Posting this a little bit late, but Wednesday last week, Errol and I started to brainstorm for project two. Given that project one required each of us to analyse an online video practice individually, in forming pairs we had two presentation ideas to choose from. I had presented project one, discussing a video that addressed skateboard production style and my reason for selecting that is based on my hobby of making bmx videos and getting involved with skate culture. Coincidentally, Errol also makes skate videos and so we were both pretty eager to explore skate video production style for the project as it would be also be fun for both of us. Although Errol’s presentation on interactivity used a really engaging concept and so we wanted to incorporate that as much as possible. This would entail exploring how skateboarders use online networks such as YouTube to interact with each other making skate videos.

There is a skateboarding game called S.K.A.T.E which entails two skateboarders, one performing a stunt that has to be copied by the other. Failure to land the trick results in a letter, and getting the word SKATE results in loss. Similar to DONKEY in basketball. This game is practiced online with members uploading their stunt to YouTube as a video which can then be copied in reply videos. This is an element of skate video interactivity we could explore.

But firstly, back to the brainstorming process, to address the intended focus of the studio as directly as possible we reworded the studio prompt:

How can video, computers and the network be used to redefine online video practices?

To form a concept specific to skate videos (below). Improvements in information technology have changed many elements of skate video as a practice, namely the production has become more cinematic. However this change is not consistent across the entirety of the online video practice. Moreover, less cinematic and more old school (grungy) qualities that were present during the beginning of skate videos, are still present today. So noticing that the practice hasn’t been redefined but more so transformed, we created the concept statement:

How can video, computers and the network reshape skate videos as an online video practice?