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SO, you want to create a 30-second "spot" featuring the work of
an artist - or your own work. Here's one way to do it...
 1.
Get permission from the artist to shoot their work to post it
on the internet. Get it in writing! |
2. With the artist, look at a single piece of work or a body
of work.
- What's it about?
- How is it made?
- Is there an idea or message that goes with it?
Make some notes. Draw some sketches. Look at the work as
if you were looking through a camera lens.
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 3.
Decide whether you will need music (hope not, it's expensive
to use!), or a comment from the artist, or a particular set
of sounds to go with the piece. Are you only showing the final
piece or will you show the steps. |
4. Think about a beginning, a middle and an end. Even if you're
not really telling a story, time will pass in those 30 seconds.
You have to start somewhere, and end somewhere. Break it down
second-by-second if you need to.  Draw
some storyboards. What will this piece look like in the television
box?  Do
you want the viewer to DO something after they've seen the piece?
Give yourself some options. Think of a few different ways to
shoot it. Show the artist what you've drawn. Does it make sense
to them? |
 5.
Get ready to shoot. Bring your lights, your camera, your microphone,
your storyboards, your work of art and the artist together on
a day that's convenient for all of you. |
 6.
Light it. Check your white balance (is your white really white?)
Shoot the work in the ways you had planned to, and if something
new occurs to you, shoot that too. Lots of static details work
well on the internet. Lots of movement doesn't. However,
the reverse is true of television. Make sure you've got lots
of material to work with. Twenty minutes of footage MIGHT just
give you enough to work with. |
7. Record ambient sound in the room, or create sound you want
to use & record it. Talk to the artist "on camera". Let him/her
talk about the work - in complete sentences so you've got something
to work with. Make sure you get a "head and shoulders" shot
of the artist that's at least ten seconds long, so that you've
got a good three or four seconds to put at the end of your 30-second
piece.
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8. View your tapes and log what you have.  If
you have time code on your camera, use it to identify where
the shots you want to use are on the tape. This process will
take a couple of hours. Pick your best shots. Pick a series
of shots that go together. Sometimes your best shot doesn't
fit with what you want to show. Don't use it because it will
look funny. Just make sure you know what your "next-best" shots
are in case they make more sense together. |
 9.
Edit the work. Try a couple of different approaches. Consider
pacing & speed (60 shots in 30 seconds; one continuous shot
in 25 seconds); tone & scale (if you use moving shots, make
sure they're moving slower than YOU need to understand what
you're seeing); colour; sound; voiceover from the artist.....
Does the 30-seconds have a punchline? Does it have a beginning,
middle & end? Do you go from small detail to the whole piece
or vice-versa? Once you've edited, show it to a few people.
What do they say? Is it beautiful, striking, funny, fast? Does
it "feel" like the work it shows? Does it make entertaining
tv? What does the artist say? You probably want to show who
the artist is at the end, and include contact info (name, medium,
address) for the artist or for you. Probably by using text.
IF you have used music, make sure you have written permission
from BOTH the performer AND the publisher/owner/author of the
piece of music.  Music
rights are VERY expensive to rent or own, so you probably want
to avoid using music if you can. |
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Congratulations!
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