IAC DISCUSSION FORUMS

Where to start is a problem.

I have never used Adobe After Effects until a few weeks ago when I thought that I would download a few video tutorials and give it a go learning some small parts of this amazing piece of software.

After many hours of trying this and that I ended up with about 20 seconds of footage that I was happy with, then it seemed a bit of a waste, what could I use it for?

Co-incidentally we had a practical night at our Hall in Preston and we were a bit short of something to do or make then the light went on (idea)!

I'll explain more about the idea in a minute but totally independently and also related to After Effects, I was making a short introductory video to get the evening started when Preston Movie Makers host the regional IAC competition known as the Mersey 10, then the light went on again (another idea, for me that is quite something as I am not the most creative of video/movie makers)!

I set about writing a draft script about us making the promo introductory movie for the IAC Mersey 10 competition and we would video the script content on the practical night.

Now the idea for the movie was a simple one, to have us all involved making the introductory movie for the IAC competition, a movie where everything goes wrong, mike boom getting in the way, camcorder batteries failing, wrong movies being shown, equipment failing, members being members......by now you should be getting the picture.

Well the evening was a riot of laughter, we had one of the best nights at the club for ages and I had about an hours worth of video to edit down into a five/six minute movie.

After the evening I set about editing, and on this one I set the clock running, with doing some processing of certain clips in After Effects and developing the Premiere Pro project so far I have been editing for over seventy hours. In After Effects I have twenty different compilations and have produced about 30 clips that I have imported into Premiere and within Premiere there are ten sequences with the main movie on once sequence and that has 10 different video tracks in use. Whilst this may seem overly complicated it was just part of the learning curve to get more proficient with After Effects.

The end result is I think quite an amusing skit on club activities and one where I am having to go back to the guys next week as say that I need some more video to expand upon what I have made so far, so our next practical night on the 28th Feb will give me the chance to add some more variation to the movie and then it will be back to the edit PC to finalize the movie in readiness for the competition deadline on the 16th March where it will be entered as a Preston Movie Makers club movie under the name "Technical Difficulties".

In due time it will be posted on the web and I'll give you folks the link but that will not be until after the competition screening evening which is on April the 6th.

So there you have it an idea for club members to make there own promo or rather the "making of the promo"

I share your enthusiasm for "learning with a purpose". I would much rather battle my way through a new program because I need to generate a result rather than as a theoretical exercise.

You have whetted my appetite for the promo already.

Oh Colin

Just as I was entering into the world of Adobe Premere you scare me half to death talking about making your promo !

Sounds very complicated, and technical, but can't wait to see the finished movie.

C u at M.10.

Suzie x

Suzie

It all started with me looking at a Video tutorial on After Effects and me replicating what the maker of the tutorial was doing.

The movie sort of snowballed out of this one specific After Effects tutorial, so much so that we are having another shoot next week on adding additional scenes and dialogue. It will all be complete and ready to submit into a Regional IAC competition that is being held in April in Preston

I cannot say that I am an expert at using After Effects, I have barely dipped my toe into its capabilities. Incidentally I have seen some of the videos produced by our FVM editor Garth and his capabilities with AE are amazing

Premiere can be as simple or complicated to use as you want so please do not be put off, the same can be said of Edius, both are very powerful yet the basics are quite simple to grasp and a movie can be very easily made.

The best way of learning is to actually do it, everything I said at the Technoforums is still valid and applicable it is just now so much more is possible with all the enhanced features and plug ins that are avaliable.

By the way it is possible that the Technoforum events will be restarted and I have offered my services to the Region if this does happen