1st Place
Emily Landeen KTVA, Anchorage, AK "Faces of Spice"
Judges Comments
AD-WTVF Face of Spice 9 9 8 9 I can't believe you got that on camera! It shows your commitment to the heart of this story. Most people would have waved him off, but look what happens when you don't. You and your reporter did a great job capturing different elements. My only thing, I would have liked to have had some sound explaining exactly what's in spice joints. That's the only element missing for me.
CC-WTVF Face of Spice 10 9 8 9 Powerful, emotional and raw. Great job sticking with the shot. During the first part of the story with the woman who was fairily emotional I didn't need that harsh push. Just because someone is crying doesn't mean you need to zoom in on their face. Good for you guys for your committiment.
AB-WTVF Face of Spice 10 9 8 10 Nice pacing! The shot of the cards and gambling with life... nicely written, and that is a result of a clear collaborative effort between the photographer and reporter. Jeff smoking spice on camera?! WHAT???? And then the physical reaction to the drug was unbelievable... to see his face change as the effects start to amplify, it was gripping. Then, to get the friend's reaction too showed extra committment to give another level of context for what was happening. What a shot of lifting the guy into the ambulance as a NAT transition! This piece captured the emotional testimony of the community the drug affects the community, and then seeing the drug effects on video was absolutely captivating. Nothing fancy, and it didn't need it. Just a great, well-rounded story. Well done!
2nd Place
Bill Cortez KOIN, Portland, OR "Andie's Army"
Judges Comments
AD-WTVF Andie's Army 7 8 7 8 I really liked your opening shot! Nice use of the GoPro as well. The music was out of place I thought, it didn't bring anything together. Nice work.
CC-WTVF Andie's Army 7 7 6 9 Some really nice stuff here. I would've like maybe some more shots off the sticks of you ahead of the crowd as they were walking up the hill. Also was there any kind of view up there? Wondering if that might have made some kind of a nice closing shot.
AB-WTVF Andie's Army 7 6 6 8 I enjoyed watching this story. She was a good character, and there was good conflict-resolution story structure: showing the struggle itself (hiking the hill) makes the narrative go well. Dissolve into the first title shot interview was to cover a jump cut- maybe next time find a good shot of her walking out of frame, then the time-space separation wouldn't be as harsh. Try to frame out the reporter in walking shot. Great gopro shots; they really helped spread the visual variety! The angle when she goes under the tunnel at the top of the hill was really nice. Get tighter cutaways to help your sequences have even more visual variety. There were a couple of unneccesary zooms, but I did like the one you had with the bikes because the movement started and finished before the next cut. Well placed dissolve to reveal the hundreds of people at the run. Good long shot of the feet when you first start the sequence with the track in it. Wide shot of the "army" when the camera was placed on the ground was unsteady. Maybe aquire a steady bag to help with those low-angles. I didn't think the music was necessary in this story- I still had feeling for the character, and didn't need a track to tell me that subliminaly. Overall though, nice work with this story.
3rd Place
Andy Miller KMGH, Denver, CO "I Do"
Judges Comments
AD-WTVF I Do 7 7 7 7
CC-WTVF I Do 7 8 7 6 Slow down. Take a deep breath with stories like this, let them breath. I felt like I was being pushed in the begining when I needed to sit back and absorb. The pictures of the two at the start was a bit jarring. Nice use of post production. And WOAH his dad is a cop? That's a HUGE reveal and you guys really didn't do much with it.
AB-WTVF I Do 7 9 7 7 Nice opening shot. Great sequencing with the re-creation of the scene and the dispatch calls. Good post-production with AE and the transitions. Everything was pretty solid in this from the shooting and production standpoint.
Honorable Mention
Sean Estes KTVK-KPHO, Phoenix, AZ "Paint the Rink Pink"
Judges Comments
CC-WTVF Paint the Rink Pink 6 8 6 7 Nice littel NAT pkg. Good compostion of shots and some nice moments. I needed to hear someone else talking about your main character to give this another layer.
AB-WTVF Paint the Rink Pink 7 9 6 7 Too much headroom on first title shot, but otherwise great sequences and nats! You use your lens very well; nice depth of field, and great action in the frame. The only thing the story lacked was another character to give contrast to your main subject. NAT mic up a team member, someone in the crowd watching. Nice NATPKG!
AD-WTVF Paint the Rink Pink 5 7 6 6 I liked your editing here, seemless audio througout. Nat packs are tough to do especially with just 1 interview. I would've liked to have heard from other team members, coach, ppl in the crowd for it to full like a well rounded story.
Judges: WTVF-TV