Our seven-part blog series detailing the essential steps to help nail your video content marketing is nearing the end.
Having already covered strategy, scripting, pre-production, production day and editing and animation, we’ve arrived at step 6 – finishing and delivery. You’re so close to seeing your masterpiece in all its shining glory!
What exactly happens at this stage?
Well, finishing, as the word suggests, is about completing your video, adding those final touches and the art of finesse. You’re at a significant point in the process – fantastic script, a successful shoot and raw material that’s been edited into a storyteller’s dream. Now it’s time to add the last bit of polish to make your video shine.
First things first, this is still a stage where some technical steps need to be followed before your video masterpiece is complete and ready to be shared with the world.
-
GRADING
Like photoshop but for moving images, grading improves a picture’s overall quality through performing adjustments, such as lighting, on it. The amount of grading required depends on the project, as some will require more than others. Some projects might feature content derived from various sources (such as different businesses) or that were shot at different times or using different cameras, which might mean that features such as skin tone, lighting, and overall film quality seem ‘off’. However, the beauty of the grading process is that it provides editors with an opportunity to make the overall finished product look and feel consistent.
2. SOUND MIX
This is where every single sound element in your project is mixed to maintain its overall prominence without overtaking other audio files used within the video. This part of the process could also include sound design, which can occur at this, or an earlier editing stage.
What is the difference between sound design and sound mixing?
In a nutshell, sound mixing is a technical element, while sound designing is the pixie dust added to enhance the overall project. Sound design is all about combining audio aspects such as sound effects and music to improve your project. In contrast, mixing is about balancing it out ad equalising so that audio is at the right level.
For example, sometimes footage shot in slow motion is done without audio, so sound needs to be added afterwards to bring the scene to life.
3. VERSIONING
In the next part of the finishing process, versioning is particularly important if your project is bound for delivery to another country. It might mean changing the voiceover, creating subtitles or altering motion graphics in another language. However, this would often be discussed in pre-production to make the versioning process as cost-effective as possible.
4. DELIVERY
There are as many different places to showcase your video in today’s technology-driven age as there are ways to make it. And that’s a lot. Social media, shopping centres, digital signage at sporting events, TV – get the drift? But it’s important to note that each of these mediums has specific requirements on how your video is delivered to ensure quality viewing.
The main elements to consider are the aspect ratio, meaning the size and shape of your screen, as some formats may require square video or Ultra HD, some may be short in height or on the other end of the scale – cinema screens. Again, this is something that would be discussed in pre-production so that the footage will work in whichever way it is executed.
At the finishing stage – but often discussed at pre-production – the editors could also be asked to provide a cut version of the video to suit other mediums.
5. FORMAT
Another factor to consider during the delivery stage is the format your video could be required in to suit other mediums. This will involve technical aspects such as pixel dimensions, codec (file type) and file size. As an example, for cinema, video files need to be in a super-high-quality format or Adobe to enable projection on the screen.
6. APPROVALS
There are also processes to go through for your content to be given publishing approval. Television commercials, in particular, need to go through an approval process (similar to a rating process), called ClearAds, to be given a classification, which determines what sort of programming they can be shown in. This is particularly important if the subject matter is sensitive. In these instances, pre-approval can be sought at the script stage of video production to ensure the content is valid and verifiable.
CONCLUSION
In a nutshell, the ‘finishing and delivery’ stage of video production is about polishing your video before showcasing it to the world. Look at it like being ready to apply hairspray over your up-do but still having an opportunity to add some more curls or change the style if you want. In this instance, hairspray is sound design, sound mixing, colour grading, and other technical aspects such as file type and size. These are all critical steps to takes your video to the next level as it gets closer to publishing. Speaking of which, you’re almost there – next up, we’re talking all about the distribution of your masterpiece.
Here at redbikini, we live and breathe all things video production, offering more than 20 years’ on-set experience. We are experts and passionate about what we do, from quick social, to web or online videos, training videos, animated videos, corporate videos, promotional videos, sales videos, product launch videos, event videos, and TV commercials to long-form television programs and documentaries.
You name it; we do it. A one-stop-shop, redbikini’s full-service offering as a video agency includes pre-production, logistics, location scouting, casting, scheduling and more, and we’re only a quick phone call, or email, away from providing our expert advice and guidance.
Follow our blog to stay up to date with the latest from redbikini.
