Tips for Making a Conference Video Engaging

Conferences can be enormous events for big players within a given industry. They are a place of networking, reminiscing, and exploring new innovations within the trade. A corporate video featuring a conference can be a fantastic marketing tool, both for recruitment and business promotion. The great thing about this kind of event video is that, unlike the boring stigma it may have, filming a conference is much more than just recording a podium. Here are some tips for anyone looking to film a conference video.

Henley Royal Regatta 2016 – Mitsubishi Corporation Event Video from Bold Content on Vimeo.

Pre-Production

Your preparation is going to be much the same to producing any other corporate video. You will want to liaise with your client extensively to make sure you are both on the same page. You will want to prepare a script (any questions you may ask in interviews, a schedule of the day including the most important events/speakers to capture, ect.), and brief your actors (any speakers/hosts that may be followed around by your camera all day).

Things to consider when pre-planning with your client include audience takeaway: what are you hoping the audience will get out of it? Is the purpose of the video to encourage more people to attend the following year, or is it to educate? Is it a showcase?

Remember, your time constraint is enormous. You will need to be at the right place at the right time, because if you miss your take, it isn’t happening again. Planning ahead will be your best bet to things running smoothly.

Concerned with Quality

Just because it’s a conference video doesn’t mean quality should suffer. There will be multiple obstacles that you wouldn’t necessarily encounter in a ‘normal’ shoot: you may not be able to set up proper lighting the way it needs to be. There will be background noise. You aren’t working with actors. Utilize equipment that will help you work around these difficulties. Consider using lavalier mics for your quick interviews, or directional mics. Have the camera rolling at all times, so when you have a good moment with your interviewee, it is caught on camera. It is strongly suggested to have a B-roll camera, so that you can establish cutaways and not sacrifice capturing any major events.

Show off the Location

Much like making a short-film, production value is extremely important. One of the goals of filming a conference video is to show off the benefits of attending this event. One of these benefits may be the venue. Why did the host choose the location? Is it historic? Does it provide a desirable ambiance? These are things you will want to portray in your video.

Telling a Story

You are still telling a story—the story of the event: why are people there? Who is hosting it? Why are they hosting it? What journey will the attendants take during this conference?

You will also keep post-production in mind: will this image have the potential to be used later on? If there is projection involved, do you have a copy of that projected video? Is the video too shaky too utilize later on? You will also want a backup plan: what if the shot that you wanted to get doesn’t work out? What if the event is outdoors and it begins raining? What if the lead subject gets ill and can’t attend?

Use Different Strategies

There are a multitude of ways to portray a conference than just filming someone standing at a podium giving a speech. Use vox pop interviews at the reception, record time lapses during lengthy teambuilding exercises, pre-record a few talking head interviews as an option for post-production, and film audiences reactions to any speeches.

Broadgate Circle from Bold Content on Vimeo.

Go into your conference video project with enthusiasm. Every event is unique and has it’s own story to tell. Your job is to capture the essence of this experience and put it together in the most visually-pleasing way possible.

Eventim Apollo Event Video from Bold Content on Vimeo.