[VID] Dear Fellow Traveller -- Fraser/Kowalski -- due South

[absinthe_spoons]

Haaa, I haven't touched this place in three goddamn years but hello I guess! I decided I wanted to post my latest fanvid here for... posterity, or something. I dunno, as dead as LiveJournal is, I feel like it's more... stable, or something, than the likes of Tumblr? Long after nuclear war, LJ will still be standing, dusty and abandoned, but ready to share my silly fanvids with whoever may stumble across them.

Fandom: due South
Music: "Dear Fellow Traveler" by Sea Wolf (but this is Canadian af so we spell it with 2 Ls)
Characters/Pairing: Benton Fraser/Ray Kowalski
Warnings: Spoilers for entire series, particular the series finale.
Streaming: YouTube, or under the cut, or Vimeo, password: duesouth (can be downloaded from Vimeo).

Dear fellow traveler

Under the moon

I saw you standing in the shadows and your eyes won't move

You put your hand out

Opened the door

You said come with me boy, I want to show you something more

You spoke my language

And touched my limbs

It wasn't difficult

To pull me from myself again

And in our travels

We found our roads

You held it like a mirror, showing me the life I chose

And now we turn to my beautiful city

Black skies changed into blue

And my love is so wise and so pretty

But tonight I still dream of you

Dear fellow traveler

Under the moon

I think I'm growing weary and I'm hoping you'll come soon

And if I see you

In clean new clothes

I hope you hold the mirror up to show me what I chose

And I returned to my beautiful city

Black skies change into blue

And though my love is so wise and so pretty

Some nights I'll still dream of you

And I'll return to my beautiful city

Black skies change into blue

And though my love is so wise and so pretty

Some nights I'll still dream of you,

You

And I know you're out there, in the shadows

Dear fellow traveler, underneath the moon

Dear fellow traveler, underneath the moon

Dear fellow traveler, underneath the moon

--

This was a lot of fun to make. I only finished watching dS for the first time in Oct... ober? I think. And I, being predictable, fell hard for this ship. I think it contributes to a grand tradition of 90s-era as-canon-as-we-could-feasibly-get-away-with queer nonsense that I love, a la Xena/Gabrielle, sort of thing.
I actually chose this song before I finished the show and then the end... god, that ending, it ended up being kind of too happy for the song? Which is just hilarious. But I stuck to it anyway, obviously. The lyrics are all a bit wistful, like how you'd speak of a lost love, when Fraser/Kowalski were pretty actualized and they definitely did not run off with their "wise & pretty" loves like I had predicted.
If you'll permit me to natter: the verses were especially fun. The first two are from Ray's POV, and are about how he needs and is powerfully influenced by Fraser. The next verse section is from Fraser's POV, and is meant to mirror that, but of course, we have to push Fraser a little bit harder to make him need anyone.
I wrestled with making the chorus bow to the show's narrative (or at least my interpretation of it), and what I ended up with is that Fraser and Kowalski both try to hold themselves back (not very well, but that was the idea) from each other, to adhere to duty ("my beautiful city") and the prototypical ladyloves that are expected of men like them, but in the end, they're too tempted by each other. SO: happily ever after in Canada forever.
This is the nice thing about LJ, I feel a bit less self-conscious just going on and on without a filter.

Like/Reblog on Tumblr.

Comments

[endeni]

Loved the vid, thanks for sharing! Also, reading your thoughts about the making of it was very interesting! ;)

[absinthe-spoons.livejournal.com]

Thanks! Honestly I didn't think anyone would read my thoughts, but it's great that you enjoyed them. :)

[amnisias.livejournal.com]

Nice work, I particularly like the musicality and rhythm at the beginning, great editing there. Pitty there is no d/l version.

LJ is not dead where I live, but it's more like friendships, you've got to tend to it to maintain it.

[absinthe-spoons.livejournal.com]

Thanks! And thank you twice over, for reminding me to edit to include the Vimeo link, where you can download it if you want.

[amnisias.livejournal.com]

Wow, now that's what I call good customer service ;)

[sarren.livejournal.com]

Lovely!

[absinthe-spoons.livejournal.com]

Thanks! :)

[lilly-the-kid.livejournal.com]

Awww, I love everything about this!!!

[absinthe-spoons.livejournal.com]

Hee, thank you! I literally did a double-take at your username, 'cause I've watched so many of your vids.

[selenic76.livejournal.com]

I love this vid! \o/ Came here via a rec, and it was so worth it :) The song is a great choice for them, and I think you did really well in making the vid fit the lyrics, and great job with all the timings too! ^_^ Thank you so much for making and sharing, and for offering a download as well, will be saving for my collection!

[absinthe-spoons.livejournal.com]

Thanks so much, that is very sweet to say :) and thanks for reccing it on your journal, that's so awesome! I am blushing like mad.

[selenic76.livejournal.com]

You're welcome, and you totally earned it :) (and my due South friends have loved it too!)

[em_kellesvig]

What an amazing vid! I'm not quite done watching all of due South (IKR?) so some of the cut were a little spoilerish and very exciting to see! Loved the music and how well you cut the vid to it. Thanks so much for sharing it. :D

[absinthe-spoons.livejournal.com]

Oh gosh, now I feel pointlessly guilty for spoiling. I hope you still enjoy the rest of the show! and thank you :) I'm glad you liked the vid.

[esteefee]

I have to thank Mischief for pointing me to this vid! Made my day. Thank you for the lovely. My comments are on vimeo.

[absinthe-spoons.livejournal.com]

I don't know whether there are notifications for vimeo comments, so to play it safe I'll reply here: Oh wow, your comment is pretty much the exact reaction I was hoping for, especially where you remarked on the POV switch. thanks so much! :)

[how-obscure.livejournal.com]

Oh my goodness, I don't even know where to start. I am absolutely blown away by this vid. Like, I couldn't contained the whispered "wow"s that escaped twice during watching. Usually, on a first watch, I just take it in, but I literally could not keep my awe in. The timing, the story telling, the song (I am in love with that song both as a song and as a song for due South). You used clips that get used a lot in some places, but a lot of the time it was done with a different rhythm than usual or cut slightly differently, so it still felt fresh. Beyond that, you also used some clips that I haven't really seen.

My fiance is reading next to me, and he couldn't see the screen, but he could tell I loved what was on it. I'm desperate to share it with him, because hey, I love sharing things I love with people I love, but he hasn't seen the whole series yet! He's now suggesting we watch more of it. He even knows of the slashy nature of things. I have the best fiance... *happy sigh* Oh, but I digress...

I downloaded this and added it to my collection. I have an entire folder dedicated to Due South fanvids. Yours is, hands down, one of the best in there. I'm not really active in the communities anymore, but there are some DS communities that people still post in on here. Would you mind if I point them in this direction? Or, I could give you the comm names and you could check them out yourself (and promote this awesomeness you've created).

[absinthe-spoons.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much for this comment! I may have re-read it a couple of times, just for the ego boost. In particular, I like what you said about using popular clips and making them feel "fresh", because that's always a challenge. Generally when I vid something it's because I've watched all the vids I can get my hands on already and still want more, so there's an awareness there of what clips are used a lot, and therefore a challenge for them to not feel stale. So thank you for saying I succeeding at that! That is awesome.
I dunno how I feel about me joining a comm for the sole purpose of pimping my own stuff (that feels kind of self-serving in my head? IDK maybe I'm being ridiculous) but you are definitely welcome to tell people about this vid if you think they'd like it.
I am intrigued by your "entire folder dedicated to Due South fanvids". Could I possibly convince you to send some recs my way? There can never be enough dS vidding.

[how-obscure.livejournal.com]

No, I know what you mean. I'd feel kind of weird too if I posted something of my own right off the bat, even if it's not actually done in a boastful manner. That said, the whole point of ds_noticeboard is to let others know about Due South related things--whether it be fic, vids, challenges, news relating to the actors, etc. People post their own stuff all the time. But like I said, I get where you're coming from. I tend to lurk around and comment on things for awhile before working up the nerve to post things I've done, and part of the reason for that is so I've had a presence beforehand, kind of marking me as someone interested in the community aspect of the comm and others' works and not just my own. Anyway, I'll post a rec for your vid since you're not comfortable. It deserves to be seen. :)

Recs! (I downloaded most of these years ago, so I'm not sure if the links work.)
Shut Your Eyes (http://archiveofourown.org/works/992043) by sperrywink
Can't Stop This (http://voiceless009.livejournal.com/5112.html) by voiceless009 (Note: I can only seem to find a dl link, not a stream, and I'm not actually sure if the link is good. It still looks active, as far as I can tell, but I didn't actually try it.)
Fallen Leaves (https://vimeo.com/11034534) by keerawa
Phoenix (http://archiveofourown.org/collections/ds_c6d_bigbang_2013/works/994002) by scribe
In the Mirror and Out Here (http://www.heresluck.net/#duesouth) by here'sluck (Note: two vids, one link)
Icebound Stream (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_oF7lNWEDg0) by sisabet (Youtube link, might still be able to find a dl if you search.)
Goody Two Shoes (http://www.laurasha.com/vids/) by laura shapiro and morgan dawn
Wonder of Birds (http://www.laurasha.com/vids/) by laura shapiro and pipsqueak (This and the above are at the same site. Again, have not checked the links.)
Pour Some Sugar On Me (http://sdwolfpup.livejournal.com/399731.html?format=light) by sdwolfpup
Thoughts of Flight (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHUCkYaYIx0) by mirien (Youtube)
Undeclared (http://iwilltrytobereasonable.tumblr.com/post/125494227155/hereeatthiskitten-due-south-fanvid-by-mamaffy) by mamaffy

[absinthe-spoons.livejournal.com]

I found the option to unmark it (well, clearly), so no worries.
Thank you! To be honest, I had assumed that I would have seen most of the vids you'd rec, but there were a bunch I hadn't. I particularly like the one about Vecchio in Vegas, now I have way too many emotions about Vecchio, goddammit.

[how-obscure.livejournal.com]

No problem!

I loooove that one. It does bring the Vecchio feels, and that final scene is like a punch in the gut. It's great! *g*

[how-obscure.livejournal.com]

Um...I just got together a bunch of links for vid recs, but I was notified they got marked as spam. Do you have a way to unmark it? Or do I have to PM you the links?

[green-grrl.livejournal.com]

Oh, this is so good! It has a unique rhythm to the editing that makes even clips I've seen in lots of vids before seem fresh. Really gorgeous.

[absinthe-spoons.livejournal.com]

Thanks! :)

[grey853.livejournal.com]

Well done. I really loved it. There are never enough good DS vids, thanks.

[absinthe-spoons.livejournal.com]

Very true, there can never be enough. And thank you!

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

Oh this is FANTASTIC!

[absinthe-spoons.livejournal.com]

Thanks so much!

[luzula]

I liked this a lot! There's some lovely motion and rhythm here.

[absinthe-spoons.livejournal.com]

Thank you for saying so, I'm glad you liked it :)

[bghost.livejournal.com]

I commented on AO3, and I am going to comment here again. Hands down one of the best dS vids I have ever seen, and we are in a fandom with some excellent fanvids. If I had half your skills I'd be twice as happy. Beautiful work.

[absinthe-spoons.livejournal.com]

Thank you! There are definitely some great dS vids out there, so that is high praise. :D