Vid: Unnatural Selection - Battlestar Galactica/Terminator: Sarah Connor

[charmax]

kiki_miserychic & zombiep0rn were the inspiration behind the vid.


Video Title: Unnatural Selection
Song Title/Artist: Pussycats Gone To Heaven (Pixies vs Pussycat Dolls) - DJ Lobsterdust
Shows/Source: Battlestar Galactica, Terminator: Sarah Connor, Terminator movies.
Summary: That body was made to look like a person. We were made in God's image.
***Images of apocalypse and violence that some may find disturbing.***
Length/Format: 3.36, (Xvid, Stream)
Notes:
OK so first off this is so far outside my comfort zone as to be in another continent. This vid is one big experiment designed to help me evolve (geddit?) as a Vidder. Everything from the song (first time using a mashup) to the physical editing process (storyboarded in Premiere but mostly edited in AE) to the tone and themes (my dark side, let me show you it.)

The inspiration for the vid came from the fact that this year marks the 150th anniversary of the publication of "The Origin of Species" and the 200th anniversary of Darwin's birth. I've always been struck by the similarities between T:SCC and BSG and I tried to show some of that here. As humanity teeters on the edge of extinction they slide down the evolutionary tree of life whilst the machines evolve into better beings.

kiki_miserychic has written an insightful commentary for this vid over at vid_commentary. A little more of my choices is discussed in the comments.

Unnatural Selection - Battlestar Galactica/Terminator: Sarah Connor - Charmax

Links: Download Xvid (720x400 - 40MB) | Download Xvid (416x240 - 20MB) | Stream@Imeem | Stream@Youtube

Comments

[charmax.livejournal.com]

Cheers! I'm so pleased you enjoyed it but please don't abandon your vid baby!

[charmax.livejournal.com]

Hey you! I know, me and dark, who'd have thunk it. I need to catch up with my vid watching now and I see that includes a remaster by you, rubs hands in anticipation.

As for getting the shows to crossover coherently; good luck with that. BSG in particular seems kind of rudderless these days. I was a bit worried that the Ellen/Sam Tag Team of Exposition Doom might strangle the vid at birth but fortunately for me it only muddied the waters even more.

[charmax.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much. There was such a lot of stuff in this vid that I was anxious about and the use of text was definitely one of those things. It's good to know that you think I pulled it off.

[charmax.livejournal.com]

I'm so pleased that you would say such lovely things about the vid. I feel I should give some credit to kiki_miserychic whose fearless approach to vidding inspired me to attempt something this ambitious.

[charmax.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the feedback. \o/

[sasha-feather.livejournal.com]

That is amazing! Gave me chills!

[charmax.livejournal.com]

Thanks back atcha'. :)

[charmax.livejournal.com]

Aww, thank you for such a nice compliment.

[charmax.livejournal.com]

Thank you.

[charmax.livejournal.com]

Thanks for commenting and I'm definitely not adverse to you telling everyone about. :D

[charmax.livejournal.com]

Thanks, DC. A compliment from you always means such a lot. I'm really pleased with the strength of the ending section even if I do say so myself.

[charmax.livejournal.com]

YAY! \o/

[charmax.livejournal.com]

Awesome is such a good word. Thanks for using it.

[charmax.livejournal.com]

*face hurts from general happiness at comment* :D

[charmax.livejournal.com]

Well that in itself speaks volumes.

[charmax.livejournal.com]

Yay, for speechlessness.

[charmax.livejournal.com]

I was always struck by the similarity of the shows with their themes of robots evolving beyond their masters. Which is quite a common sci-fi theme, I know, but these two struck me as particularly coming from the same place. Using Darwin to tie it all together was a natural progression from that theme.

[charmax.livejournal.com]

There have been some fantastic vids released in the last week so this is very high praise indeed. Cheers!

[charmax.livejournal.com]

Thank you. The response to the vid has been very gratifying if a little overwhelming. I am so pleased that you enjoyed it so much.

[charmax.livejournal.com]

Wow. Thank you for saying such lovely things about the vid.

[charmax.livejournal.com]

Thanks!

I wanted to highlight some of the strongest themes of both shows primarily the evolution of the machines but also the moral ambiguity of the people and the continued references to religion that runs through both BSG and T:SCC.

[charmax.livejournal.com]

Thank you. I know that the use of soundbites is not generally popular with vidders and I would usually agree but in this instance I really feel it adds power and emotional punch to the tail section of the vid. I'm glad that you felt they worked well, too.

[charmax.livejournal.com]

I definitely did feel that the events on earth in T:SCC were happening in the same universe as those in BSG. Unfortunately the revelations about Earth on BSG have rather put a dent in that particular notion. If it still works that way in the vid then I am happy to bypass canon.

Cheers for the feedback.

[charmax.livejournal.com]

YAY thanks!

[charmax.livejournal.com]

Glad you think so, thank you.