To say that my Indio Outio Project is a work in progress just doesn't quite sum things up at this point. It's now been half a year since that memorable road trip took place, and with exception to creating an elaborate coffee table book with my pictures, I haven't really done much with the hours of footage I shot up until now - that doesn't mean I wasn't trying though.The biggest challenge was deciding on how I wanted to present the finished project, which ultimately influenced the kind of video(s) I was going to make. Originally, I thought I'd be leaning towards more of a personal-doc, similar to the lengthy Rushmore project I made in 2007. However, and if you click over to check out Rushmore, you'll see I ended up cutting that project down into select clips so that it was easier to share online. This reminded me of a legitimate issue with online screenings and had me thinking that even if I did make an elaborate 20 to 30 minute video, who, besides close friends, would actually stick around to watch it?
It was this problem particularly that had me hung up and re-editing portions of my footage several times from September through December. Should the video be just for me or do I want to share it? Well, I want to share it.
As several months had passed from the time of the trip it only became harder to address the footage and come up with a unifying theme - another big issue because of the variety of locales my friend Dave and I visited over a single week.
So here's where I'm at now, and I'm happy to report that the Indio Outio project is finally nearing completion after a renewed view that simplicity was definitely the way to go. I've cut together montage-style edits of each of the major locales or portions of the road trip that I shot from Alberta to California in August 2009. What I intend to do is release each of these edits as individual posts before finally summing up the entire project with a featured entry about the complete experience.
This scrapbook style is not only ideal for online viewing - say someone just wants to see a video of Salvation Mountain or Newport Beach - but it also gives me the chance to frame each section of the trip and put the various experiences into context.
A lenghtier project would've required a lot more energy on the viewers part, and let's be honest, most people just want a quick clip on YouTube. It's also the reason that I chose music that was relevant to what we listened to on the trip to cut my clips to as opposed to narrating everything (again, for the sake of keeping the edits versatile for the average viewer). Plus, a project like this is more about showcasing my editing style anyway.
My individual blog posts will help develop more of a back story, which will provide further insight for those who are interested. It's also a way to add that journal/personal-doc element that I originally wanted to incorporate.
I've also created a new 'Indio Outio Project' tab on this blog so you can check out all the updates (along with the complete edits as they appear) to unify both the trip itself and the experience and reasoning behind the process of making it happen (or not happen as six months have flown by).
To kick things off I thought I'd share a part of the original intro that I made for the Indio Outio Project back in September 2009. This clip is also where the first preview for the project came from. I'm sharing this now because my intent is to have a brand new narrated introduction that I can use to preface all the varied edits I'll be uploading and use it as a header for a video playlist.
Check back soon as the edits start to appear, and for now, enjoy this glimpse of how the project originally started out.
3 comments :
Very nice, sir! This was a nice start and it would have been interesting to see what a full-length version would have been like as well. I enjoyed your Rushmore video a lot! But I understand why you are doing it this way and the huge weight it takes off your shoulders. It will be nice to view certain aspects of the trip quickly as well.
I am looking forward to this one (and have been for some time now) and can't wait to see these roll out over the next little bit! It'll be like a nice vacation in the dead of winter. Woot, woot!
Ya, I think it's probably for the best right now - it has at least been the motivation over these last few weeks to complete this project. In a way it won't be all that different from what the longer movie would've been, the story is just played out more on the blog.
However, I'll still be making a narrated intro to give a brief overview of the experience - and through each of my edits I've still tried to include cutaways of Dave and me so that there's still a person slant. It's really just about a creating more of a versatile screening platform for 30+ min of footage in roughly 10 different edits - including additional shots that probably would've been cut if I weren't focusing on specific themes/locations for each video.
Great trailer like video! This will be interesting to see as you drive by area on your way down to California....might see something I recognize
:P
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