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Information

• Member: Cyanna
• Studio: Aquiline Studios
• Title: These Angel Hearts
• Premiered: 2003-12-03
• Categories:
  • Other
  • Romance
  • Sentimental
• Song:
  • Billy Joel Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)
• Anime:
  • Neon Genesis Evangelion
• Participation:
  • AnimeNext AMV Contest, AnimeNext AMV Contest (2004-06-18)
  • Otakon (Summer '04), Otakon (Summer '04) (2004-07-30)
  • Anime Weekend Atlanta EXPO AMV CONTEST, Anime Weekend Atlanta EXPO AMV CONTEST (2004-09-24)
  • Anime Weekend Atlanta 10, Anime Weekend Atlanta 10 (2004-09-24)
• Comments: This AMV was made with...
  VirtualDubMod
  Windows Movie Maker 2
  Jasc Animation Studio
  
  The inspiration
  
  Oh to heck with it, I don't care how mushy this is going to sound. These are my video comments and I'm not going to be vague about it any more.
  
  No I did decide to go crazy and make a Kaworu/Rei romance video on a whim. I did this on purpose.
  
  Why?
  
  Because I actually created this video as a gift for my boyfriend, Scintilla.
  
  This AMV is one of great personal and emotional value to me. I was actually very nervous about showing it in public because to me...it's almost like an open invitation to read my diary. It's not just a Kaworu/Rei AMV...It's an allegory for my own current relationship with inside jokes ranging from the two characters involved to the song itself (which he has sung to me on a few occasions) to the glasses.
  
  But the basic idea of Kaworu and Rei of all couples? As far as I know it had never been done. After showing it to Scintilla, it was he who suggested I show it. People would probably appreciate the concept even without knowing why I made it in the first place.
  
  It all started when I was preparing Eva footage to do something completely different, something between Kaworu and Shinji of a more humorous nature, an idea I've since given up on. While creating clips from Episode 24, the song "Lullabye" came up on my playlist. As I was listening, I started thinking about angels and singing... I started to loop it and think more about how this would be an awesome opportunity to try something totally unexpected.
  
  The production
  
  Who in their right mind would be crazy enough to take an unemotional, unromantic girl and a character who is rumored to be gay...and try to portray them as a couple?
  
  "Many Eva fanfic writers? :)" ~Scintilla
  
  Yes that's true...but visually? Let's face it...it's a real pain. On the one hand, the female character rarely does any grand movements...she stands up...she walks around...she sits down...she contemplates her life and so on. On the other hand...HE hardly makes any movements at all but he never shuts up.
  
  I think this is definitely the slowest AMV I have ever seen. It has no action...no real violence. A lot of it is subtle movements and stills fading into and out of each other.
  
  Two things that I did in this vid that I had never done before was the use of Photoshoped footage and lip-synching. There are two scenes here that were altered. One is when Rei first meets Kaworu and she gets off the escalator. Kaworu is standing there and talking about...stuff. I actually wanted that part to move instead of being a still frame so I had to manually "close" Kaworu's mouth in each frame. The other altered scene is one that I think is a little more effective. The original shot shows Shinji standing on the beach looking at Kaworu as he is humming "Ode to Joy." I took out Shinji and put Rei in his place. It took some editing to make it look right. I'm not going to tell you what I added to it because if you know where to look, it'll seem less real. I'm just glad I was still able to still have the waves ripple.
  
  Lip-synching...Kaworu sings in this vid. He sings in the beginning and the ending. He has to sing. It was singing that inspired me to make this in the first place. Rei even sings the word "lullabye" at one point. Not half bad for Windows Movie Maker in my opinion...
  
  Some final notes you may want to know before you watch
  
  I milked episode 24 for what it was worth and there's the simple fact that it IS Kaworu we're talking about here...so I repeat: this vid DOES HAVE SPOILERS.
  
  Gendo's glasses appear in this vid three times. YES they actually are there on purpose.
  
  I'll leave the story to your imagination. This scenario being shown is nonexistent in the series so using you imagination is all you really CAN do.
  
  A relationship between Kaworu and Rei may never have happened in the series....but that last smile was for her after all.
  
  Lyrics
  
  Goodnight, my angel
  Time to close your eyes
  And save these questions for another day
  I think I know what you've been asking me
  I think you know what I've been trying to say
  I promised I would never leave you
  And you should always know
  Wherever you may go
  No matter where you are
  I never will be far away
  
  Goodnight, my angel
  Now it's time to sleep
  And still so many things I want to say
  Remember all the songs you sang for me
  When we went sailing on an emerald bay
  And like a boat out on the ocean
  I'm rocking you to sleep
  The water's dark
  And deep inside this ancient heart
  You'll always be a part of me
  
  Goodnight, my angel
  Now it's time to dream
  And dream how wonderful your life will be
  Someday your child may cry
  And if you sing this lullabye
  Then in your heart
  There will always be a part of me
  
  Someday we'll all be gone
  But lullabyes go on and on...
  They never die
  That's how you
  And I
  Will be
  
  
  Thanks
  
  Thanks to Scintilla for all the help with encoding, tips, other technical bits of advice and for being part of the inspiration.
  
  Also thanks to Fungie1/2 for helping me get a half decent version of the AMV out of WMM without the sucky fades. :D