Vidding Thoughts

[anoel]

I have been in vidding mode the last two days, watching and listening to vids and reading all the vid meta I can. Vidding is so my primary fandom because although I have a lot of shows I watch and fandoms I pay attention to and read fic to, most of the time I just read fic for ships and am not interested in gen or daily happenings of shows. But I love gen for vidding, in fact I'd love to see it more and do more of it myself. I love to find out everything I can about vidding, I'll read almost anything about it and still be interested. And I still miss Vividcon, it feels like a dream that I went there, met so many awesome people and had such a wonderful time. Is it Vividcon 2007 yet?



I've been working up ideas and thoughts for a vidding post for awhile now and finally feel ready to type them out. First I have to say that my Introduction to Film Aesthetics course is still the BEST class ever. I have unashamedly been tying lots of things that I read about, notice and disuss to vidding which is so fun and helpful to me. The things we're covering is narative design, visual design (mise-en-scene and cinematograpy), editing (yay!), performance ie acting and sound design. All of which I can find relations to vidding. For example, the book discusses how often filmmakers put things in nonlinear order in order to get the audience more involved with the story, to have them think more about it and how it all fits together. This is what makes vids so interesting to me because the storyline is nonlinear by definition (unless you take 3:00 of a show and put it with music...you'd have to use a lot of special effects to make that work reasonably well) so you get that much more involved with the vid and trying to understand and enjoy it.

While reading the book and listening to discussion, I'm trying to jot down some helpful tips for vidding as well as ideas for different kinds of vids. Some things I'd like to see more in vids or make myself:

-Commentary on vids in vid forms: This is kind of similar to the Remix challenge at Vividcon but I can see the concept taken further. I think it would be so cool to put part of your feedback/commentary/analysis in vid form. I can see this used in different ways from using clips from the vid (this would all have to be with permission obviously) along with connections to other clips from the show or sorting the clips used together to show themes and parallels to using split screens and more screens to compare, contrast, connect, etc more easily. You can even add text to the clips, making it easier for the vidder/others to see exactly what it is you think about parts without having to check back to the vid or feedback/time stamp every second. I'm not sure if this would work, just an idea I had.
-Vids showing the similarities and differences between characters and relationships and even plotlines and themes on different shows. There are lots of great multifandom vids that do this but I'd like to see more that take a smaller focus and really dig in deeper to it. So just compare two characters or two relationships on different shows. For example, I'd love to see or make a Buffy and Veronica vid, comparing them and their personalities, journeys and experiences.
-I'd love to see vids that show a characters mindset through effects and the source. There's a certain style of film that does this but I checked through the book and can't find it so that's the only description I have. Anything experimental, like stream of consciousness style vids would be cool to see.
-Not a vid per se but not only would I love to see more meta about vids (that's a given) but I'd like to see meta about how to watch vids, how to process them. Vids can be so complicated and hard to pick across, not only on the first watch but the second and third that it would be great to see some ideas and questions and pointers about things to watch for in vids to help people understand them more.



I've realized that I don't give enough long feedback to vidders. There are a lot of vids that I love so much and I watch a LOT but my extent of my feedback is nothing at all, "I love it" to a paragraph or so. I'd like to apoligize for this as I feel bad about it. I understand how much long feedback is appreciated and I LOVE vids and want to let vidders know how much I enjoy and think about their work. But I really want to try to give more detailed feedback and have made it my new mission to try to send it out as much as I can from now on. What's held me back from it in the past is my usual perfectionistic tendencies. I feel if I send a long feedback email for a vid, it'll have to have ALL my thoughts and reactions to it and I know that will take a long time. To add to that, I feel I have to write something brilliant and if I don't then I shouldn't write anything at all until later when I can come up with something smarter. This comes with the knowledge that I admire a lot of the vidders out there and think they are OMG, so smart, and so I feel kind of hyperaware of them and what they'll think of me. I've realized I just need to work with what I have for right now and if I think of something else in the future, I can always send that later. So hopefully, you vidders (and maybe fic writers if I can manage it) will see some long feedback from me in your inbox soon.

In other fandom news, I am still loving Prison Break and thought the new episode tonight was awesome. I am addicted to the suspense and I continue to love all the characters, getting swept up in their storylines. I wholeheartedly rec f1renze's vid to the show, Ragged Ass Road which captures everything I've wanted to see vidded in the first season from the master plan to the brothers love for each other to the cool motion. Just a gorgeous vid that has continued with my great pleasure to recruit more people into watching the show. I'm also enjoying Nip/Tuck in all its craziness and am impressed that finally the slash between Sean/Christian is actually getting explored. If only more shows were on cable and weren't afraid of the gay. There really needs to be more vids to the show, its very pretty visually and has great editing especially during the medical scenes, making them worth watching. Also finished Battlestar Galactica season 1 yesterday and it was amazing. Just about every episode has an interesting, suspenseful plot and a great ending. The characters are great, I loove Starbuck and I like all the rest of the characters and their relationships. Can't wait to finish the second season so I can watch the third with everyone.

Comments

[keewick.livejournal.com]

I just finished the first season of BSG yesterday, too! Weirdness.

In fact, I was so excited/frustrated by the finale that I immediately ordered S2 from amazon; the DVD sets should be arriving by Friday and then I hope to bop on through so I can start watching more BSG vids and rewatch those I've already seen and be all yay, context!

[anoel.livejournal.com]

Yes, it seems a bunch of people are watching it now and I'm glad to join them. I immediatly went and downloaded mine (in my defense, I have no money) and watched the first episode. I am soo looking forward to having context for BSG vids, already watched Jerusalem and Cold Cold Water and loved actually understanding them. Yay context is right!

[keewick.livejournal.com]

Could you give me the link to Jerusalem?

[anoel.livejournal.com]

http://flummery.livejournal.com/21866.html Love that vid.

[absolutedestiny.livejournal.com]

I have all sorts of thoughts on what you've posted here but no time to write them. So let mu just say this - AWESOME.

I'm going to have to friend you now because you are going somewhere really interesting. Not only are you becoming deeply interested in vid meta but you are looking hard at techniques, linking them to fannish experiences and appreciating vidding as fandom. This is all wonderful stuff (stuff that I love the most) and I can't wait to see where it goes. Yay!

[anoel.livejournal.com]

Glad you liked :) I'd love to hear your thoughts whenever you have the time. I was always deeply interested in vid meta, when I first saw vids that was the first thing I went looking for but I become more and more immersed everytime I read more about it and experience it for myself. It's fun for me, I love it the most as well and hope it goes somewhere good.

random thought

[cathexys.livejournal.com]

the first thing i thought when i read your post was the youtube phenomenon where people make vids responding to and commenting to other vids (like lonelygirl's vids would get bunches of vidded responses talking to her or commenting on her vid)

Re: random thought

[anoel.livejournal.com]

Yes, exactly, it'd be kind of like that. I think it'd be fun to take the derivative concept further, who knows how far you can go with each person's idea of things. Everything always connects for me.

[dualbunny.livejournal.com]

I'm interested in that last idea about how to process vids too. I think it's definitely something you get more and more able to do the more vids you watch, but I'd love to hear people discuss exactly how they watch a vid from one viewing onward. Especially some of the really good betas out there. :)

[anoel.livejournal.com]

Yes exactly *looks at renenet and elynross* I was just reading f1renze's commentary on Killing in the Name Of and realized that if I looked at the vid in a different way, I could pick up even more from it. This is another reason I love vid commentarys so much.

[supershineygirl.livejournal.com]

I'm new to this so please forgive my ignorence but what exactly is vidding and vid meta???

[anoel.livejournal.com]

Vidding is where you use an editing program like Windows Movie Maker/iMovie or Adobe Premiere/Final Cut Pro to edit clips from a tv show (or movie or anime, anything visual) and set it to music. Ultimately you're trying to create art somehow so it requires thinking about it on how to make a good vid which is what vid meta is. If you want some examples, you can check out my memories for some vid meta and rec links.

[permetaform]

Is German Expressionism what you're thinking of for part 3 in your vidding thoughts?

Re: part 4, I hesitate to do that, personally, because it would mean that all my subsequent vids would be potentially viewed through that meta. Part of my aim in vidding is to encourage the viewers themselves to get sucked in by the comparisons and the images I'm putting together, to "get the audience more involved with the story". And I try to encourage people to view my vid on whatever level they're most comfortable with, that if they want to view it for the pure "ride" of the experience of it, they can; but if they're interested in the deeper story of it, then they can find the deeper story. Part of this is the knowledge that the fandoms I tend to vid in are pretty obscure. Part of this is that I don't want to impede in the way that people view my work, that any sort of viewing of my vids are valid interpretations.

Then again, I think that meta from non-vidders on vid-viewing would be helpful. I'm not sure, however, that I personally or perhaps any actively-creating vidder would be able to write meta on vid-viewing that wouldn't be biased/partial or adversely affect the ways the new viewer would approach their subsequent vids.

[anoel.livejournal.com]

Yes, that's it. Found it again while I was reading.

As for the meta, I don't mean for it to limit the viewer in how they watch your vids or anyone elses but rather give ways to help people interpret vids. That doesn't mean you can't view the vid on different levels or in a different way, as you said, every interpretation is valid.

[permetaform]

I don't mean for it to limit the viewer in how they watch your vids or anyone elses but rather give ways to help people interpret vids. That doesn't mean you can't view the vid on different levels or in a different way.

::nods:: I understand that you didn't mean the limitation, however I sorta feel that comments by the vidder themselves will necessarily affect how one views their vids, so I hesitate (myself, personally) to write meta to that effect. I hesitate to say that "this is how one must interpret a vid".

Case in point, if one watches a vid and interprets it in a totally different way than the vidder meant it, I view that interpretation as just as valid as the "true" purpose of the vid as concieved by the vidder, despite any statement by the vidder themselves that it's "wrong".

Perhaps tho I'm misunderstood tho...'cause then again, I can kinda see how perhaps laying out "patterns" of possible viewership of vids might be useful. Like, "this is the patterns of a reaction shot" or "this usually means that the vidder is trying to compare two things", like that?

[anoel.livejournal.com]

Yes exactly, like that. I would never say that an interpretation isn't valid even if its a different purpose from the vidding. The meta wouldn't really be specific to a vid but rather in general like you stated. There is never a "must interpret" this way but rather giving viewers a toolbox for ways to do it.

[permetaform]

hmmm...that almost sounds more like a "how to read film" tool box than anything.

er...::ponders:: are there really that many?

'cause okay

1) shot-reactionshot = person looking at object/person

2) blends = usually passage of time or comparison between two different times/objects/people

3) morph = usually comparison or POV

4) soft fuzzyness/high-colorchange = usually flashback

5) cold colors = negative, warm colors = positive


...I'm not sure what else to list.

Perhaps also a list of some examples of possible ways to experience a vid?

- as a "ride": watching a vid for it's sensations (method: emphasis on motion/colors/prettiness)

- as a dance-vid: like "ride" vids, but meant to be danced to (method: sustaining energy, motion/color/prettiness/my-characters-YAY)

- as a poem: the vid is dancing around a theme (method: usually compare/contrast patterns, context independant, usually more time independant than other forms)

- as fic: the vid is telling its own story, (method: *out* of context images, usually in cause and effect patterns, time is usually more linear than other forms)

- as meta: the vid is showing a character/relationship in the show (method: SHOW, not tell, uses in context images in both cause/effect and compare/contrast patterns)

- as an essay: the vid is trying to prove something in the show, with a different aim/intent than meta (method: TELL, not show, uses in context images in both cause/effect and compare/contrast patterns)

Usually vids are more than one of the above...I can't think of any more off the top of my head. You?

[anoel.livejournal.com]

Sorry for the late reply. The toolbox terms are helpful but not exactly what I was going for. I really love your types list, lots of good distinctions. More detailed looks at them and how to process them is what I'm thinking of especially for poem, meta and essay vids. Basically how to get the most out of a vid as you watch it.

As for other categories, I'd say to add into ride, more emphasis on the emotional experience. Also maybe comedy vids would be a separate one somehow, although it could fit a few different categories sometimes.

[permetaform]

ahhh, okay then.

and comedy vid is a seperate one, I agree. also, LKBV I think and mood vids.

- comedy vid: the vid is going for humor (method: patterns are usually set-up and then breaking/twisting the set-up in a humorous way, uses cause/effect and compare/contrast)

- LKBV: the vid is the vidder's inner 12 year old, sometimes played for humor but not always (method: over-the-top anything, toungue-in-cheek enthusiasm and earnestness)

- mood vid: the vid is trying to set up the mood of a world, may or may not be AU (method: generally tends to emphasize the emotional/physical reaction towards an image, strong use of motion or lack-thereof to worldbuild, tends to use non-character shots)

And I sorta feel that all these types are usually mixed and matched. I usually aim to vid so that as many of these types are filled as possible, so that people may view the vid in any way they so choose and still get something from them.

For instance, Welcome Home I consider a ride vid, mood vid, a poem, and meta. None of it's descriptors really prevents it from being in the other catagories, sorta like how an apple can be red and round at the same time.

[permetaform]

actually Welcome Home is probably in the "fic" catagory as well, only it's the way that *I* write fic, which tends to be less AU plot-y fic and more character-descriptive anyways.

[anoel.livejournal.com]

Yeah, most vids are a mixture of a few but one or two usually stand out.