As you all know, instead of giving 5 minute presentations, we are asking you to make short videos instead. These should cover the same topics your 5 minute presentations would. These should be 5 minutes maximum, though you may find that you can pack a bit more in when you are making a video, so may be able to tell your story in 4 minutes or so.

This shift in delivery produces (at least) two new challenges for you: you need to think about how your content translates to video form, and you need to figure out how to make a video.

As I think we have talked about before, these kinds of presentations are an act of storytelling. Stories about what you have done so far, and cyberpunk fictions about your near-future adventures doing your project. All of the same elements of the proposal can fit into this video based format.

If it is helpful, you might consider thinking of these videos in terms of a Kickstarter campaign video. Kickstarter has produced some good guidance on this process. Here is some guidance from their Creator Handbook. Their advice should sound familiar:

Who are you? Introduce yourself, your team, and any similar work you’ve done (show some examples!).

What are you planning to make? The more details, the better. Sketches, samples, prototypes — it all helps backers get as excited as you are.

Where did this project come from? Tell people how you got the idea, and how much you’ve accomplished so far. Sharing the project’s history helps others understand the kind of work you do, and how you go about it.

What’s your plan, and what’s your schedule? Lay out a clear, specific timeline for what backers can expect.

What’s your budget? A simple breakdown lets people know you’ve thought things through and have a workable plan, so they can trust you to use funds wisely.

Why do you care? Tell people why you’re passionate about your project and committed to making it happen.

Kickstarter’s Creator Handbook

Even the most startup tech-bro approach to the pitch video retains the key storytelling aspects we have been talking about: The Problem, The Solution, The Characters, The Features. Kickstarter videos, like most advertising, ends with some kind of Call To Action. It is worth thinking about whether or not your videos are a form of advertising, or if there is some kind of Call To Action you can or should add.

How To

Making a video may seem like a technically daunting task, but it can be as simple as propping up your cell phone on a level surface, and telling the story (like the late night hosts have been doing this week!) Or recording your voice and screen as you work your way through a powerpoint presentations (like many of us have been doing as we record flipped-classroom lectures for our asynchronous online courses.) If you want to get fancy, you can… but you don’t have to!

Camera and Sound

You should know that sound is more important than image. If you notice, Colbert and some of the others are using their wireless headphones… as a substitute for a lavalier microphone (not because they are getting stage directions from the control booth.)

Lighting will make or break your image: always make sure the camera is between your subject (you!) and the light source. The natural midday light from apartment windows is amongst the most beautiful, even and flattering light around.

Keep your camera still (unless you holding your camera is part of your story telling). A quick search reveals dozens of hacks for cell phone tripods.

Editing

Here are some technical resources for editing and screen recording. For screen recording on MacOS, you can use Quicktime; just be sure you do some tests to make sure the sound is working (I made that mistake yesterday and recorded an entire 35 minute demo with no sound!!) Windows also has screen recording functionality, though it may not be as straightforward. If you are already getting used to Blackboard Collaborate Ultra, you can also use the recording function to generate a video of whatever you might do on screen.

You can do basic video editing in Quicktime. If you are MacOS, iMovie is your best bet for a simple effective editor, with lots of YouTube tutorials; you can even get it for iOS, so you could conceivably shoot and edit the whole thing on your iPhone. If you are on Windows, Hitfilm Express is the best reviewed free video editor (I haven’t used it before); you can also use some of the built in tools to do basic editing. If you want to get fancy, DaVinci Resolve is currently the favorite free full-featured video editing software.

But remember, you don’t have to get fancy! You just have to tell a good story.