Read about the tools and best practices to review a video. To review a video has been something of a saviour for creatives and clients who used to work together on video projects before the advent of the wonderful collaborative platforms we have now. We have all gained years of life expectancy from all the misunderstandings we’ve been able to avoid. “What do you mean, ‘there’?”, “When exactly are you referring to?” Directors, content producers, editors and production managers are all aware of the phenomenal power that comes with properly commenting a video. If we can keep in mind how things were before, we can try not to repeat the practices that lead to the confusion and frustration.
Before getting into the how, let’s remind ourselves why it’s so good to review videos. There are 4 benefits directly related to video review.
Reviewing a video means being:
Reviewing a video therefore prevents mistakes, saves time and adds convenience. The platform’s timestamp also acts as a neutral arbitrator, so anyone can refer to it at any time.
With that, let’s move on to best practices.
One comment = one point of content. When we try to cover everything, we end up all over the place. For greater clarity, it’s better to review the same video image several times, rather than trying to fit everything into a large paragraph.
For example, instead of writing “this text should be turned blue and the text changed”, annotate the text part on the image asking for the color change, then make a second comment on the text to be changed with your precise comment.
Short, but sharp. There’s a certain amount of information we have that the person reading does not have. A comment must be factual, descriptive and simple. Give the detail needed without overdoing it.
The overall efficiency of the production is increased if the person with the information provides it directly. Avoid intermediaries. This avoids multiple exchanges to get the required info (details of an asset, where it’s stored, etc.) and allows everyone to relax – both the people looking for the information and the ones asked to provide it.
Learn more about reviewing with Skeem
Sometimes when we’re in a rush, we can be a little vague… The tools to review a video are well-made, so use them well! It is important to comment the exact moment, i.e. at the right timecode, and in the right place on the image – that helps!
Play the video and stop it when you want to comment. Not a little before or a little after. At the precise moment. This can avoid misunderstandings. Pin your comment in the best place for the reader to understand.
When we’re absorbed in our idea, our logic always seems infallible. Forget all subjectivity. Put yourself in the other person’s shoes and ask yourself if your words are open to interpretation. Taking a step back allows us to assess whether what we’ve written could be wrongly interpreted. And it’s time to make corrections, until there’s no doubt about it.
– Write clearly and directly, without the frills.
– Provide examples: there’s no clearer way to be understood.
Then, add something to motivate the troops, and the application does the rest for you!
Reviewing a video is a must-have! In the current landscape of Vimeo and the like, there are more platforms that offer tools to review video.
However, the mainstream video reviewing solutions are not integrated with a production scheduling tool, and the platforms are not well suited to managing creative projects, because they are not specialised. That’s why there’s Skeem 😉
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