10 Holiday Video Tips from an Award-Winning Producer December 21st, 2012 / Comments: 0 * FIRST TIME AT PIXORIAL? Click here to create your free 7 GB account – that’s enough space for over 150 videos * ‘Tis the season for amazing memories! Earlier this week, we sat down with veteran documentary producer Skip Sweeney for some helpful tips on how to create incredible holiday videos. Skip knows what he’s talking about; his work has been featured at the J. Paul Getty Museum and the New York Museum of Modern Art, and on PBS – to name a few. He offered these 10 practical tips: Pick your “establishing shot” – Like the outside of the house or the front door, and while recording add some commentary to set the stage. It’s also cute to have a little kid address the camera and say where you are and what you’re doing. Unveil great stories with family interviews – Interview relatives and friends with questions that share a little history or tradition. Think up question prompts that help open the door to a subject they know. Don’t ask yes or no questions! Say things like, “Hey, I’m trying to remember that story you used to tell about Uncle Joe, can you remind me how it went?” or “Can you tell me about what Christmas morning was like when Dad was in first or second grade?” Mix old and new - Look for old family photos and grab some video of them. Put a photo album on a table and flip through it page-by-page while you record (or have Grandma do it while you record). Grab the box of family videotapes and film and have them digitized. Capture the preparation – Make sure to shoot the kitchen: there’s always a bustle of activity there before and during a party. This is a great place to record at various points during the event. Catch Mom or Grandma making one of their famous holiday recipes; ask them to explain how they make their special dish. Record the progression – Capture video of the dining room, from setting the table to laying out the food, to the diners gathering. Park the camera – Let the camera run; people will forget about it and you will capture great moments. Simply place it on the table or a nearby shelf, hang from a curtain rod or use a mini-tripod. Just find a place to leave the camera running during the meal – this should give you a great “master shot” of the dinner for later editing. Add interest with unconventional perspectives - If you’re going to record little children or pets, get down to their level – literally. Get on the floor, and point the camera up at the little ones from just a few inches above the ground – you’ll get a great view of their perspective. Outside looking in – Go outside the house, and shoot in through the windows. This provides really interesting, candid shots (because people usually won’t pay attention to you if you’re shooting from outside). Consider sound – Chances are some of the video will be loud and confusing. Capture it anyway and add music over the parts where the sound is overwhelming or hard to hear. Add extra flavor – Stealing a page from some of the cinematic pros, some of the best footage is often the “extra” footage or B-roll as it is called in the movie industry. Record the Christmas tree with decorations, lights and presents, record the “aftermath” wreckage of all the ripped-up wrapping paper strewn everywhere, a gingerbread house, the wreath on the front door and the dog wearing his special holiday collar. You get the idea. Above all, says Sweeney, make sure you shoot at least a small amount of video of every guest. That makes for the best memories later on, so be sure to capture the entire gang. More About Skip Sweeney Skip Sweeney is an award-winning video producer who founded San Francisco-based Video Free America in 1970. Video Free America personnel have produced, shot and edited hundreds of documentaries, commercial productions, travelogues, children’s features, dance and art performances creating programs for PBS and international broadcast. Skip’s documentaries tend to focus on intimate, family-centered storytelling, and The J. Paul Getty Museum and the New York Museum of Modern Art have honored him for his forty-plus years of contribution to video as an art form. Learn more at www.videofreeamerica.com
