Today’s Plan:
- Work List #4: Montage
- Watching Your Work
- For Next Class
Montage
Your next challenge will be similar to the opening shot challenge–in that it asks you to add something to an existing video. (Alternatively, you can choose to shoot a new video). This week we’ll be focusing on montage. Let’s start by examining the Schroeppel, though he doesn’t have too much to say on the matter.
A short video for some inspiration.
- Compress time: tell a story
- Joke delivery (use of titling)
- Compress time: training
- Weave and juxtapose
- Repetition of a common theme
- Compress time: Geschalt [pieces left for an audience to unpack]
- Expansive, Zoom out, collection of varied elements that add up, attempt to capture a totality
- Abstract, rhythm of life, little details, guided meditation
- Free association, cataloguing
- Intellectual montage, ideas, theme, place odd things next to each other to force a connection
And here’s a link with 8 tips for sequencing montages.
Finally, his tutorial on Slow Mo, Ramp, and Freeze Frame might be of interest. The tutorial is pretty simple to follow, so don’t be intimidated.
Watching Your Work
Let’s review our expectations/cinematic principles/technical goals:
- Length: One minute to two minutes
- Do shots adhere to the rule of thirds?
- Shots should be less than 6 seconds?
- Use a wide/establishing shot?
- Does it use a medium shot?
- Does it use a close-up? (so we have “paragraphs” in the form of different length “sentences”)
- Do shots balance color and form?
- Is the camera still?
- Does it appear the filmmaker has paid attention to lighting?
- Can I identify a strategy for the opening shot?
- Does the video contain a montage?
- Something something audio quality
For Next Class
I’m a bit concerned that only 1/2 the class turned in the Adobe lesson 7 from last week. I’d like people to catch up. So, if you didn’t do Lesson 7, this is your opportunity to go back and get it done by Wednesday. I’d like to see whatever video you produce or revise this week to use some simple, non-obtrusive transitions.
I’d also like to work with the Adobe book in class again on Thursday. We can work in teams of two. So, for Thursday, please bring the Classroom in a Book and your flash drive with the lesson files, we will be working on Lesson 11 together (and we might get a bit into lesson 12 depending on time).
