He has ten years of experience.There's just no substitute. Editing is a skill like any other. But if you haven't put in the time, you're not going to be on my "go to" list.
She looks at all the footage. Sounds nuts not to look at all the footage but it's easier not to. Some editors just grab the first things they see. I've seen people do it. There's no short cut.
He's musical. As a general rule, the finest editors I know also are pretty competent musicians. It makes a lot of sense... editing is all about timing. Having an ear for beats is invaluable. Certainly there are exceptions, but it helps.
She's funny. Editing is about surprises. You want to shake up the audience to keep them watching. Someone who can make me laugh tells me she can catch me off balance with her edits as well.
He dabbles in After Effects or Motion. Certainly some projects don't require it, but the editor who can nimbly switch from AE to FCP is a keeper. It also shows me that you're willing to stretch and learn new things.
She is a collaborator. Is it going to be a battle every time you elongate a shot, delete a white flash, or have to trash the last hour of work? Stick with editors that listen and then make your ideas better.
He is persistent. Editing requires time in the seat. A 9 to 5 mentality is not going to do it for me or the project. And it's not only time, it's a drive to make it work, to finish and to conquer.
Executive chairs are super comfortable and make you feel regal. However, on video they make you look small. The backside of the chair goes up to your ears and kills the needed seperation between you and the background. Plus, your talent is going to end up swiveling and that's going to make your talent look impatient as well.
Use a bar stool or use a chair with a short back. Sit back alll the way and keep your back straight.
Since we watch videos on computers and mobile devices and slates - the notion that a video must be presented in a landscape aspect is going away quicker than your cable TV bill.
TVs are landscape.
But we are so close up to our computer devices that Portrait mode is coming down the pike as a new way to view moving images.
Have you been taking cell phone video on your iPhone? It just feels natural to hold it in one hand in portrait mode.
Take adavantage of Portrait mode in your next video...
I found this little film by Rick Hamilton on vimeo that takes advantage of being vertical. It feels like 4x6 home photos come to life.
Many times, but not all, the difference between what is interesting and what is boring in any media is that the good stuff plays with your expectations.
You think things will go one way and you're surprised when it goes down a different road that is so ingenious that you just have to sit up and take notice.
You can help your storytelling by creating an expectation with genre and then tweaking it or turning it on its head.
I've posted this video before that has a wonderful surprise in the middle but at the start it looks like a "This is another white text on black background" video.
Nearly ten million hits later it's easy to see why this alarmingly simple video has reached viral nirvana.
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The hardest thing we do as video producers is to create video pieces that are original. Everything has been done with budgets far larger then what you have.
But, there is usually a way to go that will make people hold their mouse in check and not click to something else.
Recently, Wheelhouse (I am a Principal) was hired to promote a new book.
I asked the client what kind of storytelling did she like. Not just from her company but any company. She showed me this.
I like it too. Why? The story telling is simple and there's a surprise. You don't expect the nice shot of Bermuda (or where ever it is) to be a landing pad for dripping blood. The video plays with your expectations of a television ad for something incredibly relaxing.
With that in mind, we pitched and produced this piece for a new murder mystery.
In my post regarding the misconception that great web video is made by production companies with "nothing to lose," Dustin Staiger, a creative director in Tulsa, made a comment that is worth saying here again:
"Broadcasting a commercial on TV is renting an audience that already exists (actually a portion of the audience who isn't skipping/muting ads). After the commercial airs, you still do not own any of the audience.
Creating a series of online videos is building an audience. You start with virtually nothing, but build it brick-by-brick. This is creating an asset for your business (something business owners/leaders appreciate)."
I like Dustin's thought a lot, but I think the the analogy works just as well if you see the viewing audience as owners v. renters. If you live in a rental, you're not going to put a lot of improvements into the place. If you own your own home - you're always thinking about increasing the value of your property.
Some of the savvier companies are producing media on the web and television understanding that this split exists.
When T-Mobile is pitching to consumers/renters on broadcast TV, they create mini dramedies with suburban neighbors that we can instantly recognize. Characters are extrapolated from common commedia_dell'arte archetypes (just as situation comedies have been doing for ever). The writing, acting, and direction are flawlessworking towards those two laugh lines. ... but the viewer doesn't own the product anymore than she owns the programming that surrounds the spot. She's in for the short term.
The viewer does their part of the dance by registering the unique selling proposition (faves are free!), laughing at the punch line and putting the information in the back recess of their brain never to be thought of again unless walking past a T-Mobile Store. And that's a maybe. Case closed.
The Web User
When T-Mobile is talking to viewers/owners on the web, the company creates larger than life "event" videos. We don't see moms, dads, backyards, barbeques or everyday life as we know it.
We see the diverse masses (photogenic ones and some not so), we hear the Beatles (OMG!), we see camera work that makes us go "whoosh." The video makes us feel something - it's good to be alive - just as Where the Hell is Matt? did. Most of all - there's not one mention of a product benefit. The main theme is always a feeling summed up by, "We're human. Aren't we grand!"
Knowing that net trollers act as owners and are always trying to increase their value, T-Mobile is counting on the next part of the dance.
The Psychology of Owning The average web user doesn't share the every day TV commercial with its selling propositions and lens focused on normal life - there is nothing to be gained. On the social web, users share other people's content (let's call it OPC) when they think their own value will be enhanced - they claim ownership of the ad/content with the act of sharing it.
The amazing success of Twitter is built on this paradigm. OK, before you start sending the hate email - I know there are hundreds of self-less twitter folk who, "just want to help."
If you're being honest - a big reason to tweet is to constantly chant to your tribe, "I am worth following." Sharing content that makes us "feel" shows the world that you are human/special/worth knowing. At the same time, sharing OPC is a very effective (and easy) way to increase Twitter followers. Ask @nicholaspatten who tweets out a dozen OPC links a day - (admittedly his twittered links are usually exquisite). His follower count is up to 22,000+.
When you share ownership of someone's else's content - you're enhancing yourself - with very little effort - you are building the value of what you own - your reputation.
Here's proof that there are many web watchers leveraging OPC: Monday's T-Mobile web viral video above was instantly piped out by thousands of twitterers. See how they were hoping to enhance their own brandhere.
Next time you see a video you want to share - tell me why it's different from what you see on TV and why you tweeted it out.
