Documentary Filmmaking

Documentary Filmmaking is different than the usual project for Savvy. Documentary filmmaking is capturing real life, it’s not scripted or pre-determined. The best thing a filmmaker can do while making a documentary is have a clear vision, stay organized and communicate.

Since June 2017 Savvy has been producing, shooting and editing a short documentary for the Chester County Food Bank. As a result, Savvy has loaded and logged hundreds of hours of footage from several shoots. To manage the workflow and data, it’s important to keep the drive and files organized. Savvy remained concise and consistent through each data dump by naming the main folders with their date and location. The footage was further organized into ‘Broll’ and ‘Interview’ footage. This helped the editor stay organized and browse footage quickly. Also, with this amount of assets, it is imperative to back up the project on a separate external drive; Savvy backed up all files after every shoot and major edit sessions.

Along with the hundreds of hours of footage, there is hundreds of hours of planning and scheduling. Savvy and the Food Bank collaborated closely from the inception of the project. The Food Bank asked Savvy to capture their everyday interactions with volunteers, farmers, and partners.The Food Bank and Savvy worked together to create a shooting schedule in correspondence with activities around the Food Bank. A shooting schedule like that means planning a shoot, getting clearance at a location, and securing interview subjects a month in advance; or sometimes in three days. When shooting a documentary it’s about being in the right place at the right time and most of the time those moments are unplanned. Either way, it is important to stay flexible with scheduling, when possible, and keep communication between client and production open and constant. Due to careful planning in pre production, Savvy was always prepared with Broll ideas and questions for every interview subject.

Some of the many other hurdles with documentary filmmaking are weather, capturing good interviews and audio, and working without a shot list. Everyone knows sunlight is the best light, but when shooting outside there should always be a plan B in case of inclement weather. Documentaries capture real life, and people get sick or double-book themselves in real life too. As a filmmaker, it is good to have several interviews lined up at one location instead of relying on one person for a story. Most of the time, locations are not pre-scouted by production; meaning filmmakers have to be prepared for any lighting and sound situation. It is good practice to always have ambient sound with Broll footage using an on-camera mic, and to mic interview subjects with both a lav and boom to ensure good quality audio. There are no pre-built sets for documentaries, and not every location is well lit, this hurdle requires the skill of filmmakers to design and capture a shot on-the-spot.

Savvy is currently in post production for the Chester County Food Bank’s short documentary. Overall, this project is successful because of client-filmmaker collaboration and the skill of the production team to make a organized but flexible schedule. Savvy is expert in non-profit and corporate video production. Check out Savvy’s website for examples of work and get in contact for your companies next marketing video!

Video Integration in Digital Marketing Part 2

Second half of Savvy’s two-part blog series about how video integration in marketing enhances companies marketing effectiveness and why video is needed now more than ever to promote a brand or product. Here are the second five reasons why a company should invest in video content. These are the last five reasons why Savvy believes it is imperative to integrate video content into digital marketing such as social media and blog posts. When looking to higher a production company/ video experts, consider Savvy Production; Savvy has expertise in every aspect in production from script writing to editing.

6. Stronger Customer Attention

With customers limited attention spans, creative marketing strategies are tricky than ever. The goal is to capture and keep the audience's attention. Some people may say there is a “content overload” these days, which may be true, so it's up to the marketer to take the audience's attention from another piece of content onto your own and video can do just that. Video is currently the most effective technology and strategy to convey a message is this fast-paced and technology driven era.

7. More Video- Favored Technology

With the increase consumption of video and the resulting rise in production, it’s no wonder social media sites like Facebook or Instagram have begun integrating auto-play in their video based content. Meaning, as you scroll through your newsfeed and come across a post with video, it will start to play without any prompt from the user. A moving image is proven to catch the attention of a viewer more so than a still image. It’s hard to argue that a status update or a link to a website will catch the viewers attention like a video will. When posting video content on your website, social media page or in an email campaign, consider enabling “auto-play”.

8. Higher Retention Rates

These days people's attention spans are shorter and shorter; unlike text-based content, 65% of viewers watch three fourths of videos. If you can manage to get the point of your message across in the first half of your video, the viewer is more likely to retain your marketing message.

9. Rise in Accessibility

When video production first started it was expensive, time consuming and people knew little about the production process. More recently, video can be produced quicker and with less technical hurdles, thanks to evolving technology and accessible knowledge in the subject. Savvy Production LLC can help you make a quick and relatively inexpensive video for your upcoming marketing campaign or launch of a new website!

10. Increased Customer Conversions

Last, but maybe most importantly, video content in marketing converts more customers than any other type of marketing. 71% of marketers say video conversion rates outperform other marketing content. Its as simple as that. 

Video Integration in Digital Marketing

Savvy is introducing a two-part blog series about how video integration in marketing enhances companies marketing effectiveness and why video is needed now more than ever to promote a brand or product. Here are the first five reasons why a company should invest in video content.

1. Improved Search Engine Optimization

Search Engine Optimization is the process of affecting the online visibility of a website or a web page in a web search engine's unpaid results. It’s safe to say that every company or product needs a website in this technology age. The higher your webpage is listed on a google search result improves the chances of customers or consumers visiting your website. Did you know that having video content on your website improves the SEO? Adding video to your website can increase the chance of a front page google search by 53 times, according to Cosmo Score.

2. Higher Engagement

Weather it be on a social media post or on the company website, once the viewer/customer has their attention on the post, a video is more likely to get the customer engaged with the content. Engagement can be anything from commenting, posting or sharing content; with video, audiences are ten time more likely to engage.

3. Greater Optimization Opportunities

Strictly text blogs or social media posts are fine, but it is almost impossible to track how much of the post the audience consumed, if they re-read parts of it, or if they shared it with friends. Video content solves this problem. Video has a feedback loop built in; allowing the owner to measure click-through rate, drop-off points or number of times the video was viewed. This allows you to know what is working and what is not, so you can focus on the marketing strategy what really works for you and your audience.

4. Better Email Click-Throughs

Email is one of the most effective and fastest forms of communication. Getting emails right, without grammatical errors, takes time and no matter how well it is written recipients still may not take the time to read it. The use of video in emails has been shown to double click-through rates leading to more effective emails and in turn increasing the chance of your message resonating with audiences. The next time you send out a marketing email, integrate video.

5. Stronger Emotional Connections

Video is the most powerful way to evoke emotions both online and through a television screen. This is true because video offers different attributes beyond traditional text-based content; such as, tone of voice, facial expressions and music. Without emotion, the point of an advertisement can leave the audience's mind within minutes; however, with emotion through video, the message of the content is likely to resonate with the audience later in time, usually in a subtle or subconscious way.

These are just five reasons why it is imperative to integrate video content into digital marketing such as social media and blog posts. When looking to higher a production company/ video experts, consider Savvy Production; Savvy has expertise in every aspect in production from script writing to editing. Stay tuned for the next five reasons according to Savvy Production.

Still Waters Run Deep: A Branding film by Savvy Video Production

A few days this fall the Savvy team had the pleasure of traveling to Pottstown, PA to visit and film at the Manatawny Still Works Distillery and Bar.  The Manatawny team showed us how the distilling process worked and some tricks to making the perfect whiskey cocktail (hint: a giant ice ball).  You can visit them for a tour, meet friends at the bar or buy their products at the Pottstown location.  They distill rum, whiskey, vodka and gin which are available at a number of fine drinking establishments throughout the Philadelphia area and are also being sold in state stores across Pennsylvania.  

"Manatawny" is a Lenape word which means 'The place we meet to drink' and this has driven the philosophy of the Manatawny Still Works brand:

“Our distillery is modern, but our practices are based on old world production with a reverent nod to the history of the region. From the Lenape Indians, whose name for the nearby creek we borrowed for our distillery to historical figures of importance, for whom we named some of our very first spirits. The spirit of Manatawny is focused on quality, but rooted in the past.”

We hope our film for them captures that brand essence and showcases what an amazing space the Manatawny Still Works distillery is, learn more about MSW here and watch our film above!

Prompt and Circumstance: Stand out by using a Teleprompter

Savvy prides itself on creating compelling stories for all of our clients. One way to ensure the videos we create have high production value, look and sound great is the use of a tele-prompter.  While many may only be familiar with this tool as a standard for newscasters or presidential speeches it is actually commonly used for corporate video. Recently, Dallas Prompter blogged about the benefits of using a prompter for corporate video and we couldn't agree more.  Check out what they said and request a prompter for your shoot with Savvy!

"Why Use a Video Prompter?

An executive is rehearsing with an on-camera prompter for his video debut. After the first read-through, he asks, “Where’s the camera?” The director smiles and explains, “You’ve been looking at it. It’s right behind the teleprompter mirror.”

That’s how a prompter lets you read a script and look into the camera at the same time. You know what to say, so you can focus on the way you say it.

The ability to engage a live audience doesn’t necessarily translate into a strong presence on camera. When you see your listeners, you can respond to their subtle reactions. You don’t get the same sort of feedback from the glassy eye of a video camera.

Most people struggle to ad-lib on camera. If they accomplish a good “take” (usually after several attempts), they don’t remember what they said, so they can’t repeat it when the director asks for a retake.

(And why do directors ask for a second good take? In the trade it’s called a ‘safety’—just in case there’s physical defect on the tape, or a verbal bobble nobody caught.)

A prompter’s very affordable, especially when you compare it to the cost of the entire video. And it can help your personal ROI, too: you’ll record more good takes while expending less time and energy.

Request a prompter for your next video project and make your on-camera appearance easier."

Pixels, Resolution and Content...Oh My!

With the holidays fast approaching the onslaught of options for televisions can be overwhelming. We are savvy to the pros and cons of this rapidly improving technology and pride ourselves on being able to handle work in various formats. But what really is the difference in all these numbers thrown at you by manufacturers?

4K and 1080p refer to the number of pixels in the image, 4K has four times as many pixels as 1080p.  UHD refers to footage shot in 4K and HD refers to footage shot in 1080p.  Currently, most TV's are upscaling 1080p footage to play on a 4K screen.  This can leave you underwhelmed as there is not a significantly perceivable improvement over the HD television most are used to watching. However, when 4K footage is shown on a 4K television the improvement is noticeable.

Cedric Demers does a great job of comparing the two formats in the link below. Check it out for more information.

 http://www.rtings.com/tv/learn/4k-ultra-hd-uhd-vs-1080p-full-hd-tvs-and-upscaling-compared

Climate Conundrum

The weather this December has been one for the record books.  Here at Savvy we couldn't help but to be reminded of our work with ACEER, Amazon Center for Environmental Education and Research, and the PSA we created featuring super bowl winning coach Dick Vermeil.  The Amazon is the largest river in the world and the rainforest it sustains is the world's biggest. The biodiversity of the ecosystem and sheer volume of the river make the Amazon one of the main players in the discussion of climate change.  And while we are thoroughly enjoying this mild December it is important to recognize the implications of deforestation on the global climate. Take minute to watch our video below to learn more about the great work ACEER is doing to maintain the Amazon and enjoy this mild weather while it lasts!

Content Comforts: Why video is essential for marketing

How do you stand out in an environment saturated with content? Create something unique.  

Video can be a great way to help your brand, service or self stand out amongst the competition.  Anish Patel with Ragan recently researched the ways video can improve marketing efforts.  Drawing on Forbes and Business Insider research to support his argument that video is essential in today's marketplace for all businesses. Check out the link below to learn how video can increase sales, drive traffic and showcase your brand. 

http://www.healthcarecommunication.com/Main/Articles/13736.aspx