Talking Cutups
Breaking Down Game Tape
Part II - Continued from May \'04 Issue: The Mental Game
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Before the 2002 season, Purdue University Defensive Coordinator
Brock Spack and his staff created a dozen tutorial tapes on various
aspects of the defense. “We don’t cover everything,” says
Spack, “just the most basic things, like fronts and covers,
and the most complicated things, like blitz packages.” Players
check out the tapes and watch them in the football offices. “These
babies don’t leave the office. No take-home copies.” If
and when players watch the tutorial tapes, which tapes they watch,
and how long they watch for is up to the players. It is non-contact
time, yet still has more instructional depth and value then players
just watching game tapes or cutups.
Video Coordinator Jason Barker helps Spack and the other defensive coaches make
the “talking cutups,” as the Purdue staff calls tutorial tapes. “The
coaches give me a list of plays. I make a cutup of those. I also make all of
the titles into a separate cutup. Then we go into the defensive staff room. I
put a microphone in front of the coach and we start working through it.” Barker
routes video output from the computer-based game analysis system through a Video
Pickle and then through an AG-1980 VCR and on to the video projector. The microphone
is on a desk stand and has a cable running to the microphone input of the AG-1980.
Barker records the opening title then pauses the VCR. He then loads the appropriate
plays cutup onto the computer. He tells the coach he’s ready and holds
up his hand as a “stop” sign. He un-pauses the VCR, waits a couple
of seconds, and cues the coach by pointing to him. The coach manipulates the
video plays while commenting, exactly as he would in a meeting. The coach sees
the video on the screen exactly as it is recording, except that a laser pointer
can’t be recorded onto the video.
If the coach wants to telestrate at a particular point he pauses the video and
holds up his hand. Barker pauses the tape in the recording VCR. The coach then
uses the ‘Pickle’ to diagram over the video freeze frame. “The
Pickle sat in the video closet for years because coaches couldn’t work
it fast enough to use in a live meeting,” says Barker, “but it is
fine when the coach can take his time with drawing.” The coach indicates
when he is ready to proceed. Barker holds up his hand, un-pauses the recording
VCR, waits a couple of seconds, and points to the coach. The coach continues
his comments with the freeze frame and diagramming now on the screen. The fully
diagrammed freeze frame and coach’s comments will appear to pop in smoothly
and instantly when the finished “talking cutup” tape is viewed.
When the coach indicates that a segment of the tape is done Barker pauses the
recording tape and loads the titles cutup on the computer. He then reminds anybody
in the room to be quiet and records about ten seconds of title onto the tape.
You want to record enough of each title slide that someone viewing the tape can
find a segment in FF/Review mode.
He then reloads the cutup of plays and cues the coach to begin the next segment.
In that way they work their way through the material planned for that particular
tutorial tape.
At any point in the process the recording tape can be rewound to check playback
if the coach is unsure of what was just recorded. However, then the tape needs
to be re-cued and put back into record/pause before continuing. “That takes
time and increases the chances of messing something up,” says Barker. “The
key to the talking cut-ups is for the coach to be prepared and have a concentrated
hour or so with no interruptions. And don’t be a perfectionist. Yes, the
idea is to get it right. But don’t stop and re-record just for a mispronunciation.
Treat it like a live meeting. If there is wrong content by all means stop and
redo it. It’s fairly easy to re-record the most recent segment, but almost
impossible to fix the middle of the tape.”
If you don’t have a computer-based video system, you can still make tutorial
tapes. You need two VCRs, or a VCR and a camcorder. One VCR is for source tapes – with
plays on one tape and titles and diagrams on a second tape – and the other
is for the recording tape. If you make PowerPoint slides, play diagrams, or titles
on the computer there are two ways of getting those onto the recorded tape. If
the computer has video output (composite or S-VHS) then run it directly to the
recording VCR. If your recording VCR has multiple video inputs, like Panasonic
AG-1980s, then you can have the output of the source VCR going to one input and
the output of the computer going to Video 2.
If the computer doesn’t have video output you have two choices. One option
is to print the slides and diagrams on paper (creating them in landscape mode
if possible) and videotape them with a camcorder. Videotape a generous amount
of each graphic, at least 30 seconds. The second option is to run the RGB output
of the computer to the data input of a video projector. You can record the video
projection of the computer graphics with a camcorder and use the tape in the
source VCR if you are using a two VCR setup. If you are using a camcorder as
your record VCR then you can switch from video to data input on the projector
when you want to go from the source VCR with plays to the computer with graphics.
This camcorder approach is the most simple because it lets the coach function
almost as he would in a meeting, including recording his laser-pointer. The camcorder,
not the coach, should be squarely in front of the projection screen. It should
be on a tripod with the coach as close as possible to the camcorder so that his
voice can be picked up by the camera mic without extraneous room sound. It is
better to use a remote to pause and un-pause the recording tape in the camcorder
to avoid potentially loud noises from handling the camcorder. The biggest drawback
to using a camcorder as the recording VCR is that it is more difficult to check
playback on the tape and re-cue it for recording.
Explaining the different combinations of VCRs, computers, camcorders and projectors
makes the process sound more difficult than it is. The point is that tutorial
tapes can be made with different combinations of equipment. The keys are to organize
your video and graphic materials and to develop a sense of when to re-record
a segment and when to let it go. The other key is to enlist an assistant so that
you can concentrate on delivering your instructional content. Be sure to record
a test tape first so that you can check that audio and video elements are recording
properly and so you can get a sense of what the finished tutorial tape will look
like. You will be amazed by how seamlessly your tutorial tapes play back and
how valuable the instruction can be.
About the author
Dr. Peter Fadde
Dr. Fadde worked as the Video Coordinator for Purdue football for 13 seasons
while working on his Ph.D. in Instructional Research and Design. He is now an
assistant professor at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale where he teaches
graduate classes in Learning Theory, Interactive Multimedia Instruction, Web-Based
Learning, Instructional Gaming and Simulations, and Video Production. His research
interests include using interactive video to train high-speed decision-making
in areas such as sports, vehicle operation, use-of-force, and emergency response.