Hi there. I'm going to be talking a little bit about music, machines and life. Or, more specifically, what we learned from the creation of a very large and complicated machine for a music video. Some of you may recognize this image. This is the opening frame of the video that we created. We'll be showing the video at the end, but before we do, I want to talk a little bit about what it is that they wanted.
Buna. O sa va vorbesc un pic despre muzica, masinarii si viata. Sau, mai exact, ce am invatat din crearea unei masinarii foarte mari si complicate pentru un videoclip. Cativa dintre dumneavoastra poate recunosc aceasta imagine. Aceasta este scena de inceput a videoclipului pe care l-am creat. O sa va aratam videoclipul la final, dar inainte de asta, vreau sa va vorbesc un pic despre ceea ce doreau sa obtina.
Now, when we first started talking to OK Go -- the name of the song is "This Too Shall Pass" -- we were really excited because they expressed interest in building a machine that they could dance with. And we were very excited about this because, of course, they have a history of dancing with machines. They're responsible for this video, "Here It Goes Again." 50-million-plus views on YouTube. Four guys dancing on treadmills, no cuts, just a static camera. A fantastically viral and wonderful video. So we were really excited about working with them. And we sort of started talking about what it is that they wanted. And they explained that they wanted kind of a Rube Goldberg machine.
Acum, cand am inceput sa vorbim cu OK Go-- numele cantecului este "This Too Shall Pass"-- (n.t. "Si asta va trece") eram cu totii foarte incantati deoarece si-au exprimat interesul in a construi o masinarie cu care ei sa poata dansa. Eram toti foarte incantati despre asta pentru ca, evident, cei de la OK Go au mai dansat cu masinariile. Ei sunt responsabili pentru acest videoclip, " Here it Goes Again".(n.t. "Iar o luam de la capat") care a avut mai mult de 50 de milioame de vizionari pe YouTube. Patru tipi dansand pe benzi de alergare, fara taieturi, doar o camera statica. Un videoclip viral fantastic si minunat. Asa incat eram foarte incantati sa lucram cu ei. Si am inceput sa discutam despre ceea ce isi doreau. Si ei au explicat ca isi doreau un fel de masinarie Rube Goldberg.
Now, for those of you who don't know, a Rube Goldberg machine is a complicated contraption, an incredibly over-engineered piece of machinery that accomplishes a relatively simple task. So we were excited by this idea, and we started talking about exactly what it would look like. And we came up with some parameters, because, you know, building a Rube Goldberg machine has limitations, but it also is pretty wide open.
Acum, pentru cei care nu stiu, o masinarie Rube Goldberg este o inventie complicata, o masinarie incredibil de supra-inginerita care realizeaza o operatiune relativ simpla. Asadar eram incantati de ideea aceasta, si am inceput sa vorbim depre ea si cum va arata mai exact. Si am ajuns la niste perimetre care-- stiti, sa construiesti o masinarie Rube Goldberg are limitarile ei, dar este de asemenea si foarte permisiva.
And we wanted to make sure that we did something that would work for a music video. So we came up with a list of requirements, the "10 commandments," and they were, in order of ascending difficulty: The first is "No magic." Everything that happened on screen had to be very easily understood by a typical viewer. The rule of thumb was that, if my mother couldn't understand it, then we couldn't use it in the video. They wanted band integration, that is, the machine acting upon the band members, specifically not the other way around. They wanted the machine action to follow the song feeling. So as the song picks up emotion, so should the machine get grander in its process. They wanted us to make use of the space. So we have this 10,000-square-foot warehouse we were using, divided between two floors. It included an exterior loading dock. We used all of that, including a giant hole in the floor that we actually descended the camera and cameraman through. They wanted it messy, and we were happy to oblige. The machine itself would start the music. So the machine would get started, it would travel some distance, reacting along the way, hit play on an iPod or a tape deck or something that would start playback. And the machine would maintain synchronization throughout. And speaking of synchronization, they wanted it to sync to the rhythm and to hit specific beats along the way. Okay. (Laughter) They wanted it to end precisely on time. Okay, so now the start to finish timing has to be perfect. And they wanted the music to drop out at a certain point in the video and actual live audio from the machine to play part of the song. And as if that wasn't enough, all of these incredibly complicating things, right, they wanted it in one shot.
Si am vrut sa ne asiguram ca facem ceva care o sa functioneze pentru un videoclip muzical. Asa incat am realizat o lista de cerinte, cele "10 porunci", si acestea erau, in ordinea crescatoare a dificultatii: Prima era" Fara magie". Tot ce se intampla pe ecran trebuia sa fie foarte usor de inteles pentru privitorul obisnuit. Regula de baza era ca, daca mama mea nu putea sa inteleaga asta, atunci nu puteam sa il folosim in videoclip. Ei doreau integrarea trupei, adica masinaria sa actioneze asupra membrilor trupei, si nu invers. Ei doreau ca actiunile masinariei sa urmareasca linia melodica. Asa incat in timp ce melodia creste in emotii, asa ar trebui sa faca si masinaria sa creasca in procesele ei. Doreau sa folosim tot spatiul. Asa incat avem acesti 929 metrii patrati de depozit pe care ii utilizam, impartiti pe 2 etaje. Includeau o rampa de incarcare exterioara. Am utilizat tot acel spatiu, incluzand o gaura enorma din podea prin care am coborat camera si cameramanul. Doreau ca masinaria sa faca mizerie, si noi am fost fericiti sa le facem pe plac. Masinaria insasi avea sa porneasca muzica. Asadar masinaria se pornea, parcurgea o anumita distanta, reactionand pe parcursul drumului, si apasa pe pornire pe un iPod sau un casetofon sau ceva care ar porni muzica in fundal. Si masinaria ar mentine sincronizarea pe tot parcursul. Si ca tot vorbim de sincronizare, doreau sa se sincronizeze cu ritmul si sa nimereasca anumiti timpi pe parcurs. Bine, (rasete) Doreau sa se termine exact la timp. Bine, deci de inceput pana la final sincronizarea trebuie sa fie perfecta. Si doreau ca muzica sa se opreasca la un anumit moment din videoclip si sunete "live" din masinarie sa cante partea respectiva din melodie. Si daca asta nu ar fi fost indeajuns, toate aceste lucruri incredibil de complicate, le doreau dintr-o singura filmare.
(Laughter)
(rasete)
(Applause)
(aplauze)
Okay. So, just some statistics about what we went through in the process. The machine itself has 89 distinct interactions. It took us 85 takes to get it on film to our satisfaction. Of those 85 takes, only three actually successfully completed their run. We destroyed two pianos and 10 televisions in the process. We went to Home Depot well over a hundred times. (Laughter) And we lost one high-heeled shoe when one of our engineers, Heather Knight, left her high-heeled shoe -- after a nice dinner, and returned back to the build -- and left it in a pile of stuff. And another engineer thought, "Well, that would be a really good thing to use" and ended up using it as a really nice trigger. And it's actually in the machine.
Bine. Asadar, cateva statistice despre, prin ce a trebuit sa trecem pe parcursul procesului. Masinaria in sine are 89 de interactiuni distincte. Ne-a luat 85 de incercari pentru a o filma spre satisfactia noastra. Din aceste 85 de incercari, doar 3 au fost duse pana la capat. Am distrus doua piane, si 10 televizoare in acest proces. Ne-am dus la magazinul Home Depot de mai mult de 100 de ori, (rasete) Si am pierdut un pantof cu toc, al uneia dintre inginerii nostrii, Heather Knight, care si-a lasat pantoful cu toc --dupa o masa frumoasa, s-a reintors la constructie-- si l-a lasat intr-o gramada de lucruri. Si un alt inginer s-a gandit, " ei bine, acesta ne-ar folosi cu adevarat". Si l-a utilizat pe post de un tragaci foarte fain. Si chiar este parte din masinarie.
So what did we learn from all of this? Well, having completed this, we have the opportunity to step back and reflect on some of the things. And we learned that small stuff stinks. Little balls in wooden tracks are really susceptible to humidity and temperature and a little bit of dust, and they fall out of the tracks, the exact angles makes it hard to get right. And yet, a bowling ball will always follow the same path. It doesn't matter what temperature it is, doesn't matter what's in its way; it will pretty much get where it needs to go. But as much as the small stuff stinks, we needed somewhere to start, so that we would have somewhere to go. And so you have to start with it. You have to focus on it. Small stuff stinks, but, of course, it's essential, right?
Deci ce am invatat din toate astea? Ei bine, dupa ce am terminat asta, avem oportunitatea sa facem un pas inapoi si sa reflectam asupra unora dintre lucruri. Si am invatat ca: lucrurile mici sunt naspa. Bilute mici in şine de lemn sunt foarte suceptibile la umiditate si temperatura, si un pic de praf, si cad de pe şine, unghiul bun este greu de gasit. Si totusi, o minge de bowling va cadea mereu pe aceeasi traiectorie. Nu conteaza ce temperatura este, nu conteaza ce este in calea ei; va ajunge acolo unde trebuie. Dar asa cum lucrurile mici sunt naspa, avem nevoie sa incepem de undeva, incat sa avem unde sa mergem. Si trebuie sa incepi cu asta. Trebuie sa te focusezi pe asta. Lucrurile mici sunt naspa, dar, evident, sunt esentiale, corect.
What else? Planning is incredibly important. (Laughter) You know, we spent a lot of time ideating and even building some of these things. It's been said that, "No battle plan survives contact with the enemy." I think our enemy was physics -- (Laughter) and she's a cruel mistress. Often, we had to pull things out as a result because of timing or aesthetics or whatever. And so while planning is important, so is flexibility. These are all things that ended up not making it into the final machine. So also, put reliable stuff last, the stuff that's going to run every time. Again, small to large is relevant here. The little Lego car in the beginning of the video references the big, real car near the end of the video. The big, real car works every time; there's no problem about it. The little one had a tendency to try to run off the track and that's a problem. But you don't want to have to reset the whole machine because the Lego car at the end doesn't work, right. So you put that up front so that, if it fails, at least you know you don't have to reset the whole thing.
Ce altceva? Planificarea este incredibil de importanta. (rasete) Stiti, am petrecut mult timp idealizand si chiar sa construim unele dintre lucrurile astea. S-a spus ca,"Nici un plan de bataie nu supravietuieste contactului cu inamicul". Cred ca inamicul nostru era fizica, (rasete) si este o amanta fara suflet. Adesea, a trebui sa scoatem chestii afara ca si rezultat datorita sincronizarii sau esteticii sau ma rog. Deci in timp ce planificarea este importanta, tot la fel este si flexibilitatea. Acestea sunt toate lucrurile care au ajuns sa nu faca parte din masinaria finala. Deci de asemenea, puneti chestiile pe care va puteti baza la final, chestiile care vor functiona de fiecare data. Din nou, marimea conteaza si aici. Masinuta micuta de Lego de la inceputul videoclipului face referire la masina mare, reala de la finalul videoclipului. Masina mare, reala, functioneaza de fiecare data, nu avem nici o problema cu ea. Cea mica insa are tendinta sa sara de pe sine si asta e o problema. Dar nu vrei sa trebuiasca sa resetezi intreaga masinarie pentru ca nu functioneaza masinuta Lego la final, corect. Asa incat o pui la inceput, si daca cade, cel putin stii ca nu trebuie sa resetezi intreaga chestie.
Life can be messy. There were incredibly difficult moments in the building of this thing. Months were spent in this tiny, cold warehouse. And the wonderful elation that we had when we finally completed it. So it's important to remember that whether it's good or it's bad, "This Too Shall Pass."
Viata poate sa fie dezordonata. Au fost momente incredibil de dificile in constructia acestei chestii Luni petrecute in acest depozit mic si rece. Si ceea ce ne-a ridicat moralul a fost cand am reusit sa o finalizam in final Asadar este important sa retineti ca fie ca e bine sau e rau, "This Too Shall Pass." (n.t. "Si asta va trece")
Thank you very much.
Va multumesc foarte mult.
(Applause) And now to introduce
(aplauze) Si acum pentru a va prezenta
their music video, we have OK Go.
videoclipul lor muzical, avem formatia OK Go.
OK Go: An introduction. Hello TEDxUSC. We are OK Go. What are we doing? Oh, just hanging out with our Grammy. What what! It think we can do better than this. Hello TEDxUSC. We are OK Go. Have you read the "Natural Curiosity Cabinet?" I mean, "Curiosity" -- excuse me. Let me start again. We need some more ridiculous things besides "The Cabinet of Natural Curiosities." Tim's sundial hat. Have you seen the new work they've done to the Waltz Towers? Sorry, start again. (Barking) Dogs. Hello, TEDxUSC. We are OK Go, and this our new video, "This Too Shall Pass." [unclear] Kay, we can still do one better I think, yeah. That one's pretty good. It's getting better.
Ok Go: O introducere. Buna TEDxUSC. Noi suntem OK Go. Ce facem noi? Si noi pe aici cu premiul nostru Grammy. Ce ce? Cred ca putem mai bine de atat. Buna TEDxUSC. Suntem OK Go. Ati citit "Cabinetul de curiozitati naturale?" Vreau sa spun "curiozitati"-- ma scuzati. Sa incepem din nou. Avem nevoie de mai multe lucruri haioase in afara de "Cabinetul de curiozitati naturale". Palaria ceas solar a lui Tim. Ati vazut noua munca asupra Turnurilor Waltz? Scuze, sa incepem din nou. (latrat) Caini. Buna, TEDxUSC. Noi suntem OK Go, si acesta este noul nostru videoclip, "This Too shall Pass". (neclar) 'Kay, putem totusi sa facem una mai buna cred, da. Aceea e destul de buna. Devine mai buna.
(Music)
(muzica)
♫ You know you can't keep letting it get you down ♫
♫Stii ca nu poti sa il lasi sa te doboare♫
♫ And you can't keep dragging that dead weight around ♫
♫ Si stii ca nu poti sa tot cari aceasta greutate mare♫
♫ If there ain't all that much to lug around ♫
♫Daca nu prea ai ce sa tragi dupa tine♫
♫ Better run like hell when you hit the ground ♫
♫Mai bine cand lovesti pamantul fugi cat te tine♫
♫ When the morning comes ♫
♫Cand vine dimineata♫
♫ When the morning comes ♫
♫Cand vine dimineata♫
♫ You can't stop these kids from dancing ♫
♫Nu poti opri acesti copii sa danseze cu viata♫
♫ Why would you want to? ♫
♫De ce ti-ai dori asta oare?♫
♫ Especially when you're already getting yours ♫
♫Mai ales cand tu le primesti pe ale tale♫
♫ Cuz if your mind don't move and your knees don't bend ♫
♫Daca ai mintea inghetata si genunchii stau de piatra♫
♫ Well don't go blaming the kids again ♫
♫Nu te-apuca de dat vina pe copii inca o data♫
♫ When the morning comes ♫
♫Cand vine dimineata♫
♫ When the morning comes ♫
♫Cand vine dimineata♫
♫ When the morning comes ♫
♫Cand vine dimineata♫
♫ When the morning comes ♫
♫Cand vine dimineata♫
♫ When the morning comes ♫
♫Cand vine dimineata♫
♫ When the morning comes ♫
♫Cand vine dimineata♫
♫ Let it go ♫
♫Las-o sa treaca♫
♫ This too shall pass ♫
♫Si asta va trece♫
♫ Let it go ♫
♫Las-o sa treaca♫
♫ This too shall pass ♫
♫Si asta va trece♫
♫ You know you can't keep letting it get you down ♫
♫Stii ca nu poti sa il lasi sa te doboare♫
♫ No, you can't keep letting it get you down ♫
♫Nu, nu poti sa il lasi sa te doboare♫
♫ Let it go ♫
♫Las-o sa treaca♫
♫ This too shall pass ♫
♫Si asta va trece♫
♫ When the morning comes ♫
♫Cand vine dimineata♫
♫ When the morning comes ♫
♫Cand vine dimineata♫
♫ When the morning comes ♫
♫Cand vine dimineata♫
♫ When the morning comes ♫
♫Cand vine dimineata♫
(Cheering)
(aclamatii)