Jump to content

Ali's Getaway


Ali C

Recommended Posts

Roadtrips to a foreign country - although fun - are always a step into the unknown. From not knowing the local language to not knowing where the good spots are, they're a gamble in terms of producing a usable video. Modern cameras at least offer some comfort in the form of being able to record crisp, high definition clips with a huge amount of control over the image itself. As soon as the rider's pulled the line you can check over your footage and make sure everything's worked out OK.

However, what happens when you take away that safety net? When the trusty 550D gets replaced by a camera 40 years it's senior, shooting on inconsistent film that costs £0.20-per-second and takes 3 weeks to process, there's no choice but to get creative with the standard filming procedure. This video isn't a standard blow-by-blow trip video, rather an insight into what happens when you head off into the unknown for a few days. It may not feature the latest footjam whip variation, but it does feature having fun on a bike in its purest form.

Camera: GAF 64 R

Film: Kodak Ektachrome 100D

Editor and Autistic Director: Ali C

https://vimeo.com/49747486

  • Like 5
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Not bad ;)

I'm not sure I comprehend how ridiculously difficult it must be to film on something that you have a completely limited amount of, and not be able to see the takes until it's processed. Even assuming you used every single frame you filmed, that video would have cost £50 in film alone plus travel, accommodation etc - I know you know that Ali, but thought I'd write it down so other people can factor that commitment into how cool this edit is. Clearly not going for the prizes, because they wouldn't outweigh the costs, so it's just a video made out of passion for making a cool video.

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

The film ended up costing £106. The first roll got a bit messed up too, but that led to some of the cool double exposure stuff in the intro. Every cloud ;)

Anyway, nice work on the edit Ali. It was cool you managed to get the idea in your head into an enjoyable, creative video.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I LOVED that last move. Don't know why that one in particular, but just so smooth, and looked good on that footage.

Your comment the other day on FB was right...it will split opinion, but its certainly is creative & certainly very risky (in terms of possibly missing the documentation of what you'd like to document).

I personally enjoyed the video, wasnt too keen on the song (but that fits with the trippy video), riding was really good though, and I love how you have gone out of the ordinary to express yourself. :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks Tom.

The "fast forward" is just a side effect of using 8mm, I haven't sped up any of the footage at all. In fact, I only really did very minimal editing, I mostly just cut the footage down to fit the song, all the the blurring, double exposure, burns (well, most of them) were as it came.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, I think Ali might have undersold himself a bit there :P The first roll of film shit the bed a bit, and we accidentally double exposed it. Ali did do some editing double exposure stuff too though, so it was a designed 'look' rather than a complete happy accident.

And yeah, speed of clips was an issue in the sense that the camera shot at 18fps and the telecine processing stuff was done at 25fps so slowing it down by a noticeable amount made it look pretty sketchy. I like it though, it gives it the right feel by being wrong, if that makes sense...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've always been a fan of analogue equipment and liked the aesthetic of 8mm however I'm not used to seeing current videos shot exclusively using it. I haven't been able to watch the edit with sound yet so can't comment too much but it is nice to see a different approach.

I agree it will have split opinion as it has mine. Half of me appreciates it from its aesthetic stand point and overall approach, but the other half is so used to seeing (in particular with good BMX videos) this sort of footage alongside DSLR footage and a bit of road trip type documentation that I feel as though that element was missing... What I mean is that for you to take a trip to another country etc, as you've said, includes lots of certain occurrences that only happen when away and I like seeing them in a video - but that's just my thoughts and i'm not the autistic director :)

As I mentioned i'm still divided and haven't got a fully formed opinion, which already I know is a good sign.

Kudos for sticking to an idea and going with it though!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

it needs the music ideally I think.

I know what you mean about documenting roadtrips, filming this way you're never going to capture all the little quirks that go on in other countries, however it was a definite derision to break from the norm and I felt like this creative comp was perhaps the only opportunity I would get to make such an experimental video. I liked how filming on super 8 links with travelling as you never know what you're going to get.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

it needs the music ideally I think.

I know what you mean about documenting roadtrips, filming this way you're never going to capture all the little quirks that go on in other countries, however it was a definite derision to break from the norm and I felt like this creative comp was perhaps the only opportunity I would get to make such an experimental video. I liked how filming on super 8 links with travelling as you never know what you're going to get.

Yeah there's no denying it fits the brief. As you said what better opportunity to make a video for it's creative approach than this competition. In the same way i'm struggling to comprehend what the completely expected normal TGS submissions are thinking when entering as not only is it stuff we've seen a million times but there's no creative approach to filming or riding.

I don't think we'll see many (if another) analogue entry so for this alone it deserves merit. Mixed with filming without any playback in an environment that you can't go back to daily is again more reason to commend this video. At the risk of sounding pretentious, it challenges the norm and provides an alternative idea and viewpoint which is always good as nothing is gained or learned from doing the same old thing, even if your approach is using something that is considered old fashioned or outdated.

Thinking about it some more I reckon this is one of the only videos so far that has taken the brief/outlines of the competition and made something accordingly - so i'm looking forward to watching it with some sound later.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I thought the idea behind it was great with going to random places and hoping to find lines. The music wasn't to my taste, but it's never going to please everyone, and the video itself seemed weird to start with but when the riding came in, I quite liked the look of it, and clearly you are very happy with the outcome.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thinking about it some more I reckon this is one of the only videos so far that has taken the brief/outlines of the competition and made something accordingly - so i'm looking forward to watching it with some sound later.

I think some people are worrying about the 'creative' thing a little too much (not saying ali), just feel some are trying to forcefully be different. Choosing a different medium for example is not the only way to be creative, ali has mixed in decent riding, with a theme (travelling), with shooting on the older medium to create something completely different.

Not saying mine will be an exception, nor do I feel that mine will meet the 'creativity' that some are maybe looking for.

When I read the 'brief', my initial thought was - 'I need to start filming and editing properly again'.

it's been a long time since I have made a video that i have thought about every shot, and truly considered all aspects of what i am documenting. In fact when i released my first video on the inspired someones (think it was JD) response was that the video felt 'rushed'. He was right, and as such I hope to make it right with this video.

Ali's video was different, but sweet. It took me 3-4 watches to get into it, but thats because we are used to either high quality videos, constructed well and showing only the finished article of a riders abilities or videos where the rider thinks about nothing but the move he is doing where he / she could consider the background, the shot, angle, and all other little things etc.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...