Steve Stockman's Blog, page 16
July 22, 2012
Free Book Excerpt: How to Shoot Video That Doesn’t Suck
One of the great frustrations of the digital age is the death of bookstore browsing.
Not that it’s actually dead, since there are still bookstores. But browsing has become much more difficult. You have to put on clothes, for example, and shut off your big screen and go outside in the really bright light (I think it’s called “the sun”), and possibly have to travel some distance from the bedroom. And what if someone tried to talk to you while you’re at the store– you know, instead of texting you? Pretty scary.
People of the modern age, I’ve got you covered. Here’s a free book excerpt you can browse naked, while eating.
Click on the lower right square-thingy control for full-screen reading.
July 3, 2012
How to Compose a Shot that Doesn’t Suck
This is my first attempt at a birthday video since reading your book. I think I am starting to understand how to make a video that someone else will want to watch.
I included shots that are not really great because I think they’re what the client (my family in this case) wants. Did I do the right thing? How can I make my shots better?
Mike Padgett
Tough call on the client thing, Mike. You could assert yourself as an artist, but then your family would fire you and you’d be famililess, stuck forlornly scanning the want ads for rare openings for Dads. In this economy, nobody would blame you for caving to the man. Or, you know, the daughter.
Since I’m no expert on family politics, let’s just focus on shots. Great job keeping them (and the video) short and sweet. But your videos will perk right up if you focus more on how you compose your shots.
Composition is about telling the viewer where to look by making one subject and their action the most prominent, obvious thing in the shot.
Take this shot for example.
There’s not much action going on, and we have no idea where to look. We don’t know if the filmmaker wants us looking at the little girls at the table (left), the mom taking a shot (right), or the little girl watching (farther right). Or even the women in the background.
You can fix this by making sure that each shot has a clear hero (or subject) and action, and by framing that action clearly. That way the audience doesn’t have to guess what you want them to look at.
For example: What if you moved in closer during the party and got shots that only included exactly what you wanted them to look at? Something like this reframing of the two girls (subjects) playing (action):
Then you cut to another clearly composed shot, this time a close-up of the little girl (subject) watching (action):
When you cut them together, you’ve told the audience a story in two shots about a little girl wishing she could play with her two friends. Everyone knows where to look, and everyone knows what’s going on. You can, of course, choose different shots and tell a different story. As long as you get in close and show the audience exactly what action you want them to see.
When you’re shooting documentary style, things happen fast. Not all of your shots will be well composed. But if you stay close to people and keep your eye on action, you should do pretty well. And if you look later and a shot doesn’t have a clear focus? That’s the shot you cut.
But be careful– your family seems a little touchy.
June 14, 2012
How to Shoot Vacation Video that Won’t Bore People to Death
This palm symbolizes "vacation." It's a long article, so I figured it needed a photo.
When I was a kid, the Armbrusters had a slide projector. Which meant that after every vacation they took, we’d troop dutifully to their house for endless carousels of badly-shot Kodachrome slides, narrated live. The slide show always seemed longer than the vacation itself. Washed-out, badly composed views of Disneyland or Paris—dotted here and there with the back of the head of someone we knew.
Today technology has changed everything. People can record hours and hours of vacation video on a single chip. But they don’t trap you in their living rooms anymore. Instead they email links to their hour-long video and quiz you about how you liked it.
Who would do such a thing? 90% of us own some kind of video camera, and more people shoot and post vacation video every day. We have met the Armbrusters and they are us.
Luckily for the bore-ees, technology is also a good defense. Today if the video’s bad, we watch 10 seconds and click off to “Family Guy.” Then we lie to each other’s faces about how good the video was.
Oh, wait– you actually WANT people to watch your vacation video? No problem. Start by shooting vacation video that’s entertaining. It’s not hard. All you need is a little bit of thought ahead of time and the awareness that– whether it’s you, your kids or your friends– your video just may have an audience.
Here’s how to shoot vacation video that won’t bore people to death:
1) Shoot Short Shots: A shot is like a sentence—it has a noun and a verb. Together the noun and verb are what keep the “move” in “movies.”
On your backpacking trip a random video clip of “Bob” is not a shot. “Bob picks up his pack” is a shot. “Bob hikes down the trail” is a shot. To keep your shots short, stop shooting when the action is complete. “Bob hikes down the trail” is interesting for about 5 seconds unless Bob falls off a cliff. So once you’ve got the action covered, be done. We don’t need to see Bob’s back for another 30 seconds as he heads off into the distance. [more on short shots]
2) Shoot People, Not Scenery: Think about why you’re shooting vacation video in the first place—to remember.
The Empire State Building will probably look exactly the same 10 years from now, In case it doesn’t, thousands of great photographers have already shot it better than you can. What makes your vacation video special is that your kids went up the Empire State Building—and your kids are going to look completely different in 10 years.
“But the scenery’s so beautiful” you say. It is– in person. Video of the Grand Canyon looks great in Imax, okay on your 42” flat screen, and like tiny blurry garbage on your iPhone. Unless you’re shooting Imax, best not to dwell.
Frame a great shot of the kids looking over the railing and that stunning canyon vista will look great too—in the background, where it belongs.
3) Find the Story: Instead of random shots of the family posing on a boat, find the story of everyone getting together and taking your parents on a cruise. Have your camera ready when you surprise them with the tickets. Interview your brother, who hates cruises but is coming anyway, armed with Dramamine and wrist-bands because he loves his parents. Shoot your dad tearing up as he gives a speech to the group at your first big dinner on board
What’s different about your vacation? Is it the family’s first time out of the country? Your daughter’s first plane flight? The Disney vacation you’ve been saving up for for 5 years? Think before you shoot. Tell that story.
4) Interview the Family: Video captures not just what we look like, but how we think. Which is perfect for that embarrassing wedding video 20 years from now. Don’t just interview the kids. Interview your spouse, your parents, strangers you meet on the trip. It’s a great way to capture the emotion of a moment in time.
Your five-year-old will never be 5 again. Ask her open-ended questions about what’s going on. Let her show you, explain to you, sing to you.
5) Shoot sparingly. If you shoot just 2 ten-second shots in each of 8 touring hours a day, that’s almost 3 minutes of footage a day. A week-long vacation is pushing an Armbrusturian 20 minutes—longer than anyone, including you, will actually watch. Practice being selective. Sure you can edit later, but will you? And even if you do, the shorter and better your footage when you start, the less work it is.
Do you have questions about shooting video? Of course you do. Click here and ask them!
A different version of this article was first published as How to Shoot Vacation Video that Doesn’t Suck on Technorati.
June 11, 2012
How to Use Story to Make Great Video
If you weren’t in New York last week, you missed a great Video Conference and Festival thrown by Vimeo.
Lots of great seminars and workshops at the sold-out event. I spoke on Saturday– if you couldn’t make it, here are the cliff notes– plus a whole bunch of links for further reading on story:
How to Use Story: 10 Points from Steve Stockman’s Workshop
@VIMEO Festival
June 9, 2012
1. Entertain or Die: Nobody watches bad video. There are too many instantly available alternatives. Remember the Entertainment Transaction: The audience pays (with time or money) the entertainment must deliver (with an experience).
2. Humans think in Story. We only move in one direction through time, so we perceive things as cause and effect. Which is story.
3. Stories intrigue us. And intrigue is the most important currency of modern entertainment.
4. The most memorable video tells a story. Not all videos tell story, but your video will be easier for people to remember and talk about if it does. And if it doesn’t, viewers will make their own.
5. The Simplest version of the elements of Story: Hero, Beginning, Middle and End.
6. Hero: Who or what your video is about.
7. Beginning. The hero has a want or need, or something happens to them.
8. Middle. They try to get what they want or need, or react to what happened.
9. End. They either get it or don’t, win or lose.
10. Every Element of Video must tell a story. Strong shots add up to strong scenes, which add up to strong sequences.
May 25, 2012
Five Tips on Making Demo Reels that Work
I’m wondering about demo reels. I’ve worked professionally as a producer (public affairs) for a local TV station, but after re-educating myself in a night program at Emerson College, I want to go off on my own. One of my tasks is coming up with a great sizzle reel.
Any thoughts on structure, contents, or style?
–Fred Pagano
PS: I bought your book last week at Barnes & Noble. It’s not an exaggeration to say that I devoured it, and I’m still rereading sections over and over again. Problem is, I tend to read it before bed and it keeps me awake!
Great question, Fred. And nice job sucking up so I’d pick your question to answer. Let that be a lesson to all of you.
Like other arts, video is a portfolio business. In order to judge whether you’re worthy of being hired, people will want to see what you’ve done before.
Which makes sense– why should I give you $10 million dollars to shoot a movie for me if your only demonstrated experience is shooting a cute video of your cat getting his head stuck in a tall glass while trying to drink water? Even if you got 56,000,000 views.
I can tell you what I might do on my demo reels, but since my idea of great structure, content and style is probably different from yours, that’s not going to be very helpful. The answers to your questions have to come from you. Here are some things you can think about as you figure it out:
1) Show only what you do well and love to do. Chasing trends in video or any other art is a ridiculous waste of time. Be yourself on your reel. That way you’ll attract those who like what you do, are likely to enjoy working with you, and likely to be repeat customers.
2) Use this as an excuse to shoot some more great stuff. Do you have a dream short video you haven’t gotten around to doing? Now you have to for your reel. Call in whatever favors you need from friends to shoot it on whatever camera you have. Look at Vimeo for inspiration– tons of great stuff from all levels of talent shooting on anything that records video.
3) Show only your best work. Not sure it it’s your best work? Just cut it. What you don’t show can’t hurt you.
4) Don’t make people guess what you’re interested in: If you want to do music videos, put music videos on your reel. Not everyone has the imagination to see how your political doc on Occupy Wall Street will make you a brilliant rap video director.
5) Keep your reel short. Pity the person who’s job is to watch awful reel after awful reel hoping to find a genius. Fresh, exciting and short will get them every time. If they’re still undecided, they can always ask for a link to your latest long-form thing.
May 18, 2012
Video as a Collaborative Art
I just shot my first video ever, and had some trouble getting the actors to do what I wanted.
When you’re directing, how much of the performance is up to the you, and how much do you let the actor come up with?
-Nick
How much do I let the actor come up with? All of it. As much as I’d sometimes (fortunately rarely) like to climb inside an actor’s head and push all the buttons myself, I can’t. Nobody can. The actor has to do all the work. I may try to help guide or manage, but you really can’t make actors do things they can’t– or don’t want to.
Usually directors who find it necessary to read every line, personally demonstrate every move and walk through the blocking get a lot less out of their actors than they’d like. After about 10 minutes of this, any decent actor is going to mentally retreat and phone in the rest of her performance.
But if you hire great talent, give them a clear picture of what you intend to happen and some space to contribute their own ideas, they’ll jump in and make it work. The more space you give them, the more they throw themselves into the job.
Since nobody likes to be micro-managed, the “give people space” thing turns out to be true for everyone on the set, not just actors. Which is good, because video is a collaborative art– you can’t do it by yourself.
Not only will you get great work when you invite great people to do their jobs creatively, you get surprising work– performances better than you expect, miraculous looking footage and terrific ideas from even the lowliest production assistant. Great performances– from everyone– are what make great film.
May 16, 2012
Great Sound? No Problem.
Nothing makes it harder to enjoy a video than not being able to hear what people say (okay, leaving the lens cap on is pretty bad too.)
My friend Jay Rose, sound professional and author extraordinaire, sent along this amusing video showing how bad sound pulls you out of a video, and how to prevent it.
Great sound is not optional.
May 11, 2012
What are Eyelines and Why Should You Care?
Here is a video that I shot after reading your book. Most woodworking videos are painfully boring, but I and another woodworker are trying to change that.
Can you give me any more tips?
–Brian
I have to admit it did not take much imagination for me to picture a boring video about woodworking. But Brian’s done a great job of making his pretty cool. Fun action shots, nicely framed, well edited. This video is probably fascinating for anyone more likely to pick up a lathe than I am. Which is pretty much everyone.
But for those who come to this site for video tips, let’s talk “eyelines.”
An eyeline is simply where an actor is looking when you’re shooting. (the famous Christian Bale Rant happened because someone walked through his eyeline– i.e. where he was looking– while he was acting a scene.) We care about eyelines because where an actor looks on screen give us information about his character.
For example in this video, I was wondering if Brian would be hurt by his lathe because he is obviously blind. Why else would he always be fixedly staring into the distance while talking to us? Okay, he’s not blind, as his master woodworking proves. But some of the interview shots it’s hard to be sure because of where he’s looking– his eyeline.
For a more intimate interview look next time, Brian, try seating the interviewer right next to the camera, with her eyes at lens level. Then when you look at her, you’ll be looking almost right at us.
Check your eyeline by playing back your video. Make sure you like the message your look sends.
Do you have a question about video? Of course you do! Ask it here.
May 4, 2012
The Devils Ride and the Big Apple
This post consists entirely of self-serving news. Exciting news, but self-serving nonetheless. Those who wonder when we people in the entertainment business will just shut up about ourselves can look here to find something else to read.
Motorcycles
I’m executive producing a new show for the Discovery Channel that debuts this Tuesday, May 8 at 10pm. It’s called The Devils Ride, and it’s about a San Diego Motorcycle Club. Here’s the cool Discovery Promo. If you crave more info and can’t wait for Tuesday, Entertainment Weekly has an exclusive three minute sneak preview.
Vimeo Festival + Awards
I’ll be doing a cool new workshop on storytelling at the Vimeo Festival + Awards on June 9th in New York City. The festival starts on the 8th, and features great parties, awards, screenings and lots of other video workshops.
I’m still writing the workshop but I’m pretty sure it’s about how to find the story in your video and why finding one makes your video more intriguing to an audience. Even if it doesn’t have, say, a bunch of hard-ass bikers in it.
Should be fun- see you there!
April 30, 2012
Great Video on no Budget: It’s all in the Brains
Next time you get the question “how can we possibly do anything good with no budget?” pull out this video.
This is a well-shot video, don’t get me wrong. But it involves three characters, inexpensive production on what looks like a found warehouse set, and cheap effects– on purpose. For all we can know from looking at it, it was shot on an iPhone. What makes it a great, effective, and very funny video is the human brainpower that went into thinking about it ahead of time.
Great writing, a clear story and a great performance from the lead character. Awesome.
