UWOL #7 "Adventshore" at DVinfo.net

Eric Gulbransen · February 23rd, 2008, 03:45 PM

I thought to look the word "Adventure" up in the dictionary after struggling for a story. Ultimately I did not. We're all artists here so our stories come from our hearts, not a dictionary. Adventure means Disneyland to me. It means mystery, discovery, happiness, and fun. It means going into something with your eyes wide open, and never closing them. It means entering UWOL, and getting to know all you. It means going places you have never been, and welcoming the unexpected. And If you're really lucky adventure means life - and on this film, I found life.

Every moment of footage was filmed on, in, over, or a stone's trow away from northern California's glorious Pacific shoreline. Two locations, Point Reyes, and Point Lobos. Reyes is an hour's drive north of SanFrancisco, Lobos is three hours south.

Filming these moments was completely captivating to me. Each scene I witnessed for the first time through my camera, and on those days. I am a carpenter, not a videographer - so simply filming something like this is an adventure for me. But the most adventurous part of this all was not in what I witnessed. It was instead, in what witnessed me...

Come along if you like, you'll see - ADVENTSHORE

Meryem Ersoz · February 23rd, 2008, 04:30 PM

great critter footage! some of the best in show. great editing, nice bit of synching images to music. i see you stole my "lakme" music, prepare to listen to it again when you look at my film....

and an A+ for some of the best backstory writing we've seen in "wonder and woe," i stayed amused and riveted throughout...just need to find a way to incorporate some of this hilarity into the actual film. and spin as good a yarn in film as you can textually...

we all enjoy critter-watching a ton here at UWOL and your footage is varied and marvelous, but story is what puts the icing on the cake and pulls the whole thing together.

glad you seemed to have such a good first experience here in UWOL-land and hope that the sore muscles and blisters have already healed ...

Kevin Railsback · February 23rd, 2008, 04:47 PM

Thanks for making my life a living hell Eric!!!!

I just finished watching your film. My wife happened to come into the office while I was watching it. What's wrong with that you say? Well, she's a Monterey girl and she's stuck in Iowa with 55 inches of snow and ice.
Thanks a lot there pal!! :)

Really nice film. I think you matched up the footage very well with the music.

A fine piece of editing work too I might add.

The elk in the fog were very cool and ethereal but I really dug the bird footage. Loved that first shot of the gull coming in. Just the way you matched their twisting turning flight, the searching for food etc with the music was a lot of fun to watch together.

Got a little seasick watching the otters though. :) But again the music suited them.

My only real note is toward the end with the waves crashing. The dissolves to the same shot to catch another big wave were kind of distracting. I would have liked to seen another wave crashing from a different spot instead. I think it would have been a little more powerful than doing a cross fade.

The ending was KILLER! Hope you were a ways away with a big lens! :)

I hope you enjoyed the process and continue to enter these challenges!!!

Eric Gulbransen · February 23rd, 2008, 05:55 PM

Yeah, same problem coming out as I had going in - no story. I followed your default advice and made filming be the adventure, which it completely was. Thanks for that by the way, Meryem. Without it I might never have gone..

I also agree kevin, those wave shots beg for close-ups, or different angles. This way I could have avoided the fades. It just never occurred to me while shooting. And the otter mom? I called the rangers to write her up for swimming while intoxicated... Long zoom, hanging off a cliff, waves coming at her in every direction as they bounced around in that cove. What a disaster to try to follow. You should see it real-time. Need a seatbelt. Couldn't leave her out though. I'd never seen an otter in the wild before. Don't get out much I guess.

I need to develop a strategy for/while shooting. I barely even know what an establishing shot is. Completely playing by ear here. Self teaching has huge limitations. Surely this UWOL stuff will help, I hope.

Everyone's so good here. I'm a mouse dodging elephant dung in a wild heard in Africa..

Steve Siegel · February 23rd, 2008, 09:51 PM

Boy, the Pacific sure beats anything we have around here. I really enjoyed watching what you did with the elk emerging from just antlers, and the partial fade of the three pelicans into the bigger flock. Very effective. I feel that I can comment on your music, because, as was pointed out to me, I made the same mistake. The Hall of the Mountain King is a powerful piece, and although you made it fit the video just perfectly, I think it calls too much attention to itself, at the expense of the majesty of the scene. Some ambient sounds would have been a real plus. Just my thoughts.

Bruce Foreman · February 23rd, 2008, 10:18 PM

A symphony of image visuals and music. I enjoyed every second of it.

Adrinn Chellton · February 23rd, 2008, 10:56 PM

I enjoyed it very much, I live on the pacific coast and actually recognized every species, but maybe the sand piper looking bird, unless that's what it is, haha!

Nice visuals good stuff.

Per Johan Naesje · February 24th, 2008, 02:28 AM

Eric, this was a stunning piece to watch. I liked it very much. This is a scenery I like to be in, it's so dramatic but also beautiful in the same time!

And your use of music, particular the last piece - "dovregubbens hall" (norw.) of our great composer Edvard Grieg, supplemented those huge waves in the end in a way that gives me "goosebumps".

Thanks for a visual stunning piece, keep up your good work!

Chris Barcellos · February 24th, 2008, 02:35 AM

Very fine images and a quick moving piece that does not lose your attention. Superior job Eric!

Eric Gulbransen · February 24th, 2008, 10:54 AM

Thank you very much for taking the time to spike my spirit friends. I know what it's like to end up on the ground in a broken pile of mess - even after you tried your absolute best at something. Everything hurts, your crew is upset with you, the bike is destroyed, and you scored zero points. While I did try my best with this film, and did fall short of the goal, it's encouraging to know the effort was not a total loss. I'm actually learning a lot from all of your films. Every one of them. Thank you again for the encouragement.

Eric

Bob Thieda · February 24th, 2008, 03:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eric Gulbransen

I'm actually learning a lot from all of your films. Every one of them.

As I have learned a thing or two from yours, Eric.
Very nice....nothing to add beyond what has been said already...

Dale Guthormsen · February 25th, 2008, 10:19 AM

Eric,

I really liked the increasing pace of your short!! I thought you did a great job editing it !!!!

I loved the fog shots!

did the Bull bugle when he was on the top of the hill?? that would have been great audio if so!!

This is one of my favorites, in top 4 so far!!!

Trond Saetre · February 25th, 2008, 11:42 AM

Eric, that was stunning!!
Of all the films I have seen so far, you did the best job synching the music to the images. Very well done! Great choice of music.
The only thing I maybe would have changed a little, is the pace of the film as the music paced up at the end. A few clips were a little too long/slow compared with the very fast paced music. But this is just a detail.

I am really looking forward to see more of your artwork.
Keep up the good work, and stay with us for the future challenges!

Eric Gulbransen · February 25th, 2008, 11:55 AM

Thanks Dale.

No he didn't bugle, he actually seemed to be reaching for a far off scent. There were other bulls up ahead who had just gone by while I was falling over myself trying to get the cam setup. Kind of a comedy actually. Trust me he didn't stop to look at me because he thought I was Marlin Perkins.

On the other hand, if he had bugled he might have sounded like a snow cone maker because me and sound, we just don't get along yet. But I'm doing the work to get there. Trust me.

Eric Gulbransen · February 25th, 2008, 12:14 PM

Trond, I completely agree. Even while editing it I agreed, but somehow I never conquered that challenge. There were more than a few moments in there where I really painted myself into a corner.. Like the opera leading into Peter and the Wolf in less than three seconds. Or one piano leading into another as the fog scene ended. I nailed none of them, but I definitely improved them over the first few runs.

The Long-Billed Curlew eating the fiddler crab? I really wanted to include all three segments of him - searching, eating, escaping. I struggled to find a home for those three clips. I only love the last one, with him running away.

Thanks for the advice guys

February 23rd, 2008, 03:45 PM	#1
Eric Gulbransen Major Player Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Palo Alto, California Posts: 520	UWOL #7 "Adventshore" I thought to look the word "Adventure" up in the dictionary after struggling for a story. Ultimately I did not. We're all artists here so our stories come from our hearts, not a dictionary. Adventure means Disneyland to me. It means mystery, discovery, happiness, and fun. It means going into something with your eyes wide open, and never closing them. It means entering UWOL, and getting to know all you. It means going places you have never been, and welcoming the unexpected. And If you're really lucky adventure means life - and on this film, I found life. Every moment of footage was filmed on, in, over, or a stone's trow away from northern California's glorious Pacific shoreline. Two locations, Point Reyes, and Point Lobos. Reyes is an hour's drive north of SanFrancisco, Lobos is three hours south. Filming these moments was completely captivating to me. Each scene I witnessed for the first time through my camera, and on those days. I am a carpenter, not a videographer - so simply filming something like this is an adventure for me. But the most adventurous part of this all was not in what I witnessed. It was instead, in what witnessed me... Come along if you like, you'll see - ADVENTSHORE

February 23rd, 2008, 04:47 PM	#3
Kevin Railsback Trustee Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Cedar Rapids, Iowa Posts: 1,544	Thanks for making my life a living hell Eric!!!! I just finished watching your film. My wife happened to come into the office while I was watching it. What's wrong with that you say? Well, she's a Monterey girl and she's stuck in Iowa with 55 inches of snow and ice. Thanks a lot there pal!! :) Really nice film. I think you matched up the footage very well with the music. A fine piece of editing work too I might add. The elk in the fog were very cool and ethereal but I really dug the bird footage. Loved that first shot of the gull coming in. Just the way you matched their twisting turning flight, the searching for food etc with the music was a lot of fun to watch together. Got a little seasick watching the otters though. :) But again the music suited them. My only real note is toward the end with the waves crashing. The dissolves to the same shot to catch another big wave were kind of distracting. I would have liked to seen another wave crashing from a different spot instead. I think it would have been a little more powerful than doing a cross fade. The ending was KILLER! Hope you were a ways away with a big lens! :) I hope you enjoyed the process and continue to enter these challenges!!! __________________ --==Kevin==-- http:naturephotostudios.com.com

February 24th, 2008, 02:28 AM	#8
Per Johan Naesje Trustee Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Akershus, Norway Posts: 1,413	Eric, this was a stunning piece to watch. I liked it very much. This is a scenery I like to be in, it's so dramatic but also beautiful in the same time! And your use of music, particular the last piece - "dovregubbens hall" (norw.) of our great composer Edvard Grieg, supplemented those huge waves in the end in a way that gives me "goosebumps". Thanks for a visual stunning piece, keep up your good work! __________________ - Per Johan

February 24th, 2008, 02:35 AM	#9
Chris Barcellos Inner Circle Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Elk Grove CA Posts: 6,838	Very fine images and a quick moving piece that does not lose your attention. Superior job Eric! __________________ Chris J. Barcellos

February 25th, 2008, 10:19 AM	#12
Dale Guthormsen Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Saskatchewan Posts: 3,048	Eric, I really liked the increasing pace of your short!! I thought you did a great job editing it !!!! I loved the fog shots! did the Bull bugle when he was on the top of the hill?? that would have been great audio if so!! This is one of my favorites, in top 4 so far!!! __________________ DATS ALL FOLKS Dale W. Guthormsen

February 23rd, 2008, 04:30 PM	#2
Meryem Ersoz Wrangler Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Boulder, CO Posts: 3,015	great critter footage! some of the best in show. great editing, nice bit of synching images to music. i see you stole my "lakme" music, prepare to listen to it again when you look at my film.... and an A+ for some of the best backstory writing we've seen in "wonder and woe," i stayed amused and riveted throughout...just need to find a way to incorporate some of this hilarity into the actual film. and spin as good a yarn in film as you can textually... we all enjoy critter-watching a ton here at UWOL and your footage is varied and marvelous, but story is what puts the icing on the cake and pulls the whole thing together. glad you seemed to have such a good first experience here in UWOL-land and hope that the sore muscles and blisters have already healed ...

February 23rd, 2008, 05:55 PM	#4
Eric Gulbransen Major Player Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Palo Alto, California Posts: 520	Yeah, same problem coming out as I had going in - no story. I followed your default advice and made filming be the adventure, which it completely was. Thanks for that by the way, Meryem. Without it I might never have gone.. I also agree kevin, those wave shots beg for close-ups, or different angles. This way I could have avoided the fades. It just never occurred to me while shooting. And the otter mom? I called the rangers to write her up for swimming while intoxicated... Long zoom, hanging off a cliff, waves coming at her in every direction as they bounced around in that cove. What a disaster to try to follow. You should see it real-time. Need a seatbelt. Couldn't leave her out though. I'd never seen an otter in the wild before. Don't get out much I guess. I need to develop a strategy for/while shooting. I barely even know what an establishing shot is. Completely playing by ear here. Self teaching has huge limitations. Surely this UWOL stuff will help, I hope. Everyone's so good here. I'm a mouse dodging elephant dung in a wild heard in Africa..

February 23rd, 2008, 09:51 PM	#5
Steve Siegel Major Player Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA Posts: 840	Boy, the Pacific sure beats anything we have around here. I really enjoyed watching what you did with the elk emerging from just antlers, and the partial fade of the three pelicans into the bigger flock. Very effective. I feel that I can comment on your music, because, as was pointed out to me, I made the same mistake. The Hall of the Mountain King is a powerful piece, and although you made it fit the video just perfectly, I think it calls too much attention to itself, at the expense of the majesty of the scene. Some ambient sounds would have been a real plus. Just my thoughts.

February 23rd, 2008, 10:18 PM	#6
Bruce Foreman Trustee Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: San Angelo Texas Posts: 1,518	A symphony of image visuals and music. I enjoyed every second of it.

February 23rd, 2008, 10:56 PM	#7
Adrinn Chellton Regular Crew Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Carlsbad, CA Posts: 195	I enjoyed it very much, I live on the pacific coast and actually recognized every species, but maybe the sand piper looking bird, unless that's what it is, haha! Nice visuals good stuff.

February 24th, 2008, 10:54 AM	#10
Eric Gulbransen Major Player Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Palo Alto, California Posts: 520	Thank you very much for taking the time to spike my spirit friends. I know what it's like to end up on the ground in a broken pile of mess - even after you tried your absolute best at something. Everything hurts, your crew is upset with you, the bike is destroyed, and you scored zero points. While I did try my best with this film, and did fall short of the goal, it's encouraging to know the effort was not a total loss. I'm actually learning a lot from all of your films. Every one of them. Thank you again for the encouragement. Eric

February 25th, 2008, 11:42 AM	#13
Trond Saetre Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Bergen, Norway Posts: 3,375	Eric, that was stunning!! Of all the films I have seen so far, you did the best job synching the music to the images. Very well done! Great choice of music. The only thing I maybe would have changed a little, is the pace of the film as the music paced up at the end. A few clips were a little too long/slow compared with the very fast paced music. But this is just a detail. I am really looking forward to see more of your artwork. Keep up the good work, and stay with us for the future challenges!

February 25th, 2008, 11:55 AM	#14
Eric Gulbransen Major Player Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Palo Alto, California Posts: 520	Thanks Dale. No he didn't bugle, he actually seemed to be reaching for a far off scent. There were other bulls up ahead who had just gone by while I was falling over myself trying to get the cam setup. Kind of a comedy actually. Trust me he didn't stop to look at me because he thought I was Marlin Perkins. On the other hand, if he had bugled he might have sounded like a snow cone maker because me and sound, we just don't get along yet. But I'm doing the work to get there. Trust me.

February 25th, 2008, 12:14 PM	#15
Eric Gulbransen Major Player Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Palo Alto, California Posts: 520	Trond, I completely agree. Even while editing it I agreed, but somehow I never conquered that challenge. There were more than a few moments in there where I really painted myself into a corner.. Like the opera leading into Peter and the Wolf in less than three seconds. Or one piano leading into another as the fog scene ended. I nailed none of them, but I definitely improved them over the first few runs. The Long-Billed Curlew eating the fiddler crab? I really wanted to include all three segments of him - searching, eating, escaping. I struggled to find a home for those three clips. I only love the last one, with him running away. Thanks for the advice guys