Attorneys on Film: On Set with Boston Law Firms

Skillman Video Group was founded in Boston and we love working with other businesses that have deep roots in Boston. Foley Hoag is an important and unique Boston law firm founded in 1943 in the heart of the Financial District. The firm first began working with Skillman in 2013 and their most recent project with SVG was an interview style video shoot for their partners in Korea.

The Importance of Being Early

Boston videographers Chuck Green and Mike Brigida led this on-location shoot. The goal was to shoot a partly scripted conversation between two senior attorneys and then send the final footage overseas to the South Korean office by that evening. Communications manager, Brian Dygon met with Skillman outside the Foley Hoag offices in the scenic Boston seaport district. A smart Boston video production team always arrives to set early in order to have adequate time to set up the shot.

“I always arrive early, hoping to gain some extra time to set up thoroughly before any time pressure kicks in” says Chuck Green, “I was happy that we got the opportunity to do so.” Something that doesn’t happen very often Green also noted.

Getting the Shot

There are a lot of small details to consider when shooting video footage and SVG understands the preliminary work that goes into getting “the perfect shot.” On this specific shoot we used two separate cameras to capture single shots of each attorney and footage of them both talking together. When shooting on site, Boston videographers must work with their environment to create a camera friendly setting. In this case, we had to set up shop within the Foley Hoag offices. There was some pre-existing damage on one of the walls and in order to avoid “seeing” the damage the scene was strategically set to hide the unsightly spots on the walls.

Microphone placement is also key when shooting video. Lavalier microphones can be discretely attached to the clothing of the speakers to improve sound quality. The location of the boom microphone controls the sound quality and the boom microphones must be placed close to the speakers while also being out of the frame.

Per special request, on this shoot we used two flip charts to display the loose script for the speakers to follow during the shoot. The flip charts were placed off camera in a position so that when the attorneys looked for their lines their eyes would still be on the videographer, which is just a little video production trick.

Working on Our Feet

For this shoot, both speakers needed to be positioned where they would both be complemented by the lighting and background. Our team carefully considered every staging option before setting on a final position for the speakers. We had to be aware of the windows in the room and the type of lighting that they would provide, how it would look on camera and how long it would stay in the same place. Natural lighting moves faster than one would think, so it is important for Boston video production companies to work quickly and in accordance with the sun. Both attorneys were placed in positions where the natural lighting flattered their eyelines and made them look good on camera.

It is important for a Boston video production company like SVG to feel comfortable when stepping onto set. There is a lot of pressure to get everything right and on time, and video producers must also be able to effectively communicate with the clients and people on camera. When SVG arrived at Foley Hoag there was an immediate connection between the videographers and the lawyers. The production crew and law team got along very naturally and all agreed that it was a fun day on set. “We ended up filming them afterwards in several other locations in the building.” This provided us with an exciting, short closing address and some general background material that can be used as B-roll footage. 

The Foley Hoag shoot was a technical success and was also an all-around fun experience for both the attorneys and video team.  Boston videographers are good communicators and always arrive to set professional, prepared and ready to shoot. When filming video, it is important to have a keen eye on everything that is happening, and luckily everyone at SVG has 20/20 vision.

Skillman Videography Group LLC specializes in video production Boston. Call us anytime at 1-800-784-0140.