Pre-Production Blues

Here is the ideal pre-production scenario for corporate video work: You have at least 30-45 days of pre-production. You’ve been given a list of interviewees from your client’s company, each of whom you have pre-interviewed. You scouted locations, picked the best spots and times for filming interviews and b-roll sequences. You then take all this information and create a robust video treatment plan, complete with A/V split scripts with specific talking points, colour graded photos of locations and interviewees and samples of music for the final video.

How many times have I had this ideal pre-production scenario come together? Zero times. It’s not for lack of trying. The truth is that many of the organizations I deal with are simply too busy and don’t realize how much time and effort it takes to do a full-scale pre-production run to a video.  Filming availability and access to locations can be limited and sometimes interviewees won’t be determined until a couple of days out from the shoot.

These types of situations can be difficult, but you can still establish an overall direction for the plot and visuals of your video. During your consultation with the client, it’s important to determine their goals and their purpose for the video. Pull sample stills from previous videos you have done to provide them with an example of your visual approach. Your AV split script can provide general story beats rather than specific talking points for each interviewee. This provides a rough written storyboard that can provide some insight into the final video.

The ability to make changes and adjustments to storytelling comes down to recognizing the elements that make stories viable in the first place. In journalism, stories are judged on their news-worthiness based on several key criteria. This list of criteria is generally referred to as news determinants, and they include the following:

Impact: Who is affected?

Proximity: How close has to our city/community is this story taking place?

Prominence: Is someone famous involved?

Timeliness: How new is this story?

Currency: Is this story part of an ongoing issue in that is being discussed?

Strange/Bizarre: Is the story very unusual and interesting?

Conflict: Are there opposing sides at odds with one another?

Interesting stories typically involve a few of these news determinants and these can apply to a business as well. Behind every organization there is someone who is trying to do achieve something for a particular reason. And they must have endured elements that reflect these news determinants along the way. It’s important to keep these in mind when approaching video projects as it will help spot valuable story elements when they come up. It can help provide flexibility in the absence of adequate pre-production time.

Even with the ideal pre-production scenario, plans always change. It’s important to not get too bogged down or attached to one vision. By doing so you might sacrifice your ability adapt.