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Storytelling Fellows

The Production Process

Video recording

Now that you have a script, you need a plan to get your project together. Develop a list of materials you will need to successfully complete your project. Some examples might include:

  • A storyboard, shot list or call sheet to help you organize your ideas and plan visuals for your video. This can help you to specifically arrange the order of your story.
  • A schedule of interviews for the upcoming project. You will want to notify your subjects in advance to avoid last minute scheduling issues.
  • A list of equipment. While you can certainly record both video and audio on your smartphones, UW also has some equipment available to rent via the Student Technology Loan Program (STLP).
  • Scout recording locations. If you’re filming or photographing items, consider the lighting and location of your subjects. If you’re recording audio, consider the recording environment.
      • Just a reminder to SHOOT B-ROLL FOOTAGE! B-roll video is supplemental footage you can use as establishing shots or to give greater context to a scene or idea. If you’re unable to record b-roll video, consider using free stock videos as a replacement. For any projects being shared entirely for the UW community, the Visual Asset Collection is available.

Audio recording

Your digital story is a representation of you as a researcher and your journey through the research process. As such, it is vital to hear your story using your own voice – both in writing and through audio recording. We encourage you to use a digital audio editing program such as Audacity or GarageBand to record your audio as your video editor may not provide native audio recording.

Here are a few simple tips on recording high quality audio at home:

  1. Use a dedicated microphone. A good quality microphone goes a long way when recording at home. Try to use something better than your computer’s built-in microphone. Your phone is also a viable microphone and can be decent if no other options are available.
  2. Record in a consistent environment. Try to control your recording environment as best you can. Record in the same room each time you record. New locations may introduce new ambient noise. Select a room with little to no background noise, if possible. This includes fans, air conditioners, outside noise, and any other disturbances.
  3. Dampen the sound. Be aware of your room acoustics. Don’t record in a large room or hallway that produces lots of echoing noise. Try to find a room with lots of carpeting or other types of padding in the general vicinity of your microphone (padded cubicle walls work well).
  4. Watch your microphone technique. Record some sample audio and listen to it to determine how you can vary your microphone technique to get the best sound. Are you too loud? Try to control your distance to the microphone. Are your P’s “popping” and your S’s “hissing”? Adjust the angle and distance of the microphone. Breathing too much into the microphone? Take controlled breaths or turn your head to the side with each exhale and inhale.

Editing

A mixed media presentation is a cornerstone of digital storytelling. Before you begin developing your video, you will want to collect media assets that can be included in your digital story. These assets can be:

  • Images used in your research (tables, graphs, charts, etc.)
  • Images of spaces or places associated with your research
  • Images of people associated with your research
  • Images that are metaphorical to your research
  • Recorded videos of your research
  • Audio clips recorded during your research

Remember that your script consists of your own words. If these words don’t feel natural, they will never sound natural. Consider recording shorter snippets of audio – 1 to 2 lines at a time – if that would be helpful. You can then merge them all into your video editor as though they were one long audio recording broken down into multiple clips.

Captions

In order to produce a video that ensures all members of an audience can access your content, you will include captions – or text synchronized with your audio content and video – in your project. Captions are helpful to members of the audience who are deaf or hard of hearing, who are non-native English speakers, and to help clarify technical terms within the narration. It can be a painstaking process to synchronize your text, but the benefits for inclusion are well worth the effort.

Best practices for Captioning

  • Each caption line should contain no more than 32 characters
  • Each frame (box) should contain no more than 2 lines of characters
  • Guidelines can vary based on format, but timing is roughly between 2-5 seconds per text block
  • Synchronize text with spoken words
  • Maintain the speaker’s style of speech (vocabulary, “ums and uhs”)
  • Identify sound effect captions for sound effects or background noise (Train whistle blows)
  • Don’t remove words that express meaning (but, so, too)
  • Don’t use color to convey meaning in captions!
  • If multiple subjects are speaking, identify each speaker
    • Mike: I like that!
    • Sam: I also like that!
    • Irene: Great!

Working with multiple tracks

A video project as a multi-layered object. You typically start with two tracks, Video 1 and Audio 1, in the timeline. You can add multiple tracks on top of those two initial tracks and create a blending of images, text, effects, sounds, and more. Some tips you should know as you maneuver in multiple tracks:

The top most track is the most visible layer. Anything you place on the top track will take precedent over items on tracks below it. If you place something on a track above another item, you will have to adjust the size and positioning on the top-track item in order to see anything underneath it.

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