The Red Tapes Questions

What are the different voices that Acconci uses when speaking in the work and to what means? What characters does he embody/perform?
- thorught the film one follows Acconci as he shows himself in different forms. He is seen as a revolutionary, a ruler, a narrator and even sound effects. He is seen as a revolutionary and a prisoner when his face is shown with a blindfold and he starts talking about the revolution. in some parts of the film he is heard giving commands to his audience, therefore i can connect him to a ruler. In addition, he uses in the beginning and in the end parts in which he narrates a scene. lastly, he gives different sound affects to the film, as in humming or making car, wind or bomb noises. 

Locate instances of nationalism as well as lone individuality in the work. What do references to nationalism “do” or emphasize with respect to our understanding of the story.
-  in his work Acconci shows nationalism by using general known aspects. he shows landmarks as well as an American flag. in addition, he repeats words "We are the people" a very understandable idea of a nation, specially the U.S. nation. His references to nationalism lead the audience to connection of everything he talks about as a commentary on nationalism and all of the aspects in bring with it. In addition, he shows lone individuality, when creating a narration or adding stories in which he is seen and he is the only person in the room. He does seem to express his idea of nationalism and as one views him and only him they are able to understand that this is the view of one person as well as many.

How do the formal strategies (the look and how different elements are put together) of video, still  photos, painting, film, and performance contribute to the content of the work? Provide specific examples. 
- Acconci uses various strategies to accomplish his work. As it seems to be a commentary and a video somewhat looking like a revolution, Acconci uses aspects like pictures and a black background for his film. These pictures and flags are used as a visual for the audience to connect with. Therefore, by his use of the pictures and the affects he uses between them he is able to connect his ideas even more to his message. for instance, he uses the various pictures of the car to create a somewhat moving image in the mind of the viewer. He makes noises as well as narrates a scene as the camera jumps between the vehicles that are in different positions. These pictures help create a visual to his wording and lets the audience understand his message. In addition, as he did in the beginning and the end, Acconci narrates a chain of actions against a black screen. By not giving the viewer an exact image to imagine he is letting their imagination work and help give a variation of visuals. 

- How do you ultimately understand the narrative or story of this work? Please describe.
Since he is giving so many visuals and does not create a fluid story, it is very hard to understand what story is happening. Yes, we understand that he is talking about nationalism, revolutions, and the wars. however, one gets confused in which aspect is he going for. As he makes a joke or even an strong commentary against nationalism in his scenes of explaining a death in a battle or a the bombing of famous historical characters. One does understand the commentary he intends, however, one does not understand a fluid story that follows all of these.