I have certainly been watching less television because I am spending more time online. And most of the time I do spend online, I am watching video. And though I spend much of the time finding videos for my video blog, I still imagine I would spend a lot of time watching online video more than television because it is simply more interesting. So the results of the ICM poll came as no surprise, BBC "found that some 43 percent of Britons who watch video from the Internet or on a mobile device at least once a week said they watched less traditional TV as a result." The number will surely rise as new video streaming devices come into the market, like Apple's ITV (due in January). However, the final frontier to online video will be in creating revenue for itself. I imagine Google and other online advertisers are already thinking of all this.Online viewing cutting into television viewing
I have certainly been watching less television because I am spending more time online. And most of the time I do spend online, I am watching video. And though I spend much of the time finding videos for my video blog, I still imagine I would spend a lot of time watching online video more than television because it is simply more interesting. So the results of the ICM poll came as no surprise, BBC "found that some 43 percent of Britons who watch video from the Internet or on a mobile device at least once a week said they watched less traditional TV as a result." The number will surely rise as new video streaming devices come into the market, like Apple's ITV (due in January). However, the final frontier to online video will be in creating revenue for itself. I imagine Google and other online advertisers are already thinking of all this.The Coporation: full doc made available online
Huge thumbs up to this move: director Mark Achbar has made The Corporation, 2003's biting documentary investigating the rise and ever-growing influence of the corporation on all aspects of modern society freely available via Bittorrent. The torrent file includes a high quality rip of the master copy, plus a special 40 minute interview with Joel Bakan, author of the original book upon which the film is based and writer for the documentary. Achbar has actually been using a his own dedicated machine to help seed the torrent. This is a pretty radical move, but logical considering the nature of the film itself. The Corporation encourages serious awareness in a time of increasing corporate misdoings and harms, and it is a hugely vital film for all people to understand in this age of corporatization. What better way to get the word out than free distribution online? The filmmakers also suggest that you make a small donation if you value what you see. It will be interesting to see if other forward-thinking filmmakers adapt this approach to distribution in the future. (via Democracy Internet TV Blog)
The James Bond title sequences
Earlier, we took a look at the best Bond car chases. This string of videos takes a look at all the title sequences from Bond films. I didn't think it would be very interesting but it actually was. I'd completely forgotten how elaborate the title sequences are in Bond flicks. Some simple but effective (read: sexy) graphic designing. Click on the squares on the right of the screen to switch to the next clip.(via BoingBoing)
Video Watch: 'Oceans', cell phone music video
You've probably heard about the multiple instances of cell phones being used to shoot short and feature films, or read about the festivals dedicated to this brand new medium. However, you may not have had a chance to see any of these cell phone-shot films. Via FresHDV, here is a recent music video directed by Mike Hodgkinson for "Oceans", performed by Rob Dickinson. Shot on a Nokia N93, the video looks surprisingly impressive, at least in its form on YouTube. I don't think I would have guessed this footage originated on a cell phone without prior knowledge. (But of course, it is quite compressed anyway as we all know.) Even more interesting is the making-of feature, wherein you can see the shooting in progress. The absolutely go-anywhere nature of the cell phone is fascinating to consider, like when the director straps it to a few balloons and sends it up into the air for a quick aerial shot. Gotta admit, that's pretty dang neat.
Indie Features: video sharing for indies
Indie Features is a little video sharing website set up by Lance Weiler of Head Trauma fame, specifically designed for independent filmmakers who want to share clips of their new and upcoming film projects. It's brand new so it's a bit sparse at the moment, but this could potentially grow to become a neat little resource for both filmmakers and fans of low budget films looking to share and view clips of actual projects in the works. Neato.(via DIY Filmmaker)
5 Great Fight Scenes
Matt Zoller Seitz, one time critic for the New York Press, has a list of 5 great fight scenes on his blog. He defines fight scenes as the weapon-less fights, hand-to-hand combat. Though I may not agree with the list, I love his analysis. Talking about his #1 pick, Raging Bull, he says: "The main event here is Scorsese's stunning merger of objective and subjective consciousness. All the film's fight scenes are microcosmic representations of the film's spirit..." On my list of best fights would be:- Raging Bull - The entire movie feels like one big fight scene.
- Matrix - Morpheus teaching Neo
- Oldboy - The great corridor fight (there are weapons but it is basically a fistfight)
- Rocky - Sorry but the end is just too good.
- Once were warriors - I just remember feeling pummelled.
Study finds iPod users rarely play video
Nielsen Media Research monitored a panel of 400 iPod users and found that: "Less than 1% of content items played by iPod users on either iTunes or the device itself were videos. Among video iPod users, that percentage barely improves, up to 2.2%." From this they gather: "Worst-case scenario: The panel is an early indication that TV and movies have limited appeal on iPods. Best-case scenario: While adoption of video may be proceeding more slowly than the hype suggests, there is tremendous upside ahead." Here is my response:- People are ready for mobile video but the iPod isn't. That screen size alone is a huge drawback.
- In general, music is friendlier to mobile users but not necessarily to this extent. This does not mean, however, that video has no mobile potential. It is just not as potent as music.
- iTunes/iPod is still seen as a music box. (1.5 billion songs versus 45 million videos sold on iTunes)
- People aren't aware of how to get what they watch online (like Youtube) to their computers.
- If they do, people don't know how to incorporate video into their iPods. As matter of fact, just today, someone asked me how.
- People are willing to play music over and over again. So it is good to carry it with you. While with video, most people play it once. Not much of need to carry it or even store it on their computers.
- So it is more important that video is available on demand (wireless downloads) than say downloading to computer, then device.
- I say all this because I am confident that someone will surely make this mobile video thing work. Like the study says: "Walt Disney Co. noted that about 500,000 movies have been sold in the two months." People are ready.
FCPUG Network: An Evening with Walter Murch available for download
The Final Cut Pro User Group Network held An Evening with Walter Murch during this past January's MacWorld and the presentation is available for download. Walter Murch, Oscar winning editor of Apocalypse Now, The English Patient and Cold Mountain just to name a few, discusses the editing process and gives insight into the mind of an editor. This is a great presentation to watch and learn more about the "why" than the "how to" of editing. The only downside is that the movie scenes that are used in the presentation are blacked out, which I'm sure is due to not having releases to show them. But even without being able to view these scenes, you'll get a lot out of this presentation, including a great question and answer session at the end.
Adobe Kuler: Color palette generator
Adobe has released a free web app called Kuler, a Flash-based color palette generator and explorer. A color palette generator is very helpful in coming with the right color scheme when you are working with graphics or titles. At Kuler, you can also explore other palettes based on popularity , ratings and freshness. You will need to have the most recent version of Flash installed (which is currently Flash 9) to access the app.MySpace gets sued by Universal Music Group
Everyone thought YouTube would've been sued by a big media company first, but apparently MySpace got the attention of Universal Music Group for copyrighted music videos posted by MySpace users. For one thing, the focus of MySpace is social networking and not video hosting so it could slip by with the excuse that it is not responsible for what its users do. Whatever the reasons this will be a long, drawn out legal battle if it does make it to court since both companies have the money to fight it out.If Universal wins, the legal precedent will change the video sharing horizon as companies will have to be more careful about what they allow to be shared and not go about willy nilly like they currently do. And expect more lawsuits come out of the woodwork to follow the trend that Universal has set. Hopefully Web 2.0 won't end in one big copyright legal battle.
Amanda Congdon Headed for HBO Comedy
It is getting more apparent with each passing day that videoblogging is reaching mainstream. Backstage is reporting that one of the biggest videoblog stars, Amanda Congdon, is is developing a comedy program for HBO. Congdon used to be the host at Rocketboom, one the biggest videoblogs. She is currently working on a site called Amanda Across America, a travel videoblog. "Details of the project are still being hammered out, but Congdon said she's aiming for a multiplatform property that will be integrated with original video content online. She intends to write and star in the series." I am a big fan of Amanda, she is not only beautiful but quite witty.Video Watch: 'Eclectic' time lapse
There's something not only undeniably fascinating, but almost hypnotic about a good piece of time lapse. Eclectic is one these: a beautiful time lapse photography montage of natural environments and other landscapes, with sequences of long shadows passing over valleys, and shooting stars jetting through the nighttime sky. With appropriately ambient music, this video definitely qualifies as hypnotic, I'd say. Skillfully shot with a DSLR camera using a timer, the video has a beautiful visual quality that could not be achieved on a standard definition camcorder. Give this one a looksee. (Thanks to reader Charles Hing for the tip!)
Filmmaker jogs a stroller across USA to Hollywood
A Syracuse filmmaker, Ryan Feaster, is jogging across America till he reaches Hollywood where he hopes to have a meeting with Mark Cuban in regards to getting one of his scripts produced. Filmmakers are very clever with their stunts but this is one of the best I have seen. I have been kinda following this story for a while, and as of this writing, Ryan is on day 92 in New Mexico. It looks very tiring, he has been averaging around 30 miles per day. If he doesn't get his film made, he will at least be in shape.(via Growabrain)
NYT Magazine on Online Auteurs
New York Times Magazine posted an in-depth look at some of today's online or web auteurs. Among the videobloggers featured are ZeFrank, Ask a Ninja and others. The thrust of the article is that these videobloggers are emerging because the other channels are in a sense breaking down. Shows like Ask a Ninja are turning out to be more profitable for filmmakers than traditional methods. You might have heard it all of this before in condensed form. But the actual article makes for much more of an interesting read.More web video content for Tivo users
Move over The New York Times, CNET, and Rocketboom because Tivo subscribers will soon be able to enjoy online content from CBS Interactive, Reuters Group, and Forbes among others right through their Tivo box. In a move announced today, Tivo plans to expand its web video service to include new partners and introduced a new Home Movies service. Now families can send home videos directly to the Tivo boxes of their friends and family through their own private channel. It's kind of like an RSS feed for Tivo. The service is being provided thanks to OneTrueMedia.com and it will be available early next year. Finally a way to send Aunt Judy those holiday clips sans the DVD burning and mailing. "Broadband video is growing rapidly on the Web, but the television will continue to be the key way viewers want to watch video," said Tivo's CEO Tom Rogers.
< Previous Page | Next Page >
