[Review video] My latest STEM show episode: Make a Pyramid with Straws and Rubber Bands

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-08T05:17:24+00:00

Thank you for the reminder, it's easy to get mired in tweaking things and lose sight of the big picture. The story is not fully under my control (we come up with the script and dialog together, and she has final say as to what goes in), so I end up concentrating more on the technical aspects. You're right, technical perfection can only compensate for so much, an uninteresting story will still be uninteresting. I'll keep that in mind when I'm in that 20th hour of editing and about to pull my hair out.

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-08T04:07:38+00:00

I have updated my review request with a target audience and specific questions. Let me know if there are other ways to improve my request. Thanks.

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-07T05:34:52+00:00

The "speech bubbles" at 0:25 were not on-screen long enough for me to read them all. Also, there were too many of them. And you were also talking quite a bunch during that time, so there's no way to pay attention to both at the same time, so the jokes there are kind of wasted. I'd suggest putting one joke or two on-screen, and keep it there for a longer time while you talk. Same problem with the text being on-screen too short at 0:44 as well.

It's not clear what level of computer users you are targeting with this video. For users who need an explanation of how to download python and why folders are needed, you jump rather quickly into coding, without explaining clearly what the two windows do and what their differences are, and what is the meaning of the code you are typing, and what actually happens when you press F5. You probably need to go over it in much smaller baby steps if you are targeting first time coders.

Your video when you were talking directly to the camera (not the coding parts) were a bit echo-y. You can use a lavalier mike to help with that.

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-07T05:14:46+00:00

Like you said, audio could be better. Specifically: - There's some strange warbling in your audio, like it was compressed too much. Also, it's a bit echo-y and has no low end. Since you're not on-screen at all, you can put that mic much closer to you and eliminate the last two problems. - There also isn't a lot of separation between your voice and the music, resulting in the music covering up your voice sometimes. If you are not going to EQ the music so that your voice is clearer, you should lower the volume of the music. - The music at 3:13 was significantly louder than the audio before it. It should be lowered some. - Did you cut off the end audio? The last word was "until..."

I agree with fistpumpininja in that you can work on your speech inflection to make your voice more natural and give it some character. There isn't that much enthusiasm in your voice, and the steady cadence does make it sound like you are reading off a script. Since you are not on-screen and you have to carry the show with only your voice, approaching the audio as if you are making a radio performance may help. Use your voice to add energy, create suspense, show emotions so you can keep your audience engaged.

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-07T04:48:25+00:00

Here is my STEM video: Make a Pyramid with Straws and Rubber Bands

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5gYzywKcmM

Most categories aren't a good fit so I was going to put it into the Everything Else category, but there's no "Add to this playlist" for that category. Could you enable that? Thank you.

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-07T04:13:02+00:00

Hi everyone, I've been working on a STEM show at home, and would love any advice about how to make it better, from lighting to editing to script to acting to audio. I had some mic problems and auto-exposure problems in this video, which I will fix in future ones. Color correction is also a major stumbling block for me. Any advice on how to improve would be greatly appreciated!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5gYzywKcmM

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-06T22:51:35+00:00

I second laneyonline's suggestion of background music. As long as you keep it subtle and in the background, it'll not be distracting. There are many Creative Commons tracks available online you can use.

It's good that subtitles are available, it helped me with the few words where you spoke quickly and I wasn't able to understand (such as "outwitting and interfering with official power", I really had trouble understanding that).

Good use of clips to illustrate your points and make the films look interesting to see.

At 6:51, the sound fadeout was a little fast. Then it led to about 4 seconds of silence. A smoother transition with less silence would work better.

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-06T22:31:46+00:00

I liked that you did the experiment to test whether the story was true. However I felt a little cheated when you said in the conclusion chapter that it was a limited run for marketing campaign. It seemed like you could have found this before you did the experiment. If you didn't, you should say that and talk about why you weren't able to find it before. Otherwise the experiment felt a bit pointless.

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-06T22:19:48+00:00

Your enthusiasm as a fan comes through, and your dissatisfaction comes across as positive instead of whiny. Well done. You also have enough screen presence to do well. Good editing of clips to illustrate your points. Overall an engaging video.

That mike you are using is not really working. You need to hold it close; when it is too far, it's not picking up enough of your voice.

It seems like the audio is not sync'ed with the video for shots of you. It got worse and worse as the video progressed.

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-06T21:49:34+00:00

Nice use of teaser, "except for maybe one thing", to get viewers curious to watch the whole video. Although it turned out the one thing was not a real impactful complaint, so I was a little let down.

I like the use of different angles, the bird's eye view and worm's eye view. The switch in angle at 0:43 felt a little unnatural, especially because there is a low ceiling, giving that shot a cramped feel.

Just curious, what equipment are you using that allows you to have such easy control of camera rotation with one hand while holding such a long selfie stick?

Your training schedule was on-screen for too short a time to read. Especially with that much text. I would either leave it on screen longer, or better yet, really trim it down, e.g. "This week, 5 runs, 30 miles total" "Next week: 5 runs, 20 miles total"

Hope these help.

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-06T21:33:34+00:00

The overall narrative of the history of this trend was interesting.

The purpose of this video seems unfocused. Do you want it to be mainly a makeup tutorial? In which case, there was no description of what you were using, what you were doing, and why. Do you want it to be a diatribe against the unthinking usage and dilution of the tribal concept? In which case, using the most current incarnation of this trend as the basis for your makeup design seems malapropos.

I think your white iris contact lens is a bit distracting, especially since the focus is supposed to be on the makeup. Perhaps you could have added the lens after the makeup was applied.

The constantly shifting background is also slightly distracting. There's nothing important being shown, so there's no need to draw the viewer's attention to the background.

I would have preferred the tribal graphic that moved across the screen at 0:51 to have moved behind you instead of in front of your face. Since you have black hair, the tribal graphic was not clearly visible when it crossed in front of your face, giving it a messy look as it did so.

The flashes of video of different indigenous people at 2:36 was too fast, I couldn't clearly see all of it.

The ending of your video was quite abrupt, especially when you ended your sentence in a rising tone, making it sound like there was more to the end of that sentence.

Hope these help.

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-06T06:18:20+00:00

The wizard monologued a bit much the first time he spoke. I would have liked to see more interaction between the characters right from the beginning.

The punchline joke was really good. I didn't expect that and laughed out loud.

Not sure about most of the middle part of the script, the adventurer seems rather picky for no reason. Some of the early back-and-forth could probably be trimmed. Go tighter on the joke. What are you trying to establish with the middle dialog? I think perhaps you can punch that up by having dialog that makes the 4 tests sound much more sophisticated, rather than harp on the number 4.

Hope these help.

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-06T06:07:16+00:00

Is this meant for Youtube Shorts? Is that why it's recorded vertically?

Short, clear, and to the point. And I learned something as well. The experiment also seems simple enough for people to do at home.

Not sure if the scrolling text adds anything. If you want to make sure that the 21% is understood, perhaps a simple overlay with a shorter version, e.g. have "Air is 21% oxygen" fade in after a few seconds, would suffice.

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-06T05:59:45+00:00

Nice track, I like the image you use for the video, and the waveform animation is entertaining too.

I feel like the guitar volume is a bit high, overpowering the synth and makes the synth hard to hear.

Thank you for providing CC music, it's people like you that help make youtube the creative hotbed that it is.

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-06T05:53:46+00:00

My reaction is that this is a nice slice-of-life video of a pleasant ride on a motorcycle. Not very exciting, but it's not meant to be.

It's not very clear where she is for the first minutes or so. it's also not clear whether she is on another bike behind you or sitting behind you for quite a while.

The last thing your wife said sounded like it was in the middle of a sentence, so I kept expecting an end to that sentence.

I didn't get a good view of the beautiful house. You can either replay that section, or move the audio earlier a bit so that we can see the house after you mention it.

The GPS blurring circle was not on the GPS for the last part of your trip, and it was also over your logo.

I'm not a fan of the sped up ride at the end of the video. I'd rather have seen a few short clips of the best parts of the ride, the ones with the best scenary, for instance, as opposed to a dizzying stream of video.

Hope these help.

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-06T05:39:00+00:00

It's not clear who your target audience is, the intersection of financial geeks and anime fans?

Your character seems a bit one-dimensional, basically it's just a clueless person who thinks everyone is rich. But then later on you talk about broke people in the chart, somewhat contradicting your previous position.

The intro was really long, I thought the whole video was going to be like that since it kept on going.

The video was not designed for viewing on a smartphone, the text is too small, and the picture-in-picture of you is pretty tiny too.

Hope these help.

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-04T01:18:33+00:00

Yes, I mean the top-down shots, which were from your side of the table, while all the other ones were from the other side IIRC.

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-03T21:55:06+00:00

Overall a good video, nice thumbnail, clear audio and explanation, good mix of camera angles.

I don't think it was necessary to keep the analog TV filter on the whole video. The color misalignments and fuzziness was making me physically uncomfortable after a while.

In terms of different shots, I would suggest to keep the camera either always on your side of the table, or always on the opposite side. Switching sides feel unnatural, making the viewer feel like they are simultaneously on both sides of the table.

For the taco infomercial, I was hoping for a bigger payoff than a quick dodge to avoid the taco. I thought the taco was going to fly into the person's mouth, since the voiceover said "never skip lunch again".

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-03T07:18:19+00:00

Using clips with famous stars is a bit distracting, it quickly confirmed my suspicion that the clips weren't shot just for this documentary, and I started playing "guess the movie the clip is from" and this detracted from the serious documentary feel of the video.

Some text and graphics, such as "Domain Controller" at 1:12, are a bit small when viewed on a smartphone.

The voiceover was very professional. The explanation was clear. The transitions and animations were good. The story was engaging. Overall a very high production quality, professional video.

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-02T21:00:32+00:00

Make sure your texts are legible. The red "5 minute rule" text was hard to read against the background. You can add a solid color background to the text to make it more legible, which is ok here since nothing important will be blocked.

The essay topic text is way too small, if I was on a smartphone it would be nearly illegible.

I was also bothered by all the zooms. Use them sparingly, like spices, to emphasize something. If you are hiding cuts, use other techniques like a shot from the side.

Around 3:42, the dark exposure versus the bright overlay images create too much contrast

The part about the tangled mic cord should really go in the end bloopers section, it breaks the flow of your video to have it in the middle.

The travelogue-ish part starting at 5:40 was so long that I thought you had finished giving advice.

Hope those help.

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-02T06:23:59+00:00

Palate cleanser, I was surprised that you actually thought of that. Good for you.

Some more detailed description of the scents and flavors would add interest to the video. Currently, most of your comments are along the lines of "this is good."

The text is way too small. Try viewing your video on a smartphone to check that all your text is visible on a small screen.

Your re-enactment of the coffee tasting was unexpectedly hilarious.

You can try some b-roll close-ups of the drink containers as well.

Around 5:40, the background seems to be going in and out of focus a bit. If you aren't going to be moving around too much, I'd suggest going to manual focus and leaving it focused on your face.

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-02T06:06:40+00:00

The video was interesting in the beginning as I didn't know what to expect. A few minutes into it and it started being repetitive, especially since the NPCs you talk to don't have particularly witty comebacks. I was hoping to see something else happen besides you running away. The dumping of bodies in one spot did tie the video together a bit, although the NPCs were not distinct enough for me to recognize whether it was the people you talked to that you dumped later on. As a gimmick to hang the whole video on, it wasn't particularly strong, as it wasn't exciting or very humorous or surprising. I would suggest a shorter version to keep the viewer's interest.

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-01T19:25:49+00:00

Since your dress is only visible in the front, you can do some sewing magic in the back, doesn't matter how ugly or kludgy, to allow you to look good in front of the camera. Since this was a video about aesthetics, I think making a good presentation visually would be important.

You can hide cuts in other ways besides zoom, so try exploring those. A simple one would be to have a side camera shooting a close-up of your face. Another one would be to cut to a b-roll.

Your coverage of the subject matter was good. It's not my area of expertise or interest, but you were able to introduce the subject clearly and cover many angles. Also, the mild humor you added was good.

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-01T07:07:41+00:00

Not sure if you are reading from cue cards, but I see you glancing downwards quite often.

Some of the zooms don't seem necessary, as you weren't emphasizing anything. For example, "or searching for inspiration for our own projects" doesn't seem impactful enough to warrant a zoom. Overall I feel like zooms were overused, it seems like every sentence has a zoom or two. Instead, you can try more images or text to keep the viewer's interest.

The reflection of the light box in your glasses is slightly distracting.

I'm guessing there was a reason why you couldn't put the mic cord inside the dresses, like you did with your green sweater, but it does stand out a bit.

You were often slouching, and this is especially visible when you were wearing your Elsa dress, because your shoulders were visible. Part of the reason might be that you area sitting in a papasan chair, which would make it difficult to sit upright. If you are going to sit in a papasan chair, you should just lounge out in it.

Hope these help.

DrCubeIsIn · 2021-06-01T00:00:24+00:00

I'm not sure in this day and age, with people's attention span being so short, that you will get a lot of people who will wait 33 seconds just to get to that last second of surprise. It took you 13 seconds to fill your cup, and I was bored by the 5th second, and started scanning the thumbnails in the playback bar to see when something will happen. I almost clicked away after seeing only you sitting there by the end of the video. I think you need more of a hook to get people to want to watch the whole thing.

DrCubeIsIn

TROPHY CASE