If you are in the bar mitzvah planning mode (or bat mitzvah), you probably already know what the title of this article is about. If not, ask you son or daughter. He or she will tell you.
Along with the location, caterer and DJ, video montages have quickly become one of the core essentials of a great bar/bat mitzvah party. Projected on a large screen at the party, the sound ideally emanating through the DJ's kickin' sound system, the montage is a trip back through the thirteen years that led up to this day. Typically in the eight-to-ten minute range, a great video montage highlights these years in an entertaining way that lets the invited guests experience the uniqueness of the bar or bat mitzvah.
As I often tell people:
Ten minutes can go by really fast, or it can seem like an eternity.
Poorly constructed video montages are about as exciting to experience as watching paint dry. The trap that do-it-yourself montage creators often fall into, is that every baby picture, soccer goal, and school play video clip is Academy Award worthy and deserves to be seen. In its entirety. Repeatedly.
A "mom"or "dad" creating the montage is a challenge, because every photo, every clip holds special meaning. It's hard to discern what should go in, and what should remain in the scrapbook or the video library. And these days, with digital photography, most people have hundreds if not thousands of photographs in their library. Make the wrong choices, create an uninspired, repetitive montage, and that great party vibe that started with the hora and crescendo'd through the DJ's party dance music, is suddenly laying dead on the side of the road like road-kill.
Sound harsh? Yes, it is. But ten minutes of a boring montage can be awfully destructive to the party atmosphere.
Unfortunately many who offer montage creation services went into the field with the wrong background and experience. A photographer knows how to take a great photograph, how to set up the shot, adjust the lights, frame the subject. A videographer knows how to shoot video to cover an event. But with video montages, the photographs already exist, the video footage is in the family vault, compiled by mom and dad over the years - the family vacations, birthday parties, sports, plays and graduations. Mom or Dad's expertise has been in capturing great video footage and photographs through the years, and now a professional takes that raw material and has to transform it into a great montage movie.
A successful montage creator has to be a storyteller; a filmmaker. The montage is, in fact, a documentary about your son or daughter - what makes him or her tick. If you turn on the TV and watch a good documentary by Ken Burns or other respected documentarian, or if you catch a celebrity profile/biography on MTV, VH-1, E! or the History Channel, you'll see how, regardless of the actual subject, the clever use of photos, video, music, sound-bytes, voice-over, interviews and creative transitions all add to the emotion and clarity of the "story."
A good filmmaker can make basket-weaving look interesting. A bad one can make Brad Pitt or Angelina Jolie seem uninteresting. Well, maybe not Brad Pitt or Angelina Jolie. It's hard to make them look bad.
It's true that the guests at your event are a warm audience. They want to enjoy the montage. And they do know the subject - at least in some way, otherwise they wouldn't be there. However, for the best possible presentation, here are some tips to keep in mind:
Is the montage entertaining to someone who only knows some of the people in it?
Aunt-Tillie has to be in there, so she won't get offended, but are all the shots/clips of her necessary? Does each clip offer something new, tell something unique about the bar or bat mitzvah boy/girl? Keep that in mind, because that is what keeps it moving and interesting.
Is the Montage focused on the Bar/Bat Mitzvah?
Seems an obvious question, but I can't tell you how many montages I've seen where suddenly a brother or sister suddenly steals the limelight. Or Uncle Louie's hi-jinks are suddenly center-stage. This is about your son or daughter. Keep it focused on him or her. Everyone else should be shown in a manner that relates to your son or daughter.
Mix it up.
Photographs are great, and each one can "tell" a story, but if you have video footage as well, a blend of photos and video clips keeps it interesting. But, vary it - some photos followed by video, then back to photos again. This keeps it interesting.
And finally...
Projection and Presentation
It doesn't matter if you have a great montage if no one can see or hear it. Who is handling this? The catering hall? The DJ? Don't leave this to the last minute; you have enough to handle. Best if the projection is handled by the creator of the montage. He or she knows how it is supposed to look and sound. Insist on a "technical run through" and see/hear with your own eyes/ears in the exact location it will be shown. Do not simply take someone's word for it that it is "under control." A technical run-through is a full run through with all the exact equipment, ideally only a couple of days before the event. Settings on the machines should be noted, sound levels, distance to the screen, etc., in the event the equipment is being used by others afterwards, and prior to your party. There's nothing worse than your guests expectantly waiting to see the montage, and something is wrong - people suddenly scrambling for a missing cable because the montage can be seen but not heard, or vice versa...
Most importantly...
Have fun! Your child's bar or bat mitzvah only happens once, so sit back and enjoy. I can assure you from personal experience, it will go by fast!
David Hillenbrand is an accomplished filmmaker and the founder of All About U Montages http://www.AauMontages.com. Located in Tarzana, California (in the general Los Angeles area), All About U Montages specializes in video montages for bar and bat mitzvahs http://www.aaumontages.com/barbat-mitzvahs.html
