OT: give 1,000 monkeys a camcorder and ...

rs170a wrote on 1/23/2006, 3:46 PM
Ok, no monkeys but here's an article from Wired talking about the new Beastie Boys movie.
From the site:
The Beasties, an iconoclastic, 40-something hip-hop band, handed out 55 Hi-8 and six digital video cameras at a Madison Square Garden on October 9, 2004. They also gave their untrained videographers some simple instructions: do whatever you want -- rock out, act like a filmmaker, try and sneak backstage -- but keep rolling tape.

Looks like skilled videographers are being replaced everywhere :-)

Mike

Comments

jrazz wrote on 1/23/2006, 4:25 PM
Can you imagine trying to line up 61 tracks of footage? Even dividing that up by 3 still gives a lot of footage to look at and sort through and find the keepers. I have enough trouble editing with 4 cameras, let alone 61!
I am sure though that they took a recording of the live music and plugged video in the way they wanted it. It would be maddening to try to sync up 61 cameras... but it could be done I am sure; any ideas on the editing process for something like this? I know they said they used 3 teams of editors on FCP Macs and took that to make the final cut (no pun intended). Just curious what the workflow would look like here.

j razz
Chienworks wrote on 1/23/2006, 4:32 PM
I really doubt they would even dream of attempting to sync 61 cameras. Much more likely a large part of the year was spent reviewing footage and choosing the bits he wanted first and collecting those bits into a folder. After that it would only require syncing a very small number of clips at each edit point.
p@mast3rs wrote on 1/23/2006, 4:42 PM
I have read that Sundance has sucked so far this year with only one movie "Sunshine" something being majorly bid upon. Thats only because my film hasnt started production yet but i know in my heart that it will be good enough to garner some decent bids.
John_Cline wrote on 1/23/2006, 9:26 PM
Subject: Scientists teach Monkeys to Edit Video
Contact: Yerkes Primate Research Center (Atlanta)

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Scientists at the Yerkes Primate Research Center in Atlanta reported today that they have successfully trained Rhesus monkeys to perform video editing tasks.

The development was hailed by the anthropological researchers as an enormous step forward in bridging the evolutionary gap between lower and upper primates. In a related move, members of the television production industry also applauded the development, citing significant cost reductions it could achieve in the field of video post production.

Dr. Emil Bermon of Emory University in Atlanta lead the team of geneticists, behavioral scientists and video engineers that successfully trained a group of six monkeys in advanced editing techniques in less than three weeks. The monkeys easily mastered Sony's Vegas NLE software and even graduated to operation of hardware digital special effects generators and complex, multi-buss production switchers. "About the only thing they couldn't do was make dubs and submit their time sheets." Dr Bermon stated. "They were especially adept at digital effects, though. I think they were amused by the funny lights."

Industry officials in the TV production centers of Los Angeles and New York were clearly excited about the news, although for decidedly different reasons than the scientific community. One operator of a video editing company was quoted as saying the prospect of monkeys editing could revive the declining trade. "They'd work for bananas. It's a sensational idea." Another pointed out the advantage of placing monkeys in editing sessions with ad agency clients."Finally, the agency people would be working with someone who could understand where they were coming from."

The scientists in Atlanta were quick to point out that monkeys would not be ready to start assuming senior editor positions at the nations video post-production studios until sometime in the future; perhaps as early as next spring.

Based on the success of this project, Dr. Bermon and his team are preparing to ask Congress for additional funding. "We've been studying the responsibilities of the commercial director, and we're convinced our chimps have what it takes to produce spots that sell." The research team expects to have a reel by the end of next summer, and are exploring possible representation.
AlanC wrote on 1/24/2006, 1:21 AM
And this is their first production:

http://www.boreme.com/boreme/funny-2004/m_monkey_smell-p1.php