The Quick and Dirty: Making a Video

Making a video
A quick and dirty guide for non-profit arts organizations

Anybody can make a video.

What you want to know:

Everyone says it’s so easy…

Things you must know first

WHY do organizations make videos?
Sell tickets
Build a Brand:
Personalizes the institution
Artistic/Archival
Functions
Development

Case study: Misnomer Dance
Consider the way to keep the
Connection going after the
performance
www.youtube.com/
user/misnomerdance

Entice audience members to come to a show
Build buzz around a specific production
Measured by # of tix sold
Sell tickets

Philadelphia Museum of Art
www.youtube.com/user/
PhilaArtMuseum

Showcase a performer or artist
Behind-the-scenes insights
“Blooper” reel
Retrospective
Measured by click-thrus or pageviews
Build a Brand:
Personalizes the institution

Misnomer’s Brand Building

www.youtube.com/user/BrooklynMuseum
Brooklyn Art Museum

Development
Grant proposals
Demonstrate need/reach out to donors
Harder to measure effectiveness

Artistic/Archival
Function
Present the concept for a production
Record performance or performance excerpts

Misnomer’s “Land Flat”

Who is the audience for your video?
These answers may not be the same. And the answers may determine your distribution channels—or vice versa.

What will the video look like?
Will this video be shiny and professional looking, or do you want it to be a more personal, “gritty” style?
Is this solely for online usage, or will you be distributing it elsewhere?
How does your video capture the personality of your organization?

Who? Where? Who? Where?
Prioritize based on budget: if you can’t afford much, you will need to seek out the cheaper distribution channels. If money is less of an object, you can figure out who you want to talk to first, and then choose the best method to do so.

Style determines equipment
One-off
Personal
Episodic
Professional
Gritty
Handheld
Polished
Narrated
Performance specific
Viral
Institutional
Commercialized

You’ll need more expertise, with higher-quality and likely more involved equipment (think lights, mics, in addition to high-end camera/s), a stronger storyboard, more time to edit, and possibly professionals.
You won’t need as much expertise, but you may need to train your staff and have a couple of individuals dedicated to the project.
High-Gloss
Rough and Rugged

Get Inspired!
Check out other organizations’ video content that may be available on their sites, on YouTube, vimeo, elsewhere, and see what messaging you get and what engages you.

New York City Opera Previewsyoutube.com/newyorkcityopera

www.youtube.com/user/Joycetheater

www.youtube.com/user/CedarLakeDance

Talk to your unions!
It is NOT better to ask for forgiveness than permission in this case.

Know your rights!
Know who owns the rights to the work
Know your unions’ rules on using video footage
Be prepared to advocate your project to your managing director, artists and union leaders
Total up how much you will need to pay to use the footage before you shoot!

Don’t put the cart before the horse

Equipment
Consider your needs
Consider your artform
Consider your budget
Consider the learning curve and operational requirements
Consider the number of people you want to be involved

Professional Grade Hardware
High-Definition video camera
Mic input
External lighting
Operation
You are unlikely to get the top-of-the-line equipment from your local big box electronics store.
$2000-$6000: some will do streaming!
Example: Canon XL H1A ($5999)

Mid-Range Equipment
Can find options at local retailers.
Run-of-the-mill HD (or non-HD) camera can run between $300 - $1000.
Great for non-performance footage, like interviews, artist panels, behind-the-scenes, etc.
Example: Panasonic HDC-TM700 ($999)

Low End
Flip Cams ($150)
Cell phone video recording
Point-and-shoot video option
Laptop with cams for a “fireside chat”

Additional Equipment Considerations
Lighting
Audio (external or internal microphone)
Can you separate audio from video?
Batteries/cord
Tripod

What we used
Production budget: $0, using pre-existing materials
Prep time: 4 hours
Film time: 3 hours
Editing time: 1.5 hours
Distribution: 20 min
Lamps
A tripod ($20)
Sony Handycam ($300)
iMovie ’09 (free with Corwin’s laptop [or $79])

Production Plan

Editing
Presuming you are using a digital camera, you have a few options for editing your footage. Remember, the more carefully you have constructed your storyboard and concept, the more easily you will be able to edit your footage into a final form that meets your vision.

Apple Macintosh Users
Programs you purchase through the Apple store can cost anywhere from $29.99 to $1000.
iMovie ($79) and FinalCutPro (~$1000) are popular choices

iMovie (part of iLife suite)

Final Cut Pro

Windows/PC
Adobe Premiere Pro ($79 on techsoup)
Windows Movie Maker (on most new PC’s)
Other options from Cyberlink, Corel, Roxio and Sony ($50-$100)
video-editing-software-review.toptenreviews.com/

Adobe Premiere Pro

Windows Movie Maker

Other, free software?
Free software can be found and downloaded online. Some options are:
Avidemux
Blender
Aviary, a free online graphic design application is planning on releasing one
Some are buggier than others, depending on your operating system.

Distribution
Sort of…

Questions?
?

What you learned today:

The Quick and Dirty: Making a Video

by CAMT

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