Top 5

Hey guys! Yup, the Top 5's back. Not many entries this week (although they were all wonderful!) -- so if you'd like to submit your AMV(s) next week, be sure and go for it (and tag them as 'top 5' if you do)! We can't keep the contest going without entries!

This Week's Judge(s): Stardust

1. {Kingdom Hearts} Will you be ready?


Submitted by: Mage
Song: 2-1 by Imogen Heap
Details: I just adore this video, the atmosphere is impeccable. The effects are subtle and the text simple -- which I think is a great strength here as they're used wonderfully to help make the video pop. It's simplistic, but extremely effective. Awesome, awesome job on this! My only critique is that I wish there was more variety with the text placement; I would have liked to have seen it outside of the top-right corner a bit more.
Link: http://kh-vids.net/media/kingdom-hearts-will-you-be-ready.373/

2. [KH] - Losing Your Memory
Submitted by: FurySp4rk
Song: Losing Your Memory by Ryan Star
Details: Absolutely wonderful. The effects and text are non-intrusive and complement the footage well, and the voice layovers are really well placed. The result is something genuinely emotional, and the end especially packs a punch! Fantastic work! My only advice is to be careful of typos, haha, but it happens.
Link: http://kh-vids.net/media/kh-losing-your-memory.374/

4. KH - Me & You
Submitted by: Mage
Song: Me & You by Nero
Details: Short but sweet! Lots of cool effects in this one, I really enjoyed it. Really fun and eye popping. Using static images is always a bit risky and some of the transitions & text felt a little out of place to me, so I suppose if I had any critique for this it would be to use them sparingly, and to make sure nothing sits still on the screen for too long. Nice work!
Link: http://kh-vids.net/media/kh-me-you.372/

4. Ｆａｌｌ Ｆｏｒ Ｙｏｕ:: ＰｒｉｎｃｅｓｓＫａｉｒｉｘＸｘ
Submitted by: starlight2011studios
Song: Fall for You by Secondhand Serenade
Details: Very emotional! The bold text was an interesting choice but it worked well to emphasize the lyrics, and helped create the atmosphere. Nice work with the voice overs as well; when they're too loud they can be distracting but they fit right in.
Link: http://kh-vids.net/media/Ｆａｌｌ-Ｆｏｒ-Ｙｏｕ-ＰｒｉｎｃｅｓｓＫａｉｒｉｘＸｘ.375/

5. Aerith & Terra - I'm H O L D I N G Out for a H E R O
Submitted by: Ankoku
Song: Holding Out for a Hero by Ellie Mae Bowen
Details: Really sweet, gentle video, great job! Solid editing overall. In terms of critique, I felt the overlay was nice but perhaps a bit heavy. Beautiful work!
Link: http://kh-vids.net/media/aerith-terra-im-h-o-l-d-i-n-g-out-for-a-h-e-r-o.368/

Congratulations to all who placed this week!
Haven't placed yet? Don't give up! Your video certainly was not bad, and you may place in a future week.

Hey kids, Plums here! I know this is a wee bit late (a few days oops :x), but here is the past week's Top 5! Unfortunately, there were not that many entries this week, but those that did enter were pretty fantastic! Anyway, enough of my rambles and onto the four winners, plus a runner up from last week:

This Week's Judge(s): Plums


1. Kingdom Hearts - A Beautiful Lie [Beta Wars]



Submitted by: Lea
Song: A Beautiful Lie by 30 Seconds to Mars
Details: I really liked the editing you did here! The scenes you showed during Roxas' headache part captured to mood of the song well, and I especially liked the big flash out at the end.
Link: http://kh-vids.net/media/kingdom-hearts-a-beautiful-lie-beta-wars.215/

2. Kingdom Hearts AMV - Xehanort
Submitted by: cwf123
Song: Made of Stone by Evanescence
Details: I thought the song was very fitting for Xehanort, but the video seemed to take the spotlight away from him for a chunk for Sora & co. Still really liked it overall, though.
Link: http://kh-vids.net/media/kingdom-hearts-amv-xehanort.212/


3. Kingdom Hearts - Our Truth [Beta Wars]
Submitted by: Lea
Song: Our Truth by Lacuna Coil
Details: I thought the TV Simulator was used a tad bit too much here, but the video still came out really great.
Link: http://kh-vids.net/media/kingdom-hearts-our-truth-beta-wars.216/

4. Hold On to Your Hearts
Submitted by: Cloud4012
Song: All Around Me by Flyleaf
Details: The color overlays kind of took away from the effect of the video on me (and I thought the zoom was used a tad bit too much), but this was also very good.
Link: http://kh-vids.net/media/hold-on-to-your-hearts.217/


Runner Up: A Gentlemen's Con; KH
Submitted by: AntiSora
Song: A Gentlemen's Coup - Rise Against
Details: This video did many things I liked, from the rhythmic build up with appropriate scenes to the good use of video editing techniwques. A special touch was the use of KH dialogue during the song as well, which fit very well and was well used with the song. Overall good effort and good execution!
Link: http://kh-vids.net/media/a-gentlemans-con-kh.206/



Congratulations to all who placed this week!
Haven't placed yet? Don't give up! Your video certainly was not bad, and you may place in a future week.

So here we are again! After almost a year the top 5 has returned! This is the first time I've ever judged one of these so I was very excited and what a come back, the entries were brilliant which gave me one hell of a job picking the top 5. I enjoyed judging this and you've all helped inspire me to pick up my video editting again so thank you everyone who entered. Anyway, without further ado:

This Week's Judge(s): Ienzo (Vashta Nerada)

1. [KH] - Be My Escape


Submitted by: FurySp4rk
Song: Be my escape by Relient K
Details: I thought the editting was exceptional in this one, I liked your use of effects and making them superbly fit with the beats of the music. Not only that but you picked fitting video clips for the pace of the music and even the lyrics.
Link: http://www.kh-vids.net/media/kh-be-my-escape.154/

2. [KH 10th Anniversary] LIGHT UP THE SKY
Submitted by: lillovedoctor
Song: Light Up the Sky (Solomon Olds Remix) by Thousand Foot Krutch
Details: I loved the use of text and your timeline way of presenting the sesries as a whole. I thought you pitched the video well with the song and you kept it interesting throughout.
Link: http://www.kh-vids.net/media/kh-10th-anniversary-light-up-the-sky.169/


3. Lights;
Submitted by: Knightshade
Song: Lights by Joel Faviere
Details: Not many people can do text well but this is one of the few I've seen which does. I quite liked the yellow effect over the top of the entire video as it made it flow better. The song was calm and so were the clips you used which was done very well. I thought it fit Sora and Kairi as well and you portrayed their relationship nicely.
Link: http://www.kh-vids.net/media/lights.187/

4. [Look me in the eyes-]
Submitted by: Anzu_100
Song: Wild heart by Sabi
Details: This also uses text well to the most part and I like the sobre effects you've given over the top. You incorporated the beats nicely into your video editting but the one bit which I thought could have been a bit better was 0:30-0:35 where the crackly texture over the top just didn't seem to fit. However, that is me being picky because I loved this video.
Link: http://www.kh-vids.net/media/look-me-in-the-eyes.185/


5. Kingdom Hearts tribute- Awake and alive
Submitted by: Sonicfan23
Song: Awake and Alive by Skillet
Details: I thought this was very different because they aren't effects I've seen a lot which is why this one stood out to me. I liked your use of clips overall and voices over the top although I thought it may have been better to put them in the instrumental parts of the song but that's just my opinion. Brilliantly done!
Link: http://www.kh-vids.net/media/kingdom-hearts-tribute-awake-and-alive.182/



Congratulations to all who placed this week!
Haven't placed yet? Don't give up! Your video certainly was not bad, and you may place in a future week.

Hey everyone! The staff has an exciting announcement for you guys today:


Some of you may remember that I ran the site's weekly AMV contest, the Top 5, for some time. Unfortunately, I had to stop running it last year due to personal conflicts. However, I'm thrilled to announce that we're all set to re-launch it again -- and this time, a little bit differently!

What's different, you ask? Simple: this time, we've got a panel of judges instead of just one! Several of our staff have volunteered to help judge the Top 5 this time around, and we will be switching off or teaming up every week to provide you with the results. As for which staff are on the team, it's a surprise -- you'll find out in due time, so stay tuned!

The first week of judging starts today (October 21st), so be sure to get your videos submitted through our Portal. It's worth noting however that there has been a change in how submissions are handled: In order to submit your video for judging, you MUST tag it with the keyword "top 5" (without quotes). Failure to do so means your video will be overlooked! The first set of results will be posted on Sunday, October 28th.

Other criteria for eligibility:

To be eligible for judging, your video:
- As stated, must be tagged with the top 5 keyword.
- Must be submitted to our Video Portal
- Must not have been submitted before, unless noted in advance that this is allowed (such as after a hiatus). Please do not submit the same video every week! [While we are indeed coming back from a hiatus, please do not resubmit old videos].
- Must be related to Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy, Disney, and/or The World Ends with You
- Must be a complete video (no unfinished works will be judged)
- Must be your video. I understand the nature of our Portal allows for you to submit others' videos, but only your own will be eligible for judging.
- Must be longer than 30 seconds in length
- Can be part of/a complete MEP, worm, or collaboration as long as you are finished working on it
- May use music, audio from trailers, audio from comedy sketches, etc.

For more information, see this post or feel free to ask.

We look forward to seeing your videos!
- The KH-Vids.net Staff