Author: jennifer

Last week, President and Senior Producer, Jennifer Donaldson, sat down with Sam Vaghar of The Millennium Campus Network to talk about the ways in which his organization brings student organizers together to advance global development. We’re excited to share his story and see what he does next!

After watching Charlie Baker’s latest Web video, I am proud to say that I would happily vote Robert Lewis Jr. for Massachusetts Governor! Charlie Baker? Eh.

Clearly, this video would be really wonderful if it was just about Robert Lewis Jr. and his noble organization. After all, the visuals are beautiful. From the very beginning, buzzwords are thrown at me in fast dynamic form, making me feel like I’m about to dive into an ESPN special on my favorite athlete. However, I’m not. Instead, I’m watching a very charming non-profit leader discuss pressing community issues over intermittent b-roll of a stiff politician shaking hands and swinging a baseball bat. In fact, this video is so determined to hide Baker that it doesn’t really let him speak until two-thirds of the way through the piece. And when he does pipe up, the energy level sinks. No amount of words flying towards your face can bring it up again. There’s even a fantastic shot at 2:15 where the camera focuses on a guy throwing a baseball and then switches focus to Charlie Baker’s face with faultless timing, but all of these quick shots, texturized sounds, modern graphics and shall we say, lipstick … can’t make up for the fact that you’ve got a boring candidate.

So, kudos to the production company who put this together. You’ve got some very cool tricks up your sleeve, but all of this hullabaloo brings more attention to the fact that you’re just trying to disguise the true nature of the product.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7EaWJu2YhUU

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This month, Digital-11 covered a variety of events honoring the 25th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Protests. Here is an interview recently aired on CBS News that was produced by Digital-11’s Jennifer Donaldson. In this piece, Ted Koppel speaks with protest leader Chai Ling about her experience during that historical time and what she has taken away from her experience. Pictured below are survivors from the Tiananmen Square massacre as they testify at a Congressional Hearing 25 years after the events took place. Digital-11 attended the hearing to capture material for future projects that will highlight the protests.

Here’s a peek behind the scenes of the first ad shoot for gubernatorial candidate, Jeff McCormick. Digital-11 was on set to consult and capture it all!

1. GCO Corporate Presentation Intro

I can’t imagine anything more vague, confusing, or…nonsensical.

Props for being under a minute, but this was still too long for such a boring video. And a waste of time for whoever made this. Regardless of all the buzzwords that were used and all the animated businesspeople that were shaking hands and wearing graduation caps, I have no clue what this company does. The words they used on-screen are so general they could be describing a chair.

And the music! Yikes. I understand that work should be enjoyable, but I don’t want to feel like I’m walking into a dark and dirty club. And even I did, I don’t want to go inside this one.

Sometimes a great video can be done with graphics alone. But I would hope for something—anything!—that actually relates to the subject of your video. Even a picture of a company building or staff members (not stock photos, please!) could add something (anything!) to which your audience could relate. Why would I want to ask more questions about this company if they can’t tell me a single thing in their video? How could I trust them to tell me what sets them apart if they can’t even show me?

With visual graphics, you can create just about anything these days. At the very least, you want to grab your viewer and make them want to hear your story. Not leave them wondering what just happened…

2. Samsung 840 EVO Series Solid State Drive Video

Having no video is bad. But having a poorly scripted and produced video is worse. Here’s the thing. No matter what, you don’t want your audience to feel like they’re being lied to. Even if these are actors! Of the many jobs a Producer has, one is to bring out authentic moments from the people with whom they work. There are several ways to do that, but a bad script can tank the whole thing. For instance, this video looks absolutely gorgeous. The graphics are spot-on. Everything is clear and bright as day. The footage is ruined, however, by these blatantly fake reactions to a slow computer. Over-acting is one of the worst bi-products of a strict script.

On top of that, it’s 2014. When talking about computers, don’t write your one female character to be a googly-eyed housewife while the boys are already hacking into the system. Do you hear that? It’s the sound of 8 zillion eye-rolls.

Sure, all videos are selling something, whether it’s a Samsung product or empathy for abandoned puppies at a local animal shelter. Either way, you’re going to get more authenticity if you don’t really “stick to the script”. If you go into a shoot with a strict idea of exactly what you want out of it, you will most likely be disappointed. And your final product will make you cringe almost as much as this one has. Yes, without an exact script, you’ll probably come away with a ton of footage. Your job is then to edit it down to the most genuine story. You aren’t going to get it from re-shooting the same lame monologue until it’s dead in the ground.

Bottom line: Don’t leave your audience feeling like they just got duped by clicking the play button.

3. Cleveland Clinic’s Empathy: The Human Connection to Patient Care

Sure, I wanted to jump out the window by the time this was over. Yes, I look like I have pink eye right from trying to wipe away all my tears. Okay, I probably won’t be able to go into a hospital for a while. But this is an amazing video!

We meet our first patient at the entrance to the hospital, with a feeling as though we’re going in with him. The graphic reads, “Has been dreading this appointment. Fears he waited too long.” Oof, grabs you right away.

The camera follows patients and staff throughout every corner of Cleveland Clinic, documenting the thoughts of those in the waiting room, the hallway, elevator, doctor’s office, etc. Each thought comes with a face. The camera flows effortlessly from shot to shot, with added graphics that float alongside each person, mimicking the way in which our thoughts seem to move with us. The lighting is so white-bright that it feels sterile, like a hospital. And the music is simple so as to highlight the visuals while definitely pulling at our heartstrings.

The relationship between a doctor or nurse and patient can be frustrating. After all, a medical staff can seem inhuman, considering the pain they see firsthand every single day. However, this video destroys that idea in four minutes and twenty-three seconds. Without even hearing a spoken word, the elements of this video come together to tell the audience one thing: We get it. And they’ve got us convinced! Well done, Cleveland Clinic. We’re gonna need more tissues.

Here are some snapshots from a recent shoot with a sweet spirit, great storyteller, and very talented artist, Bob Ketterson. Digital-11 President and Senior Producer, Jennifer Donaldson, spoke with him at his home in Arizona about his life-long passion for painting and what he’s doing next…

Urban Land Institute’s Building on Innovation Video

This is an example of a video that misses on all fronts… the camerawork, lighting and audio are all subpar. Even if someone produces a video for free for your organization, it would be better to have text only on your Site trying to get these ideas across than a video that is so distractingly unattractive.

In terms of the camerawork, the framing and camera placement on all shots is poor. For example, note the first shot of the panel from the side. The edit in the middle of a bad pan at 1:40 was jarring. The pan left across the speakers from 2:49 – 2:59 was unacceptable.

In terms of the lighting, the participants look sick and/or alien because of the lack of professional lighting and a misunderstanding of how to use available light. I can tell the lights in the room are on and there is a large uncovered window in the room. I’m guessing it’s a bright day. I know this because the natural light is making them look blue and the lights above their heads are giving them streaks of yellow. Natural light and tungsten light have completely different light temperatures and colors. Outdoor light reads blue and tungsten light reads yellow. It is not a good idea to try to use both kinds of light in the same shot.

In terms of audio, there are microphones on the participants, but the audio is inconsistent. The moderator sounds hollow as if his microphone is not on and his audio is coming from someone else’s microphone. The gentleman next to him holds his microphone for the first part of the session and then clips it onto his tie too low to get good audio at the end of the presentation. The microphone wire that is not tucked in, or “dressed” does not look very professional.

Jeff McCormick’s St. Patrick’s Day Video

Here, we start with a bang. The opening grabs your attention and takes the viewer to the heart of the parade. Thanks to sharp editing and great natural sound, the energy of the parade comes through the screen and makes you to march along.

Going through, you get to know the candidate from his perspective as well as from the sidelines, thanks to short clips of community members and parade-goers who share their insight on what it will mean to have a new Governor who is an Independent and whose focus is creating jobs. The messaging is strong.

The top notch videography as well as crisp editing work well together to move the story along. This video is a tad over two minutes, but seems much shorter.

The crowd comes off as a fun group that is giving a positive response to a new name in Massachusetts politics. After all, the camera found and focused on those people who were dressed to the nines in green getups and essential St. Patty’s Day dress. All of these details create an atmosphere of excitement that leaves you wanting more. What politician doesn’t want curiosity from a new crowd?

McConnell Working for Kentuckians Campaign Ad

Hahahahahaha! This is a scream and a current YouTube sensation. It has over 100,000 hits in only 6 days.

Senator Mitch McConnell is running for re-election and this simple 2 minutes plus video has no natural sound from any of the situations Senator Mitch McConnell is shown in and no interview sound from him, or narration explaining who he is and why one should vote for him, just music. There are no special effects or clever edits, it’s just Senator Mitch McConnell looking icky sitting behind desks, signing pieces of paper, accepting file folders and smiling. The smile looks so staged and uncomfortable that this video seems like a joke. In fact, many beginning with Jon Stewart have produced parodies of it.

What does this tell us? It tells us that Not All Videos are Created Equal and you never know what’s going to catch people’s fancy.

Note to self, next time I produce a video, I’m going to send it to Jon Stewart.

By the way … here’s Jon Stewart’s parody.

Please send a link for any video that you would like to have critiqued.
Jennifer@Digital-11.com

One minute of video is worth 1.8 million words[1]. With that kind of power, you’d want that video to be fairly decent, right? Well, remember that not all video is created equal.

In the old days it was a real commitment to change the channel, now you don’t even have to move your hand.  Research done by Visible Measures finds that you’ve got 10 seconds to grab your viewer and reel them in before they click away.  If your video is lacking in sound quality, enticing visuals, captivating content, and many other aspects that contribute to viewer engagement, then you’ve lost the power of 1.8 million words.

Recent research shows that viewers retain 95% of a message when they watch it in a video compared to 10% when reading it in text.[2] If your video is slow-paced, poorly edited, and tells an in-accurate story, then that negative message is going to stick with your viewer for a long time.

No Barrier to Entry

When I was first producing network news, you had to prove you were well trained in the art of storytelling, or that you were at least trainable.  Today, there is no such barrier to entry.

Anyone with an I-Phone, I-Movie or the equivalent can produce a video and get it onto the Internet.  Many companies think that Aunt Suzie or their nephew’s best friend who once videotaped Aunt Suzie’s wedding is good enough to produce a video for their site.  Other’s who watched an episode of “Murphy Brown,” “The Newsroom” or once worked at a marketing agency simply can’t understand why you have to HIRE someone to do what they are positive they can do.  It looks easy and plus it’s fun… Yes, it is fun to use video to tell a story, but the bottom line is it takes skill and not everyone has it.

Overcrowding

More video content is uploaded in 30 days than all three major U.S. TV networks combined have created in 30 years.[3] That means that the pressure to stand out amongst the crowd is crucial.

To do that you have to offer more than moving pictures, but a story that is MOVING.  Storytelling is imperative.  Besides being consistent in messaging, style and quality, digital content must be compelling, engaging and entertaining.  You engage people by giving them someone to care about, not just random video shots, loud music and crazy graphics.

Examples

Mothers Out Front is a non-profit in Boston made up of passionate women who came together out of a shared urge to combat the ever-growing climate crisis that is taking over the world. While their website is simple enough to navigate, when I look for more in their video, I am underwhelmed.  They have one video on their Website with a mother in a chair with her two children telling her story for the entire 4 MINUTES AND 56 SECONDS of the video.  There is no other image, no video, no photographs, no headlines or photos helping to tell her story and not only do I have to strain to hear what this woman is talking about, but in no way do I connect with her, feel her pain or sense an urgency for this cause. In fact, I am dreading the next 4 minutes and 56 seconds because I know it will feel like an eternity… This is an example of when text would be compelling.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2YT3zXT40YU#t=101

Hunters Estate Agents is a real estate firm in England.  They use an energetic song  (which I doubt they have the rights to) and there’s a stuffed penguin in a chair, but I could not be more confused as to what they are trying to sell me, and the first reason is that I can’t hear the audio. The sound quality is so poor that they even have to use subtitles at one point!  It becomes clear that they started with a message, though the story is jumbled and quickly falls apart.  But at least, by the end of 2 minutes and 37 seconds I know what every nook and cranny of their office looks like.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_iXuPhO0WSQ

With RACO Card Solutions prints plastic identification cards and their marketing strategy is stuck in the past. Until I saw that this video was uploaded in 2009, I was convinced that this was a piece from the 80’s. There is a brief and poorly shot introduction of an employee and then her voice under uninspiring, poorly shot and edited video for an additional two very long minutes.  There is no story and no people to care about, or relate to and the office looks like a snooze.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDWaUWBNVd4&list=PLC82222B39C2A0788

We’re loving this article about the enhancements that come with adding video to your marketing strategy…
The PR Power of Pink Surgical Gloves