Session delivered on an open 'taster day' for the MA in Multiplatform and Mobile Journalism at Birmingham City University, June 2019

1. MA Multiplatform and
Mobile Journalism:
Taster Day 2019

2. What I’ll cover:
• Why are online, mobile and social
different to other video?
• How to come up with ideas for video
• Tools and tips for doing it well (and
mistakes to avoid)

3. Different medium,
different rules
Speed and depth again.

4. - Experiential (‘being there’)
- Direct (raw, first hand)
- Speak (first person)
- Show (don’t tell)
- Explain (how, why)
New focus in online video
http://www.reportr.net/2011/09/30/how-online-video-is-different-from-television/

5. NYTimes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAEcmFHDdCk

6. Online, there is often no need for the
reporter as an intermediary, as a
user will have already read the story.
“Video clips now tend to get more
traffic overall than long-form news
programmes on iPlayer”. Traditional,
longer-form news video “is not – for
now anyway – proving that compelling
for news consumers online.”
Steve Herrmann, BBC, quoted in Alfred Hermida:
http://www.reportr.net/2010/09/20/lessons-bbc-online-video-works/

7. AJ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdfmZUOrGCk
“shared almost 20 million times on Facebook”

8. Mukul Devichand, BBC Trending:
1) You only have 7 seconds to
engage people: if you don’t, they will
go elsewhere.
2) A film can be any length, as long as
it’s compelling the whole way
through.”
https://medium.com/@david_hbm/making-great-online-video-don-t-imitate-tv-748e3dabfdfc

9. http://www.poynter.org/how-tos/digital-strategies/266699/tips-for-broadcast-journalists-
when-sharing-breaking-news-on-social-speed-trumps-beauty/

10. https://twitter.com/bbciowm/status/648459071213989888

11. Note the use of mic in Glastonbury video
https://twitter.com/itvcentral/status/748553070582210560?refsrc=email&s=11
https://www.facebook.com/bbcbreakfast/videos/1351117164902418/
https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews/videos/10153699488647217/

12. https://twitter.com/bbcr4today/status/776144928296632323

13. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/11374303/Newcastle-upon-Tyne-a-modern-city-sinking-under-austerity-cuts.html

14. http://birminghameastside.com/romanian-presidential-elections-birmingham/

15. https://vine.co/v/OwqMbYdB3M5
Editing - even in 6 seconds

16. http://www.expressandstar.com/sport/wolverhampton-wanderers-fc/2015/10/07/watch-tim-spiers-60-second-wolves-update-
october-7/

18. https://www.facebook.com/bbcnewcastle/videos/10153928275686279/
facebook.com/bbcnewcastle/videos/10153842555766279

19. “Facebook is a lot more about personal identity and interacting with
friends, while YouTube is a lot more about consuming video, so they
have pretty different audiences.”
http://digiday.com/publishers/inside-buzzfeed
-video/

20. LIVE video

21. LIVE video
https://twitter.com/jemmacrew/status/7659848925
51368704
https://www.periscope.tv/w/1ypKdPZyLzpKW

22. 1.Illustrate the story (like pictures) e.g.
raw footage
2.Add to the story (like links) e.g.
explainers, full interviews
3.Distil the story (like headlines) e.g.
social video
4.Tell the story (standalone)
What does the video do? 4
stages

23. 1.How would you Illustrate the story (like
pictures)?
2.Add to the story (like links) e.g.
explainers, full interviews, behind scenes
3.Distil the story (like headlines) e.g.
social video
4.Tell the story (standalone)
Do it now: for today’s stories

24. mobile video:
tools and tips
.

25. https://onlinejournalismblog.com/2016/06/15/vertical-video-journalism/
https://pinboard.in/u:paulbradshaw/t:tentowatch

26. https://medium.com/@jonsteinberg/vertical-video-86a68c45ac06
“Snapchat has told us that vertical video
ads have up to 9x more completed views
than horizontal video ads.”
Vertical video! The horror!

27. “The Times’ video was designed from the
beginning to be as compelling viewed
vertically as horizontally.”
https://medium.com/@jonsteinberg/vertical-video-86a68c45ac06
http://www.niemanlab.org/2015/09/the-new-york-times-wrestled-with-many-dimensions-of-video-to-visualize-the-making-of-
a-hit/

28. https://twitter.com/mikedee_ajl/status/657197470787764224

29. - InShot: edit video in square, vertical or
landscape

30. https://twitter.com/dermedientyp/status/1058363970686476288

31. https://ideas.dissolve.com/tips/social-media-cheat-sheet-for-video-specs

32. - Mobile uses variable frame rate (VFR)
which can cause issues when importing
- Final Cut Pro X converts better
- Filmic Pro allows set frame rate
- Custom apps (e.g. BBC’s PNG) have
built-in settings for programmes
A note about VFR...

33. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YsediItYmls&feature=youtube_gdata_player

36. Tips:
Composition
Shoot for sound
Edit yourself out: no questions
Don’t cut on movement
Let subject ‘breathe’

37. Film a 6 second sequence using
Instagram
Take a photo/video clip and turn into
caption-video using iMovie/InShot
Film the answer to 1 question: 60 secs
max!
Do it now!

38. Key points:
• Have a reason to do online video:
illustrate, add to, distil, or tell a story
• Have an objective: explain, provide
direct experience, etc.
• Consider composition and sound. Take
yourself out. No longer than it has to be.

39. Practise using video apps - look for
opportunities
Plan some mobile video for a mobile
news day. What is happening that you
could film? Who could you seek out?
What next?

40. Pinboard.in/u:paulbradshaw/t:
onlinevideo
Pinboard.in/u:paulbradshaw/t:youtube+r
esearch
Further reading.