(Orginally published July 18, 2014)
“You know how creative people are, we have to try everything until we find our niche,” so says Katherine in Brushstrokes of a Gadfly.
It
appears she may be correct, writers like yours truly also have the need
to try everything else in the creative sphere, including making a film.
For years kids have been able to make short videos and post them
online easy peasy, so after an age of eyeing that intimidating programme
on my computer, ‘Windows Movie Maker’, I figured it was finally time to
give it a shot. Hey, if everyone can plonk a video on YouTube these
days, it should be fairly simple to do, right?
Oh my, has my
appreciation for filmmakers increased one million percent, especially
for animation teams. How they can literally piece a picture frame by
frame and have it come out edited to perfection, completely timed with
the music and special effects, or vice versa has my mind boggled, not to
mention working with so many people and in the end come out with a
polished piece of art no matter what the genre. To think of all the
work and team effort it takes to create a movie, not to mention the time
involved for the few hours of entertainment we receive!
Here I
am with my simple ‘Movie Maker’ programme, trying to create my little presentation with various pictures with special effects,
not to mention have them all synchronise perfectly with one of my
favourite pieces of music, and I’m yelling like a madwoman at the screen
and everybody around me for two weeks. Of course, I did have a major
learning curve to take into account considering I have never done this
before, and although I was tempted to chuck the computer at the wall on a
number of occasions, I’m happy to say Mission Accomplished! Er, almost
... *screech of brakes*
Director's Cut, Take Two! Mission not quite accomplished...
As a novice film-maker I have just discovered the minefield of
copyright audio issues--BAM! I would step right into a bomb! In other
words, expect trouble on YouTube if you are using a soundtrack that's
not in the public domain. Your video will be posted, just not made
visible to three quarters of the world. After all my hard work, nobody
could actully view the thing. Talk about Indie films and distribution
issues. Nothing for it, off I Googled, looking for a public domain
recording of the same orchestral piece and...woo hoo! Success! I
happened to find one. All right, back to the editor's workroom to set
my video to the new soundtrack.
(Apologies to those who couldn't view it
due to these technical difficulties.) Finally...
I have
managed to create my first YouTube video and keep my sanity intact.
The funny part is, my new recording was made before a live audience, so
I have some additional 'sound effects' I didn't expect, but manage to work. (Look out for
the scene with the skull, someone tends to splutter at the right
moment, I didn't plan that one....)
Okay, maybe my humble video is not Hollywood material, and the closest I
will ever come to giving an Oscar speech is in my dreams, but I present
the final result to you below. I only ask the critics in the house to
be kind, this is my first film endeavour after all. Please be patient, it's not an action film, just one of those 'Don't Worry be Happy' easy-going pieces. Best viewed in
highest resolution possible, 360 or 480 on the gear / settings icon.
Yes, it takes a little longer to load on that setting, but the picture
is much better. Enjoy!
Follow the link: Brushtrokes: The Video
(Hollywood Sign Photo by Namiwoo, July 2013)
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