The Day After

It's the day after the crazy Superhero surprise party and I am back to my morning blogging over a cup of coffee.

I spent a little time this morning looking at the Volkswagon Ultimate Family Hero facebook page. The three finalists have been announced and showcased using the photos taken from the photo shoot. I have to say that the two Toms who came from London and turned my conservatory into a studio really knew what they were doing. The photos are incredible. Mum and dad look absolutely amazing and they stand out from the other finalists for three reasons

1. There are two of them in the picture whereas the other two superheroes are single nominations. 
2. Their age somehow gives them an air of authority and solidity that the other two do not possess
3. They are positioned right in the middle which seems to elevate their status and make them more prominent.

Out of curiosity I had a look through all of the original entries to see if I could spot the other two finalists and see what competition Wendy had already beaten off. The first round of the competition required a photograph of a nominated superhero to be uploaded and 'Heroised' using a very simple 'drag and drop' technique to create something in the style of the front page of a Marvel comic. I wasn't able to find the other two finalists efforts but I did notice that out of 477 entries, 116 comics were called 'Enter a Title'!! 

Wendy's comic was lovely - simple and symbolic - Nan and grandad wearing matching masks and belts and displaying their 'hearts of gold'. The swishing red heart shows how they bring their love to the family. 

I was really pleased to see how the video I had made to support Wendy's entry compared with the other two finalists videos. I am not generally one to blow my own trumpet but my video really was tons better than the other two. It made me feel very proud and encouraged.

We are all intrigued to know what the professional  media company are going to put together from all the raw footage they took yesterday at the party along with the video we recorded prior to the party and all the dashboard webcam footage. I am hoping that there will be  a lot I can learn about film editing by being involved in the process from the start and seeing the finished product. 

The whole Supapops and Nana experience has been enriching to the whole family and it has felt like the Gods have smiled on us by providing perfect weather for the day of our ice cream farm visit to buy ice cream for the party and perfect weather yesterday for the filming (and meaning that we were able to have a late morning barbecued sausage in a bap to keep our energy levels up and the mess out of the kitchen). 

It does seem for some contestants, the experience was not as positive. The following comments I have copied and pasted from the Volkswagon Ultimate Family Hero facebook page.

"thanks for phoning and telling us we're not through, got my kids really excited for nothing, maybe a email would be better :(

as it's a family competition a bit more thought should have been given, my middle 2 were asking 'why don't they want us?' wouldn't have had to mention anything if we hadn't had the phone call."

I do think it is sad that some people take such a negative approach to things. It was exactly the same with the competition I entered to win my Doc Marten's. Here is just one of the negative comments that appeared accusing Schuh of being racist, not explaining the competition adequately, discriminating against people who were not creative...etc

 "It sucked, we wuz robbed!!! One of the entries was so wet I nearly spewed, there's no way it should have beaten ours!! The judges lacked wit and humour."

If I were to let it, the nastiness of certain individuals could really take the shine off a harmless, entertaining and sometimes profitable pursuit. I have no intention of letting it.