Join us for a closer look at the inner workings of the online video parody "Mac or PC" in an interview with director and editor David Fine.
How long did the entire process take, and what would you say was the most challenging part of putting it all together?
DF: Process took about 5 weeks. 2 day shoot was followed by about 3 weeks of editing and 2 weeks of greenscreen. For me the most challenging part was figuring out how to really sell the visual reference of the Mac ads. We knew that we needed the images Mac and PC in front of the white to directly reference those ads, so we spent a lot of time in production as well as in color correction making that work.
How many people did it take to make this happen?
DF: The 3 of us (Pantless Knights Productions: Peter Furia, David Fine, Beau Lewis), Meghan Gallagher (lighting), the Pepperdine University hip hop dance squad, Jacqueline Becker (our vocalist), and O'Clock (our music producer). So about 14...
What was your favorite part of making the video?
DF: I had a blast shooting. Wasn't totally sure how the thing was going to turn out initially, but after we started rolling tape that first day I knew I was going to have more than I needed to make something funny and engaging.
The lyrics mention that Mac cuts all his videos with Final Cut Pro? Is that true, and what other applications do you use to refine your online video?
DF: We used Final Cut Pro for all the editing and composites, but we also used Photoshop to create many of the greenscreen backgrounds. I wish we had more time, as I would have liked to do the compositing in After Effects like we are doing on our newer projects.
Do you have any tips, techniques or processes you would like to share with someone interested in making there own independent video?
DF: I think that in terms of a video going viral, content is everything. Make sure the idea is right. Production value is all well and good, but if the idea is not there the video is not going to fly. Especially in this online video world where the user-generated look is sometimes preferable.
Do you have any other projects in the works?
DF: Currently, we are in post-production on a new video for client zillow.com, an online real estate site. We are also in discussions with a few start up companies around the bay area interested in viral marketing campaigns. Ideally, we would like to establish ourselves as a commercial production company for online based advertisements.
What sparked your creative interest in making films in the first place?
DF: I went to Wesleyan University where I majored in Film Studies. Didn't know that was what I wanted to do before getting there, and to be honest, I first got into it because I preferred to watch a movie and write about it as opposed to reading a book. I very quickly found myself totally engrossed in the world of the moving image, and I've been making films and music videos as well as working in the industry ever since.
As with any video online, especially anything potentially argumentative and passionate as mac vs. pc you must get a lot of bot positive and negative responses on the video. Any interesting ones you would like to share?
PeterFuria: One of our favorite responses went like this: "Oh, I get it, you're rapping?sweet. The video wasn't funny. It wasn't cool. It sucked. Keep to your day job, ok?"
Finally the big question, why did you mention MacWorld and not PCWorld? Just kidding. Really, which do prefer Mac or PC?
DF: I prefer Mac generally because they are so much more intuitive, but I recently started work at a visual effects company in San Francisco where I've come to see PC's as the real "heavy lifters"...so I guess the fight rages on.
Special thanks to director David Fine along with co-producer Peter Furia and co-songwriter Beau Lewis. You can checkout the video parody ?Mac or PC? at www.macorpc.org.
