https://www.instagram.com/p/BcXWAB6FHXR/
Contextualising Statement:
For our Instagram task we were asked to produce a sharable seasonal greeting video and at least four BTS stills – two from the planning stage, two from production. We had to create something engaging to Instagram’s key demographic – 18 to 24 year olds – demonstrating a clear rational and understanding of the intended audience. Filming was done in pairs.
As I have no experience of Instagram, and am well outside the demographic, I was worried about this task and struggling to come up with ideas. However, I researched their Christmas videos, considered what seemed popular, and what was listed in ‘best of’ articles. As expected Santa, reindeer, Christmas decorations and music appeared frequently (2015). I combined this knowledge with a random piece of information I’d remembered about reindeer. The internet is a mine of advice about creating content. According to Corcoran (2016) it’s important to tell a story, stick to the point, use captions or text within video as many people browse Instagram without sound, and remember the square shape is more popular with users. Other sources also emphasised fun and spontaneity.
Bearing this in mind I decided to create a simple single take video telling the story of how as male reindeer shed their antlers in winter, but female reindeer don’t, all Santa’s reindeer must be female (2017), except Rudolf the non-binary reindeer. A recent YouGov survey (2015) found that one in two 18 to 25 year olds identify as other than heterosexual and cis, so I felt the mention of Rudolf would be understood in a light-hearted and inclusive spirit. I gathered festive props – Santa hat, toy reindeer, tinsel, lights – and wrote simple cue cards which my task partner was to display then drop to reveal the next. Bob Dylan famously did this in his film for ‘Subterranean Homesick Blues,’ and the style has been used many times in the decades since (2012). It is visually engaging while also bearing a hint of counter-culture that juxtaposed well with Santa and cosy Christmas thoughts.
Filming was extremely straightforward once everything was set up, although a little cramped as many of our class were using the same room. As I had decided not to record live audio there was no problem with noise from other students. The only problem was that my task partner couldn’t get the cue cards to cooperate, they kept getting stuck together. Luckily, his friend came to our rescue, handled the cards with aplomb and we completed filming in two takes. We all had fun and enjoyed the experience of working together.
All that was left was to add non-copyrighted Christmas music and the sound of a finger click in editing.
Due to my limited technical knowledge and our time constraints I took the simplest possible approach to this task. I believe the result is entertaining, fulfils the parameters and demonstrates what can be done in one minute on almost zero budget. If I was to approach a similar task in the future I would draw on my increasing knowledge and skills as I continue to learn.
Bibliography:
Corcoran, L. (2016) Four Quick Things to Know About Successful Instagram Videos. Newswhip [Internet], 26th July. Available from http://www.newswhip.com/2016/07/five-things-about-instagram-videos/ [Accessed 22nd May 2018]
Renfo, K. (2015) 18 absurd and wonderful Christmas videos from Instagram. Business Insider [Internet], 24th December. Available from http://uk.businessinsider.com/instagram-christmas-videos-2015-12?r=US&IR=T/#and-finally-no-christmas-video-collection-is-complete-without-an-epic-light-show-18 [Accessed 22nd May 2018]
Shakespeare, A-E., Dahlgreen, W. (2015) 1 In 2 Young People Say They Are not 100% Heterosexual. YouGov UK [Internet], 16th August. Available from https://yougov.co.uk/news/2015/08/16/half-young-not-heterosexual/ [Accessed 23rd May 2018]
Fischer, R. (2012) Ten Videos Using Bob Dylan’s “Subterranean Homesick Blues” Cue-Card Concept. City Pages [Internet], 22nd March. Available from http://www.citypages.com/music/ten-videos-using-bob-dylans-subterranean-homesick-blues-cue-card-concept-6643372 [Accessed 23rd May 2018]
HuffPost (2017) Santa’s Reindeer Are All Female, Zoologists Say. [Internet], 19th December. Available from https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2017/12/19/santas-reindeer-are-all-female-zoologists-say_a_23312115/?guccounter=1 [Accessed 23rd May 2018]