Post by [beej] on Jan 6, 2010 13:16:50 GMT -5
Hello all. Here at The MV Zone, we take great pride in being creative and creating our form of art. Many of our best editors start out here, on the Wrestling Music Videos forum before taking the leap to competition and becoming some of the best editors on the net! The common factor in every editors is the basics- sync, pacing, song choice, storytelling, etc. From the best pure editors like ltownbob and Awesome Dude to creative geniuses like th3rd and SansJason, a solid foundation of these things are the starting point to creating a masterpiece.
The guide below is for those who have never created a video, or just started, or just those looking for more information on the subject.
#1: Sync
This is undoubtedly the most important factor that differentiates a bad video from a good or great one. Good sync will take an unbearable video into something instantly more watchable. Sync involves the percussion of any given song- taking the drum beats of a song and linking them to as aspect of the video.
a. Move Sync- This is the most common type of sync. Taking the points of impact on any wrestling move and lining it up with the drum beat of a song.
Ex: "You Know His Name" by rawm ; most videos before 2007
b. Clip Change- This is another way to use the drum beats, which involves changing the current clip you are working with. Each new beat brings a new clip.
Ex: "Why I Watch" by Robbie
c. Camera Angles- This is a reletavely newer fad amongst videos, and gives the MV a much different feel. Switching camera angles on drum beats, whether it be zooms, reverses, or studder shots.
Ex: "Just A Thought" by Awesome Dude
d. Lyric Sync: Listen to the lyrics of your song. Is it appropiate for the subject you are presenting? Lyric sync involves visually presenting an aspect of what your song is describing.
Ex: "East to West" by beej
e. Lip Sync: This isn't as popular as it used to be, but it definitely is a neat little add on when possible in videos. On rare occasions, during a promo or whatnot, the wrestler being detailed will say a word or two of the song choice you made. It simply is lining up the clip with the lyric, giving the illusion that you subject is audibly saying the words of the song.
Ex: Jack Jekel's videos
These are just a few kinds of sync. There are more, but these seem to be the most popular. In addition, the most interesting videos (including the 3 examples given) use multiple kinds of sync. Experiment and see what works best with your style.
#2: Pacing / Flow
Pacing and flow can sometimes be hard to pin down. These two things all depend on your subject and musical choice. With pacing, you want to edit with the same pace of your song. You don't want to choose a heavy metal song and use slow motion or long clips; likewise, you don't want to choose a slow methodical song and be cutting clips to be less than a half second long. Pace your editing to line up with the feel of your song, which leads us into flow.
Having a great flow on your video will make it so much easier and more enjoyable to view. Hard cuts, angle changes mid-clip, and sloppy editing will disrupt the natural flow of your video. Avoiding these things, and the use of cross fades (or fade in/outs) when appropiate drastically improve the flow of your video.
Ex: "Was It A Dream" by ltownbob
#3: Creativity
Now that you have a crash course in the basics, it's time to move on to the abstract portion of what we do. Creativity. Here at The MV Zone, this factor is cherished more than anything. Badly edited videos can sometimes be saved if the creativity is great. There's no one way to go about this- it's an idea thing. Brainstorming to come up with ideas that will make your video stand out from the multitude of others at this forum. Ideally, the best way to build your creativity is studying other great editors (without ripping them off), or drawing from outside influences to inspire your video. There's no magic words to tell you how to do this, it's just something that's gained.
Ex: "Before They Were Stars" by th3rd
"We Can Overcome" by Her69Eyes
#4: Storytelling
Not every video must tell a story!!! However, some do, and some editors do it perfectly. This involves taking a subject and telling the story with the use of promos and proper song choice. Many videos focus on the story of a particular wrestler, or perhaps recapping a wrestling promo or angle. This isn't the hardest thing to do for a video, but the best storytellers ALWAYS put their own spin or interpretation on the video.
Ex: "Missed Me" by ltownbob
"In It To Win It" by th3rd
This is just a beginners guide to keep expounding upon. This isn't a be all/end all guide. Watch the videos and come up with your own conclusions. Accentuate your strengths and create a great video.
If I've forgotten anything (I'm sure I have), post below and add to the guide. This is intended to be a continual guide for the new members of MVZ to look though.
The guide below is for those who have never created a video, or just started, or just those looking for more information on the subject.
#1: Sync
This is undoubtedly the most important factor that differentiates a bad video from a good or great one. Good sync will take an unbearable video into something instantly more watchable. Sync involves the percussion of any given song- taking the drum beats of a song and linking them to as aspect of the video.
a. Move Sync- This is the most common type of sync. Taking the points of impact on any wrestling move and lining it up with the drum beat of a song.
Ex: "You Know His Name" by rawm ; most videos before 2007
b. Clip Change- This is another way to use the drum beats, which involves changing the current clip you are working with. Each new beat brings a new clip.
Ex: "Why I Watch" by Robbie
c. Camera Angles- This is a reletavely newer fad amongst videos, and gives the MV a much different feel. Switching camera angles on drum beats, whether it be zooms, reverses, or studder shots.
Ex: "Just A Thought" by Awesome Dude
d. Lyric Sync: Listen to the lyrics of your song. Is it appropiate for the subject you are presenting? Lyric sync involves visually presenting an aspect of what your song is describing.
Ex: "East to West" by beej
e. Lip Sync: This isn't as popular as it used to be, but it definitely is a neat little add on when possible in videos. On rare occasions, during a promo or whatnot, the wrestler being detailed will say a word or two of the song choice you made. It simply is lining up the clip with the lyric, giving the illusion that you subject is audibly saying the words of the song.
Ex: Jack Jekel's videos
These are just a few kinds of sync. There are more, but these seem to be the most popular. In addition, the most interesting videos (including the 3 examples given) use multiple kinds of sync. Experiment and see what works best with your style.
#2: Pacing / Flow
Pacing and flow can sometimes be hard to pin down. These two things all depend on your subject and musical choice. With pacing, you want to edit with the same pace of your song. You don't want to choose a heavy metal song and use slow motion or long clips; likewise, you don't want to choose a slow methodical song and be cutting clips to be less than a half second long. Pace your editing to line up with the feel of your song, which leads us into flow.
Having a great flow on your video will make it so much easier and more enjoyable to view. Hard cuts, angle changes mid-clip, and sloppy editing will disrupt the natural flow of your video. Avoiding these things, and the use of cross fades (or fade in/outs) when appropiate drastically improve the flow of your video.
Ex: "Was It A Dream" by ltownbob
#3: Creativity
Now that you have a crash course in the basics, it's time to move on to the abstract portion of what we do. Creativity. Here at The MV Zone, this factor is cherished more than anything. Badly edited videos can sometimes be saved if the creativity is great. There's no one way to go about this- it's an idea thing. Brainstorming to come up with ideas that will make your video stand out from the multitude of others at this forum. Ideally, the best way to build your creativity is studying other great editors (without ripping them off), or drawing from outside influences to inspire your video. There's no magic words to tell you how to do this, it's just something that's gained.
Ex: "Before They Were Stars" by th3rd
"We Can Overcome" by Her69Eyes
#4: Storytelling
Not every video must tell a story!!! However, some do, and some editors do it perfectly. This involves taking a subject and telling the story with the use of promos and proper song choice. Many videos focus on the story of a particular wrestler, or perhaps recapping a wrestling promo or angle. This isn't the hardest thing to do for a video, but the best storytellers ALWAYS put their own spin or interpretation on the video.
Ex: "Missed Me" by ltownbob
"In It To Win It" by th3rd
This is just a beginners guide to keep expounding upon. This isn't a be all/end all guide. Watch the videos and come up with your own conclusions. Accentuate your strengths and create a great video.
If I've forgotten anything (I'm sure I have), post below and add to the guide. This is intended to be a continual guide for the new members of MVZ to look though.