Professional video production companies will carefully lay out a plan for conducting your office video shoot, but it’s important to have your team involved to get the best results. The decision-making team should communicate, by informing the entire staff, even those not on location about the date, time, location and importance of the production. You can then expect a more involved, well presented and cooperative staff, all of which will elevate the final results of your video. Even if you are working on an inside the office video shoot, creating a quality video is a big investment, not only in currency but in time & personnel so make the most of this video marketing opportunity by ensuring your people know where to be, what to wear, what’s expected of them and by preparing your workplace with the following tips and tricks.
Preparing for the Office Video Shoot
1. Start with a Project Brief
Project Specifications: This is the bare-bones, straightforward description of the video project. How many videos are you creating? How long will they be? How many days or hours will you be filming? Write 2-3 sentences that sum up the topic and purpose of this project. Why are you creating this video? Who is the audience for this video? What is the main message?
Creative Inspiration: it involves some homework. This piece of the planning shouldn’t be overlooked. Finding 2-3 videos that can be used as a benchmark for the style, flow, or format you have in mind will help everyone involved in the video creation process.
Write the Script: The first step in content creation is the script. A script is different from writing a blog post or eBook. In a script, it’s important to ditch the buzzwords, keep sentences short, and convey a clear message. Scripts should be easy to follow and understand. Keeping it simple yet effective will go a long way.
2. Get the Right Equipment
Select your space: It’s likely your office will become your Movie Set, but you can choose a location (a mix of inside and outdoors) that shows your company in the best light. Make sure everything is clean and organized. The camera should not pick up unwanted objects, because that will tend to distract your audience.
Pick the right props: Props are a great way to add substance to your video. You can use props as part of your presentation or reinforce your message, for example, your product, the mission statement, just a big logo, or a mix of all. Shooting in a conference room will not only give you control over lighting and ambient noise, but it will keep you from distraction. Shooting your CEO sitting in a chair with some fake plants in the background doesn’t look cool.
Teleprompters (and Alternatives): For scripted videos, you’re going to need a teleprompter. If you have a proper teleprompter that sits around the camera, then use it. If you don’t have a teleprompter, you can rent one (it can cost $500 or more). If that’s not in your budget, worry not. There are a few workarounds. Buy or rent a large television or monitor, and place it behind the camera. Then, connect your laptop to the screen. You can then use free online tools that turn your computer into a teleprompter, such as EasyPrompter.com.
Cameras: We recommend using at least 2 cameras. Especially for scripted videos that won’t have images or b-roll, it could be a sit-down interview or a conversation on the street side. Two cameras give you the option of covering different angles. In case it is a mix and match – the footage of people talking on the phone, running through a park, walking around an office, in a meeting, and all sorts of other activities depending on the topic is used to smooth awkward cuts in the film, one camera is ok, but may need more quality editing work.
Hire a professional stylist: Preplan the outfit/s for the shoot and do a dress fitting in advance. If your budget allows a touch of style, you can hire a professional hair and makeup artist for the day. Flawless make-up on the screen and your hair in order will give your actors some much-appreciated on-screen confidence.
Rest well and keep hydrated: Participating in an office video shoot is an exciting activity, so better to calm the nerves before. Encourage your employees to show up well-rested and well-hydrated the day of the shoot.
Rehearse the script: Whether your video shoot involves long or short scripted lines, be sure to practice & learn them. This will help your actors feel confident and informed about what they are sharing. Do not overdo it, o else the lines might sound forced or fake.
3. During the Shoot
Gather Your People before time: For a seamless shoot, you should have at least four people around at all times: the talent (the person being filmed), script supervisor/teleprompter operator, director, and videographer. All of these people play crucial roles in the production process. Also, the hired makeup artist for the starting few hours for sure.
Filming time, 1-2-3, testing: Before you get into it, make sure to test everything. Do a few test shots to make sure the video angles are where you want them to be, the audio is coming through loud and clear, there isn’t any distracting eye-tracking, the makeup looks good, and there aren’t any awkward or distracting shadows in the background.
Keep note of Takes: As the filming begins, make sure to take notes on each take. This will help immensely with the video editing process. If you like the beginning of one take or the end, write that down next to each take number. These notes will streamline the editing process and ensure that only the best parts are used in the final product.
4. After the Shoot
Deliver Footage and Notes to the Editor: It’s time to work on the final product. The videographer or the director, whoever is actually piecing the film together, makes sure they have everything they need. They should have the outline of each video, the project brief (including the creative inspiration pieces), and your notes from all the takes.
Start with One portion of the Video at a time: Get an example, even if it’s only a rough cut, of a video (or piece of the video) before the editor completes the whole project. Note any and every issue you have with this first version. Once this first piece is discussed, the editor will know the flow it has to take.
Market Your Content! : Once you have the final product, make sure you share it! After all that effort, you sure want the right people to see this incredible piece of content you’ve put together. Create blog posts with the video embedded, or create previews of the topic and post them to Vine or Instagram.
Set your own trend: Once you see the office video shoot is engaging your audience successfully, you may want to make it your own trend. Plan them smartly, shoot a few together to reduce the production costs, and then space them out for launching at different times of the year. Soon it will become your brand style.
We hope this was useful. We can help you assess a budget for your exclusive office video shoot, plan a corporate video timeline and successfully create it for your company.
Connect with us for a free consultation at info@neonvideos.com
