1st Place
Michael Driver KATU (Portland, OR)
Judges Comments
A Day To Reflect 8 9 9 8 Nice piece for what could have easily just been a VOSOT. Obviously what stands out is the creative framing of all the interview reflections. Kudos for making that happen. I would have liked to see the framing change up from soundbite to soundbite. It's nit-picky, but had you not done the reflections I would wanted a change in framing in those interview shots. Lastly, I didn't think you need any of the dissolves. In my opinion they were so quick, 30 frames or so, that they didn't add much of an effect. You could have just used cuts. Nice story.
A Day To Reflect 7 9 8 8 I liked the symoblism you were going for in your reflection shots. My only critique with those is perhaps you could've gone a bit wider on the older gentleman the second time around to we could see where that reflection is from. I know you were working with a reporter here but don't be afraid to ask some questions yourself, a few more references by your characters about "reflecting" in those "reflection" shots would've really knocked this one out of the park. Nice flow throught out and closing shot.
A Day To Reflect 8 9 9 8 Good work going the extra mile to turn a VOSOT into a pkg. Great job on sticking to a theme throughout. It was very easy to follow and a treat to watch. Great creativity with the reflections on interviews, but try finding a way to work more reflections into your b-roll as well. Great closing shot
2nd Place
Shawn Wilson KTUU (Anchorage, AK)
Judges Comments
CH - KUSA First Day of Fall 7 8 8 8 Really nicely done. Simple edit. But clean crisp images. Good active sound. I would have liked to see a more compelling closing shot or a character flushed out a bit more. But nice story.
CC - WTVF First Day of Fall 7 8 9 8 Nice little natural moments of the guy fishing, really appreciated that. Great pacing. Two times you missed opportunities to have your video match what was being said. Your reporter said "swings in the other direction" .. let me see a nice tight of that swing and when the old man references the snow capped mountains, let us see a great beauty shot.
JG - WBFF First Day of Fall 6 8 8 8 Very clean. Nicely done. Work on closing shots. Keep up your efforts in creative interview shots. The SOT through the trees saw your reporter on the left. It's a small thing but try to clean that up. No need to see her there. Nice job.
3rd Place
Steve Reusch KGTV (San Diego, CA)
Judges Comments
CH - KUSA Water Waste 6 6 5 6 I liked your story structure here. Simple. But also effective. The lady was a good way to get into the story. Really work to smooth out some of your audio in the edit. Your video edits were nice. The sequence of the guy scooping the water out of the street and into his lawn worked well. You do a nice job finding good foreground/background compositions. Just make sure you watch where you are focusing. Twice I noticed the water would be the *FOCUS* of the shot, but it was out of focus. Instead what was sharp was the orange street cone or the blooming flower. FOCUS ON THE WATER. Otherwise, nice deadline. Also - yours is the third story I've seen where your entry does not have mixed audio. Please mix your audio going forward.
CC - WTVF Water Waste 5 7 6 6 You had some nice NATS of the water here that were very crisp and edited in quite well. The guy scooping water into his lawn was probably the best part of the story. What I needed here was a better begining. Think about opening shots while you're out there.
JG-WBFF Water Waste 6 7 6 7 I really enjoyed this one! No nonsense and kept my attention. Nice use of nat sound but don't forget to mix your audio
Honorable Mention
Emily Landeen KTVA (Anchorage, AK)
Judges Comments
CH - KUSA Way Worse Than This Morning 5 5 5 5 Really nice edit in this story. It flowed nicely. I would have liked to hear more of the natural sound of the water underneath the track. It sounded like you were in such a quiet place when I can only imagine what it must have sounded like to have all the water going by. One thing to try and do is to get your reporter to back off for a moment and to stay with you as you get a big wide shot with the guy who evacuated his house. All of the sound in this story is the guy and the fire chief interacting with either you or your reporter. Give them an opportunity to be by themselves for a moment. Maybe they'll make a phone call and talk to someone else. Maybe they'll take a deep sigh as they look out onto the water. Doing this will help create opportunties to witness and capture moments. You'll hear the guy's anxiety in his sigh versus relying on him to communicate that to you during the interview.
CC - WTVF Way Worse Than This Morning 5 5 5 7
JG - WBFF Way Worse Than This Morning 6 6 6 6 Nice stuff. You're doing a good job fitting nat sound in with a purpose, I just wish the nat sound was better. Put your mic closer to the water to get that. Your camera can zoom, your mic cannot. Crisp clean nat sound takes this story to another level. Try to avoid zooms. Especially in interviews. Find a framing and commit to it. Move during reporter questions. Good effort. Keep at it!
Judges: KUSA, WBFF, WTVF