ATTENTION: OFFICIAL COURSE MATERIALS HAVE MOVED TO CANVAS!
ONLY TECHNICAL GUIDES WILL BE UPDATED FOR 2018-2019

THE BASIC INTERVIEw (very basic)
camera + edit + mic

This will test your ability to mic, frame, and edit a very simple, conventional interview. Your best chance of success involves keeping is simple. A "simple" interview is far more complex that you can imagine, so unless you have a great idea that you've already talked through with Huette, choose one of the "EZR options" below.

You have three options: 
  1. Interview (open format): Tell any story you want--a profile, a first-person story, a documentary, whatever--as long as your story is built around a conventional interview and meets the other technical criteria.
  2. My North Time: Profile a BVN student based on the way he or she spends North Time. This is one of your "EZR options" that you can use if you can't (or don't want to) come up with your own subject or topic.
  3. Everyday Carry: Profile a BVN student based on the things they carry every day in their pockets and/or backpack. This is another of your "EZR options" if you can't (or don't want to) come up with your own subject or topic.
PRO TIP: For your best chances for success, aim to tell a true story. I recommend against making a clever or funny scripted story. 

THE conventional interview

We'll talk a lot about the "conventional interview," and when we do, we're talking about an interview that has these characteristics:
  • Medium shot
  • Both eyes are visible.
  • Subject off-center, facing slightly into the open part of the frame (nose room).
  • A little bit of room at the top (head room).
  • Non-distracting background with depth.
  • Microphone used to capture interview audio.

Get the INTERVIEW TIP SHEET

Video structure

Strive to tell a story--to shape a bunch of Things That Happened into a very basic information structure. And just as the most basic polygon has only three sides, the most basic stories have only three component parts: 
  • A beginning that introduces important things. 
  • A middle that explores things.
  • An end that offers resolution or closure.
But check this: to make sure your interview has all three, you really only need to pay attention to two: the beginning and the end. If you clearly define the beginning and the end, the middle sort of defines itself. 
Whether you choose the Open Format or the Everyday Carry, both demand a story form that you know well from TV news, documentaries, and corporate videos. It's the sort of story where you have a person talking and you cut to things he or she is talking about. This form is very adaptable and can be used to tell a variety of types of stories. Remember: You're telling a visual story, so have the person talk about things you can SHOW.
Picture
This is a conventionally-framed interview with a lower third (the sliding text element).
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This is a cutaway to something discussed in the interview.
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Use a j-edit to cut back to the interview. No lower third this time.
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Another cutaway to something else in the story. This one shows action.
The structure of this project is straightforward and very adaptable, and it includes the following components:
  1. interview video & audio
  2. b-roll with natural sound (cutaways)
  3. titles & lower thirds (text elements)
Music, sound effects, and video filters are optional and should be included only if interest and time allows.
The entire project is based around the interview, which you'll edit from 10 minutes (or longer) down to a more manageable set of sound bites, paced on your timeline
Another, more visual representation, of how these components will stack up in your Premiere Pro timeline. 

technical requirements

  • Use a wireless microphone.
  • Shoot a conventional interview.
  • Edit the interview for clarity, pacing, and continuity.
  • Mix interview audio and natural sound for clarity and impact.
  • Create a basic animated lower third.
  • Plan and shoot cutaways and b-roll in a variety of environments.
  • Use J cuts & L cuts to aid flow and smooth transitions.
  • Keep all your files neat & tidy, named & properly saved.

structural requirements

  • Create a beginning for your story.
  • Create a middle for your story.
  • Create an end to your story.
  • Transition smoothly between each part.

EZR option 1: My North Time

What does so-and-so do during North Time? That's a great question, and it's a great subject for an interview! The best thing about this option is that you can shoot this entire project during North Time. So there isn't any need to arrange special shooting times or locations; you're simply documenting and telling the story of your friend's ordinary North Time experience. 

At right, check out a basic example. Keep it simple.
If you choose this option, you'll start by shooting a conventional interview (conventionally framed, with a conventional lower third). The interview should convey the following information:
  • An introduction that includes name and any other relevant information.
  • A sequential . 
  • The format for each of the prompts should be: "Tell me about [thing you do during North Time]."

The interview should last about 5 or 10 minutes on tape, and feel free to ask questions more than once. After that, you'll shoot "B-roll" or "cutaways" that show the interview subject doing the things he or she described during the interview. Consider shooting a series of shots: close up, over-the-shoulder, unusual, so you have some choices in the edit.

As you edit, use the b-roll to illustrate what the person is talking about and as well to conceal jump cuts in the interview. Let me write that again, so that it's super clear: NO JUMP CUTS in the interview. Onward!

EZR option 2: Everyday Carry

Do you know the Everyday Carry Instagram account? It's okay! (Maybe it's a bit visually repetitive? Maybe it fetishizes expensive doodads? You can judge for yourself.) In any event, each day, Everyday Carry posts a different composition of stuff that someone carries. The objects are artfully arranged, and the caption usually includes some information about the person who carries them--what they do, how they work, possibly a brief biography. 

We're going to adapt this idea into a basic edited interview. You'll work with a partner, and you'll interview that person on camera about the things that they carry around every day--their everyday carry. Video duration: 1:00-2:00. This is a project you'll shoot and edit during class time. 
EXAMPLE VIDEO
Here's an example of what the Everyday Carry video could look like. I made it, so it's going to focus on my everyday carry. Yours will look different. 

For your reference, this video took me about three hours total time to make. Yours will probably take longer, so use class time wisely!
If you choose this option, you'll start by shooting a conventional interview (conventionally framed, with a conventional lower third). The interview should convey the following information:
  • An introduction that includes name and any other relevant information.
  • The name and description of each thing they carry with them. 
  • The format for each of the prompts should be: "Tell me about [item]."
  • I encourage you to prompt them to introduce each description with "Another thing I carry is..." or "I also carry..." or "The most important thing I carry is..." or something that allows you to edit them together seamlessly. 

The interview should last about 5 or 10 minutes on tape, and feel free to ask questions more than once. After that, you'll shoot "B-roll" or "cutaways" that show the interview subject using, handling, demonstrating, retrieving, or otherwise fiddling with each of the things she talked about during the interview. Consider shooting a series of shots: close up, over-the-shoulder, unusual, so you have some choices in the edit.

As you edit, use the b-roll to illustrate what the person is talking about and as well to conceal jump cuts in the interview. Let me write that again, so that it's super clear: NO JUMP CUTS in the interview. Onward!
Non-essential/extra/above-and-beyond type stuff
  • Locate and include appropriately-licensed music (CC license)
  • Include shot variety or sequence in b-roll cutaway shots
  • Include match-on-action edits in your cutaways
  • Use sound design to add interest to the story