How to make people laugh, cry, & write checks
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You have to make people care. No big surprise.
But you can’t make people care about your organization. Organizations are made of brick and wood. (more…)
"How can I get a job in video and film production?"
Through-the-Back-Door-photo (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Every year about this time, I get a slew of emails and phone calls from students looking to get a job in video and film production, which is a big part of how I make my living, and has been for 30 years.
I have to say, the video and film world hasn’t changed much over the year in terms of how you break in — this despite an ever-increasing number of video and film undergrad and graduate programs.
Few of us can afford to hire someone full-time these days, plus we’d be reluctant to hire an untried worker. Once, I hired someone for the summer who ended up falling asleep during an interview. Yes, it was hot; yes, the interview was long.
Video 101: Think you can’t afford a video? Think again
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Think you can’t afford a video? Think again
OK, I won’t taunt you with lines like, “But you can’t afford NOT to make a video.”
When you don’t have enough money, you don’t have enough money.
However, you may just have enough money. Although it often costs $15,000-$25,000 for a typical corporate video, you can get a perfectly good 5:00 (five-minute) video (nothing very fancy, few if any actors and other bells and whistles but still perfectly respectable) for $8K-$9K — if you know how to shop.
So I’ll help you plan a video that won’t break the bank. Here are five steps to a video production you may be able to afford.
- First, you’ll get a script, probably $2,000 if your topic doesn’t require additional research.
- Then, you’ll hire a producer and ask for three days — one preproduction, one production, and one post-production day. $1,500-$1,800. This producer will guide your video through each step.
- You’ll only use one shooting day with no more than two primary locations not far from each other. On that day, your camera crew (a videographer, an audio technician, and a producer) will get footage and interviews. That will cost you around $2,100, including meals and snacks during the day. (Be prepared to have your producer work with you to streamline the script so that you only need that one shooting day.)
- You’ll have the project edited, which will include any additional graphics, music, photographs, and so forth. Let’s say two days at $1,200 a day. $2,400.
- Narration will cost around $350.
If all goes as planned (and, really, I have to say that every video is different!), you will have great video for $8,650. That’s a bargain.
There are ways, obviously, to spend more money on a production, and there are a few ways to spend less. Plus, there are ways to stretch your footage, so that you’re creating several videos instead of just one.
Remember: you can afford a video if it pays for itself and then some.
If you think you have enough money for a video, get in touch. We’d be happy to chat about your ideas and how we can stick to the budget you have. Call Susan Branch Smith @410.404.5559.
Related articles
- 6 Steps to making your own corporate video – for under £200 [Alan Stevens] (ecademy.com)
- TFTD: Should my CEO narrate the video? (basecamppro.com)
- Video pricing: what many producers don’t want you to know (basecamppro.com)
Viva public domain!
This lovely image comes from the Farm Security Administration and is of a Polish Farming couple. Photo by Jack Delano and assumed to be in the public domain.
Updated March 6, 2020
“Viva public domain.” The words tantalize us with their promise of free images for our videos, web sites, and publications. Public domain images and audio can come from the government, the public, and commercial works whose copyright has expired.
But there’s a price to pay for all that free public domain candy. You need to know some basic rules, or you could wind up in court or owing someone money.
For instance, public domain does not mean “released.” “Released” indicates that the human subjects in the photo have been properly released, usually by signing a subject release form and being paid a sum of money. (more…)
The secret to getting accurate video production estimates
Image via Wikipedia
The secret to getting accurate video production estimates
If you want to build a house, you don’t ask a builder for the price (right off, anyway).
The smart way to build a house would be to come up with a plan — the number of floors, rooms, bathrooms, and so forth — and then let several builders give you their estimates. You’d probably hire an architect to help you. (more…)
TFTD: Should my CEO narrate or open the video?
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Should my CEO narrate or open the video? No.
Almost definitely, NO.
There are many reasons, and I’ll give you the ones I can think of off the top of my head.
1. Narration and on-camera performance are skills, like acting. Most talent I know specialize in either narration or on-camera work. Those who do on-camera work may narrate, but that’s rarely true the other way around.
Your CEO may be a well-spoken person, and may have a speaking voice that can make you swoon. However, learning to speak for audiences is an art unto itself. And performing on camera is even harder.
It can take a long time for a nonprofessional voice talent to get through even a brief open and close on camera. Even the best of them have trouble being directed — they don’t understand vocal intonation, nuance, and adding emotion such as “smile.”
Let me take that back. They’re smart — they understand these things. They just can’t deliver them. Because they don’t have training. Period.
I’ve spent hours coaching some of the smartest CEOs on the East Coast to deliver dazzling performances, and I don’t want to do it again. Sure, I’m being paid. But it’s a waste of money, and producers inherently dislike wastes of money. Our job is to bring you the best product for the least amount of money.
2. Your story doesn’t need it. Every time you pop a Hollywood movie into your DVD player, do you see the head of Paramount or Universal Studios commenting on what a great movie you’re about to see (or just saw)? Of course not. Because the movie’s greatness should be evident on its own. A good movie should need no explanation of any kind.
Same with your video. Honestly? It’s the exact same thing.
Not only that, but having a CEO appear on screen can actually damage your message. If you’re trying to sell “Widgets with a Heart,” the best way to open a video might be something other than with your CEO. Certainly something other. Very few audiences are captive these days. And the ones that are can still tune out.
If you’re just considering having your CEO narrate the piece, I’d simply ask, “why?” It’s going to take longer to record, be challenging to direct, and perhaps put the audience off. They want to hear from their peers, not their superiors.
At any rate, please concern yourself with the message that your video needs to impart, and let your scriptwriter and producer help you deliver them. They are professionals at crafting corporate messages.
As you’ll hear me say many times, the process is very like taking your car to the mechanic. Do you tell your mechanic HOW to fix your car? No. You describe the problems you’re having. Your mechanic fixes the car.
3. It’s more expensive, not less. Using your CEO or your own homegrown narrator (the financial analyst with a great voice) can add, not save, money. What if your selected speaker doesn’t have chops?
You can add to your producer’s (and recording studio’s) time because your speaker has a problem saying one or more words, or can’t understand (or worse, doesn’t care about) the difference in inflection that your producer is going for. Narrators are a relatively tiny percentage of your budget (I typically pay $350 to $600 per hour, which is plenty of time to lay down an 8- to 10-minute narration). Add to that the hourly cost (around $250) of a producer, videographer, and audio engineer (not to mention a make-up artist and members of your own staff), and your cost has skyrocketed.
While we’re on the topic of cost, many narrators do their own recording from home and small office recording booths these days. And they do a good job. (You and your producer can even be patched in to supervise the recording.) So you can save the cost and time of recording your voice talent in a studio, a cost that often starts at $200 per hour, not including file management and delivery times.
***
Sure, you can demand that your CEO be part of your video, maybe because it would be flattering for him or her somehow to be in a video, or good for your own career to have championed the idea. 99.999999% of the time, you will be wrong to do so.
If it is important to get your CEO’s face in front of your audience, please do it in another way. In an interview on camera. In a press release with a photograph. A podcast. A live webinar. A poster. A postcard. Something aside from a video.
In closing, please leave storytelling to your scriptwriter and producing to your producer. You’ll have plenty of input. After all, whatever your stated problem or challenge is, you can bet that your scriptwriter and producer will need background and perspective to create your message. And your message will need tweaking. You are the expert on content, probably not on the delivery of a message. (I hear a lot of people balk, “But I watch movies all the time!” My answer: “But when was the last time you wrote one?” There’s a big difference.)
You’ll approve the script versions and each incarnation of the final video. You determine what’s appropriate for your audience. And you’ll approve the choice of narrator, just as you approve the choice of tires when you take your car to a mechanic.
At any rate, don’t start telling the story yourself, just because you know more about the topic than anyone else. You might very well know more about your topic than anyone else on the planet, but that’s not the point.
Your scriptwriter and producer know more about positioning your message than you do. They know how to build a story and make it accessible and engaging to your audience.
Everyone is NOT a director, Everyone is NOT a writer. Sure, many people CAN become a director or writer. But it takes years and years to get there. Do you really want to use your expensive video as a guinea pig?
