High Demand for Independent Music Videos, #musicvideos
It's interesting to see the high amount of forms sent to us inquiring about producing music videos. Often times these are solo artists, with a song or two, who wish to break into the industry. They figure a video is a good way to show off their music as well as their style/look at the same time. They're right, it is. However, often times the idea is to shoot on the strip, in a grand suite, or in the middle of the desert with sweeping sand dunes. This all takes much more than what they envision. At FiveSix, when we do something, we like to do it right. Unfortunately, doing a music video right is expensive. With costs that include creative, pre-production, transportation and props as well as the time it takes for multiple locations, extras, crew members and hours of post including graphics and effects, doing a music video right isn't cheap. This is our conundrum. We want to help, music videos are fun to produce. But these solo artists often times are funding the video themselves and have a few hundred dollars to spend. Because of this, the video ends up as a cell phone video taken by their friend. This not only doesn't do justice to the music they've created but the visuals as well. Unless these artists can find someone to help fund a production, my suggestion would be to just stick to getting the music out and forget about the video until a budget has been established. A poorly shot video with weak sound and no editing, costs the artist credibility and rarely will launch anybody's career. We welcome all inquiries as far as music videos and will talk through costs and ideas and hopefully send an artist on the right path. There are ways to produce high quality and keep the costs down such as reducing locations and keeping it simple. But in my opinion, in regards to music videos, holding off on creating a video is better than a putting out a poorly produced one.
Long Shots - The Popularity of the Single Shot Video #videoproduction #singletake
We talk about videos most of the day around here and we don't always agree on everything, however, one thing that nobody can argue against is that videos that are done in a single shot or have that illusion are quite impressive. I've seen this being done more often, complete with elaborate sets and with elaborate choreography. In these videos the camera is as much of the star as those people it is capturing. Being handed off to one person and then another, lifted over buildings, through windows, flying amongst debris or simply following action, the camera movement stands out. This style of one take, no cuts, really grabs a viewer's attention and often times, if done right, creates buzz and achieves the desired result in the end, often times it goes viral. These videos could be considered a type of dance, by that we mean the entire process is choreographed and practiced and practiced again. Everything has its place and rehearsal is vital. And though you may only see a few people on camera, there are dozens behind the scenes. It's getting more popular especially with music videos as seen with the new videos from OK Go and even Weird Al. But it can also be done with any type of video given the correct pre-production, space(which tends to be overlooked in these scenarios) and budget. These videos could be a good fit in commercial or corporate work, even video contests or book trailers. Let us know if you see any more of these out there or better yet, we'd love to put one together if you have an idea.
Script Writing, Every Video Needs a Script, #scriptwriting
We always talk about video acquisition. We yap on about the new cameras, the new formats, how to get a shot with a Movi or a drone or where to use a close up. It's all about the image. What often times gets left behind is that all great videos, be they small :10 sec ads all the way up to features, have a script. The ideas and content are first written down and organized in a structured way so that capturing that all important visual image will be done correctly and efficiently. So what makes a good script writer, a good script, how does one get into that side of the business, who writes all of them?
We use a number of different script writers, why, because one person can't write every type of script out there in an effective way. A comedic viewpoint takes a different mind than a dramatic interpretation, in most instances. Car commercials, social media videos, book trailers and promotional ads all have script writers but the same guy isn't writing them all. One thing is certain, a good script writer needs to be able to adapt. This is because normally, when dealing in videos, there are many different opinions and the initial script is going to be changed multiple times by the end. A script writer who knows how to let go and swing with change is going to be much more successful in gaining more work as well as having leverage to argue their point. If they let little things go, often times they can keep in the script something that is more dear to their heart. But I'm not a script writer, it's just what I've seen. Below are a few a good articles and such on script writing to take a look at if you're interested.
jeannevb
Script writing may not be the most glamorous part of creating video but it is essential. Having someone who loves to write and knows how to craft a script is as important as the people hitting record. It's good to remember that at all levels of production. We appreciate all the hard work that goes into each script and want to let all the script writers out there know they are appreciated.
What makes a good Producer, in the sense of corporate video? #videoproducer #producer
Putting together corporate videos takes a leader, someone has to be in charge of the project or usually nothing ends up happening, well nothing good anyway. These people who are put in charge are often given or anoint themselves the title of producer. What does that mean? Well it means you oversee every facet of the production from start until finish and make decisions on everything from budget all the way until the final edit and deliverable. Oh I get it, they do everything. No. Stop right there. Bad producers do everything. Bad producers micro manage every part, stifle creativity, and frustrate everyone else involved. Often these are new producers, they take to their role like a child with a new toy, they don't know what they want but it's mine and I'm not letting it go. They tend to alienate members of their team and the product suffers as a result.
But what makes a good producer?
A good producer is someone who knows what they want. If it's a car commercial, a green screen interview, a behind the scenes shoot, high end real estate, or even a convention video, a good producer will do their homework and find out and strategize what the client is looking for. They will then form a team of the individuals that can best perform each duty that will be needed such as camera, sound, editing, lighting, etc. Then, they will provide direction to the team and let the team do what they do best, create. A good producer will allow each member of their selected team to have input and coordinate with them to make sure the client's needs are being met. They will address problems as they arise instead of create them. The producer themselves can be creative but their role is more of the coordinator and facilitator of the whole project and good producers know that this is their primary focus. Being the liaison between the client and the video team is extremely important, we all know nothing gets done well and correctly without good communication.
Too often producers want the role of creative, or the role of director or director of photography, or they think they are entitled to make creative decisions. True they are the lead on the project and they should have a great deal of input into the final look and feel of the video they deliver to the client, however, too often they hold onto too much. The best results often come from a diverse set of ideas and not from a single person and a single view point. A good producer knows when to let go and when to take control. That is the most difficult part of the job. So to all those good producers out there, thank you. For those producers still learning, relax and let your people do what they do and most of the time they don't disappoint.
Oh and the best producers always feed their crew, on time.