Novice looking for guidance

[ourmaninthefield]

Hi,

Apologies, I am a complete novice when it comes to visuals but not short on enthusiasm for the craft.

I have always been mesmerised by what you guys do. Having filmed in may clubs and festivals I have always found visuals inspiring. Coming from a film making and photography background I have always hoped I may one day access the world of visuals. I am currently working on a film project in which I would like to do some visual work so I would like to use the opportunity to learn more about this fine craft.

I am looking to create and mix some simple visuals with footage for a live performance film. I wondered if anyone could help me get started. Having done quite a lot of reading it appears that MODUL8 might be the place to start?

Can you export mixed visuals to a quicktime file in modul8 and is this the software that will sync visuals in time to music? I currently use Final Cut Pro and Motion primarily but am keen to explore new softwares to see their benefits. I am not really looking to project anything, just mix visuals so any recommendations of starting kit would be useful.

Many thanks for any help you can offer.

ourmaninthefield

[Thelooca]

Hi,

Modul8 will probably fit your needs. Other possiblities in my opinion are vdmx and Resolume. I think you will find better answers to your question(s) (like how to sync your footage to music) in the forums of those software.

If you are on mac you can always use the syphon recorder to record your output. (vdmx seems to have a good recorder as i just read here somewhere)

Good luck with the project!

[ourmaninthefield]

Thanks, I've never heard of those.

I'll check it out.

Much appreciated!

[madsmeskalin]

Welcome to VJforums!

I come from a similiar background, and also use Final Cut and Motion, as well as Modul8, Madmapper and Resolume. I usually create my content with motion, making it simple enough to be mixed with other footage, but advanced enough to stand alone. Then I compress it to PhotoJpeg or DXV in compressor and mixing it all together in Modul8/Resolume. I like Modul8 alot, inspires creativity and is a lot of fun. But I also like Resolume for great speed (with dxv codec), transitions and built in mapping tools. So try both! Modul8 has a great feature called logical record, which allows you to record actions and render later, meaning no fps drops during recording.

If you dont want to project anything, you might be better off with Motion alone as these are live performance tools. Motion can also be controlled with midi, but someday you might want to project something.

As for syncing to music; that be many things. Content can reflect music, you can do it live with a midi controller, you can automate parameters and length og video with BPM etc. Both Resolume and Modul8 does this, VDMX I have never tried.

Oh, and get a simple midi controller :-) !

Btw: check out www.audiovisualacademy.com for tutorials

[ourmaninthefield]

A massive thank you for that! That is a massive help. It just appears that much of the motion tweaking comes better with modul8 over motion. It could be that I am not as fluent with motion as it feels but modul8 seems more playable.

At the moment I see I would like to record it live to the music of the film then edit it into the film. Would that be the logical way to approach it or do you think editing it would be better?

Do you have a recommendation on the midi controller?

Thanks again for a big shove in the right direction!

[Christoffer]

It's quite a challenge to tell you which midi-controller to buy. It depends on your workflow. I will recommend you to play around with the software and when you know what features you use the most, then start looking for a controller.

I'm using a UC-33e, which is primarily knobs and faders. Others like the mpd-26 due to it's pads. APC-40, Korg mini and Codanova VMX64 are also very popular. But in the end it all comes down to your personal style. You can use any midi-controller, you don't need one that is specific made for vjing (there is only a few of those).

[madsmeskalin]

You answered your own question basically :-)
If realtime manipulation in Modul8 is easier and gives you better results, go for it. You can still edit in further in Motion before you add it to your FCP project. I tried editing a visual mix primarily in Motion, took ages. But at the same time if I make a teaser or a promo video, I tend to stick in Motion. What gives you best results is the right choice (Deep, profound voice)

As for midi controllers, what Christoffer said. Keep It Simple, but its better to have one button too many.

[PCProject]

A useful function for rotary controllers (knobs) on any midi surface you decide upon is ones that respond as endless controllers. The practical result is that when you can launch an effect say with a pad and use that effects parameter/s that are attached to the rotary then you wont find the effect is in the same position as last used on the last effect but will actually start from a zero point. Very, very useful in a live situation.