Behind the Scenes - Daniel Coolahan

What are the goals of video production?

Video is becoming an increasingly important element in the modern content marketer’s toolkit. When we consider that YouTube alone is the world’s second-largest search engine in the world, there’s a breadth and scale to video that marketers can’t ignore. It’s important to be clear on why you are producing video content and how this aligns with your target audience. You may want to produce a video to enhance your brand, become an authority on a particular subject or simply augment existing content.

A successful video uses emotion, imagination, and creativity to touch the viewer while balancing art with commercial intent and purpose. While the best and most effective videos create a seamless and compelling story, the process behind the scenes is complicated, time-consuming, often tedious. Video production requires a cadre of creative and technical talent and the best in state-of-the-art gear.

What is the process?

Video production is a process that encompasses different stages of video making. These are pre-production, production, post-production and distribution. But what does each stage entail?

Pre-Production: This stage starts with the storyboarding of your film. You figure out what scenes you want in your video storyboard so that you have an idea of how much footage you need to capture to tell the story. The next step is scheduling things like shooting times and locations. Capturing the right shots is crucial to making a good video so being prepared is key.

Production: This is where the magic happens. By making sure the process is locked down ahead of shoot day, we can focus our energy on the creative, and know that we are working in the most efficient possible way.

What happens in the video post-production phase?

Post-Production: After the raw footage has been captured, it needs to be edited and processed into the final product. Editing involves deciding what clips work well together and what kind of music or sound effects should be added. It also involves adding in different effects like text overlays, audio sync effects, audio mixing and more.

Distribution: Of course, once the editing has been completed, you have to decide how you want your video to be shared with the world. There are multiple ways you can distribute your video depending on if it is online or offline. For online distribution, you can send it out directly to people’s inboxes using email or embed it on a blog or social media account. To make sure that content reaches an audience when they need it most, many marketers use online marketing strategies such as email marketing and SEO.

Why is a tight video production process important?

A lot can be done in the initial planning stages of any project. Establishing the goals and timelines for each level of production is essential for managing the process effectively. A well-thought-out shot list will keep everything clear and allow for smooth execution as well as minimal delays. Another detail that will save time and money is staging a video test shoot before going into production.

Production is where all of your planning comes together. Ideation, strategy, shot lists, and storyboards make the process efficient. Good planning in preproduction allows for maximum efficiency when in production, especially with team coordination and equipment set-ups. The best way to create and stick to a timeline is to maintain a tight process. And time is money! Avoiding overruns and extra shoots ensure your project comes in on time and on budget.