![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
*boggle* again
One of my songvids was nominated in the Stargate Music Video Awards! It's my Rodney-centric vid set to the Indigo Girls' "The Least Complicated". *blush* Many thanks to whoever nominated me!
Right-click and download the video here. (WMV format, 22Mb, zipped)
When I originally posted it, some people had trouble viewing that video due to jerkiness -- last night, I spent some time futzing with Quicktime trying to make a decent AVI, but haven't been able to yet. (DivX does WEIRD STUFF no matter what settings I use.) So, for right now, the WMV is all that's available.
At least some of the jerkiness, and overall low picture quality (I mean, it's not terrible, but it's not as nice as some), is because of my ancient version of Premiere -- the files have to go through several conversions in order to end up in a watchable format, re-rendering the video every time. I've been trying to hold off on making any new vids 'till I get a better program and can make nicer quality vids ... I'm eyeing Final Cut speculatively.
Right-click and download the video here. (WMV format, 22Mb, zipped)
When I originally posted it, some people had trouble viewing that video due to jerkiness -- last night, I spent some time futzing with Quicktime trying to make a decent AVI, but haven't been able to yet. (DivX does WEIRD STUFF no matter what settings I use.) So, for right now, the WMV is all that's available.
At least some of the jerkiness, and overall low picture quality (I mean, it's not terrible, but it's not as nice as some), is because of my ancient version of Premiere -- the files have to go through several conversions in order to end up in a watchable format, re-rendering the video every time. I've been trying to hold off on making any new vids 'till I get a better program and can make nicer quality vids ... I'm eyeing Final Cut speculatively.
no subject
no subject
I'm creating these on a Mac and the codec that it uses is a plug-in that's designed to convert WMV's so that Macs can view them, so I have NO idea what PCs see when they play back the files that I create. I know that a lot of people do have trouble with my WMVs and that's why I'm trying to get the AVI thing figured out.
Wish I could help ... but do let me know what your OS and media program are, because it's possible that I can troubleshoot it on one of my husband's computers.
no subject
It also doesn't work on quicktime (go figure...) but I've discovered that DIVX player does like it. Weird huh? Usually WMP plays everything that DIVX does because the codec plugs into both!
no subject
no subject
Come on, who *doesn't* want to hug Rodney? *grin*
no subject
http://www.videolan.org/vlc/
no subject
no subject
no subject
no subject
no subject
no subject
no subject
I thought at first that Rodney McKay and the Indigo Girls might be too weird of a contrast, but it worked surprisingly well. That song just always screams "Rodney!" to me.
no subject
no subject
*timidly raises hand* Hi. :) You totally deserve it. I love this video, and I don't remember if I ever gave you more detailed feedback than "loved it!", so here goes.
I love the song choice and the overall tone it gives. You did an excellent job conveying that sense of McKay seeing Atlantis as his chance to start over, try again. The Sam/SG-1 scenes worked really well. I especially love the first "I bought you that ring 'cause I never was cool" with McKay hesitantly sitting on the hospital bed across from Sam. There's a real sense of almost regret where he thinks he failed or didn't get it right the first time, so that he even needs a second chance, whatever that may be. Very bitter-sweet. Also, Sheppard at the elevator during the first "the hardest to learn was the least complicated" was wonderful. I also loved that, even though there's a lot of Sam & Sheppard interaction, it's not about him trying to work out romantic relationships (your typical 'ship/slash), but relationships in general. For example, I really liked the sequence at "it isn't love, it's only something new" showing him trying to connect (or maybe succeeding at it) with Sheppard, Carson, & Zelenka. Because where it might have started out bitter-sweet, wishing he could start over, it ends very hopeful. Like he succeeded. And he might still be socially stunted, but he's working on it, and things are looking up.
Btw, I see what you mean about the jerkiness. I have no idea how you can solve it or if there's anything to do after the fact. It probably had to do with what type of file your original source was, combined with what codecs you have installed? Maybe. But overall, the greatness of the video defintely lets me ignore any technical problems. :)
no subject
It looks like you got pretty much ALL of what I was trying to achieve with the vid, which is just fantastic -- the very best sort of feedback a person could hope for, really. :) I was especially hoping that it didn't come across as particularly shippy with the other characters, because it was really meant to be about relationships in general, not romantic ones in specific. (Of course it could be seen as slashy/shippy if one wanted, but that really wasn't the point of the video.) And I wanted to end the video on a note of hope, because he's definitely managed to form bonds with the people around him, even though he still backslides occasionally. He hasn't done a complete 180 from the person he used to be, but he's finally found his place, even if he had to go to another galaxy to do it.
But overall, the greatness of the video defintely lets me ignore any technical problems.
*glow* Thank you for the wonderful praise. And sorry about the occasional video glitches.
I think that the jerkiness is partly a matter of having to convert the vid several times in order to get the end product (first I render it out of Premiere, and then again in Quicktime), and partly because my ancient Premiere doesn't play nice with the newer codecs on my Mac. Being an older Mac program (the one I have is about 10 years old, I think), Premiere runs in the Classic emulator, which has all its own versions of Quicktime and everything, separate from the ones the OS uses. Another weird thing Premiere does is that it doesn't accurately show me where I am in the clips -- which means that in order to make a video, I have to guess where I am in the clips as I place them -- then render out the video (which takes about half an hour) and then go through and adjust the start- and end-points of all of the clips after viewing the rendered video, then repeat the process until I get them all accurate. It takes a lot of the fun out of making the video, I can tell you. ;) This is one reason why I've sworn off making vids 'till I have a better program (even though I have several ideas ... oh, the temptation! *grin*)
Anyway, thanks again for taking the time to let me know in such detail what you liked about the video -- I *love* that kind of feedback, really I do, and it's given me a warm happy glow.
no subject
no subject
no subject
Oh man, I totally know what you mean. I also make vids and right now I have seven vids in five fandoms (Atlantis, Numb3rs, Firefly, House, and Eureka) in various stages of completion. Most are just ideas, but I have a few that I've actually started. So many fandoms and obsessions, so little time. *insert melodramatic sigh here* ;-)
no subject
And I hope I don't sound like I'm trying to steal your thunder, because you definitely deserved the nomination for this vid, but I need to squee and bounce excitely myself. A few of my vids have been nominated as well. I was telling some people about it at work today, but none of them are into Atlantis or even the online fandom thing, so I don't think that they really cared or got what I was going on about. I can't believe I got the nominations, especially for the one. It's one of my two least favorite vids out of all the ones I've ever done, but whatever. Someone obviously liked it better than I did, so it's all good.
no subject
I haven't seen any of the rest of yours, I don't think. I'll have to download and watch! Congrats on the nominations -- from what I've seen of your vids, you certainly deserve it!
And no, I don't mind you mentioning it at all, of course not! The squee and bounce is well deserved! And thanks muchly for the fb on the vid. Glad you liked it! That is especially cool coming from another vidder.