What food in your refrigerator makes the best fake blood? How should you angle the camera if you want someone to appear menacing and creepy? These are the types of questions that preoccupied Alfred Hitchcock, the masterful director of macabre, tightly-plotted, classic suspense films like The Birds, Rear Window, and Strangers on a Train. Hitchcock was famous for his precision as a director: shots were carefully plotted far in advance, editing was scrutinized, and special effects (like the sound of a stabbing) were achieved through imaginative use of everyday objects.

On Thursday, October 22nd, 2009, in honor of Teen Read Week, the Loft hosted a film workshop devoted to the works of Hitchcock. Inspired by the theme of the week – Read Beyond Reality – we decided to “Think Like Hitchcock,” and explore the world as captured by the late ingenious film director. What follows is a wrap-up of that dark and drizzly afternoon.

***

The day started off small. We watched scenes from Rope, Vertigo, Spellbound, and Psycho, analyzing each for their point-of-view (POV) shots, editing, inventive camera movements and set mechanics, and simple special effects. We talked about how Hitchcock used these elements to increase a sense of dread in his audience. The dream sequence in Spellbound (designed by Salvador Dali), as well as the grisly childhood accident flashback and final gun-in-your-face POV shot were riveting. We leafed through Bill Krohn’s excellent book, Hitchcock at Work, and discussed the use of storyboards and grand locations like the Golden Gate Bridge in Vertigo and Mount Rushmore in North by Northwest.

One thread in conversation centered on Hitchcock’s aprupt endings, how it seemed like he was more obsessed with the cinematic process of reaching the end of each film than the actual endings themselves. We discussed how, in a way, this is a model approach to life – endings and beginning are brief, it’s what you do in the middle, the attention and care that you pay to living, that count.

Maybe if Marion Crane in Psycho had understood this she would have noticed the door opening behind her, the blurry figure approaching…

When we watched the shower scene in Psycho and Marion’s screams and Bernard Herrman’s classic score rented the air the whole room stopped dead – teens on computers, teens looking for books, teens studying – and everyone turned to watch. When it was over, and Marion lay slung over the edge of the bathtub, the water dripping off her fingertips, the room exploded with Hitchcock chatter. Who knew? Turns out there were some serious Hitchcock buffs in our midst.

Then came the stabbing.

When Hitchcock was making Psycho he asked his props master to line up a whole slew of fruits and vegetables and knife each one to find the best stabbing sound. With about 8 teens in the center of the Loft we re-created this Psycho production moment; I challenged them each to “think like Hitchcock,” to choose the best effect for their own murderous shower scenes.

On a table I laid out a cantaloupe, honey dew melon, tomato, carnival squash, pineapple and more, and I stabbed each of them with a large butcher knife. Some fruit were an obvious No, like the too-ripe papaya, but others, like the squash, gave us pause. Sides were chosen, with friendly arguments erupting regarding the best sounds of the knife. (Check out pics from the Fruit Stabbing in the Loft Flickr stream in the margin to the right).

Lore has it that Hitchcock settled on a casaba melon. Our group was finally torn between a pineapple and a large, onion-shaped turnip. Finally, after careful consideration and a final vote, the turnip won.

Then we devoured the produce.

I never imagined the Hitchcock workshop would turn into a discussion about food, nor did I imagine it would become a delectable feast, but we’d obviously worked up an appetite. The teens were ravenous. While Loft staff cut up the melon we started talking about spaghetti squash, inspecting the inside of the turnip to figure out exactly what it was (with some even biting into the vegetable raw) and generally chowing down. We ate up almost everything – cantaloupe, honey dew melon, even the tomato was consumed like an apple. And I was worried about wasting food.

While we ate we also talked about our favorite Hitchcock films with The Lady Vanishes, Vertigo and The 39 Steps recommended as favorites. Yum.

When it was over, the table covered in fruit flesh, seeds, and rinds, one teen checked out Spellbound to take home, while others vowed to seek out more Hitchcock soon. I kept a pretty squash for myself.

Thank you, everyone, for a great event!

(Jarrett, The Loft)

UPDATE (11/10/09): On Saturday I was in the grocery store and I came across the mystery turnip that won the stabbing contest. It’s called a jicama and is, according to the website Wisegeek, “a crispy, sweet, edible root that resembles a turnip in physical appearance, although the plants are not related.” The website’s definition goes on to explain that, “Jicama has been cultivated in South America for centuries, and the vegetable is quite popular in Mexican cuisine. Jicama has a unique flavor that lends itself well to salads, salsas, and vegetable platters.”

It also lends itself well to horror effects. -jd

What YA books have rocked your world lately? Let us know by posting a comment below. In the past few weeks, some of the books that Lofters have been excited about are:

Marcelo in the Real World, The Hunger Games, Ash, Catching Fire, Shooting Star, Never Die Easy: The Autobiography of Walter Payton, Fire, Front and Center, and Never Cry Werewolf.

Join us for our exciting end-of-the-week programs in the Loft (Hitchcock Film Effect Workshop, Science Cafe, and a Self-Defense Workshop)!

Read something out of this world just for the fun of it, and let us know what you’re reading by leaving a comment below! We’ll be posting news all week about teen read week activities (sign up for Loft events if you haven’t already). Chat with young adult authors at the Readergirlz blog at 8 pm/Central, Monday, October 19th – Friday, October 23rd. Here’s the schedule.

Monday, October 19: Beyond Imagination

Justina Chen Headley (NORTH OF BEAUTIFUL)
Alyson Noël (EVERMORE)
Zoe Marriott (DAUGHTER OF THE FLAMES)

Tuesday, October 20: Beyond Hardship

Lorie Ann Grover (HOLD ME TIGHT)
Elizabeth Scott (LIVING DEAD GIRL)
Lynn Weingarten (WHEREVER NINA LIES)

Wednesday, October 21: Beyond Daily Life

Holly Cupala (TELL ME A SECRET)
Lisa McMann (WAKE)
Cynthia Leitich Smith (ETERNAL)

Thursday, October 22: Beyond Our World

Melissa Walker (LOVESTRUCK SUMMER)
Cassandra Clare (CITY OF ASHES)
Patrick Ness (THE KNIFE OF NEVER LETTING GO)

Friday, October 23: Into Our Beyond

Dia Calhoun (AVIELLE OF RHIA)
Sylvia Engdahl (ENCHANTRESS FROM THE STARS)

King Randa of the Middluns is hosting a party and eight-year-old Lady Katsa is suffering under the unnervingly intense attention of her distant cousin. He slides his hand towards her leg and she reaches out to slap him, only to, quite literally, smash his face. Young Katsa has a killing grace. In Graceling, Kristin Cashore’s richly imagined fantasy, gracelings are characters with superpowers, and they are marked by strikingly colored eyes, each a different color. In Katsa’s case, one eye is bright blue, the other green. 

Katsa is rather invincible against friend and foe alike, but because her grace has many benefits to those in power, her uncle, King Randa, ruler of one of the seven kingdoms, uses her to exact revenge on disloyal subjects or rival kings – whatever suits his fancy. Katsa, during a covert mission, encounters a strange man with one silver and one golden eye. Something compels her to trust him and she doesn’t kill him. This begins her rebellion against her uncle’s tyrannical claims. Katsa discovers the strange man is Po, a young prince from another kingdom who is a graceling like her. Po and Katsa teem up to practice their fighting skills (against each other) and to uncover the mystery of Po’s grandfather’s kidnapping. Together they embark on a dangerous mission, finding justice and corruption, adventure and brutality, political intrigue and romance.

Both Katsa and Po struggle enormously with their supernatural talents, and their graces evolve along with the story. Katsa is strong, confident, and unsure at the same time. Her extraordinary skill is not something she takes lightly, questioning how to use it and what its consequences are every step of the way. Po is strong and wise, but neither of them is prepared for the obstacles they face on their formidable quest. Nail-biting tension, mesmerizing & subtly crafted characters, and absorbing and surprising plot twists give this fantasy broad appeal. It’s on the teens’ top ten nominated list.  The top ten winners on this list will be announced during teen read week.

Sign up for our teen read week programs, Defend Youself, and Sci-Fi/Horror Video Workshop, here! Cashore’s next book, Fire, is a prequel to Graceling and is due out on October 5.

(Christie, The Loft)

This is the last day to vote for your favorite books from the list of Teen Read Week Nominated Titles. Readers ages 12-18 can vote online anytime today.

It’s also the last day to get bites of Halloween candy when you stop by the Loft and submit a book review! 

Celebrate Teen Read Week: Books with bite @ your library, October 12-18!

Today we are making Halloween notecards in the Loft at 4 pm!! Here are a few samples of what we will be making. Register in the Loft or call 847-448-8625. There is only 1 space left. For teens in middle or high school! Celebrate Teen Read Week!!

Today is the deadline for the vampire short story contest! Drop your story off in the Loft, at the branches, or email it to cchandler-s”at”cityofevanston.org.

Celebrate Teen Read Week: Books with a Bite @ your library and Read for the fun of it!

Read for the fun of it!!! This week in the LOFT and at the Branches:

• Vote here for the teens’ top ten books from this list of nominated titles!! Must be ages 12-18.

• EVERY DAY: Stop by the Loft & get bites of candy if you submit a book review!

• Monday, October 13: Create Podcast Reviews of books (and get bites of candy)! 2-5 pm, in the Loft.

• Wednesday, October 15: Spy School 101, at 4:17 pm, at the NORTH BRANCH LIBRARY.

• Friday, October 17: Make Halloween Notecards with a bite, at 4 pm, in the Loft. (Please register)

• Friday, October 17: Turn in your Vampire Short Story for blood-tastic prizes!

• All week at SOUTH BRANCH LIBRARY: Stop by, check out a book, and sample the daily bites (food!)

• Night Bites (all week) on Readergirlz MySpace: Chat with young adult authors!

Read for the fun of it!!!  

Join readergirlz for live chats with young adult authors during Teen Read Week, October 12-18!

Don’t miss all of our activities during teen read week, and, vote for your favorite book!!

Teens all across the country voted last week for their Top 10 Books.  Here are the results:

1. New Moon by Stephenie Meyer (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2006).

2. Just Listen by Sarah Dessen (Viking Children’s Books, 2006)

3. How to Ruin a Summer Vacation by Simone Elkeles (Flux, 2006).

4. Maximum Ride: School’s Out – Forever by James Patterson (Hachette Book Group USA/Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2006).

5. Firegirl by Tony Abbott (Hachette Book Group USA/Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2006).

6. All Hallows Eve (13 Stories)by Vivian Vande Velde (Harcourt, 2006).

7. Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer (Harcourt, 2006).

8. River Secrets by Shannon Hale (Bloomsbury, 2006).

9. Bad Kitty by Michele Jaffe (HarperCollins, 2006).

10. Road of the Dead by Kevin Brooks (Chicken House, 2006).

What do you think? Agree or disagree? Let us know!

In celebration of Teen Read Week’s theme, LOL@yourlibrary, we’re doing lots of fun stuff in the Loft!

Tonight (Tues, Oct 16) @ 6pm: High School Teen Advisory Board meeting. Always a laugh-riot!

Friday, October 19 @ 4pm: Let the Games Begin! Drop-in and play Nintendo Wii in the Loft.

Saturday, Oct. 20 @ 4:30pm: Junior High School Teen Advisory Board meeting. Sure to be hi-larious! 

Also Saturday, Oct. 20 @ 2pm: LOL while watching The Hitchiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.

And don’t forget to take the survey. We want to know your top 10 books!!