Other footage originated from sources as diverse as a mini-camera strapped to the filmmakers head and a webcamera, but these sources didn’t have the soft focus issues that some of the DVX100 footage had. Additionally, Hansen did a good job of showcasing when and why these alternate sources were used, so that they weren’t just blindly cut to.
One final recommendation I would make for future films revolves around a few intro sequences where we follow Chris Hansen around in fast motion as he goes from room to room in his house. While the fast motion shots that actually occur in the different rooms were pretty controlled in their movement, the handheld camera that followed Chris through the halls became disconcertingly shaky when it was accelerated. As such, I would recommend for these sorts of setups, using a basic Glidecam (or the $30 steadycam rig we first re-printed in issue #1), as the fast motion is much easier to watch when filmed with some image stabilization.
Use of Audio
As with the camera, the Sennheiser boom mic Hansen used was manned by students. This led to a number of scenes with plenty of background noise when the mic got too far from the interviewee or drifted off center. (Ideal shotgun placement for clean audio is between 1 1/2 and 2 1/2 feet from the lips of the speaker, depending on the mic, with the mic’s top aimed at the lips.) While issues like this can’t be erased in post, they could be improved by applying something like SoundSoap, Sony Noise Reduction, or Adobe SoundBooth’s noise-cleanup plug-ins.
The music was quirky and fun, fitting the off-beat sort of sensibility of the film quite nicely.
Use of Budget
$1000 is a pretty fair budget for a nearly 30 minute documentary, as payment was given to student labor for production, postproduction, and graphic design, as well as food and travel doubtlessly being provided.
Lasting Appeal
Clean Freak is an enjoyable short film, even if it isn’t quite sure whether it’s a documentary or a mockumentary. I definitely intend to show it to other writers at MFM, especially since it seems all of our local staff is either OCD or ADD. (These two psychological problems seem to attract filmmakers like no others. In addition to their other quirks, both types have the ability to hyperfocus, a priceless skill for tedious tasks like animation and fine-tuning editing.)
Overall Comment
Clean Freak is another fun film from writer/director Chris Hansen, this time taking more of the serious documentary approach at times. As with Care & Feeding, I find myself fascinated to see what Hansen will come out with for his next film. Perhaps he’ll take his fascination with compulsive characters and explore the folks who are hopelessly addicted to living and dying in the World of Warcraft! (Since he teaches at a university, I’m sure he’s got plenty of access to WOW addicts on a regular basis.)
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
Content |
7.5 |
|
Visual
Look |
6.0 |
|
Use
of Audio |
7.0 |
|
Use
of Budget |
9.0 |
|
Lasting
Appeal |
8.0 |
|
Overall
Score |
7.6 |
|
|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
