Video Production experience?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Jason M Hancock
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Jason M Hancock

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Sorry this is off topic, but gotta ask somebody, somewhere....

Does anyone have experience in putting video to a finished song or piece of music? I'm toying with this idea but have no idea where to start....how do you work with a video production company? At what stage should you put a video to a song or instrumental? After everything's already mastered? (that seems logical...)

Oh, and I'm sure it must cost a fortune....

I'll appreciate any pointers or insight anyone can share.

Thanks,

Jason
 
Interestingly enough, I've always done it in reverse - where a video production company (or group of individuals) came to me and asked "can you put music to this?".

The answer is definately yes. Of course, it depends on the format the video is in, whether it be NTSC, PAL, DV or other more professional format, but regardless, the most important thing is to sync the video to the audio, and vice versa. This is where a strong understanding of SMPTE will really help you. Also, you need devices that interconnect SMPTE between the video and the audio devices.

Email me directly, I'd be happy to answer any questions that you have. midiguy732@hotmail.com

And regarding expense - not necessarily, has a lot to do with what equipment they use. Anything can be synced to anything, if you want it bad enough. SMPTE is the most common, though sometimes you can cheat with RS422 :)


Jason M Hancock said:
Sorry this is off topic, but gotta ask somebody, somewhere....

Does anyone have experience in putting video to a finished song or piece of music? I'm toying with this idea but have no idea where to start....how do you work with a video production company? At what stage should you put a video to a song or instrumental? After everything's already mastered? (that seems logical...)

Oh, and I'm sure it must cost a fortune....

I'll appreciate any pointers or insight anyone can share.

Thanks,

Jason
Click to expand...
 
The two main factors will be if you need the video to be in perfect sync for lip sync and the video format used.

If you can get away with non lip sync and are happy with a prosumer format like Mini DV then you can probably find a company to charge around $30 - 75 an hour for post production and shooting. For the shoot you would have a camera man and a couple lights, not much.

A modestly budgeted video shoot can easily run a few grand per day with just a few lights and some sync equipment.

If you have a college with a film program and can find some students to shoot it then that is your best bet. You can all share the cost and spend more time being creative then worrying about costly equipment rentals.

And yes, have your music completely finished before you shoot a video.
 
I just realized you are in Russia. Ignore my prices :p

Just know that shooting even a crappy looking video requires a lot of time and equipment.
 
I'm not sure exactly what you're asking here Jason. I could probably help you out more if you can give a few more details. I've been working in video production for the last 3 years(plus I've actually got a college degree in it) so I could probably throw some pointers your way.
 
video ideas

Thanks, fellas.

My idea is actually to not shoot anything new but to use stuff that's already out there in the public domain. Or maybe some kind of stock footage that I only assume would be available somewhere and copyright-free. I have a lot of very clear ideas about the themes and images I'd like to string together. I don't think I'd need any super-tight, on the money syncing (certainly no lip syncing) but a series of images that would change, maybe synced enough for some movement in the video to catch a drum beat or a target tone here and there.

Any ideas on that?

Also, is it possible or advisable/inadvisable to do this "on order" by working with a company or producer/director/editor through the web? Is it something that needs closer proximity for collaboration? Should I wait until I return to the States later this year and then work in person with someone in the city where I'll be?

Any ideas on that? Costs? Advice? Pitfalls? Recommendations? Known companies or producers/directors who don't require a Hollywood budget as payment?

Oh yeah: the piece of music I have is about 2'41" so I'm not looking at putting together an epic, feature length musical. Just something that gets to the point, and has a little bit of fade in and fade out at beginning and end. Not a lot of art, but well-chosen footage that's in line with the mood of the piece is definitely a must.

Any ideas or insight you can share will be helpful.

Thanks again!

Jason
 
Your main problem will be finding the footage to use. There are companies that sell stock nature scenes and stuff but you would have to contact them for pricing as I have never tried that.

What exactly do you want?
Film or video?
Broadcast quality or internet quality?
Do you want to have the rights to sell it or just show it?
What types of stock scenes do you want?

There are a lot of variables.

It's hard to say from your description but I worked in the film industry for about 10yrs so I can tell you what to expect if you give me more specific requirements.
 
If the video isn't meant for brodcast purposes, this isn't that difficult to do. All you need is a video editing program and some way to get the footage in and out of your computer. Adobe Premiere and Vegas Video are a couple of the software titles out there (Vegas being the cheaper of the 2). Getting the footage in and out can be done with a firewire card and a cheap miniDV cam with analog inputs on it (if your stuff isn't on DV).

Regarding stock footage, you can search the Library of Congress for public domain stuff. You do have to pay a small fee to cover the cost of the tape and them making the copy for you. You can choose from a variety of formats too.

If you want the thing to be broadcast the cost will jump astronomically with every step that you take.
 
I'll answer the questions that TexRoadkill posed; from there on it's open season on any suggestions. :)

I searched the web today and found a few sites (like www.footage.net) that appear to have the stock footage that I'd like to use.

So, on to TexRoadkill's questions:

1. What exactly do you want?
A video for an instrumental piece (2'41") that would consist of a series of shots (some color, some b&w) from various times in the past century. All of the images should be related to one theme. I can't imagine I'd need a lot (if any) video effects other than to fade in and fade out at beginning and end and to have sharp transitions between scenes...o.k., so maybe the transitions would have a minimum of effect to make the changes interesting. The Purpose: to use the video as a demo/promo piece, not necessarily for broadcast, though maybe for putting onto a website. The artist is a one-man-band: imagine a folky version of Eno crossed with early Yes.

2. Film or video?
Do you mean shot on or shown on? If shot on, then most of what I'd need would only have been shot on film. 9 times out of 10 in a blind video vs film test, I'd probably prefer film as, to me, that always looks warmer and more natural.

3. Broadcast quality or internet quality?
Certainly internet, though I'm not sure about broadcast. Anything's possible. Maybe the artist will eventually want the option to broadcast it on local/regional TV somewhere? What does broadcast refer to here?....the old, standard three TV channels that were literally broadcast in the old days or cable TV that's broadcast through satellite?

4. Do you want to have the rights to sell it or just show it?
In the end: both. But right now, he's definitely more about demo than actually selling.

5. What types of stock scenes do you want?
Not Mary Poppins, but not Jenna Jameson either. Can't really go into a lot depth here, though it's very clear what kinds of images are needed. As I wrote above, I've glanced through a few stock footage sites on the web and they appear to have the kind of material that I need.

That's about it. Any ideas?

(As always: a very big thanks!)

-Jason
 
Broadcast quality has to do with meeting the technical specifications that the FCC puts out for the signals that tv and cable stations throw out there. Instead of a VHS tape, which costs around a buck for 120 minutes, you'll probably end up using a Beta SP tape, which costs around $28 for a 90 minutes. Also, the acquisition equipment has to be higher quality to maintain the final results through to the final tape. If it's just for internet purposes, your cost will be substantially lower. The hourly rate for post houses around here ranges from $80-$150 depending on the scope of the project. If this is only going to be a one time deal, I'd say save yourself the trouble and pay somebody else to do it. But if you think you may want to do something like this in the future(for non-broadcast use), and you want to save money, I'd say do it yourself. Just my opinion.
 
Based on what you've said I would recomend the following -

You have found stock footage sites so you can determine if their stuff will fit your needs and budget. Since you wont have to shoot any new footage that will lower your costs dramaticly. Make sure when you purchase the footage you also receive the rights to show and distribute the footage. Then you can show and sell it to whomever you want.

Find somebody with an AVID or any non-linear editing system and if you receive the footage on a good format (Mini DV, Beta SP, even SVHS will be enough probably) then digital editing wont degrade the original image quality.

Master to a pro format like BetaSP and you are ready to go!

In the states I have seen rates anywhere from $40+ an hour for non-linear editing. If you have all the footage selected exactly before hand you could probably edit the piece in 4-8 hours if the cuts arent too quick or complicated.

In the states I would look for small industrial video houses or a college to do the editing.

A cheap alternative would be to pan and zoom on public domain still shots. This is what they do for a lot of documentaries that use historic photos but they still want a moving image. This could even be done entirely on your computer using video or animation software.
 
Thanks

Thanks again. This gives me a good start....
 
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