The Truth about AMVs

[Phantasmagoriat]

The Truth about AMVs
(Idea sparked from this thread: What really makes a good editor? Or a good AMV...)

See, I've noticed here on AnimeMusicVideos.org, we get a lot of questions like this:

• What makes an AMV good?
• How to make a good AMV?
• What makes a bad AMV?
  etc... etc...

...and I have my own views of this; or at least a general idea.
I mean, I can certainly identify what I like and what I don't like.
And I'm certain we can all do this.

But I've never Truely tried answering it in clear concise terms.
However, in order to provide a reasonable answer, I'm going to have to reword the question a bit:

• Do you think there are any Universal Truth(s) to what makes a Good AMV?
  If so, what are they? Supporting AMV Examples may help explain your answer, but are not necessary.

• • • I think I have an answer.
    But it might help if I showed my work.
  So you know how I arrived at my destination.
  
  Let's break it down...
  
  
  • Good Anime >> Good Story, Good Animation, Clean Footage (or rather: Distraction-Free)
    
    • Good Music >> Dynamic Structure, Easy to Follow, Maintains Attention
      
      • AMV Concept >> Reason for watching AMV; should be clear; but not entirely known until AMV is finished
        
        Anime/Music 'Fit' >> Atmosphere/Mood, clear AMV genre; while doing something different
        
        AMV Flow >> Good Overall Structure >> Easy to Follow >> No Confusion or Boredom
      Good Editing >> Timing/Sync, Scene Selection, Purposeful Effects, Aesthetics/Artistic Considerations
    Predictability // Unpredictability >> Easy to Follow // With Surprises
  (...and I'm sure I'm missing some stuff too, but that seems like enough information to encode my answer...)
  (...also note: I'm too lazy to come up with any examples, but I'm sure you can see these as you watch some good AMVs...)
  
  
  • However, the hierarchy is
    
    • non-linear.
    • • • So to get to the
          
          • • Truth of the matter,
      • • • • • one has to look at
              • • the Truths
            • • • • that
                • • overlap
              • • • the
                  most.
    • • • • • (Now, in my estimation, I think this is evident in the last point:)
      
      Predictability // Unpredictability >> Easy to Follow // With Surprises
    
    
    • • • So, Technically, I think that's the answer
      • But I don't think that just makes AMVs good-- that makes anything good.
      
      And for me, this makes a lot of sense, because, as with *any* form of entertainment:
    
    
    
    
    There is something common.
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    But.
    
    
    What is it?
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    ... do you know?
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    ... do *I* know...?
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    Maybe
    
    
    
    try
    
    
    
    examining some AMVs...
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    Maybe,
    
    
    
    as you watch them....
    
    
    
    examine yourself.
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    Maybe
    
    
    
    
    try to:
    
    
    
    
    Examine my post.
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    What is the answer?
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    That ties
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    All Good AMVs
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    And all Entertainment
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    Together?
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    ....
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    ...
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    .
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    Because there has got to be something.
    
    
    
    
    
    • • .
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        • ...
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        .........
    
    
    
    
    
    
    can you feel the tension... ?
    
    
    
    
    
    • the build up...
      
      
      
      
      
      • ...the
        
        
        
        • pressure.
        
        
        • • .....
            
            
            
            
            • • ..
              
              
              
              .
        • ...because as with any form of entertainment:
          
          • • (Oh, I certainly hope you read the rest of what I said...)
          • Spoiler :

            "We Expect to be Surprised."
          • And that is the closest thing
          to the Truth...
        I think
      anyone...
    can
    
    get.
    
    
    
    • That
      
      • is
        
        • what
          
          
          • makes...
          
          
          A.
        
        
        
        Good.
      
      
      
      
      
      AMV.

~Phan

/is having fun with creative writing; and testing list capabilities




------------------------

• So, what do YOU think?
  
  Do you think there are any Universal Truth(s) to what makes a Good AMV?
  If so, what are they? Supporting AMV Examples may help explain your answer, but are not necessary.

[dakotasapphire]

I think what makes a good amv related to another good one is the concept that it's enjoyable. It's also an anime music video. It's a video synced up to footage. Thats the most thing it has in common. Amvs don't need a structure. They just need to be creative and not boring. But what is boring depends on the person for realz. It shouldn't be judged too harshly either. I think an amv should have an aspect that everyone can understand why someone else could possibly like it. I needs to have a clear reason for someone to like it. (The music, the footage, the effects, timing?, story-line.) Only good amvs are different. Most others are similar. I feel there is a pyramid of amvs, and the bad ones are on bottom, and are just the common trash you find on you-tube. Then there's a ramp up from that and so on. The average ones are enjoyable, but aren't the most original.

Anyhow, that's just what I think about it. Amvs shouldn't be judged on structure. It's bull crap to judge it on such things. You just need to enjoy it by your own standards, not a set in stone rule book. It's just a hobby. It shouldn't be blown out of proportion like whose is good or not by set standards.

[Phantasmagoriat]

@dakotasapphire: you're not really answering the question. It should be a pretty clear yes/no/provide reasoning type answer.

And I'm not talking about Standards for evaluating an AMV; I'm talking about Truths.
I mean, when you watch an AMV, you don't evaluate it, you just try to enjoy it.
And in the end, you know the Truth about whether you enjoyed the AMV or not.
Then, if you take it one step further, you would be able to identify why.

Also, I'm going to have to disagree with your thoughts on Structure.
I mean, if I had to choose between an AMV that has structure vs an AMV that has doesn't have structure, I'm going to pick the one that has structure. Of course, there is more to a good AMV than just that; but generally speaking, AMVs that have good structure make good AMVs. I would consider that to be a Universal Truth.

Does that make sense?

[gotegenks]

phan, i do believe you are the closest thing to an amv professor i can think of, and i think the amv world desperately needs something like that.

this was a pretty enlightening post, really good stuff, keep it up, i'll be sharing these to as many non orgers i can lay my greasy hands on!

[Phantasmagoriat]

Thanks gote

I actually used to be a teacher, so sharing knowledge is something very dear to me.

And yes, please do share this post with non-orgers, or with anyone that creates work for the purpose of entertainment

[qyll]

You hinted at this yourself, Phan. The question you're trying to tackle extends beyond the boundaries of the org or AMVs or remix culture or even the visual arts. Ken Robinson offered us the definition of creativity as "the process of having original ideas that have value." I think what you're trying to define is value (or if you're Robert Pirsig, "quality").

To pigeonhole what makes an AMV enjoyable into disparate "truths" would be a blunder. Sure, you can say that a well-made AMV ought to be easy to follow and have proper scene selection, but then these terms already connotate something desirable in the first place, and so, are not useful qualifiers of a good AMV. Even seemingly immutable "truths" such as high video qualify can fall under the mercy of shifting editing fashions. For example, imagine a hypothetical AMV fad where it becomes popular to edit retro style videos in low resolutions and grainy quality. We've see similar trends in other fields of creativity such as painting and literature. In film, Peter Jackson's The Hobbit will be shot in 48 fps as opposed to 24 fps. That's great, right? Yet many filmgoers don't like this because it makes the movie feel more TVish.

In the end, an AMV's (or any piece of art for that matter) enjoyability is in the eye of the beholder. We all perceive the world differently. To attempt to excavate, a priori, these universal truths that everyone can agree upon would be an exercise in futility. The best we can do is by way of induction; see what many people enjoy and take those things as guidelines rather than axioms. In other words, poll.

I will concede two things:

1) The vast majority of AMV editors are amateurs. We have day jobs. Most of us don't have time to edit all day. Furthermore, the community of serious editors is relatively small. There are barriers to entry, and because of that, the vogues of AMV editing change relatively slowly. That means, for now, certain values such as visual quality are, for all intents and purposes, "universal truths".

2) We are remixers. We don't generate our own footage (there are a few exceptions), and we don't make our own music (again, a few exceptions). That means we don't have to worry about things like character design, lighting, animation quality, instrument use, etc. This considerably simplifies the search for "universal truths".

[TritioAFB]

You know what we should do? A thread for the history of the AMV discussing all the changes from 80s to the present.

And... now that I mentioned the history, I don't believe the first ever AMV Maker thought about any kind of Truth behind the AMVs.

I don't believe in the Universal Truths behind the AMV, so my answer is no.

What we have instead, are the Standards about the Good AMV. Some people will consider them as 'Their' Truths, but I don't think in 20 years later, those will even get near to standards, and instead be considered a belief.

This is gonna sound contradictory for me, but if you insist asking me about any Universal Truth, then the one that might get near, is that if a video is re-watchable. I mean, a video might be a success in terms of the editing/Technical Aspect, but if it lacks review ability, then it's just another video.

[gotegenks]

Tritio, thats like saying the first caveman scribbling on the wall wasnt thinking about art theory, which may be true but that doesnt make art theory irrelevant and it doesnt make that caveman's scribbles as objectively good as any of todays paintings.

The first amv, in all honesty, was probably horrible and unwatchable today.

Also, reviewability isnt at all a good measure of how good a video is, not even close to being a universal truth, dfferent people will rewatch different things. There are some great romance amvs that i hardly ever wanna rewatch, but theres a ton of shitty action vids that i love to rewatch, over an over and over again. Thats not even a measure of what types of videos i like more, its only a measure of what types of videos i like to rewatch more, an thats it.

It might be true for you that the better a video is in your opinion (regardless of source genre or style) the more you want to rewatch it, but at least for me, thats not even close to being true, which only supports the fact that it isnt a universal truth in the slightest.

[TritioAFB]

That's why I said it: I don't believe in the Universal Truths. What might be true for me, shouldn't be the case fore everyone

[gotegenks]

i dunno, the fact that we're all undeniably human (i think) means there has to be at least ONE universal truth to these things, at LEAST one. it may be something that is realized in completely opposite ways among certain people, but there has to be at least 1 thread of 1 idea that is shared amongst any viewer or any creator, whether we're able to find it or not, there has to be AT LEAST one...

imo anyway