Your Friend the Rat fan commentary - 9.20.2008

Fandom Fan Commentaries
#124

I’ve just finished listening to the second practice commentary of YFTR, and I think you guys all did great! I loved the contrasting accents, (though at times I got muddled up as to who’s who :laughing:) and you all seemed to have something interesting to say. Sure, there were some silences, but I think that’s pretty natural and will probably happen even in the film commentaries. I guess it just isn’t natural to be talking all the way through, but as long as a fair amount of the time there is someone speaking, (which in this practise, it was) it’s absolutely fine.

LE, your voice is very clear and you sounded like a real natural! And qxgnxamy, some of the things you said, especially about the Chinese Zodiac, were fascinating! I adore your French accent, Pixar.rocks, and yours too, thedriveintheatre. They all contrasted so well, and you didn’t sound nervous at all.

Great work, guys! :smiley:

I can’t wait for us to all do a feature film together, a whole bunch of us. With the way both of these commentaries have gone, it’ll be a blast!

#125

Thanks Lizardgirl ! I can’t wait either, i hope everyone can make it for the Ratatouille commentary !

#126

Rachel- Oh no, I liked that you did that! I probably would have too, but honestly, if there’s one thing I stink the most at in this world, it’s starting conversation. ^^; I’ve always been horrible at it. You were really nice and friendly though, and I think it helped everyone calm down a little. And thanks again.

lizardgirl- Thank you! Glad you could hear me okay, I was afraid I was going to slur my words again or something. I really hope you can make it to the next commentary.

qxgnxamy- I forgot to mention, I loved all your comments. They were very educational, and you sound like you really did your research.

And thanks for uploading the audio. I listened to it last night. I love how I’m all like “Hello everyone!”, even though I already said hello to you all. xD That’s usually how I start all my regular videos, so I guess it’s just a habit for me now. I think everyone did really well, though!

So, are we going to have another practice commentary sometime in the future? Or are we just going to jump straight in to Ratatouille? I’m going to try to make it to both, either way. [/b]

#127

Pixar.rocks, lizardgirl and Lightning Eclipse: Thanks. =) I guess that it’s only natural to see flaws in one’s own contribution, when in reality those flaws aren’t so bad.

A113 and M-O still haven’t done a practice, so I think we’re going to have another practice before we do our first feature commentary. I’m not sure if we’re doing Your Friend the Rat again. Ideally all ten of us would attend that practice so we’d get a feel for what it’s like when we’re all there (I think it will be fine, the animators’ commentary on The Incredibles had 13 people and it worked ok). However it may be a while before Mitch can do another commentary. We’re waiting for her to do the Ratatouille commentary, but we can do other commentaries in her absence.

Edit: Thanks, thedriveintheatre, also. Did I get the zodiac story right? You may be more familiar with it that I am.

#128

I was a bit anxious to hear how it would sound all put together, but it was quite good once it was finished! It’s quite wonderful how two groups of people can give commentaries on the same film, yet they can come up with two totally different results. I’d say it was just as good as the other one, and it had more information and less awkward silences, but they are both pretty good seeing as both groups had never done anything like this before. It’s really so great to hear you guys and “in person,” I can’t stress that enough. Who knew that Pixar fans seem like such regular and cool people in real life? =) All of you will be a great addition to the Ratatouille commentary, I can’t wait to record it with you all. is excited

Wow, Andre, you do have a deep voice, heh. You made good observations and clarifications of other commentators’ points, which is a good thing because people listening may need clarification (I know I did when LE mentioned who the director’s voice was.) And I never knew that the DNA of rats was the same as humans, and the other comments you said were interesting, too. Just do what you did in this commentary, but moreso in the next one.

LE - I can’t compliment you enough, you did really well! Just everything you said was great! And your voice is just made for this type of thing. Great job! =)

Pixar.rocks - Your accent is awesome! It’s like one I’ve never heard before - a mix of two accents. And you did well seeing as English is your second language (?) You didn’t sound that shy when you did talk, actually. Feel free to talk more next time, I’m looking forward to listening to you!

Peter - You really did your research on this one, didn’t you? I didn’t think you went on a tagent at all. Your info about the Chinese zodiac was fascinating, and very relevant, and it fit the short film education theme, as well as the other things you had to say. I like the way you Americans say “comparable.” Heh. The audio of the movie was a lot better this time (when it went back up), and your voice sounds fine, to me at least. :wink:

And thank you! Thinking about it later, I wasn’t sure if I was taking over after the commentary, or talking too much… My aim wasn’t to coach or be a leader, but just to get opinions from everyone of how it went. But I’m glad you found it beneficial.

#129

Thanks Rachel and you’re welcome. =)

When you say that the audio of the movie was a lot better, are you talking about the difference between version 1 and version 2 of commentary 2? Editing out noise is kinda fun. I also could’ve edited out all the "um"s that I said but I decided not to. I’ll just learn not to say them in the first place.

#130

I meant between the the commentary we did on the 12th and the one we did on the 20th. The audio just seemed a lot clearer with the movie. Don’t worry about editing out “ums” and “uhs.” We’re only human, and it gives the commentary a more personable touch. And have you ever tried saying a sentence without saying “um” - it’s really hard to do! It just something to say while we collect our thoughts… Everyone does it. =)

#131

I finally listened to the commentary. I thought that you all did a really wonderful job. I liked listening to everyone’s unique voices. (So far, no offense to anyone, but my favorites are rachel’s, lizardgirls, and Pixar.rocks.) I think this commentary was more educational than our first one. I learned a lot of stuff that I didn’t know before. (Heck, I’m half chinese, and I didn’t even know about the zodiac story) But still, really nice job you guys. I loved it. I can’t wait for another one.

#132

Thanks everyone for commentating my accent ! :smiley:

Rachel - I spent 6 years of my life in Florida, I started school there, but i’ve come back in France for 5 years now so i sorta lost my American accent… :confused:
But i’m glad you enjoy it !

#133

Both of the commentaries went very well, it seems, especially as it was most people’s first time with this sort of thing. So, what are we going to do next? Would another practise on a different short film, trying to get as many people together at the same time as possible, be a good idea?

#134

Yeah, I think it’d be a good idea to get as many people in as possible for our next practice commentary, because after that, we’ll probably do the Ratatouille one, and we’ll most likely have quite a few people in on that.

The only problem will be finding the perfect date and time. Everyone has a different timezone and schedules, so we’d have to do a lot of rearranging if we wanted to get that many people on board…

#135

I just talked to Mitch and I asked her if she would mind if we did a Toy Story 1 commentary before she joins us for the Ratatouille one. She said that was ok. So is Toy Story 1 fine with everyone?

Edit: This is for after we do our third practice commentary.

#136

I’m fine with a TS commentary. I just gotta find the DVD in my room first. :laughing:

#137

Sure, I’m cool with that! It’s just…unfortunately, I don’t have Toy Story on DVD. I know, weird, huh? ^^; Anyone know where I may be able to find it online, or something?

#138

Lightning Eclipse - You could rent it from a video store or borrow it from your local library. It’s also available at the iTunes store for $14.99 (but Best Buy used to be selling the DVD at that price). I think the library may be the best option.

#139

We should probably continue the Toy Story commentary discussion in the “Pixar Fan Commentaries” thread… I’ve posted what I think over there.

#140

So, we have to reschedule another practice session for YFTR. It can be done in October, or we could leave it up to early November and then do the Ratatouille commentary in mid-late November. We are waiting on these members:

  • Mitch is getting one of her computers fixed, but said she may be able to use her other computer. But even if she does, she said she is going to be busy until November anyway (not sure what date.) She has already done a practice session.

  • A113 - was getting his computer fixed… Not sure what the status is of that. He hasn’t done a practice session yet.

  • M-O - not sure what’s happening with them. I assume that if we organise another practice session he/she will make an appearance. M-O hasn’t done a practice session yet.

It is compulsory that in order for you to participate in the Ratatouille commentary, you would have needed to have previously participated in at least one practice session. A113 and M-O please update us on your statuses so we can see if it will be possible to organise one with both of you, plus everyone else (ideally.) I would like it if with the last practice session we could get everyone there, so please try your best to attend.

#141

All right. Here’s the stitch:

The main computer I used to commentate with you guys on has been repaired and restored to its original, working state. The situation is the same with my laptop, which I’m finally able to use again after, ohhh, five years or so. (Turns out that my laptop has a slot for a microphone plug, so I may be able to conduct commentary conversations on my laptop, as well.) Henceforth, I am now set and ready to do a Ratatouille commentary with you guys! Hopefully, nothing else comes up that hinders my joining in on the fun, but if it does then I’ll certainly give everyone a “heads up”.

– Mitch

#142

That’s wicked, Mitch! I liked your voice in the previous practice commentary, have you heard mine? (It’s the one that sounds like a frog) :smiley:
We’ve done a whole lot of practice commentaries, but I think we’re putting off the magnum opus, here, the first-feature length commentary: Toy Story ! (and you thought we were gonna do Ratatouille without you, we haven’t even started the one we meant to do when you were away!)

#143

Yay, that’s brilliant, Mitch! A Ratatouille commentary just wouldn’t be the same without you. :smiley: