Mendiola, Viviana. (2026). Impermanence and the discomfort of change. YouTube. CC-BY-SA-4.0.
This video explores impermanence and the discomfort it brings. The imagery shifts between different stages of my life, and it features a historical photograph, urban scenes, travel images, transitions between living and work spaces, and ocean views. The structure is intentionally uneven. It reflects movement rather than stability.
The images in this project are intentionally ordinary—snapshots taken in moments of transition. Their slight imperfections mirror the theme itself: the unease of movement, the unfinished quality of change.
The ocean appears throughout the video as a quiet constant. I have lived in different places and moved through different roles, but the ocean has remained a visual anchor. I have viewed it from different windows, different cities, different moments in my life. It is both the same and never the same.
In contrast, the other images represent change: new environments, professional transitions, travel, unfamiliar spaces. The discomfort of starting over. The unease of movement. The instability of identity shifting.
Impermanence is often framed romantically, but lived experience is more complicated. Change can be disorienting. It can feel like loss before it feels like growth.
The phrase, “impermanence, the discomfort of impermanence,” names that tension directly. Awareness does not erase difficulty. Understanding that everything changes does not make change easy.
The ocean, however, continues. It remains in motion without resisting that motion. In that sense, it represents continuity beneath instability.
This project reflects on the contrast between the constancy of the ocean in my life and the instability of career shifts, movement, and personal transition. Impermanence does not disappear. It reshapes.
Attributions
Software
Video assembled using the Apple Photos slideshow tool (macOS).
Exported at 1080p resolution using default slideshow export settings.
Images
Original photography by Viviana Mendiola (2026). Microsoft PowerPoint design tools used to add design elements to the original photographs and to text-only slides.
House Boating on the Miami River, Fla. National Photo Company Collection, Library of Congress. Public domain image, Picryl.
Title image AI-generated using ChatGPT: prompt “the discomfort of impermanence featuring ocean background.”
Elevator image AI-generated using ChatGPT: prompt “elevator with all floors lit up.”
“Passing” image generated using Microsoft PowerPoint design tools.
Credits image AI-generated using ChatGPT: prompt “credit sources used.”
Music
“Upbeat Calm Corporate 100 BPM (Full)” by LiteSaturation (Pixabay Content License).
Voiceover
Original recording by Viviana Mendiola (2026).
Were the flashing frames intentional?
I’m getting the idea of your story–something chronological? moving through the world?–but some stronger images could have sold it further. What does the river cruise add? Or the stop request button? Do especially like the continuity of the ocean.
Hi Viviana,
I actually liked the transitioning slides of mundane scenes, constantly shifting. They do a good job of picturing just what it’s like to be on the move, and how, as good as the constant flow of change is good for the ocean, us humans just aren’t built that way. I do wish there were more words or lyrics to go with this video, though. In our group, Whalen created his own narration, and since you wrote down your thoughts for this video, I think that could work for future projects. It would need some editing down, but you could easily do spoken word into this!
Hi Viviana,
The upbeat song was a great choice for this video and I liked the constant of the blue background for your assets. It tied in nicely with your inspiration, the ocean. My only note regarding the background is that at times it over shadowed the images and they were too small to see (0:23 – 0:30).
I think the video would have benefited with some narration or perhaps using an equally upbeat song with lyrics to complete the viewing experience. Since the images were a bit random the narration would have helped covey your theme a little clearer.