Personally, ever since I edited my Wasteland video (shockingly, it's been over 4 years since that), I've been addicted to audience reactions - but in the opposite way that some might assume. I like getting reactions from audiences that I never intended. That's part of why I've shamelessly exploited weird audio sources and gone to some of the odder parts of my listening range. I fully realize the audience probably won't have the same stance on music or 'music' I have in my videos, but I've taken this to be a fun inevitability. It's fun to screw with people's expectations a little. I appreciate it when people come to see things my way, I tolerate negative reactions. But the best response for me is one that I totally didn't expect but is still positive.
What I really aim for with editing, I guess, is simply to be structured. Once a video is structured, upside down both ways though it may be, people can start reading things into it. I don't care what people read into it, I just want them to start reading in. Or I want the video to start screwing with the audience's collective head. Watching a con audience watch some of my weirder stuff has always put a big grin on my face.
Well, I make normal story-type videos on occasion, but those are usually to satisfy my own need to have a video with that or other song. I don't nearly get as much a kick out of reactions to these.
As far as audience generally, I think the principle should be that they're a part of the creative process, and I'd much rather their part be actually creative. Watching a video shouldn't be like solving a crossword puzzle or memorizing patterns. It should be, well, an active act. If a video has the best-planned story in the world and fails to engage - well, it fails generally, IMHO
The Birds are using humanity in order to throw something terrifying at this green pig. And then what happens to us all later, that’s simply not important to them…
