Dancing Guy
September 24, 2011 11:56 AM Subscribe
This guy is really good at dancing. SLYT. Watch in fullscreen if possible.
Wow. He pegs the uncanny valley with nothing more than movement.
posted by dragstroke at 12:15 PM on September 24, 2011 [9 favorites]
posted by dragstroke at 12:15 PM on September 24, 2011 [9 favorites]
That move he does at about 4:13 is incredible. He's very good, sort of a mix of Boogaloo Shrimp and World Order.
posted by Bookhouse at 12:16 PM on September 24, 2011 [7 favorites]
posted by Bookhouse at 12:16 PM on September 24, 2011 [7 favorites]
I do like me some good liquid dancing!
posted by aubilenon at 12:19 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by aubilenon at 12:19 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
Stunning. If you watch until about 3:30, it looks as if he's giving up on the dance, but he isn't.
And for some reason, I thought he was British, but he's American.
(Original song, but I do really prefer the dubstep remix.)
posted by maudlin at 12:20 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
And for some reason, I thought he was British, but he's American.
(Original song, but I do really prefer the dubstep remix.)
posted by maudlin at 12:20 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
So I can only assume he has had his ankles surgically replaced with gimbals right?
posted by PenDevil at 12:21 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by PenDevil at 12:21 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
Goosebumps. Actual goosebumps, repeatedly. Sometimes things are so beautiful they redeem the world, even if only for 5:27 minutes.
posted by moneyjane at 12:22 PM on September 24, 2011 [5 favorites]
posted by moneyjane at 12:22 PM on September 24, 2011 [5 favorites]
No freakin' way. Really Horselover? I felt like he was expressing eternal truths about time and mortality. Really.
posted by Mei's lost sandal at 12:26 PM on September 24, 2011 [26 favorites]
posted by Mei's lost sandal at 12:26 PM on September 24, 2011 [26 favorites]
I'll have to say I not a fan of literal dance interpretation but this was perfect - a great dancer and also a good, subtle story teller.
posted by victors at 12:27 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by victors at 12:27 PM on September 24, 2011
This guy and gravity are only casual acquaintances. That was mesmerizing.
posted by heyho at 12:28 PM on September 24, 2011 [3 favorites]
posted by heyho at 12:28 PM on September 24, 2011 [3 favorites]
Hypnotic.
posted by crunchland at 12:29 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by crunchland at 12:29 PM on September 24, 2011
Looks like trick photography.
(Is that going to be a compliment? Something so good and real it must be fake?)
posted by wobh at 12:31 PM on September 24, 2011
(Is that going to be a compliment? Something so good and real it must be fake?)
posted by wobh at 12:31 PM on September 24, 2011
Superb, nearly inhuman level of body control, like any observable impressive skill, is a fantastic thing to behold in isolation. If it expresses something in the process, all the better, but it's not necessary. One good thing doesn't need to be accompanied by another good thing.
posted by jklaiho at 12:37 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by jklaiho at 12:37 PM on September 24, 2011
Massive computer editting, right?
posted by brewsterkahle at 12:38 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by brewsterkahle at 12:38 PM on September 24, 2011
You understand, of course, that this isn't possible.
posted by SPrintF at 12:39 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by SPrintF at 12:39 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
Really lovely. Would be great on stage, but not on a dance floor. A dance floor of people attempting that, even if they could do it like him, would suck the energy out of a room. And maybe look a bit like Thriller. When folks do this in a club it is great for a little while, but then the gathering crowd clogs the floor. Make room and shake it!
posted by oneironaut at 12:42 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by oneironaut at 12:42 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
You understand, of course, that this isn't possible.
and
Massive computer editting, right?
Seriously, if this was edited, than the editing job would be even more incredible than the dude's dancing.
Just focus on his feet--it's not edited.
This guy is simply super-talented.
posted by DavidandConquer at 12:49 PM on September 24, 2011 [3 favorites]
and
Massive computer editting, right?
Seriously, if this was edited, than the editing job would be even more incredible than the dude's dancing.
Just focus on his feet--it's not edited.
This guy is simply super-talented.
posted by DavidandConquer at 12:49 PM on September 24, 2011 [3 favorites]
Oh shit! He has friends!
posted by (Arsenio) Hall and (Warren) Oates at 12:51 PM on September 24, 2011 [7 favorites]
posted by (Arsenio) Hall and (Warren) Oates at 12:51 PM on September 24, 2011 [7 favorites]
Mindblowing.
posted by Liquidwolf at 1:02 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by Liquidwolf at 1:02 PM on September 24, 2011
My initial reaction was that the video was heavily edited, but on watching it once more - taking in both the footwork and the reflections of the traffic on the glass doors in the background - it doesn't seem to be. So, wow. That man has serious skills. I'd like to see him in a dance-off with David Elsewhere.
posted by frogbit at 1:02 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by frogbit at 1:02 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
I've watched it a couple times, and I strongly believe it was edited, if only the speed during certain portions. It doesn't appear that his actual moves were altered, just the speed in which they were delivered, and the reason I say this is because of his clothing. Watch the way his shirt moves and hangs on his body at times. If he's found a way to slow down the effect of gravity on his shirt, I'll be really impressed.
posted by secondhand pho at 1:22 PM on September 24, 2011 [4 favorites]
posted by secondhand pho at 1:22 PM on September 24, 2011 [4 favorites]
I was thinking these guys are all sort of skinny. Then I realized that holding all 600-odd muscles in perfect tension must burn approximately 1 billion calories an hour. So yeah. They probably eat cheeseburgers by wheelbarrow.
posted by device55 at 1:23 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by device55 at 1:23 PM on September 24, 2011
Awesome control, and great idea for the group piece, but they're having less fun than Les Twins...
posted by progosk at 1:25 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by progosk at 1:25 PM on September 24, 2011
Shocking, gorgeous, subtle and just... damn, sometimes it's good to be reminded that physicality is precious and worth all its trouble.
posted by Mizu at 1:28 PM on September 24, 2011 [6 favorites]
posted by Mizu at 1:28 PM on September 24, 2011 [6 favorites]
And that, children, is what happens when the Matrix glitches out on someone's "walk" animation.
posted by ZsigE at 1:32 PM on September 24, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by ZsigE at 1:32 PM on September 24, 2011 [2 favorites]
That's Nonstop. I like this one, and this one better. Been watching this guy for months in awe. It is real, and it is possible.
posted by IvoShandor at 1:33 PM on September 24, 2011 [5 favorites]
posted by IvoShandor at 1:33 PM on September 24, 2011 [5 favorites]
Yeah, watching in fullscreen is key.
I'd be extremely surprised if this was manipulated in any way. I don't see any problem with the way the clothes move, and why would a guy at this level risk his credibility for the sake of slightly more impressive moves?
Also, there have been guys doing moves like these for decades, and he's pushed it to a slightly higher level... it's not like what he's doing is miles above anyone else.
posted by Huck500 at 1:33 PM on September 24, 2011 [3 favorites]
I'd be extremely surprised if this was manipulated in any way. I don't see any problem with the way the clothes move, and why would a guy at this level risk his credibility for the sake of slightly more impressive moves?
Also, there have been guys doing moves like these for decades, and he's pushed it to a slightly higher level... it's not like what he's doing is miles above anyone else.
posted by Huck500 at 1:33 PM on September 24, 2011 [3 favorites]
The things that impress me most are the things I can't do.
I can't draw or paint. I can't do sport well. And I can't dance. If some kind genie ever offered me the chance to be good at one of the things I am not good at, I would choose to be able to dance. Without the slightest hesitation, that's what I'd choose.
This is awesome, to me. Man, what it must be like to be this in touch with your body.
posted by Decani at 1:34 PM on September 24, 2011 [5 favorites]
I can't draw or paint. I can't do sport well. And I can't dance. If some kind genie ever offered me the chance to be good at one of the things I am not good at, I would choose to be able to dance. Without the slightest hesitation, that's what I'd choose.
This is awesome, to me. Man, what it must be like to be this in touch with your body.
posted by Decani at 1:34 PM on September 24, 2011 [5 favorites]
re: editing: I'm not a shadow expert, but the two shadows visible through the window change quite noticably from the start to the end of the 5 minutes. But perhaps thats normal for certain latitudes? oh and that would mean that he's doing it even slower??
posted by memebake at 1:34 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by memebake at 1:34 PM on September 24, 2011
Oh, and fie on the knee-jerk cynics who think this is manipulated. These sort of robotic dance moves have been around for decades. It's just that this guy does them more fluidly and with more beautiful restraint than I've ever seen them done before.
posted by Decani at 1:40 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Decani at 1:40 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
It is really cool, but it certainly does appear to have had both time (editing/speed ramping) and spatial (morphing) manipulation applied through out the video, most likely in Flame (a high end visual effects compositing tool). The locked down camera is a bit of a giveaway, as it makes applying these techniques much, much easier. That said, I don't believe any of this detracts from the artistic value of the video. On the contrary, the fact that there is so much debate about how "real" the dancing was is a testament to what a good job the director and VFX artist did in being subtle and artistic in post production.
posted by Dean358 at 1:44 PM on September 24, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by Dean358 at 1:44 PM on September 24, 2011 [2 favorites]
This was lovely. More anti-gravity, impossible-ankled shenanigans.
posted by jonnyploy at 1:55 PM on September 24, 2011 [4 favorites]
posted by jonnyploy at 1:55 PM on September 24, 2011 [4 favorites]
I would bet cold hard monies there's no manipulation.
posted by neuromodulator at 1:55 PM on September 24, 2011 [10 favorites]
posted by neuromodulator at 1:55 PM on September 24, 2011 [10 favorites]
This makes me laugh and feel like a kid again.
posted by storybored at 2:06 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by storybored at 2:06 PM on September 24, 2011
Nonstop is amazing. He's a member of Remote Kontrol -- you can see them here. They've been on TV a few times -- namely So You Think You Can Dance.
posted by spiderskull at 2:07 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by spiderskull at 2:07 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
I would bet cold hard monies there's no manipulation.
posted by neuromodulator at 9:55 PM on September 24
Me too. It depresses me how ready people are to disbelieve in human ability. If you actually concentrate on the guy's movements - just what his body is doing, from his feet to his arms to his head - it all seems eminently plausible. I have certainly seen people do similar moves to this in real life, just not so well for such a length of time.
Why can't people go from that to accepting that maybe he's just really accomplished at this stuff? Sad.
posted by Decani at 2:07 PM on September 24, 2011 [4 favorites]
posted by neuromodulator at 9:55 PM on September 24
Me too. It depresses me how ready people are to disbelieve in human ability. If you actually concentrate on the guy's movements - just what his body is doing, from his feet to his arms to his head - it all seems eminently plausible. I have certainly seen people do similar moves to this in real life, just not so well for such a length of time.
Why can't people go from that to accepting that maybe he's just really accomplished at this stuff? Sad.
posted by Decani at 2:07 PM on September 24, 2011 [4 favorites]
Uh, yeah, people claiming manipulation haven't seen pop-and-lock/gliding battles...
posted by spiderskull at 2:10 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by spiderskull at 2:10 PM on September 24, 2011
Totally shopped.
posted by found missing at 2:12 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by found missing at 2:12 PM on September 24, 2011
Why can't people go from that to accepting that maybe he's just really accomplished at this stuff? Sad.
I hope it is real, and he's obviously talented whatever. I think people are asking about manipulation because it looks so unwordly, and because of the 'metafilter law of interesting responses' - commenting with 'wow great dancing' is kind, but doesn't leave much to discuss. Whereas to a bunch of geeks like us, analysing the video for glitches is much more interesting.
posted by memebake at 2:15 PM on September 24, 2011 [4 favorites]
I hope it is real, and he's obviously talented whatever. I think people are asking about manipulation because it looks so unwordly, and because of the 'metafilter law of interesting responses' - commenting with 'wow great dancing' is kind, but doesn't leave much to discuss. Whereas to a bunch of geeks like us, analysing the video for glitches is much more interesting.
posted by memebake at 2:15 PM on September 24, 2011 [4 favorites]
Foolish haters! The whole damned routine is an attempt to mimic video editing tricks, of COURSE it looks edited. That's the point. That's what makes this guy a cut above, his ability to fool the eye. Jesus Christ.
posted by TheRedArmy at 2:17 PM on September 24, 2011 [23 favorites]
posted by TheRedArmy at 2:17 PM on September 24, 2011 [23 favorites]
You're calling him out for fakery on what are his best tricks, because they are so good.
posted by TheRedArmy at 2:17 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by TheRedArmy at 2:17 PM on September 24, 2011
something something indistinguishable from magic
posted by rhizome at 2:19 PM on September 24, 2011 [6 favorites]
posted by rhizome at 2:19 PM on September 24, 2011 [6 favorites]
Foolish haters! The whole damned routine is an attempt to mimic video editing tricks, of COURSE it looks edited. That's the point.
Was just thinking this. It's amazing because he's deliberately putting in glitches/hitches, mimicking the video process of splice cuts, reverse scroll, etc. Doing this to a crowd of theater-goers in the 19th century would provoke stunned silence or snickers. They wouldn't get it, it wouldn't make sense.
posted by (Arsenio) Hall and (Warren) Oates at 2:21 PM on September 24, 2011 [15 favorites]
Was just thinking this. It's amazing because he's deliberately putting in glitches/hitches, mimicking the video process of splice cuts, reverse scroll, etc. Doing this to a crowd of theater-goers in the 19th century would provoke stunned silence or snickers. They wouldn't get it, it wouldn't make sense.
posted by (Arsenio) Hall and (Warren) Oates at 2:21 PM on September 24, 2011 [15 favorites]
People are focusing on the wrong thing, here. What's impressive is not some kind of video-editing skills or anything. What you should be impressed by is how detailed the MMD model is. It looks like a real person, and only its movements give it away.
posted by kafziel at 2:25 PM on September 24, 2011 [8 favorites]
posted by kafziel at 2:25 PM on September 24, 2011 [8 favorites]
He, Robot.
posted by ShutterBun at 2:29 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by ShutterBun at 2:29 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
What about this one? Gemini/Graduation/Nonstop - the way the traffic moves from 0:17 to 00:46 compared to 1:10 and beyond?
posted by memebake at 2:35 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by memebake at 2:35 PM on September 24, 2011
Oh, you know, just dancing in the rain (mefi link.) The video.
There's a little video editing in here, for instance, at the 1:31 mark, a fraction of a second speedup. That doesn't interfere with the real dancing.
posted by jjj606 at 2:41 PM on September 24, 2011
There's a little video editing in here, for instance, at the 1:31 mark, a fraction of a second speedup. That doesn't interfere with the real dancing.
posted by jjj606 at 2:41 PM on September 24, 2011
At 0.08 he is sitting in a certain position. Look at his shadow - it rises 1/3 of the way up the bench. At 4:41 he is sitting in the same position - his shadow rises the same amount, 1/3 of the way up the bench. Meanwhile, in the background, as memebake pointed out, the concrete wall shadows visible through the window have decreased in size by over 50%. The same should be true for this dancer's shadow but it is not.
So not only was video manipulation done , the scene through the wall was shot in a different timespan than the dancer himself.
It's a nice video - but it has been manipulated.
posted by Poet_Lariat at 2:44 PM on September 24, 2011 [2 favorites]
So not only was video manipulation done , the scene through the wall was shot in a different timespan than the dancer himself.
It's a nice video - but it has been manipulated.
posted by Poet_Lariat at 2:44 PM on September 24, 2011 [2 favorites]
He's just a human imitating a robot imitating a human.
posted by It's Never Lurgi at 2:48 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by It's Never Lurgi at 2:48 PM on September 24, 2011
Seems like the shadow thing could be pretty easily explained by physics. The shadow cast on a wall by an object far away - any degree in change in the sun's position will amplify the change in shadow cast, while an object literally next to another object - it's shadow, while changed by the same degree, would be imperceptible. I don't doubt there could be manipulation, just that the shadow thing is not convincing. Nor does it really get to the heart of what is the most likely possible editing, the manipulation of speed *within* the video, which would affect the shadows of both the man and the wall equally.
posted by (Arsenio) Hall and (Warren) Oates at 2:51 PM on September 24, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by (Arsenio) Hall and (Warren) Oates at 2:51 PM on September 24, 2011 [2 favorites]
Foolish haters! The whole damned routine is an attempt to mimic video editing tricks, of COURSE it looks edited. That's the point.
Right, so its a dance thats deliberately made to look like its been edited and so I'm a fool for asking if its been edited?
posted by memebake at 2:51 PM on September 24, 2011
Right, so its a dance thats deliberately made to look like its been edited and so I'm a fool for asking if its been edited?
posted by memebake at 2:51 PM on September 24, 2011
I agree with Arsenio on the shadow thing though.
This video doesn't look like there's been any editing (nonstop does a solo from 6:41), but on the other hand, he doesn't do any of that slow stuff either.
posted by memebake at 2:54 PM on September 24, 2011
This video doesn't look like there's been any editing (nonstop does a solo from 6:41), but on the other hand, he doesn't do any of that slow stuff either.
posted by memebake at 2:54 PM on September 24, 2011
Oh, and fie on the knee-jerk cynics who think this is manipulated.
Skepticism and cynicism are not one and the same. Look them up.
The whole damned routine is an attempt to mimic video editing tricks, of COURSE it looks edited. That's the point.
Just because it was done to look "edited" does not mean that it wasn't edited.
Nobody has addressed my previous statement that the movement of this clothing, especially the way his shirt hangs, completely defies the laws of physics, especially those of inertia and gravity. Clothing doesn't move like that, unless the time is manipulated.
posted by secondhand pho at 3:13 PM on September 24, 2011
Skepticism and cynicism are not one and the same. Look them up.
The whole damned routine is an attempt to mimic video editing tricks, of COURSE it looks edited. That's the point.
Just because it was done to look "edited" does not mean that it wasn't edited.
Nobody has addressed my previous statement that the movement of this clothing, especially the way his shirt hangs, completely defies the laws of physics, especially those of inertia and gravity. Clothing doesn't move like that, unless the time is manipulated.
posted by secondhand pho at 3:13 PM on September 24, 2011
I have seen remotekontrol live. These are professional dancers. They are very very good. There isn't anything in there which defies the laws of physics like Trinity running up a wall and across the ceiling upside down in The Matrix.
posted by bukvich at 3:14 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by bukvich at 3:14 PM on September 24, 2011
Pho, I'm sorry but I don't see anything otherworldly happening with his clothes. This guy is a professional dancer with a reputation to uphold. Why fake a video of a routine that isn't that much more impressive than some of his crew's best work and risk his career? That makes no sense.
This argument happens every time a feat of dexterity get posted.
posted by Roman Graves at 3:23 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
This argument happens every time a feat of dexterity get posted.
posted by Roman Graves at 3:23 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
There was a moment in a troublesome, heartbreaking relationship I had a million years ago, where the two of us were in Fallingwater, rapt in the presence of that almost unbearably glorious space as a tour guide ran through the seventh spiel of the day with as much enthusiasm as you can muster on the seventh go-round of anything. We were in the room with a little clutch of people as the guy was pointing out the already beautiful intersection where casement windows met on a perfect corner, and the guide reached out and flung the sides apart, transforming a beautiful window into this impossible instant in inverted interior space. I gasped, in spite of myself, and was shocked to feel a single tear roll down my cheek. It's just a window, but oh my—
I looked over at my insoluble complication and a tear was rolling down his cheek, too.
This will all end in tears, I thought, but I know why it started.
I wonder, sometimes, what it is about such things, where these impossible instants bring on tears, bring on the rolling static of the fine hairs bristling on the forearms in waves, and trip all these ancient body alarms that no longer do what they were once meant to do. At 4:13, the air left the room here, just for an instant, like an airlock snapping open, leaving me hanging in space. The mechanism to raise gooseflesh exists to raise our long-lost fur, to keep us warm or make us look bigger and more threatening, and yet, sometimes, something as simple as art will set the works into motion, too.
I like to think that it's all working exactly right, seeing as how a dancer dancing a dance that almost no culture until ours would have recognized a dance, set to a music that's similarly unprecedented, and the signals trip in the presence of how incomprehensibly multifarious the world is—how immense and properly awesome things truly are.
There will always be new things, built on a mountain of history.
We will never, ever, in all our history and with all our ambition, be able to exhaust the potential of what we love to claim are simple bodies and simple minds. In all the universe, we will always be capable of amazing feats, right until we die.
It's just so easy to believe otherwise, so we're often caught off-guard when something breaks that gloomy, self-fulfilling trance, and so we react like the mammals we are, facing up to something monstrous that rears up out of nowhere.
But that's impossible—
—and the waves come, neurons firing fusillades forward through all the boundless millennia between, pulling at the fine old strings and stretching the sinews, bringing that instant, that echoing reflection of glory when we're here, right here, right now, and awake.
There's still so much more to see.
It's just—oh my.
posted by sonascope at 3:27 PM on September 24, 2011 [55 favorites]
I looked over at my insoluble complication and a tear was rolling down his cheek, too.
This will all end in tears, I thought, but I know why it started.
I wonder, sometimes, what it is about such things, where these impossible instants bring on tears, bring on the rolling static of the fine hairs bristling on the forearms in waves, and trip all these ancient body alarms that no longer do what they were once meant to do. At 4:13, the air left the room here, just for an instant, like an airlock snapping open, leaving me hanging in space. The mechanism to raise gooseflesh exists to raise our long-lost fur, to keep us warm or make us look bigger and more threatening, and yet, sometimes, something as simple as art will set the works into motion, too.
I like to think that it's all working exactly right, seeing as how a dancer dancing a dance that almost no culture until ours would have recognized a dance, set to a music that's similarly unprecedented, and the signals trip in the presence of how incomprehensibly multifarious the world is—how immense and properly awesome things truly are.
There will always be new things, built on a mountain of history.
We will never, ever, in all our history and with all our ambition, be able to exhaust the potential of what we love to claim are simple bodies and simple minds. In all the universe, we will always be capable of amazing feats, right until we die.
It's just so easy to believe otherwise, so we're often caught off-guard when something breaks that gloomy, self-fulfilling trance, and so we react like the mammals we are, facing up to something monstrous that rears up out of nowhere.
But that's impossible—
—and the waves come, neurons firing fusillades forward through all the boundless millennia between, pulling at the fine old strings and stretching the sinews, bringing that instant, that echoing reflection of glory when we're here, right here, right now, and awake.
There's still so much more to see.
It's just—oh my.
posted by sonascope at 3:27 PM on September 24, 2011 [55 favorites]
I think the apparent 'problem' with physics and clothing is a product not of editing but of a very lightweight material combined with the dancer's ability to manipulate it as well as his body to achieve certain effects.
It's lightweight like silk. When he allows the bottom front to hang loose, by leaning forward or moving his chest and shoulders forward, and I believe this is a conscious decision in his moves, then it billows and moves slowly.
When he pulls it against his skin, by leaning back or pushing his belly out, then its movement is faster as it's being pushed by his body instead of hanging freely.
posted by zippy at 3:29 PM on September 24, 2011
It's lightweight like silk. When he allows the bottom front to hang loose, by leaning forward or moving his chest and shoulders forward, and I believe this is a conscious decision in his moves, then it billows and moves slowly.
When he pulls it against his skin, by leaning back or pushing his belly out, then its movement is faster as it's being pushed by his body instead of hanging freely.
posted by zippy at 3:29 PM on September 24, 2011
However, the way the shirt moves as he rotates at 0:44 does look pretty weird.
posted by zippy at 3:32 PM on September 24, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by zippy at 3:32 PM on September 24, 2011 [2 favorites]
I would think that anybody doing highly skilled edits using top-of-the-line software would at least be able to get the contrast/exposure/lighting right on the video.
posted by ropeladder at 3:37 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by ropeladder at 3:37 PM on September 24, 2011
Thanks for pointing that out, zippy. Could someone please explain how his shirt moves "backwards" at the 0:44 mark?
posted by secondhand pho at 3:40 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by secondhand pho at 3:40 PM on September 24, 2011
The guy has a bunch more similar videos on his YouTube channel, many featuring this same dancer, so I hope all you armchair forensic video analysts are prepared to debunk several dozen more scenes.
posted by ShutterBun at 3:41 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by ShutterBun at 3:41 PM on September 24, 2011
Yeah, this one is pretty good. And by pretty good, I mean also amazing.
posted by zippy at 3:49 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by zippy at 3:49 PM on September 24, 2011
I don't think video editing explains his ability to slide across the pavement like that.
posted by A dead Quaker at 3:52 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by A dead Quaker at 3:52 PM on September 24, 2011
Yeah, it must be video-editing. I think I'll go with other street dancers commenting elsewhere where the Squeak! it's been manipulated! thing doesn't even come up. From his competition.
posted by moneyjane at 3:59 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by moneyjane at 3:59 PM on September 24, 2011
That is very confusing syntax.
posted by found missing at 3:59 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by found missing at 3:59 PM on September 24, 2011
Me too. It depresses me how ready people are to disbelieve in human ability.
Actually, it's really cool to develop this cynacism, because then when someone with a world ranking does it right in front in you, you brain just bugs out and starts questioning reality itself.
I love that trip :)
Then you realize that you want to be that awesome, but to it you need to have started ten years ago, and you get all sad.
Then you remember that you did a ton of awesome stuff over those last ten years that you wouldn't have had the time to do, and wouldn't want to give up, so everything ok.
posted by -harlequin- at 4:01 PM on September 24, 2011 [2 favorites]
Actually, it's really cool to develop this cynacism, because then when someone with a world ranking does it right in front in you, you brain just bugs out and starts questioning reality itself.
I love that trip :)
Then you realize that you want to be that awesome, but to it you need to have started ten years ago, and you get all sad.
Then you remember that you did a ton of awesome stuff over those last ten years that you wouldn't have had the time to do, and wouldn't want to give up, so everything ok.
posted by -harlequin- at 4:01 PM on September 24, 2011 [2 favorites]
Speaking of dance and glitches in the matrix, I was at a dance competition once, hundreds of people, enthralled, watching a couple perform. Everyone was mostly seated at tables.
The woman tripped. Or least stumbled and instantly recovered. But for split second it looked bad.
For a split second, hundreds of people all... twitched... flinched... tensed... in absolute unison, then it was gone.
Your brain doesn't process that. It looked like the audience stayed still, and the room glitched - the floor, walls, tables, etc, all instantaneously teleported a few inches from where they were, leaving the occupants behind.
And I guess the same thing is part of what is happening in this dance - he's using counter-intuitive relativity of motion to mess with our perspective :)
posted by -harlequin- at 4:13 PM on September 24, 2011 [4 favorites]
The woman tripped. Or least stumbled and instantly recovered. But for split second it looked bad.
For a split second, hundreds of people all... twitched... flinched... tensed... in absolute unison, then it was gone.
Your brain doesn't process that. It looked like the audience stayed still, and the room glitched - the floor, walls, tables, etc, all instantaneously teleported a few inches from where they were, leaving the occupants behind.
And I guess the same thing is part of what is happening in this dance - he's using counter-intuitive relativity of motion to mess with our perspective :)
posted by -harlequin- at 4:13 PM on September 24, 2011 [4 favorites]
Ok, I'll come down on the 'its real' side now, but I think the debate was worth having.
As originally presented (no context of who he is, static camera, static background, fucking un-believe-a-fucking-ble moves) I was skeptical. I thought _most_ of it was real, but maybe some video speeding up and slowing down was going on.
But now I've seen his other stuff, and know he ("nonstop") does shows, has an agent, and is probably one of the best people in the world at this kind of stuff, I can see that the amount of time he'd have to spend matching his choreography to a pre-timestretched music track and then editing it all back to normal speed just wouldn't be worth it - he is a master at moving.
I reserve the right to still be annoyingly skeptical in future threads though, thanks.
posted by memebake at 4:22 PM on September 24, 2011 [3 favorites]
As originally presented (no context of who he is, static camera, static background, fucking un-believe-a-fucking-ble moves) I was skeptical. I thought _most_ of it was real, but maybe some video speeding up and slowing down was going on.
But now I've seen his other stuff, and know he ("nonstop") does shows, has an agent, and is probably one of the best people in the world at this kind of stuff, I can see that the amount of time he'd have to spend matching his choreography to a pre-timestretched music track and then editing it all back to normal speed just wouldn't be worth it - he is a master at moving.
I reserve the right to still be annoyingly skeptical in future threads though, thanks.
posted by memebake at 4:22 PM on September 24, 2011 [3 favorites]
Really lovely. Would be great on stage, but not on a dance floor. A dance floor of people attempting that, even if they could do it like him, would suck the energy out of a room. And maybe look a bit like Thriller.
I have been to a LOT of clubs. And a lot of clubs where house music and breaks are being played and there is always a breakdance circle and there are always people popping and locking, and no, it does not suck the energy out of the room.
posted by empath at 4:24 PM on September 24, 2011 [2 favorites]
I have been to a LOT of clubs. And a lot of clubs where house music and breaks are being played and there is always a breakdance circle and there are always people popping and locking, and no, it does not suck the energy out of the room.
posted by empath at 4:24 PM on September 24, 2011 [2 favorites]
Foolish haters! The whole damned routine is an attempt to mimic video editing tricks, of COURSE it looks edited.
This is exactly right. I've seen guys do all this stuff in person. This is not edited. Or at least, not edited very much.
posted by empath at 4:24 PM on September 24, 2011
This is exactly right. I've seen guys do all this stuff in person. This is not edited. Or at least, not edited very much.
posted by empath at 4:24 PM on September 24, 2011
I don't know if it's real or not, but I know it's fucking awesome!
posted by OmieWise at 4:25 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by OmieWise at 4:25 PM on September 24, 2011
He started when he was 12, so he's been dancing for 17 years.
posted by progosk at 4:28 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by progosk at 4:28 PM on September 24, 2011
Progosk: Marquese "Nonstop" Scott short bio
Sounds like when he gets married, thats going to be a wedding video worth watching.
posted by memebake at 4:29 PM on September 24, 2011
Sounds like when he gets married, thats going to be a wedding video worth watching.
posted by memebake at 4:29 PM on September 24, 2011
Here's a video of him with cars going by while he's dancing. I guess you can decide if they've edited it. (aside from the beginning, obviously)
posted by empath at 4:29 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by empath at 4:29 PM on September 24, 2011
I vote "excellent", someone please shower wealth and fame on this man.
posted by Meatbomb at 4:31 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Meatbomb at 4:31 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
un-believe-a-fucking-ble
I am intrigued by your choice of infix position.
What led you to the above, rather than the more traditional "unbefuckinglievable" or "unfuckingbelievable"?
posted by kenko at 4:36 PM on September 24, 2011 [3 favorites]
I am intrigued by your choice of infix position.
What led you to the above, rather than the more traditional "unbefuckinglievable" or "unfuckingbelievable"?
posted by kenko at 4:36 PM on September 24, 2011 [3 favorites]
What led you to the above, rather than the more traditional "unbefuckinglievable" or "unfuckingbelievable"?
The proximity of the preceding 'fucking' before the start of 'un-' meant that the infix had to be shunted along 3 syllables.
posted by memebake at 4:40 PM on September 24, 2011
The proximity of the preceding 'fucking' before the start of 'un-' meant that the infix had to be shunted along 3 syllables.
posted by memebake at 4:40 PM on September 24, 2011
Amazing dancing.
If you're interested in the phenomena of not trusting imagery in the digital era, you might want to check out Fred Ritchin's book After Photography (or at least this short lecture).
posted by Drab_Parts at 4:44 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
If you're interested in the phenomena of not trusting imagery in the digital era, you might want to check out Fred Ritchin's book After Photography (or at least this short lecture).
posted by Drab_Parts at 4:44 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
Flame artist here (VFX program that is mentioned upthread)
yes, manipulation of that sort would be possible in flame, but I see nothing that would convince me that it had been done. The background shadows that people are referring to change gradually and at a constant rate throughout the video, so they look totally realistic to me. I'd say that the guy is just a really fantastic dancer!
that being said, I do see something in this video that might be a product of it's being slowed down just a bit (like maybe 10%) However, that might just be a function of how youtube plays on my little netbook.
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 5:41 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
yes, manipulation of that sort would be possible in flame, but I see nothing that would convince me that it had been done. The background shadows that people are referring to change gradually and at a constant rate throughout the video, so they look totally realistic to me. I'd say that the guy is just a really fantastic dancer!
that being said, I do see something in this video that might be a product of it's being slowed down just a bit (like maybe 10%) However, that might just be a function of how youtube plays on my little netbook.
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 5:41 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
I love that my girls first reaction to seeing this video was " NO WAY. I NEED TO SEE THE METAFILTER THREAD ON THIS" hi babe!
I've been convinced, it is real, and it is spectacular.
posted by Potomac Avenue at 5:43 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
I've been convinced, it is real, and it is spectacular.
posted by Potomac Avenue at 5:43 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
Also, there have been guys doing moves like these for decades, and he's pushed it to a slightly higher level... it's not like what he's doing is miles above anyone else.
I have certainly seen people do similar moves to this in real life, just not so well for such a length of time.
Yeah. I love to watch pop & lock, and waving/liquid dancing/turfing etc. are my favorite styles. Nonstop is fantastic at liquid, but his moves are NOT beyond his peers in terms of physical difficulty. Off the top of my head I can think of half a dozen poppers capable of all the moves in this video. That's just the poppers I follow. The world is full of skilled street dancers who can do these moves, in a move-by-move sense.
This performance is amazing because of the artistry, how Nonstop strings the moves into a coherent piece that flows smoothly from start to end. I'm used to seeing moves like these, but not performances like this. It's the difference between impressive notes and a gorgeous song.
posted by fatehunter at 6:43 PM on September 24, 2011
I have certainly seen people do similar moves to this in real life, just not so well for such a length of time.
Yeah. I love to watch pop & lock, and waving/liquid dancing/turfing etc. are my favorite styles. Nonstop is fantastic at liquid, but his moves are NOT beyond his peers in terms of physical difficulty. Off the top of my head I can think of half a dozen poppers capable of all the moves in this video. That's just the poppers I follow. The world is full of skilled street dancers who can do these moves, in a move-by-move sense.
This performance is amazing because of the artistry, how Nonstop strings the moves into a coherent piece that flows smoothly from start to end. I'm used to seeing moves like these, but not performances like this. It's the difference between impressive notes and a gorgeous song.
posted by fatehunter at 6:43 PM on September 24, 2011
Thanks for pointing that out, zippy. Could someone please explain how his shirt moves "backwards" at the 0:44 mark?
Sure. He's spinning as he moves back. Slow it down by clicking pause repeatedly. You can even see, a fraction of a second later, how the wave of his shirt continues to spin to the left around his body.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 6:56 PM on September 24, 2011
Sure. He's spinning as he moves back. Slow it down by clicking pause repeatedly. You can even see, a fraction of a second later, how the wave of his shirt continues to spin to the left around his body.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 6:56 PM on September 24, 2011
(Arsenio) Hall and (Warren) Oates: Oh shit! He has friends!
We've seen these folks previously.
posted by filthy light thief at 7:08 PM on September 24, 2011
We've seen these folks previously.
posted by filthy light thief at 7:08 PM on September 24, 2011
It's real. I've seen a lot of these moves at various dubstep shows, although none quite as perfectly linked and executed as his.
Speaking of, is there a more organic dubstep dance out there? I've been to a ton of shows but it's always that liquid/pop & lock/etc, of which my ass is incapable of performing. I've seen some people doing that crippled-penguin-just-after-being-shot-with-a-tranquilizer-dart dance that kinda reminds me of Deadheads for some reason but it's not a very graceful thing nor does it go with the music, imo. Is there a dubstep dance move for us mere mortals?
posted by Purposeful Grimace at 7:49 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
Speaking of, is there a more organic dubstep dance out there? I've been to a ton of shows but it's always that liquid/pop & lock/etc, of which my ass is incapable of performing. I've seen some people doing that crippled-penguin-just-after-being-shot-with-a-tranquilizer-dart dance that kinda reminds me of Deadheads for some reason but it's not a very graceful thing nor does it go with the music, imo. Is there a dubstep dance move for us mere mortals?
posted by Purposeful Grimace at 7:49 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
I thought it was edited too until I noticed the cars going by in the reflection behind him.
No way that was edited too.
posted by omegar at 8:26 PM on September 24, 2011
No way that was edited too.
posted by omegar at 8:26 PM on September 24, 2011
I love that he chose a background that looks like it could be created by the kind of graphics engines like those used in previous generations of Doom-style video games. The background helps reinforce the uncanny valley.
posted by umbú at 8:43 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by umbú at 8:43 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
crippled-penguin-just-after-being-shot-with-a-tranquilizer-dart dance
That sounds promising.
posted by Horatius at 8:44 PM on September 24, 2011
That sounds promising.
posted by Horatius at 8:44 PM on September 24, 2011
I don't know about the whole editing argument, and I really don't care. Fred Astaire looked like he was dancing up and down walls and across a ceiling (the fun starts at 2:30) but he was still Fred Farking Astaire, and Gene Kelly looked like he was dancing with a mouse but he was still Gene Farking Kelly. For me, the dance is the thing, and the enormous skill it takes to make it look so effortless.
This guy gave me almost six whole minutes of forgetting all of my troubles, and I'd bet a lot of cash that Fred and Gene would have been as impressed as I am.
posted by Quasimike at 9:18 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
This guy gave me almost six whole minutes of forgetting all of my troubles, and I'd bet a lot of cash that Fred and Gene would have been as impressed as I am.
posted by Quasimike at 9:18 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
I'd bet a lot of cash that Fred and Gene would have been as impressed as I am.
Well, there's this
posted by rhizome at 10:33 PM on September 24, 2011 [3 favorites]
Well, there's this
posted by rhizome at 10:33 PM on September 24, 2011 [3 favorites]
That's a fantastically nice link to end my day on; my thanks to Hall and Oates!
posted by anadem at 10:38 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by anadem at 10:38 PM on September 24, 2011
This was lovely. More anti-gravity, impossible-ankled shenanigans.
OK, that was seriously awesome, as was the OP, but then I clicked on the top related video and what he does at the end with his hat is just... I... wha... reality doesn't make sense anymore.
posted by kmz at 10:56 PM on September 24, 2011
OK, that was seriously awesome, as was the OP, but then I clicked on the top related video and what he does at the end with his hat is just... I... wha... reality doesn't make sense anymore.
posted by kmz at 10:56 PM on September 24, 2011
Has anyone been able to find this particular re-mix of the song on grooveshark? There are heaps of them.
posted by nostrada at 10:57 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by nostrada at 10:57 PM on September 24, 2011
Found it: The song is Pumped Up Kicks by Foster the People DUBSTEP REMIX (Youtube comments are such a downer)
posted by nostrada at 11:00 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by nostrada at 11:00 PM on September 24, 2011
nostrada, I found it as Foster The People - Pumped Up Kicks (Butch Clancy Dubstep Remix).
posted by Purposeful Grimace at 11:03 PM on September 24, 2011
posted by Purposeful Grimace at 11:03 PM on September 24, 2011
These dance moves are all quite real, believable and possible. People have been doing "pop and lock" and "liquid" for literally a decade or three now. There's this rather well known breakdancing video where the guy moves like some kind of DMT-fueled clockwork robot from planet Funk.
However, the video in the FPP is strongly triggering my "This has been edited" sensors. There are a few frames that have edge blitter from what seems to be a (well done) composite or layered shot of the dancer, and the timecode also appears to have been sliced/shifted in some way at at least a few points.
The editing is subtle. I don't think it's very extensive, and there really isn't a need to, say, completely fake all or part of it. If anything it was probably just to splice together a couple of different takes.
There's not anything inherently wrong with that. Maybe he just wasn't able to get all of the moves and flow exactly right to personal satisfaction in one take so he spliced his favorite parts of them together.
As for people who think shadows, passing cars, windows, reflections and other ambient light/movement is a sign that a video hasn't been edited? You're misinformed. That's the stuff they fake the most in movies today and hardly anyone even notices it anymore. Even though the so-called "continuous" tracking shot just went through what was supposed to be a plate glass window or the windscreen or window of a car and then back through another pane of (virtual) glass.
They synthesize entire locations and cities now. Moving freeways, street scenes with moving cars and pedestrians everywhere - all composited or augmented and synthesized. The actors are shooting on a much smaller set with lots of green screens. They don't really need to shoot "on location" to do location shots anymore. If you do anything you just shoot your own location stock footage with a very small crew and then do the acting shots in the controlled (and cheaper) environment of a stage.
People are starting to replicate this at home with better home (or bootlegged) video software and cheap video-capable DSLRs. (And a lot of pros are now shooting location footage with similr DSLRs. Instead of the entire crew on site plus filming fees they can now send just one or two guys with a tripod and a DSLR to capture film-quality "location" footage to splice in later.
posted by loquacious at 11:08 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
However, the video in the FPP is strongly triggering my "This has been edited" sensors. There are a few frames that have edge blitter from what seems to be a (well done) composite or layered shot of the dancer, and the timecode also appears to have been sliced/shifted in some way at at least a few points.
The editing is subtle. I don't think it's very extensive, and there really isn't a need to, say, completely fake all or part of it. If anything it was probably just to splice together a couple of different takes.
There's not anything inherently wrong with that. Maybe he just wasn't able to get all of the moves and flow exactly right to personal satisfaction in one take so he spliced his favorite parts of them together.
As for people who think shadows, passing cars, windows, reflections and other ambient light/movement is a sign that a video hasn't been edited? You're misinformed. That's the stuff they fake the most in movies today and hardly anyone even notices it anymore. Even though the so-called "continuous" tracking shot just went through what was supposed to be a plate glass window or the windscreen or window of a car and then back through another pane of (virtual) glass.
They synthesize entire locations and cities now. Moving freeways, street scenes with moving cars and pedestrians everywhere - all composited or augmented and synthesized. The actors are shooting on a much smaller set with lots of green screens. They don't really need to shoot "on location" to do location shots anymore. If you do anything you just shoot your own location stock footage with a very small crew and then do the acting shots in the controlled (and cheaper) environment of a stage.
People are starting to replicate this at home with better home (or bootlegged) video software and cheap video-capable DSLRs. (And a lot of pros are now shooting location footage with similr DSLRs. Instead of the entire crew on site plus filming fees they can now send just one or two guys with a tripod and a DSLR to capture film-quality "location" footage to splice in later.
posted by loquacious at 11:08 PM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
and what he does at the end with his hat is just... I... wha... reality doesn't make sense anymore.
Spoiler warning:
I've seen break dancers do this. They use one of those little spring-loaded reels people put keys or ID badges on.
Watch his hands and listen to the audio. He reaches into the hat with his right hand. The reel is probably pinned inside the hat. When he spreads his arms quickly you can actually hear the reel unwinding and then rewinding when he releases the hat. He releases the hat quickly so you don't have time to notice the thin string/cord. Just before the hat reaches his right hand he releases the string. You can see the hat recoil a bit and suddenly lose movement/momentum as it nearly makes it to his right hand.
It's still everyday magic that he can make slight of hand happen in the middle of a freeform dance routine, so, whatever.
posted by loquacious at 11:21 PM on September 24, 2011
Spoiler warning:
I've seen break dancers do this. They use one of those little spring-loaded reels people put keys or ID badges on.
Watch his hands and listen to the audio. He reaches into the hat with his right hand. The reel is probably pinned inside the hat. When he spreads his arms quickly you can actually hear the reel unwinding and then rewinding when he releases the hat. He releases the hat quickly so you don't have time to notice the thin string/cord. Just before the hat reaches his right hand he releases the string. You can see the hat recoil a bit and suddenly lose movement/momentum as it nearly makes it to his right hand.
It's still everyday magic that he can make slight of hand happen in the middle of a freeform dance routine, so, whatever.
posted by loquacious at 11:21 PM on September 24, 2011
Spoiler warning:
Aww dang, I guess we're not in the Matrix after all. But you're right, it's still an amazing sleight of hand. It even rotates as it's going across his body.
posted by kmz at 11:41 PM on September 24, 2011
Aww dang, I guess we're not in the Matrix after all. But you're right, it's still an amazing sleight of hand. It even rotates as it's going across his body.
posted by kmz at 11:41 PM on September 24, 2011
There are a few frames that have edge blitter
just re-watched it to look for this, but can't spot it - can you say at what points it is? I hope asking doesn't come of as challenging or snarky - I'm totally curious - I could debate this sort of thing all day - and really, there's no way anyone not involved in the actual production of the clip will know for sure - vfx these days is so sophisticated that it really leaves no traces if it's done well. however - it's fun to speculate!
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 12:30 AM on September 25, 2011
just re-watched it to look for this, but can't spot it - can you say at what points it is? I hope asking doesn't come of as challenging or snarky - I'm totally curious - I could debate this sort of thing all day - and really, there's no way anyone not involved in the actual production of the clip will know for sure - vfx these days is so sophisticated that it really leaves no traces if it's done well. however - it's fun to speculate!
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 12:30 AM on September 25, 2011
> just re-watched it to look for this, but can't spot it - can you say at what points it is?
The frames I'm suspicious of is where he first crosses over the open portal in the background, and a few other moments where he recrosses that portal, particularly during the moments where it seems like it's being time shifted or stretched a little.
It's really fleeting and subtle, but there's a bit of a hard edge on his silhouette. It's not anywhere near as obvious as an analog video chroma key
And it's entirely plausible I'm totally wrong, but something about it is indeed triggering my "this has been edited/composited" detectors, which still seem to function fairly well.
posted by loquacious at 7:42 AM on September 25, 2011
The frames I'm suspicious of is where he first crosses over the open portal in the background, and a few other moments where he recrosses that portal, particularly during the moments where it seems like it's being time shifted or stretched a little.
It's really fleeting and subtle, but there's a bit of a hard edge on his silhouette. It's not anywhere near as obvious as an analog video chroma key
And it's entirely plausible I'm totally wrong, but something about it is indeed triggering my "this has been edited/composited" detectors, which still seem to function fairly well.
posted by loquacious at 7:42 AM on September 25, 2011
do you have the time marks of the parts your thinking of loq?
posted by Think_Long at 7:46 AM on September 25, 2011
posted by Think_Long at 7:46 AM on September 25, 2011
I've been a breakdancer, and can tell you that every single move here is possible. I've done them. He's just especially good at them.
Honestly. It's one thing to be unsure about what you have just seen. But your lack of trust in this video is doubled by my lack of trust in the web for its sudden decision that it is an amateur expert in film editing, physics, typography, or whatever else seems suspicious. Suddenly everybody becomes something like a 9/11 truther, certain that the towers could not have fallen as they did, or a moon landing disbeliever, certain the shadows on the moon would not have been as it was in the film, and the flag would not have waved as it did.
The towers fell as they fell, the men landed on the moon, and this man is actually dancing every move you see.
posted by Bunny Ultramod at 8:17 AM on September 25, 2011 [2 favorites]
Honestly. It's one thing to be unsure about what you have just seen. But your lack of trust in this video is doubled by my lack of trust in the web for its sudden decision that it is an amateur expert in film editing, physics, typography, or whatever else seems suspicious. Suddenly everybody becomes something like a 9/11 truther, certain that the towers could not have fallen as they did, or a moon landing disbeliever, certain the shadows on the moon would not have been as it was in the film, and the flag would not have waved as it did.
The towers fell as they fell, the men landed on the moon, and this man is actually dancing every move you see.
posted by Bunny Ultramod at 8:17 AM on September 25, 2011 [2 favorites]
Yeah, around 0:28-0:29 is when it starts. Watch his right sleeve/shoulder (facing the camera). The left edge and much of his upper body has some kind of blurring going on that (to me) indicates time manipulation, perhaps a Gaussian blur in a mask to smooth the edit.
Also watch his face during the next 15 seconds after 0:28, there's a few moments where the pixel noise doesn't match the rest of the video or background. Around 0:30-0:32 look at the spot between his face, shirt collar and shoulder. Watch how the pixels "light up" for a few frames and get all noisy for a moment, then they stop "blittering".
Some of these effects could be from video transcoding, but in most cases those effects would be global across the entire video, not just the few odd looking frames I'm seeing.
It's not that important, but I would bet money that the video has been edited and time-manipulated in a few key spots. I could also be entirely wrong, but I don't think I am.
posted by loquacious at 8:22 AM on September 25, 2011
Also watch his face during the next 15 seconds after 0:28, there's a few moments where the pixel noise doesn't match the rest of the video or background. Around 0:30-0:32 look at the spot between his face, shirt collar and shoulder. Watch how the pixels "light up" for a few frames and get all noisy for a moment, then they stop "blittering".
Some of these effects could be from video transcoding, but in most cases those effects would be global across the entire video, not just the few odd looking frames I'm seeing.
It's not that important, but I would bet money that the video has been edited and time-manipulated in a few key spots. I could also be entirely wrong, but I don't think I am.
posted by loquacious at 8:22 AM on September 25, 2011
Bunny Ultramod - I don't disagree that the moves are all possible. That's not the question.
The question is if the video has been time manipulated to make those moves smoother/slower than they would be in real life.
I've worked in video editing and digital media of nearly all sorts since the dawn of the personal computer. I've done a little of everything, so I'm a bit more than an "amateur expert". I believe we landed on the moon, etc, etc. (And that straw man was really kind of offensive. If you want to say you question someone's sanity you should just say it.)
And I'm also a dancer, though I'll never be that good at liquid or pop and lock.
I'm pretty much convinced that this video has been edited in a couple of key spots, and I don't think that that skepticism is unhealthy or takes away from the performance.
If anything this thread has accomplished the opposite for me that it has for you. People are far, far too trusting of video as evidence, when it's ridiculously easy to manipulate it these days.
posted by loquacious at 8:28 AM on September 25, 2011 [2 favorites]
The question is if the video has been time manipulated to make those moves smoother/slower than they would be in real life.
I've worked in video editing and digital media of nearly all sorts since the dawn of the personal computer. I've done a little of everything, so I'm a bit more than an "amateur expert". I believe we landed on the moon, etc, etc. (And that straw man was really kind of offensive. If you want to say you question someone's sanity you should just say it.)
And I'm also a dancer, though I'll never be that good at liquid or pop and lock.
I'm pretty much convinced that this video has been edited in a couple of key spots, and I don't think that that skepticism is unhealthy or takes away from the performance.
If anything this thread has accomplished the opposite for me that it has for you. People are far, far too trusting of video as evidence, when it's ridiculously easy to manipulate it these days.
posted by loquacious at 8:28 AM on September 25, 2011 [2 favorites]
I have also worked in video editing, and occam's razor says it is far easier just to dance that to edit it in the manner and to the extent that you suggest.
And speaking as someone who has done both video editing and dancing, respectfully, what you're suggesting isn't actually as easy as you say. Because he dances in time with the video throughout. His pop and locks are synced to musical cues. If they time-edited to slow him down and speed him up, as you suggest, it would throw off the whole thing. Then you would have to go back and edit elsewhere to get the moves back in sync, and you would have had to have planned out the whole editing process so that everything would sync, not merely for individual pops and locks, but for entire section of dance, as his movements are times to shift and change with shifts and changes with the song itself.
You're not talking about easy edits. You're literally talking about a nightmare editing scenario.
posted by Bunny Ultramod at 8:32 AM on September 25, 2011 [5 favorites]
And speaking as someone who has done both video editing and dancing, respectfully, what you're suggesting isn't actually as easy as you say. Because he dances in time with the video throughout. His pop and locks are synced to musical cues. If they time-edited to slow him down and speed him up, as you suggest, it would throw off the whole thing. Then you would have to go back and edit elsewhere to get the moves back in sync, and you would have had to have planned out the whole editing process so that everything would sync, not merely for individual pops and locks, but for entire section of dance, as his movements are times to shift and change with shifts and changes with the song itself.
You're not talking about easy edits. You're literally talking about a nightmare editing scenario.
posted by Bunny Ultramod at 8:32 AM on September 25, 2011 [5 favorites]
If you take a look at the guy's other videos, especially the one with the movie theater, you can pretty much assume the camera-man is not a professional. That said, the only obvious edit I noticed was just at the end, when the camera is picked up, long after the dancing is over.
posted by crunchland at 8:43 AM on September 25, 2011
posted by crunchland at 8:43 AM on September 25, 2011
I have seen plenty of dancing like this, and it's always wonderful. Glad to see dubstep and bass infiltrating the public consciousness!
Also here to plug Madd Chadd, who is equally talented (and you can see in these videos the moves would look quite different with no witnesses around to provide spatial/movement perspective).
Here's Nonstop (guy everyone is arguing about) in a dance battle - he won against Ticking Tony. Hearing his shoe skidding on the floor and the crowd reaction makes this very very real.
posted by Unicorn on the cob at 9:13 AM on September 25, 2011
Also here to plug Madd Chadd, who is equally talented (and you can see in these videos the moves would look quite different with no witnesses around to provide spatial/movement perspective).
Here's Nonstop (guy everyone is arguing about) in a dance battle - he won against Ticking Tony. Hearing his shoe skidding on the floor and the crowd reaction makes this very very real.
posted by Unicorn on the cob at 9:13 AM on September 25, 2011
loquacious: But to what possible end?!
Who would work so hard to be able to do the things he unquestionably does in the video, at some speed or another, and then do detailed and complex tiny edits just to make himself that tenth of a percent better? It doesn't make any sense.
And if they stitched takes, that would seem a good reason to put some editing on there. But how in Christ's pancake batter do you make sure the guy is in the exact same spot relative to camera and building at the exact same moment in every single take? No way, dude. Let it go.
posted by TheRedArmy at 9:14 AM on September 25, 2011
Who would work so hard to be able to do the things he unquestionably does in the video, at some speed or another, and then do detailed and complex tiny edits just to make himself that tenth of a percent better? It doesn't make any sense.
And if they stitched takes, that would seem a good reason to put some editing on there. But how in Christ's pancake batter do you make sure the guy is in the exact same spot relative to camera and building at the exact same moment in every single take? No way, dude. Let it go.
posted by TheRedArmy at 9:14 AM on September 25, 2011
someone should add 'nonstop' to the tags, because this isn't just 'some dancing guy'
posted by memebake at 9:16 AM on September 25, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by memebake at 9:16 AM on September 25, 2011 [1 favorite]
Along with Elsewhere mentioned above, there's also this Japanese group doing similar stuff where you can see the mechanical movements they're making in a crowded (non-time-edited) airport.
posted by Evilspork at 9:48 AM on September 25, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Evilspork at 9:48 AM on September 25, 2011 [1 favorite]
So, so beautiful.
posted by mediareport at 9:53 AM on September 25, 2011
posted by mediareport at 9:53 AM on September 25, 2011
Don't show this to Shields and Yarnell; THEIR HEADS WILL ASPLODE from the envy!
posted by droplet at 10:01 AM on September 25, 2011
posted by droplet at 10:01 AM on September 25, 2011
Oh, no, I didn't fully read the entry! So, so SO sorry! Eek!
posted by droplet at 10:05 AM on September 25, 2011
posted by droplet at 10:05 AM on September 25, 2011
Could someone please explain how his shirt moves "backwards" at the 0:44 mark?
OK, so...I watched whole thing thinking it was being played in reverse and marveling at how he learned to perform all those intricate steps backwards. And...um, wow.
posted by psoas at 10:27 AM on September 25, 2011 [1 favorite]
OK, so...I watched whole thing thinking it was being played in reverse and marveling at how he learned to perform all those intricate steps backwards. And...um, wow.
posted by psoas at 10:27 AM on September 25, 2011 [1 favorite]
I guess now is not the time to bring up that Boardwalk Empire isn't really filmed in 1920's Atlantic City?
posted by Poet_Lariat at 12:10 PM on September 25, 2011
posted by Poet_Lariat at 12:10 PM on September 25, 2011
but for entire section of dance, as his movements are times to shift and change with shifts and changes with the song itself.
The audio track has been inserted into the video after shooting. It's just as plausible to suggest that he missed cues during filming and the video has been tweaked to better match the inserted audio track.
Neither of us can say for certain what the workflow was, and simple time-based edits on a mostly static background like that isn't even as remotely difficult as you're suggesting. It's something that can be done on good a linear tape A/B desk. It's even more easily achieved in digital nonlinear editor.
I still think the video was edited. It's not so important that I'm going to spend any more time debating the issue. But I think the video has been edited/corrected and I've given my reasoning and observations why I think it has been.
posted by loquacious at 5:40 PM on September 25, 2011 [1 favorite]
The audio track has been inserted into the video after shooting. It's just as plausible to suggest that he missed cues during filming and the video has been tweaked to better match the inserted audio track.
Neither of us can say for certain what the workflow was, and simple time-based edits on a mostly static background like that isn't even as remotely difficult as you're suggesting. It's something that can be done on good a linear tape A/B desk. It's even more easily achieved in digital nonlinear editor.
I still think the video was edited. It's not so important that I'm going to spend any more time debating the issue. But I think the video has been edited/corrected and I've given my reasoning and observations why I think it has been.
posted by loquacious at 5:40 PM on September 25, 2011 [1 favorite]
The audio track has been inserted into the video after shooting. It's just as plausible to suggest that he missed cues during filming and the video has been tweaked to better match the inserted audio track.
Perhaps. But there is a world of difference between hinting that he may have sweetened his dancing by correcting some missed cues and suggesting that entire sections were redone -- slowed down or reversed -- which is what we were discussing.
posted by Bunny Ultramod at 5:53 PM on September 25, 2011
Perhaps. But there is a world of difference between hinting that he may have sweetened his dancing by correcting some missed cues and suggesting that entire sections were redone -- slowed down or reversed -- which is what we were discussing.
posted by Bunny Ultramod at 5:53 PM on September 25, 2011
I thought it was edited too until I noticed the cars going by in the reflection behind him.
No way that was edited too.
Yeah, I just watched it again, and there's one point at which he's not dancing but is moving at normal speed; a couple of cars go past and are reflected in the glass, and they go past at the same speed all the other cars do.
Ultimately, though, I find that I don't really care if it's edited. Either way, it's awesome.
posted by asterix at 7:48 PM on September 25, 2011
No way that was edited too.
Yeah, I just watched it again, and there's one point at which he's not dancing but is moving at normal speed; a couple of cars go past and are reflected in the glass, and they go past at the same speed all the other cars do.
Ultimately, though, I find that I don't really care if it's edited. Either way, it's awesome.
posted by asterix at 7:48 PM on September 25, 2011
Yes, those "cars" were very realistic.
posted by found missing at 8:06 PM on September 25, 2011
posted by found missing at 8:06 PM on September 25, 2011
I thought this was edited, if only in some places, the first time I saw it too. And the additional evidence posted here sounds plausible.
I'd also like to add a question about that reflection in the window. First, it clearly must be a reflection, not seeing through, since there are repeats in the tree branches and a doubled car caused by slightly misaligned windows, plus the wires don't run straight. Not to mention the fact that a window there constructed like that makes zero architectural sense.
Look at the edge of the doorway in the reflection. See all those bumpy bricks? What are they reflections of? And the paper on the wall and the pipes on the floor. They have no counterpart in the unreflected world. They can't be from the side we can't see due to the angle.
But the really sad thing about this thread is how many people find it "sad" or "disappointing" or "cynical" that someone might be skeptical of extraordinary claims. That's not sad. That's vitally important.
posted by DU at 5:37 AM on September 26, 2011 [1 favorite]
I'd also like to add a question about that reflection in the window. First, it clearly must be a reflection, not seeing through, since there are repeats in the tree branches and a doubled car caused by slightly misaligned windows, plus the wires don't run straight. Not to mention the fact that a window there constructed like that makes zero architectural sense.
Look at the edge of the doorway in the reflection. See all those bumpy bricks? What are they reflections of? And the paper on the wall and the pipes on the floor. They have no counterpart in the unreflected world. They can't be from the side we can't see due to the angle.
But the really sad thing about this thread is how many people find it "sad" or "disappointing" or "cynical" that someone might be skeptical of extraordinary claims. That's not sad. That's vitally important.
posted by DU at 5:37 AM on September 26, 2011 [1 favorite]
But the really sad thing about this thread is how many people find it "sad" or "disappointing" or "cynical" that someone might be skeptical of extraordinary claims. That's not sad. That's vitally important.
It's a video of a guy dancing, not claiming to cure cancer. Who cares if it's edited? What difference does that make?
posted by synthetik at 6:00 AM on September 26, 2011
It's a video of a guy dancing, not claiming to cure cancer. Who cares if it's edited? What difference does that make?
posted by synthetik at 6:00 AM on September 26, 2011
Actually, forget the paper and pipes. If it is a window, then those parts really are inside. The grass and trees part is the reflection. But we still have the bumpy bricks to deal with.
posted by DU at 6:01 AM on September 26, 2011
posted by DU at 6:01 AM on September 26, 2011
But the really sad thing about this thread is how many people find it "sad" or "disappointing" or "cynical" that someone might be skeptical of extraordinary claims.
There's no extraordinary claim here. The skepticism here is akin to claiming that the US faked the moon landing by filming it on Mars.
Editing the video is just harder than dancing. Based on live recordings, if there's any editing done, it's very minor. Maybe a little bit of adjustment of speed here and there.
posted by empath at 6:03 AM on September 26, 2011
There's no extraordinary claim here. The skepticism here is akin to claiming that the US faked the moon landing by filming it on Mars.
Editing the video is just harder than dancing. Based on live recordings, if there's any editing done, it's very minor. Maybe a little bit of adjustment of speed here and there.
posted by empath at 6:03 AM on September 26, 2011
I think the extraordinary claim being made here is pretty obvious.
Clearly he can dance well. No one is disputing that. They just want a clearer understanding of what this video contains. It's no different than photojournalists being required to state if they've done any touching up.
He's not just some guy on YT. He's a professional dancer posting his work in return for money (WHZGUD2 is his Partner account). I don't think it's unreasonable for viewers to ask questions about what they are watching.
posted by DU at 6:17 AM on September 26, 2011 [1 favorite]
Clearly he can dance well. No one is disputing that. They just want a clearer understanding of what this video contains. It's no different than photojournalists being required to state if they've done any touching up.
He's not just some guy on YT. He's a professional dancer posting his work in return for money (WHZGUD2 is his Partner account). I don't think it's unreasonable for viewers to ask questions about what they are watching.
posted by DU at 6:17 AM on September 26, 2011 [1 favorite]
I don't think it's unreasonable for viewers to ask questions about what they are watching.
I would agree were what we were seeing unlikely or impossible. Instead, people seem to be demanding extraordinary proof for ordinary claims, and basing it around things in the video not looking the way they think it maybe should look -- an area in which people don't just naturally have an expertise, and notoriously are bad at interpreting.
Unless somebody with a background in forensic video investigation comes in and says, oh, yes, that's clearly an artifact of manipulation, I think it's safe to say that these objections are pretty likely people not really being sure what things wind up looking like in reflections, or how fabric moves, or how things look when shot on digital video. I suspect we could literally take any video and if we made people suspect it might be a fake, they could go through it and raise exactly the same objections.
posted by Bunny Ultramod at 6:26 AM on September 26, 2011 [3 favorites]
I would agree were what we were seeing unlikely or impossible. Instead, people seem to be demanding extraordinary proof for ordinary claims, and basing it around things in the video not looking the way they think it maybe should look -- an area in which people don't just naturally have an expertise, and notoriously are bad at interpreting.
Unless somebody with a background in forensic video investigation comes in and says, oh, yes, that's clearly an artifact of manipulation, I think it's safe to say that these objections are pretty likely people not really being sure what things wind up looking like in reflections, or how fabric moves, or how things look when shot on digital video. I suspect we could literally take any video and if we made people suspect it might be a fake, they could go through it and raise exactly the same objections.
posted by Bunny Ultramod at 6:26 AM on September 26, 2011 [3 favorites]
I think people who are not forensic videologists are allowed to be skeptical. And no one is "demanding" anything.
posted by DU at 6:35 AM on September 26, 2011
posted by DU at 6:35 AM on September 26, 2011
Just to get the dancing terminology right: Marquese specifies: "im not a turfer, im a popper, and thats called animating."
posted by progosk at 7:22 AM on September 26, 2011
posted by progosk at 7:22 AM on September 26, 2011
no one is "demanding" anything
The phrase "extraordinary claim" is followed by "require extraordinary proof." There is an implied demand here. I don't know what word you would prefer, but some people certainly seem unlikely to take this video at face value without evidence of it being real.
I think people who are not forensic videologists are allowed to be skeptical.
I'm not saying they're not entitled. I don't decide entitlement. I'm saying they don't have enough information or expertise to make anything other than poor guesses, and ignorant skepticism isn't actually an improvement on unthinking belief.
posted by Bunny Ultramod at 7:25 AM on September 26, 2011
The phrase "extraordinary claim" is followed by "require extraordinary proof." There is an implied demand here. I don't know what word you would prefer, but some people certainly seem unlikely to take this video at face value without evidence of it being real.
I think people who are not forensic videologists are allowed to be skeptical.
I'm not saying they're not entitled. I don't decide entitlement. I'm saying they don't have enough information or expertise to make anything other than poor guesses, and ignorant skepticism isn't actually an improvement on unthinking belief.
posted by Bunny Ultramod at 7:25 AM on September 26, 2011
ignorant-but-willing-to-be-convinced skepticism is far, far better than unthinking belief.
posted by DU at 7:41 AM on September 26, 2011
posted by DU at 7:41 AM on September 26, 2011
The need to have us accept the video without questions is enough to attack the questioner now?
posted by DU at 8:07 AM on September 26, 2011
posted by DU at 8:07 AM on September 26, 2011
So I talked to a friend of mine who has been popping for 10 years (and has had some tv and movie appearances in stuff like 'you got served' so he knows the diff between natural dancing and stuff that's been edited and manipulated). He says it looks like there was some brief slow mo sections in there, but only a few. We're trying to figure out the exact times now. I can see what he's talking about, especially with the sound off and in high res. It looks like no more than 4-5 very short bits, though.
posted by empath at 9:29 AM on September 26, 2011
posted by empath at 9:29 AM on September 26, 2011
like -- from :52-:57
It's subtle, but we're fairly sure that's slowed down. But really, it's such a minor thing. Neither of us thing there was anything like CGI or actual editing being done here..
posted by empath at 9:31 AM on September 26, 2011
It's subtle, but we're fairly sure that's slowed down. But really, it's such a minor thing. Neither of us thing there was anything like CGI or actual editing being done here..
posted by empath at 9:31 AM on September 26, 2011
I'm saying they don't have enough information or expertise to make anything other than poor guesses, and ignorant skepticism isn't actually an improvement on unthinking belief.
I argue that I do have enough expertise, experience and information to make that judgment. I find it dismissive and mildly offensive you can't accept that. Is my primary career video editing? No. Have I experimented with the majority of formats of digital media including video? Yes I have. Do I understand what is the past and present state of the art for pro and amateur video effects and editing? I believe I do.
I'm not arguing that there's complete reversals of the video in the edit. I'm not arguing that the dance moves aren't possible. I also dance, and I also have known and seen plenty of breakdancers. Note that I linked to the Kollaboration video above where the guy can move so fast and with such precision he looks like he's dancing in a strobe light - and I don't think that that is edited at all.
But before I ever read any comments here I watched the video and I decided independently that I suspected that the video was edited in a couple of places. And since there are others suspecting the same thing I shared my observations about why (and how and where) I think the video is edited.
I'm not basing that on the difficulty of the dancing, but on known and common types of artifacts of video FX and treatments that are displayed in the video.
Christ, this is so annoying I'm going to have to go rip the flash video and grab frames and do some contrast analysis so I can point out the pixel blurring and noise I'm talking about.
Which is more or less where a video forensics expert would start, assuming a lack of metadata.
posted by loquacious at 10:12 AM on September 26, 2011 [1 favorite]
I argue that I do have enough expertise, experience and information to make that judgment. I find it dismissive and mildly offensive you can't accept that. Is my primary career video editing? No. Have I experimented with the majority of formats of digital media including video? Yes I have. Do I understand what is the past and present state of the art for pro and amateur video effects and editing? I believe I do.
I'm not arguing that there's complete reversals of the video in the edit. I'm not arguing that the dance moves aren't possible. I also dance, and I also have known and seen plenty of breakdancers. Note that I linked to the Kollaboration video above where the guy can move so fast and with such precision he looks like he's dancing in a strobe light - and I don't think that that is edited at all.
But before I ever read any comments here I watched the video and I decided independently that I suspected that the video was edited in a couple of places. And since there are others suspecting the same thing I shared my observations about why (and how and where) I think the video is edited.
I'm not basing that on the difficulty of the dancing, but on known and common types of artifacts of video FX and treatments that are displayed in the video.
Christ, this is so annoying I'm going to have to go rip the flash video and grab frames and do some contrast analysis so I can point out the pixel blurring and noise I'm talking about.
Which is more or less where a video forensics expert would start, assuming a lack of metadata.
posted by loquacious at 10:12 AM on September 26, 2011 [1 favorite]
Why would this be doctored to show that an amazing dancer is just a little bit more amazing than he actually is?
You keep going on, but you offer no motive to counterbalance the significant workload involved.
posted by TheRedArmy at 10:25 AM on September 26, 2011
You keep going on, but you offer no motive to counterbalance the significant workload involved.
posted by TheRedArmy at 10:25 AM on September 26, 2011
Back to the theme of plain fun:
there's also this Japanese group doing similar stuff where you can see the mechanical movements they're making in a crowded (non-time-edited) airport.
Thank you evilspork!
posted by storybored at 10:27 AM on September 26, 2011
there's also this Japanese group doing similar stuff where you can see the mechanical movements they're making in a crowded (non-time-edited) airport.
Thank you evilspork!
posted by storybored at 10:27 AM on September 26, 2011
I'm not arguing that there's complete reversals of the video in the edit. I'm not arguing that the dance moves aren't possible.
Others have in this thread, and that was what I was responding to. If all you're saying is that the video has been sweetened a little, nudged just a bit to get him more in time with the music, I neither agree nor disagree, nor do I think that's here or there. That seems to be no more egregious than pitch tuning a note or two of a song. Although it seems like an awful lot of busy work for a dance video that's meant for online consumption.
I thought I had implied this in my last response, but obviously I could have been clearer.
Christ, this is so annoying I'm going to have to go rip the flash video and grab frames and do some contrast analysis so I can point out the pixel blurring and noise I'm talking about.
To prove that a frame or two have been altered? To what end?
posted by Bunny Ultramod at 10:27 AM on September 26, 2011
Others have in this thread, and that was what I was responding to. If all you're saying is that the video has been sweetened a little, nudged just a bit to get him more in time with the music, I neither agree nor disagree, nor do I think that's here or there. That seems to be no more egregious than pitch tuning a note or two of a song. Although it seems like an awful lot of busy work for a dance video that's meant for online consumption.
I thought I had implied this in my last response, but obviously I could have been clearer.
Christ, this is so annoying I'm going to have to go rip the flash video and grab frames and do some contrast analysis so I can point out the pixel blurring and noise I'm talking about.
To prove that a frame or two have been altered? To what end?
posted by Bunny Ultramod at 10:27 AM on September 26, 2011
SOMEONE IS WRONG ON THE INTERNET.
posted by crunchland at 10:38 AM on September 26, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by crunchland at 10:38 AM on September 26, 2011 [1 favorite]
Why would this be doctored to show that an amazing dancer is just a little bit more amazing than he actually is?
Because a 5:27 routine is kinda hard to get completely perfect and if you can edit two takes together, what's the difference?
posted by smackfu at 11:27 AM on September 26, 2011
Because a 5:27 routine is kinda hard to get completely perfect and if you can edit two takes together, what's the difference?
posted by smackfu at 11:27 AM on September 26, 2011
empath, I thought bits might have been slowed down at first, but his dancing matches the music perfectly (also if you watch in 1080px you can see that he is mouthing along to the words of the song). So to have bits of the video slowed down, he would have to pre-prepare a backing track, and _speed_up_ the key portions of it, so that when he danced to it he could later _slow_down_ those portions and still have the whole thing match the original track. Seems like way too much hassle.
Seeing other videos of similar stuff, it seems that subtle time manipulations 'are allowed' in this genre (see the guys dancing in the rain fpp). Maybe its possible that the whole video is slowed down 5% or 10% - just to give it a slightly dreamlike feel? But again he'd need to prep the backing track (not so tricky in that instance). It is kinda fun to play detective on a video like this, but ultimately its moot because he's clearly good enough to have a pretty good chance of just doing this straight off.
posted by memebake at 12:17 PM on September 26, 2011
Seeing other videos of similar stuff, it seems that subtle time manipulations 'are allowed' in this genre (see the guys dancing in the rain fpp). Maybe its possible that the whole video is slowed down 5% or 10% - just to give it a slightly dreamlike feel? But again he'd need to prep the backing track (not so tricky in that instance). It is kinda fun to play detective on a video like this, but ultimately its moot because he's clearly good enough to have a pretty good chance of just doing this straight off.
posted by memebake at 12:17 PM on September 26, 2011
Maybe its possible that the whole video is slowed down 5% or 10% - just to give it a slightly dreamlike feel? But again he'd need to prep the backing track (not so tricky in that instance).
It is absolutely simple to change the tempo of the backing track by a few percent, and you would absolutely not notice it.
In fact, when i get home I'll check in ableton to see if it was done.
posted by empath at 12:28 PM on September 26, 2011
It is absolutely simple to change the tempo of the backing track by a few percent, and you would absolutely not notice it.
In fact, when i get home I'll check in ableton to see if it was done.
posted by empath at 12:28 PM on September 26, 2011
It is absolutely simple to change the tempo of the backing track by a few percent, and you would absolutely not notice it.
This is often done in music videos to make it easier for bands to lip-sync and pretend play with their original tracks. I would not be at all surprised if it were done here.
posted by Bunny Ultramod at 12:52 PM on September 26, 2011
This is often done in music videos to make it easier for bands to lip-sync and pretend play with their original tracks. I would not be at all surprised if it were done here.
posted by Bunny Ultramod at 12:52 PM on September 26, 2011
However wrong I suspect it to be, I do marvel at your stamina in barking up this particular tree, empath, and eagerly await the outcome of your audio and video forensics.
posted by progosk at 1:29 PM on September 26, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by progosk at 1:29 PM on September 26, 2011 [1 favorite]
I'm actually fairly sure that it's straight up with only a bit of slow mo here and there, and I wouldn't be surprised if it wasn't altered at all.
posted by empath at 1:42 PM on September 26, 2011
posted by empath at 1:42 PM on September 26, 2011
I'm actually fairly sure that this was edited together from a series of 7 second takes with a few body doubles, some CGI and a wind tunnel, after which the dancer went back in time and used Illuminati mind control techniques to influence a DJ to create a particular track to perfectly sync with the edited video.
posted by speicus at 3:07 PM on September 26, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by speicus at 3:07 PM on September 26, 2011 [2 favorites]
loaded the youtube audio in ableton. It is solid at 65.50 bpm exactly. Doesn't deviate for even one beat. So if he used slow mo in parts, they would have had to speed up the song at that point when they filmed and then adjust it back perfectly in post-production which seems fairly silly. The original mp3 is also 65.50 bpm, so it seems incredibly unlikely that they filmed the whole thing in slow mo, too.
Case closed.
posted by empath at 3:27 PM on September 26, 2011 [2 favorites]
Case closed.
posted by empath at 3:27 PM on September 26, 2011 [2 favorites]
The awesome irony is that those who thought they were all astute for seeing through his video editing tricks were actually the ones 100% completely fooled by his dancing tricks.
posted by speicus at 3:46 PM on September 26, 2011 [4 favorites]
posted by speicus at 3:46 PM on September 26, 2011 [4 favorites]
My money is on completely real. seeing the kind of moves that people like Les Twins can pull off just illustrates to me that some dancers are really just that amazingly good.
posted by quin at 6:37 PM on September 26, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by quin at 6:37 PM on September 26, 2011 [1 favorite]
What I love is their fascination with the mundane combine with the sublime otherworldliness of their dancing: their surroundings are so utterly normal while they move so completely abnormally.
Brilliant.
posted by Freen at 6:54 PM on September 26, 2011
Brilliant.
posted by Freen at 6:54 PM on September 26, 2011
MeFi was really on the leading edge with this one, it had about 3000 views when I clicked the link three days ago and it's up to 1.7 million.
posted by silby at 7:19 PM on September 27, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by silby at 7:19 PM on September 27, 2011 [1 favorite]
It was posted to boingboing today, so it's definitely gone viral.
posted by crunchland at 7:56 PM on September 27, 2011
posted by crunchland at 7:56 PM on September 27, 2011
this guy can make anyone amazed & everyone will raise eyebrow for him... love him... lets give standing aviation
posted by mattresses at 9:50 PM on September 29, 2011
posted by mattresses at 9:50 PM on September 29, 2011
« Older I Told You Maine Coons Are Awesome | We can be sheroes Newer »
This thread has been archived and is closed to new comments
posted by griphus at 12:09 PM on September 24, 2011