As most everyone knows or has noticed - I haven't done videos in SL in well over a year now. I used to get a kick out of making videos and stretching my editing muscles, but those days are over.
It started with filming peoples' weddings, then moved on to other projects - but I no longer have interest in such things. As a matter of fact, SL itself has pretty much served its purpose for me. Will I be leaving SL? Hell I only log in now to talk to friends every now and then as it is.
About 7 months ago some random person I don't even know had posted a video response to an old video of mine. Before allowing it as a response I viewed their video and wasn't too impressed. I understand that with hobbies and even real work that when you start out you're no good. I mean hell, Keith and I weren't that great when we started out either. He had video editing knowledge but unfortunately SL lacked the ability to give us the results we wanted. Anyway - I am off track.
So this person's video was of them dancing in a single animated loop for about 5 minutes to a song. Typical youtube video on most accounts, really. Since I didn't feel their video was an actual response to me - I didn't allow it to be marked as a video response. They took it upon themselves to say something like "All I was doing was showing you how much better these new dances are compared to the ones you showed". Fine. Still, it wasn't what I would consider an actual video response.
Over the course of a few weeks (about 3) all their friends were sending me nasty messages on YouTube which I chose to ignore. I had critiqued their video after being harassed saying "Hey next time try putting in some transitions or at least do more than one animation" - which I find to be a very NICE critique considering the content. Apparently giving anyone your opinion when there is room for improvement is a bad thing and this should never be done.
The nasty messages on YouTube continued until I decided to not allow comments, replies or ratings and put a big long rant in the description box which ended with : I understand that not allowing comments, ratings, or replies ruins the entire spirit of what YouTube, SecondLife and Machinima is all about - but I refuse to be harassed over something so juvenile. Way to go shebaspyker &co. Way to ruin it for everyone.
Today I logged into SL to talk to my RL friend Stef and recieved an offline saying (and I'm paraphrasing):
Your little rant on YouTube has really upset my girl Sheba. She doesn't dictate me or tell me who to go off on or anything like that. I don't know who has been contacting you and caused you to go off on this rant - and I don't know the laws in the UK but in the US you can be sued for slander for publishing comments about someone. I'm contacting YouTube and they'll probably delete your account.
I was going to respond to this .. um .. guy (I'm being way too nice) but decided to just put him on ignore. After sitting and thinking about it a while I decided to just delete my YouTube account myself. There are lots of reasons I did it - their harassment not really ranking very high - but if it'll save me a few minutes of telling strangers to "go back to your Gorean RP and stop being so butthurt over the fact that your friend makes shitty videos" then that's a bonus.
My live has evolved beyond SL. I joined SL as a lost 24 year old looking for an escape from the small town life I was trapped in. I found that escape and I relished it. I lived for it in a lot of ways. I was able to express myself in ways that I couldn't do beyond dying my hair purple and causing everyone in town to stare at me. Then I met Keith.
SL then evolved from fun pasttime to vital means of communication to a way of being physically close to someone when it wasn't actually physically possible. As most know, we're now married (just celebrated our 2yr wedding anniversary in March) and have the means of being actually physically close.
We started making videos in SL as a way to fund trips between Illinois and Missouri and thought it was rather 'cute' that we did so by filming other people's SL weddings. Because of all those weddings we were able to save up money to travel to see each other for 3 years before I made the big move after he had finished Basic Training and had been stationed in Oklahoma. The money we made from those videos allowed me to move to Oklahoma and afford things while we figured out exactly what we were going to do next.
Now that we don't need the money from making videos - we don't make videos. Not only do we not need the money but we also don't need the stress. Getting up at 2am to film a 3 hour wedding then turn around and spend 2 hours editing it to upload it - all for about $40 is just not worth it.
Will I still make videos in SL? Maybe, but it will be a leisure activity. Will I dedicate an entire YouTube channel to it again? No. I already have another YouTube account which I planned to post things like my nail art designs and maybe do some makeup tricks - but I won't do the whole SL thing again. Like I said - SL and SL Machinima have served theirpurpose for me and I think its more than time that the torch be passed to someone else.
I've tried for years to mentor those that were interested in making machinima. I love talking to people who are so eager to learn that I feel that my opinion is actually valued. I really love it when people ask me "How did you do that?!" but I don't feel that SL Machinima is my 'thing' anymore. I guess you could say I've just lost the passion for it.
I blog about SL on TheRev - but I never feel that my opinions on anything are valid. Why? A combination of things. I've been in SL so long that most of the people who are 'respected' or whatever don't even know WTF I talk about when I talk about anything that was 'big' or was going on in SL before like .. 07. I also feel like I'm not in SL or up to speed on things that are going on in SL like I used to be, and therefor have no real business in talking about SL. Some people eat, drink and breathe SL (and I used to be one of them!) but I've just moved on.
So in short - my SL videos that used to be on my YouTube account no longer exist. I deleted everything as a nod to myself that 'Yes, its definitely time to move on. Whatever that was, it isn't you anymore.'
As for my nail art/beauty/health/makeup blog thing - once I get that rolling I'm sure I'll post the info here somewhere.
Showing posts with label multimedia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label multimedia. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Our Lecture at Solent University
Somehow we didn't kill each other in the car on the way to Solent University in Southampton, and made the three hour drive. The traffic made me antsy because folks on motorcycles here will weave through traffic at high speeds and it just makes me nervous!
The Jurys Inn that we stayed at was great! Even though I'll admit to having too much to drink, I'm always more outspoken due to letting the wine speak for me - everything was sooo much better than expected. Harold Frickner and I had a long chat about Second Life and its potential uses and how machinima on the platform can be so much more than avatars dancing.
At one point I thought I had an ear infection, but it turns out I have a wisdom tooth coming in which made my inner ear and jaw sore :( Anyway!
About 20 people came to our lecture - and though that seems like a small number there were only about 150 who registered for the event and there were 4 other lectures going on at the same time. I even pushed it so far as to do most of my end of the lecture in PowerPoint, which I hadn't messed with in forever.
It was painfully obvious that we aren't used to public speaking, but I think that our video content end of the lecture is what really captured peoples' attentions. We had a lot of interesting questions, and I was quite surprised to hear that some schools are already incorporating Second Life into their curriculum! I think my mention of SL being open source so that the school can host its own 'private' version of SL really piqued their interest.
Keith and I are hoping to continue giving 'lectures' to show the impact of machinima and how not only virtual worlds, but the open artistic freedom of platforms like Second Life can put a whole new spin on not just education - but the art of film making itself.
There are pictures somewhere - but we've misplaced the flash drive so I can't transfer the pictures onto my PC as of yet.
Earlier today I sat here at the PC and just said "WOW". Three years ago when Keith and I teamed up for our first machinima video, I never would have thought it would have taken us down the path we've been on. No we aren't making a sick amount of cash - but for the past two years we have been able to apply the money we DO make from our videos to things that have made our videos better.
Not only did I never expect for the two of us to be taken seriously, but I never expected anyone else to hold any kind of interest in what we do beyond just laughing at the funny videos we make. It really has been a very awesome experience that has taken me by complete suprise.
No, we haven't been offered any contracts - but we are able to still do what we love without having to worry about anyone dictating it. Machinima has become so mainstream that no one really bats an eye when we try to explain what we do as a hobby. I remember trying to explain everything to my family once upon a time, and I'm still not sure they get it - but at least someone does.
I gave my mom links to videos we've done, and though I really get the impression that she wasn't impressed - I think she at least now understands what it is.
At any rate - I was pleased with our lecture regardless of our lack of experience - and I hope that all virtual worlds (not just Second Life) have finally gotten cast in a light which goes beyond just scantily clad women and cheating spouses.
The Jurys Inn that we stayed at was great! Even though I'll admit to having too much to drink, I'm always more outspoken due to letting the wine speak for me - everything was sooo much better than expected. Harold Frickner and I had a long chat about Second Life and its potential uses and how machinima on the platform can be so much more than avatars dancing.
At one point I thought I had an ear infection, but it turns out I have a wisdom tooth coming in which made my inner ear and jaw sore :( Anyway!
About 20 people came to our lecture - and though that seems like a small number there were only about 150 who registered for the event and there were 4 other lectures going on at the same time. I even pushed it so far as to do most of my end of the lecture in PowerPoint, which I hadn't messed with in forever.
It was painfully obvious that we aren't used to public speaking, but I think that our video content end of the lecture is what really captured peoples' attentions. We had a lot of interesting questions, and I was quite surprised to hear that some schools are already incorporating Second Life into their curriculum! I think my mention of SL being open source so that the school can host its own 'private' version of SL really piqued their interest.
Keith and I are hoping to continue giving 'lectures' to show the impact of machinima and how not only virtual worlds, but the open artistic freedom of platforms like Second Life can put a whole new spin on not just education - but the art of film making itself.
There are pictures somewhere - but we've misplaced the flash drive so I can't transfer the pictures onto my PC as of yet.
Earlier today I sat here at the PC and just said "WOW". Three years ago when Keith and I teamed up for our first machinima video, I never would have thought it would have taken us down the path we've been on. No we aren't making a sick amount of cash - but for the past two years we have been able to apply the money we DO make from our videos to things that have made our videos better.
Not only did I never expect for the two of us to be taken seriously, but I never expected anyone else to hold any kind of interest in what we do beyond just laughing at the funny videos we make. It really has been a very awesome experience that has taken me by complete suprise.
No, we haven't been offered any contracts - but we are able to still do what we love without having to worry about anyone dictating it. Machinima has become so mainstream that no one really bats an eye when we try to explain what we do as a hobby. I remember trying to explain everything to my family once upon a time, and I'm still not sure they get it - but at least someone does.
I gave my mom links to videos we've done, and though I really get the impression that she wasn't impressed - I think she at least now understands what it is.
At any rate - I was pleased with our lecture regardless of our lack of experience - and I hope that all virtual worlds (not just Second Life) have finally gotten cast in a light which goes beyond just scantily clad women and cheating spouses.
Sunday, October 14, 2007
HUGE POSTS COMING
In the next day or two (or three) expect quite a few huge posts which outline the 2007 Machinima Festival :)
That's all for now!
That's all for now!
Friday, September 21, 2007
YouTube Celebrities are crap
So I'm really getting over saturated with the lack of fun that I used to find on YouTube. Seems these days its either people uploading content that isn't theirs - or its middle aged balding men complaining about how other people are more popular than they are on the YouTube. SHUT UP! One guy claims to have a full time job for a Fortune 500 company .. yet all he does is bitch and moan about how he wants to do videos for a living. With WHAT talent?! Keep your day job dude.
At any rate - Keith and I have been talking for a year or so now about starting a vlog to accompany our site and blog. Its mostly a 'meet the directors' type of thing and not so much a "Look what we can do" type of thing. There was a point in time that we both kinda hid behind our avatars. Sure we were never afraid to BE ourselves - but there was a time we were worried about SHOWING ourselves. And by us I mean me. I'll just cut to the chase by saying that I feel unattractive and felt that the general public would put more emphasis on my outward apperance rather than my talents and whatever ... but at this point I don't care.
Maybe watching all those middle aged balding men whining and crying about their wishes has brought a new sense of 'me' around. They don't seem to care that they should spend their spare time with their kids instead of making videos -- and the general public on YouTube doesn't seem to make a single comment to that degree so why so I even worry about anyone thinking I'm fat?! PFFT. Bring it, bitches. Seriously.
On a fat note - I do plan to start working out this winter once Keith and I are able to actually put a schedule together. I realize that his work schedule changes at the drop of a hat - but he'll just have to fork out a few extra bucks a week on gas in order to let me get out more. The past couple weeks I have been going out on Saturday or Sunday for a couple hours while he works on videos .. but that's really lame. I should be able to go wherever I want whenever I want to do it. I honestly don't think that a couple bucks in gas money is a lot to spend considering the benefits from it.
He and I got into a little bit of an argument a few weeks back about how regardless of how bad of a tourist I am ... I want to NOT be in the house all the time. He gets to go to work and come home - whereas for me work IS home so its like I'm always at work. He saw my point, but said something to the effect of a waste of gas blah blah blah ... at any rate he's just going to have to stop keeping such a leash on me as far as who's allowed to spend money and who isn't. I always feel like I'm not allowed to buy anything or spend money - but he can do whatever he wants cuz its 'his' money.
Its almost 6:30pm and I'm heating up some water to wash dishes. Once he comes home this weekend ... he'll be working on that video probably non stop again. Oh joy oh rapture! I have a wedding scheduled for Sunday so he'll have to at least take a break for a couple hours while I film and edit that .... and we are in desperate need of groceries. We needed groceries LAST week but I couldn't tear him away from filming and editing in order to get that done. Maybe I'll just do it myself this weekend. We'll see!
At any rate - Keith and I have been talking for a year or so now about starting a vlog to accompany our site and blog. Its mostly a 'meet the directors' type of thing and not so much a "Look what we can do" type of thing. There was a point in time that we both kinda hid behind our avatars. Sure we were never afraid to BE ourselves - but there was a time we were worried about SHOWING ourselves. And by us I mean me. I'll just cut to the chase by saying that I feel unattractive and felt that the general public would put more emphasis on my outward apperance rather than my talents and whatever ... but at this point I don't care.
Maybe watching all those middle aged balding men whining and crying about their wishes has brought a new sense of 'me' around. They don't seem to care that they should spend their spare time with their kids instead of making videos -- and the general public on YouTube doesn't seem to make a single comment to that degree so why so I even worry about anyone thinking I'm fat?! PFFT. Bring it, bitches. Seriously.
On a fat note - I do plan to start working out this winter once Keith and I are able to actually put a schedule together. I realize that his work schedule changes at the drop of a hat - but he'll just have to fork out a few extra bucks a week on gas in order to let me get out more. The past couple weeks I have been going out on Saturday or Sunday for a couple hours while he works on videos .. but that's really lame. I should be able to go wherever I want whenever I want to do it. I honestly don't think that a couple bucks in gas money is a lot to spend considering the benefits from it.
He and I got into a little bit of an argument a few weeks back about how regardless of how bad of a tourist I am ... I want to NOT be in the house all the time. He gets to go to work and come home - whereas for me work IS home so its like I'm always at work. He saw my point, but said something to the effect of a waste of gas blah blah blah ... at any rate he's just going to have to stop keeping such a leash on me as far as who's allowed to spend money and who isn't. I always feel like I'm not allowed to buy anything or spend money - but he can do whatever he wants cuz its 'his' money.
Its almost 6:30pm and I'm heating up some water to wash dishes. Once he comes home this weekend ... he'll be working on that video probably non stop again. Oh joy oh rapture! I have a wedding scheduled for Sunday so he'll have to at least take a break for a couple hours while I film and edit that .... and we are in desperate need of groceries. We needed groceries LAST week but I couldn't tear him away from filming and editing in order to get that done. Maybe I'll just do it myself this weekend. We'll see!
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Well alrighty!
Things are still going strong, steadily and nothing drastic has happened --- except for Keith waking up and yelling while pointing to the corner of the room. Come to find out he was having a dream about tornadoes or something weird like that. He does some creepy stuff in his sleep sometimes. He sits straight up and talks - with his eyes open yet never remembers a thing. Its quite entertaining, really.
Second Life has been running like crap for both of us so we've steered clear for a bit. He's been editing footage here and there - but mostly he's been really busy with work when he isn't freaking out in his sleep.
I finally got my epic mount in WoW. Huzzah. I'm the sexiest alliance warlock ever. That's just all there is to it.
While Keith was sleeping earlier today I got bored and lonely - so I made another video. I'm not going to call it machinema - because it isn't. Its simply a music video. I didn't plan anything - nothing is original .. its just a music video. And while I'm on that topic I just want to rant for a minute.
Keith is very busy and doesn't keep up with things on the 'virtual plane' but I do. I watch everyone's videos, I comment when I deem it necessary, give pointers when I feel they are wanted/welcomed -- that kinda thing. Just because you have FRAPS does not mean you make machinema. Just because you can use a few transitions doesn't mean what you are making is movies. There are some people in WoW (and SL too) that make these videos that are just spontaneous. There's a guy in WoW that does one almost every week. It has no dialogue - no real story line you can follow ... so I call it a Vlog. Its a video blog of your gaming experience.
There is a difference in a vlog and machinema. There are differences. I realize most of my problem is because I'm so protective of Keith, his work, and his ideas. He's such a soft spoken 'nice guy' that sometimes someone has to stick up for him. Anyway - we've kinda been insulted in general as far as the 'machinema' community goes. No we don't have time to play a video game 24/7. We don't get paid for those tutorial videos. We do those for free as a service to the community - and simply to do what we like to do. We genuinely enjoy making videos. I love to write - Keith loves to edit. Its one thing to be a fan -- its quite another to be a demanding person who has no idea what it is they are asking. So to clear it up - I'll just go into detail. Maybe some people will calm down. Oh and call me a bitch .. but I just want everything crystal, k?
Keith is in the military. He works 12+ hours a day at least 5 days a week (sometimes 7+ days in a row). The Air Force is his full time job. Anything done outside of his working hours is merely a hobby. You cannot expect him to keep appointments on short notice. He's in the military. He never knows when he's going to get off work at 0300 only to be called at 0900 and be asked to work another shift. Now if there has been sizeable notice given then usually something can be arranged. As far as filming goes - if he HAS to go to work I can fill in and film it for him on his computer. But with all that in mind - it really makes things crappy for us when people cancel at the last minute. We have to schedule things - and to send an e-mail hours before an event and say 'Oh we got someone else' is just fucking rude. I mean really!
And I'm probably just tooting my own horn ... but who else could you possibly get to film your fake weddings and put as much talent into them as Keith does? I mean seriously. There are a lot of self proclaimed 'machinema-masters' in SL -- but like I said just because you have FRAPS and you used a couple transitions doesn't mean a thing. Just like lining up MP3s in SAM doesn't make you a DJ. The SL wedding thing has really been a strain on Keith .. which is why I've really been working on my skills lately. Unlike Keith I'm completely self-taught. He's the professional and it shows -- but still. I plan to start filming the weddings and editing them to let up on Keith's schedule some. He has contract work to worry about -- I'll start taking care of everything else.
Sorry about my slight detour -- but a few things suddenly sparked my mind and I just had to get it out. Anyway! Keith and I will be gone for 3 weeks starting March 16th. His papers say to report no later than May 31st .. so that's when we'll be moving to the UK :)
[back to my video]
I don't have the YouTube link for it yet - so here's a quick snapshot from the footage reel. Just cruise over to the right toolbar and head over to NSS to view the video. Its on the main page :)
Things are still going strong, steadily and nothing drastic has happened --- except for Keith waking up and yelling while pointing to the corner of the room. Come to find out he was having a dream about tornadoes or something weird like that. He does some creepy stuff in his sleep sometimes. He sits straight up and talks - with his eyes open yet never remembers a thing. Its quite entertaining, really.
Second Life has been running like crap for both of us so we've steered clear for a bit. He's been editing footage here and there - but mostly he's been really busy with work when he isn't freaking out in his sleep.
I finally got my epic mount in WoW. Huzzah. I'm the sexiest alliance warlock ever. That's just all there is to it.
While Keith was sleeping earlier today I got bored and lonely - so I made another video. I'm not going to call it machinema - because it isn't. Its simply a music video. I didn't plan anything - nothing is original .. its just a music video. And while I'm on that topic I just want to rant for a minute.
Keith is very busy and doesn't keep up with things on the 'virtual plane' but I do. I watch everyone's videos, I comment when I deem it necessary, give pointers when I feel they are wanted/welcomed -- that kinda thing. Just because you have FRAPS does not mean you make machinema. Just because you can use a few transitions doesn't mean what you are making is movies. There are some people in WoW (and SL too) that make these videos that are just spontaneous. There's a guy in WoW that does one almost every week. It has no dialogue - no real story line you can follow ... so I call it a Vlog. Its a video blog of your gaming experience.
There is a difference in a vlog and machinema. There are differences. I realize most of my problem is because I'm so protective of Keith, his work, and his ideas. He's such a soft spoken 'nice guy' that sometimes someone has to stick up for him. Anyway - we've kinda been insulted in general as far as the 'machinema' community goes. No we don't have time to play a video game 24/7. We don't get paid for those tutorial videos. We do those for free as a service to the community - and simply to do what we like to do. We genuinely enjoy making videos. I love to write - Keith loves to edit. Its one thing to be a fan -- its quite another to be a demanding person who has no idea what it is they are asking. So to clear it up - I'll just go into detail. Maybe some people will calm down. Oh and call me a bitch .. but I just want everything crystal, k?
Keith is in the military. He works 12+ hours a day at least 5 days a week (sometimes 7+ days in a row). The Air Force is his full time job. Anything done outside of his working hours is merely a hobby. You cannot expect him to keep appointments on short notice. He's in the military. He never knows when he's going to get off work at 0300 only to be called at 0900 and be asked to work another shift. Now if there has been sizeable notice given then usually something can be arranged. As far as filming goes - if he HAS to go to work I can fill in and film it for him on his computer. But with all that in mind - it really makes things crappy for us when people cancel at the last minute. We have to schedule things - and to send an e-mail hours before an event and say 'Oh we got someone else' is just fucking rude. I mean really!
And I'm probably just tooting my own horn ... but who else could you possibly get to film your fake weddings and put as much talent into them as Keith does? I mean seriously. There are a lot of self proclaimed 'machinema-masters' in SL -- but like I said just because you have FRAPS and you used a couple transitions doesn't mean a thing. Just like lining up MP3s in SAM doesn't make you a DJ. The SL wedding thing has really been a strain on Keith .. which is why I've really been working on my skills lately. Unlike Keith I'm completely self-taught. He's the professional and it shows -- but still. I plan to start filming the weddings and editing them to let up on Keith's schedule some. He has contract work to worry about -- I'll start taking care of everything else.
Sorry about my slight detour -- but a few things suddenly sparked my mind and I just had to get it out. Anyway! Keith and I will be gone for 3 weeks starting March 16th. His papers say to report no later than May 31st .. so that's when we'll be moving to the UK :)
[back to my video]
I don't have the YouTube link for it yet - so here's a quick snapshot from the footage reel. Just cruise over to the right toolbar and head over to NSS to view the video. Its on the main page :)
UPDATE
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)