My new YouTube documentary about a natural phenomenon that lasts only a few hours a year. Blending motion design, archives, and travel. Would love your feedback!
Hey everyone!
A month ago, I finished a documentary project that I’m really proud of, and I’d love to get a professional outside perspective.
The video is about the town of Senta in Serbia and a unique natural phenomenon the "blooming" of the Tisa river. This is the moment when mayflies massively emerge onto the water's surface. The phenomenon literally lasts just a few hours once a year, so I had to act as fast as possible on location. The audio is in Russian, but I’ve added hardcoded English subtitles.
When creating this project, I wanted to step away from the standard travel vlog format and make a proper documentary story with travel elements. Here are a few things I focused on during production:
1. Archives and Storytelling To ensure the river and the blooming didn't just remain a visual attraction, I wove historical context into the narrative. Using archival materials helped create contrast and show the significance of this place over time. I spent a lot of time searching for blueprints and other materials, and blew a lot of money on printing them :)
2. Motion Design Since I am a motion designer, it was important for me to add animated graphics to visually narrate the historical moments. I didn't want to just insert static old photos, illustrations, and text, so I animated the historical block. I also worked on the title design and animation. To simulate a slide projector flipping through photos, I took a 3D model and did a simple render in C4D. I was heavily inspired by Aidin Robbins for the projector idea.
3. Editing and Sound Design This was my first major experience doing sound and editing for a longer format. I wanted every single detail to have its own sound: transitions, the click of photos switching, etc. Because of this, I spent a massive amount of time looking for the right sounds and music on Artlist. I wanted the edit to be snappy and engaging; looking back, I can see I might have overdone the dynamics in some moments, but I still absolutely love how it turned out.
Gear & Software I shot this video on my trusty old Sony a6300 + Sony 16-50mm f/3.5-5.6 kit lens + Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8. Drone: DJI Mavic 2 Pro. Editing and color grading were done in DaVinci Resolve. Motion graphics in After Effects and a little bit of C4D.
Where I need your help / feedback:
I’m constantly trying to improve the quality of my work, so I would be super grateful for any constructive criticism. I’m especially curious about:
- Sound: How well does the sound design work? Is it overwhelming, and is it mixed well with the voiceover?
- Pacing: Did I manage to keep a good balance between the historical/archival context and the footage of the natural phenomenon itself? Does the dynamic drag at any point?
Link to the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5oNMo1HSOSI&t=168s