the set-up

[Windsong]

McDodo's 3 requests ( none of which i could help with ) brings to mind a thought about video's and video producers. I am obviously not alone in thinking the 'set-up' is key to the enjoyment of a video. Maybe it's because to imagine being there and involved, surely the attraction of these videos, one needs to believe in the scenario intellectually.

I notice that most producers who offer preview clips cut straight to the chase, as it were, on the assumption that buyers want to see how much spanking/caning/paddling etc. they are getting for their money.

I rarely think, on seeing these clips, " I must order that ", because the element of reality is missing, whether it be pseudo non-consensual, or consensual. I would love to hear the views of video producers, actors/actresses, and retailers on this, as - to me - they are missing the gag entirely.

[GDSMKBTM]

You have hit the nail right on the head, I could not agree more.

The phrase that I think sums it up is 'the suspense of disbelief'.
I am not sure who first coined this phrase, but it sums up all that one should be aiming for in setting up the plot. The viewer should be able to believe that it could actually happen.

Very few vids achieve this, mainly becasue the producers do not think it is very important, or lack the creative skills required.

Best example in my opinion was 'Payday' in which a girl on her way to a job interview prangs another car, and, as she has borrowed her pals car for which she is not insured, she gives a false name and address to the other driver.

When she arrives, the guy who is going to interview her for the job turns out to be the driver she just pranged. He, of course, has her correct name and address on the job application.

It gets better - when he finally suggest corporal punishment she throws a wobbly and storms out, just as you propbably would.

She does of course come round to his point of view in the end, and by that time you can really belive it - thanks to some great acting from both leads in this vid.

What are other folks nominations for the 'reality' factor?

GD

[Mogul]

One of the problems with the "set-up" is that it actually requires acting.

For the most part, the actual spankings don't, or, perhaps it's just that the action is so far removed from everyday life that we don't realise that the acting that is present isn't very good.

It may look easy on quality vanilla TV and film, but you only have to look at some of the story settings seen on spanking vids to realise that it's not that straightforward.

I suspect that if you could do a reasonably believable storyline with decent actors, the result would be outstanding, even if the spankings were quite mild.

Mogul

[GDSMKBTM]

Professional actors? Nice theory but don't think we are ever going to see it, and as you said, the action would probably be rather tame (unless they come from the Stanislavsky tradition - wonder what the preparation would be - gives me an idea for a video plot).

To your point though, you are right to say that the cast are not pro. actors, however, many of the girls are well versed in improvisation from all the parties and 1-2-1's, its the guys that lack the experience, and also of course, the directors.

I can gaurantee you that the person who screws up most CP video shoots is the guy footing the bill, myself included. When I did camera for other directors, I was appalled at how often they would call 'cut' jsut when the action was going well and I had a really great camera angle. 9 times out of 10 the cut was for some trivial error that we could just as easilly have fixed in the edit.

Another big mistake is to give people an actual script with lines to learn, the smart people just explain the scenario and let the players improvise.

As far as the 'set up' goes, I think the problem is that over the years there has been a very vocal lobby who complain if there is not 'action' within the first 5 minutes, and as a result most producers set a time limit on the establishing scene, so as to avoid 'fast forward time'. the samrt ones give the audience something worth looking at during the establishing scene, a little bit of a tease for what is to come. This same lobby are the folk who always want the action to be harder and quite honestly there is no pleasing them, they lack any sense of the finess and sublety of the erotic. its their girlfreinds I pity most, they have probably never heard of foreplay and are done before you can boil an egg!

Alright, I know I should not generalise and each to his own, but I do think there are 2 distinct markets out there - the 'hard' set, and those who appreciate the finer points.

GD

[Mogul]

Professional actors? Nice theory but don't think we are ever going to see it, and as you said, the action would probably be rather tame (unless they come from the Stanislavsky tradition - wonder what the preparation would be - gives me an idea for a video plot).

I agree that it's not going to happen, but if it did, I think the results would be quite surprising. I've seen various mainstream items over the years where the CP is built up to, but not shown, and the results are every bit as memorable an actual spanking.

To your point though, you are right to say that the cast are not pro. actors, however, many of the girls are well versed in improvisation from all the parties and 1-2-1's,

I have to disagree there, I think the improvisation is actually pretty weak, but we don't expect much else - it would be unreasonable to.

its the guys that lack the experience, and also of course, the directors.

I'm sure you're correct, but It's sometimes hard to tell the difference between incompetance and clever, shall we say, "enhancement".

Who hasn't seen a scene where someone is being caned, the camera taking in the Dom and subject's bottom.

Then the guy takes an extra long swing, the camera cuts to the girls face, and you hear a louder whistle and crack than for the preceeding strokes. This extra intensive sound goes on until the camera goes back to its original position, when the Dom seems to relent in his severity.

Inept direction?

Bad Miking?

Or just making the best of what the sub is prepared to take?

Another big mistake is to give people an actual script with lines to learn, the smart people just explain the scenario and let the players improvise.

I'm sure you're right here. That's where professional actors would be needed. They are taught to deliver lines. I know I couldn't do it (at least not without training).

As far as the 'set up' goes, I think the problem is that over the years there has been a very vocal lobby who complain if there is not 'action' within the first 5 minutes, and as a result most producers set a time limit on the establishing scene, so as to avoid 'fast forward time'. the samrt ones give the audience something worth looking at during the establishing scene, a little bit of a tease for what is to come. This same lobby are the folk who always want the action to be harder and quite honestly there is no pleasing them

Doubtless true, but one of the problems faced by those of us who have been trying to find good spanking stuff for some years is that until recently (say 4-5 years back), most of the stuff available was so tame that you tended to want to ff just to see if you'd bought another lemon.

Some of the so called spanking vid's from just after the BBFC "takeover" consisted of 40 mins of very bad vanilla acting with a couple of extremely tame short spankings inserted.

Mogul