Give a Dog a Bone

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http://fmundergrad.hunter.cuny.edu/~lopezelba

Video Making Process

To put a video piece together is very time consuming and requires a great deal of dedication to it. Every single thing that is shown is carefully thought about and planned. When I first found the story I wanted to do I pictured everything in my head and how it would play out. Most of what I wanted I did.
The sound recording process was all new for me and I really enjoyed it but had no idea how carefully thought out everything is put together. When I first had my sound piece put together it was more than 4 min, after I finished my whole project it was cut down to about 2 min. Voice and music have to be carefully chosen and put together because then it won't make sense or the music can overpower the voice or vice versa.
This part I can say was the most difficult for me, choosing music that went with my interviewer’s voice and tempo. As I was trying to piece the two together most of what I had in my original sound piece didn't seem as important to me as it had when I had no music. And I hadn't planned on changing as much as I had, but after I thought it was necessary.
Putting the images together wasn't as difficult for me as the sound was. I had already known what I wanted but when it came down to adding the visuals with the sounds I didn't have enough visual information. I had to show the pictures and videos with the right tempo as the music and time them to work with the whole piece and make sense with the story. I thought my piece was long in the beginning but now I think it's short but everything was pieced together to fit where I thought it should. As I listen to it now the only thing I would change is to make the ending last just a tiny bit longer. I am happy with my piece and it has pushed me to think more carefully about my future projects.
I do look at the whole film making process differently now, because I actually did it but I enjoyed it and appreciate everything about it much more.

Coming to America

Voice experiment

Untitled from Elba Lopez on Vimeo.

Extreme cuts

In this clip from the 1998 German film, Run Lola Run, the editing cuts work amazingly well with the story concept. This is the scene where Lola's run starts to take action. She's trying to rush and think of a solution to her boyfriends problem. 2 minutes and 32 seconds into this clip, the music begins to play at a fast playing tempo.  Fast tempo's are usually used for exciting and fast motion moments. The scene shows a long row of dominos falling on the television screen, the domino noise syncs with the sound of a clock ticking, and then it shows the clock. There are quick fast cuts of the clock and each one goes closer and closer towards the clock, showing how time is urgent and Lola needs to hurry up before everything falls down or apart.

The part where Lola throws up the phone is 3 different cuts. Each cut shows the phone in the air moving at a slow motion pace. This effect for me shows how when you're rushing and want everything to happen quickly it just seems to be moving more slowly and takes longer to happen. The paces and the amount of cuts work really well with the story because everything seems to be all over the place and happening at the same time. Though its not much action, its just a lot of cuts so it makes it seem like so much time has passed but really its just working with the way Lola's reaction is.

There are numerous of shots that are focused on Lola as she tries to calm down and get her thoughts together. The shots are all fast cut shots which are really obvious if you're paying attention to them, but this shows how jumbled Lola's mind is. The next shot that follows is a medium shot pan around Lola. It's fast and just keeps going around and around her almost seeming dizzy. While this is happening pictures of different people are shown in the same profile positions as Lola but after each person it cuts right back to her, showing how these are her visual thoughts.

As her mind is being made up the shot establishes it by slowing down the camera and stopping on her and her last thought at a pace where the viewer can know what exactly is happening. While all this has happened the music is at a continuous face pace stating how her adventure is still happening and she still needs to keep moving fast.  From the music to the cuts and the visuals, everything works together, all you have to do is put the pictures and music together to understand what's going on.

What I hear

It's a Wednesday afternoon and the kids are playing in the playground screaming and chasing each other around. It's sweater weather so the wind is blowing through the trees, making the plastic garbage bag sound like its being crumbled. Cars are driving by and honking there horns some of them are blasting music. One song playing in a car is called Party Rock Anthem by LMFAO.  People are laughing and having conversations. One of the kids starts to cry and tell their mother how another kid pushed them. Someone is receiving text messages and the phone starts to vibrate on the park bench.

A kid comes to their parent and asks them for some chips and juice. The parent opens the bag of chips and the kid starts munching on them. More kids come to ask for some chips. There's video game music playing and the sound of someone finishing their juice box but nothings left inside. A ball is being bounced and people are throwing things inside the trash can. Police sirens or an ambulance is making noise in the distance. The sound of a clock ringing establishing its 6 o'clock.

The birds are flapping their wings and chirping. An airplane flies overhead. Some one grabs their keys from the table and the keys fall on the floor.  You hear their heels followed by them pushing a stroller out of the park. Another adult is chewing and popping their gum while someone else is cracking open sunflower seeds and spitting them out. Other than that it sounds like everyone in and around the park are having a good time.