Best Practices for MOOC VideoMichael Ball, Aatash Parikh, Eric Arvai, Lauren Mock, Dan Garciabit.ly/moocvideo

MotivationRecorded UC Berkeley's CS10 "Beauty and Joy of Computing" in lecture ala the weathermanGreen screen, live recording, lovingly postYouTube: http://tinyurl.com/BJCvideosAlso have "TA does the lab" Khan-style videos

Lectures already broken up using clickers into segments, but could have done more "pre"In-class had to wait until gaps to answer QsCouldn't move feet, that was hard for manyHelped that I had a team of undergrads to help with the shlepping and setupHelped that I had an amazing undergrad to do post-production to remove green screenInstructor viewpoint

What weve learnedLive model as opposed to studio model preserves classroom energyGreen screen gives a larger view of presenter and utilizes the whole frameLack of pre-production multiplied post production time by 10Todays setup

Best Practices

Pre-ProductionWork with instructional designers or video producer to segment course contentPLAN AND TEST YOUR SETUP... Then test again!Make sure EVERYONE (including the presenter) is aware of the setup

ProductionHave a channel of communication (hand signals!) between presenter and videographerEnsure redundant recording of video / screen where possibleExample: Berkeley's Tricaster system

Thank You!Questions?Michael Ball, Aatash Parikh, Eric Arvai, Lauren Mock, Dan Garcia

Bonus SlidesThings we didnt have time to present, but are probably useful.

Caution: These may be a bit disorganized.

Video MattersFirst major interaction with course contentMain method of content deliveryMust be clear, understandableQuality important, but they don't expect HollywoodKnow when something is Good Enough

Post-ProductionLive editing vs Post EditingVideo post productionConcise segments

Questions (to Answer)What type of materials are you presenting?Do you know how this video will be used?What's your budget?How many hours of video do you need?Is there time for setup? Editing?

Lecture CaptureUncontrolled EnvironmentLighting & Sound ConsiderationsLow-light scenarioWireless lav mic scenarioRecord & project the screen simultaneously Record lecturer Redundant recording systems

Studio CaptureControlled EnvironmentRecord screen and lecturerLighting & Sound ConsiderationsStudio LightingShotgun mic scenario

Basic HardwareSimple 1-shot setup:1 Camera (Could be DSLR)1 Microphone (Wireless Lavs recommended)TripodExtra Memory Cards and batteries

SoftwareiMovie is perfectly fine for rough cuts. (Free)Adobe Premier (Elements $99 or Pro, $50/mo)Final Cut Pro X ($299)Apple Motion 5 (for templates, graphics, $49)Adobe AfterEffects (Green Screen, etc, $50/mo).PixelConduit (Live Production, $0, $120 add-ons)

Green ScreenAllows better Picture-in-Picture style presentations with a larger talking-head (or full body)Add-on to traditional captureStart by simply placing a green screen behind the presenter and edit in post-production as necessary.Live Solutions Exist (like for our demo)

Budget DifferencesMoney increases quality marginally in most cases. The big savings come from timeSave time editing, have redundancy with backups, and ways of recovering from errorsBuild systems which are modular that allow you to upgrade as necessaryMoney is better spent on audio than videoTwo cameras can be used for different anglesClean way to cover-up / fix mistakes in live recording

Low Budget (~ $2k)Compact Video Camera (Canon HF G10)Rode Shotgun MicrophoneShure Lav MicrophoneZoom H4n or Tascam DR-40 recorderCan also be used to directly record laptop soundTripod (hopefully with Fluid Head)QuickTime for screen recording and iMovie for editing

High Budget (~ $6k+)Canon 5D Mark III (Blackmagic Cinema Camera) + 200mm F/2.8 Lens Optionally, a 2nd camera for cutting to a different viewShure Wireless Lav MicrophoneZoom H4n (or H6, or Sound Devices 722)Larger / Sturdier Tripod and Fluid HeadBlackmagic Recorder for live captureCan be Thunderbolt/USB3 or a separate SSD recorderAdditional Lights, Green Screen, or mobile cart setup for flexibilityBIG Budget: NewTek Tricaster to do everything for you live! ($8K - $25K alone)Final Cut Pro X or Adobe Premier Pro

In case you werent convinced alreadyThis setup isnt necessarily advanced, nor does it provide redundancy for data but it can be effective for quick setups and limited spaces or budgets.Its often easiest to stick to a suite of apps. Final Cut Pro X and Motion work quite well together, and total $350 for the package. Software should be chosen based on what is available and what others around you use.

PixelConduit is one app we used for live production.The main idea is that after a certain point, youve achieved enough quality, money wont make a huge difference to the viewer. Go for better audio and things that will save you time. These are all specific recommendations, but you can replace any item that you want.These are all specific recommendations, but you can replace any item that you want.

Once you go down the big budget route, nearly everything becomes about doing more advanced shots, handling tricker situations or saving time.