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18 Lessons Learned in 2008

leelefever

By leelefever on January 02, 2009 - 11:32am

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It's time for our 2nd annual Year-End Lessons Learned post. 2008 was a great year for Common Craft.  While we published a number of videos that we're very proud of, 2008 was all about building a foundation for the future of our business.  Going into 2009, we're feeling confident that we have a solid foundation in place - and now is our time to put more videos into the world.

Here are a few things we learned: 

Overall Business:

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Making the Election Video: Behind the Scenes

leelefever

By leelefever on September 02, 2008 - 1:03pm

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People often ask for a look at how we make the videos. When we were putting together the the "Electing a US President" video, I made a special point to take photos of the process. Here's how it works:

Every video starts with a script. If there is "secret sauce" it happens in writing the script because the script drives the video. We use Google Docs to collaborate until we feel like the script is close to finished. Then, we start looking at a thumbnail storyboard.

Making the Election Video by you.

I draw the scenes for the thumbnail storyboard. It's our first attempt to represent the visuals.

Making the Election Video by you.

After a couple of rounds of thumbnails and lots of talking between us, we make a list of all the elements that need to be drawn for the video. At this point, I start drawing and digitizing the images. Of course, with the maps in this video, I resorted to tracing.

Making the Election Video by you.

Once the images are drawn and digitized, we set up a new storyboard using purely digital images. This way, we can manipulate sizes easily and see how everything fits together. Once we feel confident, we print out the materials and start cutting and coloring.

Making the Election Video by you.

Making the Election Video by you.

Sometimes, we leave things laying around and our dog decides to put them in his mouth.

Making the Election Video by you.

Before shooting the video, we assemble all the materials and take them to the studio. We iterate at every point in the process. The script and visuals change every day.

Making the Election Video by you.

Once production begins, we follow the storyboard and slowly lay out each scene. Often, scenes are revised on the fly. You can never really see how it will work until you see it on the screen.

Making the Election Video by you.

Each video is different. Sometimes we go down a road, only to find a dead end. We are both prepared to throw away our work and start over if it doesn't feel right. It's painful, but necessary.

Sachi takes over control once we get to the studio. She runs each scene, the camera, lights, etc. She manages the voice-over and all the post production work. Editing is a huge part of what makes the videos work and those decisions are Sachi's. While she's doing that, I start this process over for the next video.

All these elements come together to create this video (on Vimeo, YouTube and dotSUB):

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A Classic Lesson on Being Small and Happy

leelefever

By leelefever on November 13, 2007 - 10:53am

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When we arrived at our rental house in Mexico, we found well-worn notebook with hints about the town and surroundings.  On one of the pages was a story that I had heard before, but for this particular vacation, and at this point in our careers, it had extra meaning.  It matches, with a bit of exaggeration, our goals when it comes to managing our lifestyle.

A boat docked in a tiny Mexican village and an American tourist complimented the Mexican fisherman on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took to catch them.

"Not very long," said the fisherman.

"But then why didn't you stay out longer and catch more?" Asked the American.

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