Thursday, August 13, 2015

OWC Video Commercial Contest: Results Announced, Thanks for Your Support!

Well I never thought I had a chance to win this contest, so my hopes have been fully realized !!!
But it looks like your votes pushed us all the way up to #17 (of 67 total)!   Wow that is truly astonishing.  
This very amateur video placed in top 25%!

Actual vote counts were not released, but 67 entries can be viewed here:
OWC Video Commercial Competition - Enter to Win a Video Workstation!


How It Happened; What I've Learned:
  • Other World Computing had a beautiful product display at NAB 2015 in Las Vegas.  Someone handed me a postcard about OWC's upcoming "Viral Video Commercial Contest".  Interesting!  But I didn't have a story concept until about two weeks before the deadline.
  • It was incredible fun to produce my entry.  A real challenge to work on an assignment instead of my usual vacation videos.
  • The green screened footage was taken in my front yard, with camera on a tripod and green cloth covering a fence.
  • The oceanfront and cat footage was filmed several years ago, I had it stashed in a folder called "HENBC's Stock Footage"
  • The black and white footage is royalty-free from ArtBeats
  • The music is royalty-free from SmartSound
  • All video, title, and sound editing was done within Final Cut Pro X
  • If you liked my wardrobe design I’m willing to consult as your “personal shopper”!
  • I knew that there would be voting, however I didn't expect a Facebook-style event that would involve begging for votes.
  • Most contestants are more social-media-savvy than myself.  I didn't even have a FaceBook account until I submitted this entry.
  • I read the biographies of other contestants; most are either media professionals or film school students.
    [Patting myself on the back] it was great to see how well my "production quality" compared when measured against that sort of competition.
      
  • The two winning entries are well produced; stylistically they are very solid corporate-style advertisements. No disrespect intended toward the winners, but readers of this blog know that I prefer a more whacky and fun video.  (I'm retired!  Corporate days are behind me now!!!!)
  • Frankly, I never expected to win.  I even voted for some videos that were not my own.
  • The production experience was so enjoyable that I hope to enter more short-video challenges.  However I will avoid anything that is judged solely by social media.  My comfort zone probably lies with a judged competition.  Or perhaps a qualified jury could select finalists before conducting a public vote.
  • Finally, a takeaway that every cinematographer knows:  A good story overcomes minor production flaws.  That's why some contest submittals are easier to watch than others.

Upcoming on This Blog
We've got some fun vacation videos to discuss.  This time the setting is a 2005 Baltic Cruise.  Raw material included eleven hours of uninspired footage, plus thousands of still photos.
In 2012 I produced a DVD consisting of ten shorts that total 30 minutes.   Those ten chapters should prove fertile ground for discussion, critique, and learning of vacation video editing tricks.


Once again, thanks for reading (and voting)!
All the best,

George