http://vimeo.com/64924610 The first video story I watched and am going to critique comes from McKenna Ewen’s blog on the 2013 Minnesota Twins as they begin spring training.
The hook: The hook to this video used various sights and sounds to keep the person interested in watching the video. There were the sounds of cleats and baseball’s hitting gloves as well as a raking the dirt in the infield. About 20 seconds in you hear the voice of a Twins player and why he loves spring training and baseball.
The hero: the videographer made you want to care about the Minnesota Twins by interviewing players and using great natural sounds. What the players said in the interview made you want to care about the Twins organization.
The story arc: The quest was to follow the Minnesota twins players and coaches as they geared up for another season by starting spring training. The images and sounds used made the viewer feel like they were there and part of the team.
The ending: The video ended by a player talking about how lucky he is to be able to play baseball for a living. It shows him signing an autograph for a little kid and then at the very end a coach throws a bag by the camera the end the video.
http://vimeo.com/30750870 This next video comes from McKenna Ewen’s blog as well. It is titled Quamba’s townball tradition.
The hook: The video starts with people yelling and the sound of a hit off the bat. There is a little kid in the stands and then it shows an image of a town sign with Quamba and population of 98. The different sounds and images used is what made it so effective.
The hero: The hero in the video was the head coach of Quamba’s team Stan Peterson. The video shows how he resurrected baseball in the town and the video makes you grow to like him. It depicts how much he cares about his town, team and his love of baseball.
The story arc: The quest showed how Stan Peterson resurrected an amateur baseball team by restarting it in 1990 after a 24-year absence. The images and sounds used make you realize how small the town is and it keeps you interested. One portion of the video shows where Peterson got kicked out of a game and he then walked across the street where his home was and continued to yell at the umpire.
The ending: The video ends by Peterson talking about his investment to the town and the game of baseball. He said that when he’s gone more people in the town will be able to enjoy the game.
http://vimeo.com/22136160 The last video I will critique comes from McKenna Ewen’s blog and it is about the Minnesota Twins players. They’re asked what they would do if they did not have baseball.
The hook: The video starts out by showing different visuals of baseball sights and sounds and some music to get the viewer interested. It was effective because the effects were a little different to open up the story.
The hero: The video makes the viewer care about the Minnesota Twins player’s because they seem down to earth in talking about what they would in their lives if they did not have baseball.
The story arc: The conflict was to challenge the Twins players to think about what they would do if they didn’t have baseball. The variety of players and interviews made it a successful story.
The ending: To wrap things up memorably there was one last interview with a Twins player and then it ends with a photography slideshow while fading to a black screen.
My takeaways: I think what made McKenna Ewen’s video stories so successful was the variety of images, natural sounds and the use of good hooks to pull in the viewer. When I complete my video story I will be sure and get as much natural sound and footage as possible so I can produce a good story like Ewen’s.
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