I was driving to work earlier today listening to a CD I made for my sister as a Christmas gift. I made her like 15 mixed CDs, I picked one with some of my all-time favorite songs that I haven't listened to in a while.
One song in particular got me thinking. It was Thanks for the Memories - Fallout Boy. A spectacular song, which immediately upon hearing I'd feel the desire to make a video to. It's just one of those songs. What was the first thought that turned me away from it?
"There's already a popular video to it. Fantikerz's."
I thought a while on how it sucks that he's already done it, although I still to this day love his video for it. It means that making another video to it will result in comparison and stuff like that. Yuck.
Then I thought more on the issue about recent RSMVs, which I've almost completely lost interest in lately. At any given week I usually have 5+ new or incomplete RSMVs in my subscription box, and I "maybe" watch one of them. I wanted to figure out why it is that I don't bother watching them.
Personally I'm not a big fan of how effects are being used nowadays for one. They seem completely overdone and overwhelming for any and every song it seems, like it's either GO BIG OR GO HOME! mentality. I've never agreed to that idea. The most popular videos are so far from what the current standards are today, and people still like them. Proof to me of this was when Chaoshero uploaded her Never Take Us Alive RSMV. Simple editing compared to the trend at the time. It was well-timed flashes, good panning and cropping, and emote syncing. That was about it, and it turned out marvelously.
But that alone wasn't the reason. Though I don't like most of the editing, some I still do. The songs + editing work well together. Examples are Blow by Johnnyguttz and Don't Stop by RedNBlue.
So eventually I figured out it was the songs. Good songs with even adequate editing to me have been awesome. I remember the first RSMV I saw of Whispers in the Dark. The editing was nothing special, but I loved the video for the song. I loved Blow Me Away because I knew the song and loved it. I loved Diary of Jane because I knew the song and loved it. I loved Thanks for the Memories because I knew the song and I loved it. I loved Comatose because I knew the song and I loved it.
In MOST of my all-time favorite videos, I knew the song incredibly well before it was made, as did most of the community. And if they didn't, they still fell for the song once they heard it.
So now I realize that more than anything, song choice is still the absolute biggest factor in an RSMV, period.
Here's my example as something of a proof.
Imagine I put a poll up for two different videos I may do. The winning choice is gauranteed a video.
The choices are as follows:
1) Emery - Edge of the World
or
2) Skillet - Whispers in the Dark
Even though Edge of the World is a decent song (though I assume most won't know it), would you not predict Whispers in the Dark would win the vote by a longshot, and probably be eager to see it yourself? I mean it's an amazing song, and even the slight chance that someone might absolutely nail the video for it is worth taking that shot.
Then I got to some video makers that I personally admire, people like AncientTales or Boomertwins. I would absolutely DIE to see them do a video to a song like Thanks for the Memories by Fallout Boy. The new skill editing skills mixed with classic songs we all know and love would be AWESOME, would it not? Sure it's been done before. I DON'T CARE anymore. It'd be a great video, I would be gauranteed to watch it, and unless it's a pure copy of the other, I would probably adore it.
So I put the list up on my channel of songs with something along the lines of old videos now, with old editing standards, that I'd love to see redone in today's age. Some are ones I did. Some are ones that have millions of views. Others are incredibly popular but unfinished. ALL of them are fantastic songs that have been very successful as videos.
Will this make things more interesting and maybe refresh the community or something? Naturally it's hard to tell, since these are just my thoughts. I just know it'll definitely get me interested again, and I have a hunch that others would feel the same.
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ReplyDeletehope this happens
ReplyDeleteit wont happen , you never keep a promise
ReplyDeleteI never made any promise, so there's no promises for me to keep. I simply said I would like to see this happen, not that I would make it happen personally, or that I would make a video of it.
ReplyDeleteNot once have I ever said "I will make this video by this date." I don't make any specific promises like that which I know I may not be able to keep. I only ever say I will try, which I do.
pretty much the reason i stopped making rsmv's in the 1st place was because i felt i could no longer keep up with the upper echelon of rsmv makers due the viewers new obsession with over the top editing, i personally am content with the way i edit videos and i do not use any flashy effects nor do i care to spend countless hours trying to put thousands of effects into a video in attempt to match the sometimes insane way people edit their videos. In my opinion, and this is the way i used to edit my videos, a good rsmv should be edited just enough to match the rhythm of the song so that your not distracted from the song by the millions of flashes and other nonsense thrown into videos. i would enjoy going back to a time where for rsmvs to be effective they only had to match that criteria. so yea i pretty much agree lol
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with you. I'm one of those people that, just like you, don't even watch RSMVs very often unless I know the song or the maker. (Even then I might not, lol) I do like your idea and think I might do it, but I'm not totally sure that a lot of people will. I would, however, like to see you either redo or make an RSMV of one of these songs. I just want to see what you'd create.
ReplyDelete~TMR
won't happen, people don't care/respect each other enough nowadays to WATCH the video, they'd just say 'oh well that's simliar to soandso's video, you copyed!' ect ect, and the editer would get flamed to hell.
ReplyDeleteThat's possible, in which case it'd be up to the mature portion of the community to flag down those comments and the video makers to take responsibility in removing them, whether they be on their own videos or someone elses.
ReplyDeleteFlaming a person because they did a song that another's done isn't that common. It's usually more suttle comments like "4/5, I've seen better" or "I liked [name]'s better". Those comments ARE rude and obnoxious, and we should do what we can to limit them. However, I don't believe we should let that prevent us from doing the videos we truly want to do. Otherwise our community will just continue to go down the drain.
The "innocent" video maker is my favorite, one who is totally original.
ReplyDeleteMeh, I imagine as many of you know it's very hard to 'follow through' on an RSMV due to the fact that editing is simply too time consuming.
I watch RSMV's that are by a select number of people, I often tire of sifting through thousands of video's that are tiering to watch.
Btw, there's a reason freedom of speech and opinion is in the Canadian/American Constitution. If each video were a Government in it's own right then would you like to see nothing but positive feedback? tbh, leave their opinion to themselves but educate them on it.
I disagree in most respects.
ReplyDeleteYou contradict yourself in saying that you love to see "new and original ideas" but dislike it when you see "over the top" editing, when that is simply someones style.
"Btw, there's a reason freedom of speech and opinion is in the Canadian/American Constitution. If each video were a Government in it's own right then would you like to see nothing but positive feedback? tbh, leave their opinion to themselves but educate them on it. "
ReplyDeleteNo idea what you're trying to say there.
"You contradict yourself in saying that you love to see "new and original ideas" but dislike it when you see "over the top" editing, when that is simply someones style. "
I don't see where I said that, but nonetheless I don't see how that's contradicting. I do like to see new/original ideas. Over the top editing isn't new or original. Sure it may be someone's style. It doesn't mean I have to like it. If it's their style I say they should keep doing it, but others shouldn't feel pressured to go to such extremes because they think it's something of a requirement now. There's a lot of individuals who are turned off by that degree of effects, and it's important for people to know that.