The Transcending News Story

I love watching award winning news packages. It’s so easy to sit through a 30 minute newscast and see nothing but thrown together vo-sots and packages with no artistic attention at all. But every once in awhile, you can catch a real gem.

"THE CONTENDER"

John Samuels

WXIA/Atlanta, GA

This one is obviously great. It won 1st place in the General News category of the National Press Photographers Association’s 2006 awards.

I love the sound, the extreme close ups, the unique camera positioning and lighting. I love the way it’s written. The sounds draw you in, then he throws in the twist of the boxing being this guy’s ministry.

I also like the line that the boxer says about “transcending boxing” and how that’s a way to get non-boxing fans to want to watch you box. If you ask me, this package is a “transcending” news story. I couldn’t care less about boxing—but I couldn’t stop watching this award winning story.

Could Be Done Better?

It’s been awhile since my last post, but I’m still spending a lot of my free time searching—searching for jobs and for short docs on the web!

http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid263777579/bclid430296705/bctid430296521

This one I got right from the National Geographic website. It’s interesting and informational, but a bit dry if I may say so. It reminds me of a video we might have been forced to watch in high school went we had a substitute teacher. Don’t get me wrong—it’s not badly done, but I would have done it differently. Maybe starting with more of a mysterious edge—why are these people painting on the sides of ancient buildings? It’s graffiti at its best. Or perhaps a closer look at one of the artists shown in the spot.

Either way, it’s an interesting topic—something new learned from these fun short videos!