RiffTrax Discussion > iRiffs

Help make this section useful (tips for riffing)

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Conor:
If you've got any tips to share regarding the iRiff recording, writing, video making process, please share them in the iRiffs section.  We're going to link to this thread from the iRiff FAQ, so the more useful stuff here, the better.

JoshWay:
Here are some of my tips, by category:

WRITING
-Always watch the movie (or short) through at least once before you start to write riffs. It gets you familiar with the material and allows you to be more "sophisticated" in your writing, planning ahead for callbacks or running gags.
-If a riff seems too easy, think hard whether or not it's stolen (I find myself unwittingly cribbing MST riffs all the time!)
-If you get hung up on a particular moment, just move on. It's very unpleasant and inefficient to stare at the screen for twenty minutes trying to think up a joke. Move on, and the perfect riff will hit you later when you're doing something else. Promise!
-Find a compromise between too simple and too clever. Instead of "She's really old!," try "Time for Nana's pudding" or something that makes the listener think a little.
-Bill frequently reminds the contributing writers that our mission is not to savage a film, it's to be funny. Not every joke has to rip the movie a new one. Just try to make each moment as much fun as it can be.

RECORDING
-Rehearse your riff several times. It's time consuming, but you'll be glad you did. Record the rehearsals if you like.
-A good headset mic will cost no more than $50, and will make the process much easier.
-Be very aware of your levels. Do some test recordings to make sure you're not clipping or distorting your voice. If there are multiple riffers, take the time to get everyone's levels even.
-Use whatever software is available to you, but I recommend something with timeline-based editing and multiple tracks so you can record your commentary on it's own track and edit as heavily as you need to. Sony Vegas is the best IMHO, but Audacity does the job and is free.

EDITING (for videos mixed with riffs)
-Find a good balance between your riff audio and the movie audio. Older films (like shorts) aren't as dynamic as modern movies in terms of sound, so you'll probably be able to find a good level that is consistent throughout. As Rifftrax reauthorers know, mixing a riff with the bombastic soundtrack of a modern action flick takes a lot of work to get the sound even throughout.

pezdrake:
I use the AVS video/audio editor.  Can't say how it compares to others.  I have it figured out pretty well now but there was a definite learning curve so other editors may be a bit more intuitive.  It's one program to edit out and add in new video as well as layer over severla sound tracks so it suits my needs fine for making my DIY riffs.

NeoMyers:

--- Quote from: JoshWay on August 20, 2008, 07:57:41 AM ----Bill frequently reminds the contributing writers that our mission is not to savage a film, it's to be funny. Not every joke has to rip the movie a new one. Just try to make each moment as much fun as it can be.
--- End quote ---

I've given this some thought. I think there are some movies/shorts that demand "savaging." I offer up "Star Wars: Episode I" as a prime example. The movie punishes you and you have to punish right back.

That said, it can't ALL be negative. That would get old. Additionally, I think the Willy Wonka riff is an example of how depending on your content your riffing matches it. They were mostly goofy and fun throughout that movie because that's the kind of movie it is.

Battlefield: Earth on the other hand requires stern punishment.

Piobman:
Here is a tip for those new  to recording audio so that their recording comes out the best. It hurts to hear a really talented individual who records a terribly distorted track ruining their effect. This is specifically for Audacity but all audio editing programs are capable of this.

The best advice is to make sure your audio recording levels are not too high. This seems to be the most common problem of 'fan riffs' I've seen. You can fix a quiet recording increasing the amplitude... but a distorted recording can't be fixed easily (or at all). Even a cheapy microphone can sound fine if recorded at the proper levels. I play a very loud instrument (bagpipes) and have recorded myself which sounded just fine with the cheap soundblaster (free with your sound card) variety without any problems (inside a very small room). I don't believe anyone needs to run out and buy any expensive equipment for just a voice track. As long as you're not too close to the microphone, your breath shouldn't cause popping sounds. Another thread mentioned some tips on this like keeping the microphone to the side of your mouth (a good idea). This is how most headsets are set up to keep this from happening (I work in a call center... it works).

How to optimize your recording levels in Audacity:
1. start recording a new track
2. click the down arrow next to the microphone icon on the top toolbar.
3. select "monitor input"
4. now speak in the loudest voice you plan on doing...
5. lower the recording volume (slider next to the microphone icon) until the loud spikes stay within the window as it records (the top spikes do not exceed which causes clipping).
6.After your done recording you can run a normalize filter to max the volume
7. Remove breathing sounds to clean up the track (do not delete), but instead select the part to remove and click 'amplitude' and reduce it to nothing.
8.Another tip, make sure your mp3 is encoded in at least 96kbps (personaly I think that's a bit low... but I don't know the standards rifftrax plans to implement on this sort of thing). 128kbps and up are better in my opinion (file size will be bigger though).

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