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butterflyI'm going to talk about vids. Not specific vids, but what works for in vids.
I'm a beat whore. If you can make the song work with the beat, I'm probably sold, even if I don't notice it until several viewings later. That Tara/Willow vid to Iris that I mentioned a while ago starts with the Tara/Willow handclasp and swinging their hands together while they walk in the park and it's right on beat. Love that stuff. Of course, then the vid proceeds to absolutely tear my heart out of my chest. Emotional response is also key. If you can make me care, then I'm sold.
I hate to mention this, but the better your source is, the more breaks I'm willing to give you. Because the better the source is, the more I can see the characters. Of course, even killer source can't fix a crappy vid.
Point of view is important. When you make a vid, you're telling a story. Shifting pov in stories is something not to be done unless you're very good and I would argue the same for vidding. Decide who is the speaker, who is the object, etc. And make sure that it's absolutely clear. Unless you just are that good and can shift pov and still make it all work. Some people are. But generally not on the first try. My very first fanfiction has never seen the light of day and it never will. Because it sucked. I had no clue what I was doing.
And this next part is something very personal: I have to like the song. Which for me means most of the time, instrumentals are right out. I just... I need vocals. That's just me, though.
I'm a beat whore. If you can make the song work with the beat, I'm probably sold, even if I don't notice it until several viewings later. That Tara/Willow vid to Iris that I mentioned a while ago starts with the Tara/Willow handclasp and swinging their hands together while they walk in the park and it's right on beat. Love that stuff. Of course, then the vid proceeds to absolutely tear my heart out of my chest. Emotional response is also key. If you can make me care, then I'm sold.
I hate to mention this, but the better your source is, the more breaks I'm willing to give you. Because the better the source is, the more I can see the characters. Of course, even killer source can't fix a crappy vid.
Point of view is important. When you make a vid, you're telling a story. Shifting pov in stories is something not to be done unless you're very good and I would argue the same for vidding. Decide who is the speaker, who is the object, etc. And make sure that it's absolutely clear. Unless you just are that good and can shift pov and still make it all work. Some people are. But generally not on the first try. My very first fanfiction has never seen the light of day and it never will. Because it sucked. I had no clue what I was doing.
And this next part is something very personal: I have to like the song. Which for me means most of the time, instrumentals are right out. I just... I need vocals. That's just me, though.