Our Process for a Video Production

Using unscripted interview and/or b-roll footage to create a video story

(In other words, not a movie.)

The process is the most mysterious part to clients. Especially when the intention is to interview a lot of people and shoot footage of an event. How do we go from shooting a whole lot of footage to a polished, edited video that concisely tells a story? 

To give clients an idea of our process, we have made a visual graphic which can be seen here on our website, or under “Our Process.” However, it doesn’t outline details nor what may only be specific to video production.

So, what are the specifics of each phase for a video production that plans to use interviews and/or b-roll footage? Or, in other words, unscripted footage?

The Video Production Process

Pre- Production

Interview and/or b-roll video is essentially a “Creating with What you Have” approach. Meaning, we will be editing footage that cannot be storyboarded or scripted beforehand. But we can still mold it through planning and editing to relay a desired message. Pre-Production planning includes:

1. Scheduling –To maintain the budget, the shoots need to be done efficiently. This typically means scheduling every interviewee for the same day and location. The more times camera, lights and audio equipment have to be picked up moved, the more it will cost. See our blog, “Efficiency Equals Cost Savings,” for more info
2. Interview question writing – Kohlitz works with the client to write out the questions we will ask of the interviewees. The questions should be written in such a way as to elicit the answers we are looking for, and thus, the story we want to convey.
3. Consulting – Kohlitz will advise on best strategies for accomplishing the best and most efficient video shoot possible. We can help pick a location for the interviews, advise on how to best dress for video, and recommend strategies.
4. Hiring, Managing & Rental – Kohlitz will handle the hiring and managing of any crew needed, as well as any additional equipment that may need to be rented.

Production

Camera, lights, action! This is what we’ve been preparing for, and if we’ve done our planning well, we will capture the story we want.

1. Video Shooting –  Shooting of interviews and/or b-roll footage. For the interviews, Kohlitz can help direct, even asking the interview questions if needed (although it’s better if the client can do the interviewing.) For b-roll shooting, we typically wander around the event or location, capturing ideal moments that help deliver the desired message.
2. Crew & Equipment – Kohlitz will provide all equipment and hire any crew needed for the video shoot

Post-Production

Post-Production is the last piece of the puzzle. After all, at this stage we only have gigabytes of video footage, some good and some bad, but isolated from one another, not really telling a story.

1. Editing – The editor creates a shorter video using only the best clips from the pile of footage, editing in music, and possibly graphics and text, to communicate the appropriate theme.
2. Music– A stock music bed is selected by Kohlitz and paired with the video. Music is typically licensed for strictly web usage only, unless the client specifies an intention to use the video on tv, for which a broadcast license is required. Or, the client may optionally provide the music.
3. 1st Review or “75% Review” – This is when the client will first see the video, from beginning to end. This gives the client a chance to provide detailed feedback. 
4. 2nd Review or “90% Review” - The term “90%” means the almost finished product. It provides an opportunity to make minor changes and check for errors in the production. Major comments should be provided with the 75% Review.
5. Audio Mixing – Audio mixing is the process of combining and editing the levels of the voiceover and music, so as to create a smooth and enjoyable listening experience.
6. Final Delivery – The final video will be delivered in high quality HD (1920x1080), unless specified otherwise.
7. Captions – This does not appear on the Process graphic but we will also deliver a captions file. Captions are optional text that can display during the play of a video. This gives a viewer the option to read along with what is being said. We can provide an .srt file which is basically a transcript with time codes that aI computer can read. You upload that along with the video in any video host that supports captions (YouTube and Vimeo for example) and have accurate, time correct captions that are ADA compliant.

As you can see, there are many stages but Kohlitz will be taking you though this process step by step.