The thing about losing...

...is that sometimes most people do not want to feel that bitter taste in the mouth. And that they'd stop at nothing to assert their twisted sense of reason.

I really don't want to comment about something that has died down, but seeing at how other people continually dispute the authorities' decision on contests, I feel like I have to assert my points yet again.

I'm not saying that I agree to the lack of communication in the changes of contest mechanics. What I find absurd is how a select few of people suddenly raise such a ruckus over the results when they didn't so as much utter a single word of dissent during the duration of the contest. It boggles the mind why they suddenly question the technicalities on how the winners won at this point in the competition.

Thing is, they had all the time in the world to raise their questions during the contest period. But did they say anything? Nil. And when I raised that point to them, I was mockingly asked if I joined a competition, passed anything noteworthy and won anything.

Funny thing was when I pointed out just what exactly did I win, they jeeringly accuse me and my teammates of "stroking our egos". Sheesh.

FYI, my friends and I stand nothing to gain if we paraded our credentials to everyone. What we're just trying to stress is that people should ask their questions whenever there's something that they need to clarify. Like everyone else who joined, we're also doing this out of love for the game, the thrill of collaborating & exchanging ideas, and the wonder of seeing other good works out there.

Again, I'd like to reiterate that we all deserve to be properly informed of any changes in contest mechanics. We also have to do our part if we so much as claim that we are here "for the spirit of competition".

For the record, I don't care if I win or lose in the contest. All I'm after is the bonding time spent with friends and the creative effort we put in to make our works real good. Since this is an individual contest, I'd be content and happy to say that if any of my friends and teammates' entries bag a spot, we all consider it as a collective accomplishment.

After all, we are true to the spirit of Granado Espada, and that is: Freedom, Unity and Friendship.

The question is, are you?

====

If it's a bit convoluted and complex for people to understand, here's the gist of it all:

1. I'm all for proper communication of changes in contest mechanics. I have not, in any other way, suggested otherwise.
2. If you don't want to be left in the dark, ASK QUESTIONS.
3. Judges' decision is final and incontestable. Read the fine print.
4. I am not parading my previous wins. Some people asked (although maliciously...I dunno), I merely answered. I believe I did not win accolades on my own. I had help. And I always acknowledge the help of others.
5. Be genuine in extending your congratulations. Stop saying one thing, then mean another.
6. Don't think that if your work wasn't chosen, you're trash. Take this as a learning opportunity to strive to be better in what you do.
7. Constructive criticisms actually give the good and the bad side of things. It's not done out of spite. It's in the spirit of helping the other improve their work.
8. Virtual items will not make you rich in real life. Nor will you gain real and true friends.
   
9. Stop blowing things out of proportion. Do not misconstrue the words of another. <--If ever I am guilty of such, say it so to my face and not flood teh Intarwebs with useless chatter.
   
10. Most important of all: BE A SPORT.

Advertising love

Teh location

Teh starstruck actress

Teh emo actor

Teh perpetrators

My entry for the Valentine's Category was actually a project that a few friends and I wanted to work on the summer of last year. We were supposed to do a real life vid + machinima MTV using GE elements, but sadly, it didn't push through as we were busy with personal commitments.

I broached this idea to the group, originally thinking of using the song Inori~You Raise Me Up by Lena Park (OP song to the anime Romeo x Juliet). I admit, I was so into the anime that time that I wanted to create some fanart stuff for both fandoms (i.e., RxJ & GE). But then again, I heard this ethereal song, Feel This, sung by Bethany Joy Galeotti, and I knew this was the perfect song for this project.

And so on one sunny Sunday afternoon, I invited some friends over for the shoot, including the very lovely Sigrid, over to the University of the Philippines. Incidentally, I am also taking up my Masteral in the said school, particularly in the College of Mass Communications, so I knew some pretty good locations for this shoot.

I'm particularly glad that the weather cooperated with us. It was the perfect day to shoot the video, since the sun provided excellent lighting and the cool afternoon breeze kept us all in a relaxed mood. :3

Anyway, since we were just shooting for a 30 second video, I only took a few shots of the actors in specific locations. It was fun handling the video camera again and it was a joy to take videos of Sigrid who was really gung-ho on the emo look for this vid. Hehehe.

And so, without further ado, here's the end product of that fun and wacky video shoot.

Of course, what's a video shoot without bloopers? Here's just a few that I've managed to upload.

The emo actor fails at jumping onto tree branches. XD


Nobody's too emo for a quick breakdancing stint.

UP's majestic trees and verdant landscape also make for a perfect place for some...PHOTO OUTTAKES! (~'_')~

All I can say is...this has been so much F-U-N! Again, major props to you guys who helped out and made this project a sweet success!

Spread the GE lurv! :3

Beating deadlines, & on not being able to visit Zeia

Yes, yes, it's been a long time since I've last updated. Real life concerns are taking its toll on me, although I was still able to squeeze in a few hours or so to play GE.

Speaking of which, I'm still far ahead with my quests. So even when the Secret of the Culverts expansion was implemented, I wasn't able to take advantage of it. And yes, I still haven't set foot on Zeia.

What's even more frustrating than ever is the fact that I've been seeing dozens of Selvas running around town. It makes me green with envy.

Anyway, a few friends and I have gotten together to help each other out in this year's Fantazztic Ads Awards. Since the mechanics have changed and we can't very well enter as a team, we've decided to pool in our efforts to help each other out in our individual entries.

One of the major obstacles we encountered was the shorter time span for the film. Since this is an ad making contest, we had to think up of ideas that are short and meaningful. This meant that we don't have the luxury of detailing long narratives unlike in last year's FFA. Ideas and concepts have to be precise, catchy and thought-provoking. I personally struggled for days with an ad concept, until NineMoons suggested doing a parody of the PC vs. Mac ad.

This got my mind into thinking...why not? The concept is simple, and did not need that much editing. All I needed was a catchy dialogue.

It didn't take me long to come up with one. In fact, I came up with several dialogues. But due to the inavailability of some people I wanted the voice-overs to come from, I decided to work on all the VOs for my ads.

Gracielo vs. Irawan: Dumb & Dumber

This concept was about the RNPC hunks. I'm a sucker for good looking guys in the game, and I wanted to draw a conclusion that even the good looking ones can have the IQs of Mandradoras. Originally, I wanted a Gracielo vs. Soho the Wind ad, but I didn't have a STW, much less know anyone willing enough to help us out to film this. If any of you have noticed anything, STW's abs are not normal. They're 8 packs instead of the usual 6. And so, this is where the idea came from.

I totally fail at doing VOs for guys. I was having a terrible cold when I recorded this, and I figured...what the hell, I can always mess up their voices to add to the comedic factor. It turned out okay, if I don't say so myself.

Royalist vs. Republican: There are no girls on teh Intarwebs

Back last year when the GE Girl Gamers was featured for a month by RCM Hrin, there was this thread in the forums talking about several myths about girls and the Internet. I decided to make this ad in conjunction with that discussion.

Meanwhile, NineMoons made the exact opposite of my ad which was about Girl Power, premised as a parody of the Mastercard Priceless ad.

FFA's Legendary Director, Reclusion, also submitted a fantastic entry entitled Detrimental. Do watch it because I've been viewing his ad for the nth time already. LOL.

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank the people who've helped me see through this week's Open Category...you know who you are! XD I'll be filming my sole entry for the Valentine's Category this weekend, so watch out for an update on that outtake. I'll try to post some photos of that little project as well.