When it comes to most things having to do with Kickstarter, people advise you get this professionally done or that professionally done. Some say that about Kickstarter videos as well. But, more than any other element, the Kickstarter video is likely the piece that most people have put together themselves. How hard can it be, right? All you need is a phone and an inexpensive microphone?
Video Software
Um, yeah, right. I have spent the last two weeks trying to get free video software to run on my notebook, and then to get a video done. Tip: don’t try to use DaVinci Resolve on a laptop. I can simultaneously have multiple art programs, and multiple programming environments, open on my machine at one time, all actively doing stuff. But Resolve wants way more memory than I have.
In the end, I went with the discontinued Movie Maker, because it works and was happy running on my hardware. It gives me less to play with, but that is probably a good thing, at least right now, as it is good to learn how to make simple well before trying to make the complicated. Do I think my videos are good? I am not too sure. I will make them better over time. But I am learning. I have done several videos, and don’t yet have one I am happy with.
My suggestion on the video: make sure you play around with it before deciding to do it yourself.
Audio Capturing
Audio is an area people tell you to spend quite a bit of money on, but I was able to pick up a Samson Go Mic for under $50, and, after spending an additional $5, I have a sound I am happy with. It is nothing special, but it will work for talking head videos.
You should think about your room for sound as well. We currently have a fish tank in our room, and while this little mic does a wonderful job of taking care of the background noise, the water running in the fish tank is clearly heard on the video. This is another thing to think about when deciding to do the video yourself or having it professionally done.
The Final Video
Below is the final video; you can judge for yourself if it is any good. The learning curve for this was surprisingly big considering I can deal with most other aspects of the Kickstarter pretty well. I guess this really goes towards figuring out your strengths and weaknesses up front, and getting help where needed. Of course, I have also learned quite a bit about video production, so maybe I just needed to spend time in learning.
A Note About Last Week
Last week, I said I would let my daughter help more, and let her be in the videos. Much to my surprise, she has chosen not to for the time being. This goes to show you should not assume what others want. However, the important thing is I gave her the option.
Looking Forward
Time is running out on me, and over the next two weeks, I need to get this Kickstarter ready to release. I have no idea if I will succeed or not, but I will learn, and that is all I can do, right? Next week, I will reveal to you the Kickstarter page, and how I came up with it.
If you liked this post, check out the other posts in this series.
Until next week,
Claire
