AMV contest suggestion

[Kori123]

This is not meant to be a complaint or a rant or anything, so I'm sorry if it sounds like one, it's meant to just be a suggestion for the future.

I've attempted to enter the AMV contest many times in the past but because of technical issues I've never been able to actually do so.  This year I told myself no matter what I'd be in it.  I planned and worked very hard on my video, giving plenty of time before the deadline to submit.  I felt as though I hadn't worked so hard on a video in my life and I was quite proud of what I'd cooked up. 

I submitted it and got the email saying it was received and good luck in the contest.

Now, I know not every submission gets to be in the contest.  Some just don't make the cut and are just shown in the after show.  But since no one told me if I'd gotten in or not, I assumed I was. 

Me and my ten friends went to the AMV contest and shuffled into the pretty packed room.  They had no actual interest in being there and we missed a panel they really wanted to see but they wanted to see my video and support me.  So we're sitting there watching all the submissions and I was pretty nervous.  My video was entered in the Intensity category and I joked mine would be last.

My friends started to get bored around the comedy category but they kept saying how proud and excited they were of me.  When we got to the category I was in, one video after another goes by until we get to number 3.  They laugh and tell me I was right, mine will be last.  But mine wasn't last.  It wasn't on the playlist at all. 

Instantly they wanted to leave and I just sat there trying not to cry. 

Again, this isn't meant as a complaint or a 'mine was the best it should have been in' sorta thing.  I just felt like I'd failed my friends and myself.  Finally getting the courage to enter and being so proud of it and wasting my friends time for nothing.

The videos that got in this year were great, don't get me wrong, I didn't think mine was AMAZING or winner quality but I thought mine was good enough to at least be in the contest and apparently it wasn't.

As someone with bad anxiety I spent most of the night crying and thinking I'd picked a wrong career choice because while I have a college degree in editing, I'm apparently not good enough to be in a little convention contest.  And not to pick on any of the other submissions but I thought mine should have made it in compared to some of the others.  If it was a time thing, that's fine but I wish again, someone would have said so. 

Long story short, it'd be nice if someone told people if they were actually in the contest or not.  I guess you could say the surprise is going and seeing if you were in it at all but to me it was just a disappointment.  It was also kind of annoying since I only went to Kumoricon to see my video on the big screen and instead I ended up wasting money I didn't have to buy a badge just to sit around for two hours and hate myself. 

[13Joe]

Kori123,

I would like to personally apologize for the negative experience you had at this years contest, and will address it all as best I can.   Editors are what we need to have a Contest so it is of my upmost concern to do what I can for all of you.

First of all, you should be very proud of the AMV you submitted this year; as well as know that you are now part of an elite group of people who have participated in the Kumoricon AMV Contests.

There were quite a few submissions this year and the single hardest thing to do is cut out submissions down to the 6 per Category Limit that we posted in the rules.    Ideally, we could play all of the submissions for every category but that would make the length of the Contest unrealistic.   I did not personally vote in the pre-judging to avoid any bias because I knew who submitted what and did everything possible to make sure the judges had no affiliations with Con Staff or Friends/Family of Editors that had submitted AMVs.

I would have been very happy to have played it during the After Show, but due to technical issues beyond my control the After Show had to be moved to Monday morning.

I hate to imagine the scene you described as the AMV Contest is my favorite part of the Con and has always been an enjoyable experience, both from the AMVs and the energy of the crowd.

Guy L. / Prinz Eugen posted the following Thread in the AMV section of the Forums on the Wednesday before the Con Started.  Then Edited it to include the Category Winners 3 days later.

2015 AMV Contest Playlist and Official Results [FINAL]
https://www.kumoricon.org/forums/index.php?topic=19252.0
September 02, 2015, 09:45:12 am
September 05, 2015, 11:57:19 am by Prinz Eugen

We actually talked about when the Playlist should be posted and there were Pro's and Con's to both posting earlier or not posting until after the contest had happened.   Either way, I am truely sorry you felt like you had wasted your money and your friends time, I certainly do not think you failed at anything, but I do always appreciate feedback about the Contest and suggestions for future ones.

I would greatly encourage you to stick with it and submit both your last AMV and any new ones you develop this year to the 2016 Contest.

Sincerely,

Joe Mason

[Kori123]

Unfortunately this was my last Kumoricon so I won't enter next year which was one reason I really wanted to participate this year.

I saw the playlist thread earlier today along with the winners but because it was posted Wednesday and I was busy with work and pre-con prep, I never saw it.  Emailing the playlist to everyone who entered would have been the best way for me to see it but I know that can take some time. 

I understand the 6 videos per category limit but my video was entered in Intensity and there were only four entries in that category.  So I thought for sure mine got in.  But again, I didn't and that was why I was so disappointed. 

Anyway, it was all just a suggestion so in the future others can avoid the same heart break I felt. 

[13Joe]

It is a suggestion I have taken to heart and added to my notes of "things to improve" for next years contest for whoever is running it (I'll toss my hat in as it was a lot of fun this year) and do Thank-You, for taking the time to convey your experience.

I would still highly encourage you to enter more AMVs for next years contest - Attending the Con is/has not been a requirement for entry.   I believe two prizes are heading to Germany this year.

Should you enter and get on the playlist, I can not make any guarentees, I believe some sort of concession could be made to get you into the Contest as a personal guest of mine if all you are interested in is the AMV Contest.

I would like to have a bit more contact with the local editors this next year and maybe try a get together like Guy L. has done in the past or something like it to give yall a bit more of the credit you deserve.

Best Regards,

Joe

[Kori123]

Thank you for all this. 

I know attending the con isn't necessarily part of entering the contest but I'd like to be there to see my video were it to get in.  We'll see what happens though.  Maybe next year I'll throw something in. 

Either way, good luck to future contests!

[jeffry_fisher]

Footnote on fitting entries into the con:

Besides the 6-per-category limit, there's a limit to the total running time for the contest that includes the category reviews. This year's rules allowed a longer running time per entry than we've used in recent years, and we saw fewer entries make it into the contest, so we may have seen longer submissions taking up space and leaving room for fewer entries (I didn't time them so I can't be sure).

Also, I think that an AMV almost always improves when it makes its point in the least time necessary rather than expanding to fill the time available, so I vote for lopping max length per entry next year. If anything, I'd make it even shorter than we had in the past.

[Kori123]

That'd be fine with me.  Most songs are about 3.5 minutes so I think keeping it under the 4 minute mark is a reasonable thing to ask.  I've been making AMVs for over ten years now and I think only one has been longer than 4 minutes. 

[Prinz Eugen]

Hint to Intensity editors: Once you're finished with your video, TRY compressing the speed (without raising the pitch) by 10-20%.
Faster pacing often improves this class of AMVs. I've seen judges sometimes decide 'OK, this one's a keeper' about 1/3 or 1/2 of the way through, then (usually when using VLC for playback) they'll up the playback to 130%-150% or more, just checking to make sure there's no objectionable content the rest of the way out -  no swear words in the lyrics, nobody's clothes all fall off or something.


Many times faster playback improves an Intensity or even a Drama-style entry, so give it a shot.

[Kori123]

Haha, I did that with mine.  Just boosted it about 5-10% speed for most of the action and slowed it back down to normal for the more dramatic scenes.  It's crazy how that makes it seem so much more epic.

[Prinz Eugen]

Haha, I did that with mine.  Just boosted it about 5-10% speed for most of the action and slowed it back down to normal for the more dramatic scenes.  It's crazy how that makes it seem so much more epic.

Actually, try it the other way too, and play-test it with your friends, *especially* those who aren't familiar with the music or the anime, or aren't familiar with either. You'll get a good reading on whether it's a natural pairing rather than a "my favorite song set to my favorite anime" (this author and dozens of older judges can remember having to slog through the toxic wasteland of DBZ + Linkin Park disasters.)
You might even find out that a project works better when you hit the audience with intense action, (dessert! a banana split!) but then raise your speed somewhat through the 'drama' (kale is good for you!) sections...