Vividcon/Vividcon 2003
- "One amazing vid after another - shocking, hilarious, moving, exquisite, bam, bam, bam, and then the Earth blew up." ~ tzikeh
Overview
Vividcon 2003 was the second Vividcon, and took place during August 15-17, 2003. The program book for this year began the tradition of being tied in to a current popular fannish source (generally a movie), turning the VVC llama into a pirate for Pirates of the Caribbean.
Programming was expanded to include Friday, and 2003 introduced two Vividcon staples: Club Vivid, the Friday night dance vid party and mixer, and the Challenge show, the double-blind anonymous vidshow where vidders create vids to a challenge theme.
Despite a lot of uncertainty and doubt about Club Vivid going into the con, it was a blazing success, one of the highlights of the weekend, and cemented its place as a regular part of VVC programming. The Challenge also went over well, with five entries and a lot of spirited discussion of each.
In a fairly abrupt turnaround, the con's premiering vids were offered on DVD in 2003; in the space of one year, enough fans had acquired some sort of DVD player that a DVD made more sense than a tape. While some fans were unhappy with this decision as they had no way to play the DVDs yet, the majority of fans hoping to buy a copy were happy with the change.
In another change, there were enough premiering vids at the con to require not one, but two DVDs in 2003 -- one disk for vids that aired during the Premieres show, and one disk for "Also Premiering" -- premiering vids that aired during different shows during the weekend, including the Challenge show.
Note that in 2003, special effects were still rare enough in vids that the mere presence of effects warranted mention and discussion.
A progress report for that year is archived here.
Programming
This was the first year the con did "paired" programming, with a themed vidshow followed by a discussion panel on the same topic, generally discussing the vids in the previous show.
Vidshows
Retrospective (This was a mixed panel and show. No playlist is available.)
- VJ: tzikeh
- Description: From slideshows set to music to digitally created mini-movies available for download, and everything in between: tracing the changing face of vids and vidding. (Thanks to popular demand, this is an encore presentation of last year's panel.)
Instrumental Vids (playlist)
- VJ: Killa
- Description: Saying it without words: showcasing vids that rely solely on music and images to tell their tales.
Rarely Vidded (playlist)
- VJ: Melina
- Description: Hey, who's that guy? Vids that showcase rarely vidded fandoms and rarely vidded characters.
Nearly New (playlist)
- VJs: Dorinda and Wa
- Description: Miss your favorite con this year? This is the place to catch up: vids in all genres that have premiered in the past year at other cons. Also includes several brand-new vids that couldn't be included in this year's Premieres show due to lack of time.
- VJs: the Concom
- Description: Friday night dance vid party and mixer. We'll be showing a selection of dance vids, with dancing in the vidshow room, quiet vidwatching in the panel room, and drinks and chatting in the con suite. Note: there will be a cash bar, so remember to bring a photo ID.
Vidpairs (playlist)
- VJ: Zen
- Description: Same song, different fandom: two great vids that go great together?
- VJ: rache
- Description: Who the hell is this guy anyway? At some level, the character study vid tries to illustrate a character's core belief(s). The vid may show the character's self-image or an outside point of view, but the vid's there to connect the dots.
Comedy (playlist)
- VJ: Cesca
- Description: Dying is easy; comedy is hard.
Special Effects (playlist)
- VJ: Sandy Herrold
- Description: Vids with effects that enhance the experience or story.
Narrative Vids (playlist)
- VJ: Seah
- Description: Vids that tell a story. A beginning, a middle, an end -- is that really all you need?
Ensemble Cast (playlist)
- VJ: Cassandra
- Description: Vids that cover the entire cast of an ensemble show rather than focusing on single characters or pairings.
- VJ: Carol S.
- Description: Vids that are making their debut at Vividcon.
Vividcon Challenge Vid Show (playlist)
- VJ: Shoshanna
- Description: A double-blind show, in which vidders respond anonymously to our challenge. Vids will be both shown and discussed in the show. This year's challenge is to make a vid on the theme of dreams.
Con Vids (playlist)
- VJ: Barkley
- Description: Our send-off vidshow! Vids that play especially well in a crowd.
Panels
Vidwatching 101
- Moderators: renenet and rache
- Description: An introduction to many of the basic concepts behind vidding, with the goal of providing a framework for watching vids critically. Will cover things to look for when watching vids and provide an overview of many other concepts covered in more depth by later panels.
Technical: Intro to Vidding
- Moderator: Chris Harshman
- Description: A technical how-to panel demystifying the computer vidding experience. Covers the basics of vidding with a computer, using examples with Premiere on a PC.
Aesthetics of Vidding
- Moderators: Gwyneth Rhys and Killa
- Description: Taking the idea of synesthesia as a starting point, we'll examine the ways in which the images we choose are related to the music we hear when we create a songvid. We'll touch on color, movement, visual motifs, and many other artistic principles as we explore our visual responses to what we hear.
The Language of Vidding
- Moderator: Luminosity
- Description: An overview of technical and fan-vidder terms and definitions, as well as discussion of terminology for different types of vids. Demonstrations will be done using only spoons.
Professional Inspiration
- Moderators: Melina and Margie
- Description: The pros use color, movement, music choice, effects, and other tools to create mood and underline a narrative, producing standout TV shows and movies. Seeing how they use these techniques can help vidders create stronger vids, and help vidwatchers better understand the vids they're seeing.
Song Choice: Matching Song & Fandom
- Moderators: Laura Shapiro and here's luck
- Description: You hear a song and instantly see a show or a character in your head -- but do they really fit together? Matching song tone and feel to fandom and vidstory, or finding the right fandom to go with that song you've been holding onto for three years, can take some doing. And will the rest of us, the viewers, agree with the vidder's decisions? What makes this song work for that fandom, or not?
Technical: Advanced Digital Effects
- Moderators: Carol S. and Jackie K
- Description: A technical panel for digital vidders, covering the use of more elaborate video effects. Assumes knowledge of basic digital vidding techniques.
Comedy Vids Discussion (paired)
- Moderator: tzikeh
- Description: Make 'em laugh -- but how? What goes into constructing a successful comedy vid? We'll consider the different sources of humor in fannish vids - knowledge of content, clip timing, irony, etc.
Special Effects Discussion (paired)
- Moderators: sisabet & renenet
- Description: Using examples from the Special Effects vidshow and other vids, we will discuss what constitutes special effects, when their use is effective or not, what their effects may be on viewers, and what principles should guide decisions about incorporating them. Note: This is not a technical panel.
Narrative Vids Discussion (paired)
- Moderators: Destina and elynross
- Description: An exploration of narrative vidding: what it is, how it works (or doesn't), and elements to consider in trying to tell a story with lyrics and images.
- Moderators: Laura Shapiro and Luminosity
- Description: An opportunity to examine specific vids from the Premieres vidshow in greater detail, from both vidding and viewing perspectives.
Vidding History
- Moderators: Sandy Herrold and Kandy Fong
- Description: A discussion and survey of the history of vidding, complete with salacious gossip.
Director's Commentary Track
- Moderator: Dorinda
- Description: Does it help to know what the vidder was thinking? Or should the work speak for itself? A discussion panel.
Notable Vids
Notable vids that premiered at VVC 2003 included:
- Darkness, Darkness, by Gwyneth Rhys and Jo (Miracles)
- Haunted, by Seah & Margie (Odyssey 5)
- Superstar, by here's luck (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)
- Wonder of Birds, by Laura Shapiro and Morgan Dawn (due South)
Concom
Panel Notes, Vid Show Reviews and Convention Reports
- Vividcon Character Study Show by Rache[1]
- Vidpairs show by Rache[2]
- VividCon vid comments by destina - comments on vids in the Nearly We,Premiering and Challenge vid shows[3]
- Mondo Vividcon Report by Laura Shapiro - a report, as she puts it, full of "both fluffy personal stuff and extensive descriptions of vid shows and panels."[4]
- VividCon reportage by renenet[5]
- Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3 of an extensive report on the convention and the vids by heresluck[6]
- gwyneth reports that she's Drowning in songvids[7]
- tzikeh takes time to write a series of reports: VividCon - the Radio Cut (Friday), the Radio Cut (Saturday), and the Radio Cut (Sunday), dated Sept 3, 2002[8]
- kitkatbyte's report Vids ahoy!, dated Aug 21, 2003[9]
- hafital's I am so tired report, dated August 20, 2003[10]
Resources
References
- ^ WebCite for Vividcon Character Study Show by Rache.
- ^ WebCite for Vidpairs show by Rache.
- ^ WebCite for VividCon vid comments by destina
- ^ WebCite for Mondo Vividcon Report by Laura Shapiro.
- ^ WebCite for VividCon reportage by renenet
- ^ WebCite for heresluck Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.
- ^ WebCite for Drowning in songvids, dated Aug 18, 2003.
- ^ WebCite for VividCon - the Radio Cut (Friday), the Radio Cut (Saturday), and the Radio Cut (Sunday)
- ^ WebCite for Vids ahoy!
- ^ WebCite for hatiftal's I am so tired report.