Video Critique Number 6
October 8, 2010 | Melanie Lerner
October 8, 2010 | Melanie Lerner
Title: Mack the Knife (from Vimeo)
1:09 seconds
This video is highly catchy and entertaining with a song (about Mackie being back in town) nicely complimenting the animation. There is no real storyline per say or concept/theme, as it seems random phrases, names, and words appear together, but the piece does flows well. There is great attention to detail, seamless transitions, and a good bit of work spent on constructing and deconstructing typography. The pacing is well done, and the solid colored backgrounds interspersed from time to time definitely add for a nice contrast to the rest of the transitions in the piece, and the repetition in revealing the colored squares helps unify the work. There is an old time beat to the video with traditional sounding music, fused with modern/simplistic typography and illustration style. The video over all is successful, is aesthetically pleasing, and not see and say. In fact most of the video is done completely through typography, except for the opening section.
The main issues with the piece are that there are many instances of bad tracking and spacing between words. These awkward gaps of negative space detract from the video but could easily be fixed. Also there seems to be an awful lot of different typefaces incorporated into a short span of time. I’m not sure if this is entirely necessary. It might be more effective and cohesive for the artist to decide on 3 and then reuse them throughout.
Another area of concern is that the order in which type appears and is arranged on screen. The hierarchy seems a bit backwards. Rather than following the eye’s natural course of direction (top to bottom/left to right), the artist has changed things up. Words appear from bottom to top and in the reverse order. I don’t know if this is intentional but it does make it a bit confusing for the viewer to follow along. All in all though, the piece is well crafted, has a good color palette, and is fun to watch.
At 0:05 there should be a more interesting way for the bird to enter on screen besides suddenly appearing. Even flying in from one side would add a sense of motion and dynamics that would help.
At 0:15 there is a strange mix of typefaces and weight of those typefaces between the words, “Lies a body.” There are also tracking issues that need to be adjusted (too big of a gap right now). Tracking issues are again apparent at 0:24 in the spacing between the words “Is that” and again at 0:17-18 with the words “oozing life.”
Between 0:18-21 the effect used is PowerPoint like and resembles a 3-D cube turning from one side to another. There is probably a better way to demonstrate something sneaking around a corner. For example the type could come in slyly and disappear a few times or just a peak in bit by bit.
At 0:25 the question mark that is resting across the word “Knife” seems arbitrarily placed and doesn’t fit in well. The placement and negative space is awkward as well as forced and consequently distracts the viewer.
At 0:30 the word “Right” doesn’t align with any of the natural thresholds in the word “The.”
At 34-38 there is too much space between the words, “The cement’s just for the weight dear.”
At 0:56 the name “Polly Peacham” is executed in two different typefaces that don’t go with one another. “Polly” is altogether too faint.
The ending at 1:07 is weak and zooming in on the “C” in “Back” is strange. There should be another focal point to end on or maybe a different type of transition/effect to use altogether.
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