Video is a powerful medium to tell stories that engage and captivate your audience. But how can you make your video story more immersive, so that your viewers feel like they are part of the action and emotion? Here are some tips and techniques to enhance your video storytelling and video structure.
The rule of thirds is a basic composition principle that divides your frame into nine equal sections, using two horizontal and two vertical lines. By placing your main subject or elements along these lines or at their intersections, you can create a more balanced and dynamic visual. This also helps you avoid the boring and static center-shot, and leaves some negative space for movement and context. The rule of thirds can also help you establish the relationship between your characters and their environment, and create a sense of depth and perspective.
Create an emotional connection: Appeal to your viewers' emotions by incorporating elements that evoke feelings such as joy, sadness, excitement, or surprise. This can be achieved through powerful dialogues, music, sound effects, or visually striking scenes. Evoking emotions helps viewers connect with the story on a deeper level.
The key is the story. Tell the story and everything else should support that goal. I guess the bigger question is - Is the story immersive? If not then work on that first.
My personal preference - use a wider lens for closeups and a long lens for wideshots (I know ?? it’s the opposite of what the textbook teaches you but I believe you get far more expressive visual that way)
Now that video formats online are often square or vertical, the rule of thirds has changed! It’s all about creating dynamism through active space and ‘dead space’ depending on what you want to achieve. Experiment with funky angles and compositions. The rules for new media formats are being defined in real-time!
Occasionally, breaking conventional filmmaking rules can enhance the appeal of your video. Opt for natural-looking shots, experiment with dynamic angles, and incorporate authentic sounds for added interest. I believe simplicity and natural vibes often captivate the audience most effectively.
Using different types of shots and angles can help you create a more immersive video story, by showing different aspects and perspectives of your scene. For example, you can use wide shots to establish the location and mood, medium shots to show the actions and reactions of your characters, and close-ups to reveal the emotions and details. You can also use high and low angles to convey power and vulnerability, or tilt and pan to create tension and movement. By varying your shots and angles, you can keep your viewers interested and involved in your story.
Varying timing, energy and mood is key. Stacking climax after climax dulls the utility to deliver each message, instead, give pause before or after each delivery for the viewer's absorption. A blank screen with just titles or a voice over will also give viewers no other choices of distraction. Lastly, being concise is key especially for the shorter form commercial videos. These points are largely similar to how writing a story or essay is done.
With every moment in creative video you are either portraying many actions in sequence - telling a small story about each to form a larger narrative (ex: many vignettes / setups for your rap video) Or Focusing on one or a few actions - but telling a big story about them (ex: the whole 30 second spot is about cracking an egg) Don’t aim for somewhere between the two. Make a solid decision and maximize what you’re doing. Best way to disengage an audience is a wishy washy vision.
Sound and music can have a huge impact on your video story, by creating atmosphere, emotion, and rhythm. You can use sound and music to enhance your visuals, or to create contrast and surprise. For example, you can use natural or ambient sounds to make your scene more realistic and immersive, or use sound effects to emphasize important moments or actions. You can also use music to set the tone and mood of your story, or to create transitions and cues. However, be careful not to overuse or misuse sound and music, as they can also distract or annoy your viewers if they are too loud, too repetitive, or too mismatched with your visuals.
In video production, what you hear can be as influential as what you see, causing a great effect on the audience. Sound and music are unsung heroes in video production. In fact, for me personally, they are the foundation for any video sequence. They evoke deep emotions, capturing the viewer's attention, and guide the narrative by letting the viewer know the shifts in the storyline. I often find myself selecting my music before going on to select my footages and start editing, though some creators may disagree that it should be the other way around! Of course, it's important not to overuse the power of sound and music, as it could be a cause of distraction and in some cases may entirely misrepresent your story!
Editing is the final stage of your video storytelling, where you can shape and polish your story. Editing with purpose means that you have a clear idea of what you want to achieve with your video, and how you want to communicate it to your viewers. You can edit with purpose by choosing the best shots and angles, arranging them in a logical and coherent order, trimming and cutting them to the right length and pace, and adding transitions and effects to create flow and continuity. Editing with purpose also means that you respect your audience's attention span and expectations, and avoid unnecessary or confusing elements that can break the immersion.
In the digital world, unless you’re stretching your artistic muscles, it’s good to keep it simple. If you’re trying to extend watch time, keep your editing tight and deliberate.
One of the best ways to make your video story more immersive is to get feedback from others, and revise your video accordingly. Feedback can help you identify the strengths and weaknesses of your video, and see how your viewers react and respond to your story. You can get feedback from your peers, mentors, or target audience, and ask them specific questions about your video, such as: What did you like and dislike? What did you feel and think? What did you understand and what was unclear? What did you want to see more or less of? Based on the feedback, you can revise your video to improve its quality, clarity, and impact.
Story. Over. Everything. Yes, music and sound and editing are important. Yes, it’s critical to have the right shots and angles at the right times. Yes, lighting and color grading are vital. So why did people watch that shaky, out-of-focus cell phone video of a firefighter saving a cat from a burning home? Story. Because light, lens, angle, composition, sound, and even acting are all just tools to enhance emotion. They do not create it. If your video isn’t resonating, ask yourself-and others (preferably not your mom)-what’s the story? If you can’t find one or it’s not emotionally compelling, none of the other elements of filmmaking will make up for that. Story. Over. Everything.