1st Place
Carolyn Hall KTVA Anchorage, AK
Judges Comments
SS, WTIC A Dip 8 9 8 8 Great moment - not only with 'the dip,' but also, the reaction from the truck driver! Love it! Rock solid shots throughout. Good nats - drain, keys on lock, the 'weer?' This is like a series of short vignettes, which together, tell the bigger story. We get to see how the flooding impacts an individual - with the business, and the stuck car; and the community - with the streets closed, the crews working, and public works responding. Each part seems to one-up the previous, building to the end - the street floods, the realtor looses business, public works opens up a flood gate which only happens a few times a year, then the big finish. Too many would have started with the tow truck because it's the most dramatic thing you have. I like that you built to it. The only thing missing is a negative action closing shot. The tow truck leaving? Or maybe even flip flopping the last 2 shots, though I don't know if that would be a jump cut. Nice job!
A Dip 8 9 8 9 I have nothing to add to this one - loved it! Especially when the tow truck driver popped up out of the water. Nice surprise!
JBH WTIC A Dip 8 8 6 8 Very nice job. You had a nice variety of shots throughout the piece. Great sequencing. Your composition for the first interview was nice. Great use of nats, especially under your reporter's track. It was nice to hear the sound of water and rain underneath your video.
2nd Place
David Brooks KTUU (Anchorage, AK)
Judges Comments
SS, WTIC The Hardest Days of My Life 8 6 7 8 Good character, great moments. It's refreshing you didn't start with the mudslide. I'm not crazy about your open shot - it's an unmotivated camera move. There are better ways to establish where you are. At first I'm hearing a coffee grinder or drink mixer - How about a tight shot of that, to a wider static inside the shop. Be careful of the jumpcut between :15-:19. Again, tight shot in the shop - without Meghan in it - to cover 'the mood here' would get you out of it. Love that you stayed on her as she gathered her composure. Made me feel it. The chief too. Most of the video of the mudslide scene is rock solid, a few shots look hand held - particularly the guys interview. If you're not moving, walking around, why not put it on the tripod? (especially if you lugged it all the way in there!!) Good beginning/middle/end. This is a good example of telling a story, as opposed to just reporting something happened.
The Hardest Days of My Life 7 7 7 8 I didn't like the opening shot... a tilt up really doesn't do anything for me. Also, a quick nat pop to introduce the Governor could've broken up the track. But overall, the shots were really solid.
JBH WTIC The Hardest Days of My Life 6 5 5 6 Not a fan of the opening shot. A nice wide of the coffee house would have been a nice shot with the sound of coffee machine nats underneath. Your camera was a little all over the place when interviewing the young lady at the coffee shop. You had some nice moments scattered throughout the piece. Some of the reporters track repeated what the following sound bite would say. At the 1:23 mark where you are shooting the wife of the missing man...see if you can go to the front of her so you can see her face. (I know it's an emotional moment, however, all I see is the back of her head. I think you could have closed the package on the last sound bite of the young lady at the coffee house. No need for your reporter's track...since she basically repeated what the girl said.
3rd Place
Steve Kaufmann KTVZ (Bend, OR)
Judges Comments
SS, WTIC Canyon Creek Fire 7 5 5 7 Some good moments - homeowner at beginning, folks talking in town, rooster call. Be careful of unmotivated camera movement - the 'pan/tilt to nowhere.' Think of how your eyes take in a scene. Would you look down the ravine at burning timber, than, slowly turn your head to look at the fire truck? Probably not, those would be 2 different 'shots.' Get closer, tighter tights. Getting closer also gets your mic closer, giving you better nats. I know it's a fire, you have to be careful, but, you probably could have gotten closer to the fire truck. The sequence with the burned bridge was a little quick, I didn't get a chance to see the burned bridge, and understand what it was. Going into town was good - it helped give the story perspective. The homeowner is a closeup view of the problem, the town is a wider view - how it impacts the community.
Canyon Creek Fire 6 4 4 6 There were lots of good shots. I didn't like some of the panning, particulary the one at 1:38 - it was a little dizzying. But the people talking in town, rooster call, and taking the time to put a lav on your MOS were all nice touches. The shot of the burned bridge is really cool, but it was so fast, without the track I wouldn't have known what it was.
JBH WTIC Canyon Creek Fire 7 6 5 7 The positives: You had a character and you stuck with him. You introduced him in the beginning and ended with him. You had a good variance of shots throughout the package. With your nats and sound the package flowed. Thought you stuck with the story. The negatives: Not a fan of the pan shots at :08 and 1:38. The shots were forced. No need to pan. Just needed a nice wide shot. I would have used a better closing shot to end the story.
Honorable Mention
HM Stephen Mazurek KTVA (Anchorage, AK)
Judges Comments
SS, WTIC High Water Danger 6 5 4 5 Good characters. Beginning would be better if we see more of the gear he's talking about. We see fishing poles, but show us the safety gear, life jackets, etc. Then pop him up for 'plenty of beer.' The moment would have more impact. Looks like you weren't able to capture much of the debris causing the problem - just the 1 shot of the log. I want to see closer shots of the river. Get the camera right down ground/water level, where the reporter is standing with the parks guy. Right on the edge. Let me see, hear, and feel the water rushing by. About :30 in, when you introduce the problem, a good close-up nat pop of rushing water would make a good transition. The rushing water is a nat sound gold mine, but, I feel like it's not in there at all. More tight shots of rushing water might also disguise the lack of debris video. The interview framing is really good. Going back to the boaters at the end wraps it up well. A better closing shot would have been the boaters shoving off. (I'm guessing you had to leave before they did?)
High Water Danger 5 4 4 5 Start with nats. You could've had them talking, and then perhaps a quick nat sequence of them packing their gear? Also, on one of the interviews I could see the lav mic wire. Make sure that's tucked in before you start the interview. Your shot at 1:13 with the water rushing by was cool - I'd like to see more of that. If your station gives you a GoPro, put it in the water.
JBH WTIC High Water Danger 5 5 4 4 You stuck with a central character. At the :26 mark your interview was nicely composed. I would have loved to have seen a little more variance of shots and nats scattered throughout the piece. Maybe some nice tight shots of your character pulling out some fishing supplies. There were alot of wides but not that many tights to help you get out of those wide shots. The first two shot...you could have cut the reporters question to introduce Matthew Conner. Just have him say "It's almost eery" then have her introduce him. The second two shot you see her lips flap over her track. Looked weird. The nats under your water shots needed to be pulled up a little to hear the water under her track. Not sure if this was a spot news piece, but you did a good job.
Judges: WTIC