The AWA 2015 Professional Awards Video Review Thread

[BasharOfTheAges]

Best American Animation could work for this batch, but it's a pretty well known fact that neither this site nor 99% of all AMV contests (or more plainly, music video contests at conventions that call themselves "anime conventions") accept "anime" to mean anything except animation produced in Japan by the Japanese. Not agreeing with this stance asside, the presence of the category would be to emphasize that this con DOES accept those videos.

That said, it does feel like a quota award. So does the live action category. They're both about what you're made of instead of competing on the equal ground of merit. There we go, I just personified videos now, so you can start throwing -isms around. Go all AMVSJW insane if you'd like.

[jingoro]

It's a pretty well known fact that neither this site nor 99% of all AMV contests (or more plainly, music video contests at conventions that call themselves "anime conventions") accept "anime" to mean anything except animation produced in Japan by the Japanese.

I make no such distinction. If it's animated, it's "anime", and shall be as long as I'm the director of The Video Art Track.

That said, it does feel like a quota award. So does the live action category. They're both about what you're made of instead of competing on the equal ground of merit.

In a purely artistic sense, you might be right, but as someone who has edited both live action and animation, the skill set is somewhat different. I've allowed the Best Live Action award for years because of this. In analogy, it's akin to the difference in an award for an oil painting and an award for a sculpture. I've explored the possibility of running The Video Art Track at other conventions, specifically a large media convention where live action would likely dominate the entries and anime would be the also-ran, alas, so far this hasn't happened. (I'll admit, largely because of scheduling and other demands on my time.)

[jingoro]

I understand not wanting a negation in an award title. Does that mean I should propose a "Best International" category and hope people know what I mean?

Perhaps if I understood what you were trying to recognize with the award, I could help? Is it because someone chose to edit a source that wasn't from Japan? That hardly seems like any particular challenge over a Japanese source? Is it because the editor is not from North America? Not really related to making a video in that case, and a bit more nationalistic than I'd like to be in this global age. (As well as nearly impossible to implement in a tacitly blinded contest.)

[Warlike Swans]

What I was trying to accomplish was a test of your sensibilities. I don't actually care if there's a functionally non-anime category. I'd rather see videos win based on what they are doing conceptually/emotively/artistically than win based on their source materials. I would like to see editors get the categories that they as a group want, though, which is why I proposed it.

[jingoro]

Did I pass?

[Shin-AMV]

I'm confused about the The Gates of Valhalla Award for Most Shiny and Chrome Video, is that specifically a Best Mad Max Category or is that like Best Cars video or whats going on with that?

[Ileia]

I'm confused about the The Gates of Valhalla Award for Most Shiny and Chrome Video, is that specifically a Best Mad Max Category or is that like Best Cars video or whats going on with that?

Clearly, that means anime.

[BasharOfTheAges]

It's a pretty well known fact that neither this site nor 99% of all AMV contests (or more plainly, music video contests at conventions that call themselves "anime conventions") accept "anime" to mean anything except animation produced in Japan by the Japanese.

I make no such distinction. If it's animated, it's "anime", and shall be as long as I'm the director of The Video Art Track.

That said, it does feel like a quota award. So does the live action category. They're both about what you're made of instead of competing on the equal ground of merit.

In a purely artistic sense, you might be right, but as someone who has edited both live action and animation, the skill set is somewhat different. I've allowed the Best Live Action award for years because of this. In analogy, it's akin to the difference in an award for an oil painting and an award for a sculpture. I've explored the possibility of running The Video Art Track at other conventions, specifically a large media convention where live action would likely dominate the entries and anime would be the also-ran, alas, so far this hasn't happened. (I'll admit, largely because of scheduling and other demands on my time.)

It's great that you don't hold such biases. I think people assume your voting block does though, and that Live Action is an award that's used for the purpose of quota. Same with "best adult." They act as a sink so people don't feel guilty about ignoring those videos in every other category. I know that isn't your intent, but that is what they've become and that's why people are asking for more in what they perceive to be the same vein. They're asking for another "animation from places that are not Japan so we can recognize more videos that aren't allowed in the overwhelming majority of AMV contests and encourage people to make more of them" award.

(Disclaimer - I'm not in favor of the category, I'm just interested in discussion of things for the purpose of mutual understanding. We come to our own conclusions around motives and expectations of others far too much here.)

[Rider4Z]

^Yeah.

It's our fault for not judging fairly/unbiased. Having a "Best Live-Action" award automatically excludes several videos from eligibility. To make that fair you would need an award for each type of source material, such as "Best Japanese/Asian Animated" or "Best Western Animated". But that leaves out that one poor soul with original animation this year. Where does that video fall?

If everyone was capable of voting based on merit regardless of source, then there wouldn't be an issue.

[The Wired Knight]

Important:
Now that we have Dropbox, Google Drive and Mediafire going... is anyone still having difficulty getting a copy of all the videos?

I don't have the mediafire login and dropbox and google drive aren't working for me.