This week’s movie supplanted one I had ready to go. Last Friday’s visit to Kingston to watch the first-year cadets’ obstacle course was as inspiring as ever, and so I wanted to get this video done quickly.
This week I worked with title effects, more picture-in-picture effects using both video and still photos, and changing the video’s speed. I also learned how to clip still photos from video. As my repertoire of techniques increases so, too, will my ability to tell stories. I hope!
Never saw the obstacle course, but did see a marching display. Good commentary, explaining why these marching procedures were important in the forests where battles were fought, in them olden days. Marvelous precision of wheeling, turning, moving together. \Jim T
Jim T – Well, you’re one up on me (at least :-)) because I’ve never really understood marching. But I understand how hard it is to get people to work together, to pull together, and I admire it when it works.
Isabel – my original comment seems to have gone AWOL. My comment was that I found nothing inspiring about it when I had to do the obstacle course when I was in basic officer training. With the wisdom of age I expect it depends on whether or not you are a participant or an observer.
JohnW
John – I heard from one professor that there was a fair bit of stress in the recruit group leading up to the event. No one wanted to be the one who lost points for their team. And I believe you that it wasn’t/isn’t inspiring for participants: they’re too busy just trying to get through it, I think.
In basic training, it is actually called a “confidence” course. In fairness it does build up your confidence once you’ve completed it 3 or 4 times. I suppose I was actually inspired, i.e. to NOT TO WANT TO DO IT AGAIN .
John w
John – LOL – I’m glad you got something out of it! That approach aligns with how they presented the obstacle course in “An Officer and a Gentleman,” which is my only other exposure.
All I could think of were two things: the madness of war and fragile rotator cuffs.
Barbara – I didn’t find that it evoked anything warlike, but of course that is the broader context. But the fragility of the human body – oh yeah. Oh to be 18 again. well, to have an 18-year-old body.