IN PERSON DELIVERY: University of Birmingham, Murray Learning Centre room LG15 (what3words: took.marked.lasted)

Aimed at: All Years

Duration: 1 day

CENTA Training Credits: 2

Training Area(s): Engagement, Impact and Enterprise

This workshop is a first aid course for video production. It’s not going to make you a doctor. But if you’re put in a situation where you’re required to film something, or be interviewed on zoom, or make a video about your research, it might just save your life.

First of all we’ll talk through how I approach making videos, writing scripts, and choosing the right format for the story. There will be an exercise where in groups you come up with a framing and story structure for a piece of research.

After that we’ll talk through practical production - the equipment I use, and how I use it. This will be particularly relevant if you’re interested in making videos, but the concepts will also apply to any time you use a camera, such as everyday zoom calls. I’ll demonstrate the full workflow with a worked example production.

Lastly we’ll talk about video post-production, how I take the raw footage from cameras and microphones and make it into a finished product, both in terms of the software used, but also the philosophy of editing video and creating custom graphics. For those interested in pursuing science communication semi-professionally or professionally, I’ll also briefly discuss strategies for making, releasing and monetising content.

Learning objectives

• How to effectively structure a piece of visual communication

• Which media format to choose for a given objective

• How to light and shoot videos and photography

• Which equipment and software to use at different price points for video and audio content

• How to construct a video and related assets in editing software

Itinerary

• 10:00 - 10:30 Talk - Introduction, my story

• 10:30 - 11:30 Talk - Principles of videomaking: stories and format

• 11:30 - 12:00 Practical exercise

• 12:00 - 13:00 Lunch

• 13:00 - 14:00 Talk - Production techniques

• 14:00 - 14:30 Production exercise

• 14:30 - 15:00 Talk - Post-production techniques

• 15:00 - 15:30 Talk - Content strategy and wrap-up

Simon Clarke: Using Visual and Video Media to Communicate Science