SHORT VIDEOS – PART - 06
John Edathattil
Screenwriter @ Screenplay Doctoring and Allied Services | Screenwriting, Story Structure Workshops.
Two – The Telling of Story
Only when you have a story can you tell one. There’s a common belief that story and the telling of the story are the same. No, it’s not. The telling differs from the story, as it develops to be a personal choice of the teller; and that depends on the selected emotion the teller is keen to transport to the viewer. There’s a good lot to discuss in detail here, but I just want to surmise that the telling of the story – the structure is all that matters to draw your audience/viewer as the story ? the emotion is transported to them.
Three – Theme/Message
Thematic Revelation is what your audience/viewers search from your video, irrespective of their unawareness to it. The content that you present to your audience with your images and sound has to make a new dawn, a new realization of life in their minds. This’s what a film, a video, a PowerPoint or any kind of presentation do to every audience/viewers, every time they hear or view one. And when they say they like this new experience, they really mean they have learnt something new in their life and are fascinated by this new message of life. I believe, Thematic Revelation is what makes a video intrinsically viral.
Four – Spectacle/Style
Especially in a new-age of short videos, we are influenced viscerally and our immediate impressions are first prompted by what we see. For the same reason what your viewer sees is quite pertinent. We generally call this in Aristotelian term - spectacle. How do we garnish the looks? Does your subject wear a tie or is he in casual clothes? Does the woman look business-like, shy or haggard? Do you make a person look trustworthy / likeable to your audience? Do your characters communicate to your viewer personally and visually? Are their eyes visible? Or, distracting shadows fall on their face? Can the viewer hear them clearly or do they have to strain over other noises to hear the message the character tries to put across?
Five – The World / Environment
The World/Environment is part of the spectacle that contributes to the subtext that your viewers see behind your character and gather vital information that you don’t specifically speak out through your characters. And sketching this world can really be premeditated, I’d rather. What do viewers see behind your characters as they speak? Or what’s the imagery that you embed behind the word-content of your Power-Point slide? Do you show the view of a giant wheel at the carnival outside a window in the background or just a dark-grey wall? If it’s a yellow wall, is it well-lit or well-shaded that could generate a pleasing picture and move emotions? Are you shooting the chaotic fight in a college auditorium? You may have to have a reason to place your character speak sitting in an office room or stand amid a crowd with choking dark smoke in the backdrop. The World you choose brings in untold life to your video.