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The layout/award graphic for this round is from Bavo Defurne's Saint. If your details are wrong on your award, please let us know. If you are an award winner and had submitted a temporary link, please feel free to send us another link so people can continue to access your vid from here. click for standard notes on the judging process. Best Video: Walk the Walk by Martouf Marty (Award) Tru Calling - overview/character - Tru Obsessive24: The thing I love most about this vid is the clever lyric matching, mixing the literal with the more metaphorical in a fun, fast-paced way. My favourite is "you think you've got it figured out and then you find that you don't." The motion is excellent, with fantastic flow and dynamic on-beat action, as well as subtler audio-visual correlations. The use of source voiceovers is genius - the "it's a wonderful idea, but it doesn't work" segment is so emotionally charged, and the ending is great also. Bradcpu: I'm completely blown away by this vid. It succeeds in so many different ways that it just keeps surprising you. It's a wonderfully fun vid with a playful, smirking personality - but it's just as successful as a comprehensive overview of the character and series. One of the things I like most about it is how it uses gestures and facial expressions to interpret the music, like the eyebrow-lift to "pleased to meet you" at 1:38, the shout at 2:44, or the toast point at 3:33. From the pace to the subject matter, there's a brilliant sense of connection to the music and lyrics throughout. Even as an outsider to the fandom, it's impossible to not get swept up into all of the fun and energy, and when it's over you feel like you've had a proper - and very entertaining - introduction to the show. More than any vid I've ever seen, this makes me want to watch the source material. Best Video Runner Up: Untouchable by Becky (Award) Smallville - AU narrative Reviewed below. *** Best Action: Haunted by Kristin (Award) Batman Begins - action/character - Bruce Obsessive24: A kickarse action vid with excellent timing and taut dynamics all through. The dark and nuanced development of the character is really brought out in a lucid manner. I especially liked the extended shot at 4:48, it matched the audio beautifully. Bradcpu: This is a well-thought-out and executed character study, presented through dramatic action editing and striking images. I love how Batman and his alter ego are separated within the music and the way the vidder shows us the man behind the mask. It keeps the pace with excellent use of motion right from the beginning, with the detail shots of putting on the costume. There's a sort of pulsing movement to the verses, using shots like the grasping crowd and pushups at :46 to great effect. I also like the effects that were used for the bridge around 3:24. The bat shots in the final segment really drove home the point of the vid. An extremely well-made video. Best Action Runner Up: Blurry by dragonchic (Award) Spider-Man 1 & 2 - action/shipper - Peter/MJ Reviewed below. *** Best Mood Piece: Untouchable by Becky (Award) Smallville - AU narrative Obsessive24: A fantastically paced mood piece, and the AU narrative is extremely convincing with the use of additional footage to establish setting and character. I particularly liked the stripping sequence beginning around 1:13 - I thought the entire sequence was constructed beautifully, with just the right mix of eroticism and a sinister undertone. I also loved the flashbacks at 1:39. Bradcpu: This is one of the most creative vids I've ever seen. It's a great example of vidding as storytelling, and right from the powerful 47-second prologue, you're wrapped up in the tale. The look is mesmerizing, marching through the drama with stark black and white images, masks, and motion. I absolutely adore the mood-setting shots the vidder uses to further the narrative like the eye at :48 and the street scenes just after. The way images are taken out of context and woven into a new story is just masterful. My personal favorite segment is from 2:20 - Lex's fight intercut with those insane Chloe facial expressions. It says a lot about this video that its great sense of pace and unity with the music is an afterthought as a viewer. Best Mood Piece Runner Up: For the Damaged Coda by kiki_miserychic (Award) The R. Tam Sessions/Serenity/Firefly - mood piece/character - River Obsessive24: This is an insanely (pun intended) eerie mood piece. The zoom-flash at 0:12 had me actually screaming and jumping out of my seat the first time I saw it. The use of sound effects, particularly the static, is absolutely inspired. I love the way the use of dialogue and images play on the audience's knowledge of source, bringing a lot of deeper meaning to a fragmented narrative. Bradcpu: It's wonderful to see a completely original and surprising look at such a heavily vidded character. There's a real feeling of moment-to-moment tension while watching this, and the vidder inserts some startling and well-timed film footage to heighten that tension. I really like how the reversed segments are suggested by a refrain in the music. The method of cutting between "sessions" gives both a sense of passage of time and a fractured reality. You really never know what's going to come next while watching this vid, and that's what I love most about it. *** Best Narrative: Untouchable by Becky (Award) Smallville - AU narrative Reviewed above. Best Narrative runner up: Silence by Milly (Award) Buffy the Vampire Slayer - narrative/relationship study - Buffy/Faith Obsessive24: I simply loved the way this vid worked deeper canon meanings into canon narrative, using only a very selected range of footage. There's a lovely sense of connection and continued motion through the clips, and the use of voiceovers is wonderful. An extremely creative video. Bradcpu: Dreamlike. That's the word that kept coming to mind while watching this one. Everything flows so beautifully, in a way that's both disturbing and yet somehow perfect. Source audio is woven in with a wonderfully deft touch, and everything is connected from clip to clip - motion, composition, even themes like the knife or hand clasp. The statement the vidder makes about Faith being "handcuffed" to Buffy and desperately trying to break free is so incredibly insightful that I actually said "Oh!" when I saw it. *** Best Shipper: Blurry by dragonchic (Award) Spider-Man 1 & 2 - action/shipper - Peter/MJ Obsessive24: An epic and hugely entertaining shipper vid! I really liked how the editing focused on motion cues rather than cutting on the beat. The flow is just wonderful throughout, using source camerawork to great effect. My favourite bit is the clip connection at 2:30. Bradcpu: This offers a great overview of the characters and their relationship while also being hugely entertaining. There's a lot of attention paid to on-beat motion, which is detailed and precise without dictating the pace. The motion to the "from all of the obscene" lyric at :57 is wonderful. The action during the choruses is edge-of-your-seat stuff and never fails to perfectly interpret the music. The sun flare to the guitar strum at 3:09 is probably my favorite moment in a video full of great ones. The overall feeling is one of rising above the everyday, and that makes this a very uplifting vid. Best Shipper Runner Up: Silence by Milly (Award) Buffy the Vampire Slayer - narrative/relationship study - Buffy/Faith Reviewed above. *** Best Insight: Haunted by Kristin (Award) Batman Begins - action/character - Bruce Reviewed above. Best Insight Runner Up: Silence by Milly (Award) Buffy the Vampire Slayer - narrative/relationship study - Buffy/Faith Reviewed above. *** Best Overview: Walk the Walk by Martouf Marty (Award) Tru Calling - overview/character - Tru Reviewed above. Best Overview Runner Up: Nothing Else Matters by Buffyann (Award) Supernatural - action/overview Obsessive24: I really enjoyed the use of motion in this vid, both internal and external. It's a poignant look at the season, with some incredibly evocative use of slow motion and on-beat action. Bradcpu: An overview should feel like a journey, and this one certainly does. It's epic and has some truly terrific moments along the way. Key moments are marked by some absolutely stunning images - the incineration at 1:33 and the teeth at 4:23 are great examples. The bridge, highlighted by the circular movement beginning at 2:32, shows off the vidder's excellent feel for pacing. *** Awards for Excellence Awarded to videos that did not win awards in the conventional categories, but both judges thought were outstanding. Presented in no order. Meds by Destiny (Award) Nip/Tuck - mood piece/character - Christian Obsessive24: I really enjoyed the stylised look of this vid, the intense colour and lighting effects really added to the overall manic and sinister feel. The themes were beautifully conveyed, and the mask motif was employed to amazing effect. The ending is absolutely haunting. Bradcpu: One of the most memorable and haunting vids I've ever seen. The mask motif was brilliant, and the entire piece gives a sense of modern society as a kind of hell. It uses sepia and a radiant blue to create a horrific atmosphere, and then it fills that world with images that get more nightmarish as the song becomes more frantic. The opening and ending are especially remarkable. It's a truly unforgettable vid and one that I've recommended to my friends and family. Dangerous Mind by Kamyar (Award) Buffy the Vampire Slayer - action/overview - Buffy and Angelus Obsessive24: A fabulous, stylish vid with great dynamics and dramatic emotional weight. I loved the way more static clips are intercut with moments of on-beat, extreme motion. The crisp cutting and use of zooms are both technically stunning and great to look at! I especially liked the overlay at 0:23, and the use of stills+zooms in the sequence starting at 2:51. Bradcpu: This is what happens when a great concept and song meets great editing. It's an immensely entertaining vid as well as a good overview of the Buffy-Angelus arc. It's frenetic and desperate, and the closeup stills that are used for transitions in the action segments help accelerate the pace. There are some great thematic moments as well, like the overlay at :23, and the lyric ties are very clever. Motion is perfectly paced to build with the music - as in the intro to the first chorus at 1:12. The segment before the final chorus with stills and extreme motion really conveys a sense of drama and tension. The Kinslayer by Heather (Award) The Hills Have Eyes - action/overview Obsessive24: A frenetic vid with an excellent feel for audio-cued movement. I love the judicious use of time toggle and camera movement, which really helps build up the pace and maintain a great sense of dynamics throughout the vid. Bradcpu: The vidder does a very good job of using motion to create a kinetic feel. It lurches toward you, whether you're ready or not, and it was extremely well-timed throughout. The pounding-on-the-wall image at 3:29 is an excellent interpretation of the music. Hump De Bump by Sarah Beth (Award) Veronica Mars - outtakes humour Obsessive24: A very cute video with great cutting and nice on-beat action. I also thought the white border really added to the whimsical feel of the vid. Bradcpu: Very fun and very funny, even if you're unfamiliar with the fandom. It's all about the silliness (in the best possible sense) but the editing is very sharp, and moments like the clap at :48 do a great job of keeping it attached to the music. I could see this as an extra on the DVD set. *** Awards for Achievement in Vidding Judges' picks from videos that did not win awards in the above categories. Presented in no order. Obsessive24's Picks: Awakening by Kaycee (Award) Angel - action/overview/character - Angel This vid uses the great source cinematography to its full potential, with absolutely fantastic action editing throughout. I love the overlay at 0:55 and the mask at 2:01. Thematically, this is an insightful look into the whole series, drawing some excellent parallels. I especially liked the clip choices in the negative stills in the sequence starting at 2:33, really enforcing the character's ultimate sense of loneliness and helplessness. You're a God by Zohar (Award) Dr. Who (Nine) - shipper - The Doctor/Jack What a fun vid! I really liked the crisp cutting and the way you constructed a cute narrative out of limited available footage. My favourite bit is around 0:06, the cutting in that sequence had me laughing out loud. I also thought the overlay at 1:17 was quite clever. Just One Miracle by Shazzer (Award) Walk the Line - shipper - Johnny/June A moving vid chronicling the relationship between the two characters. I really liked the way the motion ebbed and flowed, and the use of additional footage really added a sense of gravity to the narrative. I especially liked the bridge starting at 1:34, with the still overlays. I Kissed A Girl by Foomatic (Award) Buffy the Vampire Slayer - narrative/shipper - Willow/Tara This is such a fun video, with cute and clever clip selections to match the narrative. The photo effect at 1:21 had me laughing out loud. Seth and Summer Tribute by AngelicPretty (Award) The O.C. - shipper - Seth/Summer A cute shipper video with an excellent sense of timing. It really showcases the relationship between these two characters, drawing on neat parallels through the seasons. The ghosting and zoom effects look very stylish and work well with the music. Bradcpu's Picks: Suddenly by Yorkshirewench (Award) Falling for a Dancer - relationship study - Mossie/Elizabeth A gentle and beautiful shipper vid with a moving, easy to follow narrative. I love how it opened and ended on the dance; it gave a sense of completion to the story. There were some very nice lyric ties as well, particularly "round and round" at 1:25. This is a vid that has enough confidence in the power of the story to whisper instead of screaming, and I think it's a better vid because of that. A Lexmas Carol by Alexus Luthor (Award) Smallville - episodic - 5x09 "Lexmas" This was a wonderful idea with an inspired music choice, and I really enjoyed the straightforward execution. The opening to the gunshot is well-timed and sets the perfect mood for the vid. Everything flows along so well with the music right to the perfect final image of Lex. A well-told tale. Siva by Andrea (Award) Angel - action/character - Illyria I enjoyed this as an overview of the story arc, and I particularly liked how it used the ebb and flow of the music. Very well-timed fighting throughout. Love slow-motion Spike at 2:48. The coloring on the stills was gorgeous and really gave the vid a lot of personality. Firefly by WendyLouWho (Award) Firefly - action/overview The thing I liked most about this series overview is how well it shows the journey from finding refuge in the ship, to "come along with us," to "now I hate your ways cause they're just like mine." It's a great statement about the show and - in a bigger sense - the fandom. There were some very nice moments of motion, as well, like Mal's look at 1:35. |