Navid, you are about to launch an online television channel that offers what you call ‘Islamic content’. Why is such a platform important?

Look at the Muslim digital real estate. It’s full of extremist noise but in terms of positive ideas, it’s empty. There are many positive stories that don’t get told. People want to hear stories of ordinary Muslims: of successful business men, Graffiti artists, fashion designers and skateboarders. They want to see that stuff, not just once a year but all the time.

Do you intentionally aim at projecting a positive image of Islam?

When you describe it like that it sounds like I have some kind of moral mission. It’s more a case of making programs that I personally enjoy. I am European, I am British, I am a Londoner. But I also have an appreciation for the architecture of the Muslim world, for its culture and literature. I want to make programs about gardens and poetry, about beauty and achievement. The market is saturated with bad news about Islam. At Alchemiya, we will be looking at people who have found solutions to all those problems.

You were born into an immigrant family in the UK and have worked for the British broadcasting industry for more than 20 years. Is Alchemiya related to your personal biography?

My parents are from Pakistan. I was the first in the family who went to university. When I first started working in mainstream media, I was doing programs about design and history. After 2001, everybody wanted me to make films explaining extremism and terrorism. So I became a specialist in that area. But I got very tired of it. I couldn’t switch off anymore. As a Muslim journalist, it goes very deep. I was afraid I’d burn myself out.

When launched, how will Alchemiya work?

We are an online video-on-demand platform very similar to Netflix. About 40 percent of our content we’re producing unique new ideas and 60 percent we are sourcing from across the world. We have found many producers who feel frustrated because they can’t get their projects commissioned. So Alchemiya will work simultaneously as a commissioning house.

You have been thinking about Alchemiya for four years. How did you put your initial idea into practice?

In 2007, I started my own production company Gazelle Media. We went to the BBC and Channel 4 but weren’t very successful. After that, we did a lot of research. I went to visit different people in Kuala Lumpur, Abu Dhabi, Istanbul and the USA and learned that there is a new market of people who are looking for Islamic content. There is a blurring demand globally for people who want to watch this stuff. Because I understand this internet space, I learned that rather than being a producer and selling to the big channels, I can actually bring the customers straight to me.

When did you start setting up your team?

About two years ago I met a trustworthy guy who has experience in ‘big finances’ and I also knew an imam. It’s odd in the business world to bring an imam in, but Ajmal Mansour provides a lot of credibility to our project. At present even more people have joined us. This is exciting for them because it’s one of the first high quality tech project for Muslims.

Looking back at the development phase, what was your biggest mistake?

I wasted a lot of money and time trying to meet big investors. In this day and age, don’t go chasing investment money. Economies have changed. First you have to develop your product and harness support from customers. Then the guys with the money will come chasing after you.

Do you have any funding?

The initial funding is coming from the customers themselves. We offered them a 2-year subscription for 100 British Pounds (130 euro). It’s a kind of ‘crowdfunding’. We have asked people an advance subscription. We’re looking for 3,000 subscribers and are about a third of the way through that. It’s all done on trust. In Islamic finance, this is an acceptable mode of financing. This has secured our control over the project. We’ve also had offers of investment but we’re accepting only small amounts. We don’t want some big investor to take control over the project.

When are you planning to launch Alchemiya?

We’re hoping to have a beta version by the end of the year. A full service will come quite quickly, after a month or so.

This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.

Interview by Jannis Hagmann, edited by Kate Hairsine

Among his equipment, professional cameraman and documentary filmmaker Christian Parkinson has a small point and shoot digital camera, which he uses to produce quality films for broadcast. He talks to onMedia about his experience of working with compact cameras.

At the moment, Parkinson is using the Canon S110 (pictured above). It shoots full HD and although it won’t take an external microphone, the audio is “pretty good” if you are standing close to your interviewee, Parkinson says.

That’s good news for journalists who want to start producing video stories and are looking for an affordable equipment.

“The technology is now at a level where someone anywhere in the world with a little bit of money in their pocket can go out and make TV,” he tells onMedia.

While covering Nelson Mandela’s memorial service in 2013 for the BBC, Parkinson used the Canon S110 to produce a short news feature about people attending the service at FNB stadium in Soweto.

The image quality produced by a compact camera obviously isn’t as good as a professional broadcast camera and getting the exposure right in difficult lighting situations can be tricky, Parkionson says. But there are often advantages that outweigh the loss of quality when using a small camera.

“I can be filming with it where I’m not meant to be filming or where people would be very uncomfortable if I pulled out the big camera,” he says. With a small camera, “no one even blinks at me.”

“I can even walk up to people and start talking to them filming. And they might give me a funny look but they are not bothered by it. They don’t think you’re a serious journalist so therefore they are more relaxed and you get a real answer from people.”

Sense of immediacy

In another video filmed in Turkey, Christian guides the audience through the former French embassy in Istanbul. In the opening shot, he films his feet as he walks. In the next shot,  he’s holding the camera out in front of his face and introduces the story directly into the lens, which is  an advantage of a lightweight camera. Straight away you see the difference in this form of video journalism and storytelling – the journalist is more agile and the audience gets a sense that they are right there watching events as they unfold.

Practice makes perfect

Parkinson believes equipment is no longer an obstacle to making films. However, he says, equipment alone isn’t going to make you a filmmaker. You need to learn some basic skills and the best way to do that is get out there and practice with whatever equipment you can get your hands on.

“The technology is not as important as the storytelling experience; knowing what works, how to frame a shot and understanding the strengths and weaknesses of the tool that you’re using,” he says.

“I think that is just practice and experience and there is no shortcuts for a lot of this stuff. I wish I could give people a sort of bullet point of shortcuts that will make them brilliant filmmakers but unfortunately it is just trial and error.”

If you are interested in more of Christian’s thoughts on using small cameras, take a look at his website and blog where he writes about camera work and video journalism. Christian has recently published a new e-book Camera Confidential which is packed with advice about working as a camera operator and video journalist.

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Using graphics in your video, and using them well

Written by Martin Vogl, edited by Guy Degen

Photo: flickr/gywst

Infographics can enhance a visual story’s appeal and are extremely helpful in presenting complex information in an easy-to-understand way. Now, it’s easier than ever to use graphics in your videos thanks to more advanced and user-friendly software. OnMedia’s Kyle James takes a look at how a production team from Indonesia used graphics effectively in their award winning video feature.

Journalist and editor Andi Muhyiddin had an important story to tell, one that suited itself well to his medium, television. He wanted to tell the story of Indonesia’s Citarum River, once a gently flowing waterway west of Jakarta, now considered by environmental groups as one of the most polluted places in the world.

Citarum is now a chemical dumping ground for area textile mills and a rubbish bin for many of the five million people who live in the river basin, although some of them depend on the river for their water supply.

Muhyiddin knew he could get powerful visuals as small boats glide through what seems to be a landscape of trash. But he also needed to present statistics on the severe pollution—how much waste goes into the river, what kind it is, what effects is it having on the waterway itself and the region’s environment. As those familiar with TV know, the medium isn’t naturally suited to presentations of a complicated numbers. It often needs a little help, and that’s where the infographics came in.

You can watch Muhyiddin’s video below, which was a finalist entry at the 2013 German Media Development Awards.

Clarity and variety

Muhyiddin had specific goals in mind as he was thinking out how to structure his 10-minute package and use graphics.

Andi Muhyiddin

“All stories on television should be easy for the audience to understand, which is why we need graphics,” he said in an e-mail interview from Jakarta, where he is an executive producer at Berita Satu TV. “[Graphics] help the audience understand the message when the existing video is not enough. Also, they make the package more attractive and add variety.”

And given the short attention spans of today’s audiences, good graphics are a good way to keep your audience from reaching for the remote.

If you watch the Citarum video (and I would highly recommend doing so; it’s well worth the ten-minute time investment), you’ll see that Muhyiddin starts off with overhead black-and-white shots of the river and surroundings, accompanied by fairly dramatic music. He then presents a few statistics in simple, clear text: it’s the most contaminated river in the world, 400 tons per day of cattle waste goes into it and 25,000 tons of domestic waste. The text appears almost as if it’s being typed out, as if on an old Teletype machine. But there’s nothing old fashioned here.

Sometimes all the words in a short sentence fade but one, which then moves to a different position on the screen and is incorporated into a new sentence and new statistic. At one point, a title changes from white to almost blood red. The presentation is dynamic, keeping the audience interested while getting across the newsworthiness and seriousness of the issue.

“Like video, graphics should tell the message effectively,” he said, and dynamic ones are more attractive to the viewer than static words on the screen.

Towards the end of the feature, Muhyiddin used pictorial graphics (starting at 8’42”) to depict deforestation, soil erosion and sediment build-up, ground-water depletion and the waste from cattle, factories and households that regularly enters the river.

Moreover, in areas where literacy rates are lower, these kinds of non-textual visuals that present data clearly ensure your audience is really getting the story.

According to Muhyiddin, it’s best if a producer works with someone with strong experience in graphic design or art, such as Dimas Noegroho, the “best graphics artist in my office,” he added.

For Noegroho, putting together a good package involves good pre-production, including getting the designers on board in the early stages. How information should be presented graphically should be figured out during the scripting and storyboarding process, he said. It’s shouldn’t just be an afterthought.

The tools

Noegroho himself uses Adobe products such as Illustrator, Photoshop and After Effects in his work. For 3D modeling, he uses Cinema 4D Studio, 3ds Max and Viz Artist.

These software packages aren’t free, and they’re pretty complicated, requiring a good deal of training, he said. But for simpler graphics, especially static images, there are many websites that offer data visualization and infographics tools for free. Noegroho recommends visual.ly, which has partnered with big names like Showtime and Al Jazeera.

Other free options include Blender, free and open-source software for 3D animations. Gimp is a free program similar to Photoshop and Inkscape is the free counterpart to Illustrator. Check out this list of some of the best free graphic design software out there today.

For a video project similar in scope to the Citarum project, Noegroho said if everything were planned out in advance, he would need about three weeks to a month to get the graphics in place.

“Basically, we’re delivering data, but not just giving numbers,” said Noegroho. “The infographics explain the whole chronology of the problem step-by-step and how it came about.” That way, he added, people get the data in easy-to-digest bites which build up to present the bigger picture at the end.

Research done at Indiana University in the US found that animated graphics offer a way to keep viewers watching and to help them remember stories better. But the study cautioned about text graphics used alone. It found that while text can help viewers remember information in difficult stories, it often doesn’t hold viewers’ attention.

So Muhyiddin’s own solution, adding movement to the text, appears to have been a good solution.

Author: Kyle James

photo: flickr/Affiliate

For too many broadcasters, social media still remains something of an afterthought. A producer might promote an upcoming program on the Facebook page or send out a tweet. But really, much more can and should be done. These days, social media needs to be part of the entire broadcast production process.

There are broadcasters out there who are really taking advantage of social media, and using it in innovative ways. Al Jazeera English, for example, has a program called The Stream that explores the potential of social media to disseminate news. The show brings together online sources and discussions while looking for new voices and perspectives traditional media might miss.

NPR, the public radio network in the United States, has not only posted especially good stories that were broadcast on the radio on their Facebook and Twitter feeds, they are also soliciting content from listeners. This Fall, they put out a call to Americans living outside the US to tell NPR how they planned on celebrating the holiday of Thanksgiving. In another series, called Project Expat, the station asked for comments and stories from expats and even called on them to record sounds from their home away from home. Expat experiences were played on the radio and pictures and text stories went on the NPR website.

While cool broadcasting/social media link-ups are happening, many stations aren’t exploiting the full potential. Maybe they still think of Facebook as a place for talking about what you had for breakfast. More likely, they don’t think they have the staff or the time to add another task to their already packed days.

photo: flickr/@notnixon

But stations that neglect social media run the risk of losing relevance, and losing their audiences. And these stations are also bypassing an incredibly useful tool that can add a great deal of value to their broadcast content and general news operation.

The BBC jumped head first into online journalism early on and has since made a commitment to social media. In fact, last October, the BBC announced it had signed a new partnership with Twitter Amplify, a video promotion tool. It’s the first partnership between Amplify and a global broadcaster.

The BBC has said it feels social media has three highly valuable journalistic roles:

• a platform for content – it’s a way of getting its journalism out there, in short form or as a tool to take people to their journalism on the BBC website, TV or radio networks. It engages different and younger audiences
• newsgathering – it helps reporters gather more, and sometimes better, material and find a range of voices, ideas and eyewitnesses quickly.
• audience engagement – allows better listening to and talking with the audience, and allows the BBC to speak to different groups.

So what is your media outlet waiting for?

Boosting the social component

DW Akademie recently held a workshop at the Women’s Media Centre (WMC), a radio station and television production organization based in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. The goal was to help producers and editors understand the importance of social media and how they might use it effectively.

photo: flickr/moneyticketspassport.com

It’s a fascinating time for social media in Cambodia. While Facebook arrived in Cambodia in 2008, it was mostly used to flirt and share funny pictures. But around 2010, people, young people mostly, began using it to share information about societal problems, like a daytime robbery, a hit-and-run traffic accident, even illegal logging. But its use really exploded in 2013 during controversial national elections. In a country where most of the media faithfully toes the government line, Facebook became an outlet for free expression. And young people showed they weren’t afraid to speak up, or at least post their thoughts on political events. It was a first.

In the WMC workshop, while everyone knew about Facebook, YouTube and general posting, they didn’t really understand how to use the platforms well. Others, like Twitter, Soundcloud, etc., were unknown.

photo: Kyle James

My co-trainer and I stressed the need to incorporate social media into all parts of the production process to add value to the broadcasts and start conversations – between the station and the audience and among audience members themselves.

Because these days, the best advertising is through word of mouth from friends, not from ads. And if friends are talking about something interesting on the WMC Facebook site, that’s the best way to get others to tune in to the radio program or TV series.

Here’s a quick breakdown of some of the ways the workshop participants came up with for integrating social media into the entire production process, using it for research, distribution and collaboration.

Pre-production  

Find experts, ask your audience what topics they want covered and for specific questions, or to share their experiences around a certain issue. Announce the upcoming show, then feature profiles of guests  or even short clips if you have them.

Production

Link social media feeds to the station website during the live feed. Post pictures from the studio during the show and accept questions live from your audience to ask your guest. Tweet the most interesting answers from your guests, making something of a highlight feed.

Post-Production

Post the audio/video and edited versions on your social media platforms. Think about producing a behind-the-scenes gallery or video or profile one of your presenters – build up a personal connection with your audience. Get their feedback on what they liked and didn’t about the show, and respond to it. This also serves as useful research to make your content even better next time around.

After the five days of the workshop (which sped by like greased lightning), WMC staff said they were no longer going to leave all the social media responsibilities in the hands of one outside contractor. Staying active on Facebook, YouTube and other platforms were going to simply become part of everyone’s job description.

A smart move.

“Social media can’t belong to one person. It needs to be part of everyone’s job. It has to be integrated into the existing editorial process and production process.”

–-Jennifer Preston, former social media editor at The New York Times

Author: Kyle James

(Click on the Playlist above to watch the four feature stories produced during the workshop by the teams from NBC, MBC-TV, Muvi-TV and Multi TV.)

Following the recent workshop in Namibia, DW Akademie Project Manager André Surén talked to onMedia about how the African Stories team are training crews to produce stories in a reportage style that strives for more dynamic filming through moving the camera and following action.

How do you train camera operators to achieve this more dynamic style of reporting?

AS: Most of the camera operators that we train on African Stories already know how to do the basics such as filming a sequence in 5 shots.  So, the big challenge for them is to sort of forget a little bit about some of the things they have previously learned. It’s a different style of camera work. We try to explain to them that camera movement needs plenty of practice and we need to do some practical exercises with them. That gives them a chance to try this new style a couple of times. Then we analyze it and say to them, ‘Look here and there you have to go in more close to the face’ or ‘Here and there we have to take one step back to see more of the whole scene’. After a while they really realize that this is a totally new style of filming and they’re usually very surprised. And we’re talking about camera operators who have had a lot of experience – they really start to learn new things.

What sorts of practical exercises help them to achieve good camera movement to follow action?

AS:  For example, the first exercise we do is usually a very simple situation and straightforward to do. For instance someone enters a cafe, orders a coffee and then the waiter brings a bill and receives the money. At first it’s challenging for them to film. But after a while they begin to understand that ‘Okay I film there, then I go this way, then need another shot from the other side’ and so on. That’s easy, but it starts to get more difficult if the action is really going fast. For example, if people are meeting each other, greeting, chatting for a while and then they GO. And they realize ‘Wait a second this is really hard because I had everything in my mind to do this, and then that and then this over shoulder shot, and a shot to one face, and another into action, and a closeup close above the hands’ or whatever. And they see that action can go very fast and they have to react quickly, it can be a bit stressful and you need to do it very fast. But we advise them carefully and say ‘Look if you miss one shot that’s fine, go to the next one’. Just be cool, be calm and follow it. And if something really doesn’t work, then you can interrupt and can say, okay lets please do it again. [Watch an example of a camera operator practicing below]

Do camera operators get a bit flustered or stressed during the training?

AS: Before we go out on location and film we train them to be relaxed and calm and to have special camera settings that makes it more easy for them for to shoot a variety of shots. Usually this more of a wide angle and a longer depth of field that allows to them to keep what they need in focus. On our Sony Z7’s we set the iris to something like F5.0 or F5.6. These small technical and planning points are important and help them not to be so stressed on a shoot.  Of course, they have to observe the basics too – checking the location for available light, checking the sound and analyzing any variables in the location before that start filming. And, if the action goes very fast, we tell them to take it easy, slow down and concentrate on what’s important. After the second and third exercise they tend to start understanding the need to be calm and they have to follow their shots. If they miss something it’s not the end of the world. I work with each team during the first couple of practical exercises, and actually help direct their movements.

So are you actually physically guiding a camera operator to perform these moves?

AS:  Yes, if I see that there is a need for it I do it definitely. And all of the camera operators are usually very comfortable with this. For example, I could see that one camera operator was not really doing very good closeups, so I guided him carefully to go in closer and to then follow the action to get wider shots with smooth movements.

What is it about these types of long feature stories and reportage style that is really challenging the crews?

AS: Lots of things. The planning starts before going out on location for sure. The research, knowing whom to interview, what kind of locations you can expect even though they may look different. But we talk together with the producers and show them how to organize themselves, how to structure their story. If that works, then the film that they want to produce is in their minds already before going out shooting. Of course nothing is written in stone. If something changes on location, fine no problem. But if you’ve got a good story and production plan then it’s easy to change your own structure. The teams have all done this on previous courses. They know things like aiming to have a good strong first picture to open their story. Or, remembering what was the last shot in the previous location and then thinking carefully about the first shot in the next location. Yes it is challenging for them but in the end they really understand that if you have this detailed planning, you get everything, you won’t miss anything, and the editing is also much faster.

What tips would you have for camera operators who want to try to achieve this sort of technique ?

AS:  They can practice by trying to film simple situations and capture 5 shots on the move. So I would suggest to ask their friends if they could film them greeting each other, or sitting and talking or whatever. So you film the scene and the interaction.  Your movement might be say a long shot, a medium shot with a different angle, then you need a different angle and a close-up of the hands, and shots to show the interaction between the two of them. Then you might move to film just the faces only.  And you try to make all the movements very, very smooth. Then edit the shots together and see what your sequence looks like. Again, it comes down to planning and practice.

What about from the other side, for producers and reporters, who need to work with the camera to try and achieve that type of look, what advice do you have for them?

André Surén

AS:  Nothing works without teamwork. There was an interesting example during African Stories. One producer said: ‘I do not need anyone, I make the decision and they have to follow it’. And after African Stories he changed his mind completely, saying ‘Nothing works without teamwork’.  And this is really important.  You have to communicate your story idea with the camera operator. You have to explain the length of the film, who you intend to interview and the different locations. They must work closely together. And this is challenging for them from the beginning because they needed more time, more advance planning, talking and organizing, but in the end they will really understand that the post-production will be much more faster and everybody is happy afterwards because they got what they needed. Communication is very important for teamwork. During African Stories we want the camera operator, the reporter or producer and the editor all working together.