You’ve probably heard the vidding “rule” that vids should be no longer than three-and-a-half minutes — or four minutes, at the very most! — but by golly, sometimes that’s just not enough time for the vid to do what it needs to do. How can vidders keep their audiences engaged for four-and-a-half, five minutes… or even longer? Song choice, pacing, concept… we’ll watch some long-ass vids and then talk about what makes them successful. VJ: sweetestdrain
# | Title | Vidder(s) | Song (if different) | Artist | Fandom(s) | Duration | Download URL |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Expo | lim | Turn Up the Faders | Nathan Asher & The Infantry | Iron Man | 0:04:00 | [link] |
The first rule of longer vids: pacing, pacing, pacing. (4:00) | |||||||
2 | Some Time Around Midnight | bop_radar | The Airborne Toxic Event | Battlestar Galactica (2003) | 0:05:06 | [link] | |
Dig deep into the emotional arc. (5:06) | |||||||
3 | Can't Hold Us | Desdemon | Macklemore & Ryan Lewis | Hannibal (NBC) | 0:06:04 | [link] | |
Tell both sides of the story. (6:04) | |||||||
4 | Land | sweetestdrain | Patti Smith | Terminator universe | 0:09:51 | ||
Build metaphors and then keep building. (9:52) | |||||||
5 | There There | Luminosity | Radiohead | Angel | 0:05:20 | [link] | |
Dramatic tension is a long vid's best friend. (5:20) | |||||||
6 | What's Mine Is Yours | Fray-Adjacent | Sleater-Kinney | Orphan Black | 0:04:58 | [link] | |
The song's structure can help broaden the vid's perspective. (4:58) | |||||||
7 | Pulse | KatrinDepp | Home, Circadian | Dotan, Falling Up | Doctor Who | 0:04:58 | [link] |
Dialogue from the show can maintain interest and build on the viewer's understanding.(4:58) | |||||||
8 | Battle Cry | thingswithwings | Angel Haze & Sia | Luke Cage | 0:04:54 | [link] | |
Each character can have their time to shine. (4:54) |