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My MARS-ONE Application Video

Started by August 14, 2013 03:04 PM
25 comments, last by L. Spiro 11 years, 2 months ago

Here's a thought (that everyone else had already but I'll try to expand on), what if you were to ramp up the production quality of the video? And do it to an almost absurd point where it becomes a demonstration of your sense of humor? A short, dry statement that you entertain a little at dinner parties juxtaposed against... I don't know, something that's in the background such that you end up with a sarcasm/irony thing that's amusing in some way (damn my vocabulary today sucks but I hope you get the idea).

Make sure your video comes complete with credits (rapidly flying by) and vanity card (like this one).

Unless this breaks some rules or is completely negated by the quality of the video as it appears on the site. But the idea is to think beyond just a video monologue.

If I misread something about the requirements of the video, then I'm sorry.

Nevertheless, I'm pretty sure that a webcam stand-and-talk video won't cut it, pretty much independetly of what you say and how.

I'm sure that at least a Youtube celebrity (Shawn Dawson or who the hell for example) kind of video is needed (talk, "cut-scenes", whatever).

I'm sure many will shoot multiple-character films, some will even make animation/puppet films.

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What are they looking for in a video that the rest of the application can't tell them?

I think the answer is a basic, subconscious, gut sense of what the person is like (do they look like they would get along with other people stuck in a metal tube?), and whether or not that person more or less fits with the rest of the application (which they could have easily farmed out to a better writer or lied about). If they wanted your kinds of answers, they would given you more text boxes in the application or let you submit a video a half-hour long.

And the vibe that video gives off is that you're more like HAL 9000 than Neil Armstrong.

-Mark the Artist

Digital Art and Technical Design
Developer Journal

I’ve given my reasons for not going the humor route and not going the “OMG THIS WOULD BE MY DREAM SO MUCH” route, but maybe I should think of it this way-

Half of the people get in by popular vote and the other half gets in by MARS-ONE team selection. I’ve been tailoring everything towards the MARS-ONE team side but perhaps I should see the private profile as the appeal to the MARS-ONE team and the public video as an appeal to the public.

I’m still a bit hesitant, but it wouldn’t hurt to make a few more videos. I have a few ideas for humor I was tempted to try.

I think I can do better on the production quality but the background noise you hear is my air-conditioner and frankly for as long as these videos take to get right I am not willing to turn it off.

I mean, come on. Do you seriously expect me to be slightly uncomfortable for 30 minutes just so I can live my wildest dreams, make history, make progress for humankind, and visit a foreign world? Seriously!

L. Spiro

I restore Nintendo 64 video-game OST’s into HD! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCtX_wedtZ5BoyQBXEhnVZw/playlists?view=1&sort=lad&flow=grid

I think touching on the stressful events is not enough. Your voice and gestures should show that something is a big deal. Stress those parts, don't just bring them up.

Add some breaks to make those things stand out. Right now everything is equally memorable ... meaning it becomes one big cloud of information and not very interesting to watch.

Given enough eyeballs, all mysteries are shallow.

MeAndVR


I’ve given my reasons for not going the humor route and not going the “OMG THIS WOULD BE MY DREAM SO MUCH” route, but maybe I should think of it this way-
Half of the people get in by popular vote and the other half gets in by MARS-ONE team selection. I’ve been tailoring everything towards the MARS-ONE team side but perhaps I should see the private profile as the appeal to the MARS-ONE team and the public video as an appeal to the public.

I’m still a bit hesitant, but it wouldn’t hurt to make a few more videos. I have a few ideas for humor I was tempted to try.

To be completely honest, I don't think that what you have so far (in the video) is going to increase your chances with the MARS-ONE team either. The point is you avoided things that you thought would make it seem like you aren't taking it seriously, but it sort of seems like you also forgot to include things that show that you are. Like others have said, no matter who you're trying to appeal to, a successful video will contribute to your case in a way that is not already present in your application. I'm certain none of us know exactly how to accomplish that, because none of us are you, but I can't see how trying different versions could possibly hurt.

Regarding humor, I too don't think you should make the whole thing into a joke, but there's a lot of room on the continuum of "complete joke" and "sort of the opposite of funny," and right now you seem to be on the "sort of the opposite of funny" side given that your answer to the humor question is basically just an excuse for why you are unwilling to describe your sense of humor. There's tons of stuff you can try. Maybe be serious in the video but include a clip from your show for the humor question. Maybe address serious issues like dying in space with just a bit of levity, not to make it look like you're not worried about those issues, but that you can deal with them in a healthy way. The point is to try stuff and see what works for you and others.


I mean, come on. Do you seriously expect me to be slightly uncomfortable for 30 minutes just so I can live my wildest dreams, make history, make progress for humankind, and visit a foreign world? Seriously!

This is sort of what i don't get. I mean, I'm sure we all realize that even with a spectacular application, your odds of actually getting to Mars are not that high. Even so, though, you should be figuring out what the possibility of going to Mars is worth to you. However much it's worth, you should be putting that much effort in, and I see no reason not to let that effort show in your video. For instance, maybe get rid of the whole fake-spontaneity-because-it-seems-"natural" act and let people see how much work you're putting in, because then people will know exactly how seriously you're taking this.

Apparently there are more than 100,000 applicants already. At most four people will go to mars. That means you will have to beat out more than 99,996 people if you want to have any chance at all. Get to work!

-~-The Cow of Darkness-~-
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Apparently there are more than 100,000 applicants already

In that light, you should probably rather play the lottery as a more reasonable solution, so you can pay for your own, private trip.

Given an 1 in 56 million chance (that's what the alleged odds are, or so they tell you here, your mileage may vary), and 12 years of time between 2010 and 2022, and 2 draws per week, that's a 1 to 44,871 chance to win the jackpot -- more than twice as good. The nice thing is that you're not limited to a single draw, if you're not happy with the probability.

This might be a bit OT, but I wonder if the hundreds of thousands of people that have applied actually know what they're doing and actually want to do it.

I mean, it's not like you're gonna go to Pandora, hook up with Neytiri and fly on the back of a winged horse.

I'm pretty sure you will find 100x more things to explore in a polar expendition than this.

Sure, the first few days you're gonna be like "OMG I'm on Mars".

And then you realize there's not much else to do than collect rocks, look at rocks, talk about rocks, and live in a small steel bunker for the rest of your life.

Seems kinda weird to me, but hey, to each his own I guess :)

Just so everyone knows why a new video isn’t being posted, I got a cold or flu or something and my voice is weird and I have no energy to give to the camera. It will have to be later.

L. Spiro

I restore Nintendo 64 video-game OST’s into HD! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCtX_wedtZ5BoyQBXEhnVZw/playlists?view=1&sort=lad&flow=grid

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