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five inches back
2003-06-24 10:33:19
No progress on the video today; Meg was feeling bad last night and needed a pick-me-up, so that was my 'priority 1'. Currently in a stir at work trying to push out the current release before I have to go off west again; I may get the problems fixed, but the testing in release is going to be intense, and probably won't happen till after the shutdown next week.
http://www.gineigoods.com/form/
Go there. Sign up. Or iserlohn and I will pound the crap out of you. They need at least another 1499 LoGH fans to commit to the series. Sure, $1925 may be a lot, but for that you'll get 47 DVDs covering 110 TV episodes, a special, two movies, and 52 OAVs. And likely, the price will come down with additional people voicing their support.
So sign up. and get all your sf-loving friends to sign up. Because it'll all cost us less if there's more in on the deal. That price quoted above is based on the Japanese price, and they really can't sell $40 DVDs to North American retail. "Unidet...ve vill vin!" No credit for knowing that, as I really shouldn't.
--Kai out
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i don't deal well with compacted poop
2003-06-23 10:00:16
Project Haibane is done, up, and listed, after two and a half months of work. It was a long, hard climb, but I finally got there.
From the first episode I saw, I knew I was going to have to do a Haibane Renmei video. From the second, I knew that I could not just do *one* video and leave it at that. As the project progressed, and I realized that I had four workable ideas, and enough source to do all of them, I realized that there was a unifying strand in the complex, and that all four videos would have to be made for the full idea to emerge. It was a tough process, and it took a hell of a lot of time, but this isn't something that's supposed to come easy.
Part of the reason that this idea/project demanded multiple videos is because Haibane Renmei in itself is so incredibly multifaceted. It's legitimately 'about' so many things that people are better off asking what it's NOT about. At the really basic level, Haibane Renmei is about growing up and coming to terms with oneself and one's world. Of course, it's also about Buddhist philosophy, karmic cycles, and enlightenment, and a commentary on the values of innocence and experience, and about accepting mortality as a part of life. It could also be argued that there is a certain Christian elementality about it ("unless ye become as little children...", etc), and that Abe is saying some very interesting (to Westerners, anyway) things about individualism (cf Reki), but there is also strongly heathen symbology (the crows may not be *named* Hugin or Mugin, but that's their function) and a yearning for freedom in several of the characters despite the very real costs.
So, four videos. One general, and three character profiles.
'worn soule' was made first. It's more or less a Rakka profile, as she is both the most developed and most tied to her past of the main characters. Also, it doesn't hurt that she has a lot of screen time, a vital selection factor.
Next came '...and even this shall pass away...', which is a generalist video on the series. The song captures a lot of the anxiety and impermanence lying under the surface of Haibane Renmei; the attraction and danger of the Haibane life is that it *is* "only for a while", that this town and possibly even world is merely a way station, a dreamland between one mode of life and another. This is the only video to make broad use of all three dominating color pallettes used in the series; 'worn soule' is brown-dominant, and the two following videos are respectively green- and blue-dominant.
'Vivimus | Vivamus' isn't so much a Kuu profile as a Kuu's-passing profile, and thus is marked as having major spoilers. This song might have worked for the general video (which it kind of is, creating the muddle mentioned int eh video desription) as well, but this event makes a good focus for that theme of transience.
And finally our Reki profile, "on black canvas blacker stars...". I had been looking forever for an appropriate anime to do a Borknagar video with, and finally found one with the right combination of color scheme, pacing, and thematics to visually instantiate Oystein's music. This is probably the least accessible of the four in this project, going much, much, more from musical-visual gestalt than any kind of lyrical or action synch.
This will not be the last multi-video project from Shin Hats. There was another on the drawing board before this one, and it's still there. However, it's the last multi-video project for a while. It took a lot out of me, and I need to use some time to get back to the one title, one video way of thinking, which is usually more productive. I'm also getting a little sick of Gamma Ray.
Current video: Gamma Ray, "Fire Below" to Peacock King. Progress check: 43%. Expected catalog number: #79. This video is flowing pretty good so far. I'm only working from the second hour-long OVA of five in the series, and I've got to videograph five minutes of music, but I don't think it should be too tough. A lot of good shots even so far, before the plot really picks up.
This will likely be the first non-KK video from SH with a high level of gore. The feel coming off the music just isn't extreme enough for KK. Speaking of extreme, Vital Remains' _Dechristianize_ is the first really interesting brutal death CD I've heard since Nile's latest. It's good to hear Glenn Benton on CD with some competent writers; his talent is too good to be wasted in his own band. And yes, _Life Is Killing Me_ is awesome. I'm seriously considering putting a bounty on a anti-yaoi GW or something video with "I Like Goils", the new anti-homophile banger anthem, as it'd be so funny, but not funny enough to justify me actually spending money on something Gundam. And they cover "Angry Inch" -- how fucking cool is that??
--Kai out
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the sickness in between
2003-06-20 08:46:46
Project Haibane is done and not done. When I left to go into work this morning, the render was ~96% complete, but that alone is no guarantee it went to 100%. Listings will go up Monday.
The next project is already confirmed, and will probably have some significant progress stats in on it when this record is next updated. It's going to be a four-something-minute video from a one-hour OVA, so despite grandparents washing up tomorrow and such, I should be able to at least capture source, and maybe also do some clipping -- after I clean Project Haibane off the drives and onto CD. Fortunately, a lot of the bulk is in used source, so that'll just be deleted, whereas I have to find some way to distribute the unused source over CDs. Or I could just delete it all; after four videos, there's not much more that I'd ever want to do with Haibane Renmei, and even if I did, I'd be recapturing from DVD (the counterweight to that last week in August -- I move away from Meg but can pick up maybe the best commercial release of the year).
It's not a complete wash, but it's better than nothing. ;_;
Current videos: Bill O'Brien, "Old Shoes", Gamma Ray, "A While In Dreamland" and "Farewell", and Borknagar, "The View of Everlast", all to Haibane Renmei. Progress check: 100%, 100%, 100% and 99%. Expected catalog numbers: #75, #76, #77, #78. There are two clips reused between videos in this entire project, which I consider to be nothing less than a miracle of source management. Technically, #75 isn't really done, as I have to remaster the audio track, but it's close enough for these purposes.
I really need to get Type O's new CD. And to get over to the post office to mail Hasshin! 3 to the DC. Life just won't get the hell out of the way, though.
--Kai out
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to mount and rove
2003-06-19 10:24:17
It's less than two weeks to July. I've got a sheet full of landlords, a car with 450 miles operating range, and a need born of desperation. It's dark, and I'm wearing sunglasses.
Hit it.
Indications are strong that I may be rolling out to Michigan again sometime in the near future, this time with better planning and scheduling -- as soon as my credit-card statement comes and I can shift that useless airline-ticket charge off. It's expensive, but it isn't too bad, and the drive is kind of entertaining. I'm looking at the end of next week, maybe, though I'll probably have to find another card to book the hotel on, due to extremely poor timing. If I had booked the last trip back in May, I'd have paid the statement already, but it came two days too late. Oh well.
Current videos: Bill O'Brien, "Old Shoes", Gamma Ray, "A While In Dreamland" and "Farewell", and Borknagar, "The View of Everlast", all to Haibane Renmei. Progress check: 100%, 100%, 100% and 93%. Expected catalog numbers: #75, #76, #77, #78. I've just got to do effects, which shouldn't be that hard, and final assembly on this one. I may be able to push it out after Meg and I get back from the symphony tonight, but that's largely dependent on how much energy I have. There's an off chance that Project Haibane will be up and posted tomorrow.
Everyone is raving about the new Type O. I definitely have to get ahold of that and review it. Reviews lately have been a mixed bag: Evanescence's CD nearly put me to sleep, Shadows Fall rocked me flat with _Art of Balance_, and I wasn't able to give Opeth a rating because, frankly speaking, there is no metal on _Damnation_. It's a good CD, but I can't rate it in comparison to other metal albums if it isn't metal.
People in the forums are getting bent out of shape about contest trolling. I resolve not to change my habits: gunslinging, whether people like it or not. I retire videos after two showings whether they win or not, but I still put out just so many videos that I can't get them shown if I don't submit to every contest under the sun. If it's about evangelism rather than prizes, then it's not trolling.
I'm not against charging for competition, but there should also be exhibition showings at every con that goes to this model, so that 'troll' videos can make the rounds (KC is pro-'troll', read his old usenet posts), and non-trolling gunslingers and evangelists like myself can get free exposure for our causes.
Like people listen to what I say.
--Kai out
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exploding | imploding
2003-06-18 10:43:41
Drafted #78 last night, so from here out it's busywork and engineering rather than creative stuff. I have to work hard tonight to get it all done, because there won't be any time to work on it until the weekend. So Project Haibane will be listed about a week later than initially projected.
Both Passenger's debut and the new Type O are out now. I have neither, tough I've heard a few good things about both. Also still need to get Anthrax's much-lauded new disc; I can't believe how long I've been postponing this one.
Current videos: Bill O'Brien, "Old Shoes", Gamma Ray, "A While In Dreamland" and "Farewell", and Borknagar, "The View of Everlast", all to Haibane Renmei. Progress check: 100%, 100%, 100% and 90%. Expected catalog numbers: #75, #76, #77, #78. The effects used in this video are pretty minimal; I think there's one image overlay, a couple pop-blurs, and a whole mess of h-flips. It shouldn't take that long. Hopefully, there won't be too many bugs requiring pre-rendering. Building and rebuilding final versions on the last video added about 6 hours of production time, which is not cool.
Somewhere in all this I have to find time to watch Cole's vid and write him an op...maybe Thursday after I get back from the symphony (high-class date time) and tie up any loose ends on #78. Like all the rest, sooner or later it'll get done.
--Kai out
JOURNAL: Kai Stromler (Kai Stromler)
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