5 Essential Steps in Pre-Production for Video Content
In addition to guest posting on the UpCity blog, AL Media is featured as one of the Top Video Production companies in Canada. Check out their profile!
Why make a video
The first thing to consider when creating video content is the purpose. Why are you making a video or videos and what are your goals? Reflect on what you want your video to inspire people to do (e.g., buy a product, schedule a call, visit your profile, feel an emotion, etc.).
For example, you or an organization you work with may use video in a one-to-many form of communication through an advertisement or organic post across your social media that is customized for the platform. The benefit of creating a video to serve a larger audience is that it helps build your brand recognition and has the potential to be shared widely. I would not hold viral as your golden standard since viral trends come and go on a non-consistent basis. Trying to plan for that is difficult and harder to strategize, though there are elements you can do to increase your chances, though that goes beyond this article. It’s better to focus on providing value to your niche audience than trying to appeal to everyone by making content viral.
Another form of video is one-to-one through the sales process. These videos are highly effective to achieve their purpose or desired action and are widely underutilized. The other clear benefit of creating one-to-one videos is that they are relatively easy to create and do not need a lot of work in post-production, in fact practically none. The value of these videos is in their appeal to be raw and unfiltered on the spot.
Video has an unrivaled ability to connect with young audiences today, motivating them to care about a brand. Yet there are many questions as to how you should get started–such as what equipment you will need, how to edit the footage in creative ways, and where you should share those finished projects online once they are complete.
Assess Your Resources
One of the most important considerations is the resources needed before you get started. Do you have a budget in mind for your project? Knowing your resources, bandwidth, and budget will anchor you towards your goals. If creating more videos is something that you’re serious about, having a budget of time and money for content should go beyond a one-time event. Knowing what resources you have available on hand will help you determine if you need to purchase new equipment to create content yourself or if you need to bring on an external editor? If you are looking to hire externally, relying on someone else’s strengths, platforms like UpCity are an excellent way to determine who is out there in the market and see whose work aligns with the style that you envision.
Resources can be physical (i.e. money, equipment, studio space, software), but they can also be digital and skill inclined. For instance, does your video need any special effects or motion graphics? Do you want to give it a colour grade or just apply a LUT (a term for video filter)? Maybe you can keep things minimal if all you have in your video is a talking head. Resources can also be physiological, like bandwidth of your time or patience using an editing platform. If it’s just one video, you may be more flexible, but if there are several videos, you may want to consider taking a deeper dive into your assets on hand to consider what you are capable of accomplishing and whether it makes sense to do it in-house or hire externally. Long-term, training someone on your team to manage and edit videos is the best strategy, but that’s not always feasible when we’re in a pinch. Hence, understanding your resources can help set you up for success in both the immediate and prolonged view.
Scout Your Locations
So when you’re planning to create a video, it’s really important to know everywhere that you’re going to shoot. Now if this is a vlog, that you’re making it at home or in your office, but scouting locations goes beyond just that you need to know what you’re doing and why. It’s important to be particular about what you need to film.
If you just go out there to film and you don’t have a solid game plan, you’re setting yourself up for defeat. So planning ahead is especially important on bigger shoots. You need to know where you’re going and you need to plan for it accordingly. It is especially important if your project is going to take place outside at multiple locations across a tight timeframe. Filming can take a lot of work and time moving between locations, especially to create an effective video, so planning out all your scenes is and the different shots needed will help save you time in the long run
Questions to consider are, do you need a vehicle? Do you do need to dress accordingly for the weather? Do you have an emergency first-aid kit if you’re going further away from people (i.e. wilderness shoots)? Have you let someone know about your intended travel plan?
So knowing your locations and planning around that location will help set you up for a seamless film shoot. Having intended film locations is extremely important and it’s something that you want to pay attention to in the pre-production stage. So in scouting your locations, it will help lead to the next point, which is writing a script.
Hear From Industry Experts
Read the latest tips, research, best practices, and insights from our community of expert B2B service providers.
Write a Script
Scripts are important when planning your narrative videos. The scope and magnitude of scripts will vary in duration and detail. Some scripts can be concise and minimal. Other scripts ought to be detailed with talents’ lines and a shot-by-shot breakdown. This really changes with the duration of your video and creative liability. Generally, longer-form videos with a bigger budget need that extra touch versus a vlog style. Even if it’s a personal video for yourself, you should consider writing a script because that’s going to help you really plan out this video to look its best possible format.
What could be helpful for smaller projects is having a breakdown of your key points. A lot of content creators won’t always write out an entire script. But they’ll know, “I need to talk about X, Y, and Z in this video” and then plan around those major elements. Just taking the time to write an agenda can really help you feel more confident on camera to discuss your topic. In a very nuanced way that is relevant to the purpose and intention of your video. So on that note, as well, I would advise that you have somewhat of a script, even if it is just a high-level bullet-point breakdown of what you wish to speak about, but keep in mind that things will come up on the day of the production.
Be wary of following your script dogmatically, as it can be a limiting factor because you’re taking away the element of spontaneity. If you’re so head down in your script word for word, you may miss a genuine moment or interaction on camera, whether it’s a casual conversation with a guest or possibly a new location that you want to visit. Having a script is a safe move because it gives you a game plan, but don’t treat it like a life-saving prescription. Treat it more as a recommended guideline. That’s my advice anyway.
Get inspired!
As videographers, when we’re creating content, it’s important that we don’t try to create content in a vacuum. Look at what other people are doing, look for inspiration online. Investigate people in your niche and what they are up to. Knowing what people in your market with a similar offering and similar brand are doing, can be impactful. Ideally, you want to examine someone who is slightly ahead of you to see and replicate to help future proof your organization. That’s a good way to build your strategy, by essentially copying and replicating what is already out there.
It’s important though to avoid looking at the heavyweights since you could be discouraged by seeing the all-stars. That’s why it’s important to look at someone just a bit ahead since they can help provide bite-sized ideas for what your next step should be.
So it’s crucial to get inspired and look for ideas, but you should be intentional about not directly copying what others are doing. The last thing your video should come across as is a carbon copy of someone else. Yes, get ideas from what similar creators are doing, but add your own flair to the concept. How can you tweak it, so that it models your own brand? Can you also create a video on a similar model or style to your role model? So, find inspiration from others, but also think of ways to be original as well.
About the author
Alexander Leonard
Alex Leonard is the founder of AL Media, a creative one-stop-shop for environmental organizations and social enterprises looking to share their story.
He is a videographer, business owner, graphic novel author, weekly radio broadcaster, public speaker, mural artist, and environmentalist.
In addition to guest posting on the UpCity blog, AL Media is featured as one of the Top Video Production companies in Canada. Check out their profile!
Why make a video
The first thing to consider when creating video content is the purpose. Why are you making a video or videos and what are your goals? Reflect on what you want your video to inspire people to do (e.g., buy a product, schedule a call, visit your profile, feel an emotion, etc.).
For example, you or an organization you work with may use video in a one-to-many form of communication through an advertisement or organic post across your social media that is customized for the platform. The benefit of creating a video to serve a larger audience is that it helps build your brand recognition and has the potential to be shared widely. I would not hold viral as your golden standard since viral trends come and go on a non-consistent basis. Trying to plan for that is difficult and harder to strategize, though there are elements you can do to increase your chances, though that goes beyond this article. It’s better to focus on providing value to your niche audience than trying to appeal to everyone by making content viral.
Another form of video is one-to-one through the sales process. These videos are highly effective to achieve their purpose or desired action and are widely underutilized. The other clear benefit of creating one-to-one videos is that they are relatively easy to create and do not need a lot of work in post-production, in fact practically none. The value of these videos is in their appeal to be raw and unfiltered on the spot.
Video has an unrivaled ability to connect with young audiences today, motivating them to care about a brand. Yet there are many questions as to how you should get started–such as what equipment you will need, how to edit the footage in creative ways, and where you should share those finished projects online once they are complete.
Assess Your Resources
One of the most important considerations is the resources needed before you get started. Do you have a budget in mind for your project? Knowing your resources, bandwidth, and budget will anchor you towards your goals. If creating more videos is something that you’re serious about, having a budget of time and money for content should go beyond a one-time event. Knowing what resources you have available on hand will help you determine if you need to purchase new equipment to create content yourself or if you need to bring on an external editor? If you are looking to hire externally, relying on someone else’s strengths, platforms like UpCity are an excellent way to determine who is out there in the market and see whose work aligns with the style that you envision.
Resources can be physical (i.e. money, equipment, studio space, software), but they can also be digital and skill inclined. For instance, does your video need any special effects or motion graphics? Do you want to give it a colour grade or just apply a LUT (a term for video filter)? Maybe you can keep things minimal if all you have in your video is a talking head. Resources can also be physiological, like bandwidth of your time or patience using an editing platform. If it’s just one video, you may be more flexible, but if there are several videos, you may want to consider taking a deeper dive into your assets on hand to consider what you are capable of accomplishing and whether it makes sense to do it in-house or hire externally. Long-term, training someone on your team to manage and edit videos is the best strategy, but that’s not always feasible when we’re in a pinch. Hence, understanding your resources can help set you up for success in both the immediate and prolonged view.
Scout Your Locations
So when you’re planning to create a video, it’s really important to know everywhere that you’re going to shoot. Now if this is a vlog, that you’re making it at home or in your office, but scouting locations goes beyond just that you need to know what you’re doing and why. It’s important to be particular about what you need to film.
If you just go out there to film and you don’t have a solid game plan, you’re setting yourself up for defeat. So planning ahead is especially important on bigger shoots. You need to know where you’re going and you need to plan for it accordingly. It is especially important if your project is going to take place outside at multiple locations across a tight timeframe. Filming can take a lot of work and time moving between locations, especially to create an effective video, so planning out all your scenes is and the different shots needed will help save you time in the long run
Questions to consider are, do you need a vehicle? Do you do need to dress accordingly for the weather? Do you have an emergency first-aid kit if you’re going further away from people (i.e. wilderness shoots)? Have you let someone know about your intended travel plan?
So knowing your locations and planning around that location will help set you up for a seamless film shoot. Having intended film locations is extremely important and it’s something that you want to pay attention to in the pre-production stage. So in scouting your locations, it will help lead to the next point, which is writing a script.
Hear From Industry Experts
Read the latest tips, research, best practices, and insights from our community of expert B2B service providers.
Write a Script
Scripts are important when planning your narrative videos. The scope and magnitude of scripts will vary in duration and detail. Some scripts can be concise and minimal. Other scripts ought to be detailed with talents’ lines and a shot-by-shot breakdown. This really changes with the duration of your video and creative liability. Generally, longer-form videos with a bigger budget need that extra touch versus a vlog style. Even if it’s a personal video for yourself, you should consider writing a script because that’s going to help you really plan out this video to look its best possible format.
What could be helpful for smaller projects is having a breakdown of your key points. A lot of content creators won’t always write out an entire script. But they’ll know, “I need to talk about X, Y, and Z in this video” and then plan around those major elements. Just taking the time to write an agenda can really help you feel more confident on camera to discuss your topic. In a very nuanced way that is relevant to the purpose and intention of your video. So on that note, as well, I would advise that you have somewhat of a script, even if it is just a high-level bullet-point breakdown of what you wish to speak about, but keep in mind that things will come up on the day of the production.
Be wary of following your script dogmatically, as it can be a limiting factor because you’re taking away the element of spontaneity. If you’re so head down in your script word for word, you may miss a genuine moment or interaction on camera, whether it’s a casual conversation with a guest or possibly a new location that you want to visit. Having a script is a safe move because it gives you a game plan, but don’t treat it like a life-saving prescription. Treat it more as a recommended guideline. That’s my advice anyway.
Get inspired!
As videographers, when we’re creating content, it’s important that we don’t try to create content in a vacuum. Look at what other people are doing, look for inspiration online. Investigate people in your niche and what they are up to. Knowing what people in your market with a similar offering and similar brand are doing, can be impactful. Ideally, you want to examine someone who is slightly ahead of you to see and replicate to help future proof your organization. That’s a good way to build your strategy, by essentially copying and replicating what is already out there.
It’s important though to avoid looking at the heavyweights since you could be discouraged by seeing the all-stars. That’s why it’s important to look at someone just a bit ahead since they can help provide bite-sized ideas for what your next step should be.
So it’s crucial to get inspired and look for ideas, but you should be intentional about not directly copying what others are doing. The last thing your video should come across as is a carbon copy of someone else. Yes, get ideas from what similar creators are doing, but add your own flair to the concept. How can you tweak it, so that it models your own brand? Can you also create a video on a similar model or style to your role model? So, find inspiration from others, but also think of ways to be original as well.
About the author
Alexander Leonard
Alex Leonard is the founder of AL Media, a creative one-stop-shop for environmental organizations and social enterprises looking to share their story.
He is a videographer, business owner, graphic novel author, weekly radio broadcaster, public speaker, mural artist, and environmentalist.
