A "How To" To Video News

This is the handout for regional training participants regarding video news concepts, including determining what is news, video production terminology, brainstorming and storyboarding, recording guidelines, and tips for interviews.

What is news?
Information that is of broad interest to the intended audience.
With that in mind, think about your audience. What is of
interest for YIGsters? (Example: changes to the conference
this year)

Words you should know:
• VO (voice over): the voice of an unseen narrator broadcast over footage
• B-roll: “extra” video footage taken to supplement the main elements of a news story
• Package: your voice over, b-roll, and soundbites [one or more interview segments of your subject(s)] included in a short story

What to think about before you film your story...
• What kind of news package do you want create? Is it a human
interest piece or hard news? Once you decide, plan out the script
and order of your story (this part is also called storyboarding).
• Make sure to answer the basic who, when, where, and why (the why
and how are usually answered by your interview soundbites).
• Remember to show both sides of the issue!
• Plan in advance. Find out all the information you can before
actually going to cover the event or conduct your interview.
Contact possible interview subjects beforehand if possible.

A checklist before you go:
• the camera and a fully charged battery...even better, bring an extra battery
• a fresh tape
• a tripod (if you have one)
• a microphone
• headphones to listen to your audio during your interviews (don’t just
rely on your audio meters on your camera — your ears are your best audio tool)
• a reporters notebook and writing utensil (since we don’t use name graphics in the newscasts, you need to note in your script who you are interviewing and what delegation they are from)

Some notes about location:
When you arrive, take notice of things like lighting and noise and think about what will work the best. Example: open areas of the Capitol (like the hallways) have an echo and tend to be dark / the hotel lobby’s fountain will drown out sound.

Ready to tape?
• Record your package sequentially so that editing will be quick and friendly to the YIG schedule. [For example: start out recording a wide shot of the chamber for 10-20 seconds (stop recording), zoom into a medium shot to a group of desks and record for 10-20 more seconds (stop recording), and then zoom in to a close up of a lawmaker and record for 10-20 seconds — this is called shooting a sequence]
• Think about the shots you will take...you have plenty of options, and creativity is a good thing. Whatever you do, make sure you’re not going to make your watcher sick with too much/too quick movement — think “Blair Witch.”

Now let’s focus framing interviews:
• The subject should be facing slightly left or right of the camera. This shows that the subjectis talking to someone else and not directly too the viewer (which could get creepy). This iscalled giving the subject “looking room.”
• Avoid a profi le shot (where you only see the side of their face) or else the viewer won’t feellike a part of the conversation — you should always be able to see both eyes.
• Imagine drawing a tic-tac-toe grid on your TV screen and circling each intersection of lines. The subject on the camera should be in one of the main circled areas. Use a mediumshot (hits the middle of the body...and cuts off the subject at the bellybutton if someone is standing and they have a little space above their head) to medium close-up (the subject’s eyes are in the top 1/3 of the screen and they are cut off at the shoulders). Try to avoid cutting someone off on camera at a critical joint, such as at the knees, neck, or elbows. If your footage makes your interview with the subject look painful, then viewers will have a hard time concentrating on the actual interview itself.

Interview techniques:
• Have your questions planned ahead of time. If you are nervous and uncomfortable, your subject will be as well. So, be confident!
• Make sure your questions are clear and to the point...their answers should be too. If you don’t get a clear answer, feel free to rephrase or ask more directly. But, don’t push so hard that the interview becomes hostile or unfair.
• Avoid too much explanation. Think of concise questions like, “What does your bill do?” “Why is this important to you?” “How will it help the public?” They should be talking more than you.
• Remember, your subjects should say their name and their delegation before answering their question on camera.

Other things to remember:
During your voice over (VO), make sure to say your name(s) and delegation(s) when you conclude your story... “Reporting for the Parkway Delegation, I’m Joe Smith.”