thanks for the year's vidsrdkeirJanuary 3 2005, 04:57:33 UTC
Window of Opportunity: "I also learned that sometimes you have to cut the entire first verse of a song to make it viddable, and that if you pick a sufficiently obscure song nobody will notice, let alone care."
Well, yes, except that having heard the song in your vid, I went out looking for it, and was surprised to see that there was more of it - it's Heisenberg obscurity, that goes away as soon as you depend on it.
Thistledown Tears: I might give the "sexiest moment" to the shot of a bare=chested Simon, synched with the lyric about "the time to wrestle the angel". switching over to Inara near tears as she turns away. Thank you for doing this vid - as with several of your vids, I find myself flipping it on, just to listen to the music, and then being unable to look away from the accompanying vid. Another CD to go out and get.
Re: thanks for the year's vidsheresluckJanuary 3 2005, 16:39:57 UTC
...having heard the song in your vid, I went out looking for it, and was surprised to see that there was more of it...
Heh. It's not that I don't adore the first verse, but you see why it wouldn't work, right? Plus, amusing vids need to be short or they wear out their welcome, so a bunch of stuff had to go anyway. Did you get just that song or all of Bombazine? It's a brilliant CD. (Have I mentioned that I am utterly delighted by your ongoing willingness to go seek out music based solely on my vids? I really am.)
And you're quite right that the beefcake!Simon shot is arguably much sexier than either of the ones I picked. I happen to think that Zoe with a gun is sexier than pretty much anything ever (except maybe Faith dancing), but I am prepared to be in the minority about this.
Re: thanks for the year's vidsrdkeirJanuary 3 2005, 17:12:15 UTC
oh, yes, the editing out of the first verse was a good thing for your video. I ordered a copy of Bombazine - I mostly try and buy albums rather than individual tunes, a habit that stems from liking a lot of music that is too long or odd for a record company exec to pick as "the single". Hey, I'm just as delighted to have discovered a source for new artists that I enjoy. Most new artists that I find these days come from either sources like vids, or Internet streaming stations. The ClearChannel-ization of the airwaves has made radio something I listen to for a few minutes before giving up in disgust, these days.
Faith dancing is indeed pretty sexy. I like the "Zoe somersault with guns" shot too, but much of it's goodness comes from being such a cool stunt, whereas the beefcake!Simon -->sadness!Inara transition is quite sexy because of how you paired them up with the music.
My favorite of your vids this year is Cat Scan Hist'ry. I think that it was you working without a net, for one thing, and it was as brave as Superstar, only in a different way. And visually, I couldn't look away--from the speeding down the road part at the beginning all the way to the very last clip, I felt like I was on a ride with Donnie. Sigh. I play it a lot.
Of course you like "Cat Scan"; that's the one where I was trying to be you, or at least think like you. *g* And it was so good for me -- it made me think through every clip choice on a completely different level than anything I'd done before. Exhausting, but so worth it.
And WORD on me working without a net. Which I may never do again, because my god the trauma, but it did broaden my definition of "net" significantly, so it's still an advance.
And it's also the vid from which we got this exchange, so it'd be worth it for that if for nothing else. *g*
I can only fathom at the level of thought you've been putting into your most recent videos. The effect is really something quite stunning and I can appreciate how agonising the technique would be
( ... )
One thing I think has been a real strength in your most recent videos is your ability to sacrifice things, remain objective and understand what works best for the greater good of the video.
This is a very kind and encouraging thing to say; thank you. That willingness to give things up if they don't fit, no matter how much I love them, is something that I've been working on, so I especially appreciate your commenting on it. I've always thought of myself as vidding for an audience, but my ideas about that audience (who they are, what they know) and my expectations for my vids have changed over the past couple years, so I do find it harder to balance what I want and what the vid/audience needs than I did when I was first vidding. That's growth, I guess. :)
As for the lack of reception for non-major fandom videos, don't worry about that - you vid what you want to vid.Exactly -- and I do. I have a couple other movies I want to vid, and a bunch of dead TV shows, and I know that someone somewhere will be interested in them. It was just a
( ... )
Two thingslaurashapiroJanuary 3 2005, 18:21:50 UTC
1) I don't think I've ever sent you feedback on "Window of Opportunity" -- apparently I suck. I want to mention now that I watch this vid several times a month. It cheers me, delights me, makes me itch with its mesmerising, addictive pulse and its determined optimism. The song choice is inspired, and your attention to detail and emulation of the show's effects are glorious. Yet the whole thing feels simple and light and beautiful, like a soap bubble. You do make it look easy.
2) Your description of being more flexible and more relaxed about that flexibility since vidding storyboard-free is exactly what happened to me when I started leaving my notes behind. Even if you never make another vid without a storyboard, I think it's incredibly valuable to have that sense of freedom in experimentation.
Re: Two thingsheresluckJanuary 4 2005, 15:11:06 UTC
1) I'm so glad that you like the vid! And also that it did end up looking easy. *g* I'm looking forward to remastering it after the DVDs come out.
2) Yeah, exactly. As Lum says, I was working without a net; now that I have my net back, I feel like I *need* it less. It's there because I want it, not because I can't work without it -- a subtle but important difference.
Re: Two thingslaurashapiroJanuary 4 2005, 18:28:07 UTC
Apart from the way you feel about it, do you notice your process has changed since your experiment?
I am no longer making spreadsheets, the way I used to. I don't begin editing until I've decided on a handful of "anchor" clips -- ones I feel sure about. Usually I know what the last clip will be. And I have to be secure about what each verse and each chorus is going to try to achieve, either in terms of meaning or mood. That's a lot more information than I had when I started "Beatitudes", but it's a lot less than I used to begin with back when I was spreadsheet-driven.
BTW, could you shoot me a copy of your clip notes spreadsheet/database format? I've started clip notes for the Chiana vid, and I can already tell I'm not making it in the most useful way. I'd love to get another look at the way you do it.
Re: Two thingsheresluckJanuary 7 2005, 02:47:16 UTC
My process has changed a lot, both because of the experiment and because of my new addiction to my clip databases (I'll send you the Firefly one
( ... )
Comments 14
Well, yes, except that having heard the song in your vid, I went out looking for it, and was surprised to see that there was more of it - it's Heisenberg obscurity, that goes away as soon as you depend on it.
Thistledown Tears: I might give the "sexiest moment" to the shot of a bare=chested Simon, synched with the lyric about "the time to wrestle the angel". switching over to Inara near tears as she turns away. Thank you for doing this vid - as with several of your vids, I find myself flipping it on, just to listen to the music, and then being unable to look away from the accompanying vid. Another CD to go out and get.
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Heh. It's not that I don't adore the first verse, but you see why it wouldn't work, right? Plus, amusing vids need to be short or they wear out their welcome, so a bunch of stuff had to go anyway. Did you get just that song or all of Bombazine? It's a brilliant CD. (Have I mentioned that I am utterly delighted by your ongoing willingness to go seek out music based solely on my vids? I really am.)
And you're quite right that the beefcake!Simon shot is arguably much sexier than either of the ones I picked. I happen to think that Zoe with a gun is sexier than pretty much anything ever (except maybe Faith dancing), but I am prepared to be in the minority about this.
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Faith dancing is indeed pretty sexy. I like the "Zoe somersault with guns" shot too, but much of it's goodness comes from being such a cool stunt, whereas the beefcake!Simon -->sadness!Inara transition is quite sexy because of how you paired them up with the music.
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And WORD on me working without a net. Which I may never do again, because my god the trauma, but it did broaden my definition of "net" significantly, so it's still an advance.
And it's also the vid from which we got this exchange, so it'd be worth it for that if for nothing else. *g*
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Heee. So true.
These are all marvelous vids, but I love it that you vidded Firefly from mad love of the show. ::sigh::
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I feel pretty sure that I'll vid Firefly again at some point. Just not for a while. Too many other projects!
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This is a very kind and encouraging thing to say; thank you. That willingness to give things up if they don't fit, no matter how much I love them, is something that I've been working on, so I especially appreciate your commenting on it. I've always thought of myself as vidding for an audience, but my ideas about that audience (who they are, what they know) and my expectations for my vids have changed over the past couple years, so I do find it harder to balance what I want and what the vid/audience needs than I did when I was first vidding. That's growth, I guess. :)
As for the lack of reception for non-major fandom videos, don't worry about that - you vid what you want to vid.Exactly -- and I do. I have a couple other movies I want to vid, and a bunch of dead TV shows, and I know that someone somewhere will be interested in them. It was just a ( ... )
Reply
2) Your description of being more flexible and more relaxed about that flexibility since vidding storyboard-free is exactly what happened to me when I started leaving my notes behind. Even if you never make another vid without a storyboard, I think it's incredibly valuable to have that sense of freedom in experimentation.
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2) Yeah, exactly. As Lum says, I was working without a net; now that I have my net back, I feel like I *need* it less. It's there because I want it, not because I can't work without it -- a subtle but important difference.
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I am no longer making spreadsheets, the way I used to. I don't begin editing until I've decided on a handful of "anchor" clips -- ones I feel sure about. Usually I know what the last clip will be. And I have to be secure about what each verse and each chorus is going to try to achieve, either in terms of meaning or mood. That's a lot more information than I had when I started "Beatitudes", but it's a lot less than I used to begin with back when I was spreadsheet-driven.
BTW, could you shoot me a copy of your clip notes spreadsheet/database format? I've started clip notes for the Chiana vid, and I can already tell I'm not making it in the most useful way. I'd love to get another look at the way you do it.
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