The Producer Page
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What is a LandscapeHD Producer ?
A LandscapeHD Producer is the name we have given to a film-maker that
shoots and edits a music video for broadcast on LandscapeHD. |
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What do I need to do to become a LandscapeHD Producer?
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What do I get out of becoming a LandscapeHD Producer?
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Shooting
The key to creating footage that is going to 'cut the mustard' is
down to 2 key elements. Firstly shoot long duration shots. We
normally shoot clips that are 30 seconds plus (this can be reduced in
the edit if need be). This is because the music we use is generally
soft and slow and we try to emulate the feel of the music as much as
possible. It is not unusual for us to use a 2 minute shot if the
subject matter is compelling enough. Second Keep the camera steady.
We don't use much handheld footage and anything shot on sticks or
tracks must be smooth and consistent or it won't be usable.
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The Subject Matter
The subject matter should correspond with what you think the music has a feel for. If for instance the music is light and airy with a build up at the end then maybe a summers day catching the patterns created by the wind in a wheat field would work using a particularly windy shot at the end to correspond with musical build up. Alternatively for the same music it might work just as well to a shoot a macro clip of a flower on a window sill in the sun with a reveal at the end showing it's full beauty. The choice is up to you. Historically we have tended to stick to one specific subject matter per video and created a story around it that we think compliments the music. When I say one subject matter I don't necessarily mean shoot one tree and stick with one tree, it can mean a whole forest a whole city or just one simple object. Conceptually music is usually written for one subject so the idea is to make a visual interpretation of the feel of the music that is also one subject, so that when you put the film with the music you have a finished clip where the film maker has added to the original, rather than just added some images. We aren't in the business of making slide shows, as anyone can do that. Equally well its a mistake to think that because a tune is called Swan Lake we must film swans - absolutely no. You can completely dissregard the title when it comes to what we do. Our best selling title ever is the life cycle of a penguin from egg to adult in the Antarctic - to Pachelbel's Canon in D. Coming a close second is Donkeys and buttercups to one of Beethoven's symphonies. Its all about feel of the music to the image. Sometimes its to compliment, sometimes its emotive and others it can even be ironic or humerous interpretation (such as dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy to hippos in Africa). Animals are always popular. It is best to avoid skipping from one subject matter to another, as the subject should tell a story in much the same way as the music does. The story can be just "look at me" or the production of something or its location to name but a few things in the scope of LandscapeHD experience - maybe you can create a new style too. Keep colour integrity throughout the production and dont go putting blue skies next to grey unless the mood of the music justifies it. The eye will tell the viewer its not the same shoot and the illusion we seek to create is broken. Most times in my experience the film starts with the end shot - in that I see something that impresses me visually and see that as the end shot. It might be something exceedingly stunning but can just as easily be how an image is framed (like a great stills shot). I then weave a story around the subject by taking elements of the content or surroundings and holding the end shot till the end, as the reveal of the constituent parts. Most music is written in a similar way where elements of the music may come and go (especially in classical music) and then there is the big ending which demands something to make you feel good. Mozart called it the big bang - thats what we like too - and so do the audience - it gives them a feelgood element as you leave to go to another clip. The subject matter for the music video is again down to you but as a rule we stay away from things that cause anxiety - pain and suffering, creepycrawlies, death, morbidity, anger, etc are all things that are to be avoided:) However we have one rule (there are no rules). So dont make the mistake of thinking everything LandscapeHD does has to be landscapes - far from it. The brief is the beauty of the natural world - and that includes everyday things that are man made. Great buildings, architecture ancient, new and modern, sculptures, paintings, impressive bottling plants, the man who makes baskets from reeds, tourist attractions, the industrial revolution grandeur, the vast scope of human achievement - and not just the natural world or seven wonders of the world. The world is your oyster and its not a thousand miles away its also in your back yard- often literally.
Editing
The key to creating a good LandscapeHD music
video lies in a large part to the sensitivity of the editor and
his/her ability to feel what the music is doing. With this in
mind before you start shooting/editing listen to the track that
you are concentrating on and get a feel for how the music flows.
Once you have listened to it a few times start envisaging what
subject matter would work and then in turn how that subject
would flow with the music to create a simple story.
The Edit
You will find that a lot of the music that LandscapeHD owns the rights to is relaxing classical and instrumental pieces that the editor can breeze through. Traditionally for these pieces we would use 2 or 3 second cross fades (making sure that the fades match to the frame on each edit). However if the music has a sharp change in tempo or structure then another type of edit could be chosen accordingly.
The Flow
A great video will flow seamlessly with the music using visual aspects to build when the music builds and fall when the music falls.
F.A.Q's
-We send one track at a time so we don't get mixed up as to who has what. If what you are doing is working well for us and what we are doing is working well for you then there is no reason why we can't keep going and do more:)
The Technical Specs
Audio The wav file that we supply you with is 16-bit Integer, Stereo, 44.100 kHz with a data rate usually around 1408.67 kbits/s. When you come to encode the clip it will need to be to be multiplexed Mpeg1/layer 2. The settings will need to be 16-bit Integer, Stereo, 48 kHz, and if you can set the data rate it will need to be 386 kbits/s. Black You will need to put a 1 second slug of black on at the beginning and at the end you will need to put at 1 second slug but you will also need to make sure the clip finishes on the sec with no spare frames. So if you track timecode reads 00:04:32;13 you will need to drag the slug out to 00:04:33;00 or add an extra part of slug to fit. Start and End Fades You will need to add a 2sec fade in on the audio aswell as a 2sec fade in on the video(not the slug) so that there is a smooth transition from black. Watermarks You don't need to add any watermarks your end as that will all be taken care of our end when we master encode your clip. Frame Rate and Output Always output your clip in the same frame rate as the source footage. Output The finished clip will need to be output as an uncompressed mov file. |