Over the year, I am sent DVD`s from a few clubs to watch and give a view on the films.
One thing that I have noticed (on the last dvd I received) is that hardly any of the films had any beginning or end titles, let alone intro music I was very shocked over this!
I had no information about who had filmed the film, edited it or even the title of that lovely song they had used as background music. I WANT TO KNOW ALL OF THIS! Then I can look out for more of there films.
I agree. I think at the very least that all films need an opening and closing title with some appropriate music. For the conclusion of a film I'm not that keen on "The End" as a final caption and for my personal films I usually repeat the film's title then fade to black. I also like to see the authors name or, if a group film, the names of those who participated in the production. Mind you I guess we've all seen films that overdo the end credits a bit especially commercial films where they seem to go on forever.
It is so easy to produce professional looking titles these days that I wonder why some people don't bother. Many of us will have not so fond memories of struggling with trying to make title cards using plastic letters or letraset and then waiting for the film to be developed to see if they were alright.
In Britain some of the deals on music say you must not list the music played in the credits. This is usually the case if the artist is identifiable. I guess they do not want people calling their movies "A David Bowie film" or whatever.
In Australia it used to be the other way round: they had to list the music used. (I believe there is a dispute between the Australian equivalent of IAC and the music business in that country at present so the position may change.)
Some of the copyright free tracks downloaded from the web ask for a credit.
In general I think it only polite to give your audience a clear start and stop signal. Films without those seem to me like amateurish public speakers ... where the audience is not sure when to applaud because they don't know if the speech is over or not.
I see quite a lot of amateur movies and my biggest complaint is over the staggingly large font most people seem to want to use. Maybe it's because their editing monitor is small, but up on a big screen O U R C A T P I D D L E S is shouted at us at 110 decibels.
I couldn't agree more! Even to the small-on-screen monitor being the probable cause - the big-letter-titling thing is often a mega clue that the film was edited with Pinnacle Studio, which until the very latest version (11) had a pitifully small on-screen viewer.
The second clue (to a video being edited with Studio) is the GHASTLY triple or even quadruple casing that goes round many of the preset titles in Studio (and, sadly, Liquid - its a TitleDeko thing) - how anyone can think they look attractive is beyond me. Gross.
And the third clue is the use of the standard smartsounds that have (until the latest version) been supplied with Studio since its launch back in the 90s.
Nothing wrong with editing with Studio, of course - it is an excellent low cost editing package. But like any of these things - Desk Top Publishers, for example - people use the presets willy nilly without considering their project, instead of using them as possible templates for adapting to suit the project.
I see titles as being as integral to the whole movie as the backgrounmd music. It has to set the mood, create the feeling and environment for what is to come.
Titliing is so important in this respect, that for many (most? a large majority?) of movies a titling font is especially designed for the film. Harry Potter, Alien, The Godfather, Shrek, Ghostbusters ... just a few straight off the top of my head that have specially designed titling fonts (and you can download many of them from the Internet if you want .. if.).
I can't see the likes of us wanting to design fonts for our movies (or even being able to) - but picking fonts to suit the style and mood is as important (IMHO) as selecting any background music
Some European film festivals have special awards for titles and title-sequences - usually referred to as "generik". I first came across that at the late lamented De Drake Fiction Film Festival in Belgium, organised by Christiane Surdiacourt.
I have long wanted an award for the best movie packaging - some people present their work in beautifully designed and printed labels, boxes and cases ... which only the competition officers see. Maybe we need two more trophies: packaging and titles.
[By the way, Mike, thanks for the tip you gave on this forum a few months ago about the Mercalli image steadying software. It saved my bacon this holiday. I was asked to "tidy up" some footage shot at family Christmas parties and used the software a lot to improve the look of many scenes.]
Glad the Mercalli helped Dave. I have a drawer full of VHS-C tapes - my first ever with a camcorder (a chunky JVC thing which actually cost more than the infinitely superior Sony FX1 I have just bought - but I think is a 'grey import' which probably explains the very low cost ). I have hardly done anything with thjose tapes because of the wobbles and shakes. But now ... holidays of yesteryear etc are likely to be revisited. All one needs is time!
You 'think' it's a grey import, Mike? Shouldn't make any difference as I hear Sony UK are happy to do warranty work on any of their cams that find their way over here. But the low cost could be due to the fact that the FX1 has long since ceased production and the price consequentially took a nose-dive.
I'm glad to hear that Tom. That's a bit of a relief and good news - I was bit concerned. Yes, I got a good deal - £1620, whereas all the other places were around the £1800 mark. The difference meant I could also buy the Sony bag for it, and a Manfrotto head or quick release adaptor for my solid but aging tripod. After receiving it and finding no warranty card or anything, I did panic a little.
Ity is a proper camcorder though ... I feel like I mean business, compared with the HC7 which will make a good back up ... if I don't sell it!
Whatever the rules it is possible to give some degree of information about the production even if it is only to say that Joe Bloggs did everything in it.
It is important in any form of story telling whether on stage or screen or in literature, to set the scene. You can start with an open shot without explanation but it then flows into clues that set up the picture. Opening titles are not essential and if you have an attention grabbing intro, why interupt it? Going head long into the film is fine but at the end even if the story is open-ended it must have a closure of some sort unless you aim to leave your audience asking what happened to the rest of the film. Above all people, for their many reasons, like to know more about the film and titles are one of the ways the get this information. The industry rule is that everyone involved in the film must be fully credited in the titles unless they have waved the right. Release forms remove the right to a credit although we always offer credit to all contributors, we prefer they tell us if they don't want it.
Perhaps some of the films you've received have been fully 'released' by it's cast and crew and the producer has taken the 'release' to it's ultimate extreme and given no credits atol. Maybe they just fell out with everyone in post-production!
The films in question are just your `standard` video club films. They are not your blockbuster or local production company ones. One may be a trip to scotland or one about waves.
It`s just so disheartening that the film-makers in questions didn`t do any titles.
I hope that when I email my `judges` responces, they may bring it up about the titles and do a meeting about it. I did enjoy the films, don`t get me wrong, and I love to give my views on them, but it was sad to see no titles.
In my club, people use BIG COLOURFUL FONTS and just one page. They have got into the habit of putting their own LOGO at the beginning. But some still have one title page and go straight into the film. I like club films to start off slowly so I can relax into my chair and start to relax and get into it.
Even `Die Hard 2 or 3` starts off whith a relaxing scene of the city and the song `Summer In The City` playing. All is destroyed 3 minutes later with a big explosion! So I was getting relaxed and all hell broke out! GREAT.........
Because most clubs are encouraging shorter and shorter films in their competions, it is becoming impossible to meander at the beginner of films/videos. By the time a logo and titles are disposed of, in the case of fiction films there is no time to establish the characters, and to get the sympathy of the audiance. Without this empathy for the characters by the audiance, the film will , in most cases, fail. I have had films much applauded by the audiance. only to be condemned by a judge as being to long. Result, No more competition entries from this film maker. Personally I don,t think fifteen minutes is to long for a film appreciated by the audiance. Then they wonder by clubs have a falling membership. Roy
I have had films much applauded by the audiance. only to be condemned by a judge as being to long. Result, No more competition entries from this film maker.
NEVER let a judge's remarks do that to you!
I speak as a frequent judge at all sorts of competitions. Judges only give you their view. If the audience gives you a different view that's fine. By all means think about any specific comments a judge may make - e.g. on length - but then accept or reject their view as you think best.
Keep making films, Roy, and put them into comps - because these days that is almost the only way they can be seen.
As for titles ... you may have noticed how most tv shows combine the main title with the first shots. Audiences - especially our ones who are there to watch movies not to eat popcorn and neck in the back row - do not need much time to get into a movie. They are ready and willing to do so as soon as the lights go down.
I'm right with Dave, and I'd go further: films are NEVER too long. If the filmmaker decides on a certain length of film then so be it - it's his film and the judges views on that are immaterial.
Of course, PR departments may deem films too long for theatrical release (precluding a second audience sitting in one evening). Journalists may say a film's too long but then what do they know? They also say silly things like cars are too heavy and the earth spins too fast.
I may say a film is too long when viewed in competition with others, but this is something completely different from saying a film's too long in its own right. Invariably Director's Cut versions are lengthened by the addition of deleted scenes (T2) and once lost footage (Lawrence of Arabia).
So Roy - keep entering films that you have decided should be a certain length. Ignore judges who ask why it's such a length, why it's in colour, why there's silence in the middle, why the aspect ratio is so odd. But do remember this one fact: your film be in competition with others and be judged by a human being.
!!!
). I have hardly done anything with thjose tapes because of the wobbles and shakes. But now ... holidays of yesteryear etc are likely to be revisited. All one needs is time!