Planning, Storyboarding, Editing and Boards

Planning

Before I could start editing any footage together I needed to review the footage that my client provided and wanted editing together - as I had never seen it before. When I started watching a few of the clips I realised that in all of the interviews with different people had the same themes and topics were mentions. This gave me the idea to divide my promotion video into different distinct sections. This would not only allow me to display the vast topics that will be seen in the full documentary in my short 8 to 15 minute promotional video (length of promotional video discussed with the client), but will also make the topics clearer to the audience, and allow them to grasp everything that will be mentioned in Art Alerts final DVD.

To make it easier for myself when it comes to editing the clips together and finding the relevant sections that I need, I decided to, when watching the clips, make a note of the footage that I wanted to include in my promotional video.  I wrote down the name of the full clip, the time of the section I wanted from the clip, what was said in this section, and highlighted the quote according to a key.

                                  

                                                                               
                               
                                 
                                 
                                    

Storyboarding

After i had a good idea of what topics i wanted to included and the general layout of my promtional video i storyboarded my ideas. For the most of it the shot were already planned out for me, however the introduction was not, where i wanted to include footage for members of Art Alert and promote this side of the project. (Hard copies of storyboarding available).

Editing

This allowed me to quickly and easily, cut the sections I wanted from the mass amount of footage. And by highlighting each topic in different colours I was able to organise my work. Not only on paper, but also when it came to using premiere.

I chose to use different sequences for each topic, because I felt that it keep my work neat, and as I was planning to separate my work with boards anyway, I could just copy each sequence into one final one and they would still connect because of the boards.

After having looked through all the footage provided by my client, i went through and cut each section that i had written down, and placed them under the appropriate sequence heading in Premier. Once i had done this with all the footage i wanted to use, i started editing the clip together.

I found that when editing some of the footage i had selected did not fit in with the flow of the rest of the footage in that sequence. when this problem occured i chose to delete theses clips. i found this to be unfortunate as the clips where interesting, however i had to be harsh with the footage i used, so to keep on topic and remember that i was simply promoting the DVD, not trying to make the whole documentary DVD. Also i realised that i had too much footage selected so had to also delete some clips that fitted in with the promotional video but didn't really add anything to it.

When editing the clips together i found that some of the words that the interviewee said overlapped, especially in interviews with more than one person, the others seemed to talk before one had finished. i found this to be a problem. with some clips when i wanted to include what one person and said, but not what the person following had said you could just caught what the second person had said. i felt that this didnt look very professional and gave an untidy finish to my promotion video. when i asked my client about this, mick told me that he'd rather they were cut short on a word than the next word heard (for full promotional video client review see Final Promotional Video - Client Review post).

With this in mind i went over the whole of my final project and cut the clips as mick advised. to make sure that i cut each piece of footage as close to end of the word as possible i edited it frame by frame, by zooming in as much as possible. i found that editing my footage like this was time consuming however the end prodct was cleaner and more professional. doing it this way i was able to limit the number of cuts that had over lapping speech.

Boards 

As mentioned before i wanted to separate my promotional video with boards. i decided to create the boards in photoshop. From Jim Hickeys visit he informed us that if we were going to use text in our promotional videos, in either boards or titles, the text needs to all be the same, otherwise it can look unprofessional. with this in mind i set out to look for a font that suited the era i was focusing on - the 60's. 

straight away i went to a site called da font - i have used this site the past for fonts, and find it easy to use and it offers a larger range of unique and appropriate fonts to choose from. as soon as i entered the site i saw a font named Helen Queen K. i liked this straight away and felt that it reflect the era, especially the fashion. 

However when i entered the main title of my promotional video "The Coop Hall" in to the text box, i felt that it looked too over crowded. then i thought that i would change the font of the word 'the' to remove the overcrowded look. after searching through many fonts both on da font and the set fonts in photoshop i realised that there wasn't any other fonts or positioning that looked good. so i decided to look for another font all together.

When I spoke to my client once again he offered his opinion of the font. he said that a simple block font would look nice, it would reflect both the era and the font used on the coop hall sign itself. he also said that the text would look nice in a brown and the background a cream, as this were the main colours of the coop hall. when looking through da font once again i decide to look in themes to restrict my search. i chose the theme 'Retro' as i felt that this would reflect the era.




with Mick being there when i was looking through fonts allowed him to chose a font that he like, and match the font to the feel that he wants from the final promotional video. the font he chose was called 'Mouse Deco' - i personally feel suited the promotional video perfectly.

I then downloaded this font and opened it in photoshop. Before i started anything on my font in photoshop i needed to choose the colours. As mick said that he want the colours to reflect the colours on the coop hall itself, i decided to open a photo of the coop hall up in photoshop, then use the eyedropper tool to find an exact cream and brown seen in a photo of the coop hall. i felt that this was the best way to obtain the colours instead of trying to create my own.

When i had done this the colours were then saved to my swatches and i could create my boards. using the text from da font that Mick had chosen i typed the coop hall up and changed the colours to the brown and cream. 

This is the final outcome. 

When I shown this to Mick he really liked it and said that the colours and the font really worked well and gave the feel to the video that he wanted. I feel the simply text added more to the promotional video and fitted in better that the fancier text I chose to begin with.

I did this with all of my boards to keep them the same and the theme running throughout so that it looked professional, like Jim Hickey suggested.

The Logo Board

When i came to the opening board i wanted to introduce the company that the documentary and exhibition was being ran by. So I went online and looked for Art Alerts logo. this was easy enough to find. when i came to adding this to the cream background i had to use the Lasso tool to outline the Art Alert logo, then copied the background-less logo onto the cream background. 

When receiving a permission slip from Art Alert i noticed at the top that they had included, not only their own logo, but also the logo of their sponsors, The National Lottery, Heritage Lottery Fund. I felt that to keep my promotional video to the standard of Art Alert to include the Heritage Lottery Fund logo that they had on my logo board also. This would also give the audience more information about Art Alert an what they are all about straight away.

I wanted to still keep with the brown and cream colouring so wrote the text in brown and copied in the logo. This is the end product. 

End Board

Like in the promotional video i had analysed i wanted to include contact information at the end, as well as the location and date of the DVD release exhibition - as this is what i was promoting. I obtained all this information when I did my Art Alert interview (see Art Alert Interview - Footage review post).

Reflection

I spent longer on the boards than i would have liked to, as i felt that this was not the main part of the promotional video. However this did not set me back to much in developing the promotional video. i feel that the final boards created fit in with the rest of the promotional video and help to bring it all together. from watching and analysing pre-existing promotional video i noticed that all of them had information at both the beginning and the end of the video. i feel that i have done this successfully, providing information to the audience about the DVD exhibition and Art Alert.

I feel that when  if came to editing i needed everything to be organised and by adding sequences within my premier window i feel that i was able to work fast and efficiently to get the video finished in time for my client to view, review and tell me any changes that he would like doing to it.

By reviewing the clips provided before i had even begun editing and writing do the clips and sequences i wanted to include also help to organised my work and help me work more efficiently, enabling my client to see a finished promotional video way before the deadline, giving me enough time to make any changes to the video that my client was not happy with.

Overall i feel that my planning, when it came to the editing process, was very well planned out and organised - allowing me to edit quickly, and receive my clients opinions in enough time to make any changes to the final promotional video. 

Promotional Purpose - Art Alert

What is Art Alert?
Art Alert is a non-profitable organisation that is dedicated to encouraging, promoting and showcasing local arts and crafts in Nuneaton, Bedworth and North Warwickshire. Particularly for young people and families.

Why i chose to do a promotional video on Art Alert and its most recent project. 
Art Alert is an organisation that is not very well known in the Warwickshire county. i feel that this promotional video, will not only show what art alert do, but also there dedication, and inspire local people to come forward and broadcast their art; and as this is the goal of art alert, i feel that my promotional video will help. Art Alerts agenda is to create a DVD, website, mobile exhibition/installation and open air performance commemorating Nuneaton's recently demolished Coop Hall especially focussing on its heyday during the 1940s-60s. 

Promotional Purpose 

My promotional video will not only bring awareness about art alert and what they do, but also enlighten local people about there local history and the demolish of an iconic building in Nuneaton from the late 30's to mid 60's - The Coop Hall.  The Coop Hall was the place to go from 1938 - 1965. An art deco building that housed The Rolling Stone, The Beatles, The Kinks, The Who and local bands like The Pinkertons. due to the number of great bands that played there and the number of couples united here, the coop hall had many good times and memories tied to it for the locals. what my promotion video will do is highlight a few of these memories to promote the more detailed final DVD created by Art Alert.

http://coophall.wordpress.com

Oral History Taking

During the first meeting with Mick and Corine, oral history taking was mentioned. Corine explained that it was easy enough -if we were not familiar with this technique- to preform and that it was the recording of memories; this was basically what there whole archiving of the Coop Hall was about.

As I wanted to meet the clients’ needs and expectations, I did more research into the taking of oral history. Oral history strives to obtain information from different perspectives, from the memories of living people about events or social conditions, which they experienced in their earlier lives, taped and preserved as historical evidence. 


This is what Art Alert are trying to achieve having a clear definition of what they are trying to achieve will help me when it comes to interviewing people. It has also helped me to give structure and meaning to my promotional video.  I now know that what the people are saying and their memories are the most important part of my video. This will help to mirror the meaning behind the finished project that art alert are trying to achieve. 

Back Up Promotional Video and Interview Techniques

Back Up Idea
During my conversations with mr hickey, he informed me that it may not be pssible for me to film at st thomas more. with this in mind, i needed a back up promotional video idea if st thomas was not able to accomidate me. as this was the case i had to change to another promotional video idea.

Luckily, i was working on an outside project with art alert to promote the coop hall in nuneaton. as they wanted children and young adults to be involved in the production and final product of the coop hall archiving they were more than happy for me to make a promotion video for the coop hall.

Mike Dabrowski is the main client that i am dealing with, with regards to the look and feel of the promotion video. my other clients are Joanne Lole and Corine Davies. at the first meeting Mike and Joanne were present and this meeting consist of introducing us to the Art Alert and the Coop Hall Project.

Mick provided us with a criterior list of what our aims and objectives were. These were:
                        - Video shots on Canon DSLR with prime lenses
                        - Audio recordings
                        - Use photos provided by interviewees in film montage
                        - Edit the footage provided by him and self recorded footage together into a promotion                .                         video.
                        - Collect own images reflecting the fashion, music and celebrities of the times
                        - Script and voice a narration to underpin the final film (optional)
                        - Shot and edit further interviews.
                        - Develop the website
                     
The second meeting with Mick and Corine was recorded with a zoom H4N microphone. From this second meeting Mick and Corine gave a more in depth and specific explanation of what they want from the promotional video.



Interview Techniques 
When it comes to interviewing, particularly people who are not used to being on camera, it i vital that you are prepared  before i interviews Joanne and Corine i made sure that i had all the questions written down that i wanted to ask and made a note of any additional information that i needed of camera. (See Art Alert Interview - Footage review post for question list).

Think of the person you are interviewing. this is specially important when interviewing older people. i need to take into consideration that they may be hard of hearing and for this reason i will need to ask the question slowly clearly and loudly.

Don't ask question that have simple yes or no answer. encourage the interviewee to expand on their point, adding opinions/feelings. for example don't just ask "did you go to the coop hall", instead ask "what do you remember about the coop hall". you could even merge to questions together, this will bulk out their response and give you a lot of information and in my case footage, to work with.

Another interview techniques, especially when it comes to editing the footage together in a montage, is to ask the interviewee to repeat the beginning of the question when answering, i.e. "i remember the balcony in the coop hall". this will help when in comes to editing the footage together and will allow the audience to know what topic is being referred to, and not just a clip of somebody saying "the balcony".

                    Here the question asked was "What age did you first go to the Coop Hall?"

Take One                                                                            Take Two 
                      

Mick informed me that when i am interviewing i obviously don't want to be heard on camera. However by not encouraging the interviewee with back-channel features, the interviewee and become uncomfortable and think that what they are saying is not interesting. to overcome this problem before interviewing the interviewee needs to be informed that you don't want to be heard on camera, so if they were telling a joke, for instance, and you do not laugh, it is not because it it not funny, its simply because you don't want t interrupt their interview. you are able to nod along and smile, just let the know that this is what you will be doing, an reassure them at the end of each clip or question, before you move onto the next, that what  they have said i great, interesting and very informative; this will help to ease any tension. also a good thing to do it to thank them and reassure them at the end of the interview. 

                                                

The best interviews are the statics ones, with camera on a tripod. this is what mick wanted mainly because the rest of the interviews he has done are all static, also because they are simple and don't have to much going on, therefore focusing on the interviewee and what they are saying.

At the Coop Hall new years eve 1964, there was an accident on the stairwell in the hall. Mick said that he doesn't want this to be emphasised too much or the main focus, as the video is to archive the happy memories of the Coop Hall, so the promotional video should reflect this.

Finally Mick said that slow motion would help to emphasis the sadness of the Coop Hall demolition, making it more emotional. Also he said that he is happy for me to use clips from the internet that captured the demolition, as he himself does not have any recording of this.

St Thomas More Catholic School

When I was watching and analysed promotional videos I like the set up and ideas behind the video promoting a college/ school. From this I started looking deeper into to promotion videos for education. I found that all the videos showed the students having fun, as well as promoting the schools academic side, mainly by showing the statistics of the schools grades and achievements.

I didn't to promote my own college, King Edward VI Sixth Form, as I wanted to venture outside of my comfort zone. So I decided that I wanted to promote my old secondary school, St Thomas More Catholic School, Technology College and Sixth Form. I decided to do a secondary school over a junior or primary school as I felt that it would be easier to obtain consent from the pupils teachers and parents to film in the school. I choose to do St Thomas More as I knew the school so had a rough idea where and what I wanted to capture in the promotional video, also because I know that the school is a highly rated school with good achievement, so I would be able to promote the school.

Before I could start any planning I needed to make sure that I would be able to film at St Thomas More school, their new sixth form and the technology college. I sent a letter into the school for the head teacher Mr Hickey.

Mr Hickey responded quickly to my letter with an email.

Telephone call on 5th March 2013
During our telephone conversation he asked me what it was in particular that I wanted to film. I informed him, that I wanted to promote the school, college and sixth form, showing them to be both academic and a fun social place to be. He asked if I would be able to film without including any of the students, as this would be easier to get permission for me to film. But as I wanted to promoted the students achievements, both academically and socially, I would need to include students in the footage. From this he told me that he would need to get permission from the parents of all the students, and he will consolidate with the deputy head, and see what they can do.

Telephone call on 6th March 2013
I missed this phone call from Mr Hickey, however he left a message. Mr hickey apologised that it was not possible to obtain permission from all the parents; however he would love to work with me in the future and wished my all the best.

I emailed Mr Hickey to respond to his phone call, thanking him for his time an efforts.

Promotional Video - Codes and Conventions

Promotional Video Productions 

Promotional videos should follow certain codes and conventions to help appeal to their audience effectively. these codes and conventions include aspects such as interviews, from either people who were a main part in the products creation or customers who have purchased the product, be between 3-5 minutes long and show the product being used. i am going to watch and analysis 4 pre-existing promotional videos, with different styles. this will not only allow me to see the codes and conventions in action, but give me a wider selection of approaches to how a promotion video should look.

The text needs to have meaning and such techniques as camera shots, mise-en-scene, lighting, editing, music and audio will help give the text meaning, as well as determining the response of the viewer. By watching promotional videos i am hoping to compile my own list of codes and conventions, with reason why they are effective, that i will follow and refer to when preparing, producing, filming and editing my own promotional video. also the list will give me guide lines that will help to make my video look as professional and effective as possible.

Video 1 - Bentley Mulsanne

3min 38sec

I felt that the Bentley Mulsanne selling point was to remind the viewer of the quality the Bentley is made to, and how they concentrate on the small things as well as the larger ones. the video puts this point across by showing how the car is manufactured, showing the smaller less noticeable details, like the finishing stitch one the seat covers; this is on of the aspects that is shown to be hand crafted. Also the video shows how the car are manufactured in Britain (such phrases as "pinnacle of British Motoring" are used), not only today but how they were also in the past, showing older footage of the first cars in Britain.

Instead of using interviews to sell the quality of the car, this promotional video uses captivating music and titles to get across points that the visuals cannot.

I feel the video itself has quiet a vintage feel and look to it, like the the handwriting on the video instead of block text, for example. The viewer becomes engaged as the video tells a story, of both the production of the Bentley today and the progress made for the first Bentley made to the Bentley's made today.

The non-diegetic music start soft at the beginning to accompany the images of the past, a simpler time. then as the video moves on and the story progresses the music, becomes more intense. The music compliments the video, as it is not to over powering with simple beats.

Video 2 - ACLAS

1min 54sec

The video straight away opens with the logo of the company, before we even really know what the video is about, promoting the company to the audience straight away. The video promotes that the company ACLAS not only delivers you package quick, but has helpful friendly people who the customer deals with when ordering parts, and also that the company take care when handling your items. the friendly attitude of the company is seen when the customer and an employee of ACLAS are talking on the phone at the beginning and they are both smiling and looking happy.

The pan left at the beginning from the black title screen to the plan on the runway, helps the video flow from the title to the video.

Once again a story is being told. This time the story once again engages the audience, showing them how the plane was stationary at the beginning, the journey of the part that will help the plane become airborne once again. At the end the shot changes from black and white, to colour. this helps to emphasis the importance of the company and the plane being in the air stands out more than anything else in the video; this would have not been possible with the company getting the part to the aircraft swiftly.



Once again we see the logo at the end; this promotes the company further, reminding the viewers of the company that provided the quick and careful delivery of parts seen in the video.

Music is once again soft, simple and quieter at the beginning, once the process of sending the item is under way the the music has the same over tone, but louder and more intensity, however still not overpowering to the visuals on screen.

Video 3 - University of Nottingham Innovation Park

3min 40sec

Like the previous promotional video the logo of the university is seen at both the beginning and the end. however the end logo has and email and web address that was not present on the first logo showing. this enables the viewers to contact the university if they like what they saw in the video.

The high angle wide shot at the beginning allows the viewers to see straight away what the new campus looks like, therefore promoting the building straight away also. Also the selling point of the video is the availability of space, accommodation, opportunities and equipment, these points are stressed upon by the voice over, and the visual support what she is saying. the video also promotes the travel network  travel links, strain stations airports, motorway access.

The video has a mix of still and moving images; although the still image do move across the screen (the Ken Burns Effect). The video is made up, of panning and tilt shots, with only one still shot when the map is shown. the constant moving adds excitement to the video, i feel, making the university and the opportunities available there seem as if they will move your business along in the right direction.

The voice over has a very up beat tone and seems enthusiastic. The voice over using dramatic words that only enhances the university, such words as defines, award winning, superb and excellent. Although a simple techniques using these types of word encourages the audience to being intrigued and excited themselves at what they are seeing. To encourage this excitement even more the back ground music is upbeat and gives the video an edge of excitement.

Video 4 - Puma and Asos Black

4mins 51sec

This promotional video is different from the previous three. with the other i feel that they were trying to promote the company, where as with this one i feel that it trying to bring awareness rather than promote the sponsors (Puma and Asos Black).

The location is set up with text on the screen. this help to place the audience as is would not be obvious, this could be any slum in any park of the world. the shot opens with a hand held camera at street level following on of the characters in this mini dodcumentry, through the slums. this lowers the audeince to the level of the slums and makes it more personal, this promoting the hardship of the characters lives more than if the camera was at a high angle. i feel that by bringing the audience into the slums, makes the statement of the video more powerful. as said before, we feel close to the characters physically and emotionally and can relate more.


Slow motion is used frequently throughout this video. i feel that the use of slow motion provokes more thought from the audience and encourages them to feel more, connect more to what is being portrayed on the screen. a good example of this is when the four characters are running down the hall and looking over their shoulders. because this is in slow motion you feel as if something is going to happen, and builds tension. causing the audience to stay intrigued as they want to know what is going to happen.

The use of english subtitles to voice over helps connect the video with a wider audience. i feel that by doing it with english subtitles and Portuguese speech, instead of the other way around, keeps the min documentary authentic and true to its roots, which i what i feel the ver all message is.

Finally the upbeat, high pace music mirror the action on screen, bringing speed, tension and an element of danger to the video. Danger is enforced by police sirens and helicopters being heard in the background. this element of danger that is portrayed throughout shows how passionate the characters are about having a voice and what they do. as this is the pint of the video i feel that it is done very effectively.