Thanks guys, keep them up.

Movie intro, need some input and suggestions
 

here is a movie intro I started making, i need some input on it here:

http://communityvideo.aol.com/Playba...ndex=1&page=10

Way too long. You really only need 20-30 seconds maximum for this type of project. After the text showed up it was just the police lights for like a minute which I really don't get. The font design and texture for the title 'swat' was corny looking, and the name itself is very generic. I think it's a good concept and I am not sure if you are going to cut it down or whatnot, but those are my opinions.

My best advice would be to keep it simple, it is a great way to start a feature film but unless you really know what you're doing it shouldn't be so elaborate.

Justin

Why 3 minutes of music to sustain 25 seconds of visual? Go to another shot about 4 beats after the "T" disappears or end it. Liked the smokey background and the soft focus rooflights, not too keen on the font and colour used for the title graphic. Strongly suggest you reduce the bass substantially in the music - a strong base line is one thing, having all the melody completely lost underneath the bass is something else again.

Hi, thanks for your opinions. yea i know it was long, i just didnt get to cut it down when i exported it. all that extra time is gonna have the like director and actors and writer and all that. as for the text what ideas do you have to make it more apealing. thanks again -Nick

mini 35 commercial
 

Here's a viral comercial I've just shot on Beta sp with the mini 35.

http://www.funnyplace.org/video.php?id=2897

(Sorry but I've also posted this in the P+S section I only just spotted this section)

I hope you enjoy.

I thought it was well put together and believe it or not most people not in the business actually like the stuff us DVuser's would consider cheesy.... my two pennies

haha, man that was really funny.

It looked nice too...a little soft, I couldn't tell if that was from the compression or not. Great job!

Thyanks Thomas I'm glad you enjoyed is was fun to make. Yea the compression on that sight makes it look really soft.

looked very filmic.. did you use any filters in post? MB?

streetbike documentary shot on DVX100a, out now!
 

Hi guys, i have finally finished my first Motorcycle Stunt documentary, you can view the screenshots and trailer up on the site http://www.asphaltjunkiez.com

Also there will be a screening of the film on july 16th in a theater in the fraser valley area(vancouver, BC) If anyone is intereted in coming out and watching it on the big screen, just msg me and i'll give you more info.
thanks

95% shot on DVX100a in 24p
edited in pro 1.5
after effects 6.5

contains commentary about shooting and editing also


please visit asphaltjunkiez.com to have a look

Looks pretty good from the trailer man!

Good luck on the big screen!

im thinking the same thing. over-used graphics=cheeze! nice use of soft focus/filter, the lighting at the cremony is incredible! i too shoot weddings and lighting is the hardest thing at these events. way to keep the color/exposure right in the hous aroung the windows.
any special techniques?
nice over all!

looks great on the big screen, i tested it already!! I learned that when shooting interview stuff on tripod, must have Auto Focus OFF, lol!!

By "people in the business" I don't know whether you mean "people in the video business" or "clients," but keep in mind the only thing that's important is what the customer wants. It's irrelevant what we, the so-called "experts," prefer.

If you like something and your customers don't, either you are in the wrong biz or the wrong demographic.

Pretty cool. I liked the handheld looking shot the best. I would change the focus to the phone a little sooner though, like right when it rings and hold it til right after she sees who's calling and smiles.

That M2 seems like it does a nice job. Which lens did you use with it?

LOL! Awesome! I had to watch it twice to get all the references. Concept is great Stephen. Music is perfect with it, too. Well done.

Australian 50/60S RocknRoll Festival
 

This my first DVD doco,

www.rpbproductions.com/uploads/intro.mov

I thinks is ok but open to coments,

rob,

Also will be looking to seel it to a US auto shops, if any one has any ideas, would be good.

Overall you did a decent job. It looks clean and the style is simple. I would have upped the contrast a bit and maybe put in some colour variation to make the video look more cinematic, but overall you did a good job. I might have made it a bit longer, maybe with some small talk that people want to say that would make it a bit more interesting.

Something technical wise to note, beware of the TV safe zones. I am not %100 sure of this topic, but there is a restricting zone on how far you can put important video footage, such as text on a video. So, the edges of your opening logo might get cropped off and the text 'Wintersum Rock & Roll Festival' might get the edges cropped off as well. Read here for more information about what I am talking about.

http://www.itfc.com/assets/safeareas.pdf

Justin

LOL...I thought it was hilarious!!!

The beat was awful....the lyrics were wack...but I thought it was funny and creative in its simplicity.....

**waiting for chessmasters II**

electric boogaloo?

Thanks justin,

Can you point me in the right direction re the colour variation as i am a bit new to all of this.

rob.

The titles are different in the dvd copy inside the title safe area.

Ok safe areas are good then. :)

What I mean by colour variation is, in other words colour correction. Most editing software will give you options to increase contrast and levels for your Red Greens and Blues. It will take the images from your video, which can look dull, and sharpen them up a bit and make them look more cinematic. Some people take a rough edit then run their video through colour correction to make the video more vivid. Others preffer to wait until the end. It is all up to you on how you want the video to look.

Here is some examples of what I mean, taken from your video.
http://img209.imageshack.us/img209/1626/saa6yj.jpg

Those are just basic 'warm' colours I used. Nothing too dramatic but it can make a difference. I just did a quick little job so if you tinker around with them yourself you could get even better results. Also remember, not everything needs to be too much colour corrected. Such as the dance scenes in your video, I don't think they need much ajustment or any at all.

Take a look at your editing software and play around with the colour settings for your videos. You don't need to 'colour correct' this festival video, since you are almost done I assume, but it is something to take in account for next time.

Justin

Thanks i will have a play a round with the video.

rob.

'Curry Head' Horror Short
 

Hi. I am new to this forum. 'Curry Head' is a 2min horror short I did for a competition. Sadly didn't get shortlisted, but it will spur me on to do better. I do corporate/training videos, but this is my 1st finished serious attempt at a fictional piece. Shot on a Sony PD170.

Please make comments, good or bad. Thanks.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZWtVIUDjxo

Estes Park Film Festival announces Official Selections.
 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Sean Doherty
info@sdientertainment.com

The oldest movie theatre west of the Mississippi will host the first annual Estes Park Film Festival.

Feature Films

Self Medicated – Monty Lapica
Brats: Our Journey Home - Donna Musil
Preserve me a Seat – Jim Fields
Subdivision, Colorado - Neil Widener
The Empty Acre – Patrick Rea
Scared New World - Yahn Soon
Tara’s Daughters - Roslyn Dauber
Costa Rica – Nick Molle
StreetWok’n - Matthew Gunter & Eric Matyas

Short Films

A World at Waste - Stuart MacDonald
A Thousand Words - William Craig
The Sand Creek Massacre - Donald L. Vasicek
Sideshow - Sheila E. Schroeder
Carhenge: Genius or Junk? - David Liban
Sand Mandala - Meryem Ersoz
Science or Faith: Intelligent Design in Public Schools - Caite Adams and Jeff Rudkin
Return to Auschwitz - Brady Jones and Jeff Rudkin
Do You Want the Elephant Music - Leslie Dektor
Southwestern Orange County vs. the Flying Saucers - Robert Dastoli
Escape Velocity - Scott Ligon
Monday Morning - Anthony Spadaccini
The Girl who could run 600 miles per hour - Mark Thimijan
Getting Lucky - Stacy Marr
The Viewing - Horsetooth Productions
Test - Lorne Pribbeno
Zero the Counter - Patrick Rea
Riverside - Todd Tinkham
In the Can - Ethan Knightchilde
Leave 'em Hangin' - David Higgins
The Offering - Paul Lee
Eyes of an Artist - Michael Vanderwyst
3:16 - Mike Vanderwyst and Jeff Frye
A Bedtime Story for the End of the World – Howard & Helen Kingkade
Air Hockey - Adam Bell
Tower of Love – Sean Doherty

Celebrating their inaugural year, the 2006 Estes Park Film Festival will showcase 9 feature-length films and 26 short films from across the country. The festival will take place at the Historic Park Theatre in beautiful Estes Park, Colorado from September 15th - 17th, 2006 with an awards ceremony on the final night. In addition to the films, the Estes Park Film Festival will also serve as a fundraising event to help renovate and restore the Historic Park Theatre to its original cinematic elegance. Advance Tickets and Festival Passes are available to purchase on the festival web site: www.sdientertainment.com

Included in this year’s line-up is Monty Lapica’s “Self-Medicated” about an out of control youth who is sent against his will to a corrupt psychiatric hospital. Jim Field’s newest documentary “Preserve Me a Seat” is about historic movie theatres in America and the people that are trying to save them, and Donna Musil’s groundbreaking documentary “Brats: Our Journey Home”, narrated by Kris Kristofferson, is about growing up as a military brat. Other feature films include the family adventure “Subdivision, Colorado”, the dramatic horror film “Empty Acre”, and the inspiring documentary about Tibetan refugee women “Tara’s Daughters”, narrated by Susan Sarandon. “Scared New World” is about the intertwining lives of three California housemates, and Nick Molle’s documentary “Costa Rica” takes you on a journey to one of the most bio-diverse places on earth.

Short Films include the visually stunning documentary “Carhenge: Genius or Junk?” about a replica of Stonehenge made out of 38 junked automobiles in western Nebraska, and the action-packed inspirational short film “3:16” about one boy who holds the cure to a mysterious airborne virus that consumes the globe and kills millions. When flying saucers invade Central Florida, it's up to one theme park employee to stop them in “Southwestern Orange County vs. the Flying Saucers”, and “Getting Lucky” is a short comedy about one woman’s attempt at internet dating. Other short films include the hilarious silent comedy “Monday Morning”, Mark Timijan’s “The Girl Who Could Run 600 Miles Per Hour”, and Scott Ligon’s humorous take on life with A.D.D. in “Escape Velocity”.

Many of the filmmakers will be on hand to introduce their films and will be a part of a filmmaker panel discussion on the creative process of getting their films from script to screen. There will also be plenty of parties where you can mingle with the filmmakers and other film enthusiasts! For a complete schedule of film screenings, workshops, parties, and panel discussions please visit the festival web site: www.sdientertainment.com

Short Film Pit Stop
 

Hey Everyone,

I've just finished a short it's called Pit Stop. Check it out at www.3ffilms.com/html/films/pit_stop

It was shot in HD the file is 20 mb's so it may take a minute or two to download, but it's worth it.

And enjoy.

Watched your short and thought the idea was good. The camera work was fine, but I think the editing lets it down. Lighting could be better too. The shots in the hallway last too long and don't work in developing the suspense. The jump cuts would have worked better if that sequence was shorter, plus the X dissolve looks cheesy. The woman talking to herself came across as contrived and dialogue unnatural. What was the point of the phone conversation that we could not hear properly? Plus you could have added more suspense with creaky doors, the odd unexplained bang etc.

I just think it would have worked better if you spent more time on the script beforehand. Using what you got now, you could cut a few minutes out, add some suspenseful music to create more mood and already have a much better short.

Looking forward to your next work. Keep it up. :]

Our first short, FAIR SHARE
 

Hello all. Well we put our first short out onto Ifilm. The title is FAIR SHARE, and if you have ever worked in a corporate environment, you will probably get the joke.

We had some audio issues and a few other glitches, but hey, its a learning process.

Our next one will be leaps and bounds better. Please give it a look and let me know what you all think.

http://www.ifilm.com/ifilmdetail/2745091

Steve Maisch
www.stevemaisch.com

Steve, here's the things I liked the most (in order):
--the Hotties (of course)
--the comedic tone
--the music

The pacing could use some quickening, especially when he's getting dressed. I know the song is cool and all, but I don't need to see that whole process. In future projects move right into the next story beat, bang bang bang, don't give me time to bail out. I say this cause I like the tone a lot. I laughed several times.

The framing/staging/blocking of the scenes need serious improvement. Make use of close-ups mixed in with wide/medium. It doesn't seem like you did many takes. Block the scene out and do several takes from different angles, then cut on an action. It will greatly improve things.

The comic ideas behind the scenes are good ones. I don't know what your next project is, but I would expand this comic tone into a decent story and work on the directing aspect of things, keeping your critical eye always on the point of entertaining. Point being, in my opinion, technique and craft can be learned, but having a comic sensibility can not. You have the hard part. Learn the rest. Good luck!

Portsmouth Screen '06 - UK Film & Video festival
 

Hi all, just to let you knowabout Portsmouth Screen '06, a film festival in Portsmouth, UK, that will be of interest to those in the South of England. For filmmakers, there are two events making a call for submissions.

The festival is running for its second year, growing on the sucess of its debut in 2005.

For films of up to a minute in length, there is the Sixty Second Film Festival - This year the Sixty Second Film Festival is inviting submissions in two categories. The first will be the traditional format of artists' single screen works of up to one minute in length. The second category, Sixty Seconds of Silence, is for artists' single screen works of up to one minute in length that do not use any sound track. These films will be exhibited in both gallery and public spaces during the week. Also plan is a night of collaborative arts interventions during which these films will form the inspiration for commissioned artists in other fields to produce their own responses to the films.

The last Sixty Second Film Festival featured the work of filmmakers and artists from all over the world and the festival toured internationally.

Please got to www.sixtysecondfilm.com for more information.

The second event is SHORTS::CUT, for films of up to 15 minutes by filmmakers and video artists in the Hampshire, Wiltshire and West Sussex region. We are are looking for engaging, entertaining and thought provoking short films in all genres, from drama to comedy, documentary to animation. Information will be online at www.portsmouthscreen.co.uk in the near future. In the meantime you can email me at port_shorts@yahoo.com for an entry form and further information.

Jeff, excellent constructive criticism. Thats the stuff we need.

We know there were many things we screwed up this last time, and we are working hard to make the needed changes.

Thanks again.

Steve

ifilm keeps choking, couldn't watch it all the way through. I'm on a wide open DS3, so it's not bandwidth on my end...and other vids from ifilm choked too. I have no problem with other flash based sites like youtube.

i'm excited to have my modest little video "Sand Mandala" be part of sean's film festival. estes park is a terrific venue, a beautiful setting, and it's great that sean is bringing another festival to a mountain town.

this will probably be the only screening of this video, anywhere, because the kingdom of bhutan is very selective about how western viewers are permitted to experience their spiritual practices. i was given very specific guidelines for how and where this video could be presented. it's only permitted to be screened locally, at this point.

the video actually started out as a camera experiment. i was testing the "technicolor dream" custom preset on the XL2 (which i ultimately ended up not using too much footage from, because i didn't like what it did to skin detail, but it's a pretty cool setting, still)--and i got kind of hooked by the subject matter, a young bhutanese monk spending six days constructing a magnificent sand mandala made from hand-ground, brilliantly-colored sand.

i made a 5-minute version of this video to give the monks, purely as a gift, and they took it to bhutan where it was viewed by several of their important spiritual/political advisers (spiritual/political is one and the same in bhutan). the monks who sponsored the sand mandala had been having some challenges with getting permission from the kingdom of bhutan to export bhutanese spiritual practices and expose them the US. they saw the short video and greenlighted future projects. so the real work of this video was transforming the kingdom of bhutan's perspective on how East can meet West respectfully. that's the real work of this video. i'm humbled by the power of video to transform a tiny nation.

this longer version is 17 minutes and is more informational, and i was given permission by the monks to screen it once or twice locally at a film festival, but since sand mandalas are intended to be ephemeral, by nature, preserving these images and commodifying them is considered a misuse, even an abuse, of the image. so after this event--maybe one other--the images of this video will be disposed of in a manner that respects the bhutanese practice, to reflect the buddhist teachings of impermanence and non-attachment.

so see it while you can!

Congratulations Meryem! Wish I could be there, sounds like a great place to hold the festival.

Good Luck---Mike

Does this make it easier for viewing?
 

We are trying to make things easier for viewers at bionicbuddha.com .
After a few emails about people saying they didn't know how to download, we decided to go with this :

http://www.bionicbuddha.com

I hope this makes it easier for people. Any comments on this?

Nice. I like it a lot. Works perfect.

That was awesome! i guess i dont get some of the refrences, but it was funny! nicely done!

Thanks for all your comments guys, much appreciated.

Thanks for the compliment. I have using flash, so it was sort of important to put it to bed for me...