10 Important Considerations when Directing a Video Case Study

Have you ever thought of the Considerations when Directing a Video Case Study? Producing an award winning or potentially award-winning video case study is certainly a task that requires extreme commitment to success. Ask any film production agency about the most important Considerations when Directing a Video Case Study and they’ll likely tell you that there are several key areas of focus on.

That includes what’ll occur in the planning, shooting, and post-production editing that comes along with a project like this. If you want to be successful, truly successful, with the video case studies that you produce, you’re going to need to figure out where you need to focus most when you’re directing. A video case study that’s going to draw the attention of an award-providing judge or jury must adhere to set standards.

The video component is bound by specific underlying rules that simply cannot be overlooked. If you’re even thinking about directing a video case study, and you want the potential to have an award-winning project when you’re done, these are the most essential considerations that we think you should be making during the course of the production:

Keep it Simple

You need to understand that a judge or jury might not be from your area, they might not even speak your native language, and they may not understand your culture. Therefore, you need to keep your case study simple.

If there are underlying cultural norms or elements that must be understood in order for the case study to make sense, address those with simplicity and move on. Communicate your idea clearly, offer up a compelling strategy for your study, and make sure that you execute with amazing power.

Be Brief & Focused

A case study video that has the potential to win an award is likely to be under two minutes. If you’re producing a case study for Cannes, it’s 90 seconds. You need to be brief! Put everything you think you need to say in writing, see how much time you’ve used, and then work out anything that isn’t necessary. Don’t go over!

Give that Elevator Pitch Immediately

Part of Directing a Video Case Study is making sure that you’re grabbing the attention of your audience immediately. If you’re not giving your elevator pitch in the first 10 seconds, you’re doing your video, and your audience, an injustice.

Make sure that you pull your audience’s attention right from the start, and you deliver. Expect the potential for a judge or jury not to watch past 30 seconds.

Follow the Format: Problem, Solution, Results

Every case study video should follow the same format in which you address the problem you’re trying to solve, the strategy that you’re using to solve it, and the results that you achieved. This isn’t time to reinvent the wheel, do what’s right and follow the format.

Know the Category for Your Case Study Video

If you’re directing a video case study that is going to accompany a project to a festival submission such as at Cannes or a similar festival, you need to know your category. Your video case study should be produced specifically for that category with that audience of judges in mind.

Review criteria for your category and make sure you incorporate all of the important elements listed in the judging criteria.

Be Honest & Humble

Producing a video case study is not the time to tell the audience that you achieved “amazing” results or that you had an “impressive” outcome. The audience can be the judge of that! You need to be honest.

Provide details only and avoid the use of brag words. Be humble about what you share and let your judge decide if it was amazing or impressive.

The Project is the Center of the Study

Directing a Video Case Study is a process that can easily get shifted so that your focus is too much on sharing the study and not enough about sharing the project itself.

This is the time for your project, the original relationship or situation that you sought to overcome, to shine. Don’t lose sight of what the purpose of the video case study is about.

Understand What to Avoid

Producing a video case study is definitely a process that’s going to draw out the need for expert testimony and you might even want to incorporate in your proof of project success, but be careful how you do.

You don’t want to go overboard on trying to “sell” the success of the project and if you are trying to sell it, let the value of the project be what sells it. Use your production skills to incorporate plenty of visuals to prove value without forgetting how important your project is in the first place.

Ask for an Outsider to Review

If you’re Directing a Video Case Study that applies to a project that you were behind, it might be time to seek the support of an outsider. If you’re too close to the project, it will be difficult to direct the case study video with an unbiased approach.

An outsider that isn’t as close can help you cut out what’s unnecessary to make the case study video more powerful.

Have Fun

Whether you love directing or it’s your very first time ever, it’s time to have fun. Don’t let all the nuances of directing a video case study stand in your way of enjoying the process as you learn and go about producing a video case study that’s going to gran the audience’s attention and deliver.