like the fight scenes and the tragic ending. The bottom right still was a little harder for her. She only knew it because she recognized Audrey Hepburn, of whom her ma was a fan.
With the right side identified, she turned her attention to the left. The top left was relatively easy. She knew The Sound of Music from watching it in primary school. Ugh, such a cutesy movie! The middle right still was from a movie she hadn't seen… a guy in a raincoat dancing? Singing? Wait, that was it! She remembered there was an old movie called Singin’ in the Rain. While she wasn't completely sure, she couldn't think of anything else it could possibly be.
The only still that had Sydney genuinely stumped was the bottom left. Twin girls, sort of like her and Blakeney if they had different haircuts. Hmm… Sydney thought, shifting her quill from her right hand to her left. The only movie she knew of with twin girls came out long after the Golden Age, and the twins looked different from that still. Leaving that one blank for now, she filled in the answers she knew.
SPOILER!!: Sydney's answers
The Sound of Music
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
Singin’ in the Rain
West Side Story
?
Breakfast at Tiffany's
__________________
Old voices I had thought long since dead whisper of another life I might have led If I could take that second chance, If I could make my life anew, If only dreams came true...
Ezra gave the professor a nod in return, grateful that he wasn't called upon to give any answers – the poor lad was feeling very out of his depth – even more so when the next task was given. He stared at the parchment and stared again. Well.. Um.. This was embarrassing. Cue an uncomfortable scratch of the ear.
Everyone was partnering up before he took in what was happening. He looked around, eyes a little panicked. Too late? He cleared his throat. “Anyone want to help a Ravenclaw out?”
Um..
Okay... Well he had two options open to him. Not bother at all or to get creative. Of course the latter won. He squinted at the still images, still finding it odd that they didn't move like magical ones. He strained trying to hear some of the other kids suggestions.. but nothing. Anyway, that was cheating and a cheat Ezra was not. He picked up his quill and began to scribble down whatever popped into his head, leaving the really difficult ones blank. Was he the worst Ravenclaw to ever grace the halls of Hogwarts? Probably not. But he knew one person who would get great satisfaction in him failing this particular subject.
SPOILER!!: ”*scribble scribble*”
1. ??
2. Aerocar!
3. ??
4. Fight Club
5. The Shining
6. Ladies Who Lunch
And if anyone wanted to dive in and save help him, he would be eternally grateful.
Otter This World ♡ Catpurrccino ♡ Slotherin ♡ Pandamonium
Normally this girl didn't stay silent during a lesson. However, things somehow zoomed right on by and no replies had been given from her as of yet. This wasn't due to anything more than the simple fact that she was honestly taking notes. A lot of them. Everything that had been said about muggle forms of entertainment, the Golden Age of Hollywood and all other things.
Her pen scribbled across her notebook parchment, blonde head of her nodding as she listened. One couldn't be sure if this all would come up on an exam or not. It didn't matter if she knew the information that was being said, or she didn't, she wrote it done... A lot of this.. She didn't know. Honestly, how could she?! This was from AGES ago! How a muggle film movie camera worked? Bry had no clue! So please don't mind the semi dumbfounded expression that was probably on her face as most things were scrawled across her paper.
What she did know though, was a few of those movie photos! Or.. Umm.. she thought she might?
Bry immediately nodded her head at Ary. "You bet I do. If the three of us work together we should at least get most of these right." And if not, at least they tried. Glancing back at the photos and then at Ary again, she giggled. "Lemme guess, The Sound of Music?" Cause she knew that one too. Did it count for anything that she knew the words to some of those songs as well? "The one with the car.. I know I've seen that one before with mama but it's got a really funny name that I can't remember..." Ummm.. she crinkled up her nose in thought, feet swinging a little underneath her desk as she chewed her bottom.
What's the name of that movie?!
__________________
Days of Potter 2023:___________________________ Which Bertie Botts Flavour Are You? You are Bread!
“Excuse me, Professor. I have a question about film bases,” she said after raising her hand and being called on. “Did all Old Hollywood films use plastic film bases? I thought most of them, at least the ones made before 1951, used nitrate. Was that a type of plastic film base?”
If Miss Masters wanted to go into more detail she was more than welcome to come discuss it in his office later. For the sake of the limited time in this lesson, her fellow students who were not so well versed in films from almost two centuries ago and the fact that it would not come up in their exams, he would refrain from going into too many specifics. “Several materials have been used for film bases in the past. Nitrate is extremely flammable and easily decomposed and led to frequent fires in projection booths as well as their disappearance from archives, hence why a transition to acetate and then polyester occurred.” No Professor Leroy was sadly not in the possession of one, what little was left was likely locked away in the archives.
As for the rest of the students who were struggling with their answers, Professor Leroy was not overly surprised. If he hadn’t had such a keen interest himself, he probably would’ve struggled too. But many of the examples were classics, filmed in technicolor and hopefully had survived the test of time. “Times up for that activity” he bellowed before tapping the board for the answers to appear.
Text Cut: Answers
1. Sound of Music
2. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
3. Singin’ in the Rain
4. West Side Story
5. The Parent Trap
6. Breakfast at Tiffany’s
“I find that the best way to learn about how muggles work is to understand it from our perspective. I don’t expect you to live like muggles during my lessons so we will be learning a spell to help replicate muggle technologies without the long wait times. We are going to do a fun activity using these replica cameras” he flicked his wrist as several smaller versions of the antique motion picture cameras appeared on the desks.
“I want you to produce a short film, only a couple of minutes at most, about something that interests you about Hollywood. Once you have finished this, remove the film from the reel and bring it over to this developer tank to soak. The contents of the chemicals in this tank won’t come up in your exams so I won’t bore you with the finer details.”
“When the majority of you have finished this, I’ll explain what the spell we are going to use is on this example.” He picked up a thoroughly antique reel of film which certainly looked like it had seen better days. “Group work is acceptable. You have around half an hour.”
ooc: You have about 48 hours for the main task. Professor Leroy will be checking in periodically. Plenty of time to catch up if required too.
~ Mrs. Steve Harrington ~ It be like that sometimes.
It seemed like the besties were stuck as he was. Or at least Bry was. “Uh huh. That’s the one. Maria reminds me of dad playing his guitar.” Like Bry, Ary knew some of the lyrics to a couple of the songs but he only sang to himself because… well, he didn’t inherit his dad’s musical talent. One of his favourite things to do was sing with Jan and Jan was just as bad. Together, they made The Terrible Singing Slytherin Duo ™.
As Bry mentioned the image with the car, he peered at it again. “Nope, doesn’t ring a bell for me.” What a pity he was rubbish with these old time-y movies. Not that it mattered because all the answers were soon revealed. And now that they were, Ary realised that he did know the titles of the movies. Ah well. When the camera appeared on his desk, he took some time to examine it. “Group work then?’’ he asked the two on either side of him. “Er… not much interests me… just the Hollywood sign, I guess?”
Raspberry Jam | #ChocolateFrogFamous | Ultimate Fangirl
Well, it was difficult to mask his disappointment that Anna didn’t know any of the answers, but it was fiiiinnnneee… they would just fail together. By the way, he was completely unaware that Anna was sitting by someone else and had intended to work with them, ooops. Maybe they’d join forces for the next activity. Solomon rubbed his temple as she explained a few ideas she had, making sense, he supposed. “I really have no idea, other than -“ He revealed the only answer he had scribbled down - Greased Lightening - then he added the titles she had come up with underneath his own, quietly confident despite being very, very wrong.
“Ummm…” he started as they moved on to the next picture, but it appeared time had already run out. Thank Merlin.
The seventh year very quickly ripped out the page with their catastrophically wrong answers on and screwed it up. Well, oops. He really had to do some more studying for MS, apparently.
The next activity had his eyes wide. They had a make a movie?! About WHAT?
Solomon stared at Anna, as all he knew about Hollywood was they had built a sign, and all Anna knew was… nothing??? :thumbsup:
“Maybe… you should be the actor… I’ll be the camera man. I could record you… building a Hollywood sign?” They could make it a historical themed video. Solomon shrugged, and was sure Anna would be much more creative than he was.
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who could love me, I am out of my mind___________________________ _________________throwing a line out to sea to see if I can catch a dream
Wizarding World RPG Admin Minister for Magic Alley Proprietor
Romanian Longhorn
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: The Paths
Posts: 39,749
Hogwarts RPG Name: Anna Walles
Hufflepuff
Seventh Year
Hogwarts RPG Name: Sage Ransom-Kruus
Slytherin
Seventh Year
Ministry Department Head:
Charles Hollingberry
Minister's Office
Ministry Department Head:
Airey Flamsteed
Mysteries
Diagon Alley Proprietor:
Zachaël Lufkin
Owl Post
x12 x12
astronomizzle ♧ gryffinDORK | & the rest is drag ♣ #badluckDerf
It was times like these that Anna wished Aurora took Muggle Studies because they sure could use her wisdom and guidance right now! Some of these especially looked fantastical enough that her blonde bestie would know immediately. Then again, it wasn't so much the objective to know everything without a little struggle - there would be no point in schooling and learning otherwise - so it was kind of fun coming up with titles based on a single still from the moving picture. BUT...having her Ravenclaw bestie sure would...
"Oh! You're welcome to join us if you'd like," she offered with a smile and beckoning wave to the Ravenclaw bow cawing for help. Maybe she should have asked Solomon if that was okay but three heads were better than one or two, just ask a runespoor! Bright eyes returning to Solomon, the Hufflepuffle leaned over to look at what he had written down and had nooooooooooooo idea where Greased Lightening came from but she had no ideas herself and it sounded pretty whimsy and therefore perfect for the picture. Oil and grease did float when on water so they were lighter in theory perfect...though she wasn't sure of the correlation between the three men stretching their arms and grease BUT sometimes titles were just like that.
When Professor Leroy revealed the answers, Anna was almost disappointed because it had been pretty fun creating narratives and stories for these characters and the world they were in but now she had knowledge to bring back to Aurora and see about maybe watching sometime. "Oh hey, look! I was actually pretty close with this one!" she squealed as she pointed to the man singin' without a g in the rain. Between being scolded by the professor and the only answer she was even remotely close to being about it as well, singing was clearly on the seventh year's mind and she leaned into that with Solomon's suggestion for their project. "Sure," she chirped, her brain already galloping like a million unicorns in the sunlight. "I could be a musical! Hmmm...let me see...something with building the Hollywood sign maybe...and all the glitz and glam of Hollywood...hmmm...oh oh oh oh!" Here was where her imagination and enthusiasm were not hindrances to progress. "Do you wanna build the Hollywood siiiiiiign? We'll get it up there high and proooooooooooud...We've got all our tools and we're set to climb...we'll make it shiiiiiiiiiiiiiine...we've been planning this forever ... and now's our chance...let's grab out paint and staaaaaaaart...."
She had come a long with with her vocals thanks to Frog Choir and Pseudo Big Brother Joseph and Drama Club and sounded MUCH less a strangled kneazle but still quite a fair bit off from a nightingale but able to at least hold pitch.
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When you’re stuck in a moment and your spark has been stolen .................................................. ........... this is our time to own it, so own it..................................... baby we were born withfire and gold in our eyes
Rhibear ~ Madam Solo ~ Dark Brooding Girl ~ Accio Jedi ~ Gryffinclaw ~ Just a doll
Sydney nodded at the professor’s answer to her question. Ohhh, okay… so she wasn’t wrong about Old Hollywood films using nitrate film. That was good to know. She was not at all surprised though mildly disappointed that they weren’t using nitrate film in the cameras. That would’ve been fun - and chaotic! She smiled a little to herself, imagining some poor unsuspecting person working with nitrate film.
She looked at the board as the answers to the activity appeared on the board. Oh, The Parent Trap was the only one she didn’t get right. Apparently there was more than one version of that movie, and she only knew the other one. She set her parchment aside, paying close attention to the next activity’s instructions. A short film about something that interested her about Hollywood? That could be fun. The hard part was deciding what to film! There were a lot of things that interested her about Hollywood.
Sydney absentmindedly tapped her quill against her face as she thought, trying to come up with an idea she could execute on her own in the time allotted. Hmm… the thing that interested her most about Hollywood was probably the old monster movies, but how would that translate into a short film? She was only one person, and this just wouldn’t look right without some costumes and props. Sydney Masters was nothing if not a stickler for accuracy!
Suddenly an idea came to her. What if she did an animated short? A concept came to mind… various icons symbolizing the classic monster movies morphing into each other in chronological order of the movies’ release. Which ones should she use? The Phantom of the Opera’s mask (and not the half mask from that overly romanticized musical version!), a bat for Dracula, lightning for Frankenstein, and… something for the Mummy. A bandaged mummy hand, maybe? She decided to skip the Bride of Frankenstein, the Wolfman, and the Creature from the Black Lagoon for various reasons: two for time constraints, and one because she thought it might be offensive to real werewolves.
Sydney drew a series of very rudimentary sketches, just detailed enough for the objects to be recognizable because of the time constraints. This would’ve gone a lot faster if she could use magic to animate her drawings, but she thought that would defeat the purpose of Muggle Studies. When she had her sketches done, all that was left was to figure out how to work the camera. She arranged her sketches in order, set up the camera, and removed the lens cap. Now where was the on switch? Found it!
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Old voices I had thought long since dead whisper of another life I might have led If I could take that second chance, If I could make my life anew, If only dreams came true...
“I know you are all busy filming but if I could have your attention for a few minutes whilst I explain the next step” The Professor bellowed out into the general chatter from the students filming. “Many muggles have attempted the process of converting black and white films into color for the modern generation. Although I don’t think it’s necessary and that the conversion may mean that the movies lose a little of their charm, the process is painstaking and originally involved hand painting directly onto the film frame. As technology evolved, the process became easier as they were able to digitally enhance using programming.”
“We are going to take advantage of our magical abilities and use a spell to convert our black and white films into color and vice versa.” He tapped the board as the Hollywood sign erased and a new set of words appeared.
Quote:
Colorization Charm : To Color
Incantation: Colovaria Polychromatis [ Co-loh-VA-ree-ah Po-lee-crow-mat-is ]
Wand Movement: Point at target
Colorization Charm: To Black & White
Incantation: Colovaria Monochromatis Co-loh-VA-ree-ah Mo-no-crow-mat-is ]
Wand Movement: Point at target
“This is a simple variation on the color changing charm specifically designed for use in the developing fluid you have in your tanks. When you are ready, bring your film to the tanks and give the charm a try. Like this..”
The professor carefully removed the reel from its case and lowered it into his tank. “Colovaria Polychromatis” he enunciated clearly, pointing his wand at the fluid as it oddly bubbled and spat and dribbled over the side of the container like a potion having a temper tantrum before it settled back down. “You get the jist” He waved the experience off with a nonchalant wave of his hand, making a mental note to call the House Elves later to clean up the mess.
~ Mrs. Steve Harrington ~ It be like that sometimes.
In the end, Ary decided to do a mini movie about the people in his life. He wasn’t rather good at drawing but he supposed his work could pass as decent. On a sheet of paper, he wrote the year 2100 in big bold letters at the top before drawing two male figures that represented his father, two girls that represented his fraternal twin sisters and an older boy that was his big brother. They were standing in a semi circle around a crib. In that crib was a baby who was only two days old; that was him. On another sheet, he repeated the image but added more persons: the Patons. Frankie, Hady, Nova, Melanie and Logan had joined the Atreyu-Rehmans around the crib. In it were Ary who was now joined by Bry. That was the moment the duo’s friendship had started because in the image, Bry was possessively holding his wrist with a chubby fist.
Fast forward to 2111… well, for this new image, Ary drew Hogwarts castle as one would view it from the boats when one crossed the lake as first years do. Bry was with him, of course. The next image showed Hogwarts again but this time at a distance as Ary hung out with Bry and the new friends he had made - Drake, Jan, Gilly, Emma, Emmeline, Vera, Sohrin, Sloane, Caiden and Idris.
To think that he had been afraid he wouldn’t have made friends! Look at him now… he had so many <3
But now it was time for him to use the camera to ‘record’ these images! Ary examined the object again briefly then proceeded to try to figure out how to make things work in his favour.
YesJess! | Captain Goggles | Mama Badger | Eva's Soul Sister | An OG™ | It's all in the Numbers
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nordic Witch
Rose was happy in silence that her entertainment answer had ben acceptable and correct. She wanted to remain on Professor Leroy's good side. The lesson moved on, and the next topic was Hollywood since they were all looking at the famous hollywood sign up front. Rose contemplated what to answer as her peers sprouted out their answers all around her. When she had been called on among the last ones Rose had added in 'Hollywood I think has a famous boardwalk that showcases famous actors and actresses from the past and present.'
Next up it was time for the mini activity of naming 6 films and Rose immediatly turned to Emma because she was totally clueless. In a hushed tone she asked "Emma, can we please work together on this? I'm not sure I've seen any of the films the stills are showcasing. Do you think they are films for children? Like Huckelberry Finn or something?"
What did she know about Hollywood? Not much more than some of her classmates already answered. She did give a befuddled look over to Anna who started talking about wandlore? Surely there wasn't a correlation between Holly wood and the film place in the United States, was there??
Oh they had to identify some famous classic films from just a still? She glanced over at Rose, "Sure, but not sure how much help I'll be..." she grinned sheepishly. She had seen a few classic films but she always preferred being active with dancing rather than sitting her bum in front of a screen. "First one is Sound of Music. Pretty sure i recognize the second one too, as Chitty Chitty Bang bang." She stared at the last four, "Oh that's uh... Parent Trap," she pointed to number 5. Okay that was half of them which was about all she knew. Not too shabby for someone who didn't really watch movies.
Oh onto the next task and they were making a short film?? Something that interested her about Hollywood? But what if she didn't really know anything? "Uh, I suppose could talk about how it's cool the whole world basically revels in these celebrities. They're like household names." Well they would be, if she knew them. "Do you want to maybe be the actor and I can film you?" It wasn't that she didn't like being the star, she'd been in a handful of dance numbers after all, but she also was completely uncertain and maybe Rose would have more confidence for what to say on camera.
So they were converting from colour to black-and-white, and vice versa? That was kind of cool. Although she wasn't sure she'd ever need to use it? Seemed the colorization charm was more useful than this variation, but then again who really knew what the future held ?
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___________________You should take your littlefinger and just point it in the mirror. ________________________________________Baby, maybe you're the problem✯
Otter This World ♡ Catpurrccino ♡ Slotherin ♡ Pandamonium
How many times was it safe to say that her boyfriend was brilliant? Look at what he had come up with on his own? That was the sweetest idea she had seen. Her blue eyes so very easily could make out everyone in his film strip. Ahem, namely her. How precious were they holding hands as baby's?! Did the smile on her face tell him how much she loved what he had chosen to draw? They had a friendship, a bond stronger than no other. It was unbreakable, and meant to be from the second she had laid her sights on him. Sorry not sorry everyone else.
Now what was she meant to do? All she really knew besides her deep bond with Ary was her true love of creatures and being a Ninja Warrior. There had to be a way that she could weave those things together. Somehow show how her connection with each made the other connection stronger.
Before she could really think about what she was doing, Bryony was sketching what she hoped looked like film strips across a blank sheet of paper. In one square she draw her and Ary with her mama on one of her mamas many creatures travels when they were small. A different square had them at his family's reserve with the griffs and the dragons off in the distance. There was one of her ninja warrior training 'with' Ary as they grew older. One of them at Scamanders Zoo. When they each got their very special creatures from one another. Oh, and let's not forget how Bacon had to be in each sketch too. This was her story.
Umm, now what was she supposed to do? She had been listening but there was a lot of information!
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Days of Potter 2023:___________________________ Which Bertie Botts Flavour Are You? You are Bread!
~ Mrs. Steve Harrington ~ It be like that sometimes.
Catching Bry’s bright smile, Ary gave her a grin. Yes, he could tell she was in love with what he had chosen for the project, and perhaps she was a little smug that she had claimed him so early in their lives. And peering at her own work, it did not come as a surprise to see the topics she had chosen to focus on. Go, Bry!
Ary had finally figured out how to work the camera and had set it up so that it would record the images without any other images from the background. In other words, the camera had been set in a ‘zoomed in’ mode to achieve this and focused in Ary’s direction. The papers were held up before the lens and the ‘record’ button pressed. Each drawing was held for about five seconds in front of the lens until all had had their on-screen time {in chronological order} before halting the camera.
Now that he was done, the Slytherin took some time to jot down the charms in his book along with the relevant notes on each. Only then was the film removed from the reel, very gingerly too because he couldn’t help but fear that he would wreck the reel somehow. Fortunately, this fear did not come to pass and soon Ary was taking the film to the developer tank. With just as much care as before, it was submerged.
“Co-loh-VA-ree-ah Po-lee-crow-mat-is. Co-loh-VA-ree-ah Po-lee-crow-mat-is.” Pronouncing incantations was almost of utmost importance and something Ary took very seriously. “Colovaria Polychromatis. Colovaria Polychromatis.’’ Right. Now the guy was all set. “Colovaria Polychromatis.” Cue him pointing his wand. The liquid reacted as it had when Leroy had done his spell work; Ary peered at it anxiously as it continued reacting. Hopefully there would be colour invoked in his images due to a properly cast spell.
Raspberry Jam | #ChocolateFrogFamous | Ultimate Fangirl
It was true that Solomon wasn’t pleased that Anna had invited another person to their group, the wrong Ravenclaw to their trio, but he offered the child a half smile before returning his attention to his friend. Who, by the way, had him in stitches when she suddenly broke into song. Of course Anna would turn it into a musical. He scrambled for the camera to capture the masterpiece. It didn’t have to be perfect, he assumed, especially hearing that the main task of the class was to change the films colour.
“Perfect. You’re a star. The camera loves you.” Solomon encouraged through his giggling.
Once that had finished up, Solomon rummaged for his wand while still holding the camera with his other hand. “I guess I’ll go first? Turn it to colour?” Then Anna could practise the other one. He sighed at the sight of the spell, because he hated those long and silly worded spells.
“Colo-varia Poly-chro-matis,” he stated out loud before taking the film to the tanks. With his wand the ready to point at the target, Solomon cast, “ Colovaria Polychromatis,” at the liquid. Well, it did something.
__________________
who could love me, I am out of my mind___________________________ _________________throwing a line out to sea to see if I can catch a dream
Wizarding World RPG Admin Minister for Magic Alley Proprietor
Romanian Longhorn
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: The Paths
Posts: 39,749
Hogwarts RPG Name: Anna Walles
Hufflepuff
Seventh Year
Hogwarts RPG Name: Sage Ransom-Kruus
Slytherin
Seventh Year
Ministry Department Head:
Charles Hollingberry
Minister's Office
Ministry Department Head:
Airey Flamsteed
Mysteries
Diagon Alley Proprietor:
Zachaël Lufkin
Owl Post
x12 x12
astronomizzle ♧ gryffinDORK | & the rest is drag ♣ #badluckDerf
Anna, having no real idea of the history of the Hollywood sign or how specifically it was built meant that this song was a bit of a flowery word salad. But, to her credit, the task was less about some sort of historical accuracy and rather a focus on something with Hollywood cinema that Hollywood things that held their interest AND they were technically combining two elements of the big iconic sign and musicals so did accuracy really matter all that much?
It was a good thing she had paused to take a breath and collect her thoughts for a second verse because it just so happened that at that time Professor Leroy was adding some additional tasks and some rather complicated sounding spells. Still, she offered a couple nods in acknowledgement before it was back to the task.
"Oh oh! Another verse!" she insisted as she skipped to the otherside of their little area so she could make an entrance while Solomon filmed more because they surely weren't at a couple minutes just yet. So it was with more leaping and twirling with the grace of someone who had never taken a ballet lesson in her life, each an enthuasistic whirlwind, that the seventh year continued with her performance. "Do you wanna SEE the Hollywood siiiiiiign....it's just a short hike up the hiiiiiiiiiiiill...I've been waiting to explore that view...and catch the sunset as it spiiiiiiiiiiiills....we'll see the letters glowing in the dark....and maybe spot a shooting staaaaaaaaaaaaaaar...Do you wanna see the Hollywood siiiiiign....it's calling us so let's take a walk....to where the magic meets the skyyyyyyyyyyy"
Relaxing after her finishing pose, Anna shuffled on over to Solomon and then followed him over to the tank while he performed the spell. "How do you know if it worked?" she asked, pushing up on her tip toes so she could sort of rest her chin on his shoulder to look over it.
__________________
When you’re stuck in a moment and your spark has been stolen .................................................. ........... this is our time to own it, so own it..................................... baby we were born withfire and gold in our eyes
Muggle Studies: “We’re not in Kansas anymore” 
x12 
x12
Do you wanna build the Hollywood siiiiiiign? We'll get it up there high and proooooooooooud...We've got all our tools and we're set to climb...we'll make it shiiiiiiiiiiiiiine...we've been planning this forever ... and now's our chance...let's grab out paint and staaaaaaaart....
