5 Things to Think About When Filming a Corporate Documentary

Many businesses are commissioning media companies to create an alternate way of advertising: corporate documentaries. This type of film can be a useful tool in connecting your company with potential clients or consumers. It can improve your company relations and transparency, and lead to self-reflection of your efficiency and company ethics. There are a lot of things to think about to prepare your company for a successful documentary campaign. Here are four of them

What are your company ethics? Who is your audience? Which employees do you want to feature? What is your theme? How do you want to structure the film?

Company Ethics

First and foremost, a successful corporate documentary will foster trust between the consumer and the company. To do this, you need to show the audience what kind of company you are. What is important to you? Do you invest in charity? Do your employees volunteer? Do you have a foundation or a scholarship fund? Do you have community programs? Use these answers to shape the next few steps.

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Audience

Something important to consider is the type of people that will be watching your documentary. For example, a company that creates products for children will likely have a film that may be watched by children and parents. Or, a corporate business that deals in finance will likely be viewed by other corporates looking for background on your company. What sort of content would these people be interested in?

Which Employees Do You Want to Feature?

Your people are your biggest asset. To dispel the image of your corporation being made up of looming business people with shadowy faces, introduce them to the employees behind the scenes. Which of your people do you want on camera? It can be anyone from an executive to a part-timer: consider a smattering of employees that showcase the best of your diversity. Talk about their backgrounds, what led them to your business, and what they contribute. Why do they like working there?

Choose a Theme

Finding the best way to go about portraying your corporate documentary can be daunting. Think about your company ethics: would you like to focus on your excellent customer service? Do you have an employee that has gone on an extraordinary journey to make it to your place of business? Are you innovative in your field? What sort of history does your company have? What makes your company stand out?

There is also the possibility of creating an event corporate documentary, where the film revolves around a single experience. For example: your employees volunteering to clean up the local park, or a conference aimed at raising money to bring water to Africa. While technically a sub-genre, an event video can equally be helpful towards transparency.

Structure

There are several ways to go about putting together a corporate documentary. Do you prefer to have a ‘fly-on-the-wall’ approach, where the camera follows your employees/moves throughout the company as a bystander only? Would you like to utilise interviews, and if so, where do you want those interviews to take place? What will your film length be? This will impact how many people you may wish to feature. Are you showing a process, like how to make a product you offer? Can you show the process, or would it be more visually pleasing to invest in animation? Are you showing an employee’s typical day? Would you like to use testimonials of satisfied clients?

Creating a corporate documentary gives one a lot to consider. First and foremost, go into with an open mind and prepare to learn about your own business in the process. Start with your company values and let those standards guide you through your preparation.