Why Do You Make AMVs?

[lloyd9988]

So, I want to know your answer to a simple question: "Why do you make AMVs" -or- "Why do you watch AMVs"?

Any answer is acceptable but be honest.

Example:
"I make AMVs because I love anime and I love music."
"I make AMVs because I want people to give me more likes on YouTube."
"I make AMVs because making AMVs is a great stress relief when I come home from work (Said no one ever)".
"I make AMVs because making AMVs helps me understand how to tinker with various editing software."

My Reason:
I make AMVs because I love anime and music. Something about a good combination of Anime and Music just makes AMVs so entertaining to watch for me. Even if the AMV is garbage, I still love a good garbage AMV because, most of the time, I can feel what the editor was going for when they were making their AMV. I try giving some tips that I've observed and have done myself that I feel could improve the quality of an editor's future videos but I still love nearly all the AMVs I have seen thus far.

Yet, as I delved more into making AMVs, the more I saw how great of an opportunity it would be to be able to build a community around this hobby. There's a lot of versatility to making AMVs and a lot to enjoy and talk about with each other.

Yet, as more new AMVs are made and released, the more I always find out that editors just care about their own viewer counter on YouTube or the amount of comments they can get. So I continually feel disheartened when I see a good opportunity such as making and sharing AMVs in the hopes of making friends or building a community just fall by the way-side just because I feel that editors only care about their own videos and the view count on their own videos instead of just investing more of their time and honest attention onto the videos that other editors make.

But, that is my own personal issue that I have to work through, and I'll think through this on my own, honestly.

Anyway, what is/was your reason? I'd love to hear why you edit -or- watch AMVs!

[Katranat]

When I started watching AMV's anime wasn't very accessible, so in my early days it was a way to see at least some of the anime. I've also always loved visualisations of music, I would zone out watching the visualiser on windows media player while listening to music back in the day. These two things combined made AMV's an instant hit for me.

I started making AMV's because I kept having ideas for anime/song combos and whenever I searched I couldn't find any that currently existed. So I figured if no one else was going to make them then I'd give it a go. So yeah, I started cause there were things I wanted to watch that didn't exist yet.

Currently that is still kinda the main reason I make AMV's, I make them cause I want to watch them. The process is also enjoyable, I suppose it's the same with any creative hobby, you're taking things and making something new. If other people also enjoy my videos, well that's a bonus.

Side note, for me at least, this doesn't extend beyond anime. I know a fair number of people who make AMV's also dabble with live action footage etc. I made one live action video (and honestly it was probably the weirdest thing I ever made) and it just doesn't hit me the same way anime does, I also enjoy watching these kinds of videos a lot less. Dunno why though!

[Zarxrax]

I guess it was a kind of creative outlet for me. I can't draw, I can't compose music, I'm not a good writer. When I first found out about AMVs, I was already somewhat familiar with digital video and encoding and stuff, so the learning curve didn't seem so bad, and being able to edit something myself seemed so cool at the time. I found AMVs enjoyable to watch, I enjoyed being part of the community, and I liked actually being able to create something and then step back and say "I made that!"

Over the years my interest waned, but I'm kind of interested again now. Or perhaps its more nostalgia now.

[seasons]

I really loved anime and I was very interested in filmmaking and video editing. I had no idea that these interests could cross paths anywhere at all, let alone in a way that thousands or probably millions of people would eventually participate in.

I always loved music videos, probably more than most people who were the intended audience for them.

AMVs immediately struck me as a unique opportunity for self expression, storytelling and experimentation that just didn't exist in my world until the day I found out that they were a thing. No, I didn't need to find out about AMVs to tell stories or create art/remix existing art or "express myself." But a lot of more traditional forms of creativity either felt closed off to me or seemed to demand a level of perfection that I always felt was out of my reach. This one was weird enough that I figured I could probably make just about anything and it could be unique in its own way, plus it involved lots of things I was already very passionate and excited about. So once I first saw AMVs and discovered the community around them, I started to look forward to the day I'd be able to take a crack at it myself. I know people naturally lose interest in things like this over time, but that never happened for me, and here I (still) am.

[lloyd9988]

Reply for Katranat

When I started watching AMV's anime wasn't very accessible, so in my early days it was a way to see at least some of the anime. I've also always loved visualisations of music, I would zone out watching the visualiser on windows media player while listening to music back in the day. These two things combined made AMV's an instant hit for me.

The visualizer on Windows Media Player got you into AMVs?! Not gonna lie, you might be the first person whom will probably have started AMVs due to those visuals.

But, I get it, I remember seeing those visuals as well, playing Lincoln Park in the background, and just stare at those visuals all day as well.

I started making AMV's because I kept having ideas for anime/song combos and whenever I searched I couldn't find any that currently existed. So I figured if no one else was going to make them then I'd give it a go. So yeah, I started cause there were things I wanted to watch that didn't exist yet.

Currently that is still kinda the main reason I make AMV's, I make them cause I want to watch them. The process is also enjoyable, I suppose it's the same with any creative hobby, you're taking things and making something new. If other people also enjoy my videos, well that's a bonus.

Are they ideas like: "I love song X with anime Y"? Or are your ideas more theme based or just comedic in nature?

Same here. I kept an idea of an anime/song combo in my head all my life ever since I was 10 y.o. and I have yet to make that AMV.

Side note, for me at least, this doesn't extend beyond anime. I know a fair number of people who make AMV's also dabble with live action footage etc. I made one live action video (and honestly it was probably the weirdest thing I ever made) and it just doesn't hit me the same way anime does, I also enjoy watching these kinds of videos a lot less. Dunno why though!

Honestly, I get that! I have no idea why disney MVs or Live-Action MVs don't do it for me the same way AMVs do.

I feel like there is just something about the timing, camera motion and visuals that just clicks with music and anime. Plus, you can always mask a bit easier with Anime than you can with Live Action, I feel.

Reply for Zarxrax

I guess it was a kind of creative outlet for me. I can't draw, I can't compose music, I'm not a good writer. When I first found out about AMVs, I was already somewhat familiar with digital video and encoding and stuff, so the learning curve didn't seem so bad, and being able to edit something myself seemed so cool at the time. I found AMVs enjoyable to watch, I enjoyed being part of the community, and I liked actually being able to create something and then step back and say "I made that!"

Over the years my interest waned, but I'm kind of interested again now. Or perhaps its more nostalgia now.

Never heard of an editor that was initially more technical than artistic when making AMVs.

Even though AMVs were a creative outlet for you, did you find more initial enjoyment making AMVs than, say, drawing or composing music?

Also, I completely get the "Take a step back and say: 'I made that!' " feeling. It's an awesome feeling to have, even if you just edited a part for a MEP or an entire AMV.

Reply for seasons

I really loved anime and I was very interested in filmmaking and video editing. I had no idea that these interests could cross paths anywhere at all, let alone in a way that thousands or probably millions of people would eventually participate in.

Dude! I know! I remember watching the ads on Toonami with the AMVs and just thinking: "Damn, that's so cool" without even realizing I was watching an AMV.

I always loved music videos, probably more than most people who were the intended audience for them.

AMVs immediately struck me as a unique opportunity for self expression, storytelling and experimentation that just didn't exist in my world until the day I found out that they were a thing. No, I didn't need to find out about AMVs to tell stories or create art/remix existing art or "express myself." But a lot of more traditional forms of creativity either felt closed off to me or seemed to demand a level of perfection that I always felt was out of my reach. This one was weird enough that I figured I could probably make just about anything and it could be unique in its own way, plus it involved lots of things I was already very passionate and excited about. So once I first saw AMVs and discovered the community around them, I started to look forward to the day I'd be able to take a crack at it myself. I know people naturally lose interest in things like this over time, but that never happened for me, and here I (still) am.

Agreed. AMVs has this sense where: "Anyone can do it", which is amazing, to me. Not only that, the learning curve is relatively simple as well... with the right software, of course (Avoid WMM if you can, unless you're NoneParticular).

Those traditional forms of creativity seem to be very... closed off because of the level of perfection those forms demand. I really dislike that about some artistic ventures because this just closes people away from each other to 'focus on their art' rather than bring them together.

Don't worry buddy, I'm still here too. As is Katranat and Zarxrax, apparently.

--//--

Another question for all of you:

Were any of you really excited to show off your first AMV to your friends and family, by any chance?

I know I was but I realized how silly and cringe I am now for doing that.

[x_rex30]

Well, I'd get new songs in my collection was one reason I liked amvs back in 2000. I think it was actually amvs that got me into linkin park and also guessing it was dragon ball z videos to be precise. I watched a lot of DBZ videos in general. I loved music videos in general and had some mtv vhs tapes.

I still haven't made a AMV that I wanted to make badly. I never spent more than a day on making an AMV and the one I would like to make would probably take more than a month... I would aim for an upbeat, chill, uplifting, video. Also if possible aim toward being Euphoric. I find some amvs euphoric where I get uplifting chills.

I get this chill-tingling feeling that may be frisson from watching certain videos.. it is epic, and it's from mood sync. My favorite frisson is when it is absolutely uplifting. I have had certain videos where I got the feeling over 20 time on it.

[ngsilver]

Why do you watch AMVs?
AMVs were always this cool extra piece of fan art that I was able to find on fan sites back in the mid 90s. I loved reading fan fics, seeing fan art, and eventually watching AMVs. I've always been really big into music and I rarely feel comfortable not having music going on in the background. AMVs added visualizations (beyond milkdrop visulizations in WinAmp) and I thought it was cool that other fans made them. I used to watch real music videos a lot too so I feel it was a natural progression to move to AMVs. I remember spending days downloading some videos back when we only had a 56k modem (only connected at 32k or something around there) networked on a switch in our house. It was wonderful when we finally got access to a cable modem and I was able to download way more from Morpheus and later Kazaa.

Why Do you make AMVs?
For me I originally wanted to 'give back' to the community that I consumed from. I was big into writing when I was younger (I'd like to get back to it) and an AMV was a new way to tell a story. I had been consuming works that others in the community had made and I wanted to basically give back to it. Eventually as my collection of videos grew and my skills improved I started to shift my reason for making videos to be more along the lines of wanting to see certain stories told or source combinations done. Basically, I make the videos I want to see. Sure, I'll submit to contests and the like, but it's never been about winning awards, getting views, ect. It's all really about making something I want to see and then letting the community consume and hopefully enjoy my work just as I enjoy theirs.
AMVs have become my primary creative outlet and has been this way for nearly 15 years now. I would like to get back into writing, maybe finish that novel I've been working on for 20 years now. But I often just get drawn back into an idea and seeing it through to completion. Doesn't help that I can often edit a video way faster then I can knock out written word.

Were you really excited to show off your first AMV to your friends and family, by any chance?
At the time I was. I don't consider that video to be something I proud of anymore. I do enjoy showing my work to others, which is why I put it up online and send it to cons. I like hearing that others are enjoying the work I have created.

[Katranat]

Reply for Katranat

The visualizer on Windows Media Player got you into AMVs?! Not gonna lie, you might be the first person whom will probably have started AMVs due to those visuals.

But, I get it, I remember seeing those visuals as well, playing Lincoln Park in the background, and just stare at those visuals all day as well.

Funny story actually. I had quite an active imagination as a kid, and there was one visualisation that I thought looked like a firebird that would morph and fly through tunnels. Then the first AMV I saw (GMV really) was Atomx's In the End video to FFIX, there is a small clip in that video that looks just like that visualisation, and my little ten year old brain thought this was some sort of sign

Are they ideas like: "I love song X with anime Y"? Or are your ideas more theme based or just comedic in nature?

Same here. I kept an idea of an anime/song combo in my head all my life ever since I was 10 y.o. and I have yet to make that AMV.

Yeah, ideas like: "I love song X with anime Y". I still have quite a few of these I will eventually work through.

Were any of you really excited to show off your first AMV to your friends and family, by any chance?

I know I was but I realized how silly and cringe I am now for doing that.

Nope! Exact opposite, I hate showing anyone irl my videos (but internet strangers is ok apparently). In fact I abandoned my first YouTube account because one of my family members found it, so I panicked and removed my videos from it and created a new one. I dunno why I'm like this.

[TritioAFB]

I find them as a relief to stress even though now I have more responsabilities than 10 years ago, it's still pleasant to watch a good amv and of course editing them too

[Kireblue]

I love AMvs because just like most forms of media, they can completely change someone's mood, draw them into a story, or simply grab their attention and create an new experience for them in just a few minutes. So I make AMVs because I want certain ideas and concepts to exist in the world, and I want people to be able to experience them (myself included).