Remote Video: L.E.K. Consulting

Video production is an art. It takes time, and skill to perfect the craft. That’s why it is so hard to produce a video remotely. You need resources, equipment, and patience. Boston video production agency, Skillman Video Group, has just that. Our “Producing Video Safely in a Pandemic” blog post mentions the basics of how to succeed with high-quality remote video.

In this post, we will go over how to shoot video remotely. As well as specifics of how we make our client, L.E.K. Consulting’s videos, especially during the pandemic. This will give you a better idea of how you can improve your company’s image in these hard times.

We’ve worked with L.E.K. since 2016. Because we have a strong relationship, it helps make the video production process a lot easier. Originally, we worked with them to develop their video brand standards and their on-screen look. Since the pandemic started, like many companies, they were hesitant to get back into video production. But we were recently given the green light to create marketing videos once more. With the pandemic still raging, they preferred not to have a crew or technician on site. Due to our flexibility, we were able to accommodate their needs.

Creating Video in Modern Times

Photo Credit: Medium.com

Modern times, as of a year ago, looks nothing like it did just two years ago. Our world has been flipped upside down and rolled over. This is why shooting a video from your home office is completely acceptable. It is even acceptable if you’re going after huge corporate companies. However, this does not mean just take out your phone and start recording.

Going after big companies means having an enterprise-level video look, not user-generated. When you think of enterprise you may think of an office full of people. But right now it’s not appropriate to show everyone working in a corporate office. The audience you are trying to reach is still six feet apart from the person next to them. Bringing in a team whether in person, or virtual is your best bet.

Christina Skillman, CEO and Creative Director of SVG, sat down, with our client, multiple times. She guided them through the process of capturing the best quality video, step-by-step, with a lot of remote coordination and teaching.

Trial and Error

First Attempt

Photo credit: Pexels.com

The first of two attempts was a noble effort from both parties. This included using the video conferencing service, Zoom. The footage was looked obviously compressed and turned out grainy. While audiences are used to seeing the quality that video conference services provide, the level of quality would not be appropriate if the video will still be used for marketing after the pandemic has ended.

For a video to be evergreen, you would need to make sure of a few things. One, no masks in the video. Audiences cannot see the talent’s face and cannot easily pick up on emotion. Also, masks clearly “date” the video to the pandemic. Two, you want the video to be well received. To do this, the video should be high quality and be visually pleasing to the viewers.

Second Attempt

Since footage shot over the internet did not meet the standards the client was looking for, the next option was to capture the footage natively. In this scenario, the client had to be the technician. This means they had to set up everything and manually adjust the shots themselves. If we sent a technician the client wouldn’t have to do anything. But with remote video, they have to assume the responsibilities of the crew. They become the DP, the sound technician, and all other crew members all wrapped up in one. However, Christina expertly instructed them through the whole process.

Success: How It Was Achieved

Christina coached them on, how to talk to the camera, and not at the image of themselves displayed on the phone screen. It is natural to look at the image on the camera screen and not the camera lens, so we had to spend time breaking that habit for the shoot. Christina also taught them how to set up lighting, set focus, and make adjustments. For L.E.K.’s most recent video we had to ship out small flexible tripods, as well as a ring light. It was essentially a creator’s starting pack.

Communication is key. Creating L.E.K.’s video meant constant communication. Both from them and SVG. Coaching the talent, and multiple takes are was allowed for a successful video shoot. Identical to every other video, post-production remained the same.

This remote shoot required a lot of patience and flexibility. This is what the world has come to in 2020-2021. There are still plenty of ways to create beautiful content to grow your company and brand. Check out more ways by reading more blogs or emailing us at [email protected] for more information to get started on your very own project.