So, you
wanna' try and do part of the sync yourself, eh? Probably a good decision
considering the chaotic alternative. Remember, though, if you change your
mind you can take this little red pill
at any time during your visit and you will indeed see how deep the rabbit
hole goes.
Before we get into the specifics, allow me just a minute or so to address an important facet of this endeavor.
If you're
already familiar with the art form of Film & Music Synchronicity, then
you've no doubt heard of such syncs as
"Dark
Side Of The Rainbow" & "The Rush/Wonka
Project".
(Of course, there are many others that can be explored by clicking here.)
Those two examples that I cite have their distinct differences and variations,
but what they do share in content is that the music plays (or at least *can*
play, depending on how you set it up) throughout the entire film. What I
have done with "The Rushian Matrix" is to take it a step further by
incorporating dialogue from the film itself into the mix. Sure, there are
many passages in the project in which only the music is heard, but I discovered
something during the course of experimenting with this film;
While the visuals, and to a degree the story line, sync up very nicely with the music, the long periods of dialogue can be just downright boring to watch.
Taking full advantage of the concept known as "artistic license", I did alot of knob tweaking to mold this thing into something that is hopefully enjoyable to see and hear. Since you have chosen to look into setting up a portion of this sync yourself, it's advisable that you follow the instructions below to the best of your ability. If you do so, I think you'll enjoy the experience much more.
Setting up this partial sync is actually quite easy...here's what you need:
a copy of the film "The Matrix" (VHS or DVD, either will work)
the Rush CD's "Grace Under Pressure" & "Signals"
and about 65-70 minutes of your time
Before starting the film, cue up your "Grace Under Pressure" CD at the beginning and press PAUSE...this will ensure that when you hit the PLAY button, the music will begin immediately.
Turn your television's volume down (or hit the mute button if you wish to see the closed captioned feature...which, by the way, *does* add an interesting dimension to the experience!). Fast forward your copy of "The Matrix" til you see the Warner Brothers logo...then allow the film to then start. Do NOT start the music just yet.
As the video rolls, the next thing you'll see is a fade in of another logo, Village Roadshow Productions. This logo will appear for a few seconds, and then will fade to black. When the screen has *COMPLETELY* faded to black, begin counting...one...two...
THREE
Hit the
CD PLAY button on THREE and both the music and the film should fade in simultaneously.
This method should work for you, but I realize that there are often times
microscopic differences from one machine to the next, so make any adjustments
that you deem necessary.
WOnce the sync has begun, I believe you'll thoroughly enjoy the interplay the first two songs ("Distant Early Warning" & "Afterimage") creates with what takes place onscreen. But, unlike your conventional sync where you simply let the entire disc play straight through, you'll have to get interactive after the second song has ended.
When "Afterimage" has *completely* faded out, hit the PAUSE button on your *CD player* and allow the film to continue. You'll need to have the next song ("Red Sector A") all cued up and ready to go. Turn your television's volume back on and listen to the dialogue between Neo and Trinity. This is the point in the film where they have first met each other in the club. The scene will soon change from them conversing with one another to Neo's alarm clock waking him up. Be ready to begin the music again...here's your cue:
The alarm clock wakes Neo up...realizing that he has overslept, he exclaims "Oh shit! Oh shit! Oh shit!" Your cue to begin the music again is on the *SECOND* "Oh shit!" If you do it correctly, the music will begin exactly the instant the scene changes to the tall building in which Neo works. If you're off by only one second or so, it won't make too much of a difference...the sync will remain pretty much intact and enjoyable.
After the
music has begun again, mute the television's volume and enjoy the remaining six
songs from the "Grace Under Pressure" CD uninterupted. There
will be many cool things to see and hear, and admittedly so, a few points where
things seem to 'drag on' a bit. All in all, though, it's a very nice sync
to watch. But we're not done yet...
The final song from the CD ("Between The Wheels")
will fade out just as Neo and Morpheus have entered (some would say
"morphed" or "thrown into") a huge pit in what is the
remnants of the scorched Earth. If you want to get a bit creative here,
go ahead and turn the television's volume back on as the song fades out.
The first words you *should* probably hear are from Morpheus:
"We have only bits and pieces of information, but what we do know is that
shortly after the 21st century began..."
And he goes on to describe how computers acquired Artificial Intelligence
and basically took over the human race.
While Morpheus is speaking, which he will do so for a couple of minutes, you should go ahead and put Rush's "Signals" CD into your player. Then, program the following songs *IN THIS ORDER*:
Track #5
- The Weapon
Track #2 - The Analog Kid
Track #4 - Digital Man
As before, press the PAUSE button on your CD player to have the first song all ready to go when your cue comes. Speaking of which, here's your cue...
As
Morpheus' monologue nears its end, onscreen you will see the scene in which an
infant is lying in a pod with all sorts of hoses and wires hooked up to it
(certainly one of the more disturbing images from the film!). Right after
he says the words
"...I realized the obviousness of the truth..."
you will see the image of the infant in the pod sort of "morph" as if
a computer glitch has taken place.
THIS IS YOUR CUE TO START THE CD!
The music
will fade in under Morpheus speaking and continue to build both in volume and
in tempo. Neo then states in disbelief "No, I don't believe it!
No! Get me out of here! I want out! I want out!"
After his last exclamation of "I want out!", the first hard guitar
strang should coincide with Neo coming out of the virtual world and waking up
on the ship...then the first words of the song will be heard:
"We've got nothing to fear but fear itself..."
Again, if you are off by only a second or so, it's not that big of a deal, but you should try your best to nail it so that the rest of the sync falls into place.
Then allow the rest of the programmed songs to play through uninterupted. There are a couple of scenes where the prolonged dialogue kind of drags things a bit, but for the most part it's pretty cool. I think you'll especially enjoy "The Analog Kid"
This
partial sync will end as the last song fades out while the crew of the ship are
anxiously hiding out in a tunnel, trying to remain undetected by a computer
probe called a "squidly". Shortly after the music has ended,
the scene will fade to black.
Now, if you want to know the rest of the sync, you'll have
to take the red pill.
I took some fairly significant artistic liberties with the rest of the film and
unless you have the right equipment (in this case a mixing board, a cassette
tape deck, and an extra CD player), it'll be next to impossible to do it right.
Like I said on the opening page, it's a convoluted mess...but a helluva
lot of fun!!!
As with my other experiments, however, I do offer you the opportunity to get a copy of it yourself from me. Simply email me and I'll be happy to give you the details.
Enjoy!
me
by
clicking
the
image
below
bytor@i1.net