In the video industry, there are several substantially different event video types. Today, we’re going to talk about the Corporate Event Video coverage and what various styles come with that. Many people will search the internet for a video event production company. But they might be thinking of covering their child’s birthday, a wedding, or a family reunion. This article today will discuss the corporate event– the conference, seminar, corporate party, or meeting. Video Coverage of the Corporate Event Video production services for events can vary. The first service is Event Coverage. This is where we place a camera or several cameras, to record the event, which for corporate clients usually involves speaking from a stage. Occasionally, it might be an event out on location where a demonstration is taking place. We will usually provide a camera with long lenses from…
What is an Explainer Video? The Explainer Video has it’s root in cell animation going back decades– before the use of computers. Educational films, both for schools and industry would be an animated, cell by cell, to demonstrate the subject. Once computers became available, animation migrated over to that platform. Today, computer generated graphics is the basis for an Explainer Video. So what is the Explainer Video? An Explainer Video is a short 2D animation that demonstrates your product or service on top of a voice over with sound and music. The style can be cartoonish or text driven, and can be very simple or complex depending on what you need and how much time it takes the animators to do it. How Do You Make an Explainer Video? Script – The first step in an Explainer Video is to…
Recently we asked some new clients what factors led to their decision to pick us for their corporate video production in Dallas, Texas. We’re always glad they picked us, and trusted us to handle their video project, but we’re even more happy when the project ends and we’ve beat their expectations. Experience in Video Production Some clients searching for a video production company are concerned that they’re entrusting their story.. their message… their brand, to someone who doesn’t have a lot of experience in the industry. Many business people understand that to become experts in an area, it takes much repetition and practice. (Making the library of many corporate execs is Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell, and this philosophy is a foundation for what he espouses.) So our clients tell us that we were selected because of our experience. Our Producer/Director…

“After the third time this actor approached me, I decided I would never cast him again.” “I got a real inside peek into what this actor was really thinking. She forgot she was still mic’d and I was wearing my headsets.” “This actor was extremely talented. But he hosed me in post with his performance.” These are thoughts of a working film director. You can learn to save time, money and heartache in post, while cementing your reputation as a seasoned, veteran actor. Announcing a new workshop for Acting: A Director’s POV! Join us Saturday April 12, 2014 for a 3 1/2 hours, hands-on workshop, from a director to an actor. Register here. Daniel Millican, writer/director for five feature films has worked with Adam Baldwin, Lou Diamond Phillips, Sean Patrick Flanery, Joey Lauren Adams, Mimi Rogers and more. On casting…

(This is for all my actor friends… one film director to actors. I see a lot actor to actor, but very little from directors to actor. BTW– we’ve got the screenfighting workshop coming up in a few weeks– click here to make sure you get your seat.) The Quest Constantin Stanislavski– often referred to as the father of modern acting, defined acting as the quest for theatrical truth. I believe this is a great starting place for the craft you’re working in. It all boils down to this– is your performance as close as possible to theatrical truth? Personally, I believe that truth cannot be achieved in a theatrical performance (you’re performing, pretending– it’s not truth, but theatrical truth). Does your performance ring true with the audience? Sure, many factors go into you achieving theatrical truth in a film role. …

Telling the Corporate Story Many corporate videos today are built around the interview. Clients, employees, spokespeople are recorded talking about the product or service. It’s a quick and effective way to tell your corporate story. This usually involves the video production of shooting an interview (discussed Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3). What we’re discussing today is the mechanics behind the editing of the corporate interview. How We Shoot Interviews in Dallas First, we like to shoot interviews with two cameras. Lately, the majority of these interviews are with DSLR’s– they give a very nice, rich look, shallow depth of field and with the speed of the lenses, we don’t need a lot of light to make it beautiful. So after shooting, I will have two different sets of clips and a totally separated audio file. I use Final…

In addition to our corporate video productions we do in the Dallas, Fort Worth area, SFilms has made five feature films over the years starring Adam Baldwin, Mimi Rogers, Lou Diamond Phillips and others. In today’s post, we talk to actors about quick tips to instantly impact their auditions and give a better chance for landing that role. The Dilemma for Local Actors When I was casting for Rising Stars in New York City, the producer that hired me (as well as most producers in LA and NYC) had a bias against local actors. They were fine for bit parts and dayplayer roles, but not for principles or leads. And as we auditioned back at home for these roles, I thought about this dilemma and why the local actors are handicapped right out of the gate. So how can a local actor…
I get asked this by friends and family and the answer depends on what they want it for and how manual/automatic they want it. But I was asked this by someone in the industry. They are ready to upgrade to new technology and liked the setup I have for corporate video production. Camera for Corporate Video First, more often than not, I use a DSLR for my corporate work. But occasionally I need something to record long form– like a seminar or meeting. So what follows is what I recommend for corporate film– like interviews and sales videos, or marketing videos. If you’re recording a board meeting, the DSLR is not the best choice. Camera– I have the DSLR Canon 7D. My DP Ron Gonzalez has a 5D (both shown in the picture on the right). A Partner of mine…

Video Production Benefits from Smaller Cameras and Cool Toys With the smaller cameras, come cool toys and tools that can have a great impact on your production value. As of late, there has been a huge boom in sliders. I know I’ve been using them the last year or two– to the point where it goes out on every shoot. Sliders are a simple basic replacement for dollies. Now film and video productions can get great smooth right and left movement for a fraction of the cost and manpower. You can even truck in and out with them and in some extreme cases, you can crane up and down. At SFilms, we use a basic Glidetrack. And recently, we bought a Slyderdolly from Digital Juice that has been pretty impressive. It’s robust, strong, sturdy and comes with features and accessories…
The Corporate Video Meets the Movie At Serendipitous Films, we have a long track record of award-winning corporate video experience. But one skillset that is being utilized more and more in corporate video is our experienced in feature films. It’s not enough to train, motivate and sell through talking heads for some corporations. So we’re being asked to create exciting canvasses to communicate the client’s content. Case in point– over the years, our most awarded and successful training video was a spoof of Forest Gump. Today, that continues with a Fortune 500 company calling on us to create little “movies” with their employees to train on program and service features. Another client is asking for a promotional video in the form of a movie trailer. This generation is the YouTube Generation. Videos need to be quick, funny, sincere, sensational. And…