Filming an interview is not setting down a camera
At Bluevista we have been filming interviews since the agency was founded in 2004. Beyond simply knowing how to film, a few rules have to be kept in mind.
The bond with the interviewer, and where the eyes go
First, the person asking the questions and steering the exchange. For an interview to have pace, and for the viewer to stay with what is being said, there has to be a genuine bond between the interviewer and the person opposite.
Then, where the person looks. Straight down the lens, or at an interviewer? The intent of the film changes entirely with the answer.
Sound comes before picture
Too often forgotten, sound quality matters just as much. It is not enough to clip a lapel mic on someone: it has to be placed well, and a back-up mic has to be running in case of rustle.
Lighting, framing, and what the viewer judges on
And finally, of course, the quality of the lighting, the image and where the cameras sit. That is what the viewer sees, and what they will judge the seriousness of the words on.
Our video production agency has all of this in hand, and brings the latest equipment — 4K cameras, LED lighting, wireless lapel mics — along with directors and technicians who are expert in their own fields, to produce filmed interviews of real quality.
The interview, the format everyone thinks is simple
A good interview goes unnoticed: you listen to what is said. A bad one is all you see — the searching eyes, the hissing sound, the flattening light.
Hence a shooting rule with nothing spectacular about it: a back-up mic always running, a decision on where the eyes go taken before the first question, and someone opposite who genuinely leads the exchange.