When do you find yourself creating your craft or your works of art? I find myself completely in my creative zone in the middle of the night. I do my best work probably around 11pm. I have even found myself getting out of bed at 3am to execute a creative idea in the edit bay.
I am a procrastinator…yes, when the pressure is on – I perform my best. I wonder if it comes from days as a journalist? Each day I had two or three hard deadlines where I had to deliver final products from a story we found that day. I wonder if it is because I have to force myself into the creative box. Yes…when I cannot figure out how to create and execute…just force myself into the creative situation.
I found the video above and it spoke to me. Creativity sometimes has to be forced. We sometimes wait and expect inspiration to mystically appear with some pixie dust or an epiphany. When I need creative inspiration, I find myself jumping in the car, rolling down the windows, and blasting Elton John, Adele, or Billy Joel as I scream down the interstate. Some people ask, what happens when it rains? I just roll up the windows and sing louder.
I like the rush of creating under pressure, delivering when no one else can deliver. Sometimes we hope that inspiration will find us, but in the business world…sometimes we have to force ourselves back into the box!
Are we open to tell the stories that un-expectantly emerge? So many times we have a pre-conceived notion of a storyline, especially at the beginning of a project. We picture it in our head. We imagine how it will come together. We plan each shot, each interview, the music, the graphics…we have all the answers before the camera is pulled out.
It happens to all of us…we want to control and shape the message from the very beginning. But we better be careful, you never know what might be lurking around the corner and we might just miss it.
“The SC Mission 2012 clinic was held at the South Carolina State Fairgrounds where volunteers provided free medical, dental and vision services. SC Mission 2012’s goal was to provide services and match patients to a medical home where they can continue to receive the care they need. More than 2000 patients were seen and a total of 2100 volunteers including physicians, nurses, dentists, optometrists, pharmacy, nursing and medical students and lay persons helped make the clinic possible. More than 2000 patients were seen in all three services areas during the two-day event.”
I go into these productions always wanting to advocate for the patient. I want to find the patient story that inspires us to challenge and reform the way we deliver care. I wanted to shape the final piece around the patient’s faces, voices, and experiences.
The patient story was only a small portion of this year’s message and I almost dismissed the obvious…the stories of the volunteers. These individuals that gave their time, energy, and compassion during this two day event. These are the people that move South Carolina forward.
I spent the whole time during the shoot trying to find that un-believable patient story. I was struggling to find that one interview that moved the needle forward. Yes…there were a lot of great interviews, but I was comparing this event to the patient stories we found in 2010. CLICK HERE to watch SC Mission 2010’s video.
But after spending a whole day with Shalama Jackson (SCHA.org) capturing patient stories, volunteer stories, and the sights and sounds of the day…I went back to review. Patti Smoake (of SCHA.org) and I found something even more special, I had captured some tremendous interviews from the volunteers. I did not realize it at the time, but the volunteers shared something special, their passion. It was Patti that helped me look through a different lens as we crafted this piece together.
We always advocate for the patient and YES, we wanted that one patient story that would move the audience. But it was the volunteer’s voice in this story, the voice that not only advocated for the patient but the movement to provide better access to care.
As I sit here and work on a story for the SCMission2012 project, I am reminded the importance of listening. Many people have many different strategies when conducting on camera interviews for stories. I can remember working with a seasoned journalist who would spend hours outlining his interview questions, making sure he delivered the right question at the right time.
For years, I have never taken a list of interview questions with me to an interview. I rely more on the art of listening when trying to capture comments for a story. I spend lots of time researching the person, the cause, the initiative, and the purpose behind the story. I spend time thinking through the relationship between the person and the story. But when it is time to roll the camera, I let the conversation direct the questions.
The camera is intimidating for many people and sometimes it means that everything we ask will end up in the final version of the story. I guess the digital age has taught us that anything we say can end up on YouTube. So the approach of asking questions based on the conversation can be concerning for most interview subjects.
A few weeks ago, I was working on a story where the interview subject was not expecting a series of questions. Specifically, I started with a series of warm-up questions to allow us to get acquainted with the camera. Conducting an on-camera interview is all about relationship building and trust. This person thought that the initial series of questions were going to end up in the final story, thus revealing something that the person felt was a little to personal for the story.
A few days after the interview, this person called me concerned. I re-assured this person, that these questions were not going to end-up in the final story and I was going to delete these comments from all the digital copies.
We have to listen and we have to be transparent when conducting interviews for video use. We have to explain our process and provide our intentions in a transparent manner. We have to listen and we have to be prepared. The camera is there to capture moments very personal for people and our burden as storytellers is craft the story with utmost compassion.
I am so excited to announce that I am launching my 50 States 50 Stories initiative today. I have been working on this concept for close to a year. As a storyteller, I like to capture and share people’s stories. This initiative will give me the opportunity capture stories, interviews from people I have never met and may never get a chance to meet.
I am dropping this box in the mail today. It is off to Arizona to the first entrepreneur. Hopefully during this year long initiative, we will be sharing 50 entrepreneur’s stories on a website to be launched soon. It is up to these people to share their story and send the package to another entrepreneur who they think has a great story to share.
Soon…I will be launching the website where we will share these stories as I receive them. You never know…you might receive this box in the mail.
Let’s Talk Audience
Kerrin went on to make a powerful statement: “To create truly high-quality content, you must be a storyteller. You must be able to pull together a large selection of shots and content and pare it down into a manageable short-form video that will engage an audience.”
This conversation takes me back to a dinner I had with Bob Dotson of NBC. Bob is what I consider a master storyteller and his reputation is obvious from the numerous awards and speaking engagements across the country. He took me to dinner after we worked together on a story in Charlotte. I took this opportunity to become a human sponge and soak up as much knowledge as possible.
Let’s Talk Purpose
Bob explained anyone can tell a story…but if you really want to tell a story that engages an audience, you must find an tell stories with layers. As the storyline progresses in a video…the audience peels back the layers, revealing each little nugget of the storyline. Stories using video are visual communication tools…you just have to know how to find them, especially inside/outside you branded organizations.
I love this short little video interview with Bob:
Bob’s comments get you thinking, why we tell stories and how to find those stories with layers. But back to Kerrin Sheldon’s point about short video content.
Kerrin continues in the Fast Company article to share about this growing market of storytelling: “I predict the next 5-10 years will be huge for video marketing online. Brands are moving further away from direct advertising, whose metrics that are hard to calculate, and into original video content–content that is created not to sell but to engage. They tell a story and they create brand loyalty. The days of direct consumer advertising is dwindling, and the advent of marketing through storytelling has arrived.”
Let’s Talk Delivery
Let’s at the numbers, here is an online video consumption from June 2012 (Based on ComScore Report): 1) 84.8 percent of the U.S. Internet audience viewed online video. 2) The duration of the average online content video was 6.8 minutes. 3) Video advertising reached another all-time high in June as 11 billion video ads were viewed. 4) Google Sites, driven primarily by video viewing at YouTube.com, ranked as the top online video content property in June with 154.5 million unique viewers, followed by Yahoo! Sites with 51.5 million, Facebook.com with 49 million, VEVO with 46.2 million and Viacom Digital with 38.9 million. Vimeo moved into the top 10 ranking for the first time at #10 with 21.4 million viewers.
So let’s look at the channels to share your content: 1) YouTube:“Everyone knows YouTube and it continues to dominate the market. But unless you’re a professional musician or are looking to score the new huge viral video showcasing your friends firing off bottle rockets from a made-at-home cannon, there are plenty of other places to showcase your videos. “
2) Vimeo:“Vimeo.com is the finest collection of artistic videographers on the web. Without outwardly deleting poor-quality content, Vimeo’s homepage and search results make it easy to find awesome content and avoid the endless amounts of useless crap that often plague the YouTube experience.”
3) Pinterest:“Along the same lines, Pinterest’s new video feature gives curators great opportunities to pin videos to their boards. Even more so than Facebook and Twitter, Pinterest has created a sharing experience so simple and effective, it makes the potential or virility even higher.”
So as Kerrin says, “With ever-increasing YouTube lunch breaks and Vimeo dinner dates, online video is becoming a constant companion–one that every brand is rushing to take advantage of. “
You never know when it is going to happen. You never know when that creative inspiration will hit us like a ton of bricks. We spend so much time crafting a story, but we must feel it with our bare skin…our breathe…our inner creative being.
Crafting a story is like the best type of “dance” with the audience…we must see the story through their eyes in-order to communicate the final prose.
So many times I find myself looking for the final way to put a piece together. I spend so much creative time thinking about the storyline…especially as it is developing. I craft initial storylines, what I think the interview will say, how the story will evolve…but we always must be prepared for those moments in time that provide us the epiphany.
We can have the best cameras, the best edit suites, the best lighting, the most innovative approaches to capture the story…but it all comes down to execution. Can you pull all the elements together in a way that gives the audience something, that one thing, that when they walk away…they see it through your eyes. They get goose bumps at the right moments!
Then you wonder…do they (the audience) see those tiny moments exposed.
The craft of storytelling is more than a craft…it is a calling.
It is always fun to work with a new client. Immedion just launched their new website, created by Cyberwoven in Columbia. Natalia Muska (Director of Marketing) worked with me as we crafted customer stories that showcase Immedion’s commitment to “Always On” mantra.
We created two initial customer stories based on two companies Vigilix and Sturgis Web Services. You should watch both videos…interesting companies one of which located right in downtown Greenville. Both companies depend on Immedion’s infrastructure to meet the needs of their customer base.
Both stories come from the customers’ voice, allowing each person to tell their story. We chose this direction so that the audience can hear their story instead of the perspective where we “put words into their mouth.” Lots of fun especially with a little fast pace editing to spice it up a bit.
Here are the two videos for you to enjoy…or you can go Immedion’s website to learn more! A screen shot of their homepage is above!
Here is a picture that has being shared around social outlets, especially among my broadcast journalist colleagues. When I look at this funny little caricature, I am amused by the technological indicator of where we are as consumers, and how we have become a part of reporting the story.
If you look at the picture…ten years ago, you could flip flop this image. The paid photojournalists were on the right and the lay person was on the left wondering what is going on. Now, even our grandmother’s have access to smartphones that capture and record high quality images and video. They even have access to technology like Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, Instagram, YouTube, and a host of other technologies that have larger audiences than a television stations DMA.
It is funny how times are shifting and we as storytellers are having to learn to compete in a space flooded with “that” proliferation of information. It is a new paradigm and it is hard not to get scared of this digital media industry. We as practitioners are trying to find ways to bring value to the craft of photojournalism, digital communication, and documentary storytelling…and separate ourselves in this competitive world of “media.”
I was sharing this photo with a close friend and he asked, “Does this photo make you wonder if there is a timeframe to your industry?” I actually feel it strengthens my mission and my business. There is a distinction between the technology that captures and shares images and the craft of using media to tell stories. It is a difference between the practitioner and the technician.
I am excited to let the community act as the technician with their iPhones and Droids and using their 4G LTE service to share those images. Why? Because I can allow them to share the information and let me tell the story behind the information.
The craft behind storytelling allows “us” to use media(s) to capture, craft, construct, and share a story with an audience…inspiring them to create change. Let’s take the Tsunami in Japan, so many individuals captured this story in real time with their smartphones and share online. The storytellers were the individuals that found the people directly impacted by that wall of water…crafted stories that share the human element of this story. Those are the stories that still grip us and bring context to those images.
Both communities (practitioners and technicians) co-exist and leverage each other’s digital access…the consumer shares the action and the storytellers craft the human element of the reaction.
Sometimes you never know when a good story is going to present itself…so we have to be prepared. Years and years of training and it never fails, when the lights are just perfect, the shot is just beautiful…that perfect moment in time happens off camera.
I have always been one who likes to debate the technical expertise versus the storytelling techniques of listening. I have worked with some of the best technical photojournalist, creating some of the best images, capturing some of the most amazing interviews. But the best storytellers, best photojournalists are the ones that are willing to break away from that perfect setting and capture that one shot that tells the whole story.
It was just the other day, I was in the middle of a shoot with a family who was going to share their experience with a physician. Perfectly crafted shots, perfectly scripted, perfectly composed…but the real shot was when the little boy ran out of the shot to get a sucker from the nurse. Perfect moment in time, captured because I pulled away and followed the boy. The shot was not perfectly framed…it included lots of the lighting equipment in the background…but it captured that moment in time shared between a little boy and a provider.
I live by a mantra, work by a mantra, tell stories using a mantra…one that I learned many years ago:
Two Shots Ahead
Three Shots Behind
Get The Moment
That simple. I am always telling stories with my cameras thinking about the next two shots I want to capture, the previous three shots I just captured…and most importantly to always capture the moment.
This discussion takes me back to a piece of scholarship that was written in the early 80′s surrounding the topic: audience addressed and audience invoked. As I re-read the article, I always find myself referring to one final point of Edes and Lusford’s conclusion…
“A fully elaborated view of audience, then, must balance the creativity of the writer with the different, but equally important, creativity of the reader.”
We write in tension but I think we have to find a balance between invoking the audience (creating a division in the writer and reader’s roles) and addressing the audiences’ needs (the reality the audience exist and that the written text is created in concert).
Stories live forever. Slogans live until the ad agency gets tired of them. Stories are real. Slogans are made up. Stories pull you in. Slogans try and push out a message. Stories are deep. Slogans are shallow. Stories are personal. Slogans are impersonal. Stories are passed on by word of mouth. Slogans are passed on by ads.
This dichotomy between “Story vs. Slogan” and “Audience Addressed vs. Audience Invoked” has me thinking…are we addressing the needs of our audience by pushing slogans down people’s throats? It sounds more like we are trying to invoke something that is unnatural and detached.
So what really makes a story different from a slogan? Spike wrote that “Stories are real. Slogans are made up.” What makes stories real and slogans just made up. Well, it is the act of listening…because stories are told over and over again: they recount a place and time in history. They connect the very fabric of our being with human emotion. When we tell a story, we are sharing something that is tangible in our hearts and minds that invokes emotion and connection.
I am not a slogan person or a person that relishes the task of creating positioning statements and branded tag lines. I like to capture stories as they happen, capture that moment in time that are true moments, those that help us remember.
Last summer I found myself in Andrews, NC working on a project for the Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church… telling stories of rural churches. Every Thursday night, the Andrews UMC has a dinner for the community called the Welcome Table. The illustration of this blog post is not the story of this video, but one little moment in time when I am interviewing the pastor. One of the children walks up and gives him a hug in the middle of the interview…at the most appropriate time. This pastor will be telling this story for years…thus reinforcing the mission of “The Welcome Table.”
We can advocated for stories over slogan’s everyday of the week…but we must be willing to open our hearts so that we can capture those moments in time to share. This is what invokes our audience to share.
Here is the video of “The Welcome Table” for your to enjoy!
