Of Leaves and Roots
Shizuocha was made entirely with open source software. These pages attempt to explain the applications and processes used to make a subtitled DVD with menus from raw DV footage.
Main Elements
Shizuocha is more than just DV video: it also incorporates recorded audio, scaled vector and raster graphics, and subtitles.
Base System
The film was captured with a consumer camcorder and edited entirely on a (laptop) computer running linux. With a few other external pieces of hardware, some further explanation is needed to describe how everything worked together. read more
Audio
One simple song and some minimal voice overs tied the segments together. They were recorded over a series of multiple takes and several tracks, but mixed back to stereo and conditioned with a single program. read more
Graphics
The prominent tea logo and several overlays were used throughout the film, and they were designed and created with applications tailored for each job. read more
Footage
Final Cut Pro and Adobe Premiere aren't the only non-linear video
editors out there, linux has a strong alternative as well. Learn how
everything (audio, video, graphics) came together through this central
application. read more
Subtitles
Writing subtitles for a film is quite a detailed task, but there are programs available to help push the details under a microscope so that they can be easily seen and dealt with. read more
DVD Menus
Part of the 'professional' look of a DVD is the appearance of its menus. Using simple text and images makes the process clear and quick, but menus with moving images and buttons add a produced feel to the DVD. read more
Final DVD
Once all of the elements have been finalized, the only remaining step is authoring the DVD. Two menus (main and chapter) and subtitles join the main feature on the disc. read more