Music Video: "Alone and Colder." BTVS, Faith POV/character study

[exsequar]

IfinishedIfinishedIfinished!!!! *bounces around spastically* It took me almost a year, but I DID IT! And I am very very proud of the finished product. I'd really appreciate if you all took a look at it. I also wrote up a lot of thoughts and commentary, those are optional though :P

Title: Alone and Colder
Vidder: Anne (starsouls1013)
Song: "No More Good Guys" by Skindive
Fandom: Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Seasons 3 and 4)
Character: Faith POV, with focus on her relationship with Buffy
Summary: Faith struggles internally between self-hate and a sense of betrayal by Buffy.
Disclaimer: Joss owns them. Obviously. I grovel at Joss’s feet for giving me this kind of material to work with.
Feedback: Is my bread and water. Seriously. I'd really love to know what you think!
A/N: I was really trying to say something about Faith with this video, about her inner turmoil and her complexity, so I think for a real understanding of this vid, you need to listen to the lyrics as you watch. It’s told from Faith’s mindset after the season four episode "Who Are You". Also, it's very important to recognize that a large portion of the video (at least half) uses footage from Faith's nightmares when she is in the coma. So if you haven't seen the show, all the times where Buffy is freaky and evil are in dreams, and Faith only gets stabbed once.
A/N2: Thank you so much to hermioneluna for a lovely beta job; she really saw the message I was trying to get across and helped me to perceive the video as a whole much more clearly. I’m not sure how many changes I actually made after talking to her (largely because this damn thing took me A YEAR and I was ready to be done with it already!) but she pointed out some really interesting things that I hadn’t even noticed. So thank you hun! :)
A/N3: A huge debt of gratitude is owed to heres_luck, whose stunning Faith video "Superstar" inspired me to start this one. Her written commentary especially taught me so many things both about the technical aspects of vidding and the complexities of Faith as a character. So lots of thanks to her, and I really recommend her vids to anyone.

Download (21.7 MB, wmv) (Right-click -> Save target as...)
(Thank you thank you thank you to Elena over at www.Cheesejoose.com for hosting me!!)
ETA: That file is a little big, so I saved a smaller version. Here is a YSI link for a 9.34 MB version: http://s60.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=0HCJYZH4U67NH1DMF7IKM9SYOZ


Lyrics to "No More Good Guys" by Skindive

I died today
But I’m still breathing
Bleeding
For now
I’m broken

You left me here
Capsized and sinking
Thinking
Right now
There’s no more good guys

You left me standing here
Alone and colder
I hope that someday soon
The pain inside will
Stop

You died today
But you’re still breathing
In my mind
That is
There’s no more good guys

I hoped you’d see me
I hoped you’d understand
Or crucify me
For my own failings
My cruel ambition
Hardly justified
And the pain inside will
Stop



So this is the basic idea I was going for: Faith has a fundamental internal conflict. On the one hand, she feels incredibly guilty for all of the terrible things she has done, and hates herself for it. On the other, she is angry at Buffy for stabbing her, and the result is that Faith feels that there are “no more good guys”. Buffy was always this steadfast pillar of goodness, the one who gave Faith the most chances, but then she committed a terrible act of violence against her. Faith obviously knows on a certain level that she deserved it, but of course she feels betrayed. So there is this torment that she is going through, anger mixed with hurt.

Two major moments that highlight Faith’s mindset can be found in the season four pair of episodes, "This Year’s Girl" and "Who Are You" (which really serve as the focal point of the vid). The first is when Faith has Joyce hostage in her own home, and she is nagging about Buffy never being home for Joyce. She starts getting all worked up, and then she accidentally slips and gives us a peek into the true root of her anger. This is what she says:

"Sooner or later you're gonna have to face it. She was over us a long time ago, Joyce. Too busy climbing onto her new boytoy to give a single thought to the people that matter! I mean, you're her mother and she just leaves you here to die!" (emphasis mine)

Faith is revealing how hurt she is that Buffy has finally turned her back. Without Buffy, the only other person who can possibly understand her, she feels abandoned and alone. Faith’s reaction to that feeling is to lash out angrily, violently, spectacularly – taking Joyce was really a bid for Buffy’s attention. And she got it, didn’t she? In the form of another massive fight, of course, but Faith lives for that kind of thing. However, the point is that Buffy’s regard is incredibly important to Faith, and it is in moments of vulnerability like this one that that comes through clearly.

The second moment is when Buffy and Faith (or Fuffy and Baith, actually) are fighting in the church at the end of "Who Are You". When Faith-in-Buffy starts beating up Buffy-in-Faith, it becomes intensely vicious and hateful, and Faith-in-Buffy grinds out a furious monologue as she is beating the shit out of her own face: "You're nothing! Disgusting! Murderous bitch! (grabs her head and pounds it against the floor) You're nothing! (starts punching her again) You're disgusting!" Here, Faith’s self-hatred becomes clear. She switched bodies with Buffy to escape herself, the shell that she had become, where she could not stand to be any longer. When confronted with her old self again, she falls to pieces. Her own past is something she can’t handle anymore, something she would do anything to get away from. The aftermath of this can be seen even more clearly when she shows up on Angel season 1, but I wanted to keep the focus of this video narrow and precise.



Some technical notes and things... first of all, I have to say this song was a blessing from God. Honestly! The lyrics could not be more perfect, and it’s slow and haunting while still having a very precise beat that is very conducive to the type of vidding I like to do. You might notice that I am quite a stickler about getting things to land on beats. I just find that adds immeasurably to the impact of the video and the experience of watching it. A note about the pacing: I don’t like using long clips at all, so as a result this thing moves along pretty quickly, with sharp cuts happening often. I showed this to someone when it was about half done, and they said that that didn’t really suit the music – my thought is that Faith herself is a very jagged person, with a broken psyche, so her thoughts would be harsh and sharp like this, so the effect is very true to the subject matter. So if you didn’t like that either, there’s the explanation :)

I used Windows Movie Maker, which was, as usual, a huge pain in my ass, which is a large part of why this took half a year to complete. It’s also extremely limiting, so keep that in mind while watching. I, however, do not have the patience nor time to learn Premiere or any of those ridiculously complex programs. Not right now at least. Maybe at some point in the future!



Now for some play by play commentary, just to point out some of my personal favorite bits and clarify what I was trying to say.

The musical intro (0:00 – 0:32) - This section basically outlines the basic premise of what I’m trying to say. Usually I don’t like to vid sections without lyrics, but when I started this vid this whole section appeared very quickly, and I haven’t changed it since. Both technically and thematically it makes me very happy. I think the motion within the clips fits the music and the beats perfectly (some of this was serendipity, some my own machinations). For example, Faith falling off the building and landing in the truck – the cut in the middle of that lands on a subtle beat in the music, but it just works. I also love Faith dropping the knife, and Buffy’s little head tilt.. Now in terms of what I was trying to say here, you may notice a pattern to these bits – they alternate between evil/guilty Faith and victimized/stabbed Faith. In order, we have: 1) Faith in her coma, 2) reaching toward the man she killed, 3) falling off the building after Buffy stabs her, 4) announcing "I don’t care" to a stunned Buffy, 5) in the grave during her dream and psychotic!Buffy looking down on her, 6) pushing the dead demon off her and dropping the knife in shock, and 7) Faith and Buffy exchanging blows at the very beginning of The Big Fight. It’s suitable that this last clip kicks off the rest of the vid, because just as it is the start of the fight that will so lastingly effect Faith, so it begins her journey into the mindset which we find her in this video.

Bleeding… (0:48) I just have to point out that I did not tinker with the timing of the blood drops. I threw that clip on the timeline, anticipating much heartache trying to get it in time, and lo and behold it was perfect!

I’m broken…(0:55 – 1:04) Another instance where the timing worked out unimaginably well. First, her hands striking the ground as she pulls herself out of the grave are in perfect sync, and then the lightning flashes, randomly timed as they are, go with the weird pulses of music. I love it! :D Now, thematically, this bit is interesting for a reason that I did notice, way after the fact, but which hermioneluna also pointed out to be – in this clip, Faith is actually emerging victorious over Buffy in her dream. So how is she "broken"? Well, I chose the clip because she *looks* broken, soaking and screaming into the rain. But thinking about it, she’s broken because she had to fight Buffy, because Buffy has become evil (in her eyes). Buffy was goodness, and Faith recognized that even while she envied and despised it – so she is screaming for the loss of that goodness ("there’s no more good guys") and the fact that she had the ability to defeat Buffy, which is a very mixed thing for Faith.

You left me here… (1:04 – 1:11) I’m very pleased with this section. I’ve never used intercutting before, and I wanted to juxtapose Buffy tenderly kissing Faith with their normally violent relationship. The section begins with Buffy holding the clean knife and ends with her looking at it covered in dried blood. I particularly love on the word "here" how it transitions from Faith running in the graveyard to punching Buffy hard. The framing of those shots and the internal motion makes for a really neat connection.

The pain inside will… stop (2:00 – 2:12) From the very beginning I knew that I wanted the moment where they switch back to land on “stop.” For visual reasons, because their hands coming together like that is such a visual and arresting moment, which fits perfectly with the intensity of the word "stop". Thematically, this is the moment where Faith is displaying her enormous self hatred by beating the crap out of her own body, so it is key. In that moment Faith is trying to destroy herself, wanting everything to just *stop*, as the lyrics say, but ironically, instead of stopping, she is thrust back into her own body, which she loathes. From a technical point of view, this section was very very hard to do – to get the punches to land with a rhythm that didn’t jar with the music. It was more difficult than I anticipated. I ended up having to use two different shots of Faith-in-Buffy next to each other, so you may notice the slight change in lighting and position at one point in there.

You died today… (2:16 – 2:26) Another part I had in my head from the beginning. In fact, this line, put together with "I died today" in the beginning of the song, was one of the key reasons I chose this song. There is a very strong parallel between Buffy and Faith’s experiences on this day. I know that Faith technically doesn’t even know about this happening, as she was sort of comatose at the time, but it just works too well to not use it. Also, Angel biting Buffy? Really hot :D

There’s no more good guys… (2:38 – 2:47) This is the second of only two times that this line appears in the song (as I edited it). You’ll notice both times have Buffy as the aggressor, the one who is no longer a “good guy.” However, as hermioneluna pointed out to me, brilliantly, this would have been an opportunity to show that Faith no longer sees herself as a good guy. I really wanted to change to a clip that underlined Faith’s guilt and self-hatred, but I didn’t have the clips I wanted and was too lazy to go and rip them, and also, again, I just really wanted to be done with this video. But that would have been really cool! :P Nevertheless, I love how Buffy jumps into the grave, falling downward with the music.

My cruel ambition, hardly justified (3:04 – 3:11) This section requires some knowledge about what is going on to understand the context and what her cruel ambition is, which I apologize for to anyone who hasn’t seen the show, but it was necessary. In keeping with the focus on Faith’s relationship with Buffy, I wanted to make her "cruel ambition" her plan to take Angel from Buffy by turning him evil. So her ambition is shown when she is trying to cozy up to Angel by coming crying to him, and it’s "hardly justified" both when the "evil" Angel beats her up and when it’s revealed that it’s a hoax (that’s one of my favorite shots ever, by the way, Faith turning around in slo-mo). I’m not sure how well that comes across though, I’m too close to see it objectively.

Stop (3:20 – 3:23) This one is also ironic, as Faith stabbing Finch is actually where all her pain began. The clip changes from color to black and white halfway through, just as Faith pulls the stake out – this represents her world’s complete alteration with this one act, and the cause of her slide into evil. Also, it just looks cool.

End sequenceThis is my least favorite part of the vid, but I was too burned out to change it too much. I do like how Faith slams her hand into the wall right on the ominous downbeat in the middle of this sequence. The style of it is a departure for me, obviously, with the fades and the inexact timing. Which is why I don’t like it, although I’ve been told it works. I wish I could say there was some cool reason why the last two clips were in color, but really WMM just decided to be a butt and refuse to grayscale any more clips. It’s like it ran out of grayscaling juice. But it works out, so it’s okay. And then Faith wakes up again, bringing the video full circle.


So I’ve rambled on far too long. I apologize. All of this was mostly for my own benefit anyway, but if you read it, thank you and I admire your patience! Please let me know what you think :)

Comments

[jamesinclair.livejournal.com]

Sounds nice, but Im too lazy to download.


:)

[exsequar.livejournal.com]

Hey whoa. How can you be too lazy? You click about three times and then let it go, then click open. I will not accept that excuse young man! *shakes fist*

[hermioneluna.livejournal.com]

OMG! I'm so, SO happy you finished it! It's amazing and I loved reading your analysis. You put a lot of thought and effort into this and it shows. You're absoultely brilliant!

[exsequar.livejournal.com]

Eee, thank you dear! :) You're so sweet. And thank you again for the wonderful thoughts you gave, you're an awesome beta!

[obsessive24.livejournal.com]

I really liked this vid. The song is gorgeous and provided an excellent mood, and there is great cutting and attention to internal motion. The fact that you did it in good old WMM speaks to your talent as a vidder, because I know how restricting that program can be. Lovely character insight and great thematic lyric matches.

I've got some specific things to say, but I'll leave it for my TCA review. :)

[exsequar.livejournal.com]

Oh my. Thank you SO much. Seriously. Your opinion means the world to me! There is nothing better than getting positive feedback from someone whose work you admire. So really, thank you :) And I can't wait to hear the rest of what you have to say!

[accio-tiara.livejournal.com]

Yay, Anne! It is beoooootiful, as I have already said. *applause* I shall download it an watch it many more times for it is so very lovely. The explanations you've given for some of the stylistic choices were quite interesting to read, but I won't go into details as you are sitting less than ten feet away and that'd be silly. :)



(See, look, I did comment! That is how much I love you. :) LOTS AND LOTS! Now, back to Folktale homework until Sirrah comes to corrupt us with BSG.)

[exsequar.livejournal.com]

Thank you my love! I appreciate your effort ;) And I really do appreciate you taking the time to read all my rambling. You kinda rock ♥

[dualbunny.livejournal.com]

Lovely work. :) I thought you did an excellent job bringing the mood of the song to life. The fact that you cut on the harder accent sounds and stronger beats went so far towards keeping this moving, even though the song was overall a very low key piece. I loved the timing. I completely agree with you on timing actions in the clips to the beat/etc., and I think you had some inspired choices regarding that. Not to mention the cuts to those same sounds.

Very very nice work. The only way I'd have known you had to struggle with WMM to get this was the one stray frame towards the opening, and from what I've heard, sometimes WMM refuses to let go of those whatever you do. Judging by your sense of style and timing, I can't help but think you'd love a program more on par with Premiere. The small investment you'd need to make in time to get the basics down would pale in comparison to the time you'd save not having to struggle with the very basics of editing. And clearly you'd do wonderful things with it, or any other higher-end platform. :D

[exsequar.livejournal.com]

Wow, thank you so much for the detailed feedback! I really appreciate it. I'm glad the momentum worked for you, it's what I strive hardest for.

Oh WMM. It is quite the hassle. I had Premiere on my computer at one point but deleted it because 1) I was running out of space on my hard drive, 2) It was mindboggling and I was scared, and 3) I found that the files I was working with wouldn't even be opened by Premiere (they were wmvs). So I guess what I need to know is, what file types do work with Premiere? And is there a good tutorial built into the program that will help demystify it all? I am willing to try, it's just that I know myself and I have such a short attention span, I don't know if I'd actually produce much. I really want to, don't get me wrong, but I have so much else going on and vidding is a big time commitment. But if you have any starting advice, I'd love to hear it :)

[zeispunim.livejournal.com]

Actually, I think it was the most terrifically awful thing I have ever seen in my entire existence. For serious. You just slapped a bunch of images together--what were you thinking?!--and so I have to inform you: it sucks! And so do you! Hah!

If you already know that you're all talented or whatnot, why you insist on fishing for compliments is beyond me...*wanders off, muttering to herself*

[exsequar.livejournal.com]

Everyone's entitled to their opinions. I respect that. Thank you for taking the time to express yours to me.

You know I would keel over and die without acknowledgement! I am insecure and emotionally vulnerable! I need reassurance of my value, my purpose! Duh.

[catvampcrazines.livejournal.com]

This is the best Faith vid I've had the pleasure of seeing. I love this song and was glad to see someone use it. I really thought the cutting fit Faith's character well. Wondefully done with great clip choices.

Oh yes, WMM can be an ass to use. lol. I know that all too well. It's nice to have it freeze up in the middle of making a vid. lol.

[exsequar.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much! It is a wonderful song, isn't it? I really appreciate the feedback :)

And yeah, with WMM you have to save *every* time you change something, because it freezes every five minutes! Oy vey :P

[http://users.livejournal.com/_sharvie_/]

Freaking wow! I'm a sucker for lots of effects so the fact that you had so few but I'm so in love with the vid, that I'm playing it again right away, speaks to your wonderful work. Clip choice, music alignment, like you I love landing on beats. It really sucked me in. And I loved your commentary! It's really nice to go back and rewatch after reading about all the nooks and crannies of inspiration and meaning. About the greyscale, I never would have known! It transfers at a lighting flash so I totally thought it was all part of the message that she's waking up. It so worked. This is awesome work! And I'm not even that big of a Faith fan!

Again, wow!

p.s. I work with Vegas and it isn't as complex as Premier but more robust than WMM. A nice happy medium.

[exsequar.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much for the detailed feedback! Personally, my favorite vids are ones that are low on effects, with a focus on cutting and movement in the clips themselves. So I'm glad to hear that that style worked for you, even though you tend to prefer the other :) And I know what you mean about commentaries, it just makes you see the vid with new eyes! I'm really happy you took the time to do that with mine. Again, thank you :)

Vegas, hmm? Do you know how I could get a copy of that?

[http://users.livejournal.com/__butterflies__/]

That's just wow. Really rellu really excellent. The music matches, the gray is good and the whole idea is brilliant. I watched it once, then watched it more a few good times.

[exsequar.livejournal.com]

I know I've succeeded when people want to rewatch - thank you so much for your feedback :)

[spikesgurl.livejournal.com]

This was amazing... one of the best marriages of picture and music I've ever seen. I'm not a huge Faith fan, but this really drew me in. Great work!

[exsequar.livejournal.com]

What you said means a lot to me, because knowing that the video can appeal independent of its subject matter is very heartening. Thank you so much!

[fragglebo.livejournal.com]

Wow! This is one awesome video. I saw my first Buffy episode the other day and it was the one where Faith is in hospital and Angel has to drink from Buffy in order to survive, so I was happy to recognise some of the scenes in this and I wasn't totally lost on all of the meaning behind it. The music is really good and I love it when scenes fit the soundtrack. I noticed so many excellent shots where you had perfect timing and that always makes me smile. I loved the fade out and then the black and white images. The coming back to color really worked the way it happened so you have no worries on that score. Great vid! ;)

[exsequar.livejournal.com]

That's a great coincidence that that was the episode you saw! Are you starting to get into Buffy now? Because that would be great :) It's such an amazing show, and its appeal never ever fades.

Thank you so much for your comments! I know what you mean about moments making you smile - I love when vids do that to me. With the coming back to color thing, I may not have planned it, but how it happened, with the color coming back on the lightning flash, worked out really well, so that's why I left it instead of trying to work something else out :)

Wow

[asphyxiated-g.livejournal.com]

Hey!

Hermioneluna told me to download this and woah it's SO GREAT! I love the Buffy universe and this compliation vid is just fantastic.

And I DID read your whole analysis, and well done to you for putting so much thught and time and effort into this. I go the message loud and clear. It was a great choice of clips.

It's awesome you should be proud. :D

Re: Wow

[exsequar.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much for your wonderful comments! They make me happy :) And I am indeed quite proud, yay.

[the5thmarauder.livejournal.com]

WOW. I totally see everything you've said. Your portrayal of their relationship is so accurate (though you've made me want to ship them, you bad girl ;) ) and I love the way the scenes all link together to form that intense meaning.

The scene transitions were beautiful. I'm so rubbish at those :P You had me grinning like mad at the one where Buffy lifts the sheet in the air as it changes :D

AND OH MY. The song choice. This song was at the end of a QaF episode, was it not? I vaguely remeber Brian and Justin being all "Later" in it. Could be making this up.

As you've probably gathered, I loved it.

*coughwwhisper*What about a Remus/Sirius one, eh? *grins*

LOVE YOU

I'll comment on all your posts soon :P

[exsequar.livejournal.com]

I kind of say I'm a Faith/Buffy shipper, but basically what I love is how inextricably linked their lives are, how important Buffy is to Faith even though she won't admit it, and how royally fucked up they are. But that's all entirely canon, and I don't think I ship them beyond that. But feel free to :D

Yes, it was on a QaF episode! 201 or 202, somewhere around there, when Justin's mom tells Brian that he can't see Justin anymore. It's very sad and heartwrenching and awww, poor Brian :( Good memory!

Thaaaaank you darling *glomphuggles* I'm so glad you liked it, and thanks for the great comments :)

As for R/S, alas I'm afraid there's not enough material. I had a hard enough time making an HHr one of any decent length without too much repetition, and there still was more repetition than I'm happy with, and they're together for at least half of that movie. I'm sorry but I just don't think I could do it :(

[yourlibrarian]

Enjoyable look at Faith, a nice marraige of music and message. Thanks for posting it :>

[ringwench.livejournal.com]

This vid was AWESOME!

I'm still completely boggled by the fact that this is only the second vid you've ever done!

Seriously, I know a ton of vidders who have been doing this for years and don't even come close to your level of talent.

On to the actual vid:

First off, I loved the song choice. It's almost as though the song was written specifically about Faith and her relationship with Buffy, the lyrics are so perfect. The music itself was so hauntingly beautiful, the way you made it fit with the clips in certain parts actually gave me chills!

I LOVED how well you cut to the beat (and not only cutting on the beat, but the way you always had something important happening on the beats). I always appreciate on point editing. It just makes everything seem so much more polished. Plus, as I'm sure you know, every time a vidder doesn't pay attention to the beats God kills a kitten ;-)

I also REALLY appreciated that you used shorter clips. So many vidders make the mistake of "Slow song ---> long-assed clips" (myself included--some of my early Buffy vids contain clips that seem about 12 years long!). This is another reason why my brain can't comprehend the fact that this is only your second video!


Some parts that really stood out:

0:28 - 0:33 -- the fact that you set punches to really really soft beats was very interesting. You don't see hard actions accompanied by soft music very often, but it's one of those things that I absolutely love. It made Buffy stabbing Faith on the hard beat just that much more powerful.

0:45 - 0:47 -- Loved Faith's eyes opening on the beat, coupled with her throwing off the sheet to the beat! You know how much of a beat whore I am, so moments like this just made me squee ;-)

0:48 - 1:03 -- Everything in this sequence was so perfectly timed! The blood dripping, the lightning flashes (especially right at the end to the bizzarre...thing the music does), Faith's hands hitting the grass, just, wow! VIDGASM!

1:04 - 1:11 -- OK, another vidgasm! The intercut scenes were just so powerful. The quick cutting gave it a real sense of urgency. I actually found myself holding my breath throughout the entire sequence.

1:30ish -- The shocked look on Faith's face as she realizes "There's no more good guys" is just heartbreaking.

1:35 - 1:36 -- This was one of my favorite parts. The quick cuts ending with the white fade into the white sheet was absolutely inspired!

1:44 -- Loved the way Faith enters into the frame to the music.

1:48 - 1:55 -- It was neat how you chose to put two shots together where the camera was panning in. It just pulled in the focus very nicely.

2:11 - 2:15 -- Buffy fading out of the scene went perfectly with the music. Awesome!

Beginning at 2:17 -- I really liked the fact that you used Buffy being bitten by Angel here for the "You died today" line, instead of the more cliched Buffy leaping off the tower scene from Season 5 (and, you know, *actually* dying). A lesser vidder probably wouldn't have seen the importance of keeping the focus on events that had to do with Faith (and on the day that they both "died"). Also, that scene is REALLY fucking hot ;-)

2:44 -- The uber-haunting music paired with the spooky clip of Faith in the grave? Chills.

2:49 - 2:59 -- The theme of the vid really comes across in these clips. Faith, thinking that in Buffy, she's finally found someone who understands her, only to have Buffy eventually turn on her as well.

3:09 -- Loved the way the music went with Faith turning her head in slow-mo.

3:20 to the end -- The music is just so sinister sounding. That paired with the black and white clips and the black fades = CHILLS! And until I read your commentary I totally thought the return to color for the last couple of clips was on purpose, it completely worked (but stupid WMM for not doing what you wanted it to do!).

And I've probably rambled on quite long enough ;-)

Excellent vid, hon! *applauds*

[exsequar.livejournal.com]

Thank you for such a wonderful and in depth review! I really, really appreciate that you took the time to look at it so closely. It makes me happy :)

The song is just... gah. Haunting is the perfect word.

I'm so glad to hear I minimized the number of kittens killed! Kitten casualties are tragic, indeed. But seriously, ignoring the beats is one of my hugest pet peeves. I work extra special hard to pay attention to them.

Long clips - also a pet peeve! See, I watched enough music videos to learn what worked and what didn't, so I then took that knowledge and went to town. I hate going into things blind, so I try to learn as much as I possibly can before trying my own hand. It's the cautious approach, but it works :)

On to the specific responses..

That's a very interesting point! I didn't intentionally juxtapose the punches with the stabbing... the intro and the "I died today" bits always lived separately in my head. But I totally see what you mean, how the hard music on the hard motion just ups its impact. Oh the things you learn about your own work :)

The sheet -> one of my favorite moments in the whole vid :)

Re: Buffy dying - For one, I only had very very VERY specific source material. I had ripped only from 7 or 8 episodes, all in season 3 and 4, and only scenes that I thought were necessary to what I was trying to say. The program I use lets you choose very very specific bits to rip, so I have some clips that are a minute or less. Also, going to season 5 would have just violated the entire premise of the video - it never even occurred to me. But also - hot :D

I'm glad you picked up on that section towards the end, with "I hoped you'd see me..." Thematically, I agree, that part is key - Faith yearned for Buffy's approval and for Buffy to basically say that how Faith does things is okay, but in the end it all came to disaster. That is crushing for Faith.
That part of the lyrics was another reason I chose this song. Gah! It's just so perfect!

Again, thank you thank you thank you. It really makes all the hard work worth it :) *hugs*

[mona1347.livejournal.com]

Oh I like this. Very twisty Faith arc and lots of love for the Buffy/Faith interaction. Well done!

Also, hey, you're from CT? So am I :), though I live in DC now. Whereabouts are you located? - I'm from Bridgeport originally.

[exsequar.livejournal.com]

Thanks so much for the comment! And thank you for taking the time to watch :)

Wow, I'm from Bridgeport too!! Well, I live in Bridgeport, and have for 5 years, though I lived in Norwalk for the 13 years before. That's so funny! You're the second person from Bridgeport I've found in two days! O.O