Pre-Video Assignment
Example of a good multi-media project:
Making Digital Cumbia in Peru--SUB.Culture Lima by Thump
As I was searching for good and bad examples of multi-media projects I realized there are many talented people who have very vivid and interesting perspectives of the world. I made a list of several great multi-media projects and found that all the fantastic videos had one thing in common: texture. By texture, I mean the cohesion between the music, the word that's being said along with the image that's being shown, the timing of the video, the transitions, and the details; this cohesion makes the audience feel both the visionary's and the people's (in the video) passion for the project. Fantastic multi-media projects occur when there is a clear purpose shown in a clearly complex but well executed way.
This video exemplifies this texture as it engages the audience from the first few seconds as the man's arm moves along with the rhythm of the music and later even the transitions to follow the rhythm. I appreciate the b-roll shown during the interviews that add an additional layer to our understanding of Peru (through a Peruvian perspective) utilizing details, medium, and overall shots. The interviews add an extra layer of authenticity as they are taken from the side angle. Additionally, the angles from which some video (medium and overall shots) is shot makes the audience feel like they are walking down the street with the DJs or are in the record store looking through albums. The video uses innovative techniques and original digital Cumbia music (created by the DJs seen) to create this texture and parallels this to the innovation of Cumbia, a music genre closely attached to Peru's history that is slowly entering the electronic music scene.
I had some difficulty finding bad multi-media projects as they typically seemed to be bad compilations of b-roll during a family vacation; this video seems to have a similar purpose--immortalizing a vacation with friends at Lake Placid. Unfortunately, a few of the more egregious reasons for why this video is forgettable are the following: it lacks in focus, plot, and purpose, the transitions are forced, the quality of the footage is poor and unsteady, the details displayed are not useful or meaningful, the abrupt song change is distracting, and the effects placed on each individual piece of footage does not complement the music. Ultimately, it lacks the texture and cohesion that more successful multi-media projects have as it diverts the audience's attention from the feeling of a free-spirited vacation due to the competing effects, editing decisions, and poorly shot b-roll (b-roll footage feels like an afterthought).
Disclaimer: Although I would consider this multi-media project to be unsuccessful, Tommy Shminko, the video's owner, may have intended for it to be this way for a number of reasons (ex. to make fun/ troll his friends, be ironic, etc.).
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