Preface: I use DragonBallZ, Final Fantasy, and Naruto as examples a lot. I am in no way promoting these series or trying to alienate everyone, I'm simply trying to reference things that EVERYONE will understand, because you've seen some of them if you have seen any anime and that is the audience I'm speaking to. If you don't watch anime, you should. You have a taste for music video art? Anime is in the same sphere of influence when it comes to sound guiding action.
I will use the word "obvious" in here a lot. I don't mean so that every shmo on the planet understands, this is a niche market. But something that other people who are thinking, analyzing it, will pick up. Presume your audience has half a brain and can do a little thinking for themselves. "Obvious" means that you don't have to write a disclaimer, or a page long introduction to the AMV.
If you've won any competitions, you probably won't learn much of anything new here, though I welcome tips and feedback on the guide itself, and if you have anything you want to add, maybe something you think deserves its own section, I'll of course listen and give any credit where it's due. At the moment, I need some apple users to tell me if there's a free video editing program on a Mac, as I don't use them!
Table of Contents:
I- This Guide...
II- Morals and Ethics
III- Introduction
IV- Getting Started
V- Thought Process
VI- Picking Music
VII- Making Your First (thought out) AMV
VIII- Phrasing
IX- Timing
X- Transitions
XI- Other Digital Effects
XII- Tactics
XIII- Let's do some Lab Work
XIV- Final Thoughts
I: This Guide
This guide is made in a response to a huge fad, on my observation, of people thinking "Cool I'm gonna make an AMV" and just slapping some cuts together, throwing Linkin Park behind it, and calling it an AMV. At least, at first it was a fad. Then it became a plague, a plague that, it just ruins your fondest fondling, and it's the kind of plague that needs to be bled out. Think of this as Deidara cracking down on people who are walking all over art. Because an AMV is an artform. If you don't think so, you are part of the problem. I'm not saying to be all funereal about it, and I'm not saying that anyone who makes a good AMV deserves to be treated like Picasso and paid fifty thousand dollars for what she does, but I'm just saying, take it serious.
II: Morals and Ethics
Several record labels have shut down their own bands to websites, sometimes having devastating hits (Evanescence being banned from animemusicvideos.org being the most pre-eminent in my own mind). Always credit your work somewhere, if not in the video itself, then in the place you share it, probably a website, in its description. It's just courteous. It also saves you the irritant of having two thirds of the comments you recieve as "what was that song?" If you don't know the song, google the lyrics or something. You can find out somehow. If despite your best efforts you come up with nothing, think twice before publishing. That�s just being gentlemanly to the artist you just took music from. A good AMVer never takes credit for any of the source work. Duh. What YOU get credit for is the composition of source audio and source video. Some people think it takes a measure of thought and, dare say, skill. Others think it's childish, has no thought process, and makes no contribution to that wide sphere we call "art". The debate still rages, but obviously, this guide is the former.
III: Introduction:
What is an AMV?
An Animated Music Video (AMV) is a consumer-created music video, traditionally using animation from a cartoon as the visual stimulus in synchronization with music.
If the Oxford English Dictionary recognized "AMV" that's probably what it would say at least.
But let's actually look at what this means in practice.
The best way to learn is with experience. I recommend going to Youtube.com and putting "amv" in the search bar and letting fly. You may want to qualify it with your favorite show, or better yet, a wildly popular show, even if you don't like it personally. I haven't tried but I guarantee "Star Trek AMV" will net some results. Death Note, DBZ, Teen Titans, these work too. If you're an active anime fan and don't just watch what Cartoon Network feeds you, one of your lesser known series such as Elfen Lied will probably be more reliable since Youtube's copyright flaggers aren't aware those shows exist, because THEY use Cartoon Network, too.
Minimize this, go watch a few, and you will understand, come back here after two or three. You don't have to like them, per say, and odds are you won't, but, go for it. If it sucks, and you get the picture, come back here. Go, do it. Now.
There are several types you probably have run into. I divide them into three categories. Action, Drama, and Comedy. This guide focuses on Drama and Action, not Comedy. Why? Comedy is subjective. And if you thought of a joke, a million other people thought of the same joke and it won't be original. That isn't to say don't incorporate all three categories in your work, try them all, you'll find a niche. Even in a drama work, you can have some tongue in cheek comedy. Death Note done to "Getting Away with Murder" is an example. DragonBallZ done to "Hit Me Baby One More Time" is another. Kirby done to "Inside of You" is just plain parody no matter how you slice it, but can still work for action and drama components, even if it's light hearted and mocking in its conception. Monty Python has found its way more than once into the AMV community. I dabble myself, quite funny. But it's not what I�m going for in this, but I will touch on it briefly later.
Okay, so, now that you have an idea, let's break it down scientifically.
A) Animated: Most fan-made music videos use animation. Why? It's pretty, it's sparkly, and it has contrast. Look at the color schemes of a live action TV show. Let's take the X-Files. They have one color scheme: dark. Dark, shade, and closets with broken light bulbs. Characters are enshrouded in darkness and if you try to cut from one scene to the next, it feels the same. Now, this is great for TV, it gives the show a consistency and an atmosphere that the director wants you to stay in. You also, in the case of the X-Files, focus. The line between the character and the background is a gray area. Now look at a cartoon. Let's use the Ninja Turtles, that was a nice, bright, vibrant show. Greens, yellow's, silver, and red all around. Water was bright blue, all that fun stuff. The characters "pop out" of the scene, as it were. The barrier between Leonardo's skin and the brick wall is well defined by a nice, black inked line. The colors change, a character has a color scheme, Shredder is purple and silver, the turtles are green. When you see those colors your mind has shifted. In the X-Files, everyone is in trenchcoats, and cheap suits. The switch in your mind isn't as pronounced. And when the scene changes in animation, you KNOW it's a new scene, not just a different camera angle from before.
You have three and a half minutes, or so, to make your message, to say your piece, through the AMV. You want the audience to need as little process time as possible. Hence why the term "Animated" was made a part of the term. However, AMV, in it's broader sense, can be interpereted as "Amateur" Music Video. Be it cartoons or live-action, AMV is an accepted term.
B) Music: Songs, chants, themes, all those pretty sounds. Sometimes you pick the song first. The more common pattern is that you pick the song to match the anime. Sometimes it doesn't match at all, we'll get to this later. But it sets the mood. If you have a slow love song, a lot of fight scenes and explosions just don't work, unless of course it's in a parodical manner.
C) Video: Understand what video truly is. It is the combination of SIGHT, and MOVEMENT. It is neither one or the other. The movement of a scene, a character falling to her knees as she dies, a villian laughing maniacally, shoulders moving up and down in evil gloating, these things make the audience feel just as much as the artwork itself. Hence why we don't hear much of the short lived experiment of "Animated Music Slideshows", and the even shorter lived disaster "Animated Music Power Point".
IV: Getting started
Here's a checklist of things you need.
Video Editing Software/hardware
Source Music
Source Video
Let's analyze all of these in detail.
A) Video Editing Software/Hardware: While it's true that possibly the best thing to use is Adobe Studio software of some kind, let's face the facts, you aren't going to drop a few hundred dollars on a software program you're not sure you want, or spend the hours needed to find a pirated version that actually works and isn't a scam. Most of us, myself included, will be using Windows Movie Maker. It's a free program that lets you cut video, impose transfer effects, make subtitles and credits, and underlay music. Plenty enough to make an AMV, especially if you're just starting. It's also better to learn on, in my opinion, than a more advanced program because people with advanced programs often fall back on sparkly effects and multiple screens and all those other high tech bells and whistles. By using a simpler video editing program, you're forcing yourself to learn the basics. Apple users, I don't use it, I don't like it, you're on your own, there are some quicktime programs you can use, but I'm not familiar with the options myself.
Some of you may be in the dark ages and using video-to-video recorders. Those work just fine too, it�s just longer hours and harder to edit once it�s done.
B) Source Music: Any CD you have is fine. iTunes may work if compatible with your software. If it's compatible, it's fine. MP3s are recommended, that's universal and won't give you many problems.
C) Source Video: This can be very hard, for that first WMM program. You obiously want the cleanest, highest definition show you can accquire, even for that extra space on your hard drive, and that extra download time, do it. Yes I said download. Why? Well all those DVDs I bought are copyright protected and won't import into my Movie Maker, so I still need to find downloads for a workable format.
In addition, subtitles do take away from the attention. Sometimes you have no choice. Kingdom Hearts being the most popular example of this. Subtitles are mandatory. In these cases find a Japanese movie so at least, even though those words are there, the audience can't read them so they are less inclined to pay attention and more likely to look back to the actual screen.
There are some cases, that a subtitle will make the effect more pronounced, not less. Take Naruto, the fight in Valley's End. The scene with Naruto powering up is pretty, there's red fire all around him, very cool in and of itself. However, the line at that moment in context is "Sasuke, I don't care if I have to break every bone in your body, I won't let you go to Orochimaru!" If your song deals with loss, with struggle, and the subtitle is well done and is small, on the bottom, and doesn't ruin the picture (granted they always do, but some fonts and colors are better than others. A bright yellow sucks, it commands attention away and clashes with the scene. A small font, in light gray, is easily ignored if the viewer wants to. These work well in AMVs, and are easy on the eyes) that particular subtitle might add to the scene, particularly if it's a scene and show many people aren't familiar with.
Other AMVs are also good source material if you can't find other options. I would say it's alright to take one scene transition before you definitely hit plagarism. If a Naruto video has a scene from Sasuke's fight with Orochimaru and you cant find it, and it cuts to Naruto's fight with Kabuto (I can't for the life of me think why these are connected per say but for giggles) and then cuts to Sakura's fight with Ino, and you use Sasuke and keep it through the cut to Naruto, stop it before it gets to Sakura. If you go all the way to Sakura, first off you're not trying. Second you're taking someone else's work. One scene change is barely acceptable because there are some scene changes that are begging to be done. Maybe you had it in your mind already in almost the same way, a little different. Nonetheless, avoid someone else's scene changes, especially if they have transition effects. Remember that pure, clean video I was talking about? Scene changes should be seen as "impure".
Some people aren't old enough to know of anime before the internet. Of ordering away to fansubbers, and those silly blue cassettes, Yeah, baby, that's how it's done. A friend of mine remembers watching a half-blurred anime with no subtitles that he had to hold the door open on the VCR just because it was the best he could do. That same rule applies today. Work with what you have. If at sometime you get better footage, if you get more footage, come back, and overlay it, redo it. The more versions the AMV goes through, the better it will be. Usually. Practice makes perfect. It's like an oil painting, they usually have some ten layers if you're dealing with a serious artist. Revisions and changes are a given in all art. And creating an AMV should be seen as an art form. If you lose sight of that, you won't impress anybody, save by chance.
V: Thought Process
An AMV is art. And art is a blast, hm. Right? Okay so maybe it doesn't require as much practice as fan art. Don't look at an AMV as an extension of visual art though. Fan art is the visual tribute to a particular work. An AMV should be viewed as the audio tribute to an anime. "But, but, you made a big point about Sight, Sound, and Motion!" Yeah yeah, that's true. But the visual portion isn't yours. You're cutting it up, you're splicing here and there, flashing certain scenes, that's true and it's important. But at it's heart, the music is what DRIVES the AMV, the video responds to the music. Like MTV, baby, Music Television. Animated Music Video. Music comes first in those nice little acronyms, it's the focus, it's the center, the heart of your project, whatever you wanna call it.
If you still dont believe me, take an AMV. Turn off the music. Does it still make any sense? Maybe it's neat. Maybe, but it's hard to enjoy it universally, if it's a themed AMV and not just a bunch of cut and paste fight scenes. Now watch it again and turn off the visual. Can you still enjoy it? Probably, it's music. While it's now just a song, it can still stand apart. I'm not talking down to the visual portion of the AMV. It's just something to keep in mind that the video is dependant on the audio. Due to this, having perfect pitch and a musical ear, if not the music gene (it DOES exist) is a great help when making an AMV. But just like fan art, anyone can learn. Unlike art, though, AMVs follow a bit of a scientific method, or at the least, more so than fan art. And just like fan art, a million shlubs throw something together and call it a picture, well the AMV community is full of those as well. If you're satisfied with taking explosions and putting them to music, don't read further. And I quote the great Doctor Who talking about theatre, �You can change a man�s worldview on this stage. You can make grown men weep, or laugh, or both at the same time.� Okay maybe that�s not it exactly but it was something to that effect. All art can do that, but painting, music, and pottery doesn�t have plot, doesn�t have a script, or drama, usually. An AMV does. It�s a story in and of itself. A short one, but it can move an audience. I have run into a couple that made me cry. Countless ones that made me laugh, and a good number that found their way to being on constant repeat in my media player they awed me so entirely. I must have spent a good 6 hours just staring at one particular Advent Children piece (not all at once, of course). Very moving.
Your music and your anime should match. The song can describe one of four things. First, the series itself, like Naruto. Second, an arc within that story, like the Freeza saga in DragonBallZ. Third is a relationship between characters, like the Kagome and Inuyasha relationship of perpetual stupidity, or rivalry between Naruto and Sasuke. Fourth is a profile, either on a group like Naruto's Sound Four, or a single character like Sephiroth.
A sub category is the "Original Story". It uses the anime footage, but tries to super impose a relationship, a theme, or maybe even make it a brand new story. It can of any of those previous things.
These four types can blur and merge and step on top of each other from time to time, but what's most important should be your theme. Ever see the special features for LOTR: Fellowship of the Ring? Peter Jackson said, in the behind the scenes, that when they were making the cut version, they were having difficulty until they came to the conclusion that the first movie MUST be Frodo-centric. Once it was understood that the movie needs to be focused on Frodo, on that theme, everything else fell into place. And you see it in the film, almost no scene has Frodo Baggins absent. Saving Gandalf and Saruman's fight, and the prologue, Frodo's in everything. Your AMV must have a similar design. That one ultimate, single purpose. If a clip deviates from that theme, justify it in your own mind.
Take the romance video, featuring Cloud and Tifa from Final Fantasy VII. Before you include the fight between Cloud and Sephiroth, justify it. Depending on the song, maybe there's a line about "Why I can't stay home just yet" or something. Okay, that's justifiable. Maybe you're featuring both Tifa and Cloud and what they're doing when apart from each other. But if it's there "because it's cool", don't put it in, your theme will be lost on your audience.
VI: Picking Music
In general you want to pick a song that reflects the anime so perfectly, that you wonder why no one's done it before. Odds are they have, but maybe you can't find any. Who knows.
Fast paced songs are for the action videos. Slower songs are meant for the sentimental. You can criss cross, just make sure it fits.
I've personally gotten to the point that when I hear songs on the radio (which is quite often as I work on a station >.>) I'm running through my head "What would this be like as an AMV?", nothing specific, just a generic, gray blob kinda deal. If a pattern emerges that I recognize, I'll make a connection to a show and say "ah ha! Gotta do that one next".
Use music you like, as well. If your heart isn't into the project, it won't work out. Though, I personally have gotten to like songs because I associate them to a particular AMV. So do keep an open mind. But if you hate country, don't use an old Garth Brooks song.
Since music is the driving force behind your AMV, it will be setting the tone. Be careful in your selection. And, please, don't pick a song because it's cool. Using Hoobastank's "Inside of you" is tempting because it has a nice beat, good phrasing, and it very active in your head, but the lyrics, usually, don't have anything to do with the anime (Miroku profiles, and Kirby AMVs excepted, of course), and you don't want the lyrics to be completely seperate from the AMV, that might determine if it's considered a "good" or "great" AMV.
Alright, ready to get started?
VII: Making your first (thought out) AMV
There is a similarity between AMVs and Fan art in the creation aspect. As you get better, you will probably spend more time on a piece. But whereas there is (in theory) a sort of bell curve that is very apparent in art, that eventually you will get so good you can sit down and scribble something in thirty minutes it took you 5 hours to do as a beginner, this bell curve isn't as pronounced in AMV composition. If there is anyone who can make a stunning AMV in just three hours, I wanna meet her. On average, a good project is looking at somewhere between 20-30 hours of work. That is, once you get into it. Your first one shouldn't take much more than seven hours, all told (though once you develop a better eye, you can go back and you'll easily work in those extra 13 hours).
That in mind, pick what you want to do your AMV on. It can be a song, or the anime itself. Either way works, my own experience is that picking the song first makes a more convincing AMV, at the same time, you might get fixated on "that one scene" and be unable to find a source video and it can force you to put it off until you find it. So for this first one let's pick something you have source video for. The more complete your archive, the better off you'll be.
If, on the rarity that you don't have any source video and want to do AMVs because you saw one and it looked cool, follow these steps. Go to www.kh2.co.uk, go to the trailers there, and you'll have trailers for Kingdom Hearts. Small file sizes, and since they're trailers, almost all the footage is "useable" and alive. Download them.
What I mean by alive is that the footage has purpose, movement, and is eye catching. Dead footage is things like long drawn out dialogue, like in DBZ where they sit glaring at each other for three episodes. Your average standing-still clip should be no more than five seconds if it can be helped. Trailers don't have dead footage. They're very good. If you have trailers for something else, use that. They're good introductory material.
Open up whatever movie making program you�re using and import the source files into the program. If an option comes �copy files� or �alter existing files� it�s giving you a choice between changing the source file or not. Don�t do that. You want the source files kept in their pristine shape, for future use. And much in the same way bands record dozens of songs and only release eleven on the album, so too will you probably make a dozen AMVs before finally settling on one you think is competition worthy (Not to say, don�t upload all your AMVs but there�s good work and there�s GOOD work).
Oh, while there are crossover AMVs, leave that alone for now. Focus on one series, one movie, one game.
Alright, that's out of the way. You've got some source video. Now for music.
Halt!
I know you have that nice Britney Spears song, or Yellowcard, or Billy Joel, I don't care. The Chairman himself won't budge me. Right now, let's use the training wheels.
There are a few bands/singers that are considered "training wheels" for making AMVs. Here's your list, and if you don't like that heavy alternative rock, I'm very sorry but it really does work.
Evanescence (at least, the "Fallen" album)
Nickelback
Linkin Park
This list exists because these groups share three things in common. Strong, forceful music, lyrics which detail conflict, both personal and interpersonal, and they are of a style that uses the voice as an instrument, rather than a focus of the song. This style of music is like an orchestral piece, except instead of the tuba, trumpet, and flute, it's the bass, electric guitar, and human voice. These three groups are the "training wheels" because almost every single song is a good example, which is not to say that they are either easy to do, or to be avoided if you�re an �experienced� AMV composer, but what makes them training wheels is the consistency. It�s the guarantee, and if you use one of them this guide at least knows you�re on the same page. Now don't take my word for it, let's analyze it.
First, the music's attitude. When the guitar chord hits, it really hits. You know it's there. It's an opportunity for timing. We'll get into timing later.
Second, the lyrics. For obvious reasons, music detailing inner turmoil and interpersonal conflict are good for AMVs and trying to move your audience. Most of these songs sound like they were made for AMVs, like they were made to match this character, or that show, or this fight. And, these aren't love songs. Or at least, not just love songs. These groups deal with themes that a good 80% of all the music you hear is about: the romantic relationship. While these groups do have songs that deal with it, it isn't the focus, they aren't all emo "Why did she leave me!?!?!" for fifty tracks straight (the second Evanescence album, please, don't mention it, an entire album themed on "my boyfriend drinks, waah, poor me" is so difficult to use with these).
Third, the genre of music. I really do believe these bands are different from alternative rock, I personally like to call it Orchestral Rock. The voice is an interchangable instrument, not the focus of the song. It is the melody, it is the pre-eminent instrument, but it can be removed and still be enjoyed. Contrast this to a country ballad. If you lose the voice part of the song, you have nothing, you have some guy plucking his banjo once and one strum of a couple notes on a guitar every eight beats. The focus is the voice. In this �Orchestral Rock�, the music, when it's in the background, blurs, in a sense. You can weave in and out between the parts and focus on different portions, the chords are pre-eminent, not just the lyrics. I personally believe in ten years it will be its own genre, seperate from the other forms of rock as Metal is seperate from other rock. But that remains to be seen.
Right now, just remember that piece, �Voice as Instrument�. Other songs which are like this, �Inner Universe�, the opening title from Ghost in the Shell: SAC. It has that same quality. As does �Breath� by Breaking Benjamin. If you have a song you know has that same quality you want to use, go for it, like I said it�s for following along purposes.
Okay, if you have a song in mind, import that into the movie maker you�re using, and let�s get into a couple of the technicalities of the actual video: Phrasing, Timing, and Transitions.
VIII: Phrasing
Think of the complete AMV as a whole. The entire thing, all three minutes, four minutes, however long, should be seen as a "Theme". Compare this to the metric system. The whole AMV is the metre. A "Phrase" is a section, like a verse, or a couple lines, from the song. A few measures of music if you have no lyrics, you know, the different components of the song. This is the AMV's decimetre (the 1/10th of a metre). Timing is much more specific, referring to individual notes or chords, and if it's off by an instant, you notice. These are the centimetres.
Don't let the metric analogy confuse you, there won't (most likely) be a mathematical pattern but just to establish that these are the measures of how precise you are becoming.
Phrasing is matching a clip of a few seconds, or a series of clips, to a couple lines from the song, or a few bars of the music, you know, whatever. Most songs you will use can be cut up into the traditional rock format that's been used for years.
Introduction
Chorus
Verse 1
Chorus
Verse 2
Chorus/Final Chorus
Resolution
Or something along those lines, you've seen that somewhere, I'm sure. It may not follow that exactly, but there is one feature all songs share: the Introduction. A hard opening may be when they start right in with the first chorus, but then that doubles as the introduction. There are two phrases that COUNT, per say.
The introduction is important. It's your first impression. You need your hook, most people will give you thirty seconds. Make it SHINE, baby. Just sparkling. If it can be the first scene, do that. Good things to use for your hook:
Fighting climax: An explosion, a super power up transformation, their "no no this is my REAL ultimate attack". These work well in action videos.
Mood Setting: Starting with "the end" as it were, a main character falling to the ground in death, an overly emotional part, these are good to set the mood and your audience says "Oh, this is going to be a sad video!", and makes them more likely to watch it. Why? Because they feel smart, they think they just figured out some little secret, some easter egg about the AMV. That makes them feel more a part of it and less likely to click out or walk away.
In a "profile" type video a common way to set the mood is to open with that character's defining feature, or a defining moment of their lives. Let's say about Sephiroth from Final Fantasy VII, Neibelheim, and Sephy walking into the fire, that's a common profile opener. This works double in that it also builds from the nostalgia we all have of that particular scene. It suffers of course, in that EVERYONE uses that scene for their Sephiroth openers. Ingenuity goes a long way.
This can also be done symbolically, as in the example I'll be showing down below.
Mystical Quality: This is rather hard to do straight up, for several reasons. The main objective here to awe your audience. The failing of trying it this way is a large portion of your audience, if not all of it, has seen all the scenes from the AMV. So they aren't being flashed with anything they haven't seen before, okay? What will be more successful is using a dramatic scene, that seems something out of place. Use a special scene, use Goku going Super Saiyan for the first time, use Sasuke turning into his Curse form, use Sesshoumaru using his Dragon Strike, or Sakura getting the Tsubasa for the first time. You get the idea. Something that might not match per say, this is the "Where is she going with this?" approach. Any scenes which can be considered "surreal" work here as well. The opening of Kingdom Hearts, where Sora is floating in that dark ocean near the end, has a surreal quality to it.
Cut Scene Opening: This is taking a small scene from the anime in question and placing it at the begining. This is a play on setting the mood, which is what it's supposed to do. If you do, use a powerful scene. And make it end on a dramatic line. Don't half ass it. In fact...
Don't EVER half ass the opening. Period. Go all out, use your second biggest, that second most moving scene in those first thirty seconds. What about the biggest? Well that's for the end, duh.
Now, onto the ending. The last thirty seconds. The second most important part. This will be the last part your audience sees, and quite often, will be how they judge it. That's particularly important for those of you looking into actual competition. Use that super pen-ultimate scene you were saving for here. You've spent the last three minutes building that theme, setting that scene, make it count. Make it awe, make it hurt, make it funny, do whatever, but make it FEEL. That's super important, make your audience feel as best you can with this. This is mostly dependent on the song you're using. What's that last, closing line? Is it really strong? Does it just fade away? Sudden ending? Sometimes it's pertinent to keep the animation going for a couple seconds after the song is over, but NEVER more than five, unless it's got dialogue. That's a lot of silent movie, and that isn't what an AMV is about. That, and, quite honestly, as tempting as it is, people are just gonna say "man, that's stupid."
Conclusion is nice as well, but like storytelling, whether you want total resolution or a cliff hanger, that's up to you.
If you divide your song into fourths, the first quarter must be GOOD, and the last quarter must be equally as good. That middle half, it doesn't matter much. Not to say it doesn't matter at all, but in all honesty, if you have a smashing opening, and a moving conclusion, the audience doesn't care what's in the middle, as long as it's bearable. But, hopefully, as the hard working, dedicated artist you are, you'll be focusing on the entirety of the project. Riiiight?
A simple way to do Phrasing, is to take your song lyrics, and write them down like a poem (which they are)
1 - Row, row, row your boat,
2 - Gently down the stream,
3 - Merrily merrily merrily merrily,
4 - Life is but a dream
Got it? You should match scene changes to change in between the lines. After every line, every other line, every third line, it doesn't matter. You should use a combination of all of them, but this is phrasing in its simplest form.
IX: Timing
Timing refers, in the construction sense, to matching events in the AMV to the music. Either the lyrics, or specific notes/chords. Such as the first note of the guitar solo in the interlude, or when that harmony piano part comes in, or matching a bunch of scene changes to a descending scale, or something of that like. It must match precisely, or be "semi-close" and it must be obvious which one it is. A "perfect" timing that is off by a couple frames will be caught, either consciously, or sub consciously, and will look "not right". If there's an approximate timing, something off by about 0.2-0.4 seconds, it will be noted that it's off but doesn't glare at you as strongly as something that's off by a single frame.
Timing also refers to transitions, though this is sort of stepping on Phrasing's toes. A fade to a new scene can be placed almost anywhere beforehand, and usually you will want the second scene to be fully exposed when the next particular phrase begins. Cut transitions should be exactly on the note they want to sync with.
X: Transitions
When you have one clip of footage and you switch to another, you have three options, cut, fade, and other. Cut transitions are just those instantaneous, �cuts� between clips. Fades can be fading to a color, usually black or white, and then fading back in to the next clip, or fading between clips. Other refers to all those digital effects, wipes, shatters, and spins.
The type of transition can depend on several things. You can use digital transitions to match lyrics. Using one of the training wheel songs, �Going Under� by Evanescence, the line �I�ve got to break through�, fits rather well with a shatter effect, when the first clip breaks apart like a pane of glass shattering.
Also, is the mood. A fast paced, hard hitting song where each individual note is accented (emphasized) works well with lots of cuts. Quick, fast paced transitions, and each clip, maybe, only lasting a second, or less.
Slow songs are good to use fades. Fades to other clips or fades to black are good. There are also fast fades, and slow fades. Fast fades are the in between from a slow, dramatic fade, and a cut. Slow fades are anything of one half second or more. That doesn�t look long on paper but when you�re actually composing you�ll notice it.
But above all, use what looks cool. Sure it�s a slow song, but a nice, actiony effect may be called for. It�s all about context, baby.
In-song fade outs: I use these quite often, sometimes they are called for, sometimes not. This refers to fading out to black and then fading back in or cutting in to a new scene during the middle of the AMV. In addition to having some dramatic effect, it is a marker for the audience to "clean up" their brain. Ideally you will want everything in your AMV to have purpose, to have significance, and if you cram an AMV full of stuff, an in-song fade out gives them less than a second of black screen, but that's enough for the human mind to absorb the minute they've just seen. It can also be used to create a sense of anticipation. I don't recommend these, per say, because sometimes you want your audience to have their brains in constant motion. That's cool too. It's all about your own personal aesthetics.
XI: Other digital effects
These are effects used on the specific clips of footage. Grey lens, sepia lens, slowing down, speeding up, and the like. Most useful is the slowing down or speeding up of certain clips (though, cutting footage down with "dead frames", that is, frames which are like the one before and after, or are unneccessary to convey the mood, is preferable to simple speed). Slowing down creates more footage, less work, fewer transitions, and can be more dramatic. Speeding up, though not preferable as mentioned, works well when you're working with limited space and want to inject a lot of information. This includes multiple screens and anything that changes a screenshot of what you're seeing from the oiginal source video.
I personally don't use many digital effects. I can't really explain why. Probably because I'm working with shows I like, and I think the footage was cool enough the first time. When I do comedy, well, that's entirely different. Effects are definitely called for then.
XII: Tactics
Here are a few tactics to use when creating your AMV. This is by no means a complete list, it is simply some of the more common ones. You may come up with neat things on your own. The issue when you use a tactic is that it needs to be somewhat obvious. You obviously can't point flashy lights at every subtlety you employ, so it's best to make sure the REAL subtle stuff can serve a dual purpose.
Flashbacks: If you are doing a "period" piece, such as "Inuyasha Fighting Naraku", you may do a flashback to that scene we've seen a hundred-freakin-million times of Naraku wounding Kikyo in the past. Flashbacks are made obvious by using digital effects on them, such as making them black and white, giving them film grain, or something else that seperates it from the main body of the AMV.
Character's thoughts: This is similarl to, but seperate from flashback, usually its both flashback and thought at the same time. This is your fan insight on "What was Cloud thinking when he did that Omnislash attack?" Or, "What were L's final thoughts before he died?". Usually these are done in a lens of some kind, again, to seperate them from the main body. If you don't want to do that, having them be slow motion works very well too. Just make it obvious.
Action to Music: While the music drives the AMV, this is something a little more specific. This is a form of phrasing and timing that aligns a specific scene with the music at that moment. These are things like a character falling from the sky as the song is in a descending scale, splashing in the water at the opening guitar chord, or weapons clashing with every drum hit.
Literal Lyrics: Literal lyrics are common in comedy and parody AMVs, but they can make a statement in drama and action ones. Showing Vegeta punching Goku in the face as Britney sings "Hit me Baby One more Time" is a form of literal lyrics.
Symbolic Lyrics: These vary from describing what's on screen (a close relative to literal lyrics) like Cloud and Tifa on screen being awkward at "And I will always Love You", to something more interperetive like a Naruto-Sasuke video with "Is be more like me, and be less like you" in the background. There are also songs which contain metaphors that apply literally to an AMV, these can be either Literal or Symbollic examples, depending how you look at it.
Character Insight: Similar to "Character's thoughts" this is more of what -you- think. This may be your attempt to justify a character everybody hates by laying out evidence to show why they behave the way they do. This can be a video theme, but is best used during a single verse or chorus of a character profile if you're experimenting with this idea.
Chronological story: This is common in character tribute, or series tribute AMVs. This means your footage is more or less in the order it was on screen, you've just gone and spliced it up for people to get the whole story in three minutes. This is a double edged sword. It makes the AMV more appealing to people who know nothing of the series, making it an attractive prospect at AMV competitions and doesn't alienate the newbies to that story. But it also seems like you put little work into it and can bore people with an intimate knowledge of every blade of grass in the show. Going chronologically is a good method, however, if your song supports it. If, for example, the chorus of your chosen song is in the future tense, but then suddenly becomes past tense on the last chorus, a chronological approach works well here.
Original Story: This is less of the AMV type 'Original Story', closely related to character insight. Specifically, it is small things, like, showing a major fight, but changing the final scenes or cutting it short to make it look the loser in the show, actually wins the fight in the AMV.
Lip Sync: This is common in the comedy world. In the realm of drama, lip syncing is okay, but if you fixate on it, your quality will suffer. Also, make sure the audience doesn't giggle when they see it. I saw a rather decent AMV featuring Tsunade, and Orochimaru was in it lip syncing to some rather heavy rock. It makes me giggle. It ruins the moment and the feel of the AMV. Because of how animation works, you will undoubtedly run into a situation where you lip synced by accident. If that happens, look at the scene. If the scene is obviously timed with other actions, leave it be, since it won't be the focus, it's more or less icing on the cake. If the scene is filler, and the thing people are drawn to is the lip sync, you should consider editing it.
Epileptic Fit: I call it that, I don't use it too often because of that. This is a series of flashing pictures every frame, or every other frame. It's a cool thing to do when a guitar is banging out a bunch of 32nd notes, but short of that don't overdo this, it can hurt the eyes if used excessively.
There are, of course, dozens more. I encourage you to try them all.
Mapping out your phrasing and your timing can help if you can't keep it in your mind. I do it in my brain, and while it does let me get the work out faster, I have had some killer ideas that I have never remembered. It's all your personal preference.
XIII: Let's do some Lab Work
Alright. I'm going to put all my "writer's credit" on the line, because you may very well think I suck after this if I have built up any kind of rep as an expert. Of course, if you think that, you're crazy, and shouldn't just take someone's word for it just because I can write a...what is this...12 page guide to composing AMVs. So, I'm gonna put up or shut up.
This is a Teen Titans AMV I made, it's a tribute to Raven. Yes, I like the one good apple on an otherwise, I think, bad show. Slade's cool too. Moving on! The first video here is the original AMV. It's designed that as long as you think a little on the lyrics, you don't have to be intimately familiar with the story to appreciate it. Not like it, per say, but understand it. The second one I broke down. It has been broken down into it's various phrases. Before each scene, I have title screens outlying what I took into consideration when designing this AMV. Read the lists, and keep up as best you can. I didn't put every little detail because soon I had a ten minute video and didn't want it to be more than 5. At the same token, we're keeping the training wheels on, I don't want you to overload your brain.
"The Gem's Sorrow"
Show: Teen Titans
Song: "Lithium" by Evanescence
"Source of all Heartless"
Game: Kingdom Hearts (clips from kh-vids.net)
Song: "Tomorrow" by SR-71
Honest?
Sorta?
You can watch again you know.
Alright, here's my list. A lot of it is plot driven, don't worry about those ones if you've never played the game, but most of these are literal, the song fits the character so well, so hopefully, you can keep up. Most times marked are considered scene changes, you'll notice it. Remember every little thing counts.
0:00 - Opening - "Come with me" scene with the first repeated synth. 16th notes
0:05 - Scene cut when guitar comes in
0:07 - Camera pulls away from Riku-meteor shower scene with the descending synth. scream/bomb dropping behind the guitar
0:15 - Scene cuts with each drum hit
0:16 - Scene cut where main guitar part enters
0:25 - Scene cut with the four 16th notes
0:35 - Scene cut - "Is it any wonder why I'm scared" - Symbollic of Riku's thought process, he has been possessed by Ansem in the preceding scene
0:40 - scene cut - "If I was a little younger" in reference to the flashbacks
0:46 - scene cut - "Feeling like the walls...can hold me any longer" - Reference to the walls of Kingdom Hearts, as he seals himself inside
0:57 - scene cut - "You never dreamed...guarded" - Literal to Ansem deflecting Riku, and symbollic of Riku's constant vigilance against Ansem inside his heart
1:02 scene fade to match next line
1:05 - "Discarded" line matches with Lexaeus bashing Riku against the cieling
1:07 - Riku impacts the ground with the drum hits, scene fades
1:08 - "I'm not afraid...of myself" line a literal description of the scene, and the mood of the character
1:18 - scene cut - "Feels like...on fire" a literal of the scene, though his outsides are on fire, so it is a literal to the line "On fire" specifically
1:22 - Fade out-in, blank screen
1:23 - "Looking through...someone else" is literal to the scene, Ansem transforming Riku's body into his own -fade out
1:27 - fade in - "Never thought...faster" this is actually the Riku replica, but is literal of the scene as it is in the game, where Vixen is commenting on the Replica's lack of progress
1:35 - scene fade - "...Off the gas" Replica showing Riku what he has learned about Darkness
1:37 - scene fades to next clip
1:40 - "...On the pressure..." refers to the various illusions used on Riku as the inhabitants of Castle Oblivion try to meddle with his life.
1:52 - "Guarded" - Literally Riku guarding 'Sora's' attack
1:58 - second "Discarded" as Riku is blasted backwards
1:59 - "Things have changed....humiliation!" Zexion's though process, at this scene in the game he has decided Riku will no longer make a useful puppet, and decides to kill him. This is off Riku's thought process because of the Stereo effect of the song itself, it is made to resemble skitzophrenia in a sense, which is the theme of the song, sort of, so it allows two "voices" to be heard at those parts. At least as I interperet it.
2:08 - fade scenes with the 16th notes
2:11 - Riku dodges Sora's swing
2:10 - Overall chorus is as before, a reflection on Riku's thought process
2:20 - "...Insides are on fire" - Literal representation of what is happening in the scene, Riku collapses and grabs his heart
2:25 - clips fade to match next line - "Looking through...someone else" this is Riku's second battle with Roxas, where it is implied he wears the blindfold because he possesses the "Eyes of Ansem", the glowing orange eyes of all wielders of Darkness. DiZ shares this trait in the game, but Riku finds it something to hide (and a cause of four years of speculation in the fan world why he was wearing the darn thing)
2:29 - the interlude is mostly filler, but it is also the build up to the final chorus, leading to that scene. seemed as good a place as any to put it
2:39 - "Someone" syllables match the screen zooms on Riku
2:40 - Roxas' "Strike Raid" attack (throwing the keyblade) impacts the first Heartless at the guitar chord
2:44 - "Else" matches Riku snatching the Keyblade
2:45 - Scene cut matches "Is it..."
2:51 - "...wonder why I'm scared" is as Riku guards Ansem, whom he has feared throughout the storyline to this point
2:53 - Fade into the chorus, chorus is, again, thought process
3:03 - Fade matches "Feels..."
3:05 - Riku's head snaps back on a drum hit
3:07 - "...on fire" - Literal description of the scene
3:11 - "Eyes" line as Riku reveals his eyes for the first time
3:14 - middle of AMV fade, blank screen between the choruses
3:15 - Final Chorus is the dramatic conclusion, mostly there for "cool" effect
3:24 - Riku skids back to match the 16th notes
3:27 - "fire" line as Riku cries out. "Fire" is still held as he is just consumed in Darkness, similar to a fire, thus can be seen as a literal scene
3:35 - Darkness veil fades at "scared"
3:36 - "Someone, someone, someone else"x2, this is all Riku in Ansem's form.
3:46 - Fade out, the fade -begins- before the music stops, even though it ends after.
Did you notice all of those? I'm going to guess, probably not. In fact, I didn't notice them all when I first made the video. You probably also noticed a few that I didn't. You might also be wondering "such small things like the "3:05 - Riku's head snaps back on a drum hit", there were like 10 drum hits!" That's true, but it was on the beat, which means it was timed to the music, consciously or subconsciously.
"Doesn't that ruin your argument about it being methodical and about the music?"
Not at all. Actually, it makes it MORE likely that my theory (for that's what it is, I don't have scientific data to prove it, just some eduacted guesses based on personal observation and what I know about music and the psyche) is accurate. Why? Because.
No, honestly, it's because when you look at the video, it looks "right" to you somehow, doesn't it? Go and look at your own videos, if you have created any, and find the best one. Or look at someone else's that you think is AMAZING. Look for those musical match ups. It probably has a lot. It probably has a lot of timing, phrasing, and other things. That has been my experience. And there is no way in hell's bathroom that the creator meant every little thing.
There is a sort of "gene" to having music. People with that musical gene will time things and they don't even know it.
Likewise I've noticed a lot of "bad" AMVs I've watched, and I've watched a lot, are almost completely lacking in those ideas of timing and phrasing. It's just a pattern.
Now, I am not saying that I sit here, and dictate every muscle twitch, every breath, and every movement to the beat of the music. If I did that would be like, 150 hours of work. I'm lazy. However, when you are editing, look at the scenes. Does it look right to you? Try nudging it a frame or two to the left. To the right. Does it look better? Maybe not. But sometimes, that's all it takes. Look back at those scenes now. Are they timed to music? Good, cuz it wasn't before (if it's only a couple frames).
XIV: Final Thoughts
Well, this is the end. If there's anything to take away, it's this:
Music drives your AMV
Timing and trimming clips is important, but not the be all end all to it
and experiment! Try out new things. Watch other people's AMVs, find what looks cool, and adapt it to make it your own
I hope this was at least a wee bit educational, and thanks for sticking it through. But I want this to be what I leave you with.
It doesn't matter what I think, or what anyone else thinks. If you like your video, keep it. Just remember you aren't perfect, and if your video is flawed, it's flawed to match you. Go back and edit, yes, go ask other people's opinions, yes. But in the end, you have to like your own creations, you have to love your own AMV. Art is a portion of your soul. Always be true to that in the end.
If you're like me, and have no friends into making these things, send your incomplete work to me if you think you need an opinion, I love this stuff. I obviously have to, or I wouldn't have wasted 15 hours writing this guide. I'll give my opinion if you want, and at the least, I'll at least know how the competition is doing. Mwahaha.
Peace, Love, Justice, and all that good stuff.
And above all, CREDIT your work!
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