Geek Girl VLogging Workshop at Geek Girl Con
I’m thrilled to be apart of the first Geek Girl Con coming up this weekend in Seattle. On Sunday, I have two sessions I’m participating in:
Geek Girl Vlogging
Vlog your way to a better tomorrow! Feminist Frequency and Reel Grrls team up to host a Geek Girl video blogging workshop. This introductory workshop covers the basic how to of video blogging from shooting to publishing. See examples of some of the most interesting vlogs on the net with panelists’ critique on the do’s and don’ts of creating compelling online videos.
Panelists: Maile Martinez and Anita Sarkeesian.
Media Literacy, Criticism, and Production
Geek Girls are fluent in popular culture, yet sometimes miss the subtext imbedded in the words and images put out by the media. Panelists will open your eyes to the good, the bad, and the ugly of media and help you to start asking questions of media creators, distributors, and consumers.
Panelists: Maile Martinez (moderator), Anita Sarkeesian, Leah Wilson, Kristy Guevara-Flanagan, Kelsey Wallace, Kjerstin Johnson
Resources and Recommended Videos below
Resources
Here are some resources that we have put together that are helpful when creating and promoting your videoblog/webshow.
V I D E O
- MPEG Streamclip – MPEG Streamclip is a powerful free video converter, player, editor for Mac and Windows.
- Miro Video Converter – A super simple way to convert almost any video to MP4, WebM (vp8), Ogg Theora, or for Android, iPhone, and more.
- Fire Fogg – Allows users to encode videos in ogg and webm formats and upload them to compatible sites. (HTML5)
- DownloadHelper – DownloadHelper is also a free Firefox extension for downloading and converting videos from many sites with minimum effort.
M E D I A
- ccMixter – ccMixter is a community music site featuring remixes licensed under Creative Commons where you can listen to, sample, mash-up, or interact with music in whatever way you want.
- Creative Commons Search – Find Creative Commons licensed media
A C C E S S I B I L I T Y
- Universal Subtitles – Universal Subtitles is a free open source subtitling and translating video platform.
M I S C
- Center For Social Media – Learn about the best practices for fair use
- nist.tv – A feminist video aggregator site, it’s like YouTube for feminism!
- Organization for Transformative Works – a nonprofit organization run by and for fans to provide access to and preserve the history of fanworks and fan cultures.
VLogs and Web Shows
Check out these videos, vlogs and web shows
- Grrl Vlog – created by the staff and students at Reel Grrls, they discuss media, feminism, tech things or what’s going on at Reel Grrls.
- Ill Doctrine – ill Doctrine is a video blog hosted by Jay Smooth, founder of New York’s longest running hip-hop radio show, WBAI’s Underground Railroad.
- That’s Gay – A segment on Current TV’s InfoMania discussing representations of Queer folks in the media
- Target Women – A former segment on Current TV’s InfoMania discussing gender in advertising
- NineteenPercent – a YouTube vlogger who occasionally comments on the media and women’s rights. Check out these videos: Beyonce: Run the World (Lies), Planned Parenthood, and The Erosion of Roe and Why You Should Give a Sh*t
- Going Rampent – discusses political issues such as sexism, ageism, etc. in relation to fictional media, as well as general analyses. Check out Male Rape Jokes
- Violet Drow – Did a series of videos discussing historical women for Women’s History Month. Check out The Pirate Queen, Yaa Asantewaa, Annette Kellerman.
- Someone To Shout For – discusses issues about and for queer folks. Check out Bisexuality
Do’s & Don’t's of Vlogging
This list of do’s and don’t's was collectively brainstormed in the videoblogging session
Bechdel Test for Women in Movies by Feminist Frequency
- Used Humour
- Not ranty
- Not angry/not accusational
- Use of examples
- Focused on one clear point
- Backdrop with clean focus/uncluttered
- made use of the visual medium
How to Tell People They Sound Racist by IllDoctrine
- Jump cuts were smooth and camera angle changed
- A story arc/structure – beginning/middle/end
- Music, helped give the video rhythm
- Engaged with the audience directly
- Changed style while talking, between academic/theoretical and used humor, metaphorical
- Black and white filter didn’t distract from the video
Grrl Vlog #1: Bristol Palin’s New PSA by Reel Grrls
Do’s
- - Used clips to illustrate point
- - two points of view with two vloggers
- - clear point and narrative arc
- - timely and relevant
- - nuanced analysis
- - resources at the end
Don’t's
- looked awkward when not talking
- if having a conversation, look at each other
- enunciation and delivery
- hot pink was distracting – colour scheme was distracting from the content
- music could barely be heard and was distracting when heard, should be used to pace video sliding transitions were distracting
- announcing that its the first video
- was about the event but didn’t have the hook that makes it timeless (could focus on the larger issue)
- lighting was different on each vlogger
- too long
- comments that were stream of consciousness could have been cut out when not relevant
Hi Anita,
It was great meeting you today at the VLogging workshop. It was a very informative and well put together class. Thank you.
I’ve been pondering trying a video format to better illustrate what really works in film. I’ve been thinking about what it is about action cinema that comes from Hollywood that is mind-numbingly dull, while I am completely in love with Hong Kong action cinema. Well, recently on Press Play, Mathias Stork contributed a video essay called Chaos Cinema that is fantastic and reminds me that I was on the right track with the need to use a visual medium to better illustrate concepts in film. I will have to look closer at the fair use. okay, I also need to get a lot better at using iMovie.
But I just wanted to drop you a line, pass on the link to my not very well maintained blog, and to thank you for putting on a great workshop today. Thanks again.
DeAnna
[Reply]
Hello;
I really wish I could have attended, but being in Canada that might have been a bit hard. I really do like the stile of your vlogs. Not only are they fun, and your personality charming and engaging, but they’re meaningful. The ones about Lego hit home (though, I gotta say, I used to just rip the “male” heads off the fire fighters and put the “female” heads on *shrugs*) about how slowly and swiftly things can change.
I’m definitely interested in giving vlogging my own try. It would be about slightly different topics, but I am taking notes. We’ll see where I end up.
Thanks,
- Suzie
[Reply]