DCA televised?

[MJH]

Whenever I bring this up,I feel as though I'm alone, but here goes.

Having done the TV production thing, I probably wouldn't even show the DVD's in their current state to a television audience, ESPECIALLY with the advent of affordable ddigital and HD to the masses.

There's too much that goes on in our DVDs that wouldn't be acceptable in a broadcast situation.

THIS IS NO SLAM ON THE CURRENT PEOPLE, LIGHTEN UP! (before I say it, just to be sure. This is a professional opinion and no reflection on the PERSONS doing the work. They do a stellar job for us given the budget and conditions they have to work with)

<soapbox on>

Our DVDs are not of the best direction quality.

What do I mean? Watch the DCI product. It is CLEAR whomever is making the call on what gets shown and what doesn't KNOWS drum corps. Tom Blair shows year after year his experience as a marcher and instructor that works very well in tandem with his broadcast experience.

It may sound mean, but if ESPN were presented a product of the quality of the DCA DVD's, I'm certain they just wouldn't be able to use them.

Some examples:

It looks like all the cameras are "active" i.e. no iso cameras. (this can be good sometimes, but has provided us with a few "burps" that we have to live with) There's too much of videographers moving the camera or dropping the camera before the director cuts away.

The videographers will hold a soloist shot, and the director will stay with them even though they're not playing, or are getting ready to play a second time then will suddenly cut away when they start playing again.

I've noticed (after seeing some of the corps during the year) that the video folks will hone in onto a section that is doing regular work while something REALLY nice is going on elsewhere. (usually back and forth between Battery and Guard)

And, you just get the feeling that the people pushing the buttons and sweeping the switches just aren't that familiar with the activity like Tom and his crew are.

Some things that would help:

Cameras:

Overhead angle on all the time, never touched.

crossing-path iso field level cameras to handle maybe picking up something missed.

One field-level manned camera with a TALENTED videographer that can do moving truck/pan/zoom effects by hand

One crane (overhead/moving shots)

One handheld (for pit and features)

Obviously, that will all be a pretty big budget, which we don't have. More:

Production:

Instead of trying to cut live to video, go back and EDIT. I can guarantee you a lot hits the floor with the live to video thing that wouldn't if someone did a bunch of edit work, and took the stance a lot of editors do, that it's an art. you'll see better sweeps, pans, fades. You'll catch some of the better zooming/trucking videography from the crane and (if you have one) maybe an extra field level camera.

You could use things caught from various angles and really do some nice work. When you have a valid issue that a camera's shots are unusable, you've got 6 shots to choose from, thus increasing the possibility that youhave a shot or two that can save your rear in the edit process. Live to video really shoots your chances of fixing those type blemishes.

Budget:

I think the primary problem would be budgetary. It ain't cheap to find/get a video company with enough equipment and personnel to do the type of job Tom does. DCI also has a much broader audience, so they sell many more units than we ever could, bringing down the overall cost to DCI.

The second issue is that the distribution channel would need to be much larger to justify the expense.

It would be*nice* to have someone directing that has marched, understands and has taught or even written drill.

While we would be somewhat inconvenienced at not being able to have our DVD/VHS immediately, in the long run the product would be MUCH better when they have several days of edit time rather than very little edit time.

Or, some kind of way the production company could make a live to video cut and then a later edited cut, both for pay.

Until we have a much better, more polished product with high-quality on-screen graphics and DVD interfaces, and better produced artwork for the DVD, we'll not be able to get much of it onto TV locally much less nationally.

</soapboxoff>

Agreeing with Jerald is always scary for me...

Editing = key to a better finished product

knowledge of the activity = key to an excellent product

pre-production = key to an AMAZING product

I think if you want to make the TV show that a network will want to air, you need to show the human side of drum corps, not just the performance side. The DVDs that we get currently are a good representation of what goes on the performance field. Those performances are only a tiny percentage of the hours a member puts into a corps.

You want drama or cuties in skimpy clothes, spend a little time at a rehearsal.

I think the way to sell this DCA to a TV network would be to run it as a reality show. You'd need a director who loves the activity and you'd need to show all the stuff that goes into working a full time job, raising kids, and dealing with life's problems while being a member of a top performing unit. The culmination of the series would be the competition at finals. Hopefully, by that time, the director would have been to enough DCA shows to know where the good parts are coming and be able to capture those.

There are a lot of cable channels out there with a lot of air time to fill. One 2-hour program is hardly more than a drop in the bucket to them. Reality shows are big. Come up with a catchy name they can promote the heck out of and you'd have a winner.

BTW, I'd be interested in directing (in a sense, what I do for a living, already), if the right producer came along...

[CVQuesty]

hehe...

Turning Mighty Joe conservative one topic at a time.

j/k :-D

[Jeff Ream]

can anyone at DCA speak as to if this has been explored?

[paparazzi]

At the risk of doing a little shameless promotion, if you're interested in seeing a sample of the type of video Mighty Joe describes, you should check out the 2004 documentary I did for the Renegades. It chronicles the corps from the open house through the pre-season, the trip to DCM, and finally on to DCA. This is a very behind the scenes look at the Renegades and I think much of it tells the story of any drum corps. 2004 was a year of ups and downs, where the corps had to answer for themselves what the true nature of winning is. A good piece to share with your spouse or friends who don't quite understand why you spend so much time with the your respective corps. If you have seen it, I'd sure like to hear what you thought of it (good and bad).

Having done this on less than a shoestring budget (a labor of love really), one of the biggest issues with the whole video thing is budgets, or lack thereof. To be broadcast quality is a big ticket item, and at the end of the day, there has to be a compelling return on invesment for the funders. Until that happens, I think we're looking at the status quo.

There are other ways of telling the story of what you do and why you do it. I agree with anyone here who says the key to success is getting personal. I'd be interested in exploring some of the possibilities with interested parties offline, especially those of you who have previous media experience.

In the meantime, support your corps (and your other favorites) by buying videos. The only way for those of us who'd like to see the quality of video improve is to have the resources, money and management buy-in to do it right. And that my friends is a result of demand and proven sales.

[north state di]

I wanted to let you know that I agree with Jay. If you want to introduce drum corps to others, don't just show a performance video. Even the best tape doesn't share that element that is so very personal that draws others into WHY we do what we do. It isn't all for the performance - it involves developing this magical few moments of a show by hours and hours of sweat and tears alongside others with the same heart. His 2004 video really showed how the Renegades are a powerful, silly, passionate family - full of all the elements of any family. I am proud to say I was a member of the corps and Jay captured our growth through the season.

Jay, thank you for your sacrifices made in order to show the world...and the Renegades...how we function and develop what the audience sees on the field. You made me even more proud to be a part of the corps because you highlighted that it isn't just about skills; it is about all the caring that goes into each corps developing a love for each other and the show.

Anyone that wants to explain their passion about corps should purchase the video...it speaks loudly for one and all to understand.

Diane

[Snapettes Mom]

Can we get some stuff from Jays work on the Renegades on YouTube.com?

Mom

[CozyChopsCom]

I totally missed this thread during my long absence from DCP. I recall the '94 DCA Championship season when the scheduled video company was suddenly lost. Vince Bruni talked to Bob Scott, an Empire bass drummer who was a Rochester DJ and phenomenal corps emcee. Bob got a video company, I believe from Rochester, in not long before the championship. Bob, knowing that the crew knew video/audio, but not corps, asked each corps to assign an individual/individuals from each corps to be with camera operators. This worked well in prelims and was greatly improved for finals, mainly because the video company was willing to adapt to our venue after Mr. B, Bob Scott et al., suggested ways to better the product. The pic-in-pic was a nice touch, indeed, as someone mentioned. I believe that same company did '94 - '96. Those were some of the best years of video in my opinion.

ESPN? Yep, we'd have to pay 'em. DCA can't spare that kind of $$ in my opinion. Sitting here in 'Bama seeing a local cable company show local hs football games, I do wonder why regional cable TV isn't consulted more. Having a Rochester cable TV station show DCA beats no coverage at all.

Reality? Sure, I'd love to see more "how-we-got-to-Rachacha" video with lotsa bikini babes, sunburns, blood, sweat and cheers. I'd love to see the Paparazzi's Renegades video and the '77 DCA Championships. Fred, thanks for producing the '77 Championships video!

[TomPeashey]

Almost a year away from it and definitely not speaking for DCA, I can tell you that in the past - EVERYTHING has been looked into... All ideas are fair game... that being said, DCA is simply not DCI (market wise). Unless someone (AJ Wright? or the likes?) invests directly into an attempt at something like this, it's almost impossible.

What Vince Bruni and Bob Scott did was fantastic back then... to this day, they had the best equipment ever used at DCA including a full NBC sports direction truck. However, many chips were cashed in and some significant money was spent (by Vince). It all rolls back to money...

The current Video company is doing an excellent job and brings in better equipment every year. They have shown not only a willingness to be educated in our activity - making the final product better each year - but a desire to improve. Their audio presentation alone shows this. It's VERY good.

Anyway, on point - DCA corps rely completely on the ability of the organization to make a profit each year and turn that profit back to the competitors (all competitors - not just voting members)... Unlike DCI, the funds received from DCA often means the difference between survival and becoming a blip in history to the competing corps. Any direct investment by DCA into a TV show that may or may not produce additional support in the future would be risking the survival of the corps during a very precarious time in the industry. (re: bus costs!)

What you do get?

Great entertainment! At a reasonable cost...

Close competition with over half of the finalists having a legitimate chance at the Gold...

Quality CD's and DVD's to remember by!

An organization that listens...

a la moving the championship from a baseball to a soccer stadium...

a la moving prelims to Saturday night from Saturday morning to allow that show to be more fan friendly and accessible...

a la creating a strong class A to promote the activity - especially outside the northeast and sharing the money with these corps.

a la giving homage to the history of drum corps and supporting the Alumni corps movement.

a la creating an entirely new activity in mini-corps - adding another creative venue within the activity.

a la providing a great I&E - great for the performers and wonderful for the audience - and FREE Admission..

While no one within DCA would ever ignore an idea or offer to produce a TV show, it would have to be something that could be done with no risk to the program and no negative effect on any of the above...

[Jeff Ream]

exactly. the possibility is there, but it has to be done so it doesn't bankrupt DCA.

while DCA is still strong in the NE fan wise, in other areas, the fan base is still growing...to rush and do too much soon could cause a lot of damage

Edited June 6, 2006 by jeffsnewjetta

[TomPeashey]

I knew when you told me you were marrying Christine that you were finally "getting" it...

well now...

You've "Got" it...