Post by Elvira on Feb 23, 2007 6:23:51 GMT -5
This board is a companion of the fan video site FoolishPassion.org. Here we will discuss technical issues with making fan videos, post finished (and unfinished) videos, and get all techno-geeky and artsy-fartsy when we want to.
But, it's not just for vidders (people who make fan videos), it's for the viewers and fans of these videos as well. We'd love to hear your ideas, input, reviews, and opinions. If you have a video request (song suggestion for a particular fandom) or you want to recommend a great video you discovered, you've come to the right place!
Right now this board's ambitions are rather modest—it's just meant to be a nice little place to chat about fan videos. We don't aspire to be the ultimate place to talk about vidding—we are just here to learn something new and have fun!
All fan video fandoms are welcome, but please do not post clips or videos which are unsuitable for viewers under the age of 17.
FP.org's forum guidelines, in a short paragraph:
Complete sentences, proper grammar and spelling, no bootlegged movie clips, no illicit filesharing links, no talk about how you bootlegged or pirated your software, no clip theft, respect vidders' rights, videos and discussions should be suitable for age 17 and under, no bad language, be polite, and most importantly, NO DRAMA! We should all be here to share our love for fan videos, so let's all get along and have fun. 
Now, for the specifics (mandatory to read as well) . . .
Guidelines for posting on FP's boards (as well as Proboards rules):
We are going to attempt to be very vigilant in keeping within Proboards' rules. They have been known to delete boards (without notice) for rule violations.
English only. This is a rule with Proboards.
We don't expect flawless spelling and grammar, but please, no text speak ("ur" instead of "your"). You are not on your cell phone. It's okay to type out complete words and sentences. In addition, please use appropriate punctuation and capitalization.
No posting of links to your own site (which should be related to fan videos) until you have made at least 10 posts to the boards. Links for off-topic or non-video related sites may be deleted without notice, especially if you have a low post count.
Sig graphics should be no larger than 500 pixels width, 200 pixels height. Avatars should be 100x100 pixels and no larger. Oversized avatar graphics squeezed into the small 100x100 pixel avatar dimensions look bad and take forever for dial-up users to download.
Be mindful of dial-up customers when posting pictures. No oversized images, and all graphics should be less than 100 KB each, excepting for special circumstances.
No hotlinking. Don't know what hotlinking is? Read this.
Please, lighten up! No flaming or contentious posts. We all should be happy people, talking about fan videos. If your behavior is deemed to be harassing or excessively aggressive, you will be warned, and possibly banned.
No crude or rough language. Use asterisks to partially obscure the spelling of a swear word (if you feel you must use stronger language), or better still, use the milder variations ("Darn" and so forth).
No duplicate accounts. One account per user. Having two accounts at the same time is rather loserific. If you are away for a while and forget your old username and/or password, then post a message in the Welcome/Intro board as a guest and we'll set something up for you.
This is a forum about fan videos—making them and appreciating them. While some commentary about the fandoms (as well as actors, actresses) is expected, please remember to keep your comments tasteful and respectful. Some of our members will be young, or perhaps just prudish. We want everyone to feel comfortable here.
Clearly label all spoilers and video content warnings. Since we're going to be discussing movies and TV shows (and showing videos devoted to them) it's important that we label any potential spoilers, for those who have not seen the latest episodes.
As mentioned before, no video clips or videos which contain anything inappropriate for those under the age of 17. Some milder adult content (for instance, the wedding night scene from "Sparkhouse") will be allowed if an "adult content" warning is given when posting the video. Proboards is very strict about adult content, so please use discretion.
Even if a video does not technically violate Proboards' rules, it may not be a good fit here. Videos which have excessive violence, excessive horror scenes, or potentially disturbing content (like implied incest) are going to disturb many viewers. Please send a message to one of the moderators if you have any questions about a video you'd like to announce or submit for review.
NO LINKS TO BITTORRENT / ILLICIT FILE SHARING sites, for entire downloadable episodes or films, or bootleg software. Openly discussing the acquiring of bootlegged anything (software, movies, books, etc) will put Proboards in a very bad mood. Look, I know that sometimes we find workarounds to tide us over while we wait for the DVD of our favorite TV show to be released commercially. But please, let's not get into the specifics of that, okay? And the same thing goes for software—no specifics on how to acquire software without paying for it, okay?
Referring to the last bit above about software, NO TALK OF "FREE" SOFTWARE THAT ISN'T REALLY "FREE." No, Sony Vegas is not "free"—never has been. Neither is Adobe Premiere Pro. Or Final Cut. If you are using this software but didn't pay for it, it's because you bootlegged it, not because it's "free." iMovie is "free" to all new Mac users, and Windows Movie Maker is a "free" download. No other reputable video editor is. If you bootleg software, that is your own business, but please don't talk about it as if it is the normal way of things. It's skirting too close to violating Proboards' rules for our comfort.
Fan Video-specific Protocols for All Members:
No clip theft, no clip theft, no clip theft. Don't know what clip theft is? Read this page. Do NOT show videos here which have used "stolen" clips. Learn how to rip your own. The tutorials on FP.org will show you how.
Please do not show videos which have clips from bootlegged feature films. (In other words, a film has been shown in the theaters, the DVD is not yet released, so you use clips from a bootlegged copy.) Using bootlegged movie clips is very frowned upon in the vidding community.
Using footage from TV shows (before the DVD is available for sale) is generally felt to be okay, since many vidders can get clips from the DVD-R or DVR recordings they make of the broadcast.
No copying or re-uploading anyone's videos elsewhere, without their consent. Each vidder has the right to determine to what extent they want to share or distribute their work. Sharing YouTube links or links to the vidder's own website (if publicly available) is acceptable, of course.
It is wearying to see continual requests for free "downloadable" copies of entire episodes of TV shows or films, when the DVDs are available for sale. If you admire the show enough to do a vid for it, you should be willing to buy the DVD. However, sometimes short clips or excerpts from a show (preferably without audio) are made available for vidders who do not have a DVD drive in their computer (or are waiting for the DVD to be made available in their country) and this is usually considered acceptable. But please remember: You are not entitled to a free download of a show, simply because you don't want to buy the DVD.
When posting a link to your video, give a description or disclaimer in the video's description which discloses specifics about the video's theme or story. Is your video alternative universe, slash, has spoilers, or focuses on a specific romantic pairing in the movie or show? Not everyone cares to see AU (alternate universe) videos, nor slash videos, not everyone wants to see spoilers in videos, or videos which focus on couples like Robin and Marian (or non-canon pairings such Marian and Allan, or Allan and Guy) from a show. ("Non-canon" in this context means, "It wasn't actually written in the show.") Slash videos are should be labeled as "slash" and the couple featured should be mentioned. (i.e. "Luke/Han"). (NOTE: If a video focuses on a same-sex couple which existed in the TV show or movie [such as Jack and Ennis from "Brokeback Mountain"], that is not considered slash, since the couple was written into the film's storyline. However, since any pairing or couples video should be labled as such, a label or disclosure is still required.) An example of a proper "warning" or "disclaimer" might be, "WARNING: Season 3 spoilers" or "ROBIN AND MARIAN video."
Read the Guidelines for Giving or Receiving a Review/Critique before participating in the Fan Video Review forum.
Misc. (Disclaimers, Warnings, and Other Notes of Interest)
Just a few notes about the standards we try to adhere to, and a bit about the philosophy around here:
I made this banner, and I'm not afraid to use it!
Yes, we all probably have done it, and some times, we don't think it gives us any problems (that we identify as being from XviD, anyway). But that doesn't mean that it's an editable codec. Warnings about editing with XviD, DivX, WMV and others. Also, MPEG isn't great for editing either. Edit with these codecs if you wish—we don't care, we aren't here to monitor you or try to "fix" your editing habits if you are happy with them. But we will not look kindly upon you spreading ignorance about the advisability of editing in non-standard (often problematic) codecs. Read this thread for more information.
We're a big fan of AMV.org's and Ishtori.net's vidding tutorials. Now, Foolishpassion.org's tutorials certainly do not adhere 100% to what AMV.org or Ishtori say (they are "dumbed down" considerably), but for the most part, these two sources of information are usually regarded as pretty good, so you'll see many links and references to these two resources on this forum.
We're all learning all the time (I certainly have significant gaps of knowledge when it comes to vidding) so new ideas or techniques are always welcome. Workarounds that bend or break the "rules" are sometimes necessary, but it's always good to remember that some of these rules help prevent bad quality and other vidding difficulties.
One of our focuses here is to try to encourage good habits in the technical area of video editing. That means, having some awareness of how "presentation" can affect a video's success. (If it's got squished and distorted aspect ratio, horrible tinny sound, or fuzzy dim picture, it's simply not enjoyable to look at!)
Cross-platform is where it's at, and we'll try to be as inclusive here as possible. Both Windows and Mac users have some wonderful video editing programs available to them.
Your videos will be judged on their merits, not by what software was used. Even the most basic software can create a good video; it just depends on the patience and skill of the vidder. With that said, not all software is created equal, and some programs typically have more shortcomings. If you have quality issues due to these shortcomings, you may find that many other vidders will be encouraging you to upgrade to something else.
I am the Aspect Ratio Diva. It's my pet issue. We all have to have one! (Don't know what aspect ratio is? Read this tutorial and watch this (tongue-in-cheek) YouTube video.) I promise to not be unkind about it, but if your videos have aspect ratio problems, you'll eventually be informed. Don't feel bad if you find out that you've been an aspect ratio abuser—it's a very common problem in vidding, so you definitely are not alone!
NEWBIES/LURKERS WILL MISS OUT!
There are features on this board which are not enabled for lurkers or members with less than 25 posts. To see what you're missing out on, participate some more! It's worth it! 
"Foolish Passion" comes from the North & South miniseries (not the Civil War one, but the BBC production starring Richard Armitage and Daniela Denby-Ashe). If you view the small video clip on the main page of FoolishPassion.com, you'll see Richard Armitage tell Daniela Denby-Ashe that his foolish passion for her is over. (But of course it isn't, not by a long shot! )
Foolishpassion.org is a "sister" site to the .com domain, and was originally used for hosting additional North & South fan videos. Then a fan video tutorial area was added, and the rest is history.
But, it's not just for vidders (people who make fan videos), it's for the viewers and fans of these videos as well. We'd love to hear your ideas, input, reviews, and opinions. If you have a video request (song suggestion for a particular fandom) or you want to recommend a great video you discovered, you've come to the right place!
Right now this board's ambitions are rather modest—it's just meant to be a nice little place to chat about fan videos. We don't aspire to be the ultimate place to talk about vidding—we are just here to learn something new and have fun!
All fan video fandoms are welcome, but please do not post clips or videos which are unsuitable for viewers under the age of 17.
FP.org's forum guidelines, in a short paragraph:
Complete sentences, proper grammar and spelling, no bootlegged movie clips, no illicit filesharing links, no talk about how you bootlegged or pirated your software, no clip theft, respect vidders' rights, videos and discussions should be suitable for age 17 and under, no bad language, be polite, and most importantly, NO DRAMA! We should all be here to share our love for fan videos, so let's all get along and have fun. Now, for the specifics (mandatory to read as well) . . .
Guidelines for posting on FP's boards (as well as Proboards rules):
We are going to attempt to be very vigilant in keeping within Proboards' rules. They have been known to delete boards (without notice) for rule violations.
English only. This is a rule with Proboards.
We don't expect flawless spelling and grammar, but please, no text speak ("ur" instead of "your"). You are not on your cell phone. It's okay to type out complete words and sentences. In addition, please use appropriate punctuation and capitalization.
No posting of links to your own site (which should be related to fan videos) until you have made at least 10 posts to the boards. Links for off-topic or non-video related sites may be deleted without notice, especially if you have a low post count.
Sig graphics should be no larger than 500 pixels width, 200 pixels height. Avatars should be 100x100 pixels and no larger. Oversized avatar graphics squeezed into the small 100x100 pixel avatar dimensions look bad and take forever for dial-up users to download.
Be mindful of dial-up customers when posting pictures. No oversized images, and all graphics should be less than 100 KB each, excepting for special circumstances.
No hotlinking. Don't know what hotlinking is? Read this.
Please, lighten up! No flaming or contentious posts. We all should be happy people, talking about fan videos. If your behavior is deemed to be harassing or excessively aggressive, you will be warned, and possibly banned.
No crude or rough language. Use asterisks to partially obscure the spelling of a swear word (if you feel you must use stronger language), or better still, use the milder variations ("Darn" and so forth).
No duplicate accounts. One account per user. Having two accounts at the same time is rather loserific. If you are away for a while and forget your old username and/or password, then post a message in the Welcome/Intro board as a guest and we'll set something up for you.
This is a forum about fan videos—making them and appreciating them. While some commentary about the fandoms (as well as actors, actresses) is expected, please remember to keep your comments tasteful and respectful. Some of our members will be young, or perhaps just prudish. We want everyone to feel comfortable here.
Clearly label all spoilers and video content warnings. Since we're going to be discussing movies and TV shows (and showing videos devoted to them) it's important that we label any potential spoilers, for those who have not seen the latest episodes.
As mentioned before, no video clips or videos which contain anything inappropriate for those under the age of 17. Some milder adult content (for instance, the wedding night scene from "Sparkhouse") will be allowed if an "adult content" warning is given when posting the video. Proboards is very strict about adult content, so please use discretion.
Even if a video does not technically violate Proboards' rules, it may not be a good fit here. Videos which have excessive violence, excessive horror scenes, or potentially disturbing content (like implied incest) are going to disturb many viewers. Please send a message to one of the moderators if you have any questions about a video you'd like to announce or submit for review.
NO LINKS TO BITTORRENT / ILLICIT FILE SHARING sites, for entire downloadable episodes or films, or bootleg software. Openly discussing the acquiring of bootlegged anything (software, movies, books, etc) will put Proboards in a very bad mood. Look, I know that sometimes we find workarounds to tide us over while we wait for the DVD of our favorite TV show to be released commercially. But please, let's not get into the specifics of that, okay? And the same thing goes for software—no specifics on how to acquire software without paying for it, okay?
Referring to the last bit above about software, NO TALK OF "FREE" SOFTWARE THAT ISN'T REALLY "FREE." No, Sony Vegas is not "free"—never has been. Neither is Adobe Premiere Pro. Or Final Cut. If you are using this software but didn't pay for it, it's because you bootlegged it, not because it's "free." iMovie is "free" to all new Mac users, and Windows Movie Maker is a "free" download. No other reputable video editor is. If you bootleg software, that is your own business, but please don't talk about it as if it is the normal way of things. It's skirting too close to violating Proboards' rules for our comfort.
Fan Video-specific Protocols for All Members:
No clip theft, no clip theft, no clip theft. Don't know what clip theft is? Read this page. Do NOT show videos here which have used "stolen" clips. Learn how to rip your own. The tutorials on FP.org will show you how.
Please do not show videos which have clips from bootlegged feature films. (In other words, a film has been shown in the theaters, the DVD is not yet released, so you use clips from a bootlegged copy.) Using bootlegged movie clips is very frowned upon in the vidding community.
Using footage from TV shows (before the DVD is available for sale) is generally felt to be okay, since many vidders can get clips from the DVD-R or DVR recordings they make of the broadcast.
No copying or re-uploading anyone's videos elsewhere, without their consent. Each vidder has the right to determine to what extent they want to share or distribute their work. Sharing YouTube links or links to the vidder's own website (if publicly available) is acceptable, of course.
It is wearying to see continual requests for free "downloadable" copies of entire episodes of TV shows or films, when the DVDs are available for sale. If you admire the show enough to do a vid for it, you should be willing to buy the DVD. However, sometimes short clips or excerpts from a show (preferably without audio) are made available for vidders who do not have a DVD drive in their computer (or are waiting for the DVD to be made available in their country) and this is usually considered acceptable. But please remember: You are not entitled to a free download of a show, simply because you don't want to buy the DVD.
When posting a link to your video, give a description or disclaimer in the video's description which discloses specifics about the video's theme or story. Is your video alternative universe, slash, has spoilers, or focuses on a specific romantic pairing in the movie or show? Not everyone cares to see AU (alternate universe) videos, nor slash videos, not everyone wants to see spoilers in videos, or videos which focus on couples like Robin and Marian (or non-canon pairings such Marian and Allan, or Allan and Guy) from a show. ("Non-canon" in this context means, "It wasn't actually written in the show.") Slash videos are should be labeled as "slash" and the couple featured should be mentioned. (i.e. "Luke/Han"). (NOTE: If a video focuses on a same-sex couple which existed in the TV show or movie [such as Jack and Ennis from "Brokeback Mountain"], that is not considered slash, since the couple was written into the film's storyline. However, since any pairing or couples video should be labled as such, a label or disclosure is still required.) An example of a proper "warning" or "disclaimer" might be, "WARNING: Season 3 spoilers" or "ROBIN AND MARIAN video."
Read the Guidelines for Giving or Receiving a Review/Critique before participating in the Fan Video Review forum.
Misc. (Disclaimers, Warnings, and Other Notes of Interest)
Just a few notes about the standards we try to adhere to, and a bit about the philosophy around here:
I made this banner, and I'm not afraid to use it!
Yes, we all probably have done it, and some times, we don't think it gives us any problems (that we identify as being from XviD, anyway). But that doesn't mean that it's an editable codec. Warnings about editing with XviD, DivX, WMV and others. Also, MPEG isn't great for editing either. Edit with these codecs if you wish—we don't care, we aren't here to monitor you or try to "fix" your editing habits if you are happy with them. But we will not look kindly upon you spreading ignorance about the advisability of editing in non-standard (often problematic) codecs. Read this thread for more information. We're a big fan of AMV.org's and Ishtori.net's vidding tutorials. Now, Foolishpassion.org's tutorials certainly do not adhere 100% to what AMV.org or Ishtori say (they are "dumbed down" considerably), but for the most part, these two sources of information are usually regarded as pretty good, so you'll see many links and references to these two resources on this forum.
We're all learning all the time (I certainly have significant gaps of knowledge when it comes to vidding) so new ideas or techniques are always welcome. Workarounds that bend or break the "rules" are sometimes necessary, but it's always good to remember that some of these rules help prevent bad quality and other vidding difficulties.
One of our focuses here is to try to encourage good habits in the technical area of video editing. That means, having some awareness of how "presentation" can affect a video's success. (If it's got squished and distorted aspect ratio, horrible tinny sound, or fuzzy dim picture, it's simply not enjoyable to look at!)
Cross-platform is where it's at, and we'll try to be as inclusive here as possible. Both Windows and Mac users have some wonderful video editing programs available to them.
Your videos will be judged on their merits, not by what software was used. Even the most basic software can create a good video; it just depends on the patience and skill of the vidder. With that said, not all software is created equal, and some programs typically have more shortcomings. If you have quality issues due to these shortcomings, you may find that many other vidders will be encouraging you to upgrade to something else.
I am the Aspect Ratio Diva. It's my pet issue. We all have to have one!
(Don't know what aspect ratio is? Read this tutorial and watch this (tongue-in-cheek) YouTube video.) I promise to not be unkind about it, but if your videos have aspect ratio problems, you'll eventually be informed. Don't feel bad if you find out that you've been an aspect ratio abuser—it's a very common problem in vidding, so you definitely are not alone!NEWBIES/LURKERS WILL MISS OUT!
There are features on this board which are not enabled for lurkers or members with less than 25 posts. To see what you're missing out on, participate some more! It's worth it! "Foolish Passion" comes from the North & South miniseries (not the Civil War one, but the BBC production starring Richard Armitage and Daniela Denby-Ashe). If you view the small video clip on the main page of FoolishPassion.com, you'll see Richard Armitage tell Daniela Denby-Ashe that his foolish passion for her is over. (But of course it isn't, not by a long shot!
)Foolishpassion.org is a "sister" site to the .com domain, and was originally used for hosting additional North & South fan videos. Then a fan video tutorial area was added, and the rest is history.
) and we are going to be dealing with that reality, whether we like it or not. 
I'm sorry about that, and I won't post anything else with a video link until I get past ten posts. 
