Breakout 3 was pretty good. Again, good to see how people who live this stuff every day and have been doing it forever do video so well. I learned a lot, so here are my notes.
Breakout 3 Video from Concept to Completion
by Bob Gustafson, Randy Warren
How many people does it take to make a video? It depends on the video, but you should NOT make videos alone!
The more pre-production work you do the more stable the video process. It’s like an iceberg - 90% you don’t see.
Your success in video will be directly proportional to the quality of your work in Pre-Production
The Process of Creating a Video
Pre-Production - All the planning, everything leading up to the actual shoot. Everything before you press “record”.
- Initial Questions
- Who’s the ___audience___? (Hit the target hard and if it bleeds over, all the better.
- What’s the ___goal___? (the call to action or decision)
- What’s the ___content___? (Not creative concept. What is the lesson - the meat - of the message?)
- Brainstorming
- Define the STYLE and STRUCTURE
- Get around creative stuff!
- Schedule “Think Time”
- “A man is not idle because he is absorbed in thought. There is a visible labor and there is an invisible labor.” Victor Hugo
- “A Perfect Brainstorm” Article - http://www.inc.com/magazine/20031001/strategies.html
- Production Time = Prod Time + Post Prod (2x Prod) + Pre Prod (2x Post-Prod)
Example: 2 days prod + 4 days post-prod + 12 days pre-prod = 20 days needed for creation
- Develop a Treatment or Script
- Plan for the Shoot
- Creative Prep: Pre-visualize
- Storyboards
- Edit an “Animatic”
- Shot List
- TIP : In lieu of hand-drawing storyboards, compose and take reference pictures with a digital camera or get them from the internet to “pre-vis” the kinds of shots you want BEFORE the shoot.
- Logistic Prep: Plan the details
- Assign the roles
- Location Scout
- SCHEDULE - don’t run and gun
- Your success in video will be directly proportional to the quality of your work in Pre-Production
Production - The video shoot – camera, audio and lighting disciplines
- Lighting 101
- Color Temp
- Quality – hard/soft
- Control: 3 point Lighting
- Key light at 45 degree angle to camera on side they are facing
- Fill light (or reflector) is not to fill the shadows, but control them
- Back light directly across from key light
- Study composition without audio so there are no distractions
- Camera
- Shooting Tips
- Turn of Auto: Auto-Focus, Auto-Iris
- Focus First: zoom in on the eyes
- Compse Your Shots Using “The Rule of Thirds”
- Record Extra Heads & Tails
- Roll tape
- Speed
- Action
- Cut
- Stop tape
- A Tripod is Your Friend
- Interview Tips
- Position interviewer at eye level, as close to the lens as possible
- Dress mic cables
- Vary composition between takes to avoid jumps in the position of the person.
- Include a portion of the question in the answer, (forming a full sentence)
- Audio
- Use an External Mic: lav or boom, wireless vs. wired
- Control levels: field mixer vs. cam controls (mixpre)
- Use headphones!
- Record ambient presence into same mics used on subjects with silence in the room. The ambient room noises will help to pad breaks and coverups.
Camera Buying Tips
- Obtain a camera with jacks. (Input for an external microphone and a headphone jack).
- Insist on manual controls, especially manual focus and manual iris.
- Don’t be lured by special effects. (Effects are best applied during post-production).
- When budgeting for video gear, plan for all THREE production components: Lights, Camera, and Audio!
Post-Production - The logging, editing, graphic creation, any animation, music scoring. Everything after the cameras are in the bags.
- The Editing Process
- Logging & Digitizing (Capturing)
- Assemble Rough Cut
- B-roll
- Pacing & Flow
- Trim, trim, trim
- Use only Grade A material. Grade B should go.
- Use music & effects tastefully
- After the Edit
- DVD Authoring
- Mastering to tape
- Compressing for web
- Archiving
