This is a club dedicated entirely to the production of visual media through the use of cameras and software. I'm a very strong supporter of Newgrounds adopting a video portal, dedicated entirely to video production outside of the Flash Portal, that is similar to sites such as Youtube or Vimeo... but with with YOU guys, Newgrounds.com, showing off your talents to your fellow NGers and the world.
RULES:
- Serious video submissions that the user(s) put effort into.
- No bullying, trash talking, or any other form of bringing another artist down.
- Have fun, dream big, and bring together a Newgrounds Production Crew.
Post links of a short video you've done that had the elements of pre, pro, and post-production in which members of this club will share together.
I graduated college with an Associate of Applied Science in Video Production, and here are some tips that will save your 10's of thousands of dollars if you're serious about making movies or shorts:
Attempting Towards Professionalism
- High Definition, at least 720p. This is your first step towards being representable.
- Good use of sound. Not just soundtracks (which you totally should use from the Newgrounds Audio Portal, and credit them accordingly), but decent levels for your dialogue. Test your actors levels, make sure the meter is recording in the 0 to -6 portion that glows green. You can always turn dialogue down, but it sucks to try to fix it. Have your soundtracks at a good level without spiking as well, and when you cross mix dialogue and soundtracks make sure to gently fade the latter so it doesn't overpower your actor's dialogue.
- Color Balance. White balance your camera every time the light changes. It is incredibly important and separates you from the rest. Most video editing software has different forms of color correction (i.e. Channel Mixer, Brightness/Contrast, etc.). Have a feel for what you want your video to look like and stick with it.
- Framing and Patterns. Ever notice how every movie and television show you've ever watched (or at least now you will) always have eyes of the subject in the upper thirds of the screen? They do that because audiences tend to look at the top of the screen more than anything else. A badly framed shot subconsciously annoys people, and if you throw bad audio into the mix you have lost a viewer. Basic patterns you can do with your actors to make shots intriguing and add more depth are known as A, I, and L patterns. Examples: A pattern would involve three actors standing or sitting in the shape of an A, I pattern would be a conversation between two people (think a chess game), and an L pattern could be three people again but say one person is at the end of a table and 2 others are sitting side by side on one of the sides, creating the shape of an L. You will see everything I just said if you look at anything you watch from now on, try and name patterns and think out your own shot structure. All of this makes clever use of small space and important over the shoulder shots.
- Do not use zooms. It is unprofessional unless it has an absolute purpose.
- Good shot techniques separate you from the amateur. Always have eyes in the upper third, don't drag on a shot too long, have plenty of shot variety. You can't expect to shoot an entire scene in one shot, you need multiple angles to complete it. Some Master Scene Style Shooting involves filming the shot in its entirely with a wide angle, and filming it again with mid shots and close ups for each actor.
There's just a grain of salt to have, through the future of this thread we can discuss more techniques. Q&A, and problem solving anything video related. Here's to the dedicated who love this art form.
