Thursday, November 5, 2009

Telegraph Arts Videos

I'm in love with this video, and a lot of the other videos on The Telegraph's website. I think that they are doing a great job of creating captivating online video content that can stand alone on their own merits. I think this piece does just that. First of all, the video content in the piece really centers around strong sound bites. The reporter was sent to Georgia to document the way that women live there, and framed his journey as a search to “find the most beautiful woman” in Georgia. Through the interview with the older man and later the conversation in the car, the treatment of women in the country is explored in interesting ways. Also, the clip of the women singing is fascinating, even if it adds less to the story. 

The format of the video is a “video diary” style, but I still wish that some of the shots could have been framed a little better. For me personally, I thought that the shots of the older man and the car driver were a little too close. I would have liked it if he could have zoomed out a bit so he wasn’t cutting off too much of his head. The shots of the smoke rising in the woods and the tunnels the car drives were both really striking. There was obviously an abundance of photos incorporated of women in Georgia, but I think the piece could have benefited from some profile video shots as well.

I really liked how the filmmaker used graphics and text in a notebook rather than tracks. I also thought that the text used, provided a nice overarching theme to the story, while not repeating what was being said in the sound bites. They gave the viewer information about the reputation of women in Georgia while the interviews gave the viewer information as to what their actual lives were like. Though this piece may not have incorporated a lot of research with an abundance of statistics or historical background, I think it was visually arresting enough to leave the viewer with a lingering impression of the state of women in Georgia. The number one thing that drives up page views is good content.


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