Preparing a Digital Multimedia Project

Creating an effective multimedia project requires:

• Thought

• Organization

• Precision

Video Production Process Overview

 Phases of Production:

• Preproduction Phase: Is the phase in prodution when all production details are planned.

• Production: Is the phase in production when the actual activities occur to create the animation; drawing, recording, creating audio, etc

• Post Production: Is the phase in production when the selection and the assembly of the animation clips, videos, or shots are placed in logical sequence.

Obviously you could just sit down and start animating/ drawing, but you are more likely to be successful if you follow these preparation steps first.

1. Client Meeting   - Preproduction Phase                                                                                                  

The first step is to meet with the client to discuss the project. You must find out exactly what the client:

• Expects
• Wants
• Is willing to pay for

You must be prepared to use the information that you collect from the client to draft a project proposal or concept which you wil submit to the client for approval prior to creating any animations. This process ensures that  both you and the client understand each other and agree on the scope of the project ( Project Scope). After this you should know the technical specifications for the final project deliverable, including the budget, length of the project, and the final delivery format.

Key word:

Project scope - is the part of a project planning that involves determining and documenting a list of specific project goals, deliverables, task, cost, and project deadlines.

Budget -  a plan used to decide the amount of money that can be spent and how it will be spent.

Deliverable- the item that is to be given to a client or customer as promised by an animator or sales associate.

2.Develop the story - Pre Production Phase                                            

After the intial concept has been approved or decided upon, writers develop the story in the form of a script or screenplay. The story is very important. The highest production valuse cannot save a project with an inadequate storyline. Withour a strong storyline, there are only elements thrown togather and placed on the screen for viewers to look at. This could make the viewers of the story confused, bored, and most cases, displeased with the multimedia project. 

The Confusing Story:

KEY COMPONENTS:

The Audience

Identifying the audience by determining:

• Who are you trying to reach?
• Who do you want to watch the finished product?
• Who your actual audiance is ?

The answer to these questions will help you select the appropriate images and language for that audience.

For example:

If your audience is a bunch of chemists and you are creating a multimedia instructional video that explains a new chemical compound found in nature you wouldn't want to make the main characters silly birds 

The Characters:

Character design is more than just the way the character looks it includes the characters personality traits, movements, and voice. Memorable characters are unique, but have a way of connecting with the audience.

Key Vocabulary:

Audience -  a group of people who gather together to listen to something (such as a concert) or watch something (such as a movie or play) : the people who attend a performance

Character - a person in a story, animation, video game, multimedia project, novel,movie, or play.

3. Create a Storyboard - Production phase

With the script approved, the director works with the storyboard artists and story artists to continue to articulate or visualize the story in the form of storyboards.

Storyboards are more than just sketched of what is being described in the script. They play a role in how shots are framed and can help set the pace of the entire animation. They may include notes for suggestions on direction or sound. Artists often refer back to the storyboards during a production to ensure that they don't stray too far from the original goal. Some of the best elements of any story are created  during this stage of production.Skipping the storyboard step is highly unrecommended and can prevent you from further refining the story and can delay.

Please Remember:

Storyboards are very similar to comic strips even if they typically  include technical information, such as the intended camera moves, lines of dialogue, and sound effects. Software applications such as Adobe Premier Pro, Power Point,Storyboardthat.com,  and Adobe After Affects all have the capability to produce them.

Key Vocabulary:

Storyboard - or a sequence of drawings that help pre-visualization of the story.

4. Plan for Audio - Production Phase

Planning for audio inclusion requires you to answer the following questions:

• Will your production include narration?
• Will it include dialog?
• Will your production include music?

Most awesome animations include all of the above. If you do not plan ahead, you may find your backtracking and making uneccessary adjustments to make the audio and sound fit your charactes and all other visual content.

Music and Sound planning

In most cases audio engineers work at the same time with the rest of the crew by starting to develop the music and sound  effects as early as when the storyboard have been locked in for the production.

5. Final Editing - Post Production Phase

During this phase of production all scenes are placed together and typically are reviewed by the production crew, then a small marketing panel, and finally is sent into mass media.