United in Grief - ID# 277
Highland Park
Music Video
Entry Description
A track star processes a recent loss and attempts to overcome the pain through training and the pursuit of victory.
Copyright Info
Recent Teacher Comments
- 4/16 11:22 am - STORY: The narrative is clear and emotionally compelling. You use strong visual cues and shots like those of the character at 3:59 to convey this person is trying to overcome a loss. Your opening shot with the hands grabbing the medal sets the tone for your video. It’s a very powerful and symbolic moment. SOUND: The audio is appropriately mixed. As a bonus it could be interesting to hear some of the audio from the clips you include. This can be very subtle under the music track. For example, you could include the sound of the jump rope hitting the ground in the gym scene. Maybe we could also hear the running footsteps in the shots around 1:32. CAMERA: You include a variety of close-up and medium to wide shots throughout your piece. The depth of field is used extremely well in your video - especially in the opening shot, at 0:26 and at 0:31. These focus choices help draw the viewer’s attention to what truly matters. Something to note is that the shot at 2:15 is slightly overexposed, particularly on the character’s face. When filming outdoors in bright sunlight, try positioning your subject in share or use a diffuser to soften the harsh light. At 1:03, I can see that you are going for a silhouette look, which works well. However, the light coming through the windows is blown out. Consider bringing down the overall exposure to preserve the light coming in through the window and to maintain contrast without losing the silhouette. I know this would make the overall clip much darker, so you could consider adding in a subtle light in front of the character after bringing exposure down. LIGHTING: Your lighting choices are expressive and creative. You’ve used colors (red, green, blue) which help to mirror the mood and even match lyrics with visual color. Great touch! EDITING: You have some great pacing in your video. The cuts toward the end of the video are great! As the beat picks up, so do your cuts and the faster cuts feel energized and purposeful. The text inclusion at 2:44 is also a nice touch and fits the overall rhythm. Something to note is that the shot of the medal at 3:03 liners a bit too long. While the medal should remain as the focus, consider intercutting this moment with alternate angles or extreme close-ups of the medal to break up the static feeling and to keep the pacing dynamic. Amazing work!
- 2/18 10:07 am - The opening shot is highly creative, with the image of hands reaching out for the medal immediately setting the tone and drawing the viewer’s attention. This moment effectively establishes a sense of anticipation and determination, offering a strong visual metaphor for the theme of the video. It's a striking way to kick things off, and it grabs the viewer's attention right from the start. The use of lighting throughout the video is also noteworthy. The lighting choices are thoughtful, helping to highlight key elements and enhance the emotional atmosphere. It effectively complements the mood of the video, adding depth and contrast in the right places. Whether it’s creating dramatic shadows or softly illuminating the subjects, the lighting adds a layer of professionalism that elevates the overall visual quality of the piece. The subject matter is engaging, and the way the story is told through a combination of camera angles and lighting keeps the viewer invested. The camera angles are varied and dynamic, providing fresh perspectives and adding visual interest throughout the video. Whether through close-ups that capture intimate moments or wide shots that show the bigger picture, the angles are used strategically to keep the storytelling flowing. The transitions between these angles are smooth, contributing to a seamless viewing experience. In addition to the effective camera work, the pacing of the video is well-managed. The rhythm of the editing matches the energy of the music, and the pacing never feels too slow or too rushed. This helps maintain the viewer's engagement from beginning to end, making the video feel cohesive and well-structured. Furthermore, the variety of locations used throughout the video adds another layer of visual interest, preventing any sense of monotony. The different settings help reinforce the narrative and provide a sense of progression, making each scene feel fresh and relevant to the story being told. Overall, this is a well-executed music video with creative shots, thoughtful lighting, and strong storytelling. The pacing, variety of locations, and use of camera angles all come together to create an engaging and visually captivating piece. Great job!
Judge 1
Positives: :25 This is a gorgeous shot! Beautiful! :54 OMG! WOW! Stunning. You also use backlighting so well (gym). This is by far the best shot video of the bunch. Bravo.
Improvements: Be careful of having dialog and lyrics at the same time. They are fighting with each other. You can EQ cut the music around 1K for the dialogue to come through or move the dialog when there is no music. Some images are too dark. Be careful not to use too many blackouts. Way too many blackouts. It's lazy. Please take another pass at the edit. The ending is not strong and does not land emotionally as it should.
Judge 2
Positives: The video is really well shot and lit. Good shot variety and compositions, with nice use of shallow depth of field in several shots. Terrific use of available lighting (the backlit/silhouette shot in the weight room is one of my faves) as well as good studio lighting, Compelling performance by the lead actor.
Improvements: The video is too long. Evidence of the overlength can be seen in holding too long on the shot of the medal or the low angle shot of the lead to make it to the end. If you make more music videos, feel free to cut the song down, restructure the concept or include an A-roll performance.
Judge 3
Positives: The shot at 00:36 is really nice. That is as professional as it gets in terms of lighting, cinematography, and composition. Really good job. The intro shot is really powerful and says a lot about the medal. You made the medal an item that the character is reaching for, putting it on a pedestal. That type of stuff is powerful and sets the tone for the rest of the video, and in one shot you told me exactly what the video is about. Hard to pull off so really really good job with that.
Improvements: It would have been super cool to hear jump rope sound effects echo for that jump rope part. I do like the idea of the different lighting, but would have liked to see the lighting from 00:42 much much more. That was the best setup of all the lighting I saw.
Judge 4
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Judge 5
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