I noticed everyone starting threads for feedback and thought "that sounds like a great idea". So here's a thread I'd like anyone to use to discuss my short.

I filmed this last Saturday during the morning. I was the only person I could get to work on it, so the shots are tripod only and I'm the one actor. (hence the teenager-like old man hands) There is a shot with another person in it, but that guy was already working at the counter and he wasn't worried about having the back of his head in the shot. If I knew his name I would thank him but I've forgotten it already. After spending Saturday morning filming, I spent Saturday afternoon editing, then spent Sunday afternoon figuring out how best to compress it for submission.

This whole process was my first creative video and I had a blast.

I really hope y'all like it. Let me know what you think after you've watched it.

I'll talk about it more after it's posted.

Thanks everyone.
The first five films were great!

I'm wondering about today's submissions...

Dylan...you okay bud?...

I heard you got poked with a stick pretty hard...

Not too worried, but wondering if we'll have 10 movies to digest tomorrow or will we push back the days?

Also, do WE vote on this stuff or are there set judges?

Thanks, see ya.

*walks away thinking* 'Hope he didn't burst!'

LOL, Brent! Dylan is okay--see the thread below about the "Missing Man." If you're a night owl you might check in here around 11pm Texas time. He may post today's five then. Or not... :)

Everyone who submitted a film will be voting on this one.

Looking forward to seeing your movie!

Brent I really liked the concept of the film, and the execution was great. The only thing I didn't like was giving the rose the red at the end. I don't think it was needed and sort of took away from the feel of the film. Other than that great job.

What did you shoot on and how did you compress it to make it that clean?

I really LOVED this short! It looked fantastic, and the music was excellent. The only thing that took me out of it was seeing the hands of a younger man in various scenes.

I'll even go so far as to say that you may be getting my vote thus far. It will depend largely on what Dylan releases next, but so far... "The Rose" is the one for me.

Very well done!

I liked it. i actually thought the Red rose was a nice accent at the end. the Young hands only bothered me because I read about the them here before I watched it. otherwise, I don't think it would have stood out to me that much.

Great Job!


Bryon <><

Wow! I hate to speak prematurely, as there are plenty of films left to view, but of all the ones I've seen so far, this is my absolute favorite, even counting entries for all six previous contests. I hate to risk offending other entrants by being so blunt, but man alive I can't say enough good things about this film. Very well packaged, professional look, and a touching story, to boot.

My only suggestion would be to make the red hue of the rose a bit more subtle, and see if you can't get rid of that thick black edge around the petals. Yes, the hands were a bit young, but it didn't bother me, and they looked old enough. Just imagine it's an old guy who moisturizes.

I see you didn't include a credit for the music; did you do that, as well? It's very beautiful.

Yes, the hands were a bit young, but it didn't bother me, and they looked old enough. Just imagine it's an old guy who moisturizes.


As you know... I love this film!

But a guy who moves that slow doesn't have hands that look like that. I don't care how much he moisturizes. ;)

Of course, that is just a small nitpick, and it didn't ruin the film for me in the least.

Looked great, nice edits too. The young guy did distract me a bit. I had to watch it a couple of times to try and get past it. But everything else looked great.

Like Mike Horrigan, the only thing that jolted me out of the films "reality" were the young hands, and the red rose. Everything else was magnificent, and I think the walking scenes were magnificent, as well as the rose growth.

Only other thought I had at the beginning was whether roses actually grow from seeds...... But thats for someone else to comment on...

Very nice film! The fact that you are another individual who did the entire film by yourself is a great accomplishment. Even better, given that this is your first creative effort.

Your story idea was quite touching. Must confess to having a difficult time with the old man/young body. When first viewed it took me out of the film, however many other aspects of the short were very well done. I really enjoyed several shots and your choice of shallow DOF. Looked great!

Coloring the rose at the end worked for my taste. As you can see, artistic freedom can sometimes be viewed in two completely different ways. Good for you on doing what you felt good about.

Best wishes~
Bradley

Wow, what gorgeous cinematography! Too bad there isn't a category just for that this time around. Lovely and flawless from start to finish!

Only other thought I had at the beginning was whether roses actually grow from seeds...... But thats for someone else to comment on...
This got me smiling right from the start. You guys talk about the young look of the old man's hands bringing you out of the story; for me it was the idea of a rose coming up from a seed and actually blooming in a pot--a single stem, no less--that distracted me just a bit. But it didn't take away from the concept. :)

By the way, Brent, that shot from the behind the counter......beautiful.

WOW!

You guys are awesome!

I'm actually shaking reading these reviews. This is really nice of all of you.

I totally agree on EVERYTHING said. Really.

If I could have gotten an old man I totally would have, but I don't know any actors and my Dad is too old to get out of bed.

And no, Roses grow on bushes and don't look anything like that while growing. I do believe they grow from seeds like most other flowers but yeah, the single stem was for simplicity on my part.

I had one day to film. So I filmed the final scenes first, then cut the rose down as I filmed the growing scenes in reverse.

I completely understand and agree with everyone's problems regarding the hands and the rose growth. They were compromises I had to make to get an entry in having only Saturday to work on it.

In fact, when I showed it to my dad the first thing he said was "those hands look too young". Haha, oh well.

Just reading these reviews has been amazing! I need to do this again! You guys are awesome! I'm really happy! I have reviews!!!

Thanks,
Brent

Technical Stuff:

Camera: My new girlfriend - Canon XH-A1 (she's beautiful)

Music: Sonicfire Pro - forget which library and which song. I really like sonicfire but I think adobe's new soundbooth will replace it.

I edited everything in HD using cineform on premiere. Then adjusted in B&W.

I doubled the final clip and returned the top clip back to color, then masked around the rose.

I output using premiere's media encoder, I'm never happy with quicktime but I used it so that everyone could watch without problems. I'll have to go back and see my settings, I'll post them after I find out.

Brent:

I felt a French short film inspiration here. Wow! Technically beautiful and I teared up at the end. But then again, I am a sentimental fool. I loved it. I really loved it. I personally thank you for this movie.

(ps: Isn't Sonicfire Pro cool as all get out?)

Thanks Hugh, I'm really glad everyone liked this.

**********************************
****SPOILER ALERT - STOP READING****
**********************************
On the coloring of the rose: I wanted to color it in the end to show that although we may pass away. Memories often live on. Even though his wife is gone, she is still vibrant and alive in his memories.

But I really appreciate all the kind (& constructive) words everyone has shared.

~Thank you~

Brent-

Wow! Beautiful film! I was completely hooked from start to finish. What a beautiful concept for him to grow the flower every year, so that its in bloom just in time for their anniversary!

My favorite shot was the one where the flower's blooming and he's standing in shadow in the doorway!

Amazing job for your first creative effort! Knowing that its your first one makes the film even better!

Jamey,

Thank you. This whole thing has been a total treat. I would have never guessed that I'd feel so great with these reviews. (actually I didn't know we reviewed until I saw the feedback thread, haha, I'm learning fast)

I'm really glad you liked the film. Thank you.

Hey Brent,
You shot such a beautiful film. Sharp visuals, great story and location.
I love the scene when the rose is growing. Did you adjust the rose then get back into position, I see a cross dissolve so I assume that's what you did. You could have shot both scenes separatelyfrom the same shot and then mask it on the halfway line, but I think you wanted to show a passage of time as the rose grew thus using the cross dissolve. (Am I right about that?)

I think everyone here will agree that you should be nominated for the award of best looking hands in a DVC film along with Meryem. :P

HaHa, nice Darryl, funny!

Yeah, in the original concept I filmed myself walking into the silhouetted doorway standing...watching it...then walking away, over and over to show the passage of time as the rose grew...he patiently waited and watched each day.

But let's just say that going for a slow-paced-sad-feel film starring a slow-shuffling old man lead does not bode well for the 3min limit! And I was determined to keep the film itself under 3minutes!!! (I think I'm at 2min.59secs.and 20 out of 24 frames)

So I cut those filmed scenes of me shuffling into the doorway and back out again to just me standing in the doorway, then cross-faded them as you noticed. It fit time-wise and I think turned out better because the changing rose draws the focus. And we all know the rose is the star of this flick!

But yes, I have beautiful hands. Thank you! :)

Technical Stuff:

Music: Sonicfire Pro - forget which library and which song. I really like sonicfire but I think adobe's new soundbooth will replace it.



Brent:

1. I have Sonicfire 3, but haven't gone to 4. Is that what you are using ?

2. Take a look at Sony's Cinescore, too...

Hey Chris,

Yeah, I'm using v.4 - I think it's pretty much the same, they added the moodmapping but that only works when you buy their moodmapped libraries (which are too expensive for my blood).

I've looked into cinescore and it seems cool but after sonicfire, I don't think I'll be buying another sound program unless somebody really changes the technology. Plus I don't think I'd be able to keep the sound libraries I've bought for sonicfire. Oh well, as with this film, I'm usually very happy with what sonicfire and some tweaking can do.

Although, since I'm an Adobe fan, I am checking out the Soundbooth beta (http://labs.adobe.com/technologies/soundbooth/#scores) which should also have an autocomposer feature similar the others. We'll see. I think adobe is usually pretty good at out-designing their products, and if they don't out-design, they just buy (*cough* DV rack).

Hmmm, sorry about the link, my http code is turned off...oh well.

Yeah I just downloaded their Beta. Was hoping they might have something activated of the Sonic Pro variety, but get a grey screen at this point.

I ve also used Sony's Music Studio to mess with their orchestral loops, and have dones some short pieces there. Wish I had some sort of musical talent, but I don't know anything about it really.

Edit: I just saw at your url they have some samples. I will take a look at that.

Yeah, some people are just gifted when it comes to music. But if you're willing to work through it and get a feel for things on your own.

May I suggest:
http://www.amazon.com/Music-Theory-Made-Easy-David/dp/091832159X/sr=8-1/qid=1167546010/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/104-1039169-9551925?ie=UTF8&s=books
I'd go with either this one or the idiots guide (featured in the better together bar halfway down the page)

There is definitely such thing as natural talent, which I don't have when it comes to music. But I've decided that it's worth the effort to learn it down the road.

Who knows, maybe my DVC8 entry will have music composed by me! I think next time I'll try to get some actors though. HA, I'm having too much fun with this stuff.

Somewhere between your beautiful footage and my suspension of disbelief I found an entry that touched me. The single stemmed rose and the absence of a real old man didn't bother me because the story meant so much to me on a personal level. I just went with it and I loved it. Wonderful job.

Very well done, Brent.

A most touching film. I noticed the hands but the story and your treatment of it carried so well the hands didn't detract in any way.

And I did like the color the rose took on as your old man left.

Bruce

P.S. I notice you live in San Antonio, we're only about 200 miles apart and I sometimes come in for annual military reunions. We might have an opportunity to meet sometime.

Yeah, I think that if I'm gonna continue making creative films.

I NEED ACTORS!!!

I'm learning that part of having a production company involves more than just one man doing everything.(duh, I'm learning though)

I'm thinking I may scout the local junior college acting programs to get some talent for next time.

Aside from my acting limitations (which isn't even an argument)...

I'm really glad so many of you enjoyed the story and cinematography.

If I only had tom hanks!!!! Haha, j/k.

If anyone has tips on getting actors...clue me in!!!

*bruce - come on down man! I'd love to talk shop with you! and San Antonio is a very welcoming city if I do say so myself!



HAPPY NEW YEARS!!!!

A little dark in spots, but probably on purpose. Nice lighting on the rose as it grows. Got the sense that the reason we never saw the old guy's face was because he wasn't actually old. Really nicely composed considering you were a one man show. I liked the camera placement anyway, but even more-so knowing you were in front of the camera for them.

Smile,
Kris

Yet another one that is shot very well. Things are looking too darn good around here for me to win these things. Well done with the depth of field on some shots. I especially think it works on the end shot.

I was a bit bothered by the rose itself but you could look at it as more of a impressionist thing I suppose. If however you were going for an impressionist look, you might have needed to do that with other areas as well. Still, it works well for me. Good job on this one.

Judging is sure getting hard around here.

Sean

I can hardly wait to see who wins this competition. There were such quality entries. Have we ever had a tie before?! haha!