For a promotional video, we were assigned to help in making a promotional video for a Dementia support group and a driving service for people with Alzhiemers.
On individual days, each group came informing us of what they would like for us to promote.
The Alzhiemers' support groups intentions are for their purpose to be advertised and to recruit volunteers. The promotional video can be used as a marketing tool on their websites.
Below are the 4 main aims the charity wish to have identified in the promotional video:
1. To convey the services benefits to people with dementia, as well as them having carers.
2. To hopefully encourage people into wanting to apply for voluntary carers for people with dementia. To do so, the voluntary carer job role should be portrayed as a worth while job in making a difference to people with dementia, as well as enjoyable.
3. To express how well people can live with dementia, when given the correct support.
4. For audiences to be engaged at an educational and emotional level.
Below is the schedule the support group have supplied us with for filming:
Based on this brief, I recognised that we needed to incorporate positive imager, such as the person affected with Dementia/Alzhimers smiling with the carer, or doing something fun together, as well as to formulate questions which would hopefully impose positive responses.
For example, I decided to formulate questions for the staff members and carers 'What do you enjoy about this job role?', or 'How does this job benefit you?'.
750 word report on being given a brief by our client (I.e. 'Alzheimer's support group')
Level 3 T.V and Film 750 word report on the promotional video for ‘Alzheimer's support group’. By Harry Burbidge
Two members from the Alzheimer's’ support group, known formally as the ‘The Link Project’, came to our College. They introduced themselves formally, giving their full names and commissioned us to make a promotional video. Their briefing contained a formal structure, as they listed how they wished to convey a friendly and beneficial environment to the support group, including interviews carers, staff members and people affected by Dementia. Additionally they wanted to encourage carer recruitment. They also hoped for us to engage audiences in an educational and emotional tone through the promotional video.
Therefore we recognised that we needed to enforce how much the organisation cared for people affected with dementia and their loved ones, how enjoyable the group's services are for people with dementia as well as the fun side to being a carer and how it has benefited them.
‘The Link Project’ arranged filming sessions for us to be picked up and to interview people affected with Dementia/Alzheimers, their carers and members of staff, who work there.
A cooperative structure was applied too. Even though we were given a brief of what to do, as well as interview questions for each person, ‘The Link Project’ was keen to seek our professional opinion on what we felt would be effective in creatively outputting the organization's purpose and benefits.
For example, they allowed for us to film in any particular way, we felt would be effective and necessary, as long as no member of the public was captured on camera. Most of the set questions were a baseline to convey the benefits of the service, what they do and what is looked for in a carer. We were allowed to ask any additional questions, we felt necessary to enforce a positive vibe to the organisation. Of course they would need to be sensitive and relevant to the brief.
For example, to meet the emotional tone of the promotional video, we thought it may add value, to ask the carers/members of staff on why they enjoy their job. Despite the staff interviews mainly setting out to inform the organization's purpose we digressed slightly, by also adding an additional question, asking the staff members ‘what they enjoy about their job/what they get out of it?’
The question helps to enforce the company's own individual personal enthusiasm, thus meeting the organization's brief for a conveyed friendly and caring environment. To enforce a light and casual tone, I asked one of the clients and his carer questions about the place they were going to and why. For example, when I interviewed a man named Alan and his carer Phil about why they go to a particular shop, Alan's’ career Phil stated that they usually go here to collect food for Alan's wife Doreen. Thus audiences can connect with the people, in finding their reasons for shopping to be considerably ‘sweet’ and ‘kind’, as well as seeing the organization also looks out for loved ones of those affected with Dementia/Alzheimer's.
However there were constraints, as we needed to interview strictly the people we were given, unless other people themselves volunteered. As the video was to promote a positive vibe, we could not ask any questions imploring negatives, such as ‘Is there anything you are looking for to improve the company?’. Neither could we ask any questions which would be too personally sensitive for people affected with dementia, loved ones, or carers to answer. We would also have to be aware of how we approach people with dementia/alzheimer's, as we cannot go storming in and suddenly ponder them with loads of questions. We would need to walk in slowly, introduces ourselves in a gentle and friendly form, so they feel comfortable and acquainted with us in the room.
This promotional video will hopefully give us the opportunity for a clear understanding of what it is like to work under standards/expectations of another entity (I.Alzheimers Support group). In independently made films of our own, we have cast our own talents, locations and so fourth. However, this promotional video unit has exposed us to new challenges, as we are required to go to places, commissioned by an entity and to go to new places and meet new people, out of our comfort zone.
This allows for us to develop skills in abiding by strict regulations and expectations while trying to transform the demands into a creative format to make the promotional video engaging. Thus preparing us for work in the T.V and Film industry.
It can also help to enhance teamwork and communications skills, from consulting with the peers in the classroom, as well as consulting different contacts and the ability to interview different people.
Additionally, creating a successful promotional video is a highly contributive factor in making a C.V look more appealing as it shows the potential for a candidate to be capable of working under industry standards.