Ricardo Cedeño Montaña, MSc

The notion of film making as an exclusive practice of well trained professionals is disappearing. Increasingly, the media production power is being put on the hands of consumers, who can design and produce their own media material through digital applications. This change is an opportunity to understand and create novel approaches to the way media design knowledge is appropriated and applied by laypersons. This research project proposes to investigate the amateur production of mov- ing images,1 and the production and circulation of vernacular knowledge in media design. The pur- pose is to contribute in the comprehension of the nature of contemporary moving images through the analysis and design of do-it-yourself (DIY) systems to produce moving images. The study of DIY movie productions, from an analytical and historical point of view, will build the basis to understand how these practices contribute to a shift of paradigm in media design. The more people become interested in media contents the less the so-called user-friendly concept will play a role in media design. Visual effects and tricks will lose against contemplation, social awareness, and critique. The design of DIY systems will help to closely examine the DIY-media creation and production methods. Through such design it is possible to materialize and reflect on a change from text based expressions to moving images as a new format to document and distribute knowledge in digital media.