In the previous post in this video production blog series, we uncovered Strategy: the crucial set-up for successful video production.
In the business of video production, many directors have had their say on the importance of the script. It’s The Script. If you can’t hear the capitalisation and italics when you say it out loud, you’re not placing enough importance upon this step; it’s the second essential step to successful video production.
“You can’t fix a bad script after you start shooting. The problems on the page only get bigger as they move to the big screen,” says Howard Hanks.
Alfred Hitchcock agrees, “To make a great film you need three things – the script, the script and the script.”
So why is it, as Frank Capra elaborates, “the toughest part of the whole racket… the least understood and the least noticed”?
Despite their advice and emphasis on the importance of scripting, this crucial part of the video production process is still overlooked.
Perhaps with the amount of misinformation and abundance of resources for DIY video production, the pro’s advice gets swept away under “she’ll be right” self-assurance. But if you’re undertaking the mission of making a video, then scripting is your creative tactical blueprint, and it will see you to the front lines and back again for mission success.
This often over-looked step in video production can make or break the final product. That being said, not all videos require a full script – there are some types of videos that come together in the editing suite, for example. candid interview videos, where an interviewee’s answers cannot be known. This requires more of an outlining roadmap than a frame-by-frame tactical breakdown. But for anyone looking to not just make but harness video from a defined idea, the script will set you up for a successful process.
Video production scripts do not look like typewriter-font Hollywood scripts that the silver-screen stars see; they are a two-column table outlining the audio-visual rundown of the project underway. Designed for the team who will be bringing the video to fruition, the Visual column stipulates the contents of the frames we see (live action, animation, cartoons, infographics, etc) and Audio column details all sound: voiceovers, music, sound effects, etc.
For an example of a script in effect, check out the first 45 seconds of this video redbikini made for the Murray Bridge #MakeItYours campaign, and its correlating script:
Note the differences, how scripts can be adapted and subject to change to achieve the best video outcome possible. Some things cannot be foreseen pre-shooting, language used can be revisited, opportune shots taken, and graphics made more aesthetically appealing and logical.
Depending on the type of video you are looking to produce, the goals, and the audience you have in mind for it, the script needs to reflect this. The scripting process is preceded by a strategy meeting, as discussed in the previous blog post. Having done that, your team and our writers can get creative! This often means sitting down with us and having a chat about the ways in which you want to achieve your goals and the story you want to tell. The video script is best case scenario of the creative vision you want to bring to life.
In our next post of this series, we organise people, places and things with step 3: Pre-production.
Scripting is the fun part! For our talented team here at redbikini, we’re passionate about the video production adventure. If you want to have an obligation-free conversation about your video concept and story-telling ideas with a cutting-edge corporate video production company, give redbikini a call today.
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