New Beginnings

The following is client work. I did not create the thumbnail, nor did I create anything gameplay-related (ie. Arena, Goal Explosions, Cars, Car Boost). The video game being edited is Rocket League. My computer hardware, at the time of creating this montage, was outdated, and unable to render in 1080p quality.

This project was a hefty one, as I had to download replay files from my friend in order to have access from my own computer. With a mod installed on my computer, I was able to enter the Rocket League replay and keyframe camera movement. This is how I gathered all of my "cinematics," as I like to call them. I would record the camera while it followed my paths as the gameplay was happening. I recorded in .5x speed in order to have an easier process editing in the post production. I also recorded a player POV for each goal, and created a folder system containing each separate goal and their recorded cinematics.

After the "filming" process was  completed, I found some music and threw the clips into After Effects. I took a goal file, imported the recordings, and mixed and matched the order of the cinematics within a goal. I ended up, most of the time, with cinematic, player POV, and then a cinematic before transitioning to the next goal. The timing was hard to get down, as I had to speed up/slow down the cinematics and POVs to enable a good flow between cuts. On top of that, I had to keep the music in mind, as I wanted the goals, cuts, and transitions to flow with the music.

The next step was creating the intro sequence. This took a lot of trial and error with the tracking system in After Effects. I ended up with a smooth track along the barn wall and stairs, to which I added text introducing the montage. 

After arranging the goals and intro sequence together, I added standard transitions if it helped the flow of the overall video. I then added noise to all of the cinematic shots, creating a more grainy and realistic look. An effect that is commonly used in this montage is Exposure (brightness), which I edited to match on time with the music. I also added effects to make the cinematics and transitions smoother. After playing around with shots, transitions, and adding more effects, I was almost at the finish line. The final touch was adding some color correction to enrich the coloring and contrast. 

Looking back, there are definitely things I would change, but I'm happy how it came out. I learned a lot about communication with clients, and it was key to creating a final video that he was happy with.