A recent Kite Film project took us to Buckinghamshire, to Bisham Abbey and the LTA International High Performance Centre, one of only four in the country. Sponsored by The LTA, Prince and Sports England it provides a perfect tennis and academic centre of excellence for children from the ages of 11 – 18.

In June 2011 Kite Films was asked to film the academy for a shorts 3 minute web based presentation, as well as a TV ready piece to promote interest in the development of young British tennis stars of the future. Working closely with Mike Walker – Head of Win Academies we were able to get close to the players in training, and match preparation. This allowed us to capture more of the up close action and demonstrate the attitude and work ethic of the players.

The film was shot over 2 days, and by using Canon’s 5 and 7D with 11,35, 50, and 70-200mm lenses we were able to make the most of the depth of field and light available to us.

We decided to use the pole cam during the outside clay court training session, which gave us more of a high production value in a number of aerial shots.

Editing took the best part of 2 days in the editing suite in Wokingham, and with use of the Mac, and Final Cut Pro we created a 3 minute film that was presented to Win Tennis as well as a number of Television Production companies the following day.

We would like to thank Mike Walker and his team of professional coaches and support staff, Andrew MacKenzie-James and his team of educational staff, Mark Cox MBE – Academy Mentor as well as all the young players for their effort, support and patience during filming. We wish you the very best in your tennis careers.

There are few who would debate the power of the Internet and it’s ability to help promote up and coming filmmakers. Youtube and Vimeo are full of independent filmmakers of the future, and it seems that anyone with a video/camcorder or new generation DSLR camera wants to show their work to the world.

As the primary method of communication, the Internet is an important business tool and sometimes it’s hard to imagine how business operated without it.

For the next generation of filmmakers the Internet provides a vital link to like minded individuals through informative internet sites, blogs and chat rooms, that they may share ideas and frustrations. On close inspection it appears as if the numbers of filmmakers around the world is growing out of control and it far outnumbers the openings and opportunities to make a living in the industry.

However, while the numbers are rising and opportunities are few and far between, there is still hope for those talented and dedicated enough to forge a career out of their passion for filmmaking. A good start for anyone with little to no experience is any number of film schools around the world.

Film schools are available in most countries and more than willing to make money training those intent on getting a start in the industry. They provide a professional grounding in all aspects of the filmmaking process. Their courses range from a weekend ‘introduction to filmmaking’, to a 2 two year degree course. Met film school at Ealing film studios offers a BA (Hons) Practical Filmmaking course designed for students who want an intensive, two year study of practical filmmaking.

While The New York Film Academy offer anything from a 1 week film workshop, to a 2 year accelerated MFA (Master of Fine Arts in Filmmaking). Both schools provide numerous courses, they include; Animation, cinematography, directing, editing, screenwriting, producing, visual effects and acting.

If you have the time and the money, few would ague that these film schools and academies are the right choice as a solid grounding in your chosen career path. Though for millions of others, talent of the future included, they will have to settle for the power of the Internet to show their work to the world.

The following ten considerations should get you off to a great start.

Put People in Your Commercial

People relate to other people. Putting people into your commercial can help draw your target audience in as opposed to a 30 second shot of your building’s interior, exterior and the car park. You don’t want your commercial to look cheesy so you do want to be careful about having people waving at the camera or standing there smiling. Have them doing something that relates to your business so your commercial doesn’t look like a photo that’s come to life.

Plan Out Your Video

Using a furniture store as an example, you may have ten different kinds of recliners, eight living room sets and six bedroom suits you want to feature. You’re going to have to narrow those shots down because you simply can’t get them all into a :30, :45 or even a one minute commercial without flashing so many different pieces of video on the screen that your potential customers will feel like they’re in a lightning storm. Wide shots of your showroom are good to get a range of your furniture displayed at once and you can select a few items you want to be featured alone. It’s crucial you do not cram too much into the small amount of time you have for your commercial.  Your video should effectively tell the story about what you’re advertising even if a customer has their volume turned down.

Writing the Script

Make sure your commercial’s script times out to 30 seconds (or however long you have bought air time for). Use short sentences that grab your potential customer’s attention. You’ve got a very limited time frame to capture your audience and you need to get your message across quickly. Don’t get wrapped up in long sentences. Keep them short and punchy. Your audio should also tell the customer what you’re advertising even if the customer is in another room and can’t see the TV when your commercial airs.

Audio and Video Must Match

When writing your commercial, you must make sure your audio and video match. When you’re talking about new car models arriving, you don’t want to see video of the current year’s make. When you’re talking about your big showroom of furniture, you don’t want to see the building from the street. You must merge your audio and video to create a powerful sales tool.

Never Forget Your Call to Action

Your call to action gets customers to buy or act now. Don’t get to the end of your commercial and leave off your call to action. You want to tell customers to visit today and give your complete contact information, including Web site address, phone number and street address (giving a quick line about how to find you if possible). For example, “That’s Simple Designs, located next to the old train station in town.”

Stick to Time

You’ve bought a :30 commercial package. As tempting as it might be to squeak in an extra few seconds, you just can’t do it. Your commercial must time out to the exact time you’ve paid for. Going over will only get your all-to-important call to action clipped because those last few seconds will be cut off when your commercial airs.

Hiring a Production Company

Of course, you want your commercial to be professional and that’s where we come in.  We can handle all aspects of your commercial, including writing, shooting and editing.  Make sure that the production company you hire is a perfect fit for you.

Scheduling Your Commercial

Placement of your commercial is very important. It determines who will see your commercial and how much you will pay for its air time. Having your commercial air at 3 a.m. will save you money but if you don’t reach your audience it’s not money well spent. The same holds true for the station you’re airing your ad on as well. If you’re advertising your maternity clothing store, you probably don’t want schedule air time on Sky Sports during the cup final.

Frequency

Television is less demanding on frequency than radio but it still deserves more than a one-shot deal. If you were advertising during the aforementioned cup final, that would be a completely different story. But on the local level, you need to identify the key times your ad should run and buy enough air time for your commercial to reach your audience at least twice. More showings would obviously be better and maximise the effect.

Consistency

Use the same announcer, jingle, fonts, colors, etc. to keep your commercial consistent. This helps people start to get to know your company by all of these factors. The more you recognize the lady pitching the hair salon down the street, the more you know exactly what that company’s name and address is before she even speaks in the commercial.

Kite Films aim to take film making in Berkshire to a completely new level of professionalism and customer satisfaction.  Call us today on 07798 766573 to discuss your requirements.

The video below will show you some fantastic aerial filming and explain how Kite Films are able to do it.