What makes a good AMV?

[HellCat]

Been wanting to do this for a while now. Like alot of people, I enjoy a good AMV (anime/animated music video). However, I find the vast number of them are pretty bad. It's all random shonen fight scenes to a Linkin Park song. In your opinion, what are the do's and dont's?

For starters, I think a video should have a concept. Alot of the videos I dislike give off the impression the creator said "I like this show and this band, let's just throw both into a blender!!". Music should compliment the visuals and vice-versa. To give a perfect example, the One Piece video 'Sail On'. That's a really epic and dramatic AMV which has the visuals working perfectly to the lyrics to make something really memorable with the overriding concet being just how expansive the adventure of that story is. It works alot better than random clips of Naruto beating people up to vague emo lyrics.
That leads me to my next opinion- take care in the video quality used. Grainy footage, fansubs or an oversized GIF don't make for good presentation. This is especially true in comedy redub AMVs. I've seen quite a few where people just loop fansub footage. It takes the viewer completly out of the moment if the character is saying something clearly in English yet you consistently have "We don't have much time to warn the village..." or whatever right below them.
Add onto that- existing funny audio does not make random clips funny by association. The posterboy for that are Family Guy 'Can't Touch Me' AMVs. It's a funny song but random clips of your favourite anime don't compliment it. Luckily people seem to have learned from this and I've seen quite a few decent vids using Who Else But Quagmire? (I'd recommed Who Else But Hughes? and Who Else But Lupin?).

[DarthGonzo]

Add onto that- existing funny audio does not make random clips funny by association. The posterboy for that are Family Guy 'Can't Touch Me' AMVs. It's a funny song but random clips of your favourite anime don't compliment it.

Why do anime fans do this anyway? Stuff like this is all over YouTube. Not sure I understand it.

[HellCat]

Why do anime fans do this anyway? Stuff like this is all over YouTube. Not sure I understand it.

I think if done right it can work well. For instance, a friend did an AMV about the last quarter of Mobile Suit Gundam to South Park's La Resistance.

[Freedom Fighter]

I agree with the gripes of AMVs... they're just not that good. But my experiences with AMVs are limited mostly to those who will put random songs with random clips. Or, the song fits the series shown in the video, but the clips don't match up well.

The few AMVs that I do like tend to go through the painstaking process of synching the clips with the song. I like those a lot because it not only shows the creator went through a lot to make it all work, but it seems as if everything does fit. For example, there's a certain AMV of Fullmetal Alchemist to They Might Be Giants' Particle Man that I love, especially with the added captions that up the hilarity even more.

There is one that I like that goes against that convention, an Avatar AMV done to Weird Al's White and Nerdy. Even though Sokka's not white OR nerdy, it's still downright hilarious.

So, I guess if you're making an AMV and you wanna win me over, get a really good song that's prone to fits of laughter upon hearing it and find an appropriate show to match it up with.

(Oh, and although I'm a lover of Linkin Park, I'm STILL waiting for an AMV that has one of their songs and actually doesn't have the typical brooding/emo crap. Yeah, I'm asking for way too much, I bet. :sweat:)

[Weatherman]

Video quality is always important. It has to be clear and in the right aspect ratio. 4:3 for most TV shows, or 1.85:1 for most widescreen stuff. The moon is a circle, not an oval.

Find some original music. Limkin Park is dead. Evanescence is dead. Avril is dead. Get over it and find somethign else. There's millions of songs out there.

EVA IS DEAD!(AMV-wise anyway)

Search out some anime that isn't seen so much. Eva and Azumanga Daioh are totally played out by now. DBZ's been done so much that it's almost fresh again since it hasn't been around as much.

[Don_East]

I think context, pacing, video quality, music originality, & no subtitles make a good AMV.

EDIT- Oh, and using actual footage & not pictures.

[Captain Zechs]

What program do you need to make these again?

[Conan-san]

Honestly? Only funny or well thoguht out stuff works.

For example, there's a Eva AMV that uses the monty python sketch "How not to be seen" to good effect and the notice that it was going to be a bit late was a mix of the "black beast" gag in "- and the holy grail" and a few bits of eva (mosty Unit 01 picking up and biting thing's heads off)

[Fresh V]

The most annoying thing is when people make AMVs with subtitled episodes.


What program do you need to make these again?
Windows Movie Maker works.

[HellCat]

(Oh, and although I'm a lover of Linkin Park, I'm STILL waiting for an AMV that has one of their songs and actually doesn't have the typical brooding/emo crap. Yeah, I'm asking for way too much, I bet. :sweat:)

The one decent Linkin Park AMV I've seen is one about Deathscythe from SD Gundam Force to In The End. It follows his grand scheme from it's early days to his final appearance where all his plans turn to ruin. The song actually fits the action and story being told really well.

[GWOtaku]

posted by HellCat:

For starters, I think a video should have a concept. Alot of the videos I dislike give off the impression the creator said "I like this show and this band, let's just throw both into a blender!!". Music should compliment the visuals and vice-versa.

These two things make it for me, especially the music. To me timing is everything. All my favorite AMV's have moments that suit the music really well. Its even more amazing and unusual when several shows are incorporated into a video and they all have a good reason to be there.

Incidentally this is my example of what makes a perfect AMV (http://www.animemusicvideos.org/members/members_videoinfo.php?v=85907) pretty much, its one of my favorites. It happens to use special effects really well also.

[EscaflownePilot]

Some of my biggest gripes?

1. Take the time to synch as much as you can with the beat of the music. If the music gets more intense during the chorus, then pick more intense scenes, speed them up a bit, do more cuts and scene changes, etc. There's nothing cool about seeing an entire scene almost uncut during a fast paced chorus.

2. If you aren't using a buttload of different episodes, preferrably with several different locales, then you aren't using enough. SO many AMVs use footage from one or two episodes max, or even some that use several episodes still only use episodes from one fight. For example, the Naruto AMVs that focus on the Sasuke v Naruto fight. Yes, that fight consists of several episodes, but that still doesn't mean you can get away with using just that story arc. Even if you have enough material for an AMV using just those episodes, seeing the same setting and location in every scene is a huge bore. Having a theme is great, just be sure the material for that theme is varied and that you pull as much variation in the locations and situations as you can.

3. Make cuts. LOTS of cuts. No, seriously. If it doesn't feel like you're just hacking each episode to bits to get the scenes you want, then you aren't doing it right. Like with number one, there is ABSOLUTELY nothing exciting about watching four or five select scenes from just one or two episodes play out without any cuts or scene changes to match the music and keep it interesting. If I wanted to watch the first 5 minutes of Elfen Lied uncut set to Lincoln Park, then I'd just pop in the DVD, mute the audio and put Lincoln Park on myself.

4. Do not let subtitles show. Ever. The only case for this is if you have actually somehow integrated the Japanese audio into the video (Toonami OP style) and even then, it's usually much better to just get the dub if available, no matter how much you hate it. If you have to work with fansubs, then place black bars on the top and bottom of the screen to fake-letterbox it and hide the subtitles. Although less necessary, it's also not bad to do this if you're using sources with multiple logos in the corner (for example, if doing a Cardcaptor AMV where half the scenes have a Kids' WB! logo in the corner and the others have a CN logo). The idea here is to eliminate as many distractions as possible.

In summary, if you aren't using a TON of different episodes with a TON of cuts made to them, selecting very few, short, special scenes from those episodes, and then spending a LOT of time to synching whatever you can with the music, then don't bother doing it.

AMVs are supposed to be works of art, and like any worthwhile artistic projects, you should strive for quality over quantity. You should spend whatever it takes to make it as good as you imagined it to be, and ultimately if you don't have the attention span to work on the same AMV for at least a couple of weeks in your spare time, then don't do it. You won't get anywhere by pumping out a DBZ and Lincoln Park AMV one day, an Evanescence and Naruto video three days later, etc. if they each suck.

[Lachesis]

Do:

Learn from Kevin Caldwell, god of AMV creators.

Caffeine Encomium (Kodocha to the William tell Overture)
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1ETKQgNcj8

Engel (Evangelion to Rammstein)
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-uscUxQW9Q

Media Vita In Morte Sumus (Evangelion)
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RShe1C0vRq4

[Crash]

Things I look for:
A) New Muisic. I've gotten hooked on several artists that I first heard in an AMV. (The aforementioned 'Sail On' vid featuring a song by Masterplan is a prime example.) Even if the artist isn't new, its nice to hear a song used before its released as a single. (I first heard Avril Lavigne's 'I'm With You' as an Ah My Goddess AMV, and it blew me away. I still think of that vid rather than the offical video when I hear the song.)

B) A mood. Mood trumps all. One of my early favorites was a DBZ vid to Disturbed's 'Shout.' The footage had subtitles, some not-so-great splicing, and apallingly bad video quality at times, but I still loved it because the mood of the music and the footage matched so well.

C) A theme. A focus on a single character, clips from only a single storyling, similar clips from different shows.... Anything to make the video feel like more than just the creator's favorite clips applied to his favorite music.

My little pet peeves:
A) Repeated scenes. Yeah, sometimes there's not enough footage on a certain topic to work with, but still, repeating the same footage twice in the same vid is distracting.

B) Talking scenes. Scenes that are mostly of characters talking just look silly when not lip synced. There are exceptions, of course, but in general.

And Freedom Fighter: Sokka is SO nerdy! But that is a cool vid.

[Ojamajo_LimePie]

To make good AMVs:

If you've seen the anime/song combo done before, do something else.
Use video source ripped from your own DVDs. That way, there are no logos or subtitles.
OAR. Original Aspect Ratio. Learn it. Live it. Love it.
Always de-interlace your footage!
Divide your source into small clips so you can find specific scenes more easily (if you're using WMM, it does this for you.)
Have a good variety of clips on hand, even though you won't use them all.
Try to synch the action to the flow of the music. Lyric-synch is also encouraged.
Only use as many effects as the AMV really needs. Don't go over the top.
Compress your audio into MP3 format for the final video (if it wasn't already.)
I recommend Xvid codec for the final encode.
Have fun!

Good AMVs:
Hold Me Now (http://www.animemusicvideos.org/members/members_videoinfo.php?v=118208)
Welcome to the Host Club (http://www.animemusicvideos.org/members/members_videoinfo.php?v=124098)
Enoz feat. S.O.S Brigade: "Forever" (http://www.animemusicvideos.org/members/members_videoinfo.php?vid_id=128105)

[Web Head]

(Oh, and although I'm a lover of Linkin Park, I'm STILL waiting for an AMV that has one of their songs and actually doesn't have the typical brooding/emo crap. Yeah, I'm asking for way too much, I bet. :sweat:)
You want an AMV with some Linkin Park that isn't brooding/emo? Well, I've got you covered. Go to youtube and check out Narutowned, by KentaroPJJ. Here's the link...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u91RzeyFFWM

[WolfieKiwi]

When I look for a good AMV, I try to see if they have a song that I think connnects well with the anime. And about 2/5 times I find a decent one. (But I'm no expert at making AMV's either.)

But yes. Lately, more and more by the second, there are shonen AMV's that revolve around the punk emo theme and contain too much punch and kick. To avoid that, I search for AMV's with more than one anime... For example: the songs Best of You and One Week have over 26 anime. (Go creator!:anime: )

But anyway--Creativity. Sure there are from time to time the ever popular lip synching anime parodies of stand up comedies or famous songs from movies or scenes or whatever... And even I find taste in those.. But now it's sliding from the topic.

Anyway. Creativity. The using of effects-but not overboard. The timing of the music, beat and rythym. Having the scenes short and not too long running. (Don't use only 3 episodes of an anime to a 5 min song...or even a 2 minutes song.)

But overall have fun.

[Neo Ultra Mike]

There is one that I like that goes against that convention, an Avatar AMV done to Weird Al's White and Nerdy. Even though Sokka's not white OR nerdy, it's still downright hilarious.

Pretty good, but "Sokka The Mighty" (Sokka clips to Xena: Warrior's Princess "Joxer The Mighty" song) is the best Comedy Sokka AMV. It will make you have faith in humanity again (well that's what one of my friends said when watching it anyway).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1U0uC7QSXkk

Another key for a good AMV is having a song that not only fits the mood of the clips you're using but the show in general. I mean do we want to see any BoBoBo videos set to say any Disturbed music? Just wouldn't work.

A key about making comedic videos is trying to hit on the jokes expressed in the song itself or by the setting of the anime. Just because it's funny one way dosen't mean it's going to stay funny just because your uploaded it as your newest video.

[Zeonic Freak]

I do AMVs every now and then... what i look for is how can it go with the song and make a story outta it.

One of my first ones was Survivor "Eye of the Tiger" and i used the Fatal Fury Movie at that time because thats all i had to work with... Now i have done about 8 or so since then, but i have my recent 3 on Youtube now...

It seems the best music out there is the ones that hit the soul or something that anyone no matter what genere of music they are into, can understand and really like the AMV because of that song. Or meaning anything before 1990 LOL. Alot of the bad AMVs out there are people who know and like one genere of musix, and dont use anything else and have lack of creativity...

Here is some examples of videos i love as of now...

Duran Duran's "View to a Kill" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VzP9UgDRUY8 (When i first saw this AMV, i watched it like 10 times in a row, i could not get enought of this AMV)

Roxette "The Look" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=koY-ZByxy9A

Heres one of mine (maybe not my best, but its what i can show now, if you click my name i have like 2 more) of Corey Hart's "I wear my Sunglasses at Night" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cY_GNsPA1Bk

I guess what i comes down to is, peoples taste...

[Mr. Anime]

To me, what makes a good AMV is something that's manages to capture the feel of the anime series by matching the right music with the right clips.

Case in point:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Go8shemOqNc This is AMV of the Goku vs Freiza battle from DBZ, that combines the fight with the soundtrack from The Lord of Rings to make the battle even more epic.

[PeppeRaskell1]

Music is always important when making an AMV. You should make sure it's a song that fits the character to a "T." For instance, there's a really cute Sailor Moon music video that shows off Serena's...(*slap!*)...uh, 'scuse me, Usagi's funniest trait (she's a crybaby) set to "Big Girls Don't Cry" by Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons (a pop-music group from My Generation, the 60's. You don't always have to use a current song that's playing on MTV or K-104...)


I'm planning on making my own AMV, but it's for some non-anime cartoon characters, and I need to get a DVD recorder/VCR and maybe a Video Capture Device. But if you have a lot of pictures and screengrabs, you can also set them to music.

Hope this helps a little bit, if at all...

PeppeRaskell1
"*I'd give you the URL for the video, but I don't want to get URL'd out on my ear..."

[Ickis]

Good song, and the clip arrangment has to have effort it can't basicly just be the original episode but cut up, and I usually don't like slideshows unless if they're ment to be that way to match with an easy calm song. And I mostly watch cartoon music videos rarely anime music videos.

[Waylaid]

For the benefit of us who are interested in making an AMV, care to tell use what softwares to use? Which video editor, ripper, quality fixer, etc. to must have?

[Zeonic Freak]

Ive been using Windows Movie Maker since day one, because thats all i have, and alot of people do too.

There are a few flaws in WMM. For instance, if your trying to do a huge AMV or something over like 3 minutes, chances are the audio and video arnt going to be in sync. A trick is to split the AMV into sections, so that way its smooth when you complete them. Then at the end, just combinde all the sections togeather and make sure thier in sync, but if not and your using straight music to an AMV, just put the music underneth the sections. Pre watch them and if good, then make one big video... Some sections could be 2 or 10 vidoes pieces, but make sure there smooth. Even the timing from the music can hurt or help your AMV in areas.

And the most important is, dont ever rush a project, even when your at the end. I tend to kinda throw and ending if i cant think of anything or it goes unplaned. So, always plan out in your head or on a sheet of paper what you should do. And listen to that song you wanna use over and over till your ears bleed, because you can have the idea in concrete on your mind...

[Zorak Masaki]

As said before, as long as the lyrics reflect whats happening on screen, and the song/anime combo hasnt been overused, its fine. Heres two of my favorites for examples (granted, these ARE comedy vids, but thats the type of AMV i mostly like anyway):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZI3lwKyL6fk


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5lkUbDml25s (Yes, this song has been overrused, but this is one of the few, if not the only, examples that gets it right)

[Hordesman]

Ive been using Windows Movie Maker since day one, because thats all i have, and alot of people do too.


It depends on your computer, doesn't it? Mine came with iMovie. You can change colors and such like this: http://youtube.com/watch?v=U4x0isGXeQM

And creative music choices are a big thing in my book. I love discovering new music from AMVs but that doesn't happen when ppl just use top 40, emo and Weird Al stuff.

[XOMiss_Samantha]

I love looking for new amvs, but im a harsh harsh judge and will only watch cetain amvs.

To me, an amazing amv must have:

: Good Music Choice
'miss new booty' and some one dyeing = not a match
: EFFECTSx23423456
Im a stickler for effects. No effects, no go
: Rateings!
I know, im bad. I find amvs by how many stars they have / views
:Timeing
:Quailty
:Good assortment of clips, no repeats
: Just well done.

im so horrible when it comes to finding good amvs!XD But, i do have a huge play list of almost every well made amv on youtube ( i have alot of free time):sweat:

[Fresh V]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5lkUbDml25s (Yes, this song has been overrused, but this is one of the few, if not the only, examples that gets it right)
Best. AMV. Ever.

[J'onn J'onzz]

Best. AMV. Ever.

Agreed, that AMV was hilarious.

[Waylaid]

It seems alot of AMVs emphasize matching lyrics to images, but it's not enough. Why not try some instrumental stuff from classical music to world & ethnic music?

Beyond that, I found this anonymous quote:

Don't just listen to the music with your ears, feel it in your stomach.

And it's not just matching lyrics with images, it's about how you want the audience to feel what you're trying feel.

[Ojamajo_LimePie]

Best. AMV. Ever.

Love that one, but I have to disagree. This (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHZqxecCukg&feature=PlayList&p=B424DF5641B54832&index=6) is the Best. AMV. Ever.

[Zeonic Freak]

Best. AMV. Ever.

Well, not sure about that, but i have to admit, its really awsome!!!!

Thats how i feel, i feel im in 1985, but born in 86? That is a great song...

Now everyone is doing the "NO THIS IS THE BEST" or "NO THIS ONE FTUUUUUUW"!!!!, guys, like i said earlier, its all a matter of likes and dislikes, and taste.

[PeppeRaskell1]

The French said it best: "Chacun a son gout." (To each his own.)

Checking out the anime AMVs, I've noticed that the song that gets played a lot, regardless of whether or not it fits the anime featured in it, is Aqua's "Cartoon Heroes."

[Freedom Fighter]

True... all of the ones linked so far certainly are well made. Entertaining... well, the boat's still out. Then again, I've only had time to watch each of them once (and only two or three did I not like enough to want to see again). But even the ones I dropped were still better than a lot of the crap that's out there. If that's any consolation...

[Zeonic Freak]

The French said it best: "Chacun a son gout." (To each his own.)

Checking out the anime AMVs, I've noticed that the song that gets played a lot, regardless of whether or not it fits the anime featured in it, is Aqua's "Cartoon Heroes."

I like Aqua alot, it helped me get through my Junior year of HS apperently...

[Mr. Manager]

There's a lot of crappy AMVs out there. The only ones I'm able to enjoy are those that fit the show really well, or are intentionally funny, and succeed in actually being funny. There's way too many that are just stupid things like some random shonen set to a Green Day song.

[Waylaid]

May I repeat this question?

For the benefit of us who are interested in making an AMV, care to tell use what softwares to use? Which video editor, ripper, quality fixer, etc. to must have?

[Rolling Cloud]

4. Do not let subtitles show. Ever. The only case for this is if you have actually somehow integrated the Japanese audio into the video (Toonami OP style) and even then, it's usually much better to just get the dub if available, no matter how much you hate it. If you have to work with fansubs, then place black bars on the top and bottom of the screen to fake-letterbox it and hide the subtitles. Although less necessary, it's also not bad to do this if you're using sources with multiple logos in the corner (for example, if doing a Cardcaptor AMV where half the scenes have a Kids' WB! logo in the corner and the others have a CN logo). The idea here is to eliminate as many distractions as possible.

How do you letter-box the video clip?

[EscaflownePilot]

How do you letter-box the video clip?Well, I use Adobe Premiere and Photoshop where it's a simple matter of creating a new 640x480 image, and drawing black boxes at the top and bottom of the image and leaving the rest transparent, and then overlaying that image ontop of the video track.

I'm pretty sure there isn't a way of doing this in Windows Movie Maker as it only has one video track, but really, anybody who thinks they're going to do AMVs should at least invest in Adobe Premiere/Photoshop Elements, which I've seen on sale for as low as $40-50. There are demos out there to try the software out before you buy, too.


For the benefit of us who are interested in making an AMV, care to tell use what softwares to use? Which video editor, ripper, quality fixer, etc. to must have?Well, I go about it rather convolutedly because... I don't really know of a simpler process (anyone else is free to chime in!) but...

For DVD Ripping, I use (in this order):
- DVDFabDecryptor
- SmartRipper
- DGIndex
- Avisynth
- TMPGEnc

All of those are free except for TMPGEnc (although there are some free alternatives, I believe). Basically, I use all of those in order to rip the DVDs and convert them into an MPEG file that Adobe Premiere can read.

Then, to edit, I import that file into Adobe Premiere and do all of my editing work, then save it as a lossless file out of that, which I then open with AviSynth and (if needed) use the Decomb and VagueDenoiser filters to de-interlace and clean up the source. Then, I take the AviSynth file with all the filters loaded and serve that into VirtualDub and encode it to Xvid.

If you're working with DivX or XviD stuff to being with, the process is slightly less convoluted, but you'll still need to convert it to an MPEG file through TMPGEnc (or something of the sort) to get it into Adobe Premiere if that's what you want to use.

So... yeah, if anyone has anything better, let me know. Also, if anyone has any further questions on any of that, let me know.

[Wounded_Dragon]

4. Do not let subtitles show. Ever.



I see this a lot but I gotta disagree. It really bugs me how much people gripe over this because a lot of AMVs lose their impact without the dialogue behind the selected scenes. Is he making a declaration or just commenting on the other guy's tie? The viewer may never know.

[EscaflownePilot]

I see this a lot but I gotta disagree. It really bugs me how much people gripe over this because a lot of AMVs lose their impact without the dialogue behind the selected scenes. Is he making a declaration or just commenting on the other guy's tie? The viewer may never know.Actually, I think you just stated exactly why the subtitles should never show.

If you've got some high energy Nickelback or Lincoln Park song set to a bunch of people who look like they're making a declaration, then it all fits well togethor. But if you then have subtitles at the bottom that show that the characters are, in fact, not making a declaration but instead simply commenting on the other guy's tie, then it completely obliterates the entire AMV, because while all this high energy stuff is going in, the subtitles tear all of that away.

If there are scenes where you think the viewer should know what's being spoken by the characters, and you are positive it fits with the theme of the AMV (for example, wanting to include one of Naruto's "my way of the ninja" speeches in an AMV focusing on Naruto's individuality), then you're best letterboxing the whole AMV, resubtitling only those scenes overtop the letterboxing, and also allowing the spoken dialogue to be heard during those scenes as well (Toonami style) to keep it all integrated with the theme of the AMV and letting the audience know for sure that you intend for them to see those subtitles and apply the dialogue to the AMV.

Anything less, and you destroy the theme or confuse the viewer. Neither are good things.

[rubberchicken]

It seems alot of AMVs emphasize matching lyrics to images, but it's not enough. Why not try some instrumental stuff from classical music to world & ethnic music?

Beyond that, I found this anonymous quote:


And it's not just matching lyrics with images, it's about how you want the audience to feel what you're trying feel.
Then there are things like the Ideon Death AMV, which uses (orchestral/choral) music from the show itself... great pacing and timing, although the ending leaves a bit (okay... a LOT) to be desired.

It also makes good use of the characters'-voices-cutting-in technique, although it's left in Japanese. (And of course, the ending is still... :gir:)