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by Guides » Sun Mar 17, 2024 9:10 pm
2. Video making:
Note: This part of the process is generally easier with 2 or more people; one to be the audio "synch"er and another to manage the recording and more if you want added annoyance or idea banks; LWaC consists of 3 individuals, all of whom are slightly insane
A) Decide which song and which anime(s) you want to use in your video and gather the requisite VHS tapes and CD.
B) Listen to the song a couple of times and get the feel of the rhythm and structure of the song and make sure you have a copy of the lyrics in front of you if you intend to match scenes to the lyrics.
C) This step is entirely optional. Divide the song out into sections and find scenes for each section before you actually start making the video. Otherwise, go to step D).
D) Listen to the opening of the song and determine how long the first major section of music is(generally between 1-10 seconds, depending on how lazy you are). Then, dig through your anime tapes and find a scene that matches that section of music.
E) IMPORTANT STEP: First, determine how long it takes for your CD player to start playing the song after you hit the "PLAY" button, this is important. Second, determine how long it takes your recording VCR to start recording, this is also important. When, you've determined both of these delays and found the footage for your first scene, rewind the source tape at least 10 seconds before the scene begins to make sure that any VCR displays like the word "PLAY" or tape time or anything else is off the TV screen before you start recording. Now, remember the delay on your recording VCR and hit the record button that much time before the scene begins. Let the entire scene record and then record a little extra for editing. Now, rewind your recording tape and using the delay time on your CD player, start the song and the scene at the same time. Stop the recording tape at the exact instant that the song goes to the next section. Then, rewind the tape as far back as the recording delay on the tape is. Then record the next scene using the same process.
Note: This is not as accurate as doing this on a computer. Often, you will miss the exact instant you need by small fractions of a second and the scenes will seem slightly out-of-synch with the song. This is normal, just repeat the process until you get a satisfactory synch. Always position the recording tape a little farther along than you think the scene change is the first time. It's better to record a little late and have to back the new scene up slightly rather than cut too soon and have to redo an entire video or section thereof.
F) When you've finished putting all the scenes on the tape, you now have a partially finished video...only the music isn't on the tape. That comes next. Put the tape with all of your recorded footage in the source footage VCR and another blank in the recording VCR. Now, for a little reconnecting of the wires. You'll need a converter wire that will run from the speakers output on your CD player to the recording VCR's stereo audio connector. This can probably be obtained at Radio Shack or some other such Tech store if you don't have one. Once you've got one, plug the headphones connector into your CD player. Unplug the "audio in" connectors on your Recording VCR so that only the "video" is coming in from the source footage VCR and then plug the audio cord from your CD player into the recording VCR. Now comes the fun part. You have to get the video from the source footage VCR to go to the TV while the audio comes from the CD player. The authors of this guide just changed the channels on the source footage VCR and the recording VCR until we got what we needed (we really are technologically deficient). I really can't offer any other advice than to keep playing with it till you get it but hopefully you know more about this than we do so you will have figured out how to do this already. Good luck!
G) Once you've got your CD player set up with the TV, essentially do step E) except you'll be recording your video footage and the song together to create your final product: a low-quality, poor man's AMV.
Congratulations! If you've made it this far you deserve far more salutations than we, the authors, can give you. Otherwise, well, hope you had a good laugh.
And if you still don't believe us, this is actually how Lone Wolf and Cub Studios makes our videos (or at least how the first one went; we've gotten a little more experience that makes it a little easier but that has come with making 12 videos, most of which will never see the light of day except in AWA's "Revenge of the Reject Video" awards or "How not to make an AMV".
--Andrew Day, LWaC
