Atlanta Video Production Process
Every video project has a plan, hopefully. Here at Optimum Productions, we are very strong believers in a very detailed and organized video making process – regardless of our involvement in any project. We have spent much time developing our processes around constant communication between us and our clients. Effective communication is critical to developing your project within the scope of a client’s vision. So, we dedicate a lot of time getting to know our clients, their organizations and end goals to ensure that we have a full working understanding of what our clients are all about. The better we understand you, the better your video will be.
Each video project has 3 primary stages of production. They are Pre-Production, Production and Post-Production. Each one is a major component to a video project. In simple terms Pre-Production is the initial development/planning stage. Production is the 2nd phase of filming and Post-Production is the stage where we do all the video editing. Each stage is uniquely important but they are all interconnected. Proper execution and implementation of each stage will result in a well produced video.
Pre-production: Pre-Pro, Pre-Pro, Pre-Pro!
The cornerstone of any video project is pre-production. Pre-production is the critical process of creating the conceptual design of any project and piecing it together before rolling the cameras. Normally more time is spent in this initial stage than any other stage. We begin by getting to know our clients and their organizations through initial contact over the phone or email. After initial contact, we arrange a meeting to meet in person, view our client’s place of business and discuss their needs. This will typically involve taking a tour of their facilities, looking at products and learning anything we can about their organization. From there, we begin discussions about their video needs and how we can help them. We brainstorm and develop different strategies and conceptual designs through proposals. These proposals are analyzed by our clients and modified until a fully defined video concept has been identified and signed off.
Once we have an identified conceptual design and loose video structure, we put together a Scope of Work which puts into words the vision of the video and all responsibilities from summarizing the video, identifying objectives, setting a working timeline, layout costs and payment terms. The Scope of Work is an important document that spells out everything that has been discussed in meetings to ensure that we are all on the same page from concept to budget. Any prior miscommunications or misinterpretations are addressed at this stage. This gives confidence to both our clients and ourselves that the project is on target and sets tangible expectations for both parties.
After an approved Scope of Work has been completed we begin preparing for the video. Scripts/concepts are written in detail and presented to our clients. After several drafts, a finalized script is made and we begin to prepare for filming. This process typically includes storyboarding, securing talent, location scouting, obtaining any permissions, permits or required insurances, scheduling, coordination and lots of logistics. Anything that needs to be prepared ahead of time is done at this stage to ensure a smooth transition for filming. The more preparing that you can do in this stage makes life much smoother once the cameras get rolling. You can never over-prepare. Being very pro-active reduces costs and increases efficiency-which in turn helps us stay on budget and execute your vision smoothly. So the saying goes Pre-Pro, Pre-Pro, Pre-Pro!
Production: Lights, Camera, Action!
At this point in the game, the tough legwork of planning and coordinating the shoot(s) is complete and we break out our toys and roll cameras in Standard Definition, High Definition or Film. This can be a very challenging stage as production days can be very grueling 12-hour days or even longer depending on the concept. We have filmed in the deserts, snow capped mountains, lush forest, sunny beaches and everything in between. Even filming in a standard office environment can be challenging, believe it or not. Things like how much power is needed, noise levels, types of light in a room, echo, etc can be an issue if not properly prepared. Luckily for our clients, we do our homework so must of the challenges will have been addressed before we even show up on location.
Each project requires different tools whether it is mounting a camera to a car to film a chase sequence or using a camera jib to establish those beautiful swooping shots. We he have all the right tools to get the job done, and it you need something that we might not have, we can get it. We meticulously work to achieve the awe-inspiring, jaw dropping look and feel you are going for. Whether its capturing a beautiful sunrise or rigging the camera in that hard to reach spot for that beautiful angle, we strive for those perfect shots unsatisfied until we have them. We don’t aim for second-best, its not in our nature.
We work with only top-notch professional gear in High Definition. We have a full array of lighting, audio gear, tripods, teleprompters, dollys, steadicams, jibs and much more. We work very closely with the P2 format which captures High Definition images in the DVCPRO HD codec. We have backdrops in black, white and even have a very large green screen for compositing special images and sequences. We have all the right tools to capture your vision in your style. We work side by side with our clients ensuring that we are accurately capturing their vision and everything from syntax to attitude is properly conveyed.
Post-Production: Sheer Magic
After all the hard work of Pre-Production and Production, the project moves into Post-Production where the real magic happens. Post-Production is the process where your project comes together like a puzzle, once piece at a time. We start by importing your footage into our centralized storage systems. From there we carefully piece your video together from the conceptual designs and scripts that were used to create the final vision during the stage of pre-production. We create an initial rough cut to be shared with our clients. This outer shell is a snapshot of the structure of the video and how it will play out. This is the first opportunity to see the script and conceptual designs in its real form. This gives our clients the ability to assess the direction of the project and make any necessary adjustments.
Once we have approval, we keep moving forward pulling in all the elements of the video which truly make it come alive. We add compelling imagery that was captured during production, add sound and crafty editing to make the video jump off the screen. Once we have a more finalized version, we again share this with our clients to check the status and direction of the video. From there we continue editing, making revisions and tweaks until we have reached an approved final cut.
The final cut moves to a finishing stage where all the images are color corrected. This important step helps to convey the tone of the video. If we are portraying a sad scene, perhaps we make shadows a little darker, remove some of the initial color and add a hint of blue to help convey the atmosphere and tone of the scene. These small adjustments play a huge roll in the video. This simple step takes our already great-looking video and pushes it up two or three more notches.
On the topic of notches, the audio is adjusted matching all levels, adding sound effects, ambient noise and any things else to help convey the tone. Music selections are finalized and tweaked. If motion graphics are needed they are created in one of our two motion graphics programs that really ramp up the production value and add a lot of wow factor to any video.
The final cut is mastered, encoded and compressed for DVD, web distribution, broadcast or any other format. If the project is on DVD, we create the DVD menus, DVD cover art for the DVDs and cases. Duplication services are available for any quantity whether its 5 or 5,000+. For videos that need to be compressed for the web, we have several tools that we use to encode the videos down to the smallest size yet still retain a high quality image. Whatever your final deliverable is, we have all the right tools to distribute your video.
Whether you need consulting, filming, editing or a fully produced video from start to finish we are here to assist you with whatever you need.
