Video is one of the most powerful and popular forms of media today, but what makes a video story compelling and engaging? How can you craft a video narrative that captures your audience's attention and emotions? In this article, you will learn about the key elements of a compelling video story, and how to apply some basic techniques to improve your video storytelling skills.
The first element of a compelling video story is having a clear goal and message. What do you want your audience to learn, feel, or do after watching your video? How will you convey that message in a concise and effective way? Your goal and message should guide your decisions on what to include and exclude in your video, and how to structure your narrative. A good way to define your goal and message is to write a one-sentence summary of your video story, and use it as a reference throughout the production process.
A compelling video story hinges on a strong narrative structure with a clear beginning, middle, and end; engaging characters that viewers can empathize with; a resonant purpose or message; and an emotional connection that keeps the audience invested. Visual storytelling is crucial, utilizing composition, lighting, and camera movements to convey the mood and tone. Proper pacing and timing, alongside a meaningful conflict and its resolution, maintain engagement. High-quality production, creative editing techniques, and authenticity in portraying genuine experiences enhance the story's impact. These elements, combined thoughtfully, ensure your video leaves a lasting impression.
Creating a compelling video story involves first having a story you want to tell, characters you want the world to get to know & love like you know & love them, crafting a strong narrative with emotional engagement, dynamic characters, & visual appeal. Conflict & resolution drive the plot, while pacing ensures a balanced experience. Visual and audio elements should cohesively enhance the storytelling. Surprise elements keep viewers intrigued, & authenticity ensures relevance to the audience. Finally, a clear CTA prompts further engagement. By integrating these elements effectively, creators can captivate their audience & leave a lasting impact.
My one big tip in corporate storytelling is that you should be really honest when setting the goal of your video: at the end of the day, are you making this video for your audience, or for your organisation/boss? Because if you want your audience to change their attitude or even their behaviour, then you should really prioritise your audience (I.e. the entertainment value or emotional power of your story) over the message your organisation/boss wants to convey and be willing to sacrifice certain elements of the message, accordingly. This may sound easy, but if you don't make this distinction actively at the start, you'll end up making a video primarily for your boss and that may be just fine, but you won't change any attitude or behaviour.
at least as it pertains to testimonial style content, the real answer as to what makes a story compelling is simple: patience and listening. We often think about the editing process first rather than what it takes to truly get someone to share their story in the best way. When the producer sits down in the chair across from someone, they have two jobs: to listen and to care. It's not about the list of questions you have on your lap. It's not about the rules of video. It's about caring enough to spend an hour with someone helping them transport themselves back to the most crucial moments of their story so they can share with you who they really are. If you don't have the time to do that, you don't have time to really tell a story.
The first big questions to as is the 'Why' and what is the call to action (if there is one). Defining these two will help you put together what you will need for pre-production. Without the why and the CTA, your video won't have the message you want to send.
The second element of a compelling video story is having interesting characters and conflict. Characters are the people or entities that drive your story forward, and conflict is the challenge or problem that they face. Your characters should be relatable, authentic, and diverse, and your conflict should be relevant, meaningful, and suspenseful. Your characters and conflict should also reflect your goal and message, and show how your characters overcome or fail to overcome the conflict. A good way to develop your characters and conflict is to use the classic storytelling formula of exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution.
Algo también importante es poder combinar la personalidad de tu personaje con el conflicto que le está sucediendo, para que esto provoque un cambio en su carácter. Por ejemplo, si es muy tímido(a) y se enfrenta a una situación en donde debe atreverse a hablar frente a un grupo y tomar las riendas, al enfrentar su timidez habrá un crecimiento en él o ella además de resolver el conflicto principal. Y es fundamental que un personaje salga diferente a como entró en la historia.
Emotion! For the national TV show I work on, I always suggest finding a "real person" to help tell the story. For example, if I'm interviewing a doctor, I also want a patient. That's where the emotion comes in and it's who the viewer wants to see because they can relate to that person.
In the game of characters and conflict, you should never feel sorry for your protagonist and let them off easy. Live is hard, especially for a protagonist, the more adversity your story throws at them, the more meaningful and valuable it becomes to the viewer. No matter how much pressure there is to be mild for on your protagonist, it's in the interest of the story and subsequently your audience, to take the protagonist to the limit of the human experience. Hopefully, we as people never have to experience those limits in real life, but the whole point of watching/reading/hearing stories is to learn from valuable lessons without actually having to go through the messiness and discomfort of the experience ourselves
Characters are a hugely important part of storytelling. Their wants and needs allow the story to be propelled forward into something that is entertaining and interesting for the audience to watch.
The third element of a compelling video story is having captivating visuals and sound. Visuals and sound are the tools that you use to create the mood, tone, and style of your video story, and to enhance your goal, message, characters, and conflict. Your visuals and sound should be consistent, coherent, and creative, and use techniques such as lighting, framing, composition, movement, color, music, sound effects, and voice-over. A good way to improve your visuals and sound is to use the rule of thirds, the 180-degree rule, the shot-reverse-shot, and the match cut.
Always start with audio. Capturing great sound either on set or with voice over and matching with the perfect music can save mediocre video. Your video is 75% audio and audiences will forgive less than great video is your audio is amazing. That being said, don't skimp on video either. Things like shaky cam, bad or harsh cuts, and random scenes or misplaced shots in the edit will drag the project down. Less is more!
I think considering visual and sound third in the chronology would be a little underestimating the actual understanding for this concept as a whole. I think right shots with right amount of audio can take audience deep in the story. Perfect use of J- cut L- Cut can surely create a lot of tension and rising attention amongst the audience. Another thing which i think every director or film crew should focus on is how they portray a colour and what colour can be linked to what emotion. The perfect masterclass for this be Wong kar wai’s in the mood for love
In my opinion, the most important thing is finding the heart! If it comes from the heart, it will reach the heart. What is the heart of the story you are trying to tell. Find the BEST way to capture the essence of that, and serve it up to viewers in a way that resonates and stays with them. People will overlook a myriad of technical flaws if the message is genuine and connects. Music and sound design are incredible tools to help build that connection and set the tone of the mood. Finally, pace. Don't be afraid to change the pace of an edit to highlight an emotion or a feeling.
I would argue that the visuals and sound are the first element to video storytelling. A video is something you watch, discern, connect and relate to. This is all done before any verbiage or dialogue even enter the chat. Historically, the first moving picture was silent film. In 1890, the Kinetograph was a device that recorded moving pictures. Video begins with Visuals. Visuals and sound are used as a tool for enhancement: a film, infomercial, commercial ad, promotional video, reel, Youtube Short etc. - would be bare bones without sound and visuals to support the message. The message is a cohesive and necessary tool to tie into what the audience is experiencing in real time. If the message is everything, listen to a podcast.
The fourth element of a compelling video story is knowing your audience and context. Audience and context are the factors that influence how your video story will be received, interpreted, and shared by your viewers. Your audience and context should inform your choices on what language, tone, format, length, and platform to use for your video story, and how to tailor your goal, message, characters, and conflict to suit your audience's needs, preferences, and expectations. A good way to research your audience and context is to use surveys, interviews, analytics, and feedback.
Social media serves as an invaluable tool for gauging your audience's opinions on various issues. By monitoring discussions on platforms like Facebook, Reddit, and exploring relevant posts on platforms such as X, Instagram, and TikTok, you gain insights into public sentiment regarding the topic. Engaging with social chatter provides a perspective that enables you to refine your questions to align with their viewpoints. With this understanding, you can challenge common misperceptions surrounding the issue and craft narratives that resonate with your audience.
Today, good looking content is easy manufactured and achieved by every individual and company. The difference is made when you publish rhe right content to the right audience. When a user finds the right content in the right place, is more likely to follow and share your content in his profile.
The fifth element of a compelling video story is applying storytelling techniques. Storytelling techniques are the methods that you use to make your video story more engaging, memorable, and persuasive. To do this, you can use a 'hook' to grab the audience's attention, 'show, don't tell' by using visuals and sound to convey your message, evoke emotion through characters, conflict, visuals, and sound, create a story arc to show the progression of your story from beginning to end, and include a call to action at the end to motivate your audience.
When creating video content and trying to capture the attention of a broad demographic of audiences. I always try to have a good narrative but also add a human element with emotion and connection.
For the story overall, there should be an arc that represents 1. need 2. struggle 3. transformation. It should be book ended by first a hook (an implied question like "how will this end?" or "what will they do?) in the beginning and a meaningful/truthful message at the end: the story should tell us something, a view on life, that rings true for both the audience AND the brand/organisation that posted the film. Between scenes we need turning points to keep the audience engaged (and wondering what will happen next) from one scene to the next. And finally, on the level of a scene, we want to arrive late and leave early. That's why nobody ever says goodbye when they hang up the phone in film.
A great technique to follow (for branded content) is the 'hero's journey' technique (with this I recommend the book "Building A Storybrand" by Donald Miller) Connectivity to an audience is integral - but the KEY is clarity. The narrative coming out of a company through your video storytelling must be clear and have a formula attached. In a story or movie, audiences always must know who the HERO is. What the hero wants. What challenges the hero needs to face and how they will overcome said challenge. What tragic thing will happen with the hero doesn't win? And what wonderful thing will happen if they do? Our audience has questions - if we aren't providing solutions through our storytelling and branded content - they'll move on.
The sixth and final element of a compelling video story is revising and getting feedback. Revising and getting feedback are the processes that you use to improve your video story, and to ensure that it meets your goal and message, and your audience and context. Revising and getting feedback should involve multiple stages, such as pre-production, production, post-production, and distribution, and multiple sources, such as yourself, your peers, your mentors, and your viewers. A good way to revise and get feedback is to use the PDCA cycle: plan, do, check, and act.
At Visual Media Co, we place heavy emphasis on getting it right in Pre-production to manage revisions and feedback in post. Every client gets at least 72 hours after the first completed final edit to make changes or request modifications. Planning for the edit is the only way to ensure a great final product!
My best advice is to make sure that the elements to your story are integrated. Meaning that struggles and conflict that the protagonist has to suffer through to reach their desired transformation are thematically bound to the message you want to convey with the film. This theme should be central and always present in the narrative from the start to the finish. Really ask yourself how you can represent the theme in every part of the video, especially the opening scene. It's a short video, so you really can't afford to stray from the central theme and conflict (a conflict always occurs within a theme). The theme and conflict are what the viewer connects with and what the video is "about." That needs to be clear from the start and throughout.
You have to listen to the customer or client, sometimes to the detriment of the project. It's their video/project so while we try to find a mix of our vision and theirs, sometimes it doesn't work. Advocate for changes if necessary but understand they might not be heard!
Give A flow to your Edit . Grab the Eyes of Viewers, keep them Connected . Try giving it an arch Usages of basic story telling will also help you Out.
These elements combine to create a video story that not only entertains but also effectively communicates the brand's message and motivates viewers to act. Strategic Objective: Define a clear purpose aligned with the brand's goals. Compelling Narrative: Craft a story that intrigues and captivates the audience. Memorable Characters: Create relatable and memorable personas. Engaging Script: Develop a script that resonates and sparks emotions. Emotional Connection: Evoke feelings that connect viewers to the brand. Immersive Soundtrack: Incorporate music and sound design for impact. Focused Message: Communicate the brand message clearly and creatively. Compelling Call to Action: Prompt viewers to take action or engage with the brand.