The makeup of a great VIDEO ILLUSTRATION can be the topic of great debate. It may sound cliché, but the beauty is often in the eye of the beholder. I’m dumbfounded, at times, when a particular video goes viral among churches and I fail to see its value. At other moments, I will praise a particular video and other critics will dismiss it despite its success. This simply illustrates the truth that choosing the perfect video illustration can be really subjective.

For the sake of our discussion on this blog, I’d like to share a few of my own thoughts on what makes a great video illustration. You can take this for what it is…my own personal thoughts. Hopefully it inspires some creative thought.

First

A great video illustration has first class writing. The message is everything for these videos. If the writing is rushed or uninspired, the entire video is affected. The factors that separate great videos from average ones are determined by the writing. For the viewer, you know it when you hear it.

Second

A great video illustration has great audio. I can’t emphasize this enough because I believe it’s so critical to the entire production. A great message can sometimes over-compensate for average audio but it will rarely survive a poor audio track. Although some will argue that it’s not that important, I’m always reminded of how false that is when average viewers voice their frustration with poor audio.

Third

A great video illustration has style. I could argue that the style has to be original or super unique but that’s just not true. It just needs style…flare…pizzazz…creativity. Although there are the occasional superstar videos that rise despite their lack of style, this is not the norm. I would also argue that simple and clean can be one of the most effective styles out there.

Fourth

A great video illustration incorporates stylish type. Messy, chaotic font types can be such a distraction to me. At times, they completely ruin what might have been a great production. The message and style are often dependent on exception font type with classy motion or animation.

Fifth

A great video illustration features striking images and video. This includes the careful edit of how they move in and out of frame. When the message is solid and in rhythm with the music, the final test is the quality of what the viewer is looking at. The photography, the slow motion video, the careful designed images should communicate the emotion in the message. It’s a moving experience when it all connects.

Sixth

A great video illustration is Biblically sound. With all the care put in our church media today, we must be extremely responsible that the message communicates truth. The fast paced, on demand church media culture can often suffocate the investment of time needed to focus the truth of the message. It can be frustrating when the subject is right, the humor is perfect and the style works but the truth falls short.

Seventh

A great video illustration is brief. There are always exceptions that can pop up from time to time but this is pretty much a constant. Very few people can tolerate a long story these days. As in most things in life, when you’re forced to condense it and push out all the drivel, you end up with a better product. Two to three minutes is a nice average. A great video leaves the viewers wanting more.

blog comments powered by Disqus