A simple view at Documenting Interviews

by Yolanda Ocon

Filming interviews is not an easy task. It requires a completely different set of expertise, different from the skills you need when filming food focused videos. Here at Curious Crab we’ve done a fair bit of documenting interviews.

Preparation is key and it is important to have good communication between the film crew, interviewer and interviewee. The main aim is for the whole process of documenting the interview to run smoothly to ensure that the result will be of great quality. In order to achieve this you have to think about the many pieces of the puzzle beforehand, and take enough time to prepare the team. Thinking about the message you want to convey, preparing the questions, finding the right people that will kindly share their knowledge, experience and/or opinions on the subject. Setting up the right environment to make the process of documenting an interview smooth and to have a high quality and engaging end result.

Being in front of a camera can be very daunting, that is why one of the most important tasks of the interviewer is to make sure that the person they are interviewing feels comfortable and relaxed, helping them answer their questions in a more comprehensive way. Keeping a flexible approach helps conducting the interview as it allows the conversation to flow and sometimes it’s when you find bits of information you didn’t think of in the first place but that make for a much more interesting interview.

The film crew is there to make sure that the vision of the director is being followed, with the right brief. They are the ones making the magic happen, making sure they capture the key moments of the interview in the right scenario and setting, and most importantly without being disruptive.

As for the person being interviewed, it is important that they are briefed with enough time prior to the interview. Making sure they know what questions are going to be asked will help them prepare themselves and feel more relaxed at the moment of being recorded.

No matter your role within the team, keep in mind that as cheesy as it may sound, team work makes the dream work. Having done the right preparation beforehand will allow everyone to be comfortable and enjoy the whole process.