Feedback: "Soot Happens"

[Craig Bellaire]

Ok since I voted already now I feel I can make comments on others.
This was nice, Almost a bit to dark for my monitor, so I watched it on a 22 inch cinema display and my home computer with the lights off. Nice lighting and story...

OK I have a question, since I'm from Texas and now living in Rochester NY for the past 5 years, I've noticed this.."Why when people sound stupid, they have to use a southern accent" Can they be stupid with a Yankee/Northern accent or a Boston accent? Just wondered..

Again one of the top 2 videos for me... nicely paced

[Lorinda Norton]

Thank you for sharing your thoughts, Craig. I'm really glad you liked the movie. There is one bit of feedback I may not share with the boys, though; they weren't putting on accents--they really talk that way!!!! LOL! (Rural Idaho....farm & ranch country....you get the idea...) :)

[Sean McHenry]

I will add that using the southern accents is quite often equated with lesser education. For a very long time that was just the truth of things. Most of the south eastern states, and a big part of my own southern ohio are simply too underfunded to make for great school systems. I know a lot has changed over the last 50 or so years and everyone seems to be doing a lot better in the education department but those things stick around a long time.

Also, the slow leisurly delivery of souther dialog lends itself to wondering just how long it takes to process a thought sometimes. I generalized a whole bunch there so nobody get too upset. Frankly I don't think of anyone as dumb, unless they prove it to me. We have a LOT of dumb city folks with decent vocabulary skills around these parts. Most of them are out trying to drive in the snow...

Lorinda, excellent again. These guys have a carrer in shorts. Take that however you want but they have a good delivery together. I'm sure it has to do with good writing too. The stylized chimney, great. We didn't need to see it to get it. reminded me of the Grinch going down the chimney all bent up.

Your in my top 5. I'll be voting at home tonight.

Thanks,
Sean

[Craig Bellaire]

I would have to agree about The guys have a carrer in shorts, meaning "Short videos" ha ha ha I watched a few others from your web site and they are great...

[William Gardner]

Though not an entrant (this time...), I watched the set of DVC4 entries and this was one of the outstanding entrants, IMHO. The lighting and color looked very professional, the story and acting were very good.

I think the one thing that really made it stand about above many of the others was the moving camera: the whole first half of the piece has the camera in motion the entire time. Was this all done with the dolly MikeT discussed/showed in the video in his thread (I noticed the credit for his dolly at the end of your piece)? Was some of this handheld? Any stabilizer used? I'd like to know more about how you kept the motion shots so slow and smooth.

Great work!
Bill

[Lorinda Norton]

Oh man, Bill--you just made my year!!! Thank you SO MUCH. I feel like I just won. :)

All the shots you see are a mixture of everything you mentioned. On the roof I had to shoot the gifts blind with my 6' crane from the top of my SUV because I left my little monitor at home. And I've found that my slow pans really stink, so I did it a bit faster than I wanted and slowed down that portion in Vegas. The shot on the outside of the chimney was handheld, simply because none of my blind crane shots worked. You can sure tell the difference!

Indoor moving shot of the fireplace was done with Mike's dolly and my crane. Dear, sweet friend that he is, he surprised me by building one for me at the same time he built his! Mailed it from Florida; I didn't know what it was until I opened the big box.

The scenes of Jeff and Mason in the chimney were done with my crane--that's why the angle is fairly consistent.

I look forward to seeing you for DVC5!!! :)

[Lorinda Norton]

Bill,

About that moving camera, that's a technique I really like. Credit the pro DP Charles Papert for that--I've studied his fine work from the links he's kindly provided for us here.

[Jimmy Bustos]

Hi Lorinda,

The charm and the acting of your piece made it my favorite.
The chemistry they had made it feel like they had the "Butch & Sundance Kid"
friendship; they would do anything for each other. Even go down a chimney.
The only problem I had that it was a little to dark in the beginning.

Great job.

[Lorinda Norton]

Oh dear, Jimmy--you've revealed my "secret." Paul Newman's and Robert Redford's Butch & Sundance are my all-time favorite characters. That is precisely the chemistry/interaction I wanted and tried to achieve beginning in DVC3! Good eye.

You must be watching on an LCD monitor. This was terribly frustrating for me; I would watch on one monitor, then another, then another. What looked good on one was either too dark or too light on the other. Sounds like I never found the middle.

Thank you so much for the compliment to my friends! I will be sure to pass it along to them. (They are brothers-in-law, btw.)

[Sheila Ward]

This is definitely my favorite. I watched it several times to observe the camera motions, and I thought the pace was right on. Of course, I'm from Arkansas so that's a normal pace for me :-) The shot I liked the most was the gift with From "Satan" crossed out and changed to Santa. That cracked me up.

Congratulations on winning! This just motivates me more to enter DVC5.

[Lorinda Norton]

Thanks Sheila; you are the first person to catch that gag about the transposed letters! (Of course, for some it was too dark.) Besides other aspects to the joke, in DVC3 Jeff couldn't even spell "HELP" correctly, so.... :)

Okay, now that you've put in writing your intention to join the fun next time, I'm gonna hold you to it. You'll love it!