Just once more keeping you informed of my progress since leaving Uni.
I attended the Media course for two years, gaining entrance to the second year via a HND from Bournemouth Film School, ten years previous. I balanced the course with my role as house husband, looking after my young son.
I had decided to go to Lincoln University to re-train. I left with a first and the Corus Video Student of the Year award. I started at Codemasters as an assistant video editor in the September of my graduation year. Working closely with the head of video, Sam Hatton-Brown, to produce cinema ads, TV ads, web videos, in house brand videos, sales DVD’s, and assets for in game, like stings and attract mode videos.
And now? I currently have a 20 sec TV ad for Operation Flashpoint being broadcast on ITV, CH4, CH5, E4, Virgin 1, Dave, Bravo, and Sky. It is an edit of the launch trailer:
Since being here I have been promoted to Video Editor, and a year ago we took on Rob Lucas, a graduate from Lincoln, as a video assistant. We always look to Lincoln for new talent that can help during our busy periods.
Our teamship is very important to us in the video department. All the videos we create, we create as a team, either through creative import and work load support. The turn around for our videos is normally quite quick. Sometimes we are given a morning to create something. Videos like the Operation Flashpoint Hardcore Dev Diary can take up to two weeks to produce, and this is only possible through the support of the team, working together and carrying the demands of other projects.
Though I am classed as a video editor, my role is much more than that and I have a great deal of creative freedom. Motion graphics (created using After Effects and Cinema 4D) is as much an important tool as non-linear editing software.
We normally have two or three projects on the go at once, each averaging 24 videos. We currently have four titles requiring promotional videos.
The Operation Flashpoint Dev Diaries were conceived as community videos. It was the decision of our department to give these videos a high production value, created by videoing interviews in 1080p against a green screen and then giving them a stylised treatment in After Effects to mimic the style of the game and to compete with similar videos create with a much higher budget. The recording of these interviews and GV’s of the studio where the game was created were filmed by Bright Spark. I knew Andrew of Bright Spark from using them to create DVDs in my final year of University.
Bright Spark was with us for three days, in which time we filmed the interviews for all six Dev Diaries. These interviews were edited here and then gameplay was captured to accompany the interviews. All this footage was then put into After Effects and the video was generated to mimic the Intro Video to the game Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising.
The video was a success:
The video itself has also won numerous awards on YouTube, September 2nd:
#9 – Most Discussed (Today) – All of Youtube!
#3 – Most Discussed (Today) – Gaming
#44 – Most Viewed (Today) – All of Youtube!
#1 – Most Viewed (Today) – Gaming
#1 – Most Viewed (Today) – Gaming – Ireland
#2 – Most Viewed (Today) – Gaming – New Zealand
#3 – Most Viewed (Today) – Gaming – Israel
#4 – Most Viewed (Today) – Gaming – Global
#2 – Most Viewed (Today) – Gaming – Spain
#1 – Most Viewed (Today) – Gaming – France
#5 – Most Viewed (Today) – Gaming – Italy
#2 – Most Viewed (Today) – Gaming – South Korea
#1 – Most Viewed (Today) – Gaming – Netherlands
#1 – Most Viewed (Today) – Gaming – Poland
#8 – Most Viewed (Today) – Gaming – Brazil
#7 – Most Viewed (Today) – Gaming – Russia
#2 – Most Viewed (Today) – Gaming – Czech Republic
#2 – Most Viewed (Today) – Gaming – Sweden
#16 – Top Rated (Today) – All of Youtube
#4 – Top Rated (Today) – Gaming
#12 – Top Favourited (Today)
#3 – Top Favourited (Today) – Gaming
Some more of my work at Codemasters:
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