#some of my weirdest walks about town have been soundtracked by a the mars volta record. still not sure if I'm a fan after all these years

[gentleoverdrive]

(154/?) And when they drag the lake there's nothing left at all...

I think video essays, especially those that concern entertainment, need a little check-up really bad. A ton of podcasts have fucking poisoned the landscape at large with their predisposition towards meandering, and the thing is that using certain stuff as "background noise" while you do other activities is hurting media at large.

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...was that too "old man yells at cloud"-y? It was, wasn't it? Fuck! Look, unless your topic is specifically concerning that, it ain't rocket science: If you are going to write essays and then film a video around said essays, trust me that there's nothing wrong with having the guts to make hard cuts. That, or have the guts to admit that your voice/presence is not good enough and have someone with actual charisma tackle the topic.

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"But why go through all that bullshit?" you ask, expectedly (listen, I know you don't exist, strawman-I-just-made-up, so just bear with me here, a'ight?); well, that's simple! Unless you're there to educate and you're actually qualified to teach something, if you're on YouTube or Vimeo or whichever video-sharing website, you probably want to be entertaining and keep the viewers attention.

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Do you know why something like this...

(not a Scooby-Doo guy, by the way, but is it ever entertaining to hear this dork go on and on about it)

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...actually manages to work while something like this...

(listen, I generally enjoy the games, but no character in the franchise needs a feature-length documentary about them. Come on)

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... just kinda makes you wonder if the guy bothered to actually listen to his editors about making hard cuts (and yes, I am aware that the video essay/"documentary" about Edelgard is around 40% longer). And I know that a tremendous amount of effort went into both of these videos before they saw the light of day, but I legitimately think that the approach in both of these is like night and day.

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Neither of them have a particularly good voice, but the guy in the scooby-doo video at least seems aware of his limitations and manages to make up for them in other ways and by playing to his strengths and the topic's strength to make for an effective, infectious and fairly entertaining video.

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The Fire Emblem guy has been doing this sort of thing for at least half a decade and, while he's always been a little janky on his delivery, some of his previous content was bearable/even entertaining (even if literary analysis has never been his strong point). So again, please: Even if you're making longer format content, have the guts to cut.

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If it worked for Elmore Leonard and Kurt Vonnegut, it should reasonably work for you. Have the guts to cut and get out there and start kicking much ass! See ya' later!

#diary #daily life of an old shithead #the mars volta reference #some of my weirdest walks about town have been soundtracked by a the mars volta record. still not sure if I'm a fan after all these years #i loved at the drive-in. especially since I got to see them live before they broke up the first time. absolute madmen all of them #the mars volta were good but at that point I had simply moved away from what they had to offer me. it happens #that being said I still totally pop De-Loused in the Comatorium and Amputechture on occasion on occasion. as a treat. #video essay #on writing #jelloapocalypse #ghaaast #it's legitimately remarkable how good-enough control on your editing can get me interested in the topic #meanwhile the guy 20-year-old me would've been like 'Shut up and take my money'... I often just feel like telling him 'hey! restraint bro' #if I never see the Dimitri and Edelgard videos every again #it'd be too soon. #because jeez louise: The padding on his videos